Covenant College is mourning the death of soccer player David Taaffe as the result of injuries he sustained Monday after a fall while hiking in Switzerland. The former Christ Presbyterian Academy all-state player would have been a junior this fall with the Scots. He started 13 matches and appeared in seven others last season. He also was a Maclellan Scholar and a resident assistant. "As we grieve, we can be assured by our memories of David that he glorified God," coach Nathan Pifer said in a school release. "What a privilege to know him, and how blessed have we been to share the past two years with him. How precious is our time together! He was the ultimate teammate and our brother in Christ." School president Dr. J. Derek Halvorson called Taaffe's death "an extremely painful loss" but said, "As children of God and joint heirs with Christ we cling to the promise of the hope of glory, and we take great comfort in knowing that our brother, David, is with his Lord and Savior already." Covenant will hold a prayer service for Taaffe's family at 11 a.m. today in the Sanderson Hall auditorium.
Golf
• Chattanooga golfer Keith Mitchell tied for 10th with a 141 in the U.S. Amateur qualifier held Tuesday and Wednesday at Georgia's Capital City Club-Crabapple. Five berths in the Aug. 12-18 national tournament in Brookline, Mass., were awarded, plus two alternate spots. Mitchell, a Baylor School alumnus who just finished his junior season at the University of Georgia, was tied for sixth at 69 after the first round, and finished one shot behind the second alternate Jacob Tilton. Dalton's David Noll Jr. finished tied for 19th at 144. The medalist was Anders Albertson of Woodstock, Ga., who shot 133.
Basketball
• After finishing second in the NAIA Division I national tournament in its last season in the association, the Lee University women's basketball team finished 13th in the WBCA's Top 25 NAIA academic rankings. Coach Marty Rowe's Lady Flames had a 3.469 aggregate grade point average for 2012-13. "This is another great accomplishment for last year's group," Rowe said in a school release. "To be committed on the court and also in the classroom is something our program is very proud of. To be able to finish our program's run in the NAIA with such a wonderful group has been so rewarding and a lot of fun." Lee now is a provisional member of NCAA Division II and has returned to the National Christian College Athletic Association for championship opportunities the next two years.
Baseball
• Justin Glover of the Chattanooga Cyclones was picked as an all-tournament pitcher in the Perfect Game World Wood Bat 16-under national tournament, after being named all-tournament also in the earlier 15-under Perfect Game nationals. The Cyclones went 4-2-1 in the 296-team 16-under event.
Diving
• Baylor Diving Club member Eva Binder finished fourth with 202.85 points in the 12-under girls' 3-meter competition at the AAU National Diving Championships in San Antonio, and teammate Natalie Smallen was sixth among the 9-under girls with 104.15. Both still have 1-meter dives to go.