Lee University senior golfer Shea Sylvester has been named to the NCAA Division II All-America second team for the 2016-17 season. Sylvester paced the Flames with a 70.83 stroke average per round and was the medalist in Lee's team victory at the South/Southeast Region Preview played March 27-28 at Muscle Shoals, Ala. He was third individually in the Gulf South Conference tournament and led the Flames to their second successive super regional appearance. "We are incredibly proud of Shea and all that he has accomplished this year. It will certainly go down as one of the best individual seasons in the history of our program," Lee coach John Maupin said in a school release. "Division II golf is so strong, it is no small feat to make an All-American team." The Flames' only previous NCAA All-American was Taylor Davis as a third-team selection two years ago. "I'm honored to be named an All-American," Sylvester said in the release. "This accomplishment will definitely stand out when I look back on my college golf career. That being said, more than any single achievement I will remember the competitive but friendly team environment and the always ongoing discussion of how to effectively manage your thoughts and mindset on the golf course. I'm really proud to have been a part of Lee's golf program and can't wait to see Coach Maupin and the entire program continue to develop talented golfers into All-Americans in the future."
* A three-hour rain delay Tuesday at the Georgia Junior Championship at Forest Heights Country Club in Statesboro led ultimately to a suspension for darkness with 13 players not finished with round two. Brandon Cho of Suwanee shot a 70 and leads by one stroke at 5-under-par 139. Blairsville's Beck Burnette is in a four-way tie for fourth at 142, but Dalton's Davis Kirk shot 75 and dropped from a tie for second to a tie for 14th at 144. Ringgold's Gavin Noble is tied for 19th at 145. Chatsworth's Tori Owens is tied for 13th at 157 in the Georgia Girls' Championship at the Georgia Southern University course, where Carol Pyon of Macon leads by two strokes with a two-day 143. Chatsworth's Savanah Satterfield is tied for 28th at 162.
Baseball
* Longtime baseball scout Gene Kerns, who played for the Chattanooga Lookouts in 1964 and 1965, died recently at the age of 77 in Hagerstown, Md. He had battled cancer. While working for the New York Mets, Kerns discovered their currently injured captain, David Wright, and among his finds for the Atlanta Braves (whom he joined in 2005) was pitcher Brandon Beachy, who briefly in 2012 was the team's ace but was victimized by injury. The day Kerns died, the Braves drafted Lock Haven University pitcher Jacob Belinda in the 10th round based on Kerns' report.