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southern
FEATURES
A Year in the Life …
Athletics
Winning championships
t was a banner-raising year for BSC’s sports
teams, with conference championships in
three sports, post-season play at the NCAA
Division III level for the first time, and every
Panther team posting a winning record.
Overall, the college finished 45th out of more
than 450 Division III schools in the 2011-12
Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup standing, a
program that honors institutions that have
success in a wide range of men’s and women’s
sports. At the same time, BSC’s scholar-athletes
had an average GPA of 3.0.
“
This season was a reflection of the gifted,
motivated student-athletes who are attracted
to BSC’s quality athletics and tradition of
excellence on the playing fields and courts,” said
Athletics Director Joe Dean Jr.
A few of the season’s highlights:
•
Tailback Shawn Morris set all kinds of
Birmingham-Southern football records in
leading the Panthers to a 7-2 season, the
most wins since the sport was reinstated in
2007.
Most notably, Morris rushed for a BSC
and Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference-
record 332 yards in the Homecoming win
over Millsaps on Nov. 12 and was named First
Team All-American.
•
The men’s basketball team earned
Birmingham-Southern’s first-ever at-large bid
to the NCAA Division III tournament. The
Panthers finished the season with a 25-3
record, and at one time were ranked No. 8 in
the nation.
•
The baseball, softball, and men’s lacrosse
teams all won SCAC championships over the
same weekend and earned automatic berths
in the NCAA National Tournament.
•
Bruce Maxwell was named 2012 Player of
the Year by D3baseball.com and the 2012
American Baseball Coaches Association/
Rawlings National Player of the Year as a
junior catcher. He also made history by being
picked 62nd overall in the Major League
Baseball Draft, BSC’s highest draft pick ever.
•
Hurdler Tiarra Goode won two national
championships in the 60-meter indoor
hurdles and 100-meter outdoor hurdles.
•
The men’s track and field squad finished
second in the SCAC Championships, and
14
Panther track and field athletes won
conference championships.
•
The men’s and women’s golf teams both
finished second in their respective SCAC
Championship competitions.
I
Forward Caleb
Lee drives over a
defender en route
to the Panthers’
25-3
season.
