Ben Rebne started the 2019 Chattanooga Choo Choo Invitational golf tournament Monday on his home course, Council Fire, by sharing first place, but the leaderboard is crowded at the top. Rebne, son of the Council Fire head professional and an NAIA All-American at Dalton State College, matched Alabama-Birmingham golfer Nick Robillard with a 5-under-par 67, one ahead of the quintet of Austin Lancaster, Cade Russell, Stephen Reynolds, Ethan Hagood and Jacob Arnett. Another five were tied for eighth at 69 - Carter Pendley, Tom Campbell, Cameron Frazier, Conner Pollman and Jack Smith - and eight, completing the top 20, shared 13th place at 70: Davis M. Smith, Kyle Vance, Jack Herceg, Camden Solomon, Michael Barnard, Jake Maples, Connor Nolan and Trey Tobias. Fully 25 of the field of 90 accomplished amateurs were under par, and another six matched it. The tournament continues through Wednesday with no cut.
» Nicole Adam, 17-year-old granddaughter of Red Bank residents Jim and Nancy Sims, was in a three-way tie for second at 4-under 68 after Monday's first round in the U.S. Girls' Junior golf tournament at Stevens Point, Wisconsin. Yuka Saso of the Philippines took the lead at 65 a week and a half after winning the Girls Junior PGA Championship in Connecticut. Ashley Gilliam of Manchester, Tennessee, opened with a 77 on the SentryWorld course. Adam lives in Pinehurst, North Carolina.
Track & Field
» For the 14th consecutive year, the Sewanee women track and field athletes were honored Monday as an NCAA Division III all-academic team by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. The distinction requires a minimum 3.1 team grade point average on a 4.0 scale, and Sewanee had a 3.56 - highest in the Southern Athletic Association.