UTC’s Jessica TraxlerUniversity of Tennessee at Chattanooga shortstop Jessica Traxler was named Southern Conference softball player of the week Monday. The senior from Chino Hills, Calif., went 7-for-14 with three home runs and eight RBIs as the Lady Mocs won four of five games. Four walks gave her a .611 on-base percentage, and her slugging percentage for the week was 1.143. Defensively, Traxler had six putouts and six assists with no errors. It is the first SoCon weekly honor in her four seasons at UTC and gives the Lady Mocs five of the 11 player-of-the-week awards this season, with Michelle Fuzzard earning the award four times. In addition, UTC freshman Taylor Deason twice has been pitcher of the week.
• Lee University sophomore Ana Coscorrosa is the Southern States Athletic Conference softball player of the week after batting .579 (11-for-19) with at least one hit in all six of the 11th-ranked Lady Flames’ games. Her home run beat 14th-ranked Brenau 1-0, she had the winning double in a win over No. 9 Shorter and she had two triples and four RBIs in a doubleheader sweep of Truett-McConnell. She totaled seven RBIs for the week and now has 63 for the season, with a .445 average, eight homers and 15 doubles. With 16 wins in its last 17 games, Lee opens play Thursday in the SSAC tournament in Columbus, Ga.
• The Lady Moc Softball Appreciation Dinner sponsored by the Lady Moc RBI Club is set for May 3 at 6:30 p.m. at the Stadium Club at Finley Stadium. Admission costs $15, and advance tickets will be on sale Saturday and Sunday during UTC’s games against Furman. To make a reservation and pay at the door, contact Mike Burke at mike.lori@comcast.net or 877-2080.
Football
• UTC defensive backs Clim Robbins and Deron “T.J.” Thompson, arrested last week on multiple burglary and theft charges, had their first Hamilton County General Sessions Court appearance Monday. A new court date of May 23 was set. According to the UTC arrest report summary, the two freshmen have admitted to a string of thefts from September 2011 to February 2012 and have been charged with nine counts each of aggravated burglary and felony theft. Both players redshirted in 2011 and have been suspended from the team since late February.
• Berry College announced last week the hiring of Tony Kunczewski as the first football coach at the NCAA Division III school. At LaGrange College since 2005 after stints as an assistant at Bowdoin in Maine and Allegheny in Pennsylvania, he has been the defensive coordinator and the strength and conditioning coach for the Panthers. They began intercollegiate play in 2006 and went 9-2 and reached the Division III playoffs in 2008. Berry president Dr. Stephen Briggs said in a school release that Kunczewski “knows how to build a football program that both wins on the field and contributes to the greater good of the campus.” Said the new coach: “Berry is one of the most beautiful and impressive campuses in the world. It’s truly a unique place that combines excellent academics with a strong history of success in athletics.”