Clinton ‘s Addi Gamble (1) goes for a short-range jump shot during Friday night’s away matchup against Campbell County. The Lady Dragons led by three points at the end of the first period and outscored the Lady Cougars 19-10 in the fourth period, but couldn’t overcome Campbell County 19-11 and 14-7 runs in the second and third periods. - Tony Cox
Clinton High School’s girls basketball team opened the new year with a loss to Campbell County on Friday night in Jacksboro.
The Lady Dragons, who have experienced their share of struggles this season, came up on the short end of a 52-47 decision to the Lady Cougars, suffering their second defeat at the hands of Campbell Countygars this season.
Campbell County won the previous meeting between the one-time District 3-AAA rivals 50-26 on Dec. 3, at the Don W. Lockard Gymnasium.
On Friday, the Lady Dragons led 10-7 at the end of the first quarter behind Lanee Carmichael’s strong start.
She scored all 10 of Clinton’s points in the opening frame. Carmichael finished with 22 points, including eight in the fourth quarter as she led a comeback effort that fell just short. She made two of Clinton’s eight 3-pointers.
The Lady Cougars bounced back in the second quarter with a 19-11 run to take a 26-21 lead at halftime.
Josie Moody scored all eight of her points in the fourth stanza. She converted a pair of long-range jumpers.Sydney Herrell scored six points, converting a pair of 3-pointers. Bailey Burroughs added five points, while Addi Gamble and Allie York finished with three points each.
Clinton’s Bryson Maddox led the Dragons’ scoring with 22 points against Campbell County. - Tony Cox
Clinton High School’s boys basketball team opened the 2025 calendar year on the road, but things didn’t go the way the Dragons would’ve liked as they lost to one-time District 3-AAA rival Campbell County.
They came up on the short end of a 54-44 decision Friday night in Jacksboro.
After slugging to an evenly-matched first quarter against the Cougars, the Dragons fell behind in the second stanza and never recovered.
The Cougars, who defeated the Dragons for the second time this season, held Clinton to just eight points in the second quarter, building a 24-19 lead at halftime and maintaining control for the rest of the game.
Campbell County extended its lead to 46-31 in the third quarter before Clinton (9-8) mounted a late rally, outscoring the Cougars 13-8 in the final period.
Bryson Maddox led the Dragons with 22 points, while Jaxson Alcorn added 12.
Clinton previously lost to Campbell County 61-54 on Dec. 3 at the Don W. Lockard Gymnasium.
The Dragons were set to host Livingston Academy on Tuesday.
Results were unavailable at press time.
Clinton was aiming to avenge an earlier 40-39 loss to the Wildcats.
TAYLOR DAVIS (0) pressures Elizabethton quarterback Rhett Slagle during Friday night’s home matchup. The stingy Mavericks defense stymied the Cyclones and held Elizabeth- ton to 14 points.
Nine area high school football players were recognized by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association when the organization recently released its all-state teams.
Class 4A
Anderson County had six players earn all-state honors.
The Mavericks’ selections included quarterback Landen Hensley, running back Waylon LaRue, wide receiver Trent Strickland, offensive lineman Eli Dorton, defensive lineman Taylor Davis and linebacker Cody Miller.
Anderson County finished the 2024 season with an 11-2 record, reaching the state semifinals.
The Mavericks also won the Region 2-4A championship and went undefeated in league play for the eighth-consecutive season.
Class 5A
Oak Ridge had two all-state selections: wide receiver Will Pressley and offensive lineman Ethan Eubanks.
The Wildcats won their second-straight Region 3-5A championship, finishing undefeated in league play for the second-consecutive season. Oak Ridge went 9-5 overall and advanced to the Class 5A state semifinals before falling to eventual state champion Sevier County, which finished 15-0.
Clinton’s lone all-state selection was wide receiver Bryson Maddox.
The Dragons qualified for the Class 5A state playoffs for the second straight year in 2024.
LaRue and Strickland also earned recognition from the Tennessee Football Coaches Association.
LaRue made the TNFCA Class 4A all-state team as a running back, while Strickland was named to the team as an athlete.
Addison Willoughby led the Lady Senators with 14 points and four rebounds in the Anderson County Middle School Christmas tourney third-place game against Huntsville.
Even in defeat, Norris Middle School girls basketball Coach Derek Wallace was pleased with his team’s effort in the third-place game of the Anderson County Middle School Christmas Tournament.
The Lady Senators (5-10) fell to Huntsville 36-30 on Monday, Dec. 30, at Anderson County High School.
“I was really proud of the girls for the way they played against Huntsville,” Wallace said.
“We had it down to a two-point game with a minute to go,” he said.
“They beat us by 23 points the first time we played them.”
Huntsville defeated Norris 42-19 in their first meeting on Nov. 14 in Scott County.
In the most recent matchup, Addison Willoughby led the Lady Senators with 14 points and four rebounds.
Addie Blevins added seven points and nine rebounds.
Norris reached the third-place game after falling to Oneida 41-18 in the tournament semifinals on Saturday, Dec. 28.
“We just didn’t play well against Oneida, but they’re pretty good,” Wallace said.
Blevins scored 13 points and grabbed six rebounds against the Lady Indians, shooting 5-for-8 from the floor.
Anderson County runners show promise at season opener
by Ken Lay
Anderson County High School kicked off its 2025 indoor track season Saturday at the KYA High School Classic, held at Vanderbilt University.
Lady Mavericks junior distance standout Ava Moody secured a sixth-place finish in the two-mile run with a time of 11 minutes, 15.83 seconds. The junior also took 13th in the one-mile run, posting a time of 5:21.00.
Carla Hanna competed in two sprint events, finishing 134th in the 60-meter dash with a time of 9.71 seconds and placing 145th in the 200-meter dash with a time of 33.85.
On the boys’ side, Anderson County had three competitors in the one-mile run finals. Cameron Hardy led the trio, finishing 32nd with a time of 4:39.87. Vance Laster followed in 35th place at 4:41.74, while J.J. Cutler placed 56th with a time of 4:49.01.
In the high jump, Ace Dunegan earned 14th place with a jump of 5 feet, 5 inches.
The Oak Ridge High School boys basketball team faced tough competition over the holidays, posting mixed results at a Christmas tournament at Centennial High School in Brentwood.
The Wildcats (9-3) split their two-day trip to the Midstate, defeating Rossview 67-51 on Dec. 28 before falling to Franklin 59-47 later that day.
“Rossview is a good team; they qualified for the state tournament in Class 4A last year,” Oak Ridge Coach Aaron Green said. “You want games like this during the holidays. These games will get us ready for the postseason.”
The Wildcats capitalized on their size advantage against Rossview, with all three post players scoring in double figures.
Guard Garrett Giles, who can score from anywhere on the court, led Oak Ridge with 22 points, doing much of his damage in the paint. Cooper Williams added 18 points, and Shamar Greene 10.
“We knew we had a size advantage inside, and we were able to take advantage of that,” Green said.
The Wildcats ended 2024 on a down note with a 59-47 loss to Franklin.
“We had guys who just didn’t play their best,” Green said.
“Franklin is definitely a possible state-tournament team this year,” he said. “They made 11 of 17 shots from three-point range.
“They have the No. 1 player in the state, and he’s going to James Madison,” Green said. “We struggled offensively, and when you don’t defend, that’s what happens.”
Ray Ray Watson led Oak Ridge with 18 points, while Williams added 15.
Oak Ridge was scheduled to host Karns on Tuesday, but results were unavailable at press time.
The Wildcats will travel to Powell on Friday, with tipoff at 7:30 p.m. at Jeff Hunter Gymnasium.
As student-athletes returned to class following the Christmas break, high school wrestlers began preparing for the final stretch of the 2024-25 regular season.
While schools were on hiatus, the Anderson County High School wrestling team stayed hard at work, competing against tough opponents.
The Mavericks, continuing a strong campaign, opened 2025 at the Brawl at the Hall in Viking Hall on the Tennessee High campus in Bristol.
The Anderson County boys returned from Northeast Tennessee with seven medals, including one gold.
“It was a good weekend for us,” Anderson County Coach Matt Slone said. “We faced some good competition there.
“We’ve been to three tough tournaments this year and wrestled well, but I would say this was the deepest tournament we’ve been in from top to bottom,” he said.
