Lady Mocs Face Nebraska; Lady Vols Draw Oral Roberts

Monday, March 18, 2013

The Southern Conference champion UTC Lady Mocs open the NCAA tournament versus Nebraska on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. in College Station, Tex.

It will be at the Reed Arena on the campus of Texas A&M.

The game will broadcast live online on ESPN3.

The Lady Mocs drew an 11th seed, while Nebraska is seeded 6th.

No. 21 Nebraska fell to Purdue, 77-64, in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals last Saturday.

With the loss, No. 2 seed Nebraska ended the regular season with a 23-8 overall record that included a 12-4 Big Ten mark and a conference runner-up finish.

Chattanooga received the Southern Conference automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament after claiming its SoCon-record 14th league tournament crown. The Lady Mocs posted a 19-1 SoCon mark and a school-record-tying 29-3 overall record. UTC is in the midst of a 19-game winning streak, the fourth longest in school history and tied for the seventh longest in the nation.

The Lady Mocs and Nebraska (23-8, 12-4 B1G) have only met once before. UTC defeated the Huskers 79-64 in Chattanooga on Nov. 21, 1979.

Chattanooga is 1-10 in its 10 NCAA appearances. The Lady Mocs defeated Rutgers 74-69 in 2004 at the McKenzie Arena. Current assistant coach Katie Galloway Burrows was a member of that team.

This is the Lady Mocs second-highest seed school history. They were a No. 10 in 2004 and have been a No. 12 seven times. UTC was also a No. 13 in 2002 and its last trip in 2010.

Only two of Chattanooga's current players have played in the NCAA Tournament. Senior Kylie Lambert and Kayla Christopher were on the 2010 team that faced off against Oklahoma State in Tempe, Ariz.

Head coach Wes Moore has taken Chattanooga to the Big Dance nine times. He is 358-112 in 15 years in the Scenic City and 558-168 in 24 years as a collegiate head coach. He is the only coach in NCAA history to take different schools to the NCAA Division I, II and III tournaments.

The UT Lady Vols, winners of the Southeastern Conference, go up against Oral Roberts on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.

UT is a second seed. 

The 64-team tournament begins at 16 pre-determined sites, with eight sites hosting first- and second-round action March 23-25, and eight sites featuring games March 24-26. The 16 first- and second-round sites include Boulder, Colo., College Park, Md., College Station, Texas, Columbus, Ohio, Knoxville, Tenn., Lubbock, Texas, Spokane, Wash., Storrs, Conn., Baton Rouge, La., Durham, N.C., Iowa City, Iowa, Louisville, Ky., Newark, Del., Queens, N.Y., Stanford, Calif. and Waco, Texas.

The winners of the 16 sub-regional sites will advance to one of four regional sites, including Spokane, Wash. and Trenton, N.J. (March 30-April 1) and Norfolk, Va., and Oklahoma City, Okla. (March 31-April 2).

The tournament will culminate with the 2013 NCAA Women's Final Four at New Orleans Arena in Louisiana, April 7-9.


Chattanooga FC Host Storm Saturday

The Chattanooga Football Club returns home Saturday night after a two game road stretch that resulted in back-to-back losses.  Chattanooga FC will host the Mississippi Storm Saturday at Finley Stadium.  Kick off is set for 7:30 p.m. After opening their season with a 5-0 win over Rocket City United on May 11 the Chattanooga team competed in the US Open Cup on May 14 ... (click for more)

Lee Softball Falls In NAIA National Tournament Opener

The No.3-ranked Lee University softball team fell to Williams Baptist (Ark.) 3-1 in the opening round of the 2013 NAIA Softball National Championship final site at the South Commons Softball Complex on Friday evening. Eagles starter Karisa Hendrix (24-5) shutdown the NAIA's most powerful offensive over seven strong innings of work to key the victory for the sixth ... (click for more)

Dog Fighting Operation Uncovered On Talledega Avenue

TBI was executing a narcotics search warrant at 6302Talladega Ave. in Chattanooga on Friday and uncovered a dog fighting operation. Officials said it consisted of numerous pit bills, a fight ring, a treadmill and blood-stained carpets and paneling. Mcckamey Animal Services personnel were processing the fight scene. The search warrant was being executed by the ... (click for more)

City May Move Forward On $47 Million Wilcox Tunnel Project

City officials may move forward on a $47 million project to upgrade the narrow Wilcox Tunnel through Missionary Ridge. The City Council on Tuesday is to consider a resolution to apply for a $25 million federal TIGER grant. The city would still have to come up with $21,825,000 through "local funds or grants." The city has already spent $175,000 on the project. Improving ... (click for more)

Rep. Eric Watson Reflects On Memorial Day

Memorial Day is the time for Americans to reconnect with their history and the core values that make this country great by honoring those who gave their lives for the ideals we cherish. Soldiers are people who come from all walks of life, from every corner of this great land of ours. They are our fathers, our sons, our mothers and our daughters, our friends, and our neighbors.  ... (click for more)

Roy Exum: Sharing The Laughter

This time last week I was certain that laughter is the best medicine but I have since found I was wrong. Early in the week, as I revealed I was struggling with some health issues, I asked unashamedly for help. Since then the prayers of the people have already resulted in miracles and blessings but what has staggered me are not just hundreds of jokes that have flooded my email but ... (click for more)