Belmont's Egekeze, Cumberland's Patton garner weekly TSWA honors

December 20, 2017 Forrest Freeman

MEN’S BASKETBALL: Belmont’s Egekeze named TSWA award winner
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Belmont’s Amanze Egekeze earned Tennessee Sports Writers Association Men’s Basketball Player of the Week honors on Wednesday, posting 26.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game in a pair of victories for the Bruins.

The Lake in the Hills, Ill., native scored a career-high 32 points and added 11 rebounds against Milwaukee, connecting on 9-of-17 shots overall with six 3-pointers. He was 8-for-10 at the foul line as well for the Bruins.

The senior netted a game-high 21 points with five more 3-pointers versus Pepperdine, adding four rebounds, two assists and three steals in just 21 minutes of action. Egekeze is averaging 18.3 points and 6.3 rebounds per game this season for the Bruins.

2017-18 TSWA MEN’S BASKETBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
November 14 – Devin Whitfield, Trevecca University
November 21 – Dylan Windler, Belmont
November 28 – Grant Williams, Tennessee
December 5 – Nick King, Middle Tennessee
December 12 – Fatodd Lewis Lewis, UT Martin

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: Cumberland’s Patton garners TSWA weekly honor
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Cumberland University’s Ant’Treasia Patton earned Tennessee Sports Writer’s Association Women’s Basketball Player of the Week accolades on Wednesday, averaging 16.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists in three wins for the Phoenix.

The Nashville, Tenn., native posted nine points and seven boards in a victory over Talladega College, the team’s second victory over the Tornadoes this season. The junior collected a season-best 22 points with three 3-pointers in a 55-51 win at Stillman College, hitting 7-of-13 shots overall. It marked her first double-digit scoring outing since November 18 at Talladega, a span of seven games.

Patton followed that with 17 points and eight rebounds with the game-winning basket in a 53-51 victory against Huntington University. She scored the team’s first eight points of the contest and hit the game-winning 18-footer at the buzzer for Cumberland’s sixth consecutive victory.

Patton connected on 7-of-14 from 3-point range in the three games and made 17-of-32 shots from the field for the week. She is averaging a team-best 9.8 points along with 4.9 rebounds per game this season.

2017-18 TSWA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
November 14 – Mika Wester, Carson-Newman
November 21 – Haris Price, Carson-Newman
November 28 – Kylee Smith, Belmont
December 5 – Chelsey Shumpert, Union University
December 12 – Kendall Spray, UT Martin

All-State football squads named for 3A, 4A

December 20, 2017 Forrest Freeman

Greeneville's Cade Ballard garnered All-State accolades.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Sports Writers Association announced its 2017 Football All-State teams on Wednesday for Classes 3A and 4A, which includes six players from Greeneville in 4A and five from Alcoa in 3A.

Class 4A
OFFENSE
QB – Cade Ballard, Greeneville
QB – Stanton Martin, Anderson County
RB – Kamron Liggett, Marshall County
RB – Dontae Smith, Spring Hill
WR – Dayron Johnson, Springfield
WR – Keveon Mullins, Memphis East
WR – Dalton Wilson, Anderson County
OL – Dawson Bragg, White House
OL – Chris Everhart, Greeneville
OL – Nick Rideout, Greeneville
OL – Dave Roberts, Marshall County
OL – Thomas Roberts, Anderson County
ATH – Michael Jamahl McGhee, Chattanooga Central
K – Clayton Utley, Anderson County

DEFENSE
DL – Jordan Branch, Crockett County
DL – Jacques Gillespie-Taylor, Greeneville
DL – Tavi McLean, Marshall County
DL – Tyler McMurtry, White House
LB – Mason Phillips, Anderson County
LB – Lorenzo Stewart, East Ridge
LB – Tristan Taylor, Haywood
LB – Ty Youngblood, Greeneville
DB – D’Corion Bryant, Springfield
DB – Seth Carlisle, Macon County
DB – Michael Carroll, Anderson County
DB – Seth Crawford, Greeneville
ATH – Decourtney Reed, Haywood
P – Zac Courter, Grainger

Class 3A
OFFENSE
QB – John Bachus, Giles County
QB – Woodrow Lowe III, Bolivar
RB – Kalyn Grandberry, Raleigh-Egypt
RB – Darius James, Fairview
WR – Jimmyrious Parker, Pearl-Cohn
WR – Jaylon Shepperson, Smith County
WR – K.J. Zeigler, Giles County
OL – Jaalon Gupton, Stratford
OL – Briason Mays, Bolivar
OL – Lucas McKeehan, Alcoa
OL – Chandler Page, Pearl-Cohn
OL – Bryson Perkins, Alcoa
ATH – Calvin Jackson III, Red Bank
K – Zeke Rankin, Alcoa

DEFENSE
DL – Tristan Woody, Alcoa
DL – Matthew Escobar, Austin-East
DL – Lukas Neely, Claiborne County
DL – Jamel Davis, Red Bank
LB – Jack Warwick, Alcoa
LB – David Anderson, Pearl-Cohn
LB – Triston Hampton, Sycamore
LB – Tristan Mann, Fairview
DB – Isaiah Ligon, Austin-East
DB – Brian Thompson, East Nashville
DB – Quentin Booker, Covington
DB – Juliun Lane, West Greene
ATH – Ethan Barker, Sequatchie County
P – Eddie Hakizamana, Austin-East

TSWA names All-State football teams for 5A, 6A

December 19, 2017 Forrest Freeman

Quarterback Dylan Hopkins led Maryville to the 6A state championship in 2017.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Sports Writers Association announced its 2017 Football All-State teams on Tuesday for Classes 5A and 6A, which includes four players from Oakland and three from Cordova in 6A and five from Knoxville Catholic and three from Beech in 5A.

Class 6A
OFFENSE
QB – Dylan Hopkins, Maryville
QB – Carson Shacklett, Brentwood
RB – Jeremy Banks, Cordova
RB – Savion Davis, Riverdale
WR – Jacolby Hewitt, Cordova
WR – Jared McCray, Cane Ridge
WR: Lameric Tucker, Bradley Central
OL – Branson Boone, Oakland
OL – Jerome Carvin, Cordova
OL – Max Iyama, Siegel
OL – Cole Mabry, Brentwood
OL – Max Martini, Germantown
ATH – Greg Williams, White Station
K – Aaron Sears, Oakland

DEFENSE
DL – Christian Cantrell, Oakland
DL – Cade Hoppe, Mt. Juliet
DL – Brailyn Jackson, Hardin Valley
DL – Devon Robinson, Whitehaven
LB – Jahsun Bryant, Cane Ridge
LB – Drew Butler, Farragut
LB – Bryson Eason, Whitehaven
LB – Anthony McCarthy, Ravenwood
DB – Will Orren, Maryville
DB – Woodi Washington, Oakland
DB – Jaylin Williams, Germantown
DB – Rayshad Williams, Whitehaven
ATH – Alontae Taylor, Coffee County
P – Thomas Burks, Blackman

Class 5A
OFFENSE
QB – Kolten Gibson, Walker Valley
QB – Grayson Tramel, Shelbyville
RB – Tai Carter, Summit
RB – Kaemon Dunlap, Beech
WR – Avery Brown, Shelbyville
WR – Shawn Marcum, Campbell County
WR – Zeke Westfield, Walker Valley
OL – Ollie Lane, Gibbs
OL – Mason Leatherwood, Summit
OL – Cade Mays, Knoxville Catholic
OL – Cole Pulley, Beech
OL – Bryn Tucker, Knoxville Catholic
ATH – Darian Davis, Columbia
K – Paxton Robertson, Knoxville Catholic

DEFENSE
DL – Adarius Cox, Oak Ridge
DL – Jordan Davis, Southwind
DL – Tyreece Edwards, Knoxville West
DL – Marcus Webb, Munford
LB – Drew Francis, Knoxville West
LB – Ty Boeck, Soddy-Daisy
LB – Chaz Williamson, Beech
LB – Cobe Angel, Oak Ridge
DB – Hunter Huff, Knox Halls
DB – Caleb McQueen, Kenwood
DB – D.J. Mitchell, Knoxville Catholic
DB – T.J. Neal, Hillsboro
ATH – Dashon Bussell, Knoxville Catholic
P – Ian Cummins, Knoxville Central

TSWA announces 2018 Hall of Fame class

December 14, 2017 Forrest Freeman

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – A former president of the Tennessee Sports Writers Association and a man once honored by this association as a sports writer of the year join a one-time writer for the Memphis Press-Scimitar in the TSWA’s 2018 Hall of Fame class, announced this week by the organization. The 2018 Hall of Fame induction is set for Thursday, July 12 in Baird Chapel on the campus of Cumberland University.

MIKE HUTCHENS, Union City Daily Messenger
A native of South Fulton and graduate of South Fulton High School, Hutchens attended Motlow State College in Tullahoma. He is a 34-year newspaper veteran with the Union City Daily Messenger with more than 165 individual writing, photography and design awards for the UCDM and its sister publication, the Weakley County Press.

He's won awards in the Tennessee Sports Writers Association, Tennessee Press Association and Tennessee Associated Press Managing Editors contests. He is a four-time Tennessee Sports Writers Association Writer of the Year (2006, 2010, 2013, 2016) and former two-time TSWA president. Hutchens' preseason football tabloid has been named best in state 18 times in a 20-year period by either the Tennessee Press Association or TSWA.

He worked in dual roles, also serving as sports coordinator for The Messenger’s sister publication, The Weakley County Press in Martin, for five years. Hutchens has chaired or been a member of numerous high school all-state committees as well as a number of TSSAA committees. He also was inducted into the Union City High School Hall of Honors in 2013, the only non-Union City athlete, coach or administrator to ever have been included in that group.

Hutchens has covered 12 high school state team championships in Obion County while also covering area and state college athletics throughout his career. He has also covered the NFL’s Tennessee Titans since the team moved to Nashville. A noted motivational speaker to a number of West Tennessee and Western Kentucky high schools, Hutchens has co-hosted a local high school radio pregame football show on WENK for more than 20 years.

MIKE STRANGE, Knoxville News-Sentinel
Strange got his start with the Kentucky Kernel while in journalism school at the University of Kentucky. Following stints at the Middlesboro Daily News and Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer in his home state, he joined the Knoxville News-Sentinel in 1983. After a year on the Lady Vols basketball beat, he moved to Tennessee football and men’s basketball for the 1984 season. Strange covered both sports through his retirement in 2017.

He followed the Vols to 23 bowl games, including the 1998 national championship, and covered the basketball Vols in 12 NCAA tournaments and witnessed two of Pat Summitt’s national titles. Strange wrote the Sunday “game story” for Tennessee football from 1985 through 2016. Beginning in 2004, he added columnist to his duties.

Strange also covered 19 Kentucky Derbies and numerous NCAA championship events in track and field, tennis and softball and put in several appearances at the TSSAA Spring Fling. He was named Tennessee Sportswriter of the Year twice (1999, 2005) by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association and once by the TSWA.

PHIL STUKENBORG, The Commercial Appeal
Stukenborg is a Memphis native who graduated from the University of Memphis and first worked for the Memphis Rogues as public relations director between January-May 1980. He then went to work in April 1982 for the Press-Scimitar as a sports writer covering high school athletics, the PGA and ATP events and college football. He directed the Press-Scimitar’s coverage of the 1983 U.S. Davis Cup in St. Louis.

In October 1983, he went to work for The Commercial Appeal covering Memphis’ minor league baseball team between 1986 and 1992. He covered Memphis football between 1993 and 2014 along with the ATP event at The Racquet Club between 1990 and 2017 and the annual PGA stop in Memphis.

Stukenborg also covered the 1987 World Series, the 1990 Final Four, broke the story on Memphis joining Louisville as founding members of Conference USA and was part of the award-winning series on the 30-year anniversary of Memphis football coach Rex Dockery’s death in a plane crash. Since 1981, Stukenborg has worked as a freelancer for The Associated Press. He recently went to work for his alma mater, the University of Memphis.

Weekly award winners named by TSWA - Dec. 12

December 12, 2017 Forrest Freeman

MEN’S BASKETBALL: UT Martin’s Lewis named TSWA award winner
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – UT Martin’s Fatodd Lewis earned Tennessee Sports Writers Association Men’s Basketball Player of the Week honors on Tuesday, registering 28.5 points, 15.0 rebounds and 6.5 assists in two outings while recording a triple-double for the Skyhawks.

The Memphis, Tenn., native made 9-of-12 shots and scored 23 points while grabbing 14 rebounds in a victory at Arkansas State, UTM’s first road win of the season. The junior forward then posted the 16th triple-double in OVC history (which dates to 1948), recording 34 points, 16 boards and 12 assists versus Cincinnati-Clermont. He connected on 13-of-26 shots and made 8-for-10 at the foul line.

Lewis became the seventh player in NCAA Division I to record a triple-double this season. He is averaging 14.8 points, 9.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 10 games this year for UT Martin.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: UT Martin’s Spray garners TSWA weekly honor
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – UT Martin’s Kendall Spray earned Tennessee Sports Writer’s Association Women’s Basketball Player of the Week accolades on Tuesday, averaging 24.5 points and setting a school record for 3-pointers in a single game.

The Lebanon, Tenn., native posted 14 points at Louisville, hitting four triples while adding three rebounds and two assists. The sophomore guard then set a school single-game record for 3-pointers against Rhodes College, connecting on 11-of-18 attempts for a career-best 35 points.

Spray currently leads the nation in 3-point field goals made per game (4.7) and ranks second in total 3-point field goals made (42). She is averaging 18.8 points while shooting 49 percent from 3-point range through nine games this season.