Lee University finished first in women's points and second overall in the Gulf South Conference All-Sports Trophy standings for 2017-18. Four Lady Flames teams - soccer, cross country, track and field and golf - won GSC championships as Lee ended a 12-year streak of women's supremacy for West Florida. "I am thrilled by this recognition of the excellence of our women's athletic teams," school president Dr. Paul Conn said in a Lee release. "This has been our goal - to be a magnet for the best female athletes. To be tops in the NCAA II Gulf South is very gratifying!" UWF was the overall winner with 94.250 points to 89.375 for the Flames and Lady Flames. Lee was fourth in the men's standings, headed by a cross country league title and a runner-up finish in the GSC baseball tournament. "This is an unbelievable honor for Lee University," athletic director Larry Carpenter said. " We all understand how competitive the GSC is and will never take this type of award for granted."
Golf
» Led by individual leader S.M. Lee, No. 2-ranked Dalton State College was in second place at 566, one shot behind Coastal Georgia, halfway through the 29-team NAIA men's golf national tournament Wednesday at TPC Deere Run in Silvis, Ill. Oklahoma City and Keiser were tied for third at 572. DSC's Roadrunners were fourth and five shots out of the lead Tuesday. After two rounds, Lee - a finalist to win again the NAIA Jack Nicklaus Award - had a two-stroke edge at 137 (69-68), and teammates P.J. Shields, Ben Rebne, Chase Cole and Dalton Johnson were at 143, 144, 146 and 147. DSC's Ben Rickett is a finalist for the Dave Williams Award for NAIA coach of the year. There are five finalists now; a sixth will be added if a team besides those five's wins the NAIA tournament. The other four are the coaches for0 Oklahoma City, Texas Wesleyan, Wayland Baptist and Keiser.
» Sewanee sophomore Tommy Oliver was among the 20 golfers listed Tuesday on the Division III PING All-South Region team for 2018. The all-region teams were released by the Golf Coaches Association of America. The only other one from the Southern Athletic Association was Jacob Arnett of Oglethorpe, who shared with Oliver the honor of SAA player of the year.
Basketball
» Alabama Class 4A player-of-the-year finalist Jayce Willingham has signed scholarship papers to continue his basketball career at Lee University. The 6-foot-4 shooting guard from Cordova High School had 56 points and 19 rebounds in one overtime win and scored 775 points as a senior, when Cordova won the 4A state championship in its third finals appearance of his career. He was first-team all-state and has won eight Alabama state gold medals in swimming. "We love players who are skilled, can play multiple positions and come from winning programs," Lee coach Bubba Smith said in a release. "Jayce is an athletic wing who can score at all three levels and loves to compete. Jayce is not just a scorer. He affects the game in so many ways. Jayce also embodies the character we look for in the recruiting process and is a great student."
Baseball
» Ninth-ranked Bryan College and No. 19 Tennessee Wesleyan ended their baseball seasons Wednesday in NAIA tournament opening round brackets. Bryan (41-17) lost 8-7 to Point Park at Williamsburg, Ky., while at Kingsport, Tenn., second-seeded TWU (39-21) edged Clarke 5-4 but fell 7-4 in the final to top seed and fourth-ranked Southeastern. Against Clarke, Alfred Cruz was 3-for-4, Dakota Phillips 2-for-3 and Collin Ridout and Tristan Clarke each 2-for-4 - each of the four with an RBI - and Ridout scored two runs. Aloysius Cruz homered and doubled and Braden Mosley was 2-for-4 with two RBIs in the final, and Tyler Halas and Malik Stephens each was 2-for-4 also. For Bryan, which fought back from a 7-1 deficit after three innings, Fernando Garcia was 5-for-5 with three RBIs, David Scoggins hit a two-run homer and Wade Weinburger was 2-for-3 and scored twice.