Middle Tennessee wins UALR Classic
Middle Tennessee fired Tuesday’s low round of 304 as it overcame a stiff, chilly wind from the northwest to win the UALR Women’s Golf Classic by nine shots at Diamante Country Club in Hot Springs Village.
Middle Tennessee opened the final round tied with Wichita State for the lead at 617 and won with a team score of 921 after Wichita State shot 314 Tuesday.
“You have to figure out how to win, and I think they figured out how to persevere and get tough in tough conditions,” Middle Tennessee Coach Chris Adams said.
Middle Tennessee surged behind an even-par 72 from Allie Knight and a 1-over-par 73 from Avery George. George (224) finished third overall and Knight (226) fourth.
Holding a five-stroke lead heading into the final round after first-day 74 and 71, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi junior Vanessa Johnson easily won medalist honors with a 74 Tuesday, but she had a little more pressure than just the wind. Central Arkansas sophomore Sarah Brown shot the tournament’s only other subpar round with a 1-under 71.
Brown finished in second, two strokes behind Johnson. Central Arkansas finished fourth at 935.
Arkansas State finished 10th at 955, led by a 238 from Maci Arrington, who shot a final-round 77.
Host UALR finished tied for 12th with Missouri State at 959. The Trojans were led by Sofia Berglund’s 235. Grier Bennett, a junior from Hot Springs Village, finished tied for 23rd at 237 after starting the final day tied for 33rd on her home course.
“It was odd to not be a part of the lead, but it was cool,” Bennett said. “I got to be back here and see my friends and family. I got to see so many people, and it was kind of a mini-vacation.”
- The Sentinel-Record
Louisiana-Monroe wins at Chenal
Louisiana-Monroe completed a 25-over-par 889 on Tuesday to win the team title at the UALR/First Tee Collegiate Classic at Chenal Country Club in Little Rock.
Led by Greg Smail, who finished third with a 3-over 219, the Warhawks had three players finish in the top 11 to beat second-place Sam Houston State by four strokes.
Led by Noah Tullas, who shot a 224 to finish in a tie for ninth place, UALR finished 11th at 928. Colby Benton finished in a tie for 31st with a 231, while Johan Voss was tied for 53rd (237), Luis Cedeno was tied for 63rd (240) and Alfred Kerstis finished 70th with a 244.
Arkansas State’s Chance Holden finished tied for 11th at 226, while teammates Easton Key and Sean Brock both shot 231 to finish 31st. Seth Garner tied for 46th with a 235 and Brayden Brown finished tied for 51st at 236 for the Red Wolves, who shot a 918 to finish eighth.
Lovell ties for medalist honors
Arkansas-Fort Smith junior Dylan Lovell tied with Newman University’s Charles Mommaerts on Tuesday at the UAFS Lions Classic at Hardscrabble Country Club in Fort Smith.
Lovell follwed an even-par 70 on Monday with a 6-over-par 76 on Tuesday. Mommaerts shot rounds of 74-72.
As a team, Arkansas-Fort Smith shot a 69-over 629 (309-320) and finished in ninth place, 33 strokes behind winner Cameron University.
BASKETBALL
Hannahs offered release from Texas Tech
Pulaski Academy graduate Dusty Hannahs has asked for and received a release from his scholarship at Texas Tech, the Lubbock Avalanche Journal reported Tuesday.
The newspaper reported Texas Tech will grant Hannahs a release to any school outside of the Big 12 Conference.
Hannahs played in all 32 games this season, starting nine, while averaging 7.7 points and 22.0 minutes per game for the Red Raiders. He made 36.9 percent of his three-pointers (41 of 111) and shot 92.3 percent from the free-throw line (60 of 65) as a sophomore.
He scored a career-high 25 points in a Jan. 22 game at West Virginia.
If Hannahs transferred to a NCAA Division I school, he would have to sit out a year and then would have two years of eligibility remaining.
Sports, Pages 21 on 03/26/2014