Citizen Tribune

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Tuesday, October 24, 2017 B-1 Matt Daniels, Sports Editor
Sports
Editor’s Note: This is the first part in
a two-part series breaking down
Carson-Newman’s men’s basketball
team’s forwards and guards for 2017-
18. This feature analyzes the Eagles’
frontcourt with the aid of junior
forward Parker Role’.
From Contributed Reports
JEFFERSON CITY — Carson-
Newman lost one senior from the
2016-17 team that finished 19-
11, and that’s 1,500 point scorer
Sawyer Williams.
The second most efficient
offensive player in the history in
the South Atlantic Conference
leaves a vacant space down
low for the Eagles’ offense and
Coach Chuck Benson. Williams
averaged 18 points per game last
year.
“Sawyer is one
of the best bigs to
every play here,”
Role’ said. “It’s
not something
that individually
one of us can
replace at this
point. However,
collectively, I
think we can
unite as a group
to do some of the things he did.”
Role’ has plenty of running
mates down low, chief among
them Shaun Jones. The 6-4
forward etched himself into the
record books in his first season
at Mossy Creek. Jones produced
13 double-doubles on the year,
doubling up the previous school
record.
He averaged 12.5 points per
game and was the SAC’s leading
rebounder with a 9.9 board per
game average, he had 297 for the
season. Jones scored in double
figures 19 times and crested
the 20-point threshold on four
occasions. He had at least five
rebounds in all but one of C-N’s
game and grabbed 10 or more
rebounds 17 times.
“He doesn’t play like he’s
small,” Role’ said. “He’s
explosive and strong. He’s a dog,
and that’s how he plays. We’ll
need him to do more of the same
of what he did last year for sure.”
Jones is the only C-N player
since 1992 with multiple
15-rebound efforts in the same
season. He matched C-N and
SAC single-game record for field
goal percentage with 12-for-12
effort at Newberry.
Role’ appeared in 24 games for
the Eagles with five stars in his
sophomore season. He averaged
3.1 points and 2.8 rebounds per
game. He shot 46 percent from
the field. Role’ turned in three
double-digit scoring efforts. He
tallied his first in his first career
start at Mars Hill (Dec. 31) with
a 12-point effort in a career high
25 minutes. He knocked down all
five shots he took at Anderson
(Jan. 18). Role’ topped out at nine
rebounds against Mars Hill as
well.
Add in Josh Murray and
redshirt freshman Dmitrii Bykov
and Carson-Newman has four
bigs with experience.
That’s made for one noticeable
difference for Role’.
C-N men’s basketball position preview: Frontcourt
Benson
From Contributed Reports
JEFFERSON CITY — A
Tuesday evening affair pits in-
state rivals Carson-Newman and
Lincoln Memorial at Mary Mars
Gymnasium for a 7 p.m. first
serve as the two schools jockey
for position in the South Atlantic
Conference volleyball standings.
“The service line is where it’s
going to start,” Carson-Newman
coach Dave Franklin said. “Every
game starts from there. We are
going to put some time and effort
in to make sure we are ready to
bring it from the service line. It’s
going to be good team defense
and our hitters making really
smart decisions.
With a win tonight, Carson-
Newman would
win its 200th
match against
a SAC foe to
become the
fourth school
in the history
of the league to
crest the 200-win
mark, joining
Wingate (323),
Catawba (240)
and Lenoir-Rhyne (211).
The Eagles are seeking their
fourth straight win and their first
victory on a Tuesday since Nov. 3,
2015 when they swept Tusculum
at home. C-N has dropped its last
seven matches on Tuesday.
Lincoln Memorial has won
each of the last four meetings
between the programs as a Sept.
19 encounter saw the Railsplitters
win in four sets at Holt Fieldhouse
to improve their all-time record to
30-16 against the Eagles.
Overall, C-N produced a higher
hitting clip at .159 to .129 while
recording more blocks, 12-
10. LMU registered 90 digs to
Carson-Newman’s 75.
Anna Patton notched a double-
double with 15 assists and 11
digs and Morgan Ballard tallied
19 digs and three service aces.
Marnie Streeter paced the offense
with nine kills on a .316 attack
percentage while adding six digs
and two aces.
Kiera Holland piled up 13 kills
and 11 digs while Rylee Storms
added 12 kill and 10 digs on
the front row for Coach Jenny
Michael’s group. Samantha Cash
handed out 38 assists adding 15
digs while Erica Whiteaker had
34 digs, five assists and five aces.
The programs are currently tied
for fifth in the league standings.
C-N has dropped each of the last
six matches played in Harrogate
since sweeping LMU on Oct.
7, 2014. There is not one player
on the current Eagle roster that
stepped foot on the court the last
time the Eagles won in Mary Mars
Gym.
After dropping five straight
matches, LMU has picked up
wins in five of its last seven. The
‘Splitters have been better at
home in 2017 posting a 7-3 mark
inside of the friendly confines. In
10 affairs at home, the unit has
posted a .221 hitting percentage
as opposed to a .133 margin on
the road.
C-N renews rivalry with LMU tonight in Harrogate
Franklin
From Contributed Reports
ROCK HILL, S.C. — Carson-Newman senior
Forward Lauren Wade has been named the AstroTurf
South Atlantic Conference Women’s Soccer Player
of the Week, as announced by the league office on
Monday.
The award marks her second-career SAC Player
of the Week honors, while claiming
her first of 2017. She previously was
named the Tennessee Sports Writers
Association Women’s Soccer Player
of the Week on Oct. 3.
Wade collected the fifth-fastest hat
trick in NCAA Division II history in
the win over Tusculum onWednesday,
Oct. 18 in the 3-0 victory. It would
be her fourth-career hat trick, and
second-career against the Pioneers
after doing it almost a year ago to date
on Oct. 19, 2016.
“It didn’t feel like it went that quickly, it felt probably
like about 20-minute period,” Wade stated about her
three goals. “The adrenaline had kicked in and we were
relived after that first goal, but it felt far longer than the
three minutes and 30 seconds.”
C-N’s Wade earns
SAC Player of
the Week award
Wade
From Contributed Reports
JEFFERSON CITY — When Carson-Newman and
Tusculum resume the second oldest rivalry game in
the state of Tennessee on Saturday, it will be on local
television.
WKNX, The Knox will broadcast a joint Eagle Sports
Network production for the Saturday, Oct. 28 contest.
Fans will be able to locate the game on the following
providers: Over-the-air channel 7, Comcast channel 4,
Charter channel 7, AT&T U-Verse channel 7, WOW
channel 10, Dish Network channel 7 and DirecTV
channel 7.
The game will also be streamed via the Eagle Sports
Network at cneagles.com/live.
The Voice of the Eagles Adam Cavalier and former
Carson-Newman linebacker Eric Cain will have the call.
Dan Gallman, a 2016 AFCA Good Works Team
member, will join Michael Wottreng and Leannda Carey
for the Eagle Sports Network’s radio broadcast of the
game on Joy 620 (WRJZ-AM, Knoxville), Mountain
Country 106.3 (WPFT-FM, Sevierville) and online at
cneagles.com/live.
Carson-Newman and Tusculum renew what is the
second-oldest rivalry game in the state of Tennessee. The
Pioneers and Eagles first met in 1904. The Tennessee/
Vanderbilt series is the oldest by eight years – 1896.
The Eagles lead the all-time series 34-11-2 and have
won seven of the last eight games against the Pioneers.
Tusculum at C-N
football game to
be televised
AP
Tennessee quarterback Jarrett Guarantano is tackled by Alabama linebackers Anfernee
Jennings, top, and Shaun Dion Hamilton, center, during the first half an NCAA college foot-
ball game, Saturday, in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
KNOXVILLE (AP) — Exactly a
month has passed since the last time
Tennessee’s offense reached the end
zone.
Tennessee’s offense hasn’t crossed
the goal line in its last 14 quarters,
and the Volunteers (3-4, 0-4 SEC)
have been outscored 108-19 during
that stretch. That is one reason why
after opening the season in the Top
25 Tennessee finds itself below .500
“I want to make sure we make this
clear,” Tennessee coach Butch Jones
said. “Tennessee is not OK with
being 3-4, and definitely Butch Jones
is not OK with being 3-4. We have
to keep working and work our way
through this and work our way out of
this.”
That starts with fixing the offense.
Tennessee’s lone touchdown over
its last 14 quarters came Saturday on
linebacker Daniel Bituli’s 97-yard
interception return in a 45-7 loss to
No. 1 Alabama . Tennessee’s offense
hasn’t scored a
touchdown since the
second quarter of a
17-13 victory over
Massachusetts on
Sept. 23.
The Vols have
totaled 16 points
over their last three
games. They’re
scoring 9 points per
game in Southeastern
Conference competition and are
on pace for their lowest average in
conference play since 1964, when
they had 4.6 points per game against
SEC foes.
“Obviously we’re all disappointed
in our performance,” Jones said. “We
see things in small increments that
are positive, where we’re making
progress. Unfortunately, it doesn’t
show up on game day.”
That represents a dramatic change
from last year, when Tennessee went
9-4 overall and had 35.9 points per
game in SEC competition. That 2016
team featured Joshua Dobbs, Alvin
Kamara and Josh Malone, who all are
in the NFL now.
Tennessee also lost offensive
coordinator Mike DeBord to Indiana
and replaced him by promoting tight
ends coach Larry Scott . Jones said
Monday he doesn’t plan on removing
Scott’s play-calling duties.
Awfully Offensive
Continual struggles on offense leading
to Tennessee’s rapid downfall
Jones