Sports

After opening the weekend with a 12-point win over visiting Motlow State which put them in a tie with the Bucks for first in the TJCCAA, Dyersburg State’s men held onto that tie on Saturday evening with a 124-114 win over Volunteer State in Dyersburg.

When sitting down with Chris Russell Jr., he appears to be a typical teenager simply enjoying his senior year at Dyersburg High School chilling with his friends playing Madden video games. When it comes down to it though, these days life is far more complicated than it is simple, and for good reason.

After trailing by three at the half and as many as 10 during the third quarter, Dyer County’s girls ended the game strong as the Lady Choctaws celebrated Homecoming 2019 by rallying in the fourth quarter to take a 55-50 win over MHEA on Friday night in Newbern.

When there are only five teams in a district and only eight games during the course of the season between yourself and your league opponents, those matchups become all the more important when you see them on the schedule. Dyer County finds themselves in this very situation for the next week and a half roughly as the Choctaws and Lady Choctaws have three straight District 13AAA games beginning with a trip to Munford on Tuesday night...

Coming off a pair of disappointing District 13-AA losses on Tuesday night at home against Westview, the Lady Trojans and Trojans got back on the winning track on Friday night in Milan as the two black and gold teams claimed victories over the hosting Lady Bulldogs and Bulldogs...

Heading into Friday night’s Small Area Boys Tournament semifinal at Lake County Middle School, Choctaw fans were assured they would have a team to root for during Tuesday night’s title game – but only one team – as Northview defeated county-rival Three Oaks to earn a spot in the championship game 49-39 in Ridgely...

JASON PEEVYHOUSE jpeevyhouse@stategazette.com With the end of the regular season coming almost a week ago, the Dyersburg Middle School girls and boys teams are headed this week to Medina for their annual stay in the Blue Suede Tournament where they will play in the final two rounds of the tournament at South Gibson High School...

After trailing by one heading into the half of Thursday night’s second TMSAA Small Area Girls Tournament semifinal at Lake County Middle School in Ridgely, the Northview girls battled through a back-and-forth third quarter to lead by one heading into the final frame and ended the game on a 10-4 run to get a 35-31 win over Crestview.

With the regular season for middle school basketball ending last week, teams from both Northview and Three Oaks will now enter the postseason as they head to Ridgely tonight for the start of the Small Area Basketball Tournament at Lake County Middle School.

The Dyer County Youth Basketball League opened its second season on Saturday in Newbern with a full slate of eight games on the docket for the opening day. League director Tyler Barber said the league has grown from last season as it has gone from just under 100 players in 2018 to 150 at the start of this season...

The Dyer County girls basketball team got back on the winning track in the district as the Lady Choctaws bounced back from a disappointing performance last Friday in Brighton as they returned home to take a 61-36 win over visiting Liberty in District 13AAA action on Tuesday night in Newbern...

Though Dyersburg played to a stalemate through a half and outscored Westview 12-9 down the stretch in the fourth quarter, the Lady Chargers dominated the third frame on Tuesday night to take a 55-49 win over the Lady Trojans in the Terry Glover Gymnasium.

Jim Simpson (right) of Ripley won this year’s College Bowl Pick’em Contest. Presenting Simpson with the first-prize check is State Gazette Sports Editor Jason Peevyhouse.

Though the Dyersburg Middle School boys saw their 11-point halftime lead shrink to just a point late in the third quarter, the DMS Trojans stormed back to end the game strong, outscoring South Gibson 16-6 over the final quarter and change to take a 44-33 win over the Hornets on Monday night in Dyersburg.

Karissa Niehoff Bernard Childress --- If you are the mother or father of a high school athlete here in Tennessee, this message is primarily for you. When you attend an athletic event that involves your son or daughter, cheer to your heart’s content, enjoy the camaraderie that high school sports offer and have fun. But when it comes to verbally criticizing game officials or coaches, cool it...

Even with a double-figure halftime lead on Friday night down in Brighton, the Choctaws still had to absorb some shots from the Cardinals in their District 13AAA matchup, but the orange and white did not falter as they took an 85-70 win over their hosts to stay undefeated in the district.

Thanks to their win over South Gibson on Friday night as well as events unfolding around District 13AA the same night, the Lady Trojans are in a four-way tie atop the league thanks in part to their 58-36 win over the Lady Hornets in Medina. Things stayed tight early as the Lady Trojans got a seven-point opening quarter from K.K. Howard as well as a three-pointer from Mari-Hanna Newsom to take a 10-7 lead after the opening frame...

A week ago, I talked about how important the upcoming week was going to be for our local teams. Now, seven days later, it looks like at least in one of the four set of standings we keep up with here that things have taken a turn for the interesting as the Lady Trojans are tied for first after three nights of District 13AA play...

With a tie score after three quarters, Thursday night’s boys game between Northview and Ridgemont in Newbern in its final seconds came down to free throws as the Choctaws failed to convert a bonus attempt with eight seconds left, then the Mustangs hit two with half a second left to secure the 37-36 win over the home team at Northview.

Coming off a 10-day layoff, the Choctaws gave their fans a thrilling return to the court on Tuesday night as Dyer County’s boys rallied from a double-digit deficit in the second half to win 51-48 after junior Tray Swift hit his second straight game-winner with seconds left on the clock in Newbern.

Though the Rebels seized the momentum at the end of a back-and-forth first quarter with a late three-pointer from Obion County Central’s Emerson Fussell, it was only a brief instance on Tuesday night where the Trojans were not in control as they ended the first half on a 21-5 scoring spree to set the tone for Dyersburg’s 67-34 win over Central in District 13AA play in the Terry Glover Gymnasium.

Local baseball fans will get a chance to meet some of their favorite Cardinal players next weekend as the annual St. Louis Cardinal Caravan will roll into Newbern and Dyer County High School on Saturday, Jan. 19 at 5 p.m. Tickets for the event are $10 and a meal is included in the price. Children five and under will be admitted for free...

With three of the last four games between the Trojans and the Cavaliers being decided by one possession, the trend continued during Friday night’s District 13AA opener, but not in the conventional way as a fourth-quarter rally by Crockett County was followed by a clutch performance in overtime by the Dyersburg boys to capture the 59-58 win for the black and gold in Alamo on Friday night.

With the holidays over and the second half of the high school basketball season getting under way, both Dyersburg and Dyer County will see their district schedules pick up this week as both will be in action against conference opponents two times in four days.

Throughout the course of a sports season, there are games and weeks which can be key to determining how a season will go from there. This week is one of those weeks for teams here at Dyersburg and Dyer County as both local schools will be in district action on two nights this week...

After ending the first half of his senior year at Dyersburg High School with one all-state honor last week, Trojan standout Chris Russell got the 2019 portion of the school year off to a good start as he was honored with a selection to the Tennessee Football Coaches Association Class 4A All-State team on the defensive side of the ball.

After missing a potential go-ahead free throw with 12.8 seconds left in the Milan Rebounders Club Christmas Tournament Championship Game on Saturday night in Milan, Dyer County junior point guard Tray Swift made up for that miss by hitting the game winner just over 10 seconds later as he sank a game-winning three-pointer to give the Choctaws a 62-65 win over Peabody to win the tournament for the second straight year.

JASON PEEVYHOUSE jpeevyhouse@stategazette.com After taking an eight-point lead at the half, the Lady Trojans’ defense played well in the third quarter as their offense struggled to put points on the board but maintained their lead throughout the second half and held on for a 43-37 win over Horn Lake (Miss.) in the second day of the Dot Foods Christmas Classic at Dyersburg High School...

The Dyer County girls bounced back from their tough loss the night before to the University School of Jackson as the Lady Choctaws claimed third place in the Milan Rebounders Club Christmas Tournament with a 61-28 win over Lake County in the consolation game on Saturday evening...

Here we are on Dec. 30 with one more day (if you’re reading this on Sunday, anyway) left in 2018. It’s been a year to say the least and we have seen plenty of memories made and games played over the last 365 days. With the end of one year always comes the beginning of another to take its place...

After trailing by two points at the end of the first half, the Dyer County boys dominated the third quarter as a 22-6 start to the second half proved to be the difference as the Choctaws defeated Greenfield 61-42 in the semifinals of the Milan Rebounders Club Christmas Tournament in Milan on Friday night.

JASON PEEVYHOUSE jpeevyhouse@stategazette.com With a spot in the championship game on the line on Friday in the semifinals of the Milan Rebounders Club Christmas Tournament in Milan, a strong opening quarter by the Lady Bruins doomed the Dyer County effort as the Lady Choctaws fell 61-27 to the University School of Jackson...

After falling behind early, the Trojans cut into the Royals’ lead during the final eight minutes but came up just short, losing 62-56 to New Site, Miss. in the second day of the 12th Annual Peggy Bain Holiday Hoops Tournament at Alcorn Central High School in Glen, Miss...

After a standout season on the gridiron for the Trojans in 2018, Dyersburg’s Chris Russell continues to receive accolades in the weeks following the conclusion of his high school football career as the senior linebacker was named to the Tennessee Sportswriter’s Association Class 4A All-State team for his efforts on the defensive side of the ball.

JASON PEEVYHOUSE jpeevyhouse@stategazette.com With just a two-point lead heading into halftime, the Choctaws saw the advantage disappear momentarily during the third quarter in the opening round of the Milan Rebounders Club Christmas Tournament on Thursday morning against the Bruins. But, the Choctaws answered with a 19-3 run bridging the final two quarters to help Dyer County to a 70-60 win over the University School of Jackson...

After taking a five-point lead at the end of the opening quarter, the Dyersburg boys put the game out of reach over the next 16 minutes, outscoring Kossuth 34-11 in the second and third quarters to take a 70-31 win on Thursday morning in the first day of the 12th Annual Peggy Bain Holiday Hoops Tournament at Alcorn Central Middle School in Glen, Miss...

JASON PEEVYHOUSE jpeevyhouse@stategazette.com Though the Lady Red Devils hung around early, Dyer County’s girls ended the first half with a strong run then dominated the third quarter on the way to a 69-43 win over Bradford in the opening round of the 2018 Milan Rebounders Club Christmas Tournament on Thursday morning in Milan...

With the Christmas holiday now in the rear-view mirror for the local high school basketball teams at Dyersburg and Dyer County, the four teams at the two schools still have some games left before the second half of the season starts next week with post-Christmas tournament action in three locations beginning today.

Just about 24 hours after coming off a disappointing performance against the Lady Pioneers in the semifinals of the Gibson County Christmas Tournament in Dyer, the Lady Trojans were able to keep up with the defending Class A State Champion Greenfield early on Saturday night but a strong third quarter by the Lady ‘Jackets proved to be the difference as Dyersburg fell 75-61 in consolation action.

After a pair of losses in the first two days of the Lady Marshal Christmas Classic at Marshall County High School in Benton, Ky., the Lady Choctaws brought their stay in the Classic to a successful finish as Dyer County took a 79-56 win over Caldwell County on Saturday afternoon playing in their first game without sophomore guard and leading scorer Zoie Springer...

After playing to a stalemate at the end of the first half and third quarter, the Choctaws led late but fell to Cairo (Ill.) in the second day of the Graves County Shootout by a score of 68-65 on Saturday afternoon in Mayfield, Ky. “We’ve got to get tougher,” Dyer County head coach Derek McCord said. “When you miss eight free throws and you lose by three, you’ve got to be able to go up to the free throw line and knock down free throws or not turn the ball over.”...

Thanks to wins by Dyersburg and Gibson County on Thursday night, the two schools’ fanbases were treated to a rare home-and-home set just three days apart as the Lady Trojans and Lady Pioneers met in the semifinals of the Gibson County Christmas Tournament on Friday night.

Though Dyer County held only a four-point lead following the first eight minutes of their matchup with Calloway County (Ky.) in the Graves County Shootout on Friday afternoon, the Choctaws controlled things in the middle two quarters – outscoring the Lakers 35-22 – on the way to a 65-45 win in Mayfield, Ky...

Coming off a game in which saw them struggle against Henderson County, the Lady Choctaws looked more like themselves on Friday afternoon against the hosting Marshall County team but Dyer County was unable to overcome a strong Lady Marshal third quarter before falling 65-58 in Benton, Ky...

Another year is drawing to a close as we are a couple days away from the Yuletide holiday when the jolly old man in red makes his rounds around the world. Before this goes any further, let me make sure to wish all of you out there reading my weekly ramblings and writings a very Merry Christmas as we get ready to celebrate Dec. 25...

Despite a sluggish start which saw the Lady Trojans lead only one time during the first three quarters, the Dyersburg girls turned it on down the stretch, outscoring Gleason 10-2 in the fourth quarter to overtake the Lady Bulldogs and win 35-30 in the first round of the Gibson County Christmas Tournament at Gibson County High School in Dyer on Thursday night.

After falling behind early on the road to Henderson County (Ky.) in the first game of the Lady Marshal Holiday Classic at Marshall County High School in Benton, Ky. on Thursday evening, the Lady Choctaws were unable to overcome an 11-point halftime deficit as Dyer County fell to the Lady Colonels 58-42...