Top Wildcats earn year-end honors

June 17, 2026 by Ken Lay

Oak Ridge High School recently named its athletes and coach of the year for the 2025-26 school year.

Lady Wildcats soccer player Hayven Laurendine was named female athlete of the year.

Laurendine scored 27 goals and recorded seven assists in 2025. She also had five hat tricks for Oak Ridge last season. A Samford signee, Laurendine finished her career with 76 goals, a mark that ranks fourth all time among both boys and girls in school history.

Baseball player Mikee Teasley and track and field distance specialist Mason Greenhalgh shared male athlete of the year honors.

Teasley, a University of Tennessee signee and two-way standout for the Wildcats, was named Class 4A Mr. Baseball for the second consecutive year after posting a .414 batting average and a 1.17 ERA.

He went a perfect 11-0 on the mound as he helped lead Oak Ridge to the Region 2-4A tournament championship and a third consecutive Class 4A state tournament appearance. He also struck out 145 batters.

Greenhalgh, a three-sport athlete who excels in cross country, swimming and track and field, shared athlete of the year honors after winning the 800-meter run at the TSSAA Class AAA state championships at the University of Tennessee’s Tom Black Track in Knoxville. He crossed the finish line in 1 minute, 52.51 seconds.

ORHS baseball Coach Travis Free earned coach of the year honors after guiding the Wildcats to the Region 2-4A tournament championship. He also led ORHS to a third-consecutive state tournament appearance. Oak Ridge finished 34-11-1 in 2026.

Photos courtesy of ORHS Sporst Media.