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AMSE celebrates 70 years

Posted at 3:12 pm March 15, 2019
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Image courtesy American Museum of Science and Energy

Image courtesy American Museum of Science and Energy

 

The American Museum of Science and Energy is celebrating 70 years. As part of the celebration, there are three events scheduled next week, on March 19 and March 23, at AMSE and Oak Ridge History Museum.

It’s being called a platinum anniversary celebration of science, ingenuity, and the catalyst of the Atomic Age.

“As an anchor of the community, AMSE is proud to celebrate a city that once only existed a vision,” a press release said. “The footprint of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, will forever be etched into history as one of the foundations of the Manhattan Project. Seventy years ago, steps were taken to preserve that vision and recognize how the world was changed by the ‘Secret City.’ The museum tells the story about how and why people learned to split the atom. On March 19, 1949, the city’s gates and the nation’s first atomic energy museum, named the American Museum of Atomic Energy, were opened to the public for the first time. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Community, Community, Front Page News, History, Slider Tagged With: American Museum of Atomic Energy, American Museum of Science and Energy, AMSE, AMSE Foundation, Atomic Energy, atomic energy museum, Manhattan Project, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association, Oak Ridge History Museum, platinum anniversary

Basketball photos: Oak Ridge in state quarterfinal game

Posted at 7:12 pm March 8, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Senior Jada Guinn (24) has broken basketball records at Oak Ridge, including most points scored in a game and most points scored in a season. Guinn, a Miss Basketball finalist who has signed to play at Tennessee Tech, is pictured above shooting the basketball during a 65-49 win over Science Hill in a Class AAA girls basketball tournament quarterfinal game in Murphy Center at Middle Tennessee State University in Mufreesboro on Thursday, March 7, 2019. (Photo by Luther Simmons)

Senior Jada Guinn (24) has broken basketball records at Oak Ridge, including most points scored in a game and most points scored in a season. Guinn, a Miss Basketball finalist who has signed to play at Tennessee Tech, is pictured above shooting the basketball during a 65-49 win over Science Hill in a Class AAA girls basketball tournament quarterfinal game in Murphy Center at Middle Tennessee State University in Mufreesboro on Thursday, March 7, 2019. (Photo by Luther Simmons)

 

The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats defeated Science Hill 65-49 in a quarterfinal game of the Class AAA girls basketball tournament in Murfreesboro on Thursday. Here are photos by Luther Simmons.

(Note: The girls’ season ended with a 56-50 loss to Bradley Central during a semifinal game on Friday.) [Read more…]

Filed Under: High School, Slider, Sports, Sports Tagged With: basketball, basketball photos, Bri Dunbar, Class AAA girls basketball tournament, Jada Guinn, Khamari Mitchell-Steen, Lady Wildcats, Luther Simmons, Middle Tennessee State University, Oak Ridge, Paige Redman, Rachael Brewer, Raja Eckles, Science Hill, Shatyrah Copeland, Taliah Davis

Lady Wildcats eliminated by Bradley Central in overtime

Posted at 6:22 pm March 8, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge sophomore Khamari Mitchell-Steen (2) shoots the basketball during a 65-49 win over Science Hill in a Class AAA girls basketball tournament quarterfinal game in Murphy Center at Middle Tennessee State University in Mufreesboro on Thursday, March 7, 2019. (Photo by Luther Simmons)

Oak Ridge sophomore Khamari Mitchell-Steen (2) shoots the basketball during a 65-49 win over Science Hill in a Class AAA girls basketball tournament quarterfinal game in Murphy Center at Middle Tennessee State University in Mufreesboro on Thursday, March 7, 2019. (Photo by Luther Simmons)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 7 a.m. March 9.

Oak Ridge was eliminated by Bradley Central, 56-50, in overtime of a semifinal game in the state basketball tournament in Murfreesboro on Friday.

The Lady Wildcats (34-3) trailed by 10 points early, and they were behind at the end of the first and second quarters.

But Oak Ridge outscored the Bearettes 11-3 in the third quarter to take a 36-31 lead.

However, Bradley Central (33-3) rallied behind the 12 points (six points each) of Jamaryn Blair and Anna Walker to tie the score at 43 at the end of the fourth quarter.

Bradley Central made 11 three throws in the overtime period to help outscore Oak Ridge 13-7 in those four minutes to take the six-point win. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, High School, Sports Tagged With: Anna Walker, basketball, Bradley Central, Class AAA state girls basketball championship, Houston, Jada Guinn, Jamaryn Blair, Khamari Mitchell-Steen, Lady Wildcats, Oak Ridge, Paige Redman, Riverdale, state basketball tournament

Lady Wildcats play in state basketball tournament Thursday

Posted at 9:11 am March 7, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats made it to the state basketball tournament for the third time in four years by beating Dobyns-Bennett 59-42 in a Class AAA sectional game at Wildcat Arena on Saturday, March 2, 2019. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats made it to the state basketball tournament for the third time in four years by beating Dobyns-Bennett 59-42 in a Class AAA sectional game at Wildcat Arena on Saturday, March 2, 2019. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Oak Ridge will play in the girls state basketball tournament in Murfreesboro today (Thursday, March 7).

The Lady Wildcats (33-2) will play Science Hill (31-3) in a Division I Class AAA quarterfinal game at 11:30 a.m. (12:30 Eastern) in the Murphy Center at Middle Tennessee State University.

The other girls quarterfinal game in the BlueCross Basketball Championships on Thursday will feature Bradley Central (31-3) and Lebanon (25-10). That game will start at 10 a.m. (11 a.m. Eastern).

Two other girls quarterfinal games were played Wednesday. Riverdale (30-1) beat Arlington (27-7) 67-50 in the first game, and Houston (29-2) defeated Mt. Juliet (27-6) 58-65 in the other. Riverdale, a Murfreesboro team, has won the Class AAA state championship three years in a row. The Lady Warriors beat the Lady Wildcats 68-36 in the championship game in 2016.

This year, Oak Ridge, the Region 2 champion, made it to the state tournament for the third time in four years by beating Dobyns-Bennett, the Region 1 runner-up, 59-42 in a Class AAA sectional game at Wildcat Arena on Saturday. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, High School, Sports, Top Stories Tagged With: BlueCross Basketball Championships, Bri Dunbar, Class AAA quarterfinal, Class AAA sectional, Courtney Whitson, Dobyns-Bennett, Jada Guinn, Khamari Mitchell-Steen, Lady Hilltoppers, Lady Indians, Lady Wildcats, Miss Basketball, Oak Ridge, Science Hill

After finishing second in region, Wildcats’ season ends at Sevier County

Posted at 2:25 pm March 5, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Wildcats finished as runner-up in Region 2-AAA with a 65-51 loss to Bearden in the championship game at Wildcat Arena on Thursday, Feb. 28, 2019. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Oak Ridge Wildcats finished as runner-up in Region 2-AAA with a 65-51 loss to Bearden in the championship game at Wildcat Arena on Thursday, Feb. 28, 2019. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Oak Ridge finished second in Region 2-AAA after a 65-51 loss to Bearden in the championship game on Thursday, and the Wildcats’ season ended with a 62-57 loss at Sevier County in a sectional game on Monday.

Oak Ridge (26-7) trailed in both games from start to finish, although the Wildcats narrowed the Smoky Bears’ lead to one point in the final minute before Sevier County (25-6) pulled away on free throws in the Class AAA sectional game on Monday.

The sectional games determine which teams go to the state basketball tournaments at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro this month. The winners of the sectional games advance to the state tournaments, and the season is over for the teams that lose.

It’s Sevier County’s first trip to the state tournament since 1991. The Smoky Bears are one of only eight teams in Division I, Class AAA, to play in the state tournament. Bearden is another.

Oak Ridge last went to the state tournament in 2017, when the Wildcats were eliminated 63-60 by Memphis East in a semifinal game. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, High School, Sports Tagged With: basketball, Bearden, Bulldogs, Cam Burden, Camden McElhaney, Class AAA sectional, Dobyns-Bennett, Drew Pember, Herbert Booker, Jake Agee, JaVonte Thomas, Joe Kesterson, Marcus Smith, Mark Haste, Marvin Castro, Oak Ridge, Ques Glover, Region 2-AAA championship, Sevier County, Smoky Bears, state basketball tournament, Trent Stephney, Wes Maples, Wildcats

Oak Ridge had more than 15 inches of rain in February

Posted at 9:37 am March 5, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Image courtesy National Weather Service in Morristown

Image courtesy National Weather Service in Morristown

 

Oak Ridge had more than 15 inches of rain in February, a record, according to the National Weather Service in Morristown.

The Oak Ridge Automated Surface Observing Systems recorded 15.62 inches of precipitation during February.

“Records for that site only go back to 1998,” the NWS said. “2019 is the wettest February on record.”

The monthly normal for Oak Ridge is 4.11 inches of rain, the National Weather Service said. The 15.62 inches of precipitation is 3.8 times the monthly normal of 4.11 inches. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Slider, Top Stories, Weather, Weather Tagged With: Automated Surface Observing Systems, flooding, National Weather Service, NWS, Oak Ridge, precipitation, rain, wettest February

After win over Catholic, Wildcats play for Region 2 championship

Posted at 11:56 am February 28, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Wildcats were led by senior guard Marcus Smith (2), pictured above during a district tournament game on Feb. 18, 2019, with a game-high 23 points against Catholic in a Region 2-AAA semifinal game on Tuesday, Feb. 26. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Oak Ridge Wildcats were led by senior guard Marcus Smith (2), pictured above during a district tournament game on Feb. 18, 2019, with a game-high 23 points against Catholic in a Region 2-AAA semifinal game on Tuesday, Feb. 26. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Oak Ridge will play Bearden in the Region 2-AAA boys basketball championship at Wildcat Arena this evening (Thursday, February 28).

Oak Ridge (26-5), the District 3 champion, advanced by defeating Knoxville Catholic 65-58 in a semifinal elimination game at home on Tuesday.

Bearden (27-5), the District 4 champion and defending Region 2 champion, advanced by beating Maryville 55-43 in the other semifinal game at Wildcat Arena on Tuesday.

The Wildcats were led by senior guard Marcus Smith with a game-high 23 points against Catholic. Senior guard Herbert Booker scored 16 points, and he had at least five steals. Senior guard JaVonte Thomas added 15, and he had at least five rebounds.

The Fighting Irish (25-7), the District 4 runner-up, were led by 6-foot-9 junior forward Akeem Odusipe, who scored 19 points and had at least seven rebounds and three blocks. Freshman Presley Patterson added 13 points, including on three three-point shots, and senior Ryan MacDonald and freshman Brian Edwards each scored 10 for Catholic. Edwards also had at least eight rebounds. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, High School, Sports, Top Stories Tagged With: Akeem Odusipe, basketball, Bearden, Brian Edwards, Bulldogs, Drew Pember, Fighting Irish, Handje Tamba, Herbert Booker, JaVonte Thomas, Jonathan Milloway, Knoxville Catholic, Marcus Smith, Oak Ridge, Presley Patterson, Ques Glover, Region 2-AAA, Region 2-AAA boys basketball championship, Ryan MacDonald, Trent Stephney, Wildcat Arena, Wildcats

Oak Ridge wins Region 2 championship with Guinn’s three-pointer at buzzer

Posted at 10:00 pm February 27, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats won the Region 2-AAA championship with a 53-50 win over Maryville at Wildcat Arena on Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2019, with a three-point shot at the buzzer by senior Jada Guinn. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats won the Region 2-AAA championship with a 53-50 win over Maryville at Wildcat Arena on Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2019, after a three-point shot at the buzzer by senior Jada Guinn. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 6:30 a.m. Feb. 28.

The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats won the Region 2-AAA championship with a 53-50 win over Maryville on Wednesday after a three-point shot at the buzzer by senior Jada Guinn.

Guinn, a Miss Basketball finalist who has signed to play at Tennessee Tech, scored a game-high 21 points. She also had at least 10 rebounds.

Guinn, who was named most valuable player of the regional tournament, made two three-point shots in the final 33.9 seconds. The first one was from near the top of the key. She hit the last one-dribble shot from beyond the three-point line near the right sideline after an inbounds pass near half court following a timeout with 1.5 seconds remaining.

Jubilant fans erupted onto the floor of Wildcat Arena, cheering and jumping for joy after the dramatic finish.

Oak Ridge (32-2) will host Dobyns-Bennett (28-7), the Region 1 runner-up, at 7 p.m. Saturday at Wildcat Arena in a Class AAA sectional. The winner of that game will advance to the state tournament in Murfreesboro in March. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, High School, Slider, Sports, Sports Tagged With: basketball, Bri Dunbar, Denae Fritz, District 3-AAA championship, Dobyns-Bennett, Jada Guinn, Khamari Mitchell-Steen, Lady Rebels, Lady Wildcats, Lindsey Taylor, Maryville, Oak Ridge, Raja Eckles, Region 2-AAA championship, Science Hill

Lady Wildcats play for Region 2 championship tonight

Posted at 2:54 pm February 27, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge senior Jada Guinn (24) has passed 2,000 points total scored for the Lady Wildcats, and she set a single-game scoring record of 45 points at Karns on Monday, Jan. 28, 2019. Guinn is pictured above shooting a free throw during a 81-24 win at Clinton on Friday, Jan. 24, 2019. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Oak Ridge senior Jada Guinn (24) is pictured above shooting a free throw during a 81-24 win at Clinton on Friday, Jan. 24, 2019. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats will play for the Region 2-AAA championship at home tonight (Wednesday, February 27).

Oak Ridge (31-2) will play Maryville (30-2). The Lady Wildcats were the District 3 champion, and the Lady Rebels were the District 4 champion.

Oak Ridge advanced to the championship game by beating William Blount 50-29 in a Region 2 quarterfinal game on Friday and defeating Bearden 50-43 in a semifinal game on Monday.

Maryville advanced to the championship game by beating Anderson County 82-59 in a Region 2 quarterfinal game on Friday and defeating Campbell County 60-52 in a semifinal game on Monday. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, High School, Sports Tagged With: Abbi Joseph, Bearden, Bri Dunbar, District 3 champion, District 4 champion, Jada Guinn, Jakhyia Davis, Khamari Mitchell-Steen, Lady Rebels, Lady Wildcats, Oak Ridge, Raja Eckles, Region 2-AAA championship, Shekinah McLaughlin, William Blount, Zneyah Mclaughlin

Wildcats win district championship, then beat West in regional game

Posted at 3:34 pm February 26, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Wildcats won the District 3-AAA basketball championship with a 75-65 win over Karns on Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2019. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Oak Ridge Wildcats won the District 3-AAA basketball championship with a 75-65 win over Karns on Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2019. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 3:20 p.m. Feb. 28.

Oak Ridge won the District 3-AAA basketball championship with a 75-65 win over Karns on Wednesday, and the Wildcats won a Region 2 quarterfinal game with a 78-63 victory over West at home on Sunday.

The Wildcats (25-5) will play Knoxville Catholic (25-6), the District 4 runner-up, in a regional semifinal at Wildcat Arena this evening (Tuesday, February 26).

Oak Ridge senior Marcus Smith scored 41 points during the championship win over Karns on Wednesday, with 26 points in just the fourth quarter. Eleven of those points were from free throws. Smith was named most valuable player of the district tournament.

On Sunday, Wildcats senior JaVonte Thomas scored 30 points in the Region 2 quarterfinal win over West at Wildcat Arena. Smith and Thomas have been the Wildcats’ top two scorers. Like Smith, Thomas was named to the District 3 All-Tournament Team last week.

The other semifinal game at Wildcat Arena this evening will feature Bearden (26-5), the District 4 champion, and Maryville (28-3), the number three seed from District 4. Oak Ridge is the only District 3 team in the regional tournament. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, High School, Slider, Sports, Sports Tagged With: Bearden, Beavers, Caleb Keeter, Clinton, District 3-AAA basketball championship, Evan Winchester, Herbert Booker, JaVonte Thomas, Jeremy Miller, Jonathan Milloway, Karns, Knoxville Catholic, Marcus Smith, Mark Vance, Maryville, Oak Ridge, rebels, Region 2 quarterfinal, Region 2-AAA championship, regional semifinal, Teahzjawon Hodge-Harper, West, Wildcat Arena, Wildcats, Will Eggleston, Xavier Davis

Lady Wildcats win fourth straight district championship

Posted at 3:00 pm February 22, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats won their fourth straight district basketball championship with a 47-40 win over Campbell County at Karns on Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2019. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats won their fourth straight district basketball championship with a 47-40 win over Campbell County at Karns on Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2019. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

KARNS—The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats won their fourth straight district basketball championship with a 47-40 win over Campbell County at Karns on Tuesday.

The girls rallied from a nine-point 24-15 deficit in the second quarter to take a lead that they didn’t give up at the end of the third quarter. The Lady Wildcats outscored the Lady Cougars 10-5 in the final quarter to expand their margin.

Oak Ridge senior Jada Guinn was named most valuable player of the District 3-AAA tournament, which was played at Karns High School. Guinn has been named district tournament MVP three of the past four years: 2016, 2018, and 2019.

“It feels good,” Guinn said after the Tuesday night win. She said the competitive Campbell County game helped prepare Oak Ridge for the next level, which includes the Region 2-AAA tournament that starts today (Friday, February 22). [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, High School, Slider, Sports, Sports, Top Stories Tagged With: basketball, Bri Dunbar, Campbell County, David Clary, District 3-AAA tournament, district basketball championship, district tournament MVP, Farragut, Haley Comer, Jada Guinn, Lady Cougars, Lady Wildcats, Madison Brady, Oak Ridge, Paige Redman, Region 2-AAA tournament, Skylar Boshears, William Blount

Sponsored: Ulster Project to celebrate peace-building with Mardi Gras event

Posted at 1:16 pm February 16, 2019
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Ulster's Mardi Gras Feb 23 2019

The Ulster Project has been operating in the Oak Ridge and Knoxville area for almost 33 years. You can help them celebrate 33 years of peace-building in Northern Ireland and the United States by joining them for their inaugural Ulster’s Mardi Gras, where they will celebrate the Gulf Coast tradition of Mardi Gras.

The event is scheduled from 6-10:30 p.m. Saturday, February 23, at St. Mary’s Catholic Church.

The featured band will be a local favorite, The Missing Goats. And they expect to have some zydeco dancing lessons.

The menu will include salad, seafood gumbo, Cajun roasted pork loin and chicken, red beans and rice, Cajun green beans, chicken and sausage jambalaya, king cake (prizes for the baby), and banana pudding. Beer and wine will be available for sale, and there will be a silent auction. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Churches, Community, Dancing, Entertainment, Food, Music, Nonprofits, Sponsored Posts Tagged With: John Hough, Knoxville, Northern Ireland, Oak Ridge, St. Mary's Catholic Church, The Missing Goats, Ulster Project, Ulster's Mardi Gras, United States

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Availability of the draft environmental assessment for off-site depleted uranium manufacturing (DOE/EA-2252)

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces the … [Read More...]

Public Notice: NNSA announces no significant impact of Y-12 Development Organization operations at Horizon Center

AVAILABILITY OF THE FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE OFFSITE HOUSING OF THE Y-12 DEVELOPMENT … [Read More...]

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Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties (ADFAC) is a non-profit community based agency, … [Read More...]

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