The Walters State Lady Senators are five games into the 2019 season, and former Lady Cyclones standout Lauren Brickey is a part of the lineup.

Over the past weekend, the Lady Senators took on five opponents and went 2-3 to start the season.

Brickey played in all five contests as she collected seven hits out of 17 at-bats.

In the first game on Saturday, Walters State topped Coastal Carolina 14-4. The contest saw Brickey hit a home run while she went 2-of-4 with two runs scored.

Brickey currently has two runs batted in over her first five games.

Brickey is joined at Walters State by Happy Valley’s Emily Whitaker.

Whitaker is in her second season with the Lady Senators. In 2017-18, Whitaker had seven home runs with 29 RBIs and 43 hits.

Whitakers, Brickey, and the Lady Senators will be back on the diamond on Friday as they visit Jones College in Gulf Shores, Alabama.

Tuelle name Freshman of the Week

Hampton Shyanne Tuelle has hit the ground running at Campbell University.

This week, the Big South Conference named Tuelle Freshman of the Week.

Over her last two games, scored 13 points both as the Camels topped USC Upstate, 61-41, and UNC Asheville, 49-48.

Tuelle is averaging 10.5 points game while being 36.7 in 3-pointers.

The Camels are 14-8 overall and 6-5 in the Big South.

How about those Jr. ’Dogs and Jr. Lady ’Landers

This column is typically about local athletes who are playing at the collegiate level.

But I would like take a moment to talk about the Cloudland Jr. Lady Highlanders and the Hampton Jr. Bulldogs.

Over the weekend, both teams made history competing in the first-ever TMSAA State Tournament. Not only did the teams play in the tournament, but they also performed at a high enough level to make it to their respective championships. Both squads would finish as runner-ups, and I know that isn’t what they wanted. But it is important for them to remember that they shouldn’t hang their heads. Their names will forever be listed as one of the first teams to compete in the inaugural middle school state tournament, and I am sure that experience will carry over well as they progress on to the high school level.

Not only did the two squads show what Carter County can do on the court but also showed what Carter County could do as a community. Just like the Class A East Sectional Tournament that was played at John Sevier Middle School, Hampton and Cloudland fans filled the stands at the state tournament as both groups cheered for the Jr. Lady Highlanders and the Jr. Bulldogs. Even the cheerleaders joined forces as the Jr. Lady Bulldogs cheer squad joined the Cloudland cheerleaders during the Jr. Lady Highlanders battle with Harriman in overtime of the girls’ championship. Also in the stands was Carter County Mayor Rusty Barnett, who made the four-hour drive to watch the two Carter County teams.

Any team is only as good as its coaching, and the high level of play that the Jr. Bulldogs and Jr. Lady Highlanders showed this season reflects the high level of coaching that they have received from Cloudland head coach Matt Birchfield and Hampton head coach Dewayne Humphrey. Behind every good coach is usually a group of dedicated assistant coaches, and that is definitely the case at Hampton Elementary and Cloudland Elementary as Joy Gardener, Rob Fritts, and Ricky Burchett assists at Hampton and Sam Potter assists at Cloudland.

And as a writer, I would like to thank the Jr. Bulldogs and Jr. Lady Highlanders, because it is teams like your’s that gives us writers something to write about.