McMinn County High School's baseball program is on a tear.
The District 5-AAA leading Cherokees won their fifth straight league contest as Andrew Beavers helped lead a 10-2 road victory over East Hamilton on Monday. The multi-sport standout was a thorn in the Hurricanes' side from the leadoff spot where he went 4-for-5 with two extra-base hits, three runs scored and two RBIs.
Jayce Hyde hit a three-run home run in the third inning in which Beavers led off with a line-drive homer to left. The five run inning was plenty for ace and East Tennessee State University signee Andrew Ronne to work with.
Ronne fanned seven over five frames in which his control was not the best as he walked three and hit two batters. McMinn's Ollie Akins only allowed one hit over the final two frames.
Will Grimmett also enjoyed a big day at the plate going 3-for-4 with two RBIs.
The Cherokees are now 11-8-1 overall and are 7-2 in league play. This is the first season the program will finish a regular season with a winning record in the district since 2009.
Carson Hedrick drove in both runs for the Hurricanes with a two-run single in the fourth inning.
* McCallie 7, Chattanooga Christian 0: Senior pitcher Nic Mirabella delivered a gem, striking out 14 over seven shutout innings of three-hit baseball. The Blue Tornado scored five runs in the second, while Javen Johnson had a strong performance in going 2-for-2 with a double and stolen base. Carter Hewitt and Nolan Sergeant each drove in a pair for McCallie.
* Bradley Central 12, Ooltewah 1: Cooper Casteel allowed three hits and one run while striking out 10 over six innings for the Bears (12-10, 6-3 5-AAA), who received four RBIs from Landen Kibler while Aiden McClary went 2-for-4 with a pair of RBIs.
* Grundy County 11, Sequatchie County 2: The Indians committed eight errors and allowed 10 hits to Grundy County, which improved to 14-6 and 5-0 in District 7-AA. Alex Killian homered and was walked three times while driving in and scoring four runs.
* Sale Creek 10, Bledsoe County 7: Drew Hillian, Jakob Elrod, Jonah Brantley and Eli Buttram each had three hits for the Panthers who scored four runs in the last two innings for a comeback victory on the road. Elrod tripled twice and picked up the pitching save.
* Model 10, Dade County 7: Model took an 8-0 lead after three innings in Trenton as the Wolverines allowed six unearned runs on six errors against their Region 7-AA rivals. Landon Williams had a three-run triple, Colton Emett went 2-for-4 with an RBI and run scored and Jax Guin drove in a pair of runs for Dade County (14-11, 12-4). With the win, the Blue Devils (20-6, 12-4) tied the Wolverines for second place in the region with two more games to go in the three-game series this week.
East Hamilton head coach Norma Nelson claps for her team during their game against Central during Central Play Day 2014 at Central High School on Saturday.SOFTBALL
* East Hamilton 14, Central 1: Veteran Lady Hurricanes coach Norma Nelson earned the 800th win of her 27-year career, which has included winning a state championship at Ooltewah. East Hamilton took control early with five first-inning runs and added nine more in the second. Brooke McMillen and Shelbie Sholtz combined for the no-hitter, striking out four.Emma Sam Reed was 2-for-2 with 3 RBIs and Syerra Rogers and Grace Hixson each drove in a pair of runs.
* Baylor 7, Red Bank 6: The Lady Lions made things interesting scoring three runs in the bottom of the seventh, but could not hand the Lady Red Raiders their first loss of the season. Acelynn Sellers went 3-for-4 with a pair of RBIs for Baylor. Both teams had 10 hits, while Red Bank's Bailey Phillips homered and went 2-for-3 along with Taylor Bono.
* Hixson 8, Lookout Valley 6: Meghan Kernea delivered a tie-breaking, two-run home run in the bottom of the sixth while Jenna Griswold recorded a 1-2-3 seventh to capture the win for the Lady Wildcats. Kernea had three of Hixson's hits and RBIs.
* Walker Valley 15, Boyd Buchanan 8: Michelle Benson and Grace Martin each drove in four runs as the Lady Mustangs captured the victory despite allowing four home runs. UTC signee Presley Williamson went 3-for-3 with a home run and a double for the Lady Bucs, who also got home runs from Gracie Petty, Katie Powell and Kiley Elliott. Boyd Buchanan made six fielding errors in the defeat.
* Grace Academy 14, Notre Dame 4: Miriam Ateca tripled and drove in three runs along with Tory Adams to lead the Golden Eagles. Ayana Daniels doubled and tripled while driving in three for the Fighting Irish.
* Silverdale Baptist 8, Chattanooga Christian 6: The Lady Seahawks scored five runs in the bottom of the sixth to land a comeback victory. Bentlee Stiner and McCade Cooper each had two doubles and combined for five RBIs. CCS' Madison Vandergriff hit two home runs and drove in a game-high five runs.
* Whitwell 11, Grundy County 4: The Lady Tigers improved to 9-8 as Ava Layne went 3-for-4 with a triple while Maria Basham drove in a couple and went 2-for-4.
* Signal Mountain 15, Brainerd 0
TENNIS
* The Notre Dame girls improved to 8-0 overall with a 6-1 victory over Collegedale Academy. Hannah Widerkehr was sharp as she won 8-3 in both singles and doubles play. Collegedale won the boys' matchup 6-1, as top three seeds Joby Nash, Brad Stern and Tyler Griffin were sharp in their victories. Jake Schober also won 8-2 in singles and doubles for Collegedale. Notre Dame's Evan Nowell won 9-7 over Tyler Dunkel.
* CCS won both tennis matches over Silverdale Baptist by the score of 8-1. Jada Tun and Mary Alice Anz stood out for the Lady Chargers winning their doubles and singles matches 8-1. Noah Walker won 8-0 in singles along with Matthew Patrick and Candace Brown.