Deaths across Knox and Anderson counties have increased more than 11 percent in 2020 from 2019, while homicides rose nearly 72 percent, according to the 2020 Annual Report.
The annual report was released by the Knox County Regional Forensic Center which provides autopsy and consultative services for 23 counties in Middle and East Tennessee.
According to the report, accidental and natural deaths each increased 20 percent in 2020. Officials said suicides increased by 14 percent and gun-related deaths increased 62 percent.
In 2020, Knox County saw 40 gun-related homicides. That number is the most of any other area in the center’s jurisdiction. There were 50 homicides in total reported in Knox County in 2020.
Motor vehicle accidents accounted for nearly 100 deaths in Knox County and 183 in total across the region.
The guys in Old Dominion say their new song “I Was On A Boat That Day” has been around since their debut hit “Break Up With Him” — but they just thought it was a joking title.
Lead singer Matthew Ramsey shares the story, “We had this idea we were kicking it around for a long time. And we bring it up and shoot it down. I don’t know how many times we decided not to write this song. And then for whatever reason, when we were in Asheville, North Carolina, making this album, it came up again and we sort of laughed like it was a joke, but then our co-writers Shane McAnally, and Josh Osborne helped us see the light that it actually was not a joke title. It was actually a really fun title.”
Matthew adds, “So we wrote it and really liked it. We took it upstairs to record it. We had this idea that it needed to sound like a party and needed to sound a little, you know, intoxicated, so we drank some tequila and went in and did our best little party dance song and we had a really great time recording it and hope you have a great time listening to it.”
Listen…and watch the video for Old Dominion’s “I Was On A Boat That Day” right here…
Tenille Arts is following up her very successful hit song “Somebody Like That” with her new single, “Back Then, Right now.”
Tenille shares the story behind the new track, “‘Back Then, Right Now’ is all about looking back on being a teenager and just how simple things felt back then. You were kind of naïve to the world around you and what was going on and there was a beautiful freedom in that…so, just trying to bring some of that feeling into our current day lives right now.”
Listen to Tenille Arts new song “Back Then, Right Now” right here, and now…
Garth Brooks has achieved a lot of honors throughout his career.
But this weekend, he received one that not many get to experience — he was one of the people celebrated at the Kennedy Center Honors in Washington, DC.
Garth, along with fellow honorees actress-dancer-choreographer Debbie Allen, folk singer and activist Joan Baez, violin virtuoso Midori, and beloved acting icon Dick Van Dyke, were at the Medallion Ceremony on Friday.
Talking about being among that group Garth says, “Just getting to be among this level of ‘character’ is good for me. I feel very lucky.”
He also joked “And for the first time in my life, I don’t mind being the weak link in the chain. I’m in the chain – that’s it. This is a cool thing. Just feel very, very lucky.”
Garth’s no stranger to the Kennedy Center Honors – he’s appeared many times as one of the people there to celebrate the honorees, but now being on the other side he said “An award is only as good as the names that are on it. That’s it. When you walk in that door…and you see the list of names…and then you sit in this group…and get to be a part of this…pretty cool.”
Garth also shared this, “To loosely quote Maya Angelou, I stand here as one but I stand here for the people who have carried me to this point.”
Fans can check out the event showcasing the honorees, hosted by prior recipient Gloria Estefan, June 6th on CBS TV.
Right now Garth, and Trisha Yearwood, are at country radio with their version of “Shallow”
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – A grand slam by Liberty freshman Savannah Channell in the fourth inning gave Liberty the spark it needed to claim a 6-4 victory over the No. 9-seeded Lady Vols, as Tennessee’s season came to a close at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium on Saturday night.
Liberty freshman starter Karlie Keeney earned her 17th win of the season on Saturday for the Flames (44-14), after allowing six hits, four earned runs and dealing one strikeout.
Tennessee’s Ashley Rogers received the loss, allowing four earned runs in 4.0 innings of work. Rogers, a junior right-handed pitcher for the Lady Vols, tossed five strikeouts and walked four batters on the evening.
From the plate, Ashley Morgan went 2-2 with a pair of RBIs for the Lady Vols. As a team, Tennessee (42-14) logged seven hits, including two triples, and 4 RBIs.
Rogers came out dealing, getting two Liberty batters to strike out swinging in the top half of the opening frame.
In the bottom of the first inning, an Amanda Ayala triple to left field and an Morgan single up the middle drove Ayala home to put Tennessee on the board first, 1-0.
The bottom half of the third inning saw the Lady Vols tally a second run as Kaitlin Parsons scored off an RBI sac fly by Morgan. The Lady Vols led 2-0 entering the fourth inning.
There, the Flames received the offensive spark they needed. With two outs and the bases loaded, Channell belted a grand slam over the left field wall to get Liberty on the board and earn Liberty a 4-2 advantage.
Liberty added what would be the game-winning run in the fifth inning, as Mary Claire Wilson scored to increase their lead to 5-2.
In the bottom of the sixth frame, Morgan’s single to left field was followed by Ally Shipman’s triple down the left field line, which scored pinch runner Josie Willingham and cut Liberty’s lead to 5-3.
Chelsea Seggern recorded a sac fly to center field, bringing Shipman home and making it a one-run game, with the Lady Vols trailing 5-4.
Liberty senior Amber Bishop-Riley sent a seventh inning pitch to left field for a solo home run that gave Liberty a 6-4 lead.
That would ultimately serve as the final score, as two fly outs and a ground out for Tennessee concluded the seventh inning.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A three-run homer by James Madison redshirt senior Kate Gordon made the difference as the No. 9-seeded Lady Vols fell 3-1 to the 22nd-ranked Dukes on Saturday at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium. Tennessee will gear up for an elimination game tonight against the winner between Eastern Kentucky and No. 25 Liberty, with first pitch scheduled for 35 minutes after the conclusion of that contest.
JMU ace Odicci Alexander pitched a complete-game effort to lead the Dukes (36-1) to their 26th consecutive victory. In seven innings pitched, she allowed one earned run on six hits with five strikeouts and three walks.
Ashley Rogers was dealt the loss with three unearned runs allowed. The Athens, Tennessee, native pitched six innings, collecting seven strikeouts and allowing no walks for the second-straight game in postseason play.
Six Lady Vols recorded one hit each on the afternoon, with senior first baseman Ashley Morgan driving in the lone run on an RBI single in the first inning.
Hitting as the visiting team in front of a home crowd, the Lady Vols (42-14) used back-to-back singles from a couple of All-SEC players to gain an early 1-0 lead in the top half of the opening frame. Sophomore outfielder Kiki Milloy knocked a hit through the middle, stole second and was sent home by Ashley Morgan’s RBI single to center field.
The Dukes capitalized on a pair of Tennessee miscues to score three runs in the bottom of the second. With two runners on by way of a fielding error and HBP, Gordon lifted a pitch to left center for a three-run shot off the scoreboard.
After giving up the home run, Rogers went on to retire the side in order three times in her final four innings in the circle. In the bottom of the fifth, the Lady Vol ace got out of a bases-loaded jam to keep the game in reach with a called strikeout.
UT had its opportunities over the final five innings, but ultimately left six runners on base during that stretch.
UP NEXT
Tennessee will play an elimination game against the winner between Eastern Kentucky and No. 25 Liberty for a spot in the Knoxville Regional final. First pitch for tonight’s matchup will fire 35 minutes after the conclusion of the contest between the Colonels and Flames.
COLUMBIA, S.C. – No. 4 Tennessee secured its first series victory in Columbia since 2006 with a 5-4 win over No. 15 South Carolina in Saturday’s rubber game at Founders Park.
The Vols led 5-1 entering the eighth but had to withstand a furious rally from the Gamecocks over the final two innings to hold on for the win, which secured a top-four seed in next week’s SEC Tournament.
The win was the 42nd of the season for Tennessee, marking its most regular-season victories since winning 43 in 1995.
Connor Pavolony’s three-run homer in the fourth inning proved to be the difference as the Vols held on for the win after South Carolina scored three runs in the eighth to cut its deficit to one.
Luc Lipcius capped off an impressive series with two hits, a walk and two runs scored while Evan Russell also finished with a pair of hits.
After allowing a home run in the first, Vols’ starter Blade Tidwell settled in and was fantastic over the next six innings before running into trouble in the eighth. The freshman right hander had six strikeouts and allowed four runs on six hits to earn the win and improve to 7-3 on the year.
Senior right hander Sean Hunley earned his second save of the series and seventh of the season with two shutout innings of relief. The Mount Juliet, Tennessee, native was able to get the Vols out of the eighth inning with the lead still intact and then struck out the final three batters of the game.
The Gamecocks jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first as leadoff man Brady Allen hit the first pitch he saw over the wall in left center for his second homer of the series.
The Vols evened things up with a run of their own in the top of the second thanks to a two-out RBI single by Pete Derkay to score Lipcius, who singled earlier in the inning and stole second to move into scoring position.
After a scoreless third inning, the Big Orange put up a four-spot in the fourth to take a 5-1 lead. They opened the inning with three straight hits, the last of which was an RBI double from Jordan Beck. Two batters later, Pavolony blasted a three-run homer to dead center field to put UT ahead by four.
After scoring three runs in the eighth, Jeff Heinrich led off the ninth with a double to put the tying run in scoring position, but Hunley responded by striking out Joe Satterfield, Allen and Andrew Eyster to strand Heinrich on second and end the game.
Tennessee (42-14 // 20-10 SEC) will head to Hoover next week as a top-four seed and will have a first-round bye. The Vols will play their first game in the tournament on Wednesday (time and opponent TBD).
NOTABLE
VOLS SECURE TOP-FOUR SEED: With Saturday’s win, Tennessee locked up a top-four seed and a first round bye in next week’s SEC Tournament for the first time since 2005 (No. 3 seed). The Vols can finish no lower than the No. 3 seed, but still have a chance to be the No. 2 seed and win the SEC Eastern Division should Vanderbilt lose to Kentucky this afternoon. UT’s 20 SEC victories this season are its most since finishing with 22 conference wins in 1995.
SERIES WIN IN COLUMBIA: The Vols ended a lengthy streak of series losses in Columbia on Saturday. With its 5-4 win over the Gamecocks, Tennessee recorded its first road series win over South Carolina since 2006.
RUBBER GAME WINS: Saturday’s win was UT’s fifth in a winner-take-all rubber game this season with all five coming in conference play. The Vols are now 5-2 on the year in rubber games, including a perfect 4-0 record on the road.
ROAD WARRIORS: Tennessee finished the regular season with a perfect 6-0 record in road series this season, including winning all five of its SEC series away from home. Prior to this season, the Vols had never won five SEC road series in a single season. Their 16-5 road record this year was the best in the SEC.
DALLAS – Tennessee’s Jake Rucker has been selected as one of 42 semifinalists for the 2021 Dick Howser Trophy, as announced by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association on Friday afternoon.
Now in its 34th year, the Dick Howser Trophy is awarded in memory of the former Florida State University All-America shortstop and major league player and manager, who died of brain cancer in 1987, and is regarded by many as college baseball’s most prestigious award. Criteria for consideration of the trophy include performance on the field, leadership, moral character and courage, qualities that were exemplified by Dick Howser’s life.
Rucker has been one of the Vols’ most consistent players in a breakout junior campaign while helping lead Tennessee to its most successful regular season in over 15 years. The junior third baseman ranks among the national and SEC leaders in hits and doubles while ranking second on the team with a .344 batting average and 50 RBI.
The Greenbrier, Tennessee, native was named the SEC Co-Player of the Week on April 26 after a huge series at Texas A&M, tying a career high with three hits in all three games while also hitting four doubles and a home run in the series win over the Aggies. Rucker was also tabbed as a preseason third-team All-American by Baseball America.
The SEC led all conferences with 14 semifinalists named to this year’s list. The finalists will be announced on Thursday, June 10. Due to COVID-19 protocols at TD Ameritrade Stadium in downtown Omaha, the announcement of this year’s winner will be done via Zoom. The winner will be unveiled on the MLB Network.
The view the complete list of semifinalists, click HERE.
Deaths across Knox and Anderson counties have increased more than 11 percent in 2020 from 2019, while homicides rose nearly 72 percent, according to the 2020 Annual Report.
