Tennessee
Tennessee baseball rolls past Indiana State in midweek bout
Gavin Kilen homered twice, including a three-run shot in the fourth inning and No. 15 Tennessee run-ruled Indiana State, 12-1 in seven innings at Lindsey Nelson Stadium Tuesday.
The Vols (38-11), who were coming off of their third-straight series loss to Auburn last weekend, were productive and aggressive at the plate, taking early swings and totaling 11 hits.
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The lineup accounted for five home runs, two from Kilen and one each from right fielder Reese Chapman, first baseman Andrew Fischer and center fielder Colby Backus in the sixth inning.
Kilen was 3-of-4 at the plate with four RBIs, while Fischer finished 2-of-4.
Tennessee got the most out of its arms, too. Michael Sharman set the tone with strong start, allowing five hits, one run and striking out three in 3.2 innings of work.
Relievers Austin Breedlove, Brandon Arvidson, Brayden Krenzel and Thomas Crabtree combined to give up just one hit and five strikeouts.
Sycamores (22-26) left fielder Jorge Cartagena had Indiana State’s lone RBI in the second.
Backed by a strong start from Michael Sharman, who tossed a couple of strikeouts in the top half of the first inning, the top of Tennessee’s order made quick work of Indiana State starter Jacob Spencer.
Gavin Kilen, Andrew Fischer and Hunter Ensley all singled, with Ensley’s knock going up the middle to score Kilen and give the Vols an early 1-0 lead.
Dean Curley, batting fifth in the order, was recorded the fourth hit with a single to short that allowed Fischer to score and extend the Tennessee lead to 2-0.
The Sycamores got out of the inning with the damage limited there, but Kilen came through again in the second with a two-run shot to right field to open up a 4-0 lead through two innings.
Sharman, who stranded base-runners in the first and second, ran into trouble again in the third with two on and two outs after Indiana State had gotten on the board on Carter Beck‘s RBI ground out. But Jeremy Martinez harmlessly flew out to left to prevent the Sycamores from adding more.
After the Vols went down in order in the bottom third, Sharman gave up a walk and back-to-back bunts moved Jorge Cartagena over to third with two outs. That ended Sharman’s night and Austin Breedlove took over out of the bullpen to try and leave the Sycamores empty-handed in the inning.
Breedlove delivered, striking out Mason Roell looking to end the frame.
Reese Chapman led off the bottom fourth with a solo no-doubter to right-center to swell the Tennessee lead to 5-1. Stone Lawless and Jay Abernathy each wore a pitches in consecutive at-bats to give the Vols a couple of one-out base-runners.
Kilen paid them both off, mashing a three-run home run over the wall in right to stretch the lead to 8-1.
Breelove issued a walk to lead off the fifth before Brandon Arvidson entered with two outs, but he gave up a walk against the first batter he faced and stolen base put two in scoring position for Indiana State.
Arvidson escaped the jam with a strikeout.
Back at the plate, Tennessee was quickly back in position to add to its lead after Curley advanced to second on a fielding error at third, and Ariel Antigua moved into third with no outs in the bottom fifth.
Chapman scored Antigua on a fly-out to left and the Vols were up 9-1, two runs away from the run-rule with at least two more frames left to play.
With two outs, Abernathy extended the inning with a chopper to second that Jackson Taylor was unable to field in time and the Vols had the bases loaded, but Kilen grounded out at first to end the frame.
Fischer got off to an emphatic start in the bottom sixth, though. He mashed a home run to right–Tennessee’s third of the night–to up the lead to 10-1, and Colby Backus followed it up with a single to left.
Curley brought the Vols into run-rule territory with a ground out to first that scored Backus, but just for good measure, Chris Newstrom made the most of insertion into the lineup in the inning with a solo shot that stayed fair down the third base line and exited the stadium left.
Tennessee continues its final stretch with another top 15 series against No. 11 Vanderbilt this weekend.
The Vols, who have won four-straight series against the Commodores, are looking to end a skid after losing three-straight series for the first time under Tony Vitello.
Vanderbilt (34-14, 14-10) is coming off of series win over Alabama.
First pitch between Tennessee and the Commodores is slated for Friday at 5:30 p.m. ET (SEC Network) at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
Left-handed pitcher Liam Doyle (8-2, 2.39 ERA) will start for the Vols.
Tennessee
419 sober drivers in Tennessee arrested for DUI in 2024, according to TBI
Tennessee
Sick and tired: Counties near Chattanooga are now reporting highest flu rates in Tennessee
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn — Tennessee health officials say flu activity is rising sharply in around Chattanooga, with counties surrounding Hamilton showing some of the highest rates in the state.
Marion, Grundy, Sequatchie, Bradley, Meigs, Rhea, Bledsoe, McMinn and Polk counties are currently the only areas in Tennessee rated “very high” for influenza activity by the Tennessee Dept. of Health. Photo via the Tennessee Health Dept.
Marion, Grundy, Sequatchie, Bradley, Meigs, Rhea, Bledsoe, McMinn and Polk counties are currently the only areas in Tennessee rated “very high” for influenza activity by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
These counties have flu positivity rates greater than 10 percent. By comparison, the statewide average is 6.5 percent, and Hamilton County itself is at 6.9 percent.
State and federal health experts say the surge comes as influenza A(H3N2) continues to circulate widely. The CDC reports at least 11 million flu illnesses, 120,000 hospitalizations, and 5,000 deaths nationwide so far this season. One pediatric death was reported this week in Tennessee, bringing the season total to nine nationwide.
File photo: Getty Images.
Georgia officials are also reporting higher-than-average flu activity, signaling that the region is experiencing a particularly active season. Health authorities encourage residents six months and older to get vaccinated if they have not already and to take precautions such as frequent handwashing and staying home when sick.
Flu activity is expected to remain elevated in Tennessee and across the U.S. for several more weeks, according to the CDC. Local hospitals and clinics are urging families to monitor symptoms and seek care early, especially for children, older adults, and those with chronic health conditions.
For the latest guidance on influenza vaccination and antiviral treatments, visit the Tennessee Department of Health or the CDC at cdc.gov.
Tennessee
Tennessee launches country’s first public database tracking domestic abusers
Tennessee launched the country’s first-ever public database tracking and listing convicted domestic abusers as part of a ratified law honoring a sheriff’s deputy who was murdered by her abusive ex-boyfriend.
The database, which officially launched on Jan. 1, includes offenders’ names, photos and dates of birth and is part of Savanna’s Law. The bill was signed into law by Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee in May 2025 and required the state to establish the registry in Savanna Puckett’s name.
Puckett, a 22-year-old Robertson County Sheriff’s deputy, was tragically killed by her ex-boyfriend, James Conn, at her home on Jan. 23, 2022. Conn had a lengthy history of domestic assault arrests that Puckett had no knowledge of before they began dating.
Conn shot Puckett in the torso and head before he set her home on fire. He pleaded guilty to her murder in August 2023 and was sentenced to life in prison.
Puckett’s distraught mother, Kim Dodson, was determined to save other domestic abuse victims from her daughter’s fate and began pushing state lawmakers for change.
She was a staunch advocate for the bill’s passage and said that if the registry had existed sooner, her daughter might still be alive.
“I was just horrified when I finally saw all those records because I know Savanna well enough that she would have never dated him. I honestly, honestly, honestly feel that if she had known that she could still be here,” Dodson told WSMV.
The domestic abuser registry is run through the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and lists anyone in the state who has been convicted of at least two domestic violence-related charges, according to the website.
However, the offender’s registration is dependent on the accusing victim. If the victim doesn’t consent to their abuser’s name being included, then the offender can bypass the registry.
The database doesn’t include info on offenders convicted before the new year, so the current list is limited. But it was made in the mirror image of the state’s sex offender registry, which is more fleshed out with decades-worth of listings.
The sex offender registry includes a rolling queue of “wanted violators” and a “map of offenders.”
Tennessee has previously ranked among the top 10 states with the most domestic violence homicides. In 2019, it tied for fifth with South Carolina in a separate list detailing the states with the highest femicide rates, WTVF reported.
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