Bernie Moore, who served 18 years as commissioner of the Southeastern Conference after 18 years as LSU's track and field coach with 14 SEC championships, eight NCAA titles, five world records and 29 All-America honors, is one of the five individuals going into the Sewanee Athletics Hall of Fame this September.
The 1972-73 men's basketball team will be inducted as a group in the Sept. 6-7 ceremonies. The other honorees are football two-way end Bob Davis (class of 1964), swimmer Suzy Cahill Toner ('90), soccer player Scott Polancich (2001) and baseball player Cullen Watson ('02).
Moore did not play for Sewanee, but that's where he got his start as a college coach, heading the track and field program and assisting in football beginning in 1924. And he retired to nearby Winchester. Davis was captain of the 1963 football Tigers who went 8-0 and outscored their opponents 275-45.
He later earned acclaim as a surgeon and medical educator, and in 1994 Sewanee established the Robert P. Davis Memorial Scholarship in his honor. Cahill set school records in five swimming events as a freshman and reset some of those and added new ones in subsequent years; she graduated with program records in the 200 freestyle, 500 free, 1000 free, 1650 free, 200 individual medley and 400 IM. Polancich was the conference soccer player of the year and an All-American in 2000 and a four-time all-conference selection, and he remains fourth in program history with 50 career goals and third with 31 assists.
Watson was a three-time all-conference player who batted .415 in 2001 and led the league with 43 RBIs and was top-five in four other categories as a senior the next year. Coach Rudy Davalos, assisted by Mac Petty, directed the '72-73 basketball Tigers to a program record for wins with a 23-4 record that included losses to Mississippi State and Tulane.
The players were Eddie Greene, Jack Lefler, Bill Kosick, Kenny Bohrman, Eddie Krenson, Harry Hoffman, Tom Piggott, John Petrie, Peter Lemonds, Doug Fifner, Norm Marable, Rick Jones, Rhea Bowden, Bill Skaggs, John Wills and Ben Rogers.
Baseball
• Top two seeds Faulkner University and Lee University, co-champions of the Southern States Athletic Conference baseball tournament, played the late game Wednesday night in the NAIA World Series in Lewiston, Idaho, as two of three teams left from the 10 that began the tournament. Faulkner (54-11) remained undefeated in the Series after beating third-seeded Embry-Riddle 10-3 in Tuesday's late game. In its last athletic competition as an NAIA member, Lee (51-11) was trying to create a three-team playoff for the championship tonight and Friday; a Faulkner win would leave the Montgomery, Ala., school playing for the title against one-loss Lewis-Clark State, which eliminated Embry-Riddle late Wednesday afternoon.
• Lee players Cameron Brewster and David Eskew from Cleveland high schools and Freed-Hardeman junior Eric Tompkins from Chattanooga were among the 2013 NAIA Scholar-Athletes for baseball announced Wednesday. Honorees must be at least juniors academically and have grade point averages of at least 3.5 on a 4.0 scale.
• Former Polk County High School standout Jared Allen went 6-for-6 with a home run, two doubles, four RBIs and three runs scored in Walters State's opening game last weekend in the Junior College World Series, but the Senators lost that game 19-11 to Spartanburg Methodist and were eliminated the next day with a 7-5 loss to Navarro College. That left the Tennessee champions 37-18 for the season.
Tennis
• The 2013 Tennessee State Junior Qualifying Championships for boys and girls in the 18- and 16-under age groups will be held this weekend at the Champions Club, beginning Friday afternoon with doubles matches. Jennifer Ontog is the tournament director.
Softball
• The new Scenic City Senior Softball League will get started tonight at John A. Patten Recreation Center with the Rust playing the Smoke just after the opening ceremony at 6 and the Aces taking on the Reds in game two. Normally the teams will play Mondays and Tuesdays with two-team doubleheaders each night, according to league organizer Ken Griffith. A 20-game schedule is planned for each team, followed by a double-elimination tournament. This is a slowpitch league using senior rules. Players must be at least 60 by the end of 2013, and one player, George Reed, is 82, Griffith said. Smokey Day is the Smoke manager, Rusty Aytes runs the Rust, Tom Card heads the Aces and Jack Gibson directs the Reds.