This Week in Sports: Feb. 23-27

Mother Nature may not agree, but spring is almost officially here. At the very least, spring sports are ready to get rolling. Baseball, softball, flag football, boys soccer, track and tennis are all preparing to hit the ground running and some of our local school teams will be making their debuts this week.

Every Sunday, the Main Street Journal will provide updates on the upcoming week schedule, including breaking down some of the biggest games of the week. This is made possible due to our great partnership with Westwood Church of Christ, the presenting sponsor of ALL of our spring sports coverage this year.

Full schedules will be detailed at the end of each of these weekly updates. If there is a game missing, rescheduled or if you find an error in our reporting, please reach out to Jeff Simmons (Jeff.Simmons@mainstreetmedia.llc) or Sam Griffin (Sam.Griffin@mainstreetmedia.llc) and we’ll be sure to make updates on the post.

Also be on the lookout for all the most up-to-date coverage of the Pioneers, Lady Pioneers, Broncos and Lady Broncos games coming up this spring on our website, our Facebook page and broadcasting from the Voice of the Pioneers Jay Walker on Star 107.

Let’s dig into this week’s early action:

Flag football ready to make its second, first impression

One of the major headlines out of 2025 was the inspired play of the Lady Pioneer flag football team in its inaugural season. Warren County went 11-4 and had flashes of our domination at Nunley Stadium, including walloping Rhea County (25-0, 35-6), Cumberland County (28-0) and Smith County (46-0) on its home turf.

While the Lady Pioneers will have to replace some key cogs from last year – most notably Bri Taylor and Zoie Verge after they signed with Cumberland University to continue their flag football careers – Warren County still has plenty of firepower to rely on as it takes on a revamped schedule featuring a region full of Rutherford County foes.

Junior QB Chloe Wanamaker is back after racking up over 3,000 yards of total offense last year, many through the air as she threw for 2,439 yards while also rushing for 12 scores. Ari Rippy, already receiving offers to play flag football in college next year, is one of her main weapons as a receiver and a running back for the Lady Pioneers.

Coach Paul Willis Martin has built a massive roster full of athletes and noted that this year, they’ll be looking to employ a “Best 7” mentality on both sides of the ball. Last year, the Lady Pioneers split offensive and defensive reps, but expect to see more Lady Pioneers play on both sides of the ball this year as Warren County sets its sights on postseason glory.

First up for the Lady Pioneers is White County, a major rival already even as both schools built their programs. Kickoff in Sparta this Friday is set for 7 p.m.

For more information on the flag team, click this link for our preview story or click here to see coach Martin and his staff’s comments on the Simmons Says show last week.

Boyd making its flag football debut

The Lady Broncos saw all the fun with football last year and decided they wanted to join in this spring. Boyd will be running out a squad on the gridiron for the first time this year as the school continues to grow its offerings in athletics.

Athletic Director Tim Page will serve as the coach this year, though he’ll have plenty of help from a team of assistant coaches looking to guide the Lady Broncos to success in their first year. Page views this season as a “learning experience,” but is hopeful the school’s competitiveness in other sports bleeds over into flag football.

“I think the girls really just wanted to try it because it looks like fun, but the team is made up of a lot of our volleyball, basketball and soccer girls, so they’re very competitive too,” said Page. “We might go out there and surprise some people. We have some athletic kids and they’re learning quickly. I’m excited to see how much we improve as the season goes along.”

Boyd has gathered up over a dozen players for its inaugural run, which kicks off this Friday at Rhea County. The Lady Broncos will play all their games on the road this year, including one at Nunley Stadium when the two local high schools face off April 20.

Friday’s doubleheader is set to begin at 5 p.m.

Full schedule for this week:

Monday, Feb. 23

WCMS baseball vs. Algood (DH), 5 p.m.

Thursday, Feb. 26

Boyd MS baseball vs. DeKalb County, 5 p.m.

Friday, Feb. 27

Boyd flag football at Rhea County (DH), 5 p.m.
WCMS softball at Coffee County, 5:30 p.m.
WCMS soccer at Harris, 6 p.m.
WCHS flag football at White County, 7 p.m.

Follow this link to Sam Griffin’s preview of all the upcoming WCMS teams.