Clinton’s Josie Moody had 16 points in the Lady Dragons’ 47-38 win over the Gibbs Eagles on Saturday night. - Tony Cox
The Anderson County High School girls basketball team turned up the defense in its District 4-AAA opener Friday night, but needed a second-half offensive surge to secure the win.
The Lady Mavericks capitalized after halftime to defeat Cumberland Gap 51-33 at home.
“It was 17-9 at halftime,” Lady Mavericks Coach Mitch Cupples said. “They [Cumberland Gap] had more turnovers than points. We forced 21 turnovers, and they only had nine points.
“We turned them over 30-plus times, but we couldn’t score many points. We did a little better in the second half. We scored 34 points.”
Despite early struggles to convert turnovers into points, Anderson County (4-4 overall, 1-0 district) had three players finish in double figures.
Emerie Bullock led with 15 points, Shelby Kelly added 11, and Bethany Lowe scored 10.
The district-opening win was a bounce back for the Lady Mavericks, who had faced a tough loss earlier in the week.
Clinton High School’s girls basketball team entered the 2024-25 season with high hopes, but has faced early struggles, winning just three of its first 10 games.
The Lady Dragons picked up a hard-fought road victory Saturday, opening their District 4-AAA schedule with a 47-38 win over Gibbs in Corryton.
After trailing for much of the first half, the Lady Dragons rallied to tie the game at 20-20 by halftime.
The contest remained close until Clinton mounted a decisive fourth-quarter run, outscoring the Lady Eagles 27-18 in the final 16 minutes.
Josie Moody led Clinton with 16 points, including eight in the crucial fourth quarter. Lanee Carmichael added 12 points, helping the Lady Dragons secure a much-needed district win.
Senior Kaden Ison (34) and freshman Brendon Hayden (12) scuffle for the ball with several Gibbs players during last Saturday’s District 4-AAA matchup in Corryton. The Dragons mounted a second-half comeback to beat the Eagles 53-46 - Tony Cox
Playing without its head coach, the Clinton High School boys basketball team opened District 4-AAA play with a hard-fought 53-46 road win over Gibbs on Saturday night in Corryton.
The Dragons (7-5 overall, 1-0 district) had to come from behind to secure the victory in Northeast Knox County.
Clinton opened the game with a 5-0 run before Gibbs closed the first quarter with a 15-2 spurt to take a 15-7 lead.
The Eagles controlled the first half and carried a slim 24-22 advantage into the break.
After halftime, the Dragons slowed the pace and began using their height advantage inside during the defensive struggle.
Forward Kaden Ison led the way with 22 points, many of which came in the second half.
“Kaden had a big game for us,” said interim coach Chase Lockard, who stepped in for his father, Chris Lockard. The elder Lockard was serving a suspension after being ejected during Clinton’s 84-54 loss to Oak Ridge on Monday, Dec. 9.
Anderson County High School’s boys basketball team is finding its identity as the 2024-25 season progresses.
The Mavericks have won two of their last three games, showing improvement and discovering their shooting touch.
Anderson County capped the week Friday night with a dominant 82-39 victory over Cumberland Gap in its District 4-AAA opener at home.
Brandon Dake led the Mavericks with 27 points, one of three players in double figures. Cam Lawson added 22 points, while Hayden Craig finished with 13.
“We haven’t played well offensively, and we’re still trying to get it all figured out, but last week, we made some shots and we got Dake going a little bit,” Mavericks Coach Jordan Jeffers said. “He’s been struggling.”
Malik Howard (4) was one of five Wildcats to score in double digits during Oak Ridge’s 76-46 win over Central. - Tony Cox
The Oak Ridge High School boys basketball team overcame a slow start to cruise to a dominant 76-46 District 3-4A victory over Knoxville Central on Friday night in Fountain City.
Midway through the first quarter, the Wildcats held a narrow 5-3 lead when Coach Aaron Green called a timeout to regroup his team.
The pep talk worked. Oak Ridge (5-1 overall, 2-0 district) closed the quarter on a 13-0 run and held an 18-3 lead after the opening frame.
“We weren’t finishing early,” Green said. “After the timeout, we started to do a better job. I think they only made five field goals in the first half, and that was a big difference in the game for us.”
Central’s only first-quarter points came from a three-pointer by Parker Hampton.
The Bobcats managed just four field goals in the second quarter as Oak Ridge’s post players Cooper Williams and Shamar Greene dominated the paint.
“We knew that we had the advantage inside, and we wanted to get the ball down there,” Green said.
Evaiya Mitchell (4) tossed in 12 points in the Lady Wildcats’ district meeting with Central’s Lady Bobcats. Oak Ridge dominated Central with a 22-5 opening first quarter and never looked back. The Lady Wildcats won the game 67-28 and remained undefeated in the 2024-25 season. - Tony Cox
Despite early shooting struggles, the Oak Ridge High School girls basketball team kept its perfect record intact with a dominant District 3-4A victory late last week.
The Lady Wildcats overcame some unkind rims in Fountain City, shaking off early shooting woes to cruise past a young Knoxville Central team 67-28.
Lady Wildcats Ccoach Paige Taylor acknowledged her team’s history of slow starts at Central’s gym.
“We’ve had trouble with that over here before,” Taylor said. “If we would’ve been able to hit a few of those shots, we would’ve been ahead by more.”
Oak Ridge (6-0 overall, 2-0 in the district) pushed through its shooting troubles to build a commanding 22-5 lead by the end of the first quarter. The Lady Wildcats extended the margin to 35-14 at halftime and 54-22 by the end of the third quarter.
Robertsville Middle School’s boys basketball team had been struggling heading into last week, having split their previous four games.
The Rams regained their winning form by sweeping three conference contests, capped by a 47-33 victory over crosstown rival Jefferson on Saturday at Wildcat Arena.
Tre Threat led the Rams with 13 points against the Eagles. La’Meire Porter added 11, while Josiah McClure chipped in 10. Kashton Seaman and Tavin Seaman scored six points each, and Braylon Payne finished with one.
“It was a clean sweep for us this week,” Robertsville Coach John Spratling said. “Those were three big wins, and they were all conference games.
“Then, you had the Jefferson game — a conference game and a rivalry game. It’s always big to get that one. It’s always going to be a good game and close because we always want to beat them, and they always want to beat us.”
On Thursday, the Rams routed Cherokee to open the second half of their conference schedule.
Porter tallied 21 points, while Kashton Seaman scored 17. Threat added 14, and McClure finished with six.
On Monday, Dec. 9, the Rams crushed LaFollette 66-16, with Porter leading the way with 24 points. Tavin Seaman contributed 12, while Payne and Threat each scored eight. Kashton Seaman added five, McClure four, and Hayden Free and Kalil Wooten scored two apiece. Malik Teasley added one.
The Rams played their final game before the holiday break against Jacksboro on Monday, though results were not available at press time.
Anderson County High School’s boys wrestling team faced elite competition over the weekend at the Smoky Mountain Duals at the Rocky Top Sports Complex in Gatlinburg.
The Mavericks experienced both triumph and challenge in a tournament featuring top programs from the Southeast and Midwest.
“We saw some really tough competition,” ACHS Coach Matt Slone said. “Lakeway Christian was there, and they have one of the best private school programs in Tennessee. Then you have Heritage.”
The Mavericks had mixed results against those squads, falling to Lakeway Christian 57-21, but edging Heritage 45-36.
Anderson County also faced Cabell Midland, a top team from West Virginia, losing 66-11.
“They were a really good team out of West Virginia, and they wrestle in the top classification there,” Slone said.
The first season of the Knox County Flag Football League has concluded, and the Anderson County Lady Mavericks ended their inaugural campaign on a high note.
Anderson County (10-2 overall, 8-2 in region play) closed out the regular season with two wins at Eddie Courtney Stadium in Farragut on Monday, Nov. 9.
The Lady Mavericks defeated Austin-East 18-6 before topping host Farragut 27-12.
Defense has been the Lady Mavericks’ hallmark all season, and the final week was no exception.
Anderson County possibly made league history against Austin-East when Ava Wilson tackled a Lady Roadrunners player in her own end zone for a safety.
“I think that’s the first time anybody has ever done that in this league,” Anderson County Coach Jonathan Cotton said.
Defensive coordinator Ryan Moog received praise from Cotton for crafting a scheme that helped the team succeed.
“Coach Ryan Moog has done such a great job,” Cotton said.
“I had him coach the defense, and he came up with a system that the girls could understand,” he said.
Offensively, starting quarterback Keianna Gillum missed the game against Austin-East.
She was replaced by freshman Izzy Auilisio, who managed to lead the team’s offense effectively.
Gillum returned for the Farragut game and threw four touchdown passes, including one to Sophie Crumpley, marking her first touchdown reception of the season.
Bralee Hall, Chloe Freeman, and Kaycee Baldwin also made key receptions throughout the night, helping the Lady Mavericks finish their season with momentum and pride.
The Clinch River Chapter of Trout Unlimited will host a nine-week introductory fly tying course beginning Jan. 18 at the Norris Community Building, 20 Chestnut Road.
The classes, held Saturday mornings from 9 a.m. to noon, will run through March 15.
Participants will learn to tie nine proven fly patterns specific to the Clinch River, completing more than 50 flies by the end of the program.
“You don’t need to own equipment or be a Trout Unlimited member to participate,” said Bob Stephan, vice president of the Clinch River Chapter of Trout Unlimited.
“We’ll provide everything you need.”
The cost for the class is $135, and space is limited to 12 participants. Equipment and materials, along with an instructional guide, will be provided.
For additional details, including registration and payment information, visit crctu.org or email clinchriverchapter@gmail.com.
