Notre Dame High School boys’ basketball coach Tommy Fox has resigned, effective immediately, to become the director of sports and recreation at First Baptist Academy in Powell, Tenn., near Knoxville.
Fox, Chattanooga’s career scoring leader, had coached at his alma mater the last two seasons. He also coached baseball one season.
“Economically I had no choice but to take this opportunity for my family,” said Fox, who guided the Irish to an 18-8 season last year. “I hated to leave the kids, that was the tough part. But I got to be a head coach and that’s something I had always wanted to do.
“We were probably the worst team in Chattanooga when I took the job. We were awful. We got some talent in there, won the district for the first time in a long time last year and there’s talent coming back now.”
Notre Dame now is accepting applications for a new coach. Interested parties should contact athletic director Howie Sompayrac at sompayrach@myndhs.com.
Jumper on U.S. team
Baylor School distance runner Hannah Jumper has been selected to compete with the U.S. Mountain Running team in the 26th World Championships in Kamnik Slovenia on Sept. 5.
Jumper is one of four members on the U.S. junior team. Last season she won the Division II cross country state championship with a personal-best 18:29 and also won track state titles in the 800-, 1600- and 3200-meter events. She took 16 seconds off her personal best in the 1600, finishing in 4:58.
“I am so excited and honored to be a part of the team,” Jumper said. “It is so humbling to be able to represent our wonderful country while doing something that I love to do.”
Former Baylor runner Brandon Lord competed in the event last year, finishing fourth overall, the highest individual finish for a member of the U.S. men’s junior team.
Brown signs with Bryan
Maggie Brown decided not to wait to weigh college offers after her senior volleyball season at Boyd-Buchanan. The 5-foot-11 middle blocker committed to Bryan College in May and signed scholarship papers Tuesday with the NAIA school in Dayton. She lives in Ooltewah.
“I visited Bryan and a couple of other Christian schools,” Brown explained, noting that she wanted to stay in a small-school atmosphere like Boyd-Buchanan’s. “I felt Bryan is where God wanted me to be. Coach (Leo) Sayles is great, and the girls there made me feel at home.”
Sayles worked with Brown for a short time with the Choo-Choo City club program and said she was the clear leader of her 17-under team. His first recruit for 2011 also was his top target, he said.
“She’s got to be one of the hardest workers I’ve ever been around, and she’s a great competitor,” Sayles said. “We lose a large class this year, and I really wanted to find leader types to come in, and Maggie is a leader. She’s already been recruiting for us, too.”
Lady Bucs coach Amber Nolen said she thinks “Maggie is going to be a great fit for Bryan. I have been a college recruiter, and she’s the type of person you look for. Not only is her skill level going to fit well, but she’s so good at talking to other players and she’s such a hard worker. She goes above and beyond what you ask.”