Oak Ridge Today

Photos: Oak Ridge Wildcats and Clinton Dragons

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Oak Ridge Wildcats Chase Kimbro and Clinton Dragons

Oak Ridge junior linebacker Chase Kimbro (10), who had four tackles, one assist, and a sack, tackles Clinton senior quarterback Tyler Thackerson (8). (Photo by Julio Culiat)

 

The Friday night football game between the Oak Ridge Wildcats and Clinton Dragons at Blankenship Field was very well-attended, with the ticket line snaking around the lower parking lot at Blankenship Field and down Broadway. The Wildcats won 24-13 in the season opener. Here are pictures by Julio Culiat and John Huotari.

Oak Ridge Wildcats Adarius Simpson and Clinton Dragons

Oak Ridge sophomore Adarius Simpson (24) returns the football to the Clinton 45 after a Dragons field goal attempt was blocked by junior Wildcat Jaret Miner. (Photo by Julio Culiat)

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Defense, TD passes to Higgins give Wildcats 24-13 win over Clinton

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Oak Ridge Wildcats Jordan Dunbar and Clinton Dragons

Senior quarterback Jordan Dunbar (14) ran for 27 yards on nine carries and six first downs against the Clinton Dragons on Blankenship Field on Friday. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 22.

Junior receiver Tee Higgins caught two touchdown passes, and the Oak Ridge defense prevented Clinton from scoring in the first half as the Wildcats beat the Dragons 24-13 in the season opener at home on Friday.

Oak Ridge also blocked a Clinton field goal attempt, sacked senior quarterback Tyler Thackerson five times, and scored a defensive touchdown on a high Dragon punt snap that rolled into the end zone. The Wildcats also forced Clinton to turn over the ball twice on downs, and Oak Ridge senior Brandon Nickle kicked a 24-yard field goal about halfway through the third quarter.

Oak Ridge Coach Joe Gaddis said the Wildcats played well on defense, especially in the first half, but the offense made some mistakes, particularly in the first half, that have to be corrected before next week’s game against Dobyns-Bennett in Kingsport. [Read more…]

Wildcats: ‘Coaches Corner with Joe Gaddis’ starts Wednesday

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Joe Gaddis

Joe Gaddis

The live broadcast “Coaches Corner with Joe Gaddis” starts this Wednesday, August 19.

The show, which starts at 8 p.m. on Wednesdays, usually features a review of the previous week’s performance by the Oak Ridge Wildcats football team as well as a preview of the upcoming game.

The live broadcast is every Wednesday at Pizza Inn in Oak Ridge. If you can’t make it, you can watch it on Channel 12, BBB-TV.

The regular season starts Friday, August 21, at home on Blankenship Field. The Wildcats will play the Clinton Dragons, and kick-off is at 7:30 p.m. [Read more…]

Wildcats scrimmage changed, will play Morristown West at home tonight

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Oak Ridge Wildcats Logo

Oak Ridge’s scrimmage against South-Doyle at South-Doyle tonight has been canceled, and the Wildcats will instead scrimmage against Morristown West at home.

South-Doyle has apparently had some injuries, and another team canceled on Morristown West, Oak Ridge Coach Joe Gaddis said Friday morning.

So, Oak Ridge and Morristown West will scrimmage at 6:30 p.m. today (Friday, August 7) at the practice field, Ben Martin Track at Oak Ridge High School. There will be no admission and no concessions.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

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Wildcats scrimmages under way; stats from Friday night at Halls

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Oak Ridge Wildcats Logo

Note: This story was updated at 8:54 a.m. August 5.

The Oak Ridge Wildcats had a scrimmage at Halls on Friday, and the football team has a scrimmage with South-Doyle at South-Doyle at 7 p.m. Friday, August 7.

The Wildcats then will have a scrimmage at Heritage on Thursday, August 13, at 7:30 p.m. at Heritage. The freshman start at 6 p.m.

Saturday, August 15, is the Third Annual Wildcat Day. That’s a community pep rally that includes food, fireworks, and fun. It starts at 7 p.m. August 15 at Ben Martin Track at Oak Ridge High School. [Read more…]

Hardy finishes second, fourth in boys state track meet

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ORHS Wildcats Malik Hardy at State Track Meet 2015

Oak Ridge High School senior Malik Hardy finished second in the boys 200-meter dash, fourth in the long jump, and ninth in the 100-meter dash during the Class AAA state track meet, the Spring Fling, at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro on Friday, May 22, 2015. (Photo by Kindell Moore)

 

Note: This story was updated at 9:39 a.m.

MURFREESBORO—Senior Malik Hardy finished second in the 200-meter dash and fourth in the long jump during the Class AAA state track meet in Murfreesboro on Friday, May 22. And the Oak Ridge Wildcat finished ninth in the field of 16 competitors in the 100-meter dash.

Also during the meet, the boys 4×800-meter relay team finished fifth, and senior Wesley Robinson finished seventh in the 1,600-meter run. Junior Tyler Boullie finished 13th in the 800-meter run.

Hardy (2nd) had a time of 22.12 in the 200-meter dash. The top runner was Jordan Thomas, a senior at Centennial, with a time of 22.11. The third-place finish went to Martarious Brooks, a junior at Antioch (22.16).

Hardy (4th) had a jump of 22-05.75 in the long jump. The top three jumpers were Weldon Wright, a senior at Hardin Valley (23-07.00); Rashad Haynes, a junior at Memphis Central (22-10.00); and Bailey Overbay, a senior at Morristown-East (22-06.00). [Read more…]

Altman scores three as Hilltoppers end Wildcats’ season, move on to state

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Oak Ridge Wildcats Blake Clowers and Science Hill Elliot Fry

Oak Ridge’s Blake Clowers fights Science Hill’s Elliot Fry for possession. (Photo credit: Dave Ongie/Johnson City Press)

 

Junior midfielder Lucas Altman scored three goals as Science Hill ended Oak Ridge’s season in a 3-1 win in a sectional playoff game in Johnson City on Saturday. The Hilltoppers move on to play in the state tournament in Murfreesboro next week.

The Wildcats (15-5-2) scored first on a goal from senior forward Blade Kimbro less than 10 minutes into the game.

“Blade gave us everything he had,” Oak Ridge coach Jeff Trombly said. “He played really well.”

But Science Hill (19-2-2) tied it 1-1 about halfway through the first half on the first of three goals, a hat trick, by Altman. Altman scored again with about 8:15 left in the first half.

“We started off well,” Trombly said. “After that, we sort of lost our composure for about 10 minutes, and they scored two goals. It was hard for us to come back for us after that.” [Read more…]

Hawks edge Wildcats 1-0, but Oak Ridge headed to state sectional on Saturday

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Blade Kimbro Oak Ridge Wildcats and Hardin Valley

Wildcats senior forward Blade Kimbro (9) battles against Hardin Valley Academy during the Region 2-AAA championship at Oak Ridge High School on Thursday. (Photo by Julio Culiat)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 1:05 p.m. May 16.

Hardin Valley Academy’s soccer team made the short trip to Oak Ridge on Thursday evening for a matchup against the Wildcats in the Region 2-AAA championship.

The Hawks, now 17-0-2, looked to not only earn a win, but also the chance to host their next game. The Wildcats, now 15-4-2, were looking to do the same.

There was a packed house and a full student section on hand as the match kicked off underneath an overcast sky.  Hardin Valley opened up the game up with a couple of good looks before Oak Ridge narrowly missed on an opportunity less than six minutes into the first half.

Senior goalie Jake Livengood had a very nice performance for the Wildcats in the first half, and after 40 minutes of action, the two teams went to the half scoreless. [Read more…]

Kimbro scores two as Wildcats beat Farragut, advance to Region 2 championship

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Blade Kimbro of Oak Ridge Wildcats against Farragut

Senior forward Blade Kimbro (9) scored both goals for Oak Ridge in a 2-1 overtime win during a Region 2-AAA semifinal game at home against Farragut on Tuesday. (Photo by Luther Simmons)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 11:50 a.m. May 13.

Oak Ridge senior forward Blade Kimbro scored both goals in a 2-1 overtime win over Farragut in a regional semifinal game at home on Tuesday.

The Wildcats advance to play Hardin Valley Academy in the Region 2-AAA championship at home on Thursday. Win or lose, Oak Ridge will play in a sectional game on Saturday, although the outcome of Thursday’s game will determine who gets home-field advantage.

Kimbro scored both goals on Tuesday with help from junior forward Jose Rodriguez.

On the first goal, Rodriguez passed from the left side of the field to Kimbro, who was in front of the net and kicked the ball in to the right of Farragut goalkeeper Eli Lewis. That goal tied the game 1-1 at about 63:15. [Read more…]

Reminder: Oak Ridge plays Farragut in regional soccer semifinal today

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Oak Ridge Wildcats Soccer District Championship 2015

The Oak Ridge Wildcats boys soccer team won the district championship for a second year in a row, beating Halls 5-0 at home on Friday. The Wildcats play Farragut at home on Tuesday, May 12, in a Region 2-AAA semifinal game. (Photo by Luther Simmons)

 

The Oak Ridge boys soccer team will play Farragut at home in a Region 2-AAA semifinal game this evening (Tuesday, May 12). The game starts at 7 p.m. at Oak Ridge High School.

The Wildcats (14-3-2) beat the Halls Red Devils 5-0 at home on Friday to repeat as District 3-AAA champions.

Farragut (13-3-2) fell to Hardin Valley in the District 4-AAA championship on Friday.

Oak Ridge wins district soccer championship 5-0 over Halls

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Oak Ridge Wildcats Soccer District Championship 2015

The Oak Ridge Wildcats boys soccer team won the district championship for a second year in a row, beating Halls 5-0 at home on Friday. (Photo by Luther Simmons)

 

The Oak Ridge Wildcats boys soccer team beat the Halls Red Devils 5-0 at home on Friday to repeat as District 3-AAA champions.

The Wildcats (14-3-2) had been ahead 1-0 at halftime, but they opened up a large lead in the second half with a flurry of four goals in less than 15 minutes. Halls (10-4) struggled to get the ball out of its end of the field and had no shots on goal, compared to 23 for Oak Ridge.

Oak Ridge Coach Jeff Trombly said the Red Devils appeared to be a “little tired” in the second half, playing so much defense against the Wildcats.

“We’ve got a pretty good team,” Trombly said. “We’ve been peaking toward this point.” [Read more…]

Fourth-quarter comeback not enough as Wildcats fall to Mustangs in state quarterfinal

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Note: This story was last updated at 4 p.m.

After falling behind by 12 points, Oak Ridge narrowed the Memphis East lead to two in a fourth-quarter comeback sparked by junior Darel Middleton, but it wasn’t enough as the Wildcats lost to the Mustangs in a state quarterfinal game in Murfreesboro on Wednesday.

It’s the end of the season for the Wildcats (29-4), who played their last game with senior Ted Mitchell.

Sophomore Tajion Jones hit four three-pointers for Oak Ridge in the BlueCross Basketball Championship game at Murphy Center at Middle Tennessee State University. Three of those were in the first two quarters, and they helped give the Wildcats a 30-28 lead at halftime. [Read more…]