UTC golfers win women's tourney

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Led by freshman Yushira Budhram in second place and seniors Emma de Groot and Christine Wolf in fourth and seventh, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women's golf team won the 14-team Kinderlou Forest Challenge on Tuesday. Coach Colette Murray's Mocs tied for 15th in the event last year. They began the third round six shots behind Coastal Carolina but shot 290 to beat the Chanticleers by nine with an 896 total. Budhram finished with a 71 for an even-par 219, while de Groot wound up at 222, Wolf closed with a 69 for a 225 and Maria Juliana Loza tied for 19th at 230. "We had two good rounds and one really good round," Murray said. "We couldn't have started off [the semester] any better. I'm delighted. ... It was just really solid play. We hit a lot of greens and made a lot of birdies."

Baseball

  • Lee University baseball coach Mark Brew recently announced four 2011-12 signees, including 6-foot-3, 225-pound right-handed pitcher Steve Ragans from Santa Fe Community College in Jacksonville, Fla., and second baseman/pitcher Mike Fasolo (6-2, 185) from Marcy, N.Y., and Mohawk Valley CC. The others are righty pitcher Kyle Briner (6-0, 170) from Silver Creek High School in Sellersburg, Ind., and middle infielder Adam Lee (6-1, 170) from Independence High in Franklin, Tenn. Lee hit .408 last year and has a .388 career high school average. "Adam is a great high school sign for us," Brew said. "He has baseball bloodlines with his brother playing at Vanderbilt, and we feel he has the ability to be at that level in the future." Briner "is already throwing in the mid 80s [mph], and I think he has the ability to improve in that area," Brew said, citing the academic standout's "incredible work ethic." Ragans was 4-0 for Santa Fe in 2010 and struck out 18 batters in his first 11 innings this season. "He is an experienced pitcher," Brew said, "who has the ability to command three pitches and should earn lots of innings in his first year as a Flame." Fasolo, a left-handed batter, "is a solid athlete" showing promise as a relatively new pitcher, Brew noted, and "really has a good fastball and slider."

  • Red Bank coach Trey Hicks is asking for donations to rebuild the team's third-base dugout, which was destroyed during Monday afternoon's storms. Hicks said the team is in need of cinder blocks and mortar. He asked that anyone interested call him at the school (877-1900) or at 488-7317.

Softball

  • UT-Martin junior pitcher Chelsea Jones from Tullahoma was voted the Ohio Valley Conference softball pitcher of the week for her two shutout wins in UTC's Frost Classic last weekend. Jones set a UTM record with 15 strikeouts against Northern Iowa and struck out 11 IUPUI batters.

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