Tennessee
Friend or foe, either way East Tennessee plant specialists say they have to go
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – After having a number of customers asking if they carried them, a Knoxville greenhouse says they’re not carrying Bradford pears and people need to look at alternatives.
”We don’t sell them, we don’t bring them in at all,” said Kelsey McCarter the trees and shrubs manager at Stanley’s Greenhouse.
The warning came because the trees, also known as Callery pears are invasive to East Tennessee.
”They’ve become incredibly invasive in our area, and across the country even,” said McCarter.
The Callery, or Bradford pear, was brought to the country in the early 1900s. They became increasingly more popular in 80s and 90s as people opted for them in their yards and neighborhoods because of their pretty bloom and fast growth.
”Plants are not furniture, you know they show over decades the true properties of the plant,” said Michelle Campanis, the education programs coordinator at UT Arboretum.
WVLT News reached out to the Tennessee Department of Agriculture to find out if the state is looking into banning the tree. They said it’s not an option at this time, but the department is looking into ways to manage the invasive species.
”It has become invasive because once it reverts back to the parent tree the calorie pear which has very long thorns, spreads easily and that’s what you see popping up all over the road sides, vacant lots,” said Campanis.
The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency created a team whose job is to travel to management areas and remove the trees, the only efforts known across the state to attempt to eradicate the tree.
”It has become an invasive plant, every year that I’m in Oak Ridge I’m seeing more and more of them and its becoming a plant that’s crowding out our native plants that birds and insects need for food,” said Campanis.
Back at Stanley’s Greenhouse, work is now being done to educate and inform people of what should be planted instead.
”When the service berry tree is in bloom its full of white flowers I mean from a distance you may not even be able to tell it from a Bradford pear tree,” said McCarter.
While expensive, the recommendation of how to handle the Bradford pear is to simply have the trees removed.
”Having them removed unfortunately I know its a costly thing to do,” said McCarter.
Copyright 2024 WVLT. All rights reserved.
Tennessee
Tennessee first SEC team with regular-season titles in men’s basketball, baseball, softball in same season
Tennessee athletics are sitting on the Rocky Top, indeed.
The Vols have accomplished major history this season, becoming the first SEC school to win the regular season championship in men’s basketball, baseball and softball in the same season. The Lady Vols are the No. 3 seed and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Super Regionals this weekend in softball, while the baseball team is the No. 1 seed in the SEC Tournament, which kicks off Tuesday in Hoover, Alabama.
REQUIRED READING: Why it’s special for Tennessee softball seniors to lead Lady Vols back to NCAA super regional
Tennessee clinched the men’s basketball regular season championship on March 6 with a road victory over South Carolina, its first outright regular season championship since the 2006-07 season. On May 3, Tennessee softball defeated Kentucky in Knoxville to clinch its second straight SEC regular season title. The Vols went on to lose in the quarterfinals.
Following a sweep of South Carolina over the weekend, Tennessee baseball clinched a share of the SEC regular-season championship with Kentucky. It was the second time in three years the Vols won at least a share of the conference championship. They are the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament and are currently projected as a No. 2 national seed in the NCAA Tournament by D1Baseball, entering last weekend.
Here’s a look at how each team performed this season:
Tennessee men’s basketball
Tennessee men’s basketball advanced to the Elite Eight in 2023-24, losing to eventual runner-up Purdue. The Vols have qualified for the NCAA Tournament for four straight seasons under coach Rick Barnes.
- Final record: 27-9, 14-4 SEC
- Season finish: Lost to Purdue in Elite Eight
- SEC regular season titles: 11
Tennessee softball
The Lady Vols won their second straight conference regular season championship and the third in program history, all led by coach Karen Weekly. Tennessee swept through the Knoxville Regional to advance to its 13th Super Regional.
- Record: 43-10, 19-5 SEC
- SEC regular season titles: Three
- WCWS ranking: No. 3 overall seed
- Next up: No. 14 seed Alabama in Knoxville Super Regional
Tennessee baseball
Tennessee baseball swept South Carolina, while rival Kentucky dropped its finale to Vanderbilt for the two schools to finish with a share of the regular season championship. The Vols ― led by coach Tony Vitello ― earned the No. 1 seed after taking two of three regular-season games against the Wildcats in Lexington, Kentucky, earlier this season.
- Record: 46-10, 22-8 SEC
- SEC regular season titles: Five
- Next up: Winner of the No. 8-No. 9 matchup in SEC Tournament
Tennessee
Heartbreak for Tennessee High, falling 5-1 to Gibbs to end their season
BRISTOL, Tenn. (WCYB) — Sunday was the final day to punch tickets to Murfreesboro, with Tennessee High softball looking to return to the state tournament with a win over Gibbs.
Spending the Sunday at Rotary Park, it was the Lady Eagles of Gibbs striking first with an RBI-Double from Lacey Keck in the top of the first.
Tennessee High at the plate in the bottom of the inning, the Vikings looked for a spark and it was provided by Addie Wilhoit with a stand-up double.
Unable to move the runners around, the Vikings bac on the field and it would be Carly Compton settling in on the mound and collecting strikeout after strikeout.
Handling business in the top of the inning, it was Compton providing her own run support with a solo shot to even the game up in the bottom of the fourth.
Story of the day was stranded runners as Tennessee High came up short, fighting hard but falling 5-1 to close out their season.
Tennessee
Why it’s special for Tennessee softball seniors to lead Lady Vols back to NCAA super regional
Kiki Milloy kicked into another gear when Tennessee softball coach Karen Weekly waved her home Sunday.
The senior outfielder sprinted down the third baseline to beat the throw from left field. Milloy dove, sliding headfirst across home plate – safe.
She rose to her knees to smack the ground as she screamed in celebration. Milloy turned towards the field at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium as she stood up, yelling again for good measure as she put the Lady Vols up by three runs.
Rylie West, who was on deck when Zaida Puni hit the RBI-single, came up to Milloy to join the celebration.
West and Milloy are the only two players left from Tennessee’s 2021 team. They’re the only ones left who felt the pain of back-to-back exits in the NCAA regionals on their home field. They’re two of the biggest reasons it hasn’t happened since.
West hit a two-RBI double right after Milloy scored, and by then, the win was well within their grasp. West followed it with a solo home run in the fifth, and No. 3 Tennessee (43-10) won 6-0 over Virginia (34-20) to claim the Knoxville Regional and advance to the super regionals for the second year in a row.
Two straight years of elation, made even sweeter by the two years before that ended in heartbreak.
“(I’m) just super proud that … we can end our careers differently than how we started them,” West said.
Puni, who transferred to Tennessee from Oklahoma ahead of the 2022 season, called the early exit her first season at UT “heartbreaking.”
“So, we made a commitment to never having that feeling again,” Puni said.
The Lady Vols will host No. 14 Alabama (36-17) in the super regionals. The best-of-three series will start Friday.
Weekly was already getting emotional after the Lady Vols run-ruled Virginia on Saturday. She fought back tears in the dugout as soon as the game ended.
“When they go out and play with so much joy and so much competitiveness and so much passion … They were just locked in and just really, really enjoying competing, and that’s what makes me the happiest,” Weekly said. “Usually wins come with that, but really, that’s what I want them to strive for every day, is just to go out there every day and compete their hearts out.”
Tennessee was dominant in all three victories, not conceding a single run. The Lady Vols outscored opponents 21-0 over 19 innings and hit .329. Karlyn Pickens and Payton Gottshall held opposing hitters to a .109 average and combined for 24 strikeouts.
MORE: Rylie West’s dad saw potential that led to Tennessee softball career. But first he told her to quit
The three-game shutout was the first thing Weekly pointed out when she met with the team after Sunday’s win.
“That’s huge. I doubt that’s being done in any other regional in the country,” Weekly said. “I think it takes just a big weight off these guys’ shoulders as hitters, knowing that our pitchers … they both have the mindset that my job is to keep a zero on the board until our offense can figure things out and get runs up for us. I would imagine they’re a whole lot of fun to play behind.”
Cora Hall covers University of Tennessee women’s athletics. Email her at cora.hall@knoxnews.com and follow her on Twitter @corahalll. If you enjoy Cora’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that allows you to access all of it.
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