Allyson Roxanne Fuller Named 2019 DeKalb Saints Homecoming Queen

August 23, 2019
By: Dwayne Page

The DeKalb Saints will celebrate homecoming next week hosting Overton County Thursday night, August 29.

The presentation of the queen and attendants will begin at 6:00 p.m. followed by the football game at 6:30 p.m.

The 2019 DeKalb Saints Homecoming Queen is Allyson Roxanne Fuller, daughter of Anthony and Amanda Fuller

DeKalb Middle School 8th grade attendants are:
Ansley Cantrell, daughter of Tony and Amee Cantrell
Elaina Turner, daughter of Shane and Regina Turner

DeKalb West School 8th grade attendant – Zoi Hale, daughter of Justin Hale and Becky Harris

DeKalb Middle School 7th grade attendants are:
Macy Anderson, daughter of Bobby and Tabitha Anderson
Annabella Dakas, daughter of John and Mandy Dakas

DeKalb West School 7th grade attendant – Caroline Crook, daughter of Jacob and Kim Crook

August 23, 2019
By: Bill Conger

Churches in DeKalb County will need to dust off their bats and gloves for the return of Church Co-ed League Softball this September.

“The whole purpose of this league is ministry and evangelism,” says Jordan Atnip, league facilitator and Youth and Worship Minister at Smithville First Baptist Church. “There’s going to be a competitive nature there, and that’s fine, but we’re holding the coaches responsible for making sure that their teams exhibit sportsmanlike and Christ-like behavior at all times.”

For the last several years, DeKalb County has been without church league softball even though surrounding counties still continued their programs. Kids have been going up to bat at the Bill Page field during the summer months, but the bases have been empty in the fall. Organizers wanted something to fill the gap.

“At first the conversation was more about a church league tournament,” explains Atnip. “Then, we got to talking to some of the coaches in the league, and they said we like church league in general. There are a lot of people who really love it and miss it.”

In the past some churches recruited talented athletes to their rosters that never entered the church doors. This time league organizers are encouraging churches to stack their teams but with an evangelical angle.

“The gimmick of it is they have to attend if they’re going to play,” Atnip says. “By all means, teams recruit the best players you can find, but they have to attend your church or begin to attend your church in order to play. Essentially, we reach out to unchurched athletes, and that’s the ministry side of it.”

“We’re not going to be showing up at your churches on Sunday mornings to make sure if these players are showing up, but we’re going to trust that you’re going to be honest. The ministry and evangelical side of it does not work unless you get people to attend church services. Maybe at first they are just attending because they want to play. That’s between them and the Lord, but they’re at least going to have to be present for the gospel being spoken.”

Churches have until August 29 to sign up their churches via email at dekalbchurchleague@gmail.com. The cost is $250 per church, which covers the cost of field maintenance and to have someone to keep the books.

Logan Cornelius from New Life Pentecostal Church, Darrell Gill from Smithville Church of the Nazarene, and Daniel Leslie from Elizabeth Chapel Baptist Church will serve as league commissioners. A coaches meeting will be scheduled within a few days of the sign-up deadline.
The first ball of the church league season will be thrown out the second week of September.

“We’re keeping Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays open and potentially 3 games a night at 6, 7, and 8 o’clock,” Atnip says. “We don’t know how many teams we’re going to have right now. It may end up being two games a night instead of three, but we wanted to have a lot of variety and a lot of options. If you’ve got three nights a week and three times slots that means up to 18 teams can play one game in a week. “

“This gives coaches the opportunity to tell us what we’re going to call blackout times. For example, say that one church has several people that work out of town, and they don’t get in until about 6:30. They would black them out on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays in the 6 o’clock time slot.”

Atnip says churches will have no cap on the number of players on the roster, but they need to make sure 9 or 10 people are available to play when a game is scheduled. Games will run through October.
“We’re talking about doing a big tournament event to wrap the season up, and we’re going to have all the churches involved set up little booths and kind of make it like Community Day,” Atnip says. “We’re going to encourage the churches to bring food. We’re not going to open the concession stand that day. The idea is that the churches will be serving food to people as another opportunity to evangelize.”

Again the deadline for churches to sign up is August 29. Shoot an email to dekalbchurchleague@gmail.com.

August 23, 2019
By: Dwayne Page

The DeKalb County High School Tigers will open the football season tonight at McMinnville against the Warren County Pioneers.

Kick-off is at 7 p.m. and WJLE will have LIVE coverage on AM 1480/FM 101.7 and LIVE streaming at www.wjle.com with the Voice of the Tigers John Pryor and Luke Willoughby.

Coach Steve Trapp, speaking on WJLE’s Tiger Talk program, said he is hoping to get the season off to a great start. He is beginning his 15th season at the helm of the Tiger football program.

“We have had a very productive off season. We have some new faces who have come up from a DeKalb Middle School team that was very successful. Its good to see those guys come out and stick together. Some guys who haven’t played with us for a year or so are back and really being productive for us. The off season is really an important phase of what we do because it helps build that brotherhood and bond,” said Coach Trapp.

“Axel Aldino, our quarterback, has had a good off season. He definitely looks the part but I have told him the look doesn’t get it done its about the productivity and there is no doubt his decision making is going to lead our offense or it can slow it down. We have some good guys around him who are going to help but ultimately he does have to pull the trigger and get the ball in the right situations, make good decisions, pulling it down and running. He is definitely a threat in all categories but with the running game we potentially should have with the type of running back we have, the size we have up front, and our skill players we are a threat to scare defenses any way we want to,” said Coach Trapp.

Warren County has a new head coach this season so Coach Trapp said what the Pioneers look like on video may be different from what the Tigers see tonight (Friday)

“We have tapes of a couple of their scrimmages but for the past few years when there is a transition there (Warren County) it seems like what we get on tape is usually different from what we see on Friday so we have thrown a lot of stuff at our guys this week just to make sure that if we do see something different that we are ready for it and have been exposed to it and are prepared to make adjustments during the game if need be but with a new coach we’re expecting a little different offense and defense from what we have seen the last couple of years. I do know it will be an electric atmosphere. I have no doubt our guys will play extremely hard. I just hope our mental effort matches our physical effort. I think it’s going to be a great game,” added Coach Trapp.

Coach Trapp’s record against Warren County is 7-7.

WJLE’s Pre-Game shows begin with “Coach to Coach” at 5:00 p.m. featuring former UT assistant coach Doug Matthews with former coach Dave McGinnis and broadcaster Larry Stone talking Tennessee and SEC football.

“Coach to Coach” is followed by “Murphy’s Matchups at 6:00 p.m., a look at Tennessee High School Football from Murphy Fair with commentary on games and coaches interviews.

“Tiger Talk” debuts at 6:30 p.m. with the Voice of the Tigers John Pryor interviewing Coach Steve Trapp and Tiger Senior Captains Isaac Cross, Alan Munoz, David Bradford, and Junior Captain Desmond Nokes

The game kicks off at 7:00 p.m. with play by play coverage on WJLE

WJLE thanks our sponsors of Tiger football:
*Wilson Bank & Trust
*Lake Homes Realty
*Caney Fork Electric Cooperative
*Gill Automotive
*Charles D. Atnip Realty & Auction Company
*DTC Communications
*Liberty State Bank
*DeKalb Funeral Chapel
*Curtis Supply
*St. Thomas DeKalb Hospital
*First Bank
*Optimus Pest Solutions
*DeKalb Dental Center
*Florence & White Ford
*DeKalb Prevention Coalition

Tiger Talk sponsors:
*Woodbury Insurance Agency
*Kilgore’s Restaurant
*Creations by Donna
*A Degree Above Heating & Cooling
*Belk Grocery and Sporting Goods

Coach to Coach sponsors:
*Stonehaus Winery
*Three Star Mall

Murphy’s Matchups sponsor:
*DeKalb Farm Bureau