Bryan College anglers Jake Lee, left, and Jacob Foutz hold up their trophies after winning the 2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series national championship in Minnesota.Bryan College freshmen Jacob Foutz and Jake Lee led after all three days of the 2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series national championship tournament on the Bemidji Chain of Lakes in Minnesota, culminating Saturday with 15 pounds, 5 ounces and a championship total of 49-15. A Bethel University boat was second at 45-4, and two other Bethel teams were fourth and fifth. The final day included the top 12 boats from the original 89. The Bryan duo did their fishing in Lake Irving, just south of Lake Bemidji, while most of the field worked Stump Lake. Lee and Foutz primarily used a frog bite bait in morning and shady conditions and flipped a Texas rig at docks and shoreline cover during the heat of the day. "This week was amazing. It showed us that we can come here and compete with the best college anglers in the country," Foutz and Lee were quoted in a B.A.S.S. release. Bryan already was the national Cabela's School of the Year for 2016-17.
- With Rhea County anglers Michael Neal and Wesley Strader in the top 10 going back out today, Brandon Cobb of Greenwood, S.C., took the lead Saturday in FLW's prestigious Forrest Wood Cup tournament on Lake Murray in his home state with a 19-pound-4-ounce bag of bass. That gave him a two-day total of 39-0. First-day leader Justin Atkins of Florence, Ala., is second at 37-3, and Anthony Gagliardi of Prosperity, S.C., is third at 36-1. Neal, from Dayton, Tenn., is seventh at 30-14, and Spring City's Strader is 10th at 28-4. Dayton's Andy Morgan and Dunlap's Marshall Deakins finished 30th amd 49th, each earning $10,000.
Basketball
- The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women's basketball team began its three-game Canada trip with a 75-69 win Friday night in Vancouver against Trinity Western. Arianne Whitaker scored 18 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the field and Lakelyn Bouldin scored 13 with two 3-point baskets for UTC. Aryanna Gilbert added 10 points and eight rebounds and Brooke Burns also had 10 points, while Ashlyn Wert collected seven rebounds and blocked two shots. The Mocs jumped ahead 10-4 but were tied at 35 at halftime and fell behind 47-44 before a 10-0 run gave them a 54-47 lead. They played late Saturday night against VK U17.
Baseball
- Freshman first baseman Blake Howard from Silverdale Baptist Academy and 6-foot-5 pitcher Eric Freeman from the University of Tennessee are among eight late-summer signees announced Friday by Lee University baseball coach Mark Brew. Freeman, who has one year of eligibility remaining, joins his brother, freshman infielder Justin Freeman from Farragut, on the Flames roster. Two other transfer pitchers, Patrick Morrow from Hill College in Texas and David Pattinson from St. John's River, are among the newest Flames, along with catchers Chase Gadau from Kankakee Community College and Jared Lutsic from a high school in Michigan, outfielder Kurt Ornowski from Chattahoochee Valley CC and middle infielder Fernando Ortiz from Wabash Valley, another juco. "These are all great young men with a commitment to excellence on the field and in the classroom," Brew said of the recruiting class as a whole. "They complement our returning roster and fill the needs that were created through graduation from last year's team." The 6-2, 220-pound Howard, a switch-hitter, batted .411 as an SBA senior, with three home runs, six doubles, 25 RBIs and 10 stolen bases in 10 tries. "Blake is a physical freshman whose bat projects very well," Brew said.
Soccer
- The UTC women's soccer team played to a 1-1 tie Friday night in a preseason exhibition match at Tennessee Tech. Freshman Chloe Arnold from Bristol scored the Mocs' goal, stealing a TTU pass and tying the score in the 54th minute. Sophomore UTC goalkeepers Melia Correa and Bailey Coppedge made four and three saves. Mayra Manzanal headed in the goal for the Golden Eagles from a Karigan Owens corner kick. UTC plays another exhibition this evening at Belmont and opens the season by hosting Austin Peay at 7 p.m. Friday and Eastern Kentucky at 2 p.m. next Sunday.
Tennis
- Seven Sewanee women's players and three Sewanee men were recognized as Intercollegiate Tennis Association Scholar-Athletes for 2016-17 in NCAA Division III, and both sets of Tigers were honored as all-academic teams for having aggregate grade point averages of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale. The individual Scholar-Athlete requirement is 3.5 and varsity letter status, and Clementina Davila, Maggie Crumbliss, Meredith Heitland, Mary Jane McCaghren, Maura McCrary, Sara Thompson, Bea Benavides, Sean Halloran, Jack Gray and Paul "Mac" McCullough all qualified.