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  • Celina: Clay County Plays at Jo Byrns for the 1A Region 4 Title

    Celina: Clay County Plays at Jo Byrns for the 1A Region 4 Title

    Clay County will play for the Class 1A Region 4 championship on Thursday, Oct. 29, when the Bulldogs visit Jo Byrns in Cedar Hill at 7 p.m. Central. Both teams are 2-0 in region play, and the winner takes the region’s No. 1 playoff seed.

    Neither team has allowed a point to a region opponent, according to TSSAA’s standings, last updated Oct. 25. Clay County is 3-6 overall. Jo Byrns is 6-3.

    Both teams are already in the playoffs. TSSAA’s playoff possibilities page, updated Oct. 27, lists Thursday’s winner as the No. 1 seed and the loser as No. 2 in every scenario. Red Boiling Springs and Innovation Academy of Robertson County, both 0-9, also meet Thursday to settle the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds.

    Game-day details for Cedar Hill

    • Kickoff: 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 29, according to the Jo Byrns ticket listing on GoFan. TSSAA’s schedule lists the game but no kickoff time.
    • Site: Jo Byrns High School, 7025 Highway 41 N, Cedar Hill, in Robertson County.
    • Tickets: GoFan listed digital tickets at $10 plus a $1 fee as of Oct. 28.

    Clay County is 3-6 overall and 112-0 in region games

    Clay County beat Red Boiling Springs 54-0 at homecoming on Oct. 16, then beat Innovation Academy 58-0 on senior night, Oct. 23. Jo Byrns won its region games 42-0 at Red Boiling Springs on Oct. 2 and 42-0 against Innovation Academy on Oct. 9.

    Clay CountyJo Byrns
    Overall record3-66-3
    Region record2-02-0
    Region points for and against112-084-0
    Season points for and against214-253320-156
    Last gameBeat Innovation Academy 58-0, Oct. 23Lost at Whitwell 35-28, Oct. 23
    TSSAA playoff appearances28 (state runner-up in 2022)28 (state runner-up in 2008 and 2010)
    Head coachBruce LambJustin Robison

    All six of Clay County’s losses came in non-region games. Five of its seven non-region opponents — Smith County, Jackson County, Monterey, Trousdale County and Cannon County — are Class 2A teams in TSSAA’s standings. The Bulldogs went 1-4 against them, with the win coming at Monterey, 24-21, on Sept. 11.

    Clay County’s other two losses were at Barren County, Ky., 42-6, and at Middle Tennessee Christian, 40-8. Jo Byrns lost to East Robertson 41-6, Ezell-Harding 47-36 and Whitwell 35-28. Whitwell is 3-0 in 1A Region 3 and plays South Pittsburg on Thursday for that region’s top seed.

    TSSAA’s school records show Clay County and Jo Byrns in the playoffs every season from 2017 through 2025.

    Where each seed plays on Nov. 6 and Nov. 13

    TSSAA’s Class 1A bracket pairs Region 4 with Region 3 in the first round, and its notes say the higher-seeded team hosts in the first and second rounds. That means both Thursday teams open at home on Friday, Nov. 6. The difference shows up a week later.

    Region 4 champion (No. 1 seed)Region 4 runner-up (No. 2 seed)
    First round, Friday, Nov. 6Game 107 at home vs. Region 3’s No. 4 seedGame 104 at home vs. Region 3’s No. 3 seed
    Who that opponent isLoser of Sale Creek at Copper Basin, Friday, Oct. 30Winner of Sale Creek at Copper Basin
    Second round, Friday, Nov. 13Game 204 vs. Region 2’s No. 2 seed or Region 1’s No. 3 seedGame 202 vs. Coalfield (Region 2’s No. 1 seed) or Region 1’s No. 4 seed
    Second-round hostThe No. 1 seedCoalfield if it advances; otherwise the No. 2 seed

    TSSAA’s possibilities page shows Coalfield cannot finish lower than No. 1 in Region 2. Region 2’s No. 2 seed will be the winner of Rockwood vs. Greenback. In Region 1, the Cloudland–Hampton winner is the No. 3 seed and the loser is No. 4.

    A rematch could come only in the semifinals

    The bracket keeps the two Region 4 teams apart until the semifinals. The No. 1 seed’s path runs through Games 107, 204 and 302. The No. 2 seed’s runs through Games 104, 202 and 301. The winners of Games 301 and 302 meet in Game 401 on Friday, Nov. 27.

    If that second meeting happens, TSSAA’s bracket notes say the team seeded higher in the region standings hosts when two teams from the same region meet. That would be Thursday’s winner. The Class 1A state final, Game 501, is set for 3 p.m. Friday, Dec. 4, in Chattanooga.

    Top image: Illustrative image: the Clay County Courthouse on the square in Celina, home of Clay County High School (file photo, 2016). Photo: Brian Stansberry, CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

  • Baxter: Upperman Volleyball Earns First State Tournament Win Since 2018

    Baxter: Upperman Volleyball Earns First State Tournament Win Since 2018

    Upperman’s volleyball season ended Thursday, Oct. 22, in the consolation bracket of the TSSAA Division I Class AA state tournament in Murfreesboro. Before that, the Baxter school did something TSSAA’s records had not shown since 2018: it won a match at state, sweeping Elizabethton 3-0 in the quarterfinals.

    Upperman then lost 3-0 to Valor College Prep, the eventual champion, and 3-1 to Signal Mountain. It went 1-2 at the tournament after arriving with the 31-6 record listed on TSSAA’s Class AA bracket.

    Three matches in three days at Blackman High

    All three of Upperman’s matches were played at Blackman High School. Here is how the week unfolded, using the times and scores TSSAA posted. Set scores are listed with the match winner’s score first.

    • Tuesday, Oct. 20, 12 p.m. (quarterfinal, Match 2): Upperman 3, Elizabethton 0, by scores of 25-14, 25-17 and 25-20. Elizabethton came in at 20-12.
    • Wednesday, Oct. 21, 9:30 a.m. (semifinal, Match 5): Valor College Prep 3, Upperman 0, by 25-15, 25-15 and 25-9. Valor had entered the tournament at 42-5.
    • Thursday, Oct. 22, 12 p.m. (consolation bracket, Match 10): Signal Mountain 3, Upperman 1. Signal Mountain won the first two sets 26-24 and 25-21, Upperman took the third 25-22, and Signal Mountain closed it 25-16.
    • Friday, Oct. 23, 1 p.m. (final, Match 11, at MTSU): Valor College Prep 3, Dyer Co. 0, by 25-14, 25-15 and 25-20.

    Valor did not drop a set in its three matches. The title was its second straight in Class AA; TSSAA’s 2025 bracket also lists Valor as state champion after a final against Dyer Co.

    Signal Mountain’s win over Upperman sent it to the third-place match later that Thursday, where Hume-Fogg beat it 3-0.

    Four trips to state, and where each one stopped

    TSSAA’s history page for Upperman lists four state volleyball appearances: 2018, 2023, 2025 and 2026. The records below are the ones shown beside Upperman’s name on each year’s bracket.

    YearRecord entering stateState results
    201836-3W 3-2 Chester Co.; L 0-3 Portland; L 1-3 Camden
    202324-9L 0-3 Signal Mountain; L 2-3 Crockett Co.
    202529-8L 0-3 Dyer Co.; L 1-3 Chuckey-Doak
    202631-6W 3-0 Elizabethton; L 0-3 Valor College Prep; L 1-3 Signal Mountain

    The 2026 trip was Upperman’s third in four seasons. Its two state-tournament wins came eight years apart, and they looked different: the 2018 win over Chester Co. went the full five sets, while the Elizabethton match was over in three.

    Signal Mountain is the only opponent that appears twice on the list. It swept Upperman in the 2023 opener and ended Upperman’s 2026 run.

    Was it Upperman’s first semifinal? The brackets can’t settle it

    TSSAA’s 2026 bracket places the Valor match in a column headed “Semifinals.” The 2025 and 2026 brackets use the same layout: quarterfinals, semifinals and a championship match, with the semifinal losers moving to a consolation bracket that decides third place. A semifinal loss ends a team’s title chances.

    The 2018 and 2023 brackets on TSSAA’s site carry no round names, and they worked differently. A team could lose a match and still play for the title. In 2023, Valor College Prep lost its second match and still reached the final.

    That matters for Upperman’s history. On the 2018 bracket, Upperman won its opener, then lost its next match to Portland, which won the tournament’s final game. Like the 2026 Valor match, that one paired two first-round winners. It was not labeled a semifinal, though, so TSSAA’s pages alone cannot show whether 2026 was the program’s first semifinal.

    What the records do show is the total. After the 2026 tournament, Upperman’s all-time state volleyball record stands at 2-8 across four appearances.

    Top image: Illustrative image: the front of Upperman High School in Baxter, photographed in 2009 (file photo, not from the tournament). Photo: JarvisA10, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

  • Cookeville: Beat Lebanon and the Cavaliers Are in the 6A Playoffs

    Cookeville: Beat Lebanon and the Cavaliers Are in the 6A Playoffs

    Cookeville can clinch a Class 6A playoff spot by beating Lebanon at home on Friday, Oct. 30, and it can still get in with a loss. Under TSSAA’s playoff possibilities, updated Oct. 27, the Cavaliers (4-5) miss out in only one case: Lebanon wins and Mt. Juliet beats Green Hill on the same night.

    Three Region 4 games on Friday settle the order: Lebanon at Cookeville, Mt. Juliet at Green Hill and Gallatin at Wilson Central. TSSAA lists Wilson Central as mathematically eliminated. The top four seeds play in the first round on Friday, Nov. 6.

    Cookeville sits in a three-way tie at 2-2

    TSSAA’s region standings, updated Oct. 25, show Green Hill and Lebanon at 3-1. Gallatin, Cookeville and Mt. Juliet are 2-2, and Wilson Central is 0-4.

    According to its TSSAA schedule, Cookeville lost 21-14 at Gallatin on Sept. 11, beat Wilson Central 43-0 on Sept. 18, lost 21-7 at Green Hill on Sept. 25 and beat Mt. Juliet 34-17 on Oct. 23. The Cavaliers have won their last two games, including a 34-0 win at Farragut on Oct. 16.

    Can Cookeville lose and still make it? Five questions answered

    Does beating Lebanon guarantee a spot? Yes. In every TSSAA scenario where Cookeville beats Lebanon, the Cavaliers are seeded, either No. 2 or No. 4.

    Can Cookeville lose and still get in? Yes, if Green Hill beats Mt. Juliet. TSSAA then lists Cookeville as the No. 4 seed whether Gallatin or Wilson Central wins. Both of those lines carry an “H,” TSSAA’s code for a seed won on head-to-head results. Cookeville beat Mt. Juliet 34-17 on Oct. 23.

    How does Cookeville get the No. 2 seed? It must beat Lebanon, and Wilson Central, which is 0-9, must beat Gallatin. That is the only path to No. 2, and it works whichever team wins Mt. Juliet at Green Hill.

    What does the question mark on TSSAA’s page mean? If Mt. Juliet, Cookeville and Gallatin all win, TSSAA lists Cookeville at No. 4 but shows seeds 1 through 3 as “? D.” Its key says a deep tie means “teams are still tied on overall wins and need a deeper tiebreaker.” By the standings, that combination would leave five teams at 3-2 in region play. TSSAA does not yet name the other three seeds.

    Who would Cookeville play on Nov. 6? Region 4 teams meet Region 3 teams in the first round, according to the 6A bracket. As the No. 4 seed, Cookeville would play Region 3’s No. 1 in Game 105. TSSAA’s Region 3 scenarios make that the winner of Friday’s Oakland at Riverdale game; both teams are 8-1. As the No. 2 seed, Cookeville would play Region 3’s No. 3 in Game 104: Smyrna if Oakland wins, or Oakland if Riverdale wins. The bracket does not list sites or kickoff times yet.

    All eight Friday outcomes for Cookeville

    Mt. Juliet at Green HillLebanon at CookevilleGallatin at Wilson CentralCookeville’s seedNov. 6 opponent
    Mt. Juliet winsLebanon winsGallatin winsOutNone
    Mt. Juliet winsLebanon winsWilson Central winsOutNone
    Mt. Juliet winsCookeville winsGallatin winsNo. 4 (seeds 1-3 undecided)Region 3 No. 1
    Mt. Juliet winsCookeville winsWilson Central winsNo. 2Region 3 No. 3
    Green Hill winsLebanon winsGallatin winsNo. 4Region 3 No. 1
    Green Hill winsLebanon winsWilson Central winsNo. 4Region 3 No. 1
    Green Hill winsCookeville winsGallatin winsNo. 4Region 3 No. 1
    Green Hill winsCookeville winsWilson Central winsNo. 2Region 3 No. 3

    Lebanon has the better record against shared opponents

    Lebanon is 7-2 and has outscored opponents 269-112. Its losses came against Nolensville, 21-14, and Green Hill, 22-19. Cookeville has outscored opponents 209-167. The two teams have played five of the same opponents this season:

    • Wilson Central: Cookeville won 43-0; Lebanon won 34-0.
    • Mt. Juliet: Cookeville won 34-17; Lebanon won 28-7.
    • Siegel: Cookeville won 42-14; Lebanon won 28-14.
    • Gallatin: Cookeville lost 21-14; Lebanon won 20-13.
    • Green Hill: Cookeville lost 21-7; Lebanon lost 22-19.

    TSSAA’s schedule lists Lebanon at Cookeville without a kickoff time. The 6A final is set for Saturday, Dec. 5, at 7 p.m. in Chattanooga.

    Top image: File photo: Cookeville High School in Cookeville, Tennessee, seen across a grass field in 2016. Photo: Brian Stansberry, CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons