TSWA honors all-state wrestling teams

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Sports Writers Association announced its 2019 Wrestling All-State teams on Tuesday for Division I and Division II as well as girls. Student-athletes are selected based on their finish in the TSSAA Championships.

BOYS
AAA
106
Trae McDaniel, Cleveland, So.
Chris Calvin, McGavock, So.
Brayden Ivy, Morristown West, Fr.
Ethan Wilson, Bradley Central, Jr.

113
Jackson Bradford, Cleveland, So.
Thomas Borders, Wilson Central, So.
Samuel Shires, Rossview, Fr.
Brennan Watkins, Dobyns-Bennett, So.

120
Michael Cannon, Arlington, Sr.
Andrew Artiles, Collierville, Jr.
Jacob Haney, Lawrence County, Sr.
William Witt, Cane Ridge, Sr.

126
Brayden Palmer, Beech, Sr.
Braxton Mann, Science Hill, So.
Luke Dezember, Lawrence County, Sr.
Steven Fisak, Wilson Central, Fr.

132
Christian Isbell, Clarksville, Jr.
Luke Kerns, Arlington, Sr.
Logan Whiteside, Cleveland, Sr.
Thomas Williams, Rossview, Jr.

138
Dillon Pendley, Tennessee, Sr.
Cameron Henderson, Smyrna, Sr.
Job Dooley, Franklin, Sr.
Jackson Hurst, Dobyns-Bennett, So.

145
Grant Lundy, Cleveland, Sr.
Alex Pergande, Wilson Central, Sr.
Matheson Meade, Bearden, So.
Cole Klingensmith, Summit, Sr.

152
Austin Sweeney, Cleveland, Sr.
Jeremiah Herron, Beech, Sr.
Logan Ferguson, Tennessee, Sr.
Jalen Brown, Blackman, Sr.

160
Dominic Fields, Tennessee, Sr.
Josh Pietarila, Hardin Valley, Jr.
Ryan Brown, Lebanon, Sr.
Levi Stone of Wilson Central, Jr.

170
Chase Diehl, Science Hill, Sr.
Landon Fowler, Blackman, Sr.
Dylan Quinn, Mt. Juliet, Sr.
Gabriel Smith, Clarksville, Jr.

182
Austin Antcliffe, Arlington, Sr.
Brooks Sacharczyk, Blackman, Jr.
Jonah Albert, Franklin, Sr.
Camden Buckingham, Morristown West, Sr.

195
Bradley Williams, Clarksville, Sr.
Isaiah Perez, Cleveland, Sr.
Devin Gibson, Bradley Central, Sr.
Christian Moolman, Franklin, Sr.

220
Skylar Coffey, Brentwood, Jr.
Logan McMillan, Rossview, Sr.
Garrett Smith, Rhea County, Sr.
Wilson Benefield, Cleveland, Sr.

285
Michael Kramer, Wilson Central, Sr.
Jadon Langford, Walker Valley, So.
Jared Dawson, Collierville, Jr.
Titus Swafford, Cleveland, Sr.

A-AA
106
Ty Holland, Harpeth, Jr.
Caleb Uhorchuk, Signal Mountain, 8th grade
Riley Lippincott, Nolensville, So.
Josh Wallin, Greeneville, Sr.

113
Daniel Uhorchuk, Signal Mountain, So.
Hunter Morrell, Elizabethton, Jr.
Colton Poole, Pigeon Forge, Sr.
Haiden Dill, Chattanooga Central, Sr.

120
Trevor Lewis, Hixson, So.
Josh Parton, Pigeon Forge, Fr.
Dalton Truan, Union County, Sr.
Cole McCartney, Greenbrier, Jr.

126
Kodiak Cannedy, Greeneville, Fr.
Nathan Ford, Greenbrier, Sr.
Jr Lucio, Harpeth, Jr.
John Pittman, Gibbs, So.

132
Dylan Becker, Harpeth, Sr.
Riley Bennett, Fairview, So.
Garrett Foreman, Pigeon Forge, Fr.
Sam Wickizer, Signal Mountain, Sr.

138
Jeffrey Gross, Forrest, Sr.
Kevin Muschel, Signal Mountain, So.
CJ Dyer, Pigeon Forge, Sr.
George Gillman, Gibbs, Jr.

145
Colby Dalon of Pigeon Forge, Fr.
Tyree Bass of Sycamore, Sr.
Will Keener, Sequatchie County, Sr.
Ryan Wimbley, Alcoa, Jr.

152
Andrew Baiamonte, Pigeon Forge, Sr.
Preston Worley, Signal Mountain, So.
Wyatt McLemore, Eagleville, So.
Bransen O’Dell, Greeneville, Sr.

160
Wesley McCoy, Forrest, Sr.
Caden Cline, Red Bank, Jr.
Jake Woodlief, Signal Mountain, Sr.
Elijah Davis, Fulton, Sr.

170
Nick McClendon, Forrest, Jr.
Isaiah Brooks, Gibbs, Sr.
Robert White, Fairview, Sr.
Josh Gardner, Fulton, Sr.

182
Trent Knight, Greeneville, Sr.
Allen Ashworth, Whitwell Sr.
Chris Taylor, Elizabethton, Sr.
Kwon Park, Eagleville, Sr.

195
Jonathan Morton, Elizabethton, So.
Noah Hill, Forrest, So.
Michael Myers, Gibbs, Sr.
Jacob McCarter, Pigeon Forge, Sr.

220
Ethan Rainey, White House, Sr.
Wes Miller, Nolensville, Sr.
Noah Evans, Alcoa, Sr.
Joel Griffin, Gibbs, Sr.

285
Jackson Clevenger, Fairview, Sr.
Devotis McCurdy, Hixson, Jr.
James Headrick, Whitwell, Jr.
Garrison Albino, Gibbs, Jr.

Division II
106
Jackson Bond, Baylor School, Fr.
Keyveon Roller, Christian Academy of Knoxville, Fr.
Dayne Dalrymple, Christian Brothers, So.
Brooks McAfee, Father Ryan, Fr.

113
John Braman, The McCallie School, So.
Cade Holloway, Notre Dame, Sr.
Calvin Eason, Father Ryan, Fr.
Kade Hartine, Baylor School, So.

120
Emory Taylor, The McCallie School, So.
Aiden Bowers, Christian Brothers, Fr.
Thomas Wesnofske, Father Ryan, So.
Frank Perazzini, Montgomery Bell Academy, So.

126
Noah Horst, Baylor School, Jr.
Evan Anthony, Christian Brothers, So.
Christian Morris, The McCallie School, So.
Will Higgins, Montgomery Bell Academy, Jr.

132
Garrison Dendy, Baylor School, Fr.
Nathan Wysong, The McCallie School, Sr.
Sean Pitts, Father Ryan, Fr.
Adam Garfinkel, Montgomery Bell Academy, So.

138
Garrett Bowers, Christian Brothers, Jr.
Houston Church, Father Ryan, Sr.
Zachary Ward, The McCallie School, Sr.
Wyatt Andrews, Montgomery Bell Academy, Sr.

145
Andrew Pace, Baylor School, Sr.
Jacorey Miller, Father Ryan, Jr.
Zack Tieng, Knox Webb, Sr.
Christian Howard, Memphis University School, So.

152
James Whitworth, The McCallie School, So.
Lawrence Madson, Father Ryan, Jr.
Logan Spell, Brentwood Academy, So.
Jason Motley, Baylor School, So.

160
Gavin Cagle, Christian Academy of Knoxville, So.
Elijah Hodge, Christian Brothers, Sr.
Dan McGuire, Montgomery Bell Academy, Jr.
Jack Revere, Battle Ground Academy, So.

170
Mason Reiniche, Baylor School, Sr.
Parker Peterson, Father Ryan, So.
Russell Barry, The McCallie School, Sr.
Dolan Eckhart, Battle Ground Academy, Sr.

182
Thomas Sell, The McCallie School, Sr.
Connor Duffy, Baylor School, Jr.
Henry Hagey, Father Ryan, Sr.
Theo Sewell, Christian Brothers, So.

195
David Harper, Baylor School, Fr.
Montana Doty, Christian Brothers, Sr.
Chase Looper, The McCallie School, Jr.
Joseph Dyer, Nashville Christian, Sr.

220
Al Wooten, Christian Brothers, Jr.
Dominic Fisher, Montgomery Bell Academy, Sr.
Stephen Christenbury, Memphis University School, Sr.
Will Taylor, Brentwood Academy, Sr.

285
Thomas Gore, Brentwood Academy
Ryan Jackson, Friendship Christian
Jacob Brigman, Notre Dame
Felix Wilson, Father Ryan

GIRLS
103
Avery Kibelbelk, David Crockett, Fr.
Elizabeth Raper, Cookeville, Fr.
Kortney Brinkley, Siegel, Sr.
Anna Fisher, Alcoa, So.

112
Kerra Strevel, Heritage, So.
Bryce White, Cane Ridge, Fr.
Kelsi Broyles, West Greene, Sr.
Taylor Roy, David Crockett, Sr.

119
Isabella Badon, Daniel Boone, Sr.
Tyesha Thomas, Elizabethton, So.
Kaityn Lee, Mt. Juliet, Sr.
Kaleigh Royal, Tullahoma, Jr.

125
Robin Yunis, Rossview, Jr.
Sonoma Davis, Sullivan East, So.
Lexie May, Daniel Boone, Fr.
Kaylee Hayes, Gibbs, Jr.

132
Emma Walker, Rossview, Jr.
Tay Tay Payne, Dickson County, So.
Miranda Lovelace, Creek Wood, Jr.
Leann Worley, Jefferson County, So.

140
Maura Hart, Cookeville, Sr.
Saqara Buchanan, Rossview, Jr.
Katy Champion, Tullahoma, So.
Carlie Brown, Science Hill, So.

150
Vivian Hurn, Montgomery Central, Jr.
Taylor Whitehurst, White House, Sr.
Taylor Rickley, Northwest, Jr.
Allison Franco, Warren County, Sr.

160
Kyelia Maxwell, Rossview, Sr.
Caitlyn Gilmore, Sycamore, Sr.
Brianna Teasley, Northwest, Sr.
Morgan Ratliff, Science Hill, Jr.

170
Jane Allen, Tullahoma, Sr.
Deyla Brito-Perez, Northwest, Sr.
Shelby Zacharias, Creek Wood, So.
Mazzy Wilson, Stone Memorial, Fr.

190
Catherine Palmieri, Northwest, Sr.
Ariyanna Anderson, Creek Wood, Fr.
Rose Gailah, Nashville Overton, Jr.
Meralay Baysin, Tullahoma, So.

215
Valerie Smith, McGavock Comprehensive, Fr.
Novalee Feichko, Northwest, Sr.
Jayla Washington, Cordova, Jr.
Taylor Davis, Heritage, Jr.

Bowling all-state teams announced by TSWA

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Sports Writers Association announced its 2019 Bowling All-State teams on Tuesday for Division I and Division II. Student-athletes are selected based on their finish in the TSSAA Championships.

Boys Bowling
Division I
Josh Meeke, Smyrna, Sr.
Jacob Watts, White House, Sr.
Trevor Brady, Sante Fe, Jr.
Ben Harmon, Hardin County, Sr.
Phillip Rogers, Rhea County, Jr.

Division II
Dalton Karstens, Friendship Christian, Sr.
C.J. Petrin, Notre Dame, So.
Andrew Haun, The McCallie School, So.
Jett Hieronymus, The McCallie School, Jr.
Tony Craig, Christian Brothers, Jr.

Girls Bowling
Division I
Faith Welch, Hardin County, Sr.
Kailee Channell, Hardin County, So.
Natily Haro, Walker Valley, Sr.
Baylee Shipley, Rhea County, Sr.
Danielle Jedlicki, Siegel, Sr.

Division II
Olivia Van Hooser, Friendship Christian, 8th grade
Emily Wilson, St. Agnes, Sr.
Leah Hayes, Clarksville Academy, So.
Kaelyn Thomas, Donelson Christian Academy, Sr.
Cassie Cottrell, Friendship Christian, Fr.

TSWA announces college basketball players, coaches of the year

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee’s Grant Williams and Rick Barnes earned Men’s Basketball Player and Coach of the Year accolades while Belmont’s Darby Maggard and Tennessee Tech’s Kim Rosamond garnered Women’s Basketball honors, as announced this week by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association. The players and coaches will be honored during the annual TSWA Hall of Fame dinner set for July 11 at Cumberland University in Lebanon, Tenn.

Williams established himself as one of the nation’s most versatile and efficient players during the 2018-19 season, averaging 18.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.1 steals per game. He made 57 percent from the field and 82 percent at the foul line.

The unanimous First Team All-America selection led the SEC in scoring, becoming the ninth Vol to become the league’s scoring champion, and ranked in the top 10 in the conference in field goal percentage (2nd), free throw percentage (5th), rebounding (7th) and assist/turnover ratio (10th).

Williams became the 10th player ever to win SEC Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons. He helped the Vols (31-6) earn their first Sweet Sixteen bid since 2014 and match the program record for wins in a single season.

Barnes was named the winner of the 2019 Werner Ladder Naismith Men’s Coach of the Year Award for guiding the Vols to one the best campaigns in program history. Barnes also won the USBWA’s 2019 Henry Iba Coach of the Year Award, leading Tennessee to a school-record tying 31 wins and a school-record 19-game win streak.

For the first time in school history, Tennessee spent the entire season ranked in the Top 10 nationally and the Vols occupied the No. 1 spot in both major polls for four consecutive weeks. The Vols concluded their season in the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA Tournament. It marked the seventh career Sweet Sixteen appearance for Barnes, and in doing so, he became just the 12th head coach to lead at least three different Division I programs to the Round of 16.

Maggard capped a record-breaking career at Belmont, garnering her fourth consecutive First Team All-OVC honor as well as OVC Player of the Year accolades. She averaged a career-high 17.0 points per game with 4.2 assists to lead the Bruins to a fourth straight OVC title and NCAA Tournament appearance.

She also shot 92.9 percent on free throws for the year, including a stretch of 48 straight makes that set the OVC record and ranks 14th on the NCAA’s all-time list. Maggard was named a finalist for the WBCA’s Ann Meyers Drysdale Award for the nation’s top shooting guard and was named to the watch list for the WBCA’s Wade Trophy given to the nation’s top player.

She finished her career with 2,031 points and a school- and OVC-record 430 made 3-pointers, the fourth most made triples in NCAA history. She’s also the only player in NCAA history to make at least 400 3-pointers and dish out 650 assists in her career.

Rosamond was voted OVC Coach of the Year after leading the Golden Eagles to a 22-11 overall record and 12-6 mark in the league. It marked the most overall victories for TTU since 2010-11 and the most conference wins since 2012-13. It was also a 15-win turnaround from 2017-18, with Tech picked to finish seventh in the preseason standings but posting a fourth-place showing.

The Golden Eagles won their first game in the OVC Tournament since 2013 and earned their first postseason bid since 2012, reaching the quarterfinals of the Women’s Basketball Invitational. Tech won its first game in the WBI, the program’s first postseason victories since 2006.

Rosamond also became the first TTU head coach since Marynell Meadors to defeat Middle Tennessee, UT Martin and Belmont in the same season.

Brent, Rick Stockstill garner TSWA college football awards

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Middle Tennessee’s Brent and Rick Stockstill were voted Football Player and Coach of the Year, as announced this week by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association. The duo will be honored during the annual TSWA Hall of Fame dinner set for July 11 at Cumberland University in Lebanon, Tenn.

Rick Stockstill earned Coach of the Year accolades, leading the Blue Raiders to their first Conference USA East Division title and a spot in the C-USA championship game. Middle Tennessee played in the New Orleans Bowl, the team’s school-record fourth straight bowl appearance and fifth in the last six years.

The Blue Raiders ended the season 8-6 overall, including losses to Vanderbilt, Georgia, Kentucky and Appalachian State.

Brent Stockstill garnered Conference USA MVP and First Team All-C-USA honors, finishing his senior season ranked third nationally in completion percentage, ninth in completions per game, 13th in touchdown passes and 15th in passing yards. He threw for 3,544 yards with 29 touchdowns while completing 70.3 percent of his throws, posting five 300-yard passing contests.

He was named a semifinalist for the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year and the William V. Campbell Trophy award. Brent Stockstill was recognized as the Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week three times during the season as well as the TSWA Offensive Player of the Week three times.

Winners announced for 2018 TSWA writing contest

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Sports Writers Association released the winners of the annual writing contest this week. All of the first, second and third-place winners will be recognized during the Hall of Fame dinner and banquet on Thursday, July 11, in Baird Chapel at Cumberland University. Thanks to Ron Higgins for again coordinating the judging for all of the categories in the annual writing contest.

TSWA 2018 WRITING CONTEST RESULTS
Entries were from January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2018
Note: There were not enough entries in Division II to judge categories for best columnist, best daily section and best special section. Those who entered those categories were moved to Division I.

DIVISION I
Gary Lundy Writer of the Year: 1. Adam Sparks, The Tennessean – The depth and balance of the winner’s reporting that Vanderbilt’s administration was undercutting fundraising efforts for a football stadium project was the best story among all the Writer of the Year entries. And then he backed it up with two solid features, including a hilarious, revealing look at the Vanderbilt whistlers. 2. John Adams, Knoxville News-Sentinel. 3. Mark Wiedmer, Chattanooga Times-Free Press.

Best Daily Section: No entries.

Best Special Section: 1. Chattanooga Times-Free Press – This might be the only newspaper in America whose preseason football section is a slick 67-page magazine with insightful writing and graphics that rivals any of the best preseason mags on newsstands. For a local paper, this special section edited by Stephen Hargis is a stunning achievement. 2. Union City Messenger. 3. None awarded.

Best Columnist: 1. John Adams, Knoxville News-Sentinel – Columnists sometimes have a tendency to go overboard when hammering home an opinion, but the winner in this category has a nuanced style that’s fun to read. He knows when to take his jabs and keep moving. 2. Mark Wiedmer, Chattanooga Times-Free Press. 3. Cecil Joyce, Daily News Journal.

Best Feature Writer: 1. Adam Sparks, The Tennessean – The winner’s entry ranged the gamut from solid reporting on a story on why Vandy administrators undercut fundraising efforts for a football story project to a light, breezy touch on his feature on the aggravating Vanderbilt whistlers. The winner’s stories proved you don’t have to drone on-and-on to write effective, readable features. 2. Teresa M. Walker, Associated Press. 3. Mark Wiedmer, Chattanooga Free-Press.

Best Event Writer: 1. Mark Wiedmer, Chattanooga Times-Free Press – The easy winner in this category, the writer showed his scribing chops covering three vastly different events – the SEC football championship game, a USA regional boxing qualifier and the funeral of a popular 16-year-old basketball player. The latter two stories required a lot of legwork from the writer and it showed. 2. Adam Sparks, The Tennessean. 3. Teresa M. Walker, Associated Press.

Best News Writer: 1. Adam Sparks, The Tennessean: Had punchy ledes to get readers into story and his story organization was second-to-none. 2. Teresa M. Walker, Associated Press. 3. None awarded.

Best Prep Writer: 1. Tom Kreager, The Tennessean – Loved the balance of the three stories in the winning entry, especially from the standpoint they were all well-researched, had multiple voices in each and had great, crisp writing. There were no wasted words. 2. Stephen Hargis, Chattanooga Times-Free-Press. 3. None awarded.

DIVISION II
Gary Lundy Writer of the Year: 1. Cecil Joyce, Daily News Journal – Had three tremendous story angles, but his feature on the Murfreesboro high school girls basketball player who wears a Muslim hijab and an investigative piece on a renegade prep academy showed writing and reporting depth. The latter story was extremely well-balanced. 2. Luis Torres, Daily News Journal. 3. Kevin Weaks, Union City Messenger.

Best Feature Writer: 1. Cecil Joyce, Daily News Journal – Winner barely edged out second-place finisher. Thought winner had a better variety of story angles, though both had entries involving subjects battling cancer, which seems to be in many writers’ entries. 2. Luis Torres, Daily News Journal. 3. Mark McGee, Shelbyville Times-Gazette.

Best Event Writer: 1. Luis Torres, Daily News Journal – Entries were three MTSU football stories, but it was refreshing to see a writer who could be creative while not ignoring the basics of who, what, when and why. Felt the winner did a good job of making it easy on readers to navigate his stories. 2. Kevin Weaks, Union City Messenger. 3. Cecil Joyce, Daily News Journal.

Best News Writer: 1. Luis Torres, Daily News Journal – Excellent, well-organized stories on MTSU starting beer sales at games, MTSU coach Rick Stockstill exonerated from claims of player abuse and MTSU re-writing coaches’ contracts to include sexual harassment, sexual assault and domestic violence. All these stories answered every question posed by readers. 2. Kevin Weaks, Union City Messenger. 3. None awarded.

Best Prep Writer: 1. Luis Torres, Jackson Sun – Feature on a 17-year-old high school softball player who has twice beaten cancer and has a three-year-old daughter was delicately written and carried his three-story entry. 2. Cecil Joyce, Daily News Journal. 3. Kevin Weaks, Union City Messenger.

DIVISION III
Gary Lundy Writer of the Year: 1. Craig Harris, Macon County Times – Winner showed versatility with a beloved 66-year-old girls high school basketball coach who overcame numerous obstacles, a feature on a girls high school basketball program staging a one-stop-shop practice for college recruiters and a well-organized news story on a high school coach resignation. Winner also stood out with crisp, tight writing. 2. Bill Sorrell, Journal West 10. 3. Randy Cavin, Weakley County Press.

Best Special Section: 1. Weakley County Press, 2018 High School Football Preview – Edited by Randy Cavin, no stone was left unturned in this special section, with high school and middle school previews, plus the handy schedule grid on the back cover. The graphics on the high school team previews weren’t overdone. Solid writing. 2. Macon County Times, 2018 High School Football Preview 3. Journal West 10, 2018 High School Football Preview.

Best Feature Writer: 1. Bill Sorrell, Journal West 10 – All his features were thoroughly reported and written, but his feature on a college baseball player who was declared dead when he was 10 after drowning and survived was magnificent. 2. Randy Cavin, Weakley County Press. 3. Bill Traughber, Nashville Retrospect.

Best News/Event Writer: 1. Craig Harris, Macon County Times – This writer clearly understands story flow and brevity. Never overwrote, never understated. Nice balance of facts and quotes. 2. Bill Sorrell, Journal West 10. 3. Ed Grief, Morgan County Today.

Division IV
Best Feature Writer: 1. Thomas Corhern, Tennessee Tech – Stood out because of his ability to add historical perspective without bogging down stories as well as his smooth story flow and judicious use of quotes. His stuff never seemed forced or overstated. 2. Colby Wilson, Austin Peay 3. Mark McGee, Lipscomb.

Best Event Writer: 1. Thomas Corhern, Tennessee Tech – The winner showed effort and creativity, writing newspaper-quality stories. 2. Phil Stukenborg, University of Memphis. 3. Mike Hutchens, Union City Schools.