Sweet 16 Player of the Year goes to Unicoi County's Byrd

Unicoi County senior Lela Byrd earned statewide respect with her numbers, so much that the state champions knew better than to pitch to her. Not only did she repeatedly shut down the opposition, but she finished one shy of Maci Masters' TSSAA single season home run record this spring. Thus, Byrd was the easy choice for the 2026 Johnson City Press/Kingsport Times News Sweet 16 Softball Player of the Year. Byrd led the Tri-Cities in every major pitching category — finishing her senior year with a 0.43 earned run average with a 0.264 WHIP. The ETSU signee struck out 356 batters and went 29-4 in the circle. She left the yard 24 times and drove in 79 runs, both the most in the Tri-Cities, while ranking second in the area with her .554 batting average. Having finished with 14 doubles and 30 runs scored, Byrd drew nine intentional walks at this year's TSSAA state tournament — eight total from champion Community — after leading Unicoi County there for the second straight season. The player who ranked second to Byrd in strikeouts at 333 — David Crockett junior Madelyn Dulaney — is the 2026 Sweet 16 Pitcher of the Year. She ended the regular season with a 1.61 ERA and a 0.891 WHIP while racking up 22 wins. Dulaney was equally deadly at the plate, batting .509 and leading the Tri-Cities with 45 stolen bases. She shared the area lead in runs scored with 55 while batting in 30 runs. Another Dulaney took home Sweet 16 Coach of the Year honors. Crockett head coach Alex Dulaney earned that title after coaching the Lady Pioneers to their first state tournament trip since 1992 — immediately after winning their first region title since 1994. A 2-1 victory over powerhouse Gibbs, which had reached nine consecutive state tournaments, lifted Crockett to Murfreesboro for the third time ever. This season also marked Crockett's third straight sectional trip as well as back-to-back district titles. Here's the 2026 edition of the Sweet 16 team, followed by superlatives for soccer, tennis and track: Player of the year Lela Byrd (Unicoi County) Pitcher of the year Madelyn Dulaney (David Crockett) Coach of the year Alex Dulaney (David Crockett) Honorary batting order 1. Kianna Woodward (Unicoi County) Woodward batted .408 while matching Dulaney with an area-best 55 runs scored, driving in 34 runs and hitting four bombs. The Walters State signee finished third in the Tri-Cities with 33 stolen bases. 2. Riley McMillan (Dobyns-Bennett) McMillan stole 22 bases and scored 38 runs her junior year, hitting four home runs to help D-B return to the Region 1-4A tournament. 3. Sadie Williams (Elizabethton) Williams hit .447 with a .557 on-base percentage her senior year, helping the Lady Cyclones reach the 3A sectional. The Carson-Newman signee was fourth in the Tri-Cities for home runs (11), ranking in the top five for RBIs (52) and runs scored (50). 4. Willow Bennett (Cloudland) Bennett led the Tri-Cities with her .594 batting average to go with her .683 OBP … as a sophomore. She homered 14 times, second most in the area, while finishing with 27 extra-base hits, 62 RBIs and 26 runs. 5. Sydney New (Volunteer) New homered 12 times in the regular season and finished third in that category her junior season. She scored 45 runs and batted .453 to help the Lady Falcons repeat as District 2-3A champions. 6. Ainsley Craft (Science Hill) Craft hammered eight home runs and accumulated 30 RBIs her sophomore year, helping Science Hill win District 1-4A and reach the sectional round again. 7. Lacey Fugate (West Ridge) Fugate, a Lincoln Memorial signee, clubbed seven home runs her senior year with 47 RBIs. 8. Addie Wilhoit (Tennessee High) Wilhoit lost time due to injury but made up for it by hitting .491 in 55 at-bats. She had 14 extra-base hits with seven home runs, 23 RBIs and 26 runs scored. 9. Makenzie Gillenwater (Twin Springs) Gillenwater batted .446 with a .514 OBP and 12 RBIs, helping lead Twin Springs to its Cumberland District tournament title. The UVA Wise signee also struck out 155 batters and posted a 1.91 ERA. Alternates Bella Blanton (David Crockett) Blanton's 35 stolen bases ranked second in the Tri-Cities. She batted .438 her sophomore year while scoring 37 times. Emmi Croley (Daniel Boone) Croley scored 25 runs and stole 16 bases while earning seven wins her sophomore season, posting a 2.44 ERA with a 1.19 WHIP. Allison Akers (Rye Cove) Akers earned eight wins and 152 strikeouts while posting a 2.01 ERA and 1.272 WHIP. The junior also batted .323 with seven extra-base hits including a home run with 14 RBIs and 13 runs. Pitchers Isabel Meeks (Science Hill) Meeks won 19 games and posted a 1.72 ERA with a 0.937 WHIP and 219 strikeouts, third most in the Tri-Cities. The ETSU signee also homered twice in the postseason and batted .418 with 48 RBIs. Allie McConnelee (Dobyns-Bennett) McConnelee struck out 121 and posted 13 wins, ending the regular season with a 0.96 ERA and a 0.785 WHIP. The Austin Peay signee drove in 37 runs while going yard nine times. Miranda Henley (West Ridge) Henley won 16 games her senior year, striking out 175 while posting a 1.24 ERA and 1.03 WHIP during the regular season. The Milligan signee also homered three times. SOCCER Boys Player of the year Walker Hillman, Gate City Girls Player of the year Carlee Cradic, Dobyns-Bennett Boys Forward Drake Teague, Elizabethton Girls Forward Brenna Overbay, Science Hill Boys Midfielder Dylan Trull, Science Hill Girls Midfielder Becca Ford, University High Boys Defender Noah Taylor, Gate City Girls Defender Gabrielle Gullett, Science Hill Boys Goalkeeper Asher Hubble, West Ridge Girls Goalkeeper Alli Orren, David Crockett Boys Coach Aaron Hillman, Gate City Girls Coach Morgan Richards, University High TENNIS Boys player of the year Emery Corpstein, Dobyns-Bennett Girls player of the year Ensley Baker, Science Hill Coach Ellan Kitzmiller, Tennessee High TRACK Boys runner Chad Williams, Dobyns-Bennett Girls runner Dalencia Kittrell, University High Boys field Tyler Bailey, Happy Valley Girls field (co-winners) Leah Mowell, Cherokee Liahna Nave, Elizabethton Coach Bob Bingham, Dobyns-Bennett