A spring sports season that began amid freezing March temperatures has now heated up to its boiling point. When the Spring Fling - Tennessee's week-long Olympic-style prep sports championship series - gets underway Tuesday morning, the Chattanooga-area will once again have athletes and teams contending for the season's crowning achievement.
As this year's event gets underway with tennis and track and field, here are a few area storylines to watch for this week:
The best bet for a local team to win a championship has to be in boys' tennis, where McCallie - led by No. 1 overall player Andreas Sillaste - has been the nation's top-ranked high school team since the preseason.
The opening round includes matchups of local opponents in several sports, beginning Tuesday evening with Baylor vs. McCallie baseball at Wilson Central, followed on Wednesday by Baylor vs. McCallie soccer at 3 and Baylor vs. Chattanooga Christian softball at 5.
The Scenic City has long been known as a softball hub, and that tradition is expected to continue this week as five area teams have reached the state tournament. That includes Soddy-Daisy, a program with eight state titles but none since 2012. The Lady Trojans have shown a flair for the dramatic - rallying late in their last two postseason wins - to advance this far for the first time since 2014.
Similarly, Soddy-Daisy soccer is back in the state tournament after a 21-year absence. The Trojans were runners-up in 2000, the last time they reached the Fling.
One of the more intriguing storylines is whether Baylor can extend its softball championship streak to seven, which would set a new state record for consecutive titles. The last time the Lady Red Raiders failed to bring back the gold trophy was in 2014, when rival GPS beat them.
The Bruisers, led by senior Ansley Blevins - who has an astonishing 19 home runs and 22 intentional walks - already own a regular-season win over Baylor and those two are favorites to square off once again this week in the title round.
At least one Chattanooga-area softball team has won a championship for each of the past 18 seasons. Since 2002 - the last time an area team did not play for a title - there have been 29 state champions and 24 runner-up finishes among area programs.
Baylor's baseball program, which has won the last three Division II-AA titles, can tie the state record for consecutive championships this week. The Red Raiders, led by Mr. Baseball finalist and University of Virginia signee Henry Godbout, rank second in the state with 52 home runs as a team.
That total ranks just behind Silverdale Baptist's state-leading 56 homers. The Seahawks, who are in the state tourney for only the second time in program history, have a Mr. Baseball finalist of their own in Turner Junkins.
For everyone not wearing Baylor red this could be another frustrating week as the school's girls' tennis team - which has won nine of the last 10 titles, boys' soccer - which is just one win from playing for the crown - and girls' track teams could all join the baseball and softball teams as championship contenders.
Aside from Baylor's recent D-II dominance in baseball, area teams have not fared well at the state tournament. The Red Raiders own four titles since 2003 and McCallie (2014) is the only other local team with a baseball title this century. The last area public school to win a title was South Pittsburg in Class A in 1996, although Bradley Central did finish as AAA runner-up in 2019.
Lookout Valley, one of the smallest schools in Hamilton County, is the only local public school to reach the state tourney this week.
Signal Mountain's Kara Wilson, the runner-up in the pentathlon, is the state's top qualifier in the long jump, triple jump and 100-meter hurdles, and is one of an impressive eight individual athletes set to compete in the Class AA track meet for the Lady Eagles, who have won seven of the past eight state team titles.
East Hamilton senior Jeremiah Flemmons, a two-time all-state football athlete, is the state's top qualifier in four events - long jump, triple jump, high jump and 110-meter hurdles. McCallie, which had finished state runner-up seven times before winning its first team track title a year ago, has a shot at repeating with 14 individual qualifiers in D-II.
Team TFP coverage
The Times Free Press will have stories online and in each day's edition all week from the Spring Fling. For updated coverage each day, follow reporters Gene Henley - @genehenley3 - as well as Patrick MacCoon - @PMacCoon - and Stephen Hargis - @StephenHargis - all week for updated scores and highlights from the Chattanooga area's teams and athletes competing. Chief photographer Robin Rudd - @RobinRudd5 - will also have photos and updates throughout the week.
Tuesday's Spring Fling schedule
BASEBALL
Silverdale Baptist vs. Goodpasture at MTCS, 5
Baylor vs. McCallie at Wilson Central, 7:30
Lookout Valley vs. Coalfield at Eagleville, 7:30
SOFTBALL
Soddy-Daisy vs. Lexington at McKnight #2, 5
Meigs County vs. Forrest at Starplex #4, 6:30
SOCCER
Red Bank vs. Austin-East at Field #14, 5
Soddy-Daisy vs. Valor College Prep at Field #15, 5:30
TENNIS
Division II-AA boys' team semifinals: McCallie vs. MBA, 10
Class A boys' team semifinals: Arts & Sciences boys vs. Merrol Hyde, 2
Division II-AA girls' team semifinals: Baylor vs. Brentwood Academy, 12
Class AA girls' team semifinals: McMinn County vs. Tennessee High, 4
TRACK & FIELD
Class A & AA, field events begin at 10 a.m., running events at 4
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293. Follow him on Twitter @StephenHargis