COLLEGES

SMCC hires Maine Maritime graduate Knights as women’s basketball coach, assistant AD

Julia Knights has been hired as women’s basketball coach at Southern Maine Community College in South Portland. She will also fill the position of assistant athletic director. Her appointment begins in July.

Knights graduated from Maine Maritime Academy in 2007 and worked there as an assistant coach in 2008. She coached at Wentworth Institute of Technology and LaSalle College before serving as a Johnson and Wales College assistant coach.

In addition to her basketball duties, Knights will administer the sports department’s information duties.

HIGH SCHOOLS

SOFTBALL: Danica Gleason of South Portland High School and Samantha Adams of Sanford are two of the five finalists for the Maine Softball Coaches Association’s Miss Maine Softball award. Cassidy Adams of Bucksport, Taylor Bannister of Gardiner and Shelby Obert of Skowhegan join Gleason and Adams as finalists.

The winner will be announced as part of the festivities for the Senior East vs. West All-Star Games at Cony High School in Augusta on June 20. Miss Maine Softball will be named between the 4 p.m. Class C/D game and the 7 p.m. A/B matchup.

GOLF

PGA: Miller Barber, the unique-swinging golfer who made the most combined starts on the PGA and Champions tours, died of undisclosed causes. He was 82.

Nicknamed “Mr. X,” Barber played in 1,297 tournaments on the PGA Tour and 50-and-over circuit. He won 11 times in 694 PGA Tour starts and added 24 victories in 603 events on the Champions Tour.

TENNIS

AEGON CLASSIC: Top seeded Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium came from a set down to beat Croatia’s Ajla Tomljanovic and advance to the third round in Birmingham, England.

On a rainy third day of the Wimbledon warmup, Flipkens won 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 and will play Magdalena Rybarikova for a place in the quarterfinals.

GERRY WEBER OPEN: Top-seeded Roger Federer looked rusty but beat German wild card Cedrik-Marcel Stebe 6-3, 6-3 to reach the quarterfinals in Halle, Germany.

QUEEN’S CLUB: Four-time champion Lleyton Hewitt and Tomas Berdych advanced to the third round in London.

Hewitt defeated Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 6-3, and Berdych held off a strong second-set challenge from Dutchman Thiemo De Bakker to win 6-1, 6-4.

WIMBLEDON: Nicolas Mahut, loser of the longest match in tennis history, has been granted a wild card for Wimbledon. The French player lost 70-68 in the fifth set to John Isner in a first-round match three years ago that stretched over three days.

OLYMPICS

BASKETBALL: San Antonio’s Kawhi Leonard is one of 27 young players scheduled to attend USA Basketball’s minicamp in July.

Cleveland All-Star Kyrie Irving and Portland’s Damian Lillard, who succeeded him as Rookie of the Year, were also among the players announced. Indiana’s Paul George and Jrue Holiday of Philadelphia were the other All-Stars to earn an invitation.

The players will be coached by Mike Krzyzewski.

 

– From staff and news services