Tennessee Wesleyan College men's basketball and golf coach Mike Poe and partner Ricky Gregg will try to defend their title in the Tennessee Golf Association's 20th annual Senior Four-Ball Championship this Wednesday through Saturday at the Tennessee National course near Loudon. Gregg is a former University of Tennessee golfer. He and Poe are the only past champions in the field. The tournament consists of two stroke-play qualifying rounds followed by match play involving the low eight four-ball teams.
- Dalton's David Noll Jr. and former Baylor School golfer Carlton Forrester of Atlanta are among the 131 players entered in a US. Mid-Amateur Championship qualifying tournament Wednesday at The Frog Golf Club at the Georgian in Villa Rica. They will be playing 18 holes for seven spots and two alternate positions in the national tournament for players 25 and older. The U.S. Mid-Amateur will be held Oct. 5-10 at Birmingham, Ala.
Football
Sophomore Kevin Carter from Central High School in Harrison is lined up to start at defensive tackle this football season for Central State University in Ohio, where the head coach is former Alabama and NFL standout linebacker E.J. Junior III. The Marauders now are members of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, and they open their season against Benedict College on Sept. 7 in the Dayton Classic in Wilberforce, Ohio. Carter has a 3.0 grade point average.
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football coach Russ Huesman will be the first guest speaker of the 2013-14 year for the Chattanooga Quarterback Club when it resumes its noon Monday luncheon meetings on Aug. 26 at the Stadium Club at Finley Stadium. A hot meal is included in the $10 cost every week, or someone can attend for $4 and not eat. The club is in its annual drive for dues payments of $35 a year. Old members or prospective new ones can contact president Doug Dyer at 265-5062 for more information.
Baseball
- Former Calhoun (Ga.) High School baseball star Charlie Culberson hit his first major league home run in Friday's 6-3 win for the Colorado Rockies at Baltimore. Culberson, who was 1-for-2 in the game in raising his big-league average to 2.42, tied the game at 2 with his sixth-inning homer. He's at .235 after making a pinch-hit out Saturday night.
Track & Field
- Jarrett Williams of East Paulding High School in Dallas, Ga., is a recent shot put recruit for the Tennessee Temple University track and field team. "He's only done it for two years, but he's consistently improved his distance," Temple coach Emmanuel Awotula said Saturday. "He seems like a very good kid, and he understands what Temple is all about and loves it here. He has good family support and just wants to get better."
Soccer
- The UTC women's soccer team lost 3-1 in a "friendly" Saturday morning against Murray State at Finley Stadium. The scrimmage was comprised of three 30-minute periods, and UTC scored first as freshman Monica Speth from Janesville, Wis., converted a pass from Clare Latham of Cordova, Tenn. But the Mocs made it 1-1 with an own goal later in the opening period and allowed goals by the Racers' Julie Mooney and Lauren Frazier from assists by Lindey Hunt and Bronagh Kerins in the second period. The Murray State goalkeeper blocked a Latham penalty kick in the third period, after UTC's Skylar Brewer from Farragut, Tenn., was pulled down in the box. The Mocs open official play Friday at Finley in a 7 p.m. match against Austin Peay, like Murray State a member of the Ohio Valley Conference. Admission is free and concessions will be available.
General
- UTC's athletics merchandising made a big climb in the 2012-13 fiscal year, according to a school release this past week. Gross royalties for UTC-licensed sports merchandise rose a record 29 percent -- the eighth highest increase for a Collegiate Licensing Company client school in the nation -- and that was the largest royalty collection for a year in UTC history. "It's exciting. Those numbers breed a great deal of optimism to me," said David Blackburn, the school's new vice chancellor and athletic director. "It shows we have a great foundation to build on." Apparel accounted for 56.4 percent of all Mocs-branded items sold at retail in the fiscal year, and golf products were popular after the U.S. Amateur success of UTC's Steven Fox. Also, now there are more outlets to find Mocs gear and other UTC items.