Brooke Pancake's 68 aids Tide tourney lead

Saturday, March 31, 2012

ATHENS, Ga. - Former Baylor School golfer Brooke Pancake shot a 4-under-par 68 in the first round of the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic on Friday, which helped her Alabama team shoot a 10-under 278 and take a six-shot lead over Georgia with South Carolina another shot behind in third. Pancake, a senior, trails Crimson Tide teammate Jennifer Kirby by two strokes for the individual lead.

Wrestling

• Heavyweight Kevin Malone, a redshirt freshman who led the team with 25 wins, was named "most improved" at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga wrestling banquet Friday. Nick Soto, who had a 4.0 grade point average along with John Lampe, was named freshman of the year; Dean Pavlou and Kelly Felix were co-winners of the Ethan Reeve Workhorse Award; Pavlou (3.609) received the Pat Murphy Academic Award; and senior Dan Waddell received the Jim Morgan MVP plaque. Waddell, Brandon Wright, Felix, Manny Ramirez, Joe Burns and Demetrius "Bucky" Johnson were senior honorees although Johnson has applied for an NCAA hardship and may return next year. Southern Conference champions Soto, Pavlou, Waddell and Wright plus Levi Clemmons represented UTC at the NCAA tournament.

Football

• The funeral service for former Brainerd High School star quarterback Bill Romans, the backup at Auburn to Pat Sullivan, is set for 11 a.m. today at Signal Mountain Presbyterian Church, followed by burial in Hamilton Memorial Gardens. Romans died Monday at age 62. Over the years he shifted his athletic abilities to outdoors pursuits and enjoyed an annual hunting trip to Wisconsin, among other activities. The family suggests memorial contributions to charities of the donors' choices.

Softball

• Former Ridgeland High player Caitlyn Lance hit a two-run home run and a three-run double in her first two at-bats Wednesday to spark Carson-Newman to a 16-8 home softball win over Georgia College, but the visitors won 3-0 in game two. Sara Kelley from Ooltewah was 3-for-3 with three doubles and three RBIs, Shelby Robertson from Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe scored three runs and Ooltewah's Bri Shoemake added two runs and an RBI in game one for Carson-Newman (22-16). Robertson stole a base in each game, giving her 15 thefts for the season.

• COLUMBUS, Ga. - Kelsey Barnes' seventh-inning single gave Lee University a 2-1 win over Auburn-Montgomery in the SSAC Crossover softball tournament Friday. Barnes plated Jennifer Ringle, who was 2-for-4. Ana Coscorrosa was 2-for-3 with the tying single in the sixth inning, and Jessa Watts (12-4) pitched a three-hitter with eight strikeouts; AUM's run was unearned. Faulkner led Lee (31-7, 10-3) 4-2 in the fifth inning in a later game suspended by rain until this morning.

• BRISTOL, Va. - Tennessee Wesleyan won 6-2 and lost 2-0 in AAC softball Friday at Virginia Intermont. TWC (7-19) had only four hits in game two, when Lindsey Arndts was 2-for-2, but totaled 15 in the opener as Brooke Ward went 4-for-4, Hannah Smith went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and Ashley Bryson doubled twice and scored twice. Rachele Moretto was 2-for-3 with a triple, and winning pitcher Kelly Walker gave up eight hits.

• BLUEFIELD, Va. - Bryan College won 6-1 and 10-4 in AAC softball at Bluefield. Katie Vaughn drove in three runs and Beka James, Courtney Combs, Rachey Kirby and Taylor Yates had two hits each in support of Amber Love's seven-hit pitching in game one for Bryan (11-25, 4-4).

Baseball

• Former Lookout Valley standout Lance Rorex was 2-for-4 with a double and three RBIs and fellow Cleveland State transfer Troy Zawadzki drove in two runs as the Carson-Newman baseball team beat Pfeiffer 21-8 Wednesday.

Lacrosse

• SEWANEE, Tenn. - Berry College edged Sewanee 22-21 in women's lacrosse Friday, despite four goals apiece from the hosts' Sally Anne Greenwood and Meg Welton, three by Olivia Vietor and two each by three other Tigers. Amy Nusbaum made 13 saves for Sewanee (6-4).

• SAVANNAH, Ga. - The Savannah College of Art and Design defeated the Tennessee Wesleyan women's lacrosse team 13-6 on Friday. Charlotte Cutts had three goals for SCAD; Renee Bolling scored three for TWC, which got 10 saves from Nicolette Dungee.

Tennis

• The UTC women's tennis nonconference home match scheduled Friday against UAB was canceled because of rain. The Lady Mocs will host Appalachian State at noon Sunday on the UTC courts. The UTC men host Wofford there today at 1 p.m. and play Davidson at 1 p.m. Sunday at Baylor School.