Tennessee had half of the six Southeastern Conference spring-sport athletes announced Monday as winners of prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships, and two of UT’s three were from Chattanooga-area high schools: softball player Lillian Hammond from GPS and track runner Phoebe Wright from Red Bank. The $7,500 awards went to 29 men and 29 females nationwide. Hammond, joined with the honor by former teammate Tiffany Huff, ended her softball eligibility in 2009 with a .339 career batting average, 139 hits, 136 runs and 72 stolen bases. She was a three-time ESPN the Magazine Academic All-American first-team selection. “NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships are very competitive, and it is phenomenal to have two recipients from softball this year,” co-head coach Karen Weekly said. Wright was the NCAA indoor and outdoor women’s 800-meter champion this year, was a two-time ESPN the Magazine first-teamer, has a 3.97 grade point average in a difficult double major and was the SEC’s H. Boyd McWhorter Scholar-Athlete of the Year encompassing all sports. “Phoebe has clearly demonstrated her academic strengths. Now the NCAA has recognized her for her abilities in the classroom as well,” said J.J. Clark, UT’s director of track and field.
Football
* Former Notre Dame High School and Oklahoma State star Adarius Bowman caught five passes for 76 yards in Winnipeg’s 36-34 home loss to Toronto last Friday in Canadian Football League play, and former Central High School and Auburn standout Damon Duval scored the first four points in Montreal’s 33-23 win Sunday at Edmonton. Duval kicked a 45-yard field goal and then scored a “single” on a 69-yard punt. He also kicked three extra points and had a 73-yard kickoff, and he averaged 41.9 yards on eight punts.
* Maryville College junior receiver Wesley Idlette from Baylor School and Sewanee senior cornerback and receiver Chalankis Brown from Millbrook, Ala., received NCAA Division III preseason All-America honorable mention by www.D3SeniorClassic.com. Idlette caught 62 passes for 994 yards last year, each total the second best for a season in Fighting Scots history.
Softball