Sports
Farragut wins fourth straight KISL title
February 4, 2026 by Jake Nichols
KNOXVILLE — Farragut senior Olivia Kohl leaped into the air last Wednesday night, arms locked at 90 degrees and legs outstretched as she plummeted toward the water at Tennessee’s Allan Jones Aquatic Center.
Her pike set up one of multiple successful dives, as Kohl helped the Aqua Ads reach a first-place finish to win their fourth consecutive Division I KISL City Meet championship.
FHS totaled 499 points to claim its fifth KISL title in program history, first under first-year coach Marlee Sanders.
“I’ve been with this team for six years in some capacity, but this is my first year as head coach, so I went into this season not knowing exactly what to expect,” Sanders said. “We lost a lot of talent last year when our seniors graduated, so this season felt like starting over in a way. But these kids blew me away with the talent that they honed every single day.“
Following FHS, Mary-ville came in second at 478 points with Hardin Valley Academy in third at 396.5. Webb, Bearden and Concord Christian placed fourth, fifth and seventh, respectively.
In Kohl’s dives, she totaled 297.55 points — good for a second-place finish behind Bearden’s Sarah Griffith (446.10 points) in the middle and high school diving session on Jan. 28. Bearden’s Garrett Bailey won the high school boys diving event with 483.90 points, and seventh-graders Cate Bridges (CAK) and Will Petrone (Webb) placed first in their respective events as well.
While the diving portion of the meet was pushed back due to weather, the swimming events took place on Jan. 23.
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February 4, 2026 by Ken Lay, Correspondent
Knoxville — Farragut Middle School’s boys basketball team had to work a little overtime Thursday night. The extra labor netted the Admirals a Knox County Middle School Class AAA Tournament Championship.
Farragut had to come from behind to notch a 42-39 overtime victory over Halls before a spirited crowd at South-Doyle Middle School.
“There were a couple of times tonight that I thought we were done,” Admirals’ coach Shane Wells said. “But our kids came back and that shows a lot about their character.
“We’ve been in a lot of close games and we’ve won almost every one of them. We were extremely fortunate to win tonight and we’ve been extremely fortunate all season.”
The Red Devils, thanks to a shot from Cruze Yaniello as time expired in the third frame, held a slim 31-29 advantage heading into the final six minutes of regulation. Halls also had a lead in the waning seconds of the fourth quarter until Farragut’s Henry Crecy buried a 3-pointer as time expired in the fourth quarter, knotting the contest, 36-36, and sending the game into overtime
The Admirals, who had seemingly been embroiled in an uphill battle all night, wasted little time seizing control of things in the extra three-minute frame.
Farragut scored first in overtime as Crecy grabbed an offensive rebound and scored, making it 38-36. The Ads were dominant on the offensive glass early in overtime as Benji Evans scored another putback a short time later, giving his team a four-point lead.
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February 4, 2026 by Jake Nichols
LENOIR CITY — With more winter weather rolling in last weekend, the start times for Bearden’s matchups at Lenoir City were pushed up an hour.
Neither the start time nor the snow hampered the Bulldogs, however, as both BHS programs came out red-hot to remain undefeated in District 4-4A.
The Lady Bulldogs won 78-44, while the Bulldogs won 80-27.
In the girls matchup, Natalya Hodge led the way with 33 points — a remarkable effort any night, but especially when she had just been named a 2026 McDonald’s All-American nominee.
She paced BHS with 22 of those points at halftime — a stark contrast to Lenoir City’s 20 as a team — while Emma Rainey totaled 16 for Bearden.
They started the game with back-to-back 3-pointers to open the scoring.
“Not playing in a week, you have an idea of what you hope you look like versus the reality. I was pleased,” Lady Bulldogs coach Justin Underwood said. “We hit those two 3s right out of the gate to set the tone.“
After the game, all four programs came together to honor survivors of breast cancer awareness.
“Coach (Shelley) Collier had mentioned doing a thing for that,” Underwood said of the Lenoir City girls coach. “The girls want to wear the pink shoes, and we talk about doing it for something more than a fashion statement.
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February 4, 2026 by Jake Nichols
On Jan. 8, 2026, high-pitched screams pierced the air inside the Farragut High School gymnasium.
But these were not screams of triumph or defeat. Rather, they were screams of pure joy and admiration, as the University of Tennessee dance team went through its routine with Farragut’s own teenage dancers watching and cheering.
UT’s presence was part of its annual performance at a local high school, where the Vols’ dancers — including two local products in Bearden alumnus Jordan James and Webb graduate Island Shuler — perfect their steps before the Universal Dance Association’s national collegiate competition in mid-January.
“It’s really important for us to have opportunities to replicate that pressure, and you can’t do that in a studio,” said Tennessee dance coach Kelley Tafazzoli. “You have to have an audience and an authentic environment. So going to local schools gives us a chance to practice and showcases the talent we have here in Knoxville too. Having their support really means a lot.”
It was also effective, as UT took fifth in Division 1A Pom and sixth in Division 1A Jazz during a competition that went from Jan. 16-18 at Walt Disney World. Meanwhile, UT’s cheer squad took home a national title in the Division IA Co-ed Gameday category.
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February 4, 2026 by Jake Nichols
Across the Farragut area, plenty of individuals made noise throughout the course of 2025.
With 2026 sports already unfolding, here are several athletes to keep an eye on in the New Year.
On the hardwood, Justin Nordin and Parker Lane are just a couple guys to watch for Bearden and Farragut, respectively.
Nordin was named All-State in the 2024-25 season, while Lane recently set a new Farragut record for 3-pointers in a single game (10). He also poured in 84 points in three games during the Loudon Christmas Tournament.
Missouri signee and 2025 Miss Basketball finalist Natalya Hodge is once again one of the area’s top players after averaging 22.7 points per game as a junior, while Grand Canyon signee KJ McNealy has led Farragut as a senior after reaching the 1,000-point mark at the end of last season.
Clemson signee and reigning Miss Basketball winner Meeyah Green has continued to produce for Webb, and on the soccer pitch, the Lady Spartans will once again look to utilize the skills of 2025 All-State selections Mary Mac Emery and Lauren Newell.
Together, those two helped lead the Lady Spartans to a second straight runner-up finish in the Division II-AA state tournament, while Green paced Webb to a Division II-AA state title in hoops.
On the diamond, Farragut will be led by Jake Harris, Aidan Flagg, Travis Brummitt Jr. and Will Dickens in the senior class.
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February 4, 2026 by Ken Lay, Correspondent
The Farragut High School boys basketball team held on to second place in the District 4-4A basketball standings with a pair of league victories last week.
The Admirals improved to 18-7 overall and 8-2 in district play with lopsided victories over Lenoir City and Rhea County.
Farragut opened the week with a 76-49 victory over the Panthers on Thursday night in the friendly confines of the Lynn E. Sexton Gymnasium.
The contest was originally scheduled for Tuesday, Jan.27, but had to be postponed and subsequently rescheduled due to winter weather that forced the closing of Knox County Schools.
The Ads were also unable to practice on when classes were canceled early last week and they got off to a slow start against Lenoir City.
“You can’t afford to get off to a slow start against a team like Lenoir City or anybody else in our district,” FHS coach J.P. Burris said. “Lenoir City is a good team.”
The Panthers feature one of the area’s top post players in Ben Barr. Barr can be a dominant inside force, but he can also handle the basketball and bury clutch 3-point shots when called upon. His 6-foot-7 frame causes match-up problems for opponents.
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February 4, 2026 by Jake Nichols
HARDIN VALLEY — When Charlie Rohn moved to Farragut, he did not plan on becoming the Admirals’ newest wrestling coach.
But with a son who loved the sport and a program that needed a coach, Rohn stepped in to help 40 years after his own wrestling career concluded.
One year later, the Admirals reached the region semifinals for the first time in more than 25 years, as they fell to Halls 66-6 on Jan. 21 to end the team’s 2025-26 campaign inside the Hardin Valley gymnasium.
The result was one of multiple in the
Region 2-AA duals, as HVA defeated West 43-36
in the same gym to clinch its second consecutive sectional berth under head coach Matt Bates.
For Farragut, the team season concluded in a 23-4 record in dual matches. Moreover, FHS
expounded on a 2024-25 campaign in which it beat Bearden, Maryville and William Blount in the same night to mark their first wins
over those programs in more than two decades.
“They’ve done great,” said Rohn, who credited assistant coach Dalton Pearl with plenty of help and instruction in the process. “Almost all of our kids are first- or second-year wrestlers, and they saw the passion Dalton and I have for the sport.
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February 4, 2026 by Ken Lay, Correspondent
Some inclement winter weather played havoc with the Farragut High School girls basketball team last week.
But the Lady Admirals would persevere and survive a couple of District 4-4A scares last week.
The week started on a cold note as Knox County Schools were closed due to inclement weather on Jan. 26-27, forcing a league contest between Lenoir City and Farragut
had to be rescheduled for Thursday.
Further complicating things for the Lady Admirals was that they weren’t able to practice when classes were canceled.
Farragut, however, used its defense to pull out a 35-31 victory over the Lady Panthers Thursday night at the Lynn E. Sexton Gymnasium, but the game was full of tense moments for the Lady Admirals, who had trouble scoring all night.
The contest’s outcome wasn’t decided until center Trinity Curry converted a pair of free throws to make the score 35-30 with 7.6 seconds remaining.
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