(MARYVILLE, Tenn.) The McNabb Center will celebrate the groundbreaking of its Blount County Transition Campus on Friday, February 21, 2025, at 2 p.m.
This residential complex will be the first of its kind in the state allowing clients with co-occurring disorders to receive a full range of re-entry services. The Blount County Transition Campus will be a planned six-building campus envisioned to serve incarcerated individuals with untreated mental health conditions and individuals needing substance use services.
When: Friday, February 21 at 2 p.m.
Where: The ceremony will take place at the end of Brookdale Road. For GPS purposes, use 284 Brookdale Road, Maryville, TN 37801, and drive to the cul-de-sac at the end of Brookdale Road.
What: Media are invited to join in the groundbreaking ceremony celebration of the Blount County Transition Campus. McNabb Center staff, board members, CARE committee members and representatives from Blount County will be in attendance.
If you are interested in setting up interviews and/or attending the event, please contact Heather Davis at 865-599-5836.
The McNabb Center is the region’s leading nonprofit provider of mental health, substance use, social and victim services. By focusing on an individual’s “Well Mind, Well Being,” we provide a quality and compassionate approach to care from infancy through adulthood. Since 1948, the Center has proudly served individuals with the most needs and fewest resources. Today, the McNabb Center delivers support to more than 51,000 people throughout East Tennessee each year. For more information, visit www.mcnabbcenter.org or call 1-800-255-9711.
The Tennessee Department of Transportation is preparing for the next round of winter weather.
Mark Nagi with TDOT says crews will be pretreating interstates and state routes today (Tuesday) in preparation for expected winter weather on Wednesday.
Nagi is asking motorist to give crews extra room to do their jobs efficiently and safely.
Snow is expected to move into East Tennessee overnight Tuesday, with our best coverage being Wednesday morning.
A winter weather advisory will affect several East Tennessee Counties and Knox County road crews are keeping an eye on road conditions.
Jim Snowden with Knox County Engineering and Public Works says they had to recently treat roads due to cold temperatures and heavy rains. He says their supplies are good, having been replenished. He also says they won’t be able to treat roads with Brine ahead of Wednesday’s forecast snow because it starts with rain which would wash the brine away.
The city of Knoxville has a plan if a snowstorm is imminent.
Crews will begin Stage I operations (applying salt brine) 24 to 48 prior to the snowfall.
Crews for Stage II Operations, snow and ice removal, will be dispatched by the Director.
The routes designated as Level I, high traffic routes and hospitals are handled first then Level II, streets connecting the main streets, trouble spots and hills and finally Level III streets which provide access to neighborhoods and main connections at the neighborhood level.
Nashville, TN (WOKI) Health officials in Tennessee reporting a second child has died from the flu since the start of the new year.
In its weekly flu report, the Tennessee Department of Health reported the second flu death of 2025, which is also the second of the flu season which began Oct. 1, 2024.
The death was reported during the week of Feb. 2. According to the TDH, the first occurred during the last week of January.
Officials say the state, as a whole, is seeing a downturn in terms of the flu with doctor’s visits and positive test percentages down from the week before with exceptions for highly populated areas and in East Tennessee where visits to the doctor are still tracking “very high.”
Compared to the rest of the country, Tennessee is among a few other states with a “very high” flu activity.
The state is still at a “very high” percentage of doctor’s visits, especially in highly populated areas, and in East Tennessee, per the report. (Pexels)
Kingsport, TN (WOKI) UPDATE 2:45 p.m.: A toddler missing out of Kingsport is found safe and her alleged abductor is now in custody following an Amber Alert Monday afternoon.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation had issued the Amber Alert for 2-year-old Maria Linebaugh who was last seen Monday morning in the area of Bowater Drive in Kingsport.
Officials said the girl could be with 35-year-old Matthew Linebaugh in a silver 2010 Ford Crown Victoria with a TN tag.
The child was later found safe, and Matthew Linebaugh was taken into custody; he is charged with especially aggravated kidnapping and driving on a revoked license.
UPDATE: A toddler remains missing out of Kingsport, and her alleged abductor is now charged with especially aggravated kidnapping and driving on a revoked license.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has issued an Amber Alert for 2-year-old Maria Linebaugh who was last seen Monday morning in the area of Bowater Drive in Kingsport wearing a blue long-sleeve shirt with a heart, beige pants, and pink shoes.
Officials say the girl could be with 35-year-old Matthew Linebaugh in a silver 2010 Ford Crown Victoria with TN tag BRF4966.
Those with information are being asked to call the Kingsport Police Department at 423-245-3822 or the TBI at 1-800-TBI-FIND.
ORIGINAL STORY: An AMBER Alert has been issued on behalf of the Kingsport Police Department for a missing toddler.
Officials say 2-year-old Maria Linebaugh was last seen Monday morning in the area of Bowater Drive in Kingsport wearing a blue long-sleeve shirt with a heart, beige pants, and pink shoes and is possibly in the company of 32-year-old Matthew Linebaugh.
The pair are believed to be traveling in a 2010 silver Ford Crown Victoria with TN tag BRF4966.
If you have seen Maria, Matthew, or the vehicle, please contact the Kingsport Police Department at 423-245-3822 or the TBI at 1-800-TBI-FIND.
TBI officials say the toddler was last seen in the area of Bowater Drive in Kingsport. (Courtesy: TBI)
Game Recap: Women’s Basketball | February 16, 2025
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — After scoring 30 points in Oxford last season, Jewel Spear turned in her second straight gem against Ole Miss, firing in 28 on Sunday afternoon as No. 15/16 Tennessee shot 52.5 percent from the field and defeated the Rebels, 80-71, in front of 12,402 at Food City Center.
The 5-foot-10 fifth-year guard was an efficient nine of 11 from the field, knocking down five of seven tries from beyond the arc to match her previous season high in points vs. Oklahoma for the Lady Vols (19-6, 6-6 SEC). Junior forward Zee Spearman added 14 points and eight rebounds, senior guard Samara Spencer contributed 13 points and a game-high 10 rebounds for a double-double, and Talaysia Cooper chipped in 11 points, six assists and six steals.
Ole Miss (17-8, 8-5 SEC), which entered the game giving up only 54.4 points per game and allowed a team to reach 80 for only the second time all season, was paced by 22 points from KK Deans, who had a 6-for-12 day at the three-point arc. Tameiya Sadler contributed 14, while Kennedy Todd-Williams and Madison Scott added 11 and 10, respectively.
Tennessee forged an early 4-0 lead on buckets by Ruby Whitehorn and Spencer and carried a 6-3 edge into the 4:51 media timeout on the strength of a Spencer jumper. After Ole Miss trimmed the gap to two, 6-5, the Lady Vols reeled off nine straight via a layup from Cooper, a pair of buckets from Spearman and a three by Spear to seize a 15-5 lead with a minute left in the period. After Ole Miss countered with a Sadler layup, Spearman ran her quarter point total to six with a fall-away jumper just before time expired to provide her team a 17-7 advantage after one.
UT extended its cushion to 11, 21-10, on a Spear jumper with 7:20 remaining, but Ole Miss trimmed the margin to five, 23-18, with 5:04 to go on a three-pointer by Deans. Layups by Kaniya Boyd and Cooper, though, sent the home team into the 3:53 media timeout with a 25-18 lead. The Lady Vols built the gap back to 11, 30-19, by the 3:11 mark on a Cooper fast break layup, but a 9-1 push by the Rebels, capped by a pair of free throws from Scott, pulled them within three, 31-28, with 39 seconds to go. The Big Orange managed to have the last word in the first half, though, as Spear drained her second three of the day to send her team to the locker room in front, 34-28.
Tennessee moved ahead 36-28 at the outset of the third on a Spencer layup, but Ole Miss scored three of the next four buckets to trim the deficit to three, 38-35, forcing the Big Orange to ask for time with 8:09 remaining. The Lady Vols came out of the brief break energized, putting together an 11-1 run, with Spear scoring six straight and Spearman adding an inside bucket to send UT into the 4:36 media timeout ahead, 49-37. Tennessee pushed its lead to 13 twice, including 53-40 with 3:30 to go, but the Rebels kept hanging around and trimmed the deficit to nine twice before a pair of Spear charity tosses gave her team a 59-48 to close out the third.
After Starr Jacobs opened the fourth quarter with a layup to cut the Ole Miss deficit to 49-40, Tennessee responded with an 8-0 burst, getting an old-fashioned three-point play from Spearman, a three from Spear and a layup from Spencer to extend the lead to 67-50 and force a Rebels timeout with 7:18 left in the game. Ole Miss mounted several charges down the stretch, cutting the UT lead to nine, 70-61, with 3:59 to go, to seven, 73-66, with 3:09 remaining and six, 77-71, with 40 ticks on the clock, but a Boyd fast break layup boosted the gap back to eight with 34 seconds left and a Spearman free throw with 24 seconds to go accounted for the final nine-point margin.
UP NEXT: Next on the schedule for the Lady Vols is a 6:30 p.m. ET matchup with #21/20 Alabama on Thursday at Food City Center, completing a three-game home stand. The contest will be streamed by SECN+ and also will be broadcast on Lady Vol Network radio stations statewide and via audio stream on UTSports.com.
DEFENSE ON DISPLAY: The Big Orange defense was on point all afternoon, as it forced 19 turnovers and held Ole Miss below its 76.7 average. The Lady Vols turned those miscues into a 24-4 points-off-turnovers advantage against the Rebels, with the four allowed being the second fewest surrendered by Tennessee this season. The Tennessee press resulted in another 10-second violation, with a foe’s 23rd infraction this year occurring at the 3:32 mark in the first quarter.
SPEAR’S RED HOT AGAINST THE REBS:Jewel Spear has been a key factor in back-to-back matchups against Ole Miss. Last season on Jan. 28, Spear produced 30 points, following it up a year later on Sunday afternoon with a team-leading 28 points. The fifth-year guard has now carded back-to-back games of hitting five three-pointers and has knocked down five on five occasions in 2024-25. Spear also has tallied four consecutive games of scoring 12 or more points, dating back to the UConn contest on Feb. 6. She also moved into eighth place on the Lady Vols’ all-time scoring list (including transfers), totaling 2,123 during her collegiate career. Spear surpassed Tamika Catchings’ 2,113 points from 1997-2001.
SPEARMAN HITTING HER STRIDE:Zee Spearman was clutch against Ole Miss, netting 14 points and grabbing eight rebounds. Spearman has now assembled four consecutive games in double figures and three straight games of six rebounds or more. The junior collected her 16th game thus far with 10 or more points, the 29th of her career.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE FOR SAM: Samara Spencer’s effort on both sides of the ball was instrumental against the Rebels. Spencer charted 13 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and a steal. The Fort Lauderdale, Florida, native notched her second double-double performance of the season, the fifth of her career. Spencer’s other double-double effort came against N.C. Central, when she produced 33 points and ten assists.
SHOOTING WELL AGAIN: Tennessee finished the game at 52.5 percent, marking the first time this season the Lady Vols have hit above 50 percent in consecutive games. UT, which tallied a season-high 55.7 percent on Thursday vs. Auburn, has now made shots at a rate of 50 percent or better for the sixth time in 2024-25.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 2/4 Tennessee completed its season-opening series sweep of Hofstra with its third straight run-rule win, downing the Pride 13-1 in seven innings on Sunday afternoon at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
The Volunteers (3-0) did the majority of their damage in the first two innings, scoring 12 of their 13 runs over those two frames, including putting up an eight-spot in the second to jump out to a 12-1 lead.
Reese Chapman led the charge at the plate with five RBIs, four of which came on a grand slam in the second inning, UT’s second of the weekend after Hunter Ensley hit one in Saturday’s win.
Ensley built off his impressive game two performance with another strong day at the dish on Sunday, going 2-for-3 with two runs and two RBIs. Dean Curley also had his second multi-hit effort of the series with a pair of singles.
Nate Snead put together a solid outing in his first weekend start as the Vol, allowing one run on two hits while striking out three batters over three innings.
Lefty reliever Andrew Behnke picked up the win after tossing a scoreless fourth inning before Ryan Combs, Luke Payne and Austin Breedlove combined to pitch the final three frames in scoreless fashion.
Another Successful Opening Weekend
The Vols posted their fourth consecutive series sweep when opening the year at home (2019, 2020, 2022, 2025) and are now 13-2 overall under head coach Tony Vitello in season-opening home series.
Tennessee has posted a winning record on opening weekend in six of its eight seasons under Vitello with 2018 and 2023 being the only exceptions.
Up Next
The Big Orange host UNC Asheville on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. on SEC Network+ and the ESPN app.
BEAUMONT, Texas – The sixth-ranked Lady Vols capped a perfect weekend with a 5-0 victory over Nicholls on Sunday at the LU Softball Complex in Beaumont, Texas. Tennessee (10-1) went undefeated, posting a 5-0 record with two wins over McNeese, followed by victories over Lamar, Tulsa, and Nicholls. The victory over Nicholls marked the Lady Vols’ 10th consecutive win.
Sophomore Sage Mardjetko starred on Sunday, delivering a one-hit complete-game shutout. The right-hander recorded a career-high 13 strikeouts to earn her fourth win of the season. Mardjetko allowed just one walk and carried a no-hitter into the fifth inning.
The Lemont, Illinois, native was dominant throughout the weekend, collecting two wins and allowing only two hits in 12 innings of work. She held opponents to a .054 batting average, striking out 17 and issuing three walks.
Tennessee spread the scoring across multiple innings against Nicholls, pushing runs across in the first and third frames before tacking on two more in the sixth. The Lady Vols added an insurance run in the seventh.
Taylor Pannell extended her hitting streak to eight games with an RBI single in the first. In the third, Laura Mealer delivered a sacrifice fly to bring in Tennessee’s second run.
With runners on first and third in the sixth, UT executed a double steal, allowing Bella Faw to score. Pannell later drove in her 22nd RBI of the season with her second RBI single of the game.
A leadoff triple by Katie Taylor in the seventh set the stage for Sophia Nugent’s run-scoring single, padding the Lady Vols’ lead.
TP3 Pannell was a force all weekend, slashing .647/1.294/.714 with seven runs, two doubles, three home runs, 13 RBIs, and three stolen bases. In Tennessee’s first 11 games, Pannell is hitting .500 with an OPS of 1.624. The redshirt sophomore has scored 11 runs, hit five home runs, and driven in 22 RBIs.
EASY PICKENS Karlyn Pickens was dominant throughout the weekend, collecting two wins, including one complete game. In 11 innings, the junior allowed no runs, giving up just six hits, walking one, and striking out 20 batters. Opponents hit just .150 against her.
DUE UP Tennessee will head to California for the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Cathedral City, Feb. 20-22. The Lady Vols will face Oregon State, No. 21 Oregon, Rutgers, No. 4 UCLA, and Minnesota.
A high profile class-action lawsuit in Johnson City alleging police officers took bribes to avoid investigating convicted child rapist Sean Williams is settled.
Johnson City commissioners voted, unanimously, Thursday evening to approve the $28 million settlement in exchange for the plaintiffs dismissing with prejudice all claims and allegations in the lawsuit against the Johnson City Police Department and its officers.
The payout was approved nearly two years after several unnamed Jane Does filed the lawsuit alleging that police for years improperly handled sexual assault cases and ignored the actions of a serial rape suspect as he preyed on victims.
Several other agencies across East Tennessee are reporting issues, including disruptions in 911 services and intersections without working traffic lights.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – Left in the aftermath of Sunday morning’s strong storms and high winds are many downed trees and thousands of people without power.
Below is a breakdown of how many households are without power as of 4 p.m. Sunday:
Several other agencies across East Tennessee are reporting issues, including disruptions in 911 services in Monroe County, downed power lines in Anderson and Blount counties and intersections without working traffic signals in Knox County.
The Clinch River has flooded Roberts Road and portions of State Highway 33 in Hancock County. Alternate routes are limited, so please avoid these areas until the waters recede.
In addition to the power outages, flooding has also shut down several roads in Hancock and Claiborne counties, according to THP’s Fall Branch District.
Click here for the latest traffic conditions across East Tennessee.
