The TSSAA is moving its softball state championship games to Middle Tennessee State University, which was already the host site for the baseball title games at the Spring Fling.
The Division II softball championship games are scheduled for Thursday, May 23, with DII-A at 11 a.m. Eastern and DII-AA at 4 p.m. In both cases, if the first game results in a first loss at state for either team, a second game would follow.
In the public school classifications, the title games are set for May 24, with Class 4A at 11 a.m. Eastern, 1A at 1:30 p.m., 2A at 4 and 3A at 6:30.
In a significant change from past softball state tournaments, public schools will no longer have "if necessary" games for the championship round. Instead, each classification will be divided into two four-team brackets, all playing a double-elimination format to advance the two teams that will meet in the one-game, winner-take-all championship matchup.
DII-A and DII-AA will continue playing true double-elimination tournaments because the brackets for both of those classes is half the size of those for public schools.
Although all state championship games will be played at MTSU Blue Raider Softball Field, the rest of the tournament will remain at the adjoining McKnight and StarPlex complexes, also in Murfreesboro, with competition beginning on May 21.
"This was a great decision by TSSAA," said Baylor coach Kelli Smith, who has guided her program to eight consecutive state titles, the state record for TSSAA softball.
The Lady Red Raiders have also played in 13 of the last 14 DII-AA championship games.
"First and foremost, it gives the players an incredible venue and atmosphere and will enhance the experience for the fans as well," Smith added. "I know the folks in Murfreesboro have worked very hard to improve the field conditions, and I love seeing the progress of the playing surface over the past few years, but you're still playing with temporary fences for a championship tournament.
"So this will make getting to the championship game an even better experience for everyone."
Staff photo by Robin Rudd / Baylor players celebrate after beating Chattanooga Christian 9-5 to win the TSSAA Division II-AA state title last May 25 at the Starplex softball complex in Murfreesboro, Tenn. The TSSAA will play all of its softball state title games at MTSU starting with next month's Spring Fling.Munn's mark at Red Bank notable
Mandi Munn is in her fourth decade as a contributor to Red Bank High School athletics, first as a player and then as a coach.
Her legacy will be cemented next Wednesday with the dedication of Mandi Green Munn Softball Field. The event will take place at 5 p.m., 30 minutes before the scheduled first pitch against Lookout Valley.
A 1995 graduate of Red Bank, Munn was a standout in softball and volleyball for the Lady Lions before signing a full scholarship to play softball at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga for coaches Karen and Ralph Weekly.
In 2001, she began her teaching and coaching career at her high school alma mater. Munn guided Red Bank to the 2005 TSSAA Class AAA softball state championship with a 3-0 win over Soddy Daisy to complete a 28-13-2 season, and the Lady Lions were honored as the area's team of the year by the Greater Chattanooga Sports Hall of Fame.
The 2021 Lady Lions finished fourth at the Class AA state tournament, led by Bailee Phillips as she starred as both a hitter and a pitcher. (Phillips now plays for Tennessee Wesleyan University and currently leads the Appalachian Athletic Conference with a 0.83 ERA in 67 2/3 innings this season, while her strikeout total of 103 ranks second.)
Munn also coached Red Bank's volleyball team to multiple state tournament appearances, and she was honored by the TSSAA as the athletic director of the year as the A.F. Bridges Sportsmanship Award winner in 2019. She currently serves as Red Bank's dean of students.
"We are excited to honor Coach Munn for a job well done," Red Bank assistant principal Wendell Weathers wrote in an email. "She continues to serve her alma mater well. She is certainly worthy of high praise and recognition."
Staff photo by Robin Rudd / Boyd Buchanan's Cooper Jones pitches for the Buccaneers during a home game against Walker Valley on March 28.Bucs' Jones holds Seahawks hitless
Boyd Buchanan and Silverdale Baptist Academy split a doubleheader in District 6-3A baseball competition Monday.
In the rubber match, Cooper Jones delivered the finest pitching performance of his prep career.
The 6-foot-5 left-hander shut down SBA's lineup with a nasty changeup that propelled him to a five-inning no-hitter with a career-high 11 strikeouts in the Buccaneers' 10-0 road victory Wednesday.
Jones improved to 3-0 with a 2.62 ERA and a team-leading 30 strikeouts in 16 innings this season. He also has a team-high 29 RBIs for the Bucs, who are 15-2 overall and took control of the race for the District 6-3A regular-season title by winning the series against the Seahawks.
"I really focused on staying within myself and throwing my best stuff," Jones said. "I am very thankful because after the game, one of the Silverdale coaches gave me the game ball when we were shaking hands. That ball means a lot to me. It's the top moment in my high school career. All of the glory goes to God."
McCormick on the move with Shulman
Former UTC and McCallie coach John Shulman and current Notre Dame senior Cole McCormick are set to coach and play, respectively, in the old stomping grounds of six-time NBA champion and former USA "Dream Team" member Scottie Pippen.
Shulman was hired as the next men's basketball coach at the University of Central Arkansas on March 18 after leading the University of Alabama in Huntsville to 112 wins and a pair of Gulf South Conference titles over the past five seasons.
Pippen once starred for the UCA Bears, averaging 23.6 points, 10 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 3.1 steals per game as a senior in 1986-87 for what was an NAIA program at the time. UCA is now an NCAA Division I program and has been a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference since 2001.
McCormick initially signed with UAH but is following Shulman to Conway, Arkansas, where Pippen's No. 33 hangs in the rafters of UCA's Farris Center. Pippen was the No. 5 overall pick of the 1987 NBA draft for the Chicago Bulls and starred alongside Michael Jordan for the team's double three-peats in the 1990s. Pippen also won Olympic gold medals in basketball at the 1992 Barcelona Games and the 1996 Atlanta Games.
The 6-foot-5 McCormick helped lead Notre Dame to the Division II-A state championship game in 2023, when he had per-game averages of nearly 20 points, more than six rebounds and more than two assists and steals.
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com and Patrick MacCoon at pmaccoon@timesfreepress.com.