Pictured above are Oak Ridge cross country coach Allen Etheridge, center, and assistant coaches Ed Wright, left, and Tom Sauer at the Class AAA cross country meet at Percy Warner Park in Nashville on Saturday, Nov. 5, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Note: This story was updated at 3:30 p.m. Jan. 7.
Allen Etheridge has resigned as cross country coach at Oak Ridge High School after 13 years as head coach and six state titles.
His resignation is effective today (Friday, January 6). Etheridge was an assistant cross country coach for five years before he became head coach.
“I just have the sense that with cross country this was the end of the road,” Etheridge said. “I don’t know that I could bring anything new to the table.”
Besides the six state titles, Etheridge’s teams have won five runner-ups, three third places, one individual state championship, and 15 regional titles. The state championships were in 2005, 2006, and 2007 for the boys, and 2007, 2009, and 2010 for the girls. The individual state champion was John Sharpe in 2009.
The boys’ team finished second in the state meet in 2015 and third in 2016. The team won the Region 2-AAA meet for the third year in a row in October. [Read more…]
Snow was falling in Oak Ridge at noon Friday, and more was expected through Saturday morning. Schools and government offices have announced closures and early dismissals, and sporting events have been canceled.
Oak Ridge Schools said it has staff closely monitoring the weather and the roads. If a decision is made to dismiss early, a notification will be posted on Twitter and through Skylert.
The Oak Ridge-Halls basketball games scheduled for Friday night at Wildcat Arena have been canceled and rescheduled for Monday, January 23. [Read more…]
The Robertsville Middle School basketball games against Clinton tonight (Thursday, January 5) have been postponed.
New dates will be determined later.
The postponements were announced by The Rambler, the online newspaper of Robertsville Middle School.
The Tennessee Centennial Golf Course is pictured above in east Oak Ridge on Thursday, Dec. 10, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday will consider approving $120,000 to continue operating the Tennessee Centennial Golf Course in east Oak Ridge off Edgemoor Road.
The request comes about one year after Council approved, in a 6-1 vote, a $325,000 transfer for operations at the golf course. About $225,000 of that transfer, a cash infusion, was for outstanding accounts payable, including for expenses that included clothing in the pro shop, a management fee, fertilizer, and irrigation costs. Another $100,000 was operational funding for the winter, including maintenance of the greens.
The request is smaller this year, but the golf course is still short of money needed to operate, despite all marketing efforts, Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson said in a Wednesday memo to City Council members.
“The slow winter season now requires funding to pay necessary costs and salaries through the winter quarter (January-March 2017),” Watson said.
Most of the $120,000 in funding—or $70,024 of it—would be used for accounts payable. The rest would be used for cash flow and salaries, Watson said. [Read more…]
Oak Ridge senior Tyshawn Young (4) had another big night for the Wildcats, scoring 27 points and pulling down 16 rebounds in a 97-68 win over Karns at Wildcat Arena on Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2017. Behind Young is Cole Cooper (34) of Karns. (Photo by Luther Simmons)
Oak Ridge senior Tyshawn Young had another big night on Tuesday as the Wildcats gave Karns its first district loss of the season.
Last week, Young scored 29 points, a personal best, during a 64-56 win over Science Hill in the Arby’s Classic in Bristol on December 27.
On Tuesday, he almost matched that, scoring a game-high 27 points during a 97-68 win over Karns. He also had 16 rebounds.
“He’s playing really, really well,” Oak Ridge Coach Aaron Green said.
Young said he was surprised by his 29 points against Science Hill.
“We’ve always had the ability to play well,” Young said. “It’s not unexpected. I’ve just got to step up and play harder.” [Read more…]
Oak Ridge was led by sophomore Jada Guinn (24) with 30 points, the most for one of the Lady Wildcats since 2014, in a 104-19 win over Karns at Wildcat Arena on Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2017. (Photo by Luther Simmons)
The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats scored more than 100 points for the first time since 2003 in a 104-19 win over Karns at home on Tuesday.
The girls were led by sophomore Jada Guinn with a game-high 30 points, the most for a Lady Wildcat since Mykia Dowdell, who is now a junior, scored 32 against Central in 2014, according to broadcaster David Clary.
It’s the 11th time the Lady Wildcats (14-2, 6-0 District 3-AAA) have scored more than 100, Clary said. The last time was in 2003 against Alcoa.
Coaches said the 30 points for Guinn, including 17 in the first quarter alone, was likely a personal best. [Read more…]
Dawson Warwick of Jefferson Middle School shoots over a Knoxville Christian defender in a fifth-place game in the West Valley Christmas Tournament in Knoxville on Friday, Dec. 30, 2016. (Photo courtesy Jason Nussbaum)
KNOXVILLE—A tough defensive effort propelled the Jefferson Middle School boys basketball team to a fifth-place finish in the West Valley Christmas Tournament.
The Eagles (16-4) closed out the tournament with a 44-23 victory over Knoxville Christian on Friday at West Valley Middle School.
Jefferson had offensive struggles against the overmatched Knights, but that was nothing new for the Eagles, who are regulars at West Knox County holiday tournaments.
“It seemed like there was a lid on the basket today,” Jefferson Coach Jason Nussbaum said. “It’s been that way throughout the whole tournament. We’ve had trouble scoring all week.
“I’m proud of our boys for the way we played defense today. Our defense was good in the tournament.” [Read more…]
Oak Ridge sophomore Jada Guinn (24) led the Lady Wildcats with 55 points in four games at the Andrew Johnson Bank Ladies Classic in Greeneville last week. Guinn is pictured above driving to the basket in a 63-32 loss to Bradley Central in the championship game on Saturday, Dec. 31, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
GREENEVILLE—The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats finished in second place in the Andrew Johnson Bank Ladies Classic in Greeneville on Saturday, losing to Bradley Central 63-32 in the championship game. Here are photos from Saturday’s game.
See the story from Saturday’s game here. [Read more…]
The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats finished as runner-up in the Andrew Johnson Bank Ladies Classic in Greeneville on Saturday, Dec. 31, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
GREENEVILLE—The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats finished in second place in the Andrew Johnson Bank Ladies Classic in Greeneville on Saturday, losing to Bradley Central 63-32 in the championship game.
Rhyne Howard of Bradley Central, a 6-foot-1 junior, dominated. The tallest player on the floor, she scored a tournament-high 30 points. No other player scored more than 12. Howard also led both teams with 10 rebounds and eight steals.
It was a much better performance for Howard than in March, when Oak Ridge and Bradley Central played in the Class AAA semifinal game in Murfreesboro. The Lady Wildcats beat the Bearettes 38-31 in that game to advance to the Class AAA state championship, and Howard, who was then a sophomore, was limited to six points, two rebounds, and one steal.
Bradley Central had other advantages on Saturday, including in rebounding and turnovers, and better shooting. The undefeated Bearettes shot 57 percent from field goal range, compared to 37 percent for the Lady Wildcats, and they were 4-of-12, compared to 0-for-3, from three-point range. They led in total steals, 17-5, and forced 23 Lady Wildcat turnovers, while giving up about half as many, 13. [Read more…]
Oak Ridge junior Jaymi Golden (32) dribbles the ball during a 69-50 win over Greeneville in a quarterfinal game at the Andrew Johnson Bank Ladies Classic in Greeneville on Thursday, Dec. 29, 2016. At left is sophomore Jada Guinn (24). (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
GREENEVILLE—The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats will play for the championship in a basketball tournament in Greeneville today (Saturday, December 31).
Oak Ridge (13-1, 5-0 District 3-AAA) will play Bradley Central, a team the Lady Wildcats beat 38-31 in the Class AAA state semifinal last season. Today’s championship game in the Andrew Johnson Bank Ladies Classic starts at 4:30 p.m. in the Hal Henard Gymnasium in Greeneville.
The Lady Wildcats advanced to the championship by winning three straight games in the tournament this week. That included a Friday night 51-41 semifinal victory over South Greene (14-2, 2-0 District 1-A). The Lady Rebels, a Greeneville team, were the Class A state champions last season, and they made it to the final game of the Ladies Classic last year.
Before South Greene on Friday, Oak Ridge defeated Jefferson County 57-50 in the opening round on Wednesday and Greeneville 69-50 in a quarterfinal game on Thursday. [Read more…]
The Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department has started a 3-on-3 men’s basketball league for the winter 2017 program.
This new league is designed for recreationally spirited athletes seeking a fun and friendly environment where they can get some exercise while enjoying a fun and social basketball program, a press release said.
The deadline for team registration is Friday, December 30. [Read more…]
