Bradley Pierson has resigned as the Sewanee men's basketball coach after the best first season in program history. Pierson, a former Sewanee player who went 15-12 after moving up to head coach after Bubba Smith left for Lee University, has returned to his high school alma mater as head coach. That's the Darlington School in Rome, Ga., where he graduated in 2005. "Coach Pierson has left an indelible impression on the Sewanee men's basketball program as a player, as an assistant coach and finally as our head coach," athletic director Mark Webb said in a release Thursday. "His contributions are many, and he will certainly be missed by our players and athletic staff." Said Pierson: "As a Sewanee alum, I am forever tied to this university and am grateful for all it has provided for me and my family. The Mountain will always hold a special place in my heart."
Tennis
- Covenant College's John Hirte was honored Thursday as the USA South men's tennis coach of the year, for the second time, and the Scots' Matthew Harvie was an all-conference first-team selection for the third time while fellow junior Chris Cox joined him as a first-team All-West pick. Lady Scots junior Aly Hall was a first-team All-USA player and junior Annie DeLuca and senior Claire Luger were All-West second-teamers. Freshmen Ben Tonkel and Esther Eddy were Covenant's representatives on the all-sportsmanship team. Hirte's Scots are 12-9 overall and 7-1 against USAS competition going into their league tournament semifinal this morning against Averett at LaGrange. Harvie is regionally ranked and 12-4 at No. 1 singles. Cox has 13 singles wins and is 6-1 in the USAS, where he and Harvie are 7-0 at No. 1 doubles. Hall is first-team all-conference for the second time and is 9-4 at No. 1 singles, 4-1 in the league. Luger is 7-0 and DeLuca 6-1 in USAS singles. The Lady Scots (13-7) won their way into the tournament semifinals with an 8-1 win Thursday against Averett.
- Sewanee's Jack Gray from Chattanooga and Baylor School was the Southern Athletic Association men's tennis player of the week after going 2-0 both in singles and doubles last weekend in team wins over Birmingham-Southern and Millsaps. He is 11-1 in singles and 8-0 with Alejandro Becker at No. 1 doubles.
Softball
- The 17th-ranked Chattanoooga State softball team won 10-1 in five innings and 2-1 in eight in TCCAA play Thursday against visiting Dyersburg State. Lillie McCrary homered and singled in each contest, scoring two runs in the first and singling home Colbie Thomas to end the second. She and Thomas each was 4-for-7 for the day for the Lady Tigers (35-7, 23-3). Kaleigh Wynne pitched a two-hitter with the run unearned in the first game and went 2-for-4 in the rematch, when Abbey White threw a three-hitter. Madison Kurtz and Courtney Condon each was 2-for-3 with two RBIs in the opener.
- Chattanooga's Lighthouse Lookouts/Athletic Shop finished third out of eight 50-over Major slowpitch teams in the SPA Southern Spring NIT last weekend in Montgomery, Ala. Lighthouse went 4-3 and had five all-tournament selections: Tony Henry (25-for-27 with nine homers and 20 RBIs), Stacy Powell (.750), Butch Womack (.741, 2 homers), Steve Moffett (.727, 3 homers, 11 RBIs) and Van Shumaker (.724, 4 homers, 24 RBIs). Also shining were Mike Wood (.692, 8 homers, 29 RBIs); Tim Patty (.692), Roger Smith (.690, 7 homers, 20 RBIs) and Charlie Brown (.593, 9 homers, 15 RBIs). The Lookouts lost 22-18 to Walker Brothers from Huntsville and won 20-15 over Doc C's of Pensacola) in pool play, then won 26-4 over defending national champion Alabama Brick of Birmingham, 22-4 over Monster Express of Memphis and 35-24 over Doc C's. In that game the team hit 15 homers, including seven in the fourth inning, and Womack went 6-for-6 and Smith, Henry, Shumaker, Moffett and Brown had five hits each. Lighthouse then lost 28-14 to Walker Brothers in the losers-bracket final.
Track & Field
- After winning the 100-meter dash in 12.04 seconds and the 200 in 24.25 at the Berry Field Day Invitational last weekend, Lee University's Adrian Martin was chosen the Gulf South Conference women's track performer of the week for the second time in three weeks. She and seven other Lee women and men will compete this weekend at the Mt. SAC Relays in Torrance, Calif.
Golf
- Covenant is ninth out of nine teams in the USA South men's golf tournament at Highland Country Club in LaGrange. The Scots shot 348 on Thursday with Nathan Hawkins tying for 33rd individually at 79 and Marshall Kent shooting 85. Wil Manuel from Chattanooga sho 79 for seventh-place Maryville (3-4). Greensboro College leads at 286, with Methodist at 287.