The Sevier County Bearettes earned a 47-40 win over Jefferson County Wednesday night to lockup a spot in the District 2-AAA semifinals, and, just as importantly, a place in the Region 1-AAA tournament next week.
The third-seeded Seymour Lady Eagles were stunned 57-40 Wednesday night by the sixth-seeded Morristown East Lady Hurricanes (10-18 overall) in the quarterfinals of the District 2-AAA Tournament.
The Gatlinburg-Pittman Highlanders’ basketball season is still alive after defeating visiting arch rival Pigeon Forge 70-50 in the District 3-AA Tournament play-in game at Jack A. Parton Gymnasium on Tuesday night.
Several times Tuesday night, it looked as though the Seymour Eagles would earn a first-round win in the District 2-AAA tournament over rival South-Doyle. But each time the Cherokees fought back, and in the end, it was nothing but heartbreak for the homestanding Seymour squad, hosting their first-ever AAA tournament.
With roughly four minutes left in the fourth quarter of Monday night’s District 2-AAA Tournament opener, it looked as though the Sevier County Bearettes’ season was headed for an abrupt ending.
In college basketball, the postseason is dubbed March Madness. In high school basketball, perhaps February Frenzy would be more fitting.
Whatever you choose to call it, the prep postseason arrives in Sevier County as both of the conferences in which local teams compete in will be right here on the home turf, beginning Monday.
Just days out of hosting the District 2-AAA tournament, the Seymour High School basketball teams couldn’t have gotten a much better effort in a pair of non-district games than they did Friday night.
The Gatlinburg-Pittman basketball squads traveled to District 3-AA rival Gibbs for the regular-season finale, and the Blue and Gold split a pair of lopsided affairs with the girls winning 66-36 and the boys falling 65-41.
Corey Ramsey started running cross country during his freshman year at SCHS.
Four years and hundreds of miles later, and the senior Smoky Bears runner has earned a big reward — a place on the cross country team at Tusculum College.
Senior night couldn’t have gone much better for the Pigeon Forge High School basketball teams Thursday night.
As high school football players around the country signed letters of intent during Wednesday’s National Signing Day, Sevier County star linebacker Dexter Robbins waited.
As an anchor for Pigeon Forge High School’s winningest class of football players, Daniel Troutman was an example of how to do things the right way.
The Lady Highlanders’ run through District 3-AA this season has netted top accolades for their senior leader and their head coach.
As millions of college football fans across the country followed their favorite team’s efforts on National Signing Day, three local athletes made their college choices official on Wednesday.
As the Pigeon Forge Tigers waited for their trophy Saturday night at the Williamson County Ag Expo Center, the mood was somber.
There were some scary moments for the Pigeon Forge Tigers in the Friday night semifinals at the TSSAA State Wrestling Duals in Franklin, Tenn. — none more so than looking up and scoreboard and finding themselves trailing to Stone Memorial High School 22-9 in the match’s early going.
But 30 minutes and a string of huge pinfalls later, and the state runners-up from a year ago have a spot in the finals for a chance at sweet redemption.
Pigeon Forge is one win away from another shot at a state title.
As Pigeon Forge High School wrestling coach read the passage, his athletes looked at their coach and each other.
“I am a player, and athlete and a champion,” Foreman quoted from an essay, written by an unknown author plucked from the internet. “Not because I know what it is like to win, but because I know what it is like to lose. I know what it is like to feel the anger and pain that comes along with ‘second best.’”
That part of the story especially rang true for the Tigers.
For PFHS senior wrestlers Nate Croley, Caleb Poole, Joseph Dodgen, Riley Dowd and Trevor Reed, this weekend’s been a long time coming.
Every year since their freshman season, the Pigeon Forge Tigers wrestling team has made the state tournament, only to fall short of their ultimate goal — the state A/AA duals title.
The last seven games may have added a few years worth of grey to Seymour head coach Brian Jessie’s beard.
But finally, Tuesday night, the coach got a dose of sweet relief.
The Gatlinburg-Pittman basketball teams split a pair with visiting District 3-AA rival Austin-East on Tuesday night, with the Lady Highlanders running away from the Lady Roadrunners 67-50 and the Blue-and-Gold boys falling 78-69 in a dramatic double-overtime affair with the district leaders.
In games rescheduled because of Friday night’s ice storm, the teams from Sevier County and Seymour high schools played Saturday night.
The Bears and Bearettes scored a sweep at Morristown East, while the Eagles and Lady Eagles suffered a pair of losses to visiting Morristown West.
The Pigeon Forge basketball teams had a good road trip on Saturday night, taking a pair of four-point wins at tough Class A Cosby.
Destiney Balser’s best year of high school volleyball came to a close with yet another highlight Saturday, as the Gatlinburg-Pittman senior inked paperwork to continue her career at Berea College.
Eagles golfer Justice Murphy will continue his golf career at Bryan College in Dayton.
