Lee University’s deep run toward the 2018 NCAA Division II women’s soccer championship ended Thursday night in Pittsburgh with a 3-0 loss to top-ranked Grand Valley State in the national semifinals. The Michigan school takes a 25-0-1 record into the championship match Saturday. Lee’s Lady Flames (17-7-1) had ended the undefeated status of No. 2 West Florida and No. 3 Columbus State on the way to the final four but couldn’t pull off the trifecta despite eight saves Thursday by Taylor Green. Grand Valley State led 20-8 in shots and 11-4 in attempts on goal and one score each by three players.
* The Lady Flames’ 2019 recruiting class includes Chattanooga Christian School all-state defender Kate Dirkse among three November signees. The others are Anderson County goalkeeper Mollie Wheeler and forward Mallory Hayden from Cape Coral, Florida. Hayden led her high school team to the state final four the past two years and has 120 goals and 90 assists in her career there, and she helped her club team win three Disney Showcase Tournament championships and represented Florida in the SRPL League. Wheeler’s club team won the 2017 Disney Showcase, and for Anderson County she is the reigning district and region goalkeeper of the year. “Mollie is a great pickup for us. As a keeper she commands her box well and has a lot of presence,” coach Chris Hennessey said in a Lee release. Hayden “can play in numerous positions and will provide the team with a lot of flexibility,” he noted. “She is very good on the ball and has an eye for the final pass.” Dirkse is a three-time state finalist and a three-time all-state selection with CCS, and she has a 4.0 GPA. “Kate is an exceptional defender who has all the attributes to be very successful during her career at Lee,” Hennessey said. “She is strong, athletic, good in the air and has grit about her.”
Golf
* Lee won out over NCAA Division I golf programs in recruiting Beck Burnette of Blairsville, Georgia, who was his state’s junior player of the year in 2017 and excelled again this year. “This is a great day for the Lee golf program,” Flames coach John Maupin said this week in announcing the signing of his “top target” for the 2019 class. “I was really considering D-I schools, but Coach Maupin and Lee University really made me feel at home as soon as I stepped on campus,” the home-schooled Burnette said in the release. “I think the team chemistry here is excellent, making the program a perfect fit for me. Seeing how competitive Lee is in D-II was more important to me than playing D-I. As far as the school goes, Lee has a lot to offer spiritually and academically and will prepare me for the future.”
Tennis