Washington County is looking like a hotbed for softball.
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Science Hill, David Crockett and Daniel Boone are each off to impressive starts to the 2021 season. In fact, they have the look of being state tournament contenders.
Heading into Monday’s games, the trio had combined for a record of 29-6 with three of those losses coming in head-to-head battles. Science Hill beat Boone and Crockett. Crockett defeated Boone.
The Lady Hilltoppers carried a 12-game winning streak into Monday’s rematch against Boone. Unfortunately for Science Hill, an injury to star pitcher Sejal Neas early in that 9-0 loss clouds the future somewhat.
David Crockett is riding an eight-game winning streak while Boone won for the ninth time in 10 games Monday.
Here is where these teams are in terms of statewide status with an informal public school state ranking:
| Team | W-L | Class |
| 1. Siegel | 10-1 | AAA |
| 2. Coffee County | 11-0 | AAA |
| 3. South Gibson | 18-1 | AA |
| 4. Farragut | 8-1 | AAA |
| 5. Clarksville | 17-0 | AAA |
| 6. Soddy Daisy | 12-3 | AAA |
| 7. Daniel Boone | 13-3 | AAA |
| 8. David Crockett | 14-2 | AAA |
| 9. Science Hill | 13-2 | AAA |
| 10. Powell | 15-4 | AAA |
BLUE DEVILS ROLLING
Unicoi County’s baseball team was putting up impressive results as it headed into its two-game series showdown against Elizabethton on Monday and Tuesday.
After starting the year at 1-2, the Blue Devils ripped off six straight wins with lock-down pitching and rock-solid hitting. They outscored those six opponents by a combined margin of 63-6 with four shutouts — including the last three in a row.
The series against Elizabethton could challenge all of those numbers. The Cyclones entered with a record of 9-1, including three sweeps in Three Rivers Conference play for a 6-0 league mark. Unicoi began the series with a 3-0 record in the conference.
AROUND THE STATE
Baseball
Seymour continued its dominant start, racking up five more shutouts and improving to 16-0 heading into Monday’s game against South-Doyle.
Included in the mix was Friday’s 9-0 thumping of Greeneville, which is 9-3 and one of the better Class AA teams in the state.
The Eagles, who are ranked No. 2 in the state by the Tennessee Baseball Report, have a stunning 11 shutouts and two one-run games on the season.
Here are the first rankings in the all-classification poll:
| Team | W-L | Class |
| 1. Farragut | 13-0 | AAA |
| 2. Seymour | 16-0 | AAA |
| 3. Baylor | 7-2 | DII |
| 4. Collierville | 13-2 | AAA |
| 5. Briarcrest | 9-3 | DII |
| 6. CAK | 13-4 | DII |
| 7. Pigeon Forge | 12-0 | AA |
| 8. Houston | 13-2 | AAA |
| 9. Goodpasture | 14-2 | DII |
| 10. Sevier County | 14-3 | AAA |
Here are the classification rankings for Tennessee Baseball Report:
Class AAA — 1. Farragut, Seymour, Collierville, Houston, Sevier County, Riverdale, Hardin County, Mt. Juliet, Clarksville, Brentwood
Class AA — 1. Pigeon Forge, 2. Milan, 3. Gibbs, 4. Community, 5. South Gibson, 6. Greeneville, 7. Carter, 8. Loudon, 9. Forrest (only nine teams were ranked)
Class A — 1. North Greene, 2. Peabody, 3. Tellico Plains, 4. Lake County, 5. South Pittsburg, 6. Coalfield, 7. Summertown, 8. Fayetteville, 9. Gibson County, 10. Monterey
GAMES OF THE WEEK
BASEBALL
Tuesday — David Crockett at Science Hill; Elizabethton at Unicoi County; University High at Sullivan North
Wednesday — Greeneville at Dobyns-Bennett
Thursday — Science Hill at Greeneville; Elizabethton at Dobyns-Bennett; Sevier County at Daniel Boone
Friday — Sevier County at Science Hill; David Crockett at Elizabethton
Monday — David Crockett at Dobyns-Bennett; Daniel Boone at Science Hill; North Greene at Sullivan North
It’s a jam-packed week of quality matchups, including several non-conference battles that move the interest needle.
The Big Seven Conference title-chase picture should be clearer after the results of three important two-game series.
SOFTBALL
Tuesday — Elizabethton at Unicoi County; North Greene at Unaka
Wednesday — Unicoi County at Sullivan East
Thursday through Sunday — Eastman Invitational at Kingsport
Monday — David Crockett at Daniel Boone; Elizabethton at Sullivan East
Over the course of seven days, the Three Rivers Conference will have a round-robin tournament, of sorts, among the three teams most heavily involved in the league’s title chase.
SOCCER
Tuesday — Science Hill at Dobyns-Bennett
Monday — Dobyns-Bennett at Tennessee High
The Indians and Hilltoppers go head to head to see who gets the leg up for the Big 7 Conference championship chase.