Jan. 6 – Eagles win Huntingdon Christmas Tourney
Chester County Basketball competed in the Huntingdon Christmas Tourney December 28-30.
On December 28, the Eagles and Eaglettes had their first time of winning the same day this season. The Eaglettes defeated West Carroll 43-38 in the first round of the tournament, and the Eagles defeated Riverside 73-51.
In the Eaglettes next matchup against South Gibson, they were unable to get the win in a 57-29 loss.
In a similar game, they lost again to Camden 49-39.
Though the girls fell short in their tournament and came out with fourth place, the boys were able to go all the way and win the championship.
Jan. 13 – Chester Co. falls to Westview
The Chester County Eagles and Eaglettes both lost by 19 in their games against the Westview Chargers.
The Eaglettes lost 58-39.
The Eagles lost 80-61.
They had two more games scheduled for last week against Jackson Central Merry and South Gibson, but the games were cancelled due to weather conditions.
Jan. 20 – Chester County hires Johnson to coach CCHS Football
Chester County filled in the Eagles Football Head Coach position by hiring Dewond Johnson.
The Eagles are getting a coach with good experience under his belt.
Johnson’s coaching history includes being defensive coordinator for the Lexington Tigers since 2010. Of those 12 seasons, he coached Lexington’s defense to 11 playoffs and made it to the semifinals twice.
Jan. 27 – Eagles wipe out Dyer County – Eaglettes robbed of victory
The Chester County Eagles played hard for four periods in their game against Dyer Count on January 21, and their efforts resulted in a 87-69 win.
The Eagles maintained control throughout the entirety of the game.
According to head coach Collin McPherson, this was one of their better games played thus far.
“Everybody got involved,” McPherson said. We finally played to our team’s ability. Dyer County’s a pretty good ball team, but we came out and played well.”
The game followed being defeated by Dyersburg 71-40 on January 18.
The Eaglettes were also able to celebrate a win against Dyersburg with a score of 52-49.
Their ball game against Dyer County was unofficially a win of 63-60 while the official score was a loss of 64-63.
The Chester County girls played hard throughout the game, but during the second half, four points that Chester County scored were given to Dyer Co. instead which changed the outcome of the game.
The referees never had the scoreboard fixed so the Eaglettes lost.
After the game was reviewed by Hudl, their report had that the Eaglettes won 63-60.
Feb. 3 – Eagles stand at 1-1 in district
The Chester County High School Basketball teams started their first district games of the seasons against McNairy and Hardin County.
Unfortunately, both CCHS teams suffered losses against McNairy on Tuesday, January 25 with the girls having a big loss of 52-24 and the boys losing by three, 63-60.
Then, the Eaglettes and Eagles faced off against the Tigers on Friday.
The Eaglettes made it a competition until the fourth quarter as they ran out of gas.
The Chester County girls went into halftime with the lead 16-14, and they also took the lead at the end of the third with a three-pointer by Jariyah Williams that made the score 26-25.
However, during the fourth period, the Eaglettes were not able to hang in the game for the win. They were down 34-31 with 30 seconds left as the Tigers had chances to extend their lead from the free throw line but failed. The Tigers were able to get one of two free throws with 7 seconds left though, and the Eaglettes could not score in the last seconds of the game.
The Eagles versus Tigers game was close as well.
The two teams kept going neck and neck on the court throughout the entire game. In the end, the Eagles took the win, 58-56.
Feb. 10 – Eaglettes victorious over Lady Tigers
The Eaglettes had a sweeter victory over Lexington on Tuesday February 1.
What makes the win so much better is that it was an intense match and was a district win against a rival.
The heat between the two teams was felt on the court and in the stands both
The first period of the game almost ended with a buzzer shot by Jariyah Williamson from past half court, but it bounced out of the basket. At that time, the Eaglettes were winning 12-5.
They continued to keep control of the game going into halftime with the score 25-18.
Lexington closed the gap by the end of the third though and managed to put themself on the Eaglettes heels with the score at 29-28.
The Chester County girls still earned themselves a W with the final score being 43-34.
The Eagles struggled during their game against the Tigers from the start.
Lexington just kept racking up their points with the lead making the final score 50-33.
Feb. 17 – Eagles and Eaglettes win homecoming for fans
The Chester County Eaglettes and Eagles both were able to celebrate Homecoming night last Tuesday after defeating Hardin County.
The Eaglettes won 41-37 in a close game that went down to the last minute of play, but the Eaglettes were able to pull it off.
The Eagles’ game on the other hand was not close at all.
At the end of their game, the final score was 69-44.
Feb. 24 – Chester County Basketball prepares for Regional Tourney
The time has come where Tennessee high school basketball teams play their hardest as the post season kicks off.
After a rough loss against McNairy at home last Tuesday with a score of 64-51, the Eaglettes fell to last in the district at the end of the regular season.
The Eaglettes faced off against the McNairy Lady Bobcats again during the first round of the district tournament but lost again 51-32.
The Eaglettes managed to earn themselves a W during consolation which placed them in third within the district. The win was over Lexington 43-23.
In the last regular season matchup for the Eagles against the Bobcats last Tuesday, the Eagles kept the score close throughout the game, but could not pull off a win as they lost 76-72.
Nonetheless, when they played the Bobcats again in the first round of the district tournament, the Eagles got their revenge and defeated McNairy 82-71 which advanced them to the district tournament championship that was played on Tuesday February 22.
During most of the game, the Eagles were winning, but the Bobcats tied it a few times and even took the lead a couple times. The Eagles still perservered til the end though and took the lead to win it.
All district teams will advance to the regional level of play regardless of where they ranked in the district. The district tournament determined the seeding for the regional tournament.
March 3 – CCHS Basketball ends with losses against South Gibson
Chester County High School looks onward to the spring sports since both the Eagles and Eaglettes basketball teams lost in the first round of the regional tournament to South Gibson.
On Friday Feb. 25, the Eaglettes had a tough loss against the Hornets at South Gibson with a score of 51-32.
The Eagles followed them up on Saturday with a home game against the Hornets but fell short by three. The final score was 67-64.
March 10 – Lady Lions win in multiple ways, remain undefeated
The No. 15 Freed-Hardeman Lady Lions (13-0, 2-0) remain undefeated on the season following a pair of victories over Thomas More (2-6, 2-4) on Friday afternoon.
March 17 – Lady Lions one win away from 20 in 20 Games
The Freed Hardeman Lady Lions (19-0) finished off a strong series against the Pikeville University Bears as they took all four games on the March 10-11 stretch.
March 24 – CCJHS Volleyball ends last game with a win; Murphy coaches last volleyball game
Last Thursday was the last volleyball game of the season, the last volleyball game for the Chester County Junior High Volleyball players and the last game of coaching volleyball for Wes Murphy.
After developing a love for volleyball during his 11 years of coaching it at the junior high, he was able to coach his young athletes to a victory over McNairy in the last game of the season. The final score of Murphy’s last game coaching was 2-0 with set scores of 25-22 and 25-17.
March 31 – CCHS Tennis defeats Adamsville for another win
The Chester County High School Tennis team defeated Adamsville on Monday 7-0 for both the boys and the girls giving them a 3-0 record for the season.
April 7 – CC Track and Field wins first in 4X800 Relay
Chester County Track teams competed Friday evening at University School of Jackson in Jackson, both boys’ and girls’ teams finishing fifth out of 18 teams. Finishing first in the 4X800 Relay race were Tucker Allen, Garret Robison, Stewart Brown and Dillion Jackson. Hannah Rich won first in Discus.
Scoring points included Tucker Allen (1600), Stewart Brown (800), Garrett Robison (3200), Kris Morgan (High Jump and Long Jump), Hannah Rich (Discus and Shot Put), Alex Vires (100 Meters), Melanie Crisler (300 Hurdles), Hanna Cherry (800), Julia Briggs (3200) and Krissie Jones (High Jump).
April 14 – CCHS boys’ tennis defeats Brighton, McNairy, Bolivar: Girls defeat McNairy, Bolivar, lose to Brighton; Compton plays perfect game
The boys’ tennis team defeated Brighton, McNairy and Bolivar this past week with 7-0 wins in all three matches. Ethan Mullins, Carter Welch, Clayton Austin, Evan Eads, Nathan Britt, and Austin Ketchum all won singles matches, and Welch/Eads and Mullins/Britt won doubles matches as well.
The girls’ team suffered a heartbreaking 3-4 loss against Brighton. Cecily Davis and Katie Lovelace were able to win their singles matches, and Emma Grace Miller/Brooke Ketchum won their doubles match despite the loss. The girls bounced back on April 5 and 7 with 7-0 wins against McNairy and Bolivar. Grace Compton completed a perfect game in her singles match against McNairy winning every single point, only the second time this has happened in Chester County tennis history. Along with Grace, Emma Grace Miller, Cecily Davis, Brooke Ketchum, and Katie Lovelace won both of their singles matches in those games. Davis/Compton and Miller/Ketchum also won both doubles matches.
April 21 – Chester Co. Eagles wipe out South Side 5-0
The Chester County High School Eagles Soccer team defeated South Side in a district matchup 5-0 with goals being scored by Colston Callis, Chance Thompson, Cade Thompson, Evans Bailey and Tanner Melivin.
April 28 – CCJHS Eagles vanquish Bobcats; Win first championship in Chester Co. Junior High history
The Chester County Junior High Baseball team won their first district championship in CCJHS Baseball history with a blowout victory over McNairy. They won the championship game 8-0.
May 5 – Chester Co. Tennis wins gold during individuals
The Chester County tennis teams competed in the District 15 Individual Tournament on April 28 and 29. Twelve players represented the team and nine of those players were named to the All-District Team: Cecily Davis, Grace Compton, Emma Grace Miller, Austin Ketchum, Evan Eads, Nathan Britt, Ethan Mullins, Clayton Austin and Carter Welch. Emma Grace Miller and Clayton Austin both won the District 15 Singles Championships both defeating a Madison Academic player. Nathan Britt and Ethan Mullins won the District 15 Doubles Championship defeating teammates Evan Eads and Carter Welch in the championship game. Cecily Davis and Grace Compton were the District 15 Doubles Runners-Up losing to a Madison Academic team in the championship. Miller, Austin, Britt, Mullins, Eads, Davis, Compton and Welch all advanced to the Regional Individual tournament which will be held in Memphis on May 16 and 17. The girls team will play in the District Championship on May 2 against Madison Academic and the boys team will play Scotts Hill tonight, May 3, for the District Championship.
May 12 – Lady Lions claim MSC Tournament crown with shutout
For the second time in as many days, (3) Freed-Hardeman University held the (12) Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) College Blue Raiders scoreless, this time in a 7-0 victory to cruise through the 2022 Mid-South Conference Tournament unscathed to capture both the regular season and tournament crowns.
May 19 – Allen and Brown advance to State track meet
Chester County High School athletes Tucker Allen and Stewart Brown successfully ran past sectionals to the Division I AA State Track and Field Championship that will occur May 24. Both runners will compete in the state 1600 meter race after placing first and second place at sectionals. During the sectionals 1600 meter race, Allen earned first place with a time of 4:29 and Brown earned second with a time of 4:33. Allen will also compete in the state 3200 meter race after earning first place in the 3200 sectionals race. As a team, CCHS Track and Field finished sixth out of 40 teams. In field events, Hannah Rich finished fourth in the discus and fifth in the shot. Top eight track finishes included Julia Briggs and Anna Bolton in the 3200, Melanie Crisler in the 300 Hurdles, Julia Briggs and Daisy McManus in the 1600, Allen and Dillion Williams in the 800.
May 26 – CCHS Boys Tennis win sectionals and make history
In a tennis match with everything on the line to advance to the state tournament in Murfreesboro, the Chester County High School Boys Tennis Team kept their undefeated record after defeating Huntingdon in the Sectionals Championship match.
Not only did they win the match, they defeated Huntingdon during singles, 4-0.
So this week, the boys team make their first appearance in the state tournament as a team in Chester County history.
Individuals have made it to the state tournament, but it has never been done as a team.
June 2 – FHU softball’s record-breaking season ends
A season that saw the Freed-Hardeman University Lady Lions win a program-record 54 games came to a premature end on Monday in the consolation quarterfinal of the 2022 NAIA World Series. The Lady Lions were shut out for the first time all season on the heels of a 6-0 decision to the University of Arts & Sciences (Okla.) Drovers.
June 9 – Spring Fling 2022 Tennis Tournament conclusion
The Chester County High School Boys Tennis Team competed in Spring Fling Boys Tennis Team Tournament during the week of May 23-27 this year after qualifying for state as a team for the first time in CCHS history. Though they came up short in the state tournament and lost 4-2 to Gatlinburg-Pittman High School, they will still be remembered for the accomplishment of being one of the top four teams of 2022 in their division. Additionally, state doubles qualifiers Nathan Britt and Ethan Mullins lost their first match 8-5 in one set.
June 16 – CCHS Cheer showcase spirit at 2022 UCA Cheer Camp
The Chester County High School cheerleaders returned to their annual cheer camp June 5-8, which was hosted by the Universal Cheerleading Association at The University of Tennessee at Martin. They earned a Gold Ribbon for their Game Day evaluation and a Blue Ribbon for their Camp Routine evaluation. In addition, they won the following awards in the Large Varsity Division during the final day’s competition: First Place in Standout Sideline, Second Place in Camp Routine, and the Traditions Award for their showcase of school spirit throughout camp week. They also were one of only four cheer teams at camp to earn the Top Banana, and they received the Spirit Stick.
June 23 – FHU taps assistant coach Trask as new baseball coach
Freed-Hardeman University athletic director Jonathan Estes has named his replacement by handing the reins of the Lion baseball program to assistant coach Jess Trask.
June 30 – Rooney earns FHU’s first NBCA-Rawlings Gold Glove
For the first time in program history, a Freed-Hardeman Lion has earned a national Gold Glove Award. Junior Sean Rooney was named an NBCA-Rawlings NAIA Gold Glove winner.
Awarded by the National Baseball Coaches Association, the NBCA-Rawlings NAIA Gold Glove is awarded to the top fielder at each defensive position. Honored as the nation’s top first baseman, Rooney ended the season with a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage, putting out the runner 447 times. The San Jose, California native tallied 21 assists while being involved in 38 double plays.
Read the second half of the 2022 Sports Year-in-Review in next week’s issue.
