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PAGE 7 July 2026
NACC Student Athletes Make Honor Roll
CROSS COUNTRY Women
A total of 62 Northeast Community College student athletes across six sports have been named to the Alabama Community College Conference's 2026 Spring Commissioner's Honor Roll. Student-athletes must achieve a grade point average of 3.00 or higher to make the list. "Our athletes are students first and to see them put the work in on the academic side makes me very proud for them," said NACC athletic director Jimmy Kolaitis. "Athletics will end at some point for them, and we want their experience at NACC to help them through life, not just sports." NACC teams in men's and women's Alabama cross country, men's and women's golf, men's soccer and softball all had a team GPA over 3.00 for the fall and spring semesters combined. "When I meet with all of our athletes in the beginning of each year, my message is that we want to give them support in three main areas," Kolaitis said. "We want them to be successful in the classroom, grow as people and win championships. We are so fortunate to have great people at Northeast." ACCC Commissioner Dean Myrick was pleased with the academic efforts of the conference's student-athletes. "These student- athletes and teams should be extremely proud of themselves, as they have balanced academics with practice and games," Myrick said. "I am very proud of them, along with the faculty and staff at our amazing colleges for the work they do in preparing our student-athletes for life outside of athletics." The NACC student- athletes on the Spring Commissioner's Honor Roll include:
› Christy Allred › Dania Belman › Marissa Fairley › Sheyla Guzman Pacheco › Chelsea Saucedo Men › John Adams
Photos by Brandon K. Pierce, The Sports Ledger
Members of the Sylvania Volleyball team pose for a picture prior to competition in the 2026 Snead State Community College Varsity Play Date at the Boaz Recreation Center. Tennessee Football Begins Practice on August 5
› Ismael Francisco › Ephan Gonzalez › Tristan Little › Henry Singleton › Omar Teletor Ralios › Maccoy Turner › Braxton Williams GOLF Women › Taylor Bishop › Angel Fulks › Gracie Sullivan Men › Braden Holt › Blake Maples › Reece McKlintok
By Brandon K. Pierce The Sports Ledger Football time in Tennessee is once again on the horizon, as members of the Volunteer football program are set to report to campus on August 4, 2026. Football practice will begin on August 5. Tennessee will open the 2026 football season one month later, on September 5 against Furman. The season opening kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET at historic Neyland Stadium in Knoxville. It will be one of seven home games for the Vols this season, which also includes Kennesaw State (Sept. 19), Texas (Sept. 26), Auburn (Oct. 3), Alabama (Oct. 17), Kentucky (Nov. 7) and LSU (Nov. 21). The Volunteers are hoping for a season opening victory over Furman. I believe they will complete the task at hand, but the season opening game will not be the team’s best performance of the season. The program is in a rebuilding year, and coaches will most likely use the first game to evaluate players and their performance in real game situations. Tennessee lost eleven starting players from last year’s roster, including four on offense and seven on defense. This includes starting quarterback Joey Aguliar.
› Owen McGee › Ethan Roberts
› Thomas Stewart › Greyson Widgeon SOCCER Men › Jose Arrequin › Bladimir Cervantes › Amin Cruz › Junior Duarte › Braden Fox › Samuel Heredia › Jimenez Salvador › Paul Kimani › Jonathan Martinez-Ortiz › Daniel Moffett › Larry Naovarath › Eddy Ortiz › John Peters › Omar Segundo Guervara SOFTBALL › Oliva Acuff › Pearl Bellomy › Emmorie Burke › Savannah Cantrell › Addie Edwards › Illiana Flores
Last year's Tennessee defensive group helped the Vols take down SEC foe Arkansas 34-31. With only four returning defensive starters, the Vols will be looking for newcomers to step up this fall. Photo Courtesy of Tennessee Athletics
The Volunteers currently have at least two QB1 possible starters in Faizon Brandon and George MacIntyre. Faizon is an early pick for the quarterback position, but an official starter for 2026 has not yet been determined. On the flip side, the Vols have 11 returning starters. The group is led by senior offensive guard Wendell Moe, Jr., who was recently named a 2026 Walter Camp Preseason second team All-American. Other 2025 returning offensive starters includes running back DeSean Bishop, wide receiver Mike Matthews, center Sam Pendleton, offensive guard Jesse Perry, offensive tackle David Sanders Jr.,
and 2025 SEC Freshman of the Year wide receiver Brayton Staley. The defensive returning starters are anchored by senior linebackers Arion Carter and Jeremiah Telander. Joining them are safety Edrees Farooq and cornerback Ty Redmond. Tennessee will be looking for the veteran players to step up and for many of the newcomers to have an immediate impact. The Volunteers will need both to happen, if they hope to improve upon last year’s 8-5 overall record. Despite what looks impressive with eight wins, the Vols struggled in key games last year. All four regular season losses
were to Top 25 ranked opponents, and the Vols concluded the season with a 30-28 loss to Illinois in the Music City Bowl. Tennessee did not defeat a ranked opponent the entire season last fall. Some college football prognosticators have the Vols winning seven games. I think eight is even a possibility. However, with nine total SEC games, plus a week two matchup against Georgia Tech (Sept. 12) in Atlanta, the Vols definitely have a challenging season ahead of them this fall. Tennessee’s other road games include Arkansas (Oct. 10), South Carolina (Oct. 24), Texas A&M (Nov. 14) and Vanderbilt (Nov. 28).
› Jada Hampton › Erin Harrelson › Chloe Hatch › Halle Haynes › Chloe Helton › Francesca Lumpp › Marti McCluskey › Sophia Murphey › Shianne Parker › Morgan Perkins › Lorelei Sullivan › Sierra Walding › Kayleigh Warnock
› Brielee Weber › Kiley Weston › Bree Wilson
REEL 1 - Geraldine Volleyball Coach Renee Bearden gives encouragement to her team during the Snead State Community College Varsity play date on July 17, 2026 in Boaz. REEL 2 - Plainview's Jaxson Bruce gets ready to serve the ball during the SSCC Varsity play date on 2026. REEL3 - A Douglas Player focuses on her serve during a play date at SSCC. REEL 4 - A Scottsboro player warms up prior to a game in Boaz. HIGHLIGHT PHOTO REEL
Brandon Boswell h Pharmacist/Owner h 256-524-2981 “Caring for You Like Family”
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