The JCHS baseball team has had many great players over the years but few have been quite as decorated as Judd Hammons. Having earned two back-to-back All Conference spots, Hammons went on to claim numerous distinctions from several regional organizations including a 2012 and 2013 spot on Johnson City Press’s Super 22 Team. A pick of the best players from across Upper East Tennessee, the honor of being selected was one that only a handful of Johnson County players have ever had, and even more rarely two seasons in a row.
Yet, as one of the best short stops in Longhorn history coupled with a solid batting average and a pure love of the game, it’s no wonder that Hammons has gotten this far, going on to sign with Alice Lloyd College to play in the fall. What is shocking is that Hammons pulled off many of these accomplishments while battling more than one serious injuries, including a lengthy rehabilitation after shoulder surgery. More...
Girls hone basketball skills
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The Lady Longhorn basketball team got a unique opportunity to play against some tough competition last week as they made their way to Wise Virginia to take part in the 2013 Southwest Virginia Team Camp. Twenty-five teams participated in the event, with Johnson County and Daniel Boone being the only two from Tennessee. Yet, for head coach Todd Whittemore, coming up against unfamiliar opponents was one of the more positive parts of the weekend.
“It’s a good camp,” Whittemore said. “I like who we’re playing because they are good teams. They’re not overly strong, but they’re also not teams that know us that well. It’s nice playing new competition. Right now it’s more about us than anything else. We lost our leader Sarah Swift, and that not going to be easy to replace. I’ve been coaching 20 years and I’d like to say that I can develop a new leader every year but I can’t. Leaders have just got it in them. You can’t force it on them. You can’t make them into a leader if they don’t have it in them. Between Brooke Brown, Brionna Reece and Brandy Dugger we have three that have been starting for four years. They have to step up and be vocal leaders. They don’t want to make anyone mad at them, but a true leader doesn’t care if someone gets mad at them. They’re going to say what needs to be said and they’re going to do what needs to be done. I’m just hoping were going to get that out of them this year.”
Traveling to Wise on Friday, the team played three games and then spent the night to get up Saturday morning and play three more. Some of the competition, like Wise Central, was very tough, while others like Northwood were more familiar. Playing them the first game, Central went on to beat Johnson County by ten but only after the Lady Longhorns battled back from a 20-point deficit. The Northwood game came later, with better results, and Johnson County was able to turn things around by taking an early lead and holding on through all four quarters. Games were shortened to 10 minutes per quarter with the clock continuously running. More...
