Anderson County’s Reese Russell draws a foul on the way to the basket during the opening round of the 5Star Preps Hammer’s Christmas Tournament against Pickett County on Friday night Dec. 19. The Mavericks lost to the Bobcats 56-74. - Tony Cox
After watching his team drop its second- consecutive game, Anderson County High School boys basketball Coach Jordan Jeffers knews his squad was at a pivotal moment.
“We’ve got a young team, man, and hopefully we can bounce back,” Jeffers said after the Mavericks suffered a 76-50 loss to South-Doyle on Tuesday, Dec. 16, in South Knoxville.
“But this can go either way,” he said. “It ain’t going to be any easier.
“There’s not a game on our schedule that we can say, ‘We’re good.’ We’ve got to get this thing figured out. We have to, or it’s going to be a long winter.”
The game against the Cherokees was a struggle from the start.
“You call that a (butt) whipping,” Jeffers said.
“We didn’t come ready to play, and they just wore us out.
“Right now, we’re trying to figure it out,” he said.
“We’re trying to figure out our personnel, our rotation, and who needs to be on the floor.”
The Mavericks were without starting point guard Cam Lawson, who is out with an injury and is expected to return in January.
In the meantime, Anderson County is looking for someone to fill the position.
“We’re trying to figure out who can play point guard,” Jeffers said.
“And it’s just hard right now.”
Freshman Colton Lawson led the Mavericks with 16 points.
“I think he was the only guy who scored in double figures,” Jeffers said.
Anderson County heavyweight Slade Alley, left, made his return to the mat Thursday night against Clinton’s Jonah Hoskins. Sidelined by injury midway through the 2024-25 season, Alley went the distance with Hoskins before securing the pin in the closing seconds of the match. - Tony Cox
Anderson County High School’s wrestling team finished second at the Region 4-A duals in Huntsville early last week, and that runner-up finish earned the Mavericks a berth in the Region 2-A Duals — with a third-straight trip to sectionals on the line.
While ACHS athletes have claimed big individual wins and tournament titles throughout the 2025-26 season, dual meets have been a challenge as the team has battled adversity, including illness and injuries.
The Mavericks’ stay at the Region 2-A duals was brief Thursday night as they fell to Pigeon Forge 58-13, with injuries taking their toll.
“The region was single elimination, and we wrestled Pigeon Forge, and it was kind of tough,” Anderson County Coach Matt Slone said. “We told our kids that we’re more of a tournament team than we are a dual team.
“We have some good guys, and we have a handful of kids that we feel like can finish on the podium at the state tournament. We struggle in duals because of some of the gaps that we have, but we have a lot of quality guys.”
Clinton freshman Hayden Durliat controls a Carter opponent on the mat during the District 4-AA duals at Scott High School on Tuesday, Jan. 13. Wrestling in the 113-pound weight class, Durliat secured the victory by fall. - Tony Cox
The Clinton High School wrestling team competed in the District 4-A duals on Tuesday, Jan. 13, at Scott High School in Huntsville.
The Dragons placed fourth in the tournament, opening with a 48-30 victory over Carter.
Against the Hornets, Clinton 113-pound freshman Hayden Durliat won by fall, while 120-pounder Emmanuel Rangel notched a decision.
Clinton picked up forfeit wins from Connor Lemmon (126), Boston Ollis (144), Marshon Matthews (150), Jordan Smith (175), Jacob Brown (190), Jonah Hoskins (215) and Liston Haskins (285).
The win set up a semifinal match against crosstown rival Anderson County, where the Mavericks claimed a 48-30 win.
Rangel, Lemmon and Nathan Black (215) scored for Clinton via forfeits, while Keenan Hoskins (138) and Brown recorded pins.
The Dragons ended the night with a 48-28 loss to Gibbs in the third-place match. Durliat, Rangel, Smith and Liston Hoskins each picked up six points.
Through three District 4-AAA games, Clinton High School’s boys basketball team sits atop the league standings with a perfect conference record.
The Dragons (18-5 overall, 3-0 in the district) kept that mark intact with a 48-42 road win over Scott High School in Huntsville.
Clinton Coach Chris Lockard praised his squad for showing grit in a pair of tight district victories over Anderson County and the Highlanders, following a dominant opening win at Union County in Maynardville.
“Scott County really played well,” Lockard said. “We came out and played well defensively.
“We do better on offense when we play good defense, and we played strong in the first quarter,” he said. “Then we got away from that a bit in the second.”
The Dragons opened with a 16-9 lead after the first quarter, but Scott surged ahead to take a 26-25 lead by halftime.
Clinton responded by clamping down defensively in the third quarter, holding the Highlanders to just five points.
“This league is tough,” Lockard said. “Scott County is a very good team, and so is Anderson County.
“Gibbs has a couple of big wins, so they’ve got some tricks up their sleeves,” Lockard said. “Union County has a really good player in the (Kaiden) Carroll kid.
“We had to grind out a couple of wins and we’re 3-0 (in the district) and we got two of those wins on the road, so that puts is in pretty good position, pretty good shape, but we still have a lot to work on and there’s a lot of basketball left.”
Clinton added a non-district win Monday, Jan. 12, routing Harriman 65-31. It marked the Dragons’ second win this season over the Blue Devils.
Clinton’s Addi Gamble drives to the basket during the Lady Dragons’ road matchup against Scott on Friday night. Earlier in the week, Gamble finished with 11 points, seven steals, six rebounds, five assists and two blocks in a 61-36 non-district win at Harriman on Monday, Jan. 12. - Tony Cox
After a tough rivalry loss to Anderson County, the Clinton High School girls basketball team showed resilience last week by picking up two emphatic victories.
The Lady Dragons (20-2 overall, 2-1 in District 4-AAA) opened the week Monday, Jan. 12, with a 61-36 non-district win at Harriman.
Three Clinton players scored in double figures. Caylin Taylor led the way with 16 points. She also dished out six assists, recorded four steals and grabbed two rebounds.
Josie Moody added 13 points, seven rebounds, two steals and one blocked shot.
Addi Gamble had 11 points, along with seven steals, six rebounds, five assists and two blocks.
Clinton returned to district play Friday night and rolled past Scott, 63-24.
Gamble recorded a double-double with 15 points and 10 steals.
She also notched three assists, one rebound and a block.
Lanee Carmichael added 14 points, five rebounds, an assist and a steal.
Moody contributed 11 points, three assists, two steals and two blocks.
Clinton visited Gibbs on Tuesday, but results were not available at press time.
The Lady Dragons will host Union County on Friday, Jan. 23, looking to complete a regular-season sweep of the Lady Patriots.
Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. at the Don W. Lockard Gymnasium.
Clinton won the previous meeting in Maynardville earlier this month.
Anderson County’s Rocky Brown had a career-high 18 points against the Eagles on Friday night. The Mavericks defeats the Eagles 57-37. - Ellie Hatmaker
Anderson County High School boys basketball coach Jordan Jeffers knows his young team can’t afford to overlook any opponent.
The Mavericks got that message loud and clear as they’ve endured their share of growing pains and battled through multiple injuries this season.
But things appear to be trending upward. Anderson County closed out the first round of its District 4-AA schedule with a 57-37 road victory over Gibbs on Friday night at Jerry H. Sharp Gymnasium in Corryton.
“We told the guys before the game that we wanted to be confident, but we don’t want to be arrogant,” Jeffers said. “We have no reason to be arrogant, and I was proud of our guys for their effort.
Oak Ridge’s Nichloas Englehardt (113) earned wins by fall over Central and Knoxville West at last Thursday’s dual meet at Halls High School. - ORHS Sports Media
In its inaugural wrestling season, Oak Ridge High School came up just short of qualifying for the Region 2-AA duals.
Although the Wildcats missed a trip to Wednesday’s regional event at Hardin Valley Academy, Coach Bam Thomas had plenty to celebrate after his team went 3-1 in the district duals and finished third overall.
Oak Ridge opened Thursday night’s action at Knoxville Halls High School with a 45-35 victory over Knox Central, then closed the evening with another win over the Bobcats, 45-33, in the third-place match.
In the first bout against Central, 106-pounder Cole Callaghan picked up a win by forfeit. Nick Engelhardt (113), Robert Rankin (138), Landon Thurlow (150) and Gabe Naudin (190) all won by fall.
Sebastian Acevedo (126), Matthew Azel (165) and Jose Marin Shipp (215) also collected forfeit victories.
“That was a big win for us,” Thomas said. “We just missed qualifying for the region duals, and I couldn’t be happier. We’ll have some more duals, and then we’ll concentrate on the individual region tournament.”
After a slow start to the season, the young Oak Ridge High School girls basketball team is trending upward.
Following a 1-8 opening stretch, the Lady Wildcats have now won five of their last seven games and climbed back to the .500 mark in District 4-AAA play.
That momentum continued Friday night as Oak Ridge went on the road and edged Hardin Valley Academy 49-43 in a key district matchup.
Oak Ridge started quickly and built a commanding lead before having to withstand a late rally from the Lady Hawks at Hardin Valley Academy.
The Lady Wildcats led 10-7 after the first quarter and used a decisive 21-8 run in the second period to take a 31-15 advantage into halftime.
Oak Ridge stretched the margin to 38-18 early in the third quarter and appeared to be in control.
Oak Ridge’s Charlie Taubenheim had 13 points in the Wildcats’ District 4-AA matchup against Hardin Valley Academy on Friday night. - ORHS Sports Media
Oak Ridge High School boys basketball coach Aaron Green didn’t mince words after watching his team let a fourth-quarter lead slip away in a District 4-4A matchup Friday night at Hardin Valley Academy.
“They played harder than we did and they wanted it more than we did,” Green said after the Wildcats squandered a nine-point advantage in a 70-63 road loss to the Hawks.
“You can talk about X’s and O’s all you want, but they just played harder and were tougher. As a coach, you try to establish a mindset where your team gives effort.”
The opening quarter was evenly contested before Oak Ridge grabbed the edge on a buzzer-beating shot by Justice West.
Anderson County’s Bethany Lowe led the Lady Mavericks with 20 points in Friday night’s game at Gibbs. - Ellie Hatmaker
The first half of the District 4-AAA girls basketball season ended on a high note for Anderson County High School.
The Lady Mavericks secured a convincing 69-40 road win over Gibbs on Friday night at Jerry H. Sharp Gymnasium in Corryton.
With the victory, Anderson County improved to 8-8 overall and 3-1 in district play, pulling into a tie atop the league standings with Clinton and Scott.
In their previous two games, the Lady Mavericks staged double-digit comeback wins against Clinton and Union County.
That wasn’t necessary against the Lady Eagles (6-13, 0-3), although Coach Mitch Cupples wasn’t pleased with the start despite an early 18-12 lead.
“We had once-in-a-lifetime comebacks — and we had to do it twice,” Cupples said. “We weren’t focused against Union County, and we weren’t focused early tonight. We were focused against Clinton, but had a bad second quarter.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen us down 17 to Clinton and 19 to Union County and come back to win,” he said. “We scored a lot in the first quarter but gave up a lot, too. I told the coaches and players it was nice to have a game like this where we didn’t have to come from behind.”
Gibbs managed to hold Anderson County’s leading scorer, Macy Basford, to just four points. But juniors Bethany Lowe and Emerie Bullock stepped up in her place.
Lowe led the Lady Mavs with 20 points. Bullock finished with 15, including three 3-pointers. Fellow junior Addison Grooms added nine points, and sophomore Ansley Freeman chipped in seven.
Earlier in the week, on Tuesday, Jan. 13, Anderson County overcame a 19-point deficit to defeat Union County 56-51.
Norris’ Liam Childress (right) drives to the basket during the Senators’ Thursday night game against Jefferson Middle School. - Tony Cox
Norris Middle School’s boys basketball team posted a pair of wins last week.
On Thursday, the Senators outlasted Jefferson 47-33 as Eli Lindsay scored 14 points.
Hunter Wade and Zain Jackson and had six points each.
Cooper Downs scored five points, all in the fourth quarter for Norris, which improved to 11-4 on the season with the victory over the Eagles.
The Senators opened the week with a 37-15 victory over LaFollette on Monday, Jan. 12.
Lindsay scored 16 points in the contest to open the week for Norris. Jackson chipped in with eight and Downs finished with seven for the Senators, who will close the regular season Thursday with a game against Oneida.
The District 6 tournament will open Saturday at LaFollette.
Norris’ Sadie Housley brings the ball up the court during the Lady Senators’ Thursday night game against Jefferson. Norris Middle School defeated Jefferson 37-18 to remain in first place in the district. - Tony Cox
The Norris Middle School girls basketball team remained atop the district standings after picking up two convincing victories last week.
On Thursday night, the Lady Senators defeated Jefferson 37-18 behind a game-high 13 points from Addie Blevins. Addison Willoughby added seven points, while Kaylee Matchette scored six.
Esa Minor chipped in five points and pulled down seven rebounds for Norris.
Earlier in the week, on Monday, Jan. 12, Norris routed LaFollette 59-13. Blevins and Willoughby paced the Lady Senators with nine points each. Matchette added eight, and Lauren Niddifer scored seven.
Norris will wrap up the regular season Thursday against Oneida. The District 6 Tournament opens Saturday at LaFollette Middle School.
The Clinton Middle School boys basketball team had a busy and successful week on the hardwood.
The Hawks opened play in the District Tournament on Saturday with a 45-39 victory over Horace Maynard at Sevier County Junior High School.
Deacon McGhee scored 17 points to lead Clinton to its first postseason win. Levi Braden added nine points.
The Hawks entered the tournament two days after closing out the regular season with a lopsided 48-18 win at LaFollette on Thursday. Clinton raced to a 31-8 lead by the end of the first quarter and never looked back.
McGhee had 12 points against the Owls. Pearson Lollar finished with seven, while Braden and Bryce Slaven chipped in six points each.
Clinton began the week with a 49-38 home win over Webb School of Knoxville on Monday, Jan. 12.
McGhee poured in 19 points against the Spartans. Canyon Long added nine, while Lollar and Victor Barrett scored eight apiece.
Clinton Middle School’s girls basketball team opened postseason play with a hard-fought win Saturday, edging Seymour 41-37 in a district tournament game at Sevier County Junior High School.
Shelby Carroll delivered the go-ahead basket in the fourth quarter to secure the win.
She finished with six points, and dominated the boards, grabbing a game-high 17 rebounds.
Kailyn Martin led the Lady Hawks (14-6) in scoring, going 9-for-10 at the free-throw line and tallying 17 points. Caroline Jones added 12 points, while Myla Queener had six.
Clinton closed out the regular season with a 51-12 blowout victory Thursday over LaFollette.
The Lady Hawks started fast, opening with a 23-6 run in the first quarter and holding LaFollette to just two second-quarter points to build a 32-8 halftime lead.
Martin scored 19 points, including 10 in the first quarter.
Queener contributed 11 points, and Jones finished with eight. Carroll added seven points and 13 rebounds.
Earlier in the week, Clinton notched a 30-23 victory over Webb School of Knoxville.
Jones, Martin and Carroll each scored eight points in the win. Carroll also collected nine rebounds.
Anderson County baseball standout Kris Pelliccio is joined by family members as he signs his letter of intent to continue his academic and baseball career at the Univeristy of Pikeville, Kentucky. Pelliccio plans to major in business.
Anderson County High School senior Kris Pelliccio will continue his baseball career at the collegiate level.
Pelliccio recently signed his national letter of intent with the University of Pikeville, an NAIA school in eastern Kentucky, about three-and-a-half hours from Knoxville.
Although he’ll be several hours from home, Pelliccio said distance wasn’t a deciding factor.
“Sometimes, I thought I did want to stay close to home, but I wanted to go where I had the best opportunity and to a school that was the best fit,” he said.
Pikeville’s campus atmosphere and class sizes helped seal the deal, he added.
“The campus was like its own little town and I really liked that,” Pelliccio said. “I think it’s important to have small classes because I want to develop relationships with my teachers. But the biggest thing that appealed to me was just how welcoming all the coaches were.”
He plans to major in business and is considering a minor in law.
While he has aspirations of playing professional baseball, he also has a backup plan.
“I’d like to continue in baseball,” he said.
“But if that doesn’t work out, I’d like to own my own business one day.”
Anderson County soccer standout Bralee Hall is joined by family members as she signs her letter of intent to continue her academic and soccer career at Roane State Community College. Hall plans to focus on medical studies.
Anderson County High School senior Bralee Hall will continue her education and soccer career at nearby Roane State Community College.
A defender for the Lady Mavericks, Hall recently signed a national letter of intent to join the Lady Raiders, during a ceremony at the school.
“I did want to stay close to home,” said Hall, who helped Anderson County win three-consecutive District 4-AA and Region 2-AA tournament championships.
At Roane State, Hall will play for Coach Donnie Green, who recently completed his second season leading the program. Green previously coached at Oak Ridge High School and is a well-known figure in the Anderson County soccer community.
Hall said Green was a major factor in her decision.
