Area sports notes: Chattanooga State and Cleveland State women's teams on hot streaks

Assorted Sports Equipment on Black
Assorted Sports Equipment on Black

Two of the hottest basketball teams in the Tennessee Community College Athletic Association as league play resumes this evening are Chattanooga State's and Cleveland State's women. Cleveland's Lady Cougars (8-5) are tied for second place with a 4-1 TCCAA record, losing 74-71 in overtime at first-place Walters State, and Chatt State's Lady Tigers (11-4) have won eight games in a row and are 3-2 in league play with losses of five and six points to Walters and second-place Jackson State (12-1). Last year's Lady Tigers were 21-9 and region tournament runners-up in coach Stacey Franklin's third season as coach, but the squad is all freshmen now. Melisa Carter has led them with 20.1 points and 10.4 rebounds a game, but she did not play Sunday and they beat Caldwell Tech 63-45 with 12 points from Erica Lockhart, 10 points and eight rebounds apiece from Gee Gee Hollingsworth-Pugh and Michelle Smith and 11 points, six steals, six rebounds and four assists from Naja Fenlon. Gla'Mia Letcher also grabbed eight rebounds, and Shaquala Walton had seven rebounds and four steals. Fenelon is averaging 10.9 points and 3.3 assists per game; Walton is averaging 10.8 points and 7.4 rebounds. They host Roane State (4-7, 2-3) at 5:30, followed by the Roane men (6-10, 3-2) against the Tigers (6-8, 3-2). Evelyn Thompson's Lady Cougars play at 6:30 at Motlow State (2-13, 1-5), which lost 105-57 to Chatt State. Freshman Asjah Harrell is averaging 20.4 points, 5.6 assists and 3.5 steals for the Lady Cougars, and 6-foot-2 sophomore Britnay Gore is averaging a double-double with 16.3 points and 12.5 rebounds. She had 16 rebounds and three blocked shots along with 11 points against Walters, when Harrell totaled 31 points, five steals and five assists. Sophomores Za'kkria Robinson and Charisma Barner are averaging 11.7 and 10.2 points and 6.3 and 7.5 rebounds. Cleveland State's men are 5-8, 2-3; Motlow's Bucks are 7-11, 1-5.

* Lee University senior Ryan Montgomery from Central High is having a monster final season, leading the Gulf South Conference in scoring with 20.9 points a game, and Tuesday he was announced as the GSC men's player of the week for his 30 points and 13 rebounds in a 76-72 overtime win over Union University. He's averaging 6.6 rebounds, and the Flames are 10-3, second in the league at 5-1 and riding an eight-game win streak, the longest since the program joined the NCAA in 2015.

* The Bryan College women are 15-1, 11-0 in the Appalachian Athletic Conference, after Tuesday's 82-53 home win over Brenau. Karli Combs was 8-of-14 on 3-point shots in leading Bryan - No. 17 in NAIA Division II - with 24 points. Deandra Luna and Shayla Ludy each scored 12 points, and Kaitlynn Hennessee had 11 points, 10 rebounds, four blocked shots and four assists.

* The Bryan men won an AAC game at Point University, 71-64, and are 9-7, 8-4 in the conference. Noah Mulaski and Keaton Dotson made four and five 3s in scoring 26 and 19 points for the Lions, and Dotson collected six rebounds to go with Brandon Thomas's and Justin Warner's nine and eight. AJ Jones had 14 points and three steals.

* Tennessee Wesleyan lost twice in its AAC home doubleheader Tuesday against Union College, 74-50 in the women's game and 91-77 in the men's. Brooke Hammonds led the Union women (11-4, 8-2) with 23 points, 12 rebounds and five steals, while Jordan Wright had 14 points and eight rebounds and Carlie Runyan and Chloe Yearwood had 10 and nine assists and three steals apiece for TWU (6-8, 6-5). Joshua Chairs scored 17 points and Jamesio Rhine had 12 plus 12 rebounds for the Wesleyan men (5-8, 3-7), while Lorenzo Gatling, Bryant Bernard and Dominique Oggs tallied 10 points each.

* Maryville College junior guard Klaire Varney from Crossville, Tennessee, was the USA South women's player of the week after totaling 46 points, 14 rebounds, nine steals and three assists in 29-point wins over Sewanee and Piedmont.

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