Notre Dame

Being the head basketball coach at the University of Kentucky guarantees that Tubby Smith is going to be an influential person in the Bluegrass. However, Sports Illustrated noted last week that Smith's influence extends outside the state. The weekly sports magazine ranked Smith No. 60 on its list of the 101 most influential minorities in sports. "In 2004, Smith won his fourth SEC title. An early-round NCAA exit riled rabid UK fans, but a top-ranked recruiting class calmed them down, at least for the time being," the magazine said about Smith.

Linebacker Ben Bates of Plain City, Ohio, has joined Kentucky's 2005 football recruiting class. Bates committed while attending Kentucky's summer camp, but had not made the announcement public until Thursday. He was averaging 12 tackles per game this season before fracturing his ankle. He's still hoping to play in November. Bates said several schools, including Wisconsin, wanted him as a defensive lineman, but he wanted to play linebacker and UK was willing to give him that chance.

LEXINGTON ? Kentucky's opening-round game of the NCAA Tournament against Ball State at 7 p.m. Friday will be televised by the Big Blue Sports Network. The network will air the game on the UPN channel in Lexington as well as on Fox Sports Net channels in selected markets throughout the South. Friday's other first-round game between Notre Dame and College of Charleston will not be televised. Neither Saturday game will be aired, but BBSN plans to televise Sunday's championship game at 7 p.m. if Kentucky is playing.

James and Donna Giles of Cincinnati, Ohio, announce the engagement and forthcoming marriage of their daughter, Alison Ann Giles to Albert Daniel (Dan) Jackson, III, son of Albert (Buddy) and Pam Jackson of Lebanon, Ohio. The bride-elect is a graduate of Mount Notre Dame High School and the University of Dayton. She is employed by Landor. The groom-elect, the grandson of Ann Abell Jackson and the late Albert D. Jackson, Sr. of Stanford and Bettie Yeaste and the late H. C. Yeaste of Harrodsburg, is a graduate of Lebanon High School and the University of Cincinnati.

Goodwin and Schommer Margo and Russ Goodwin of Danville announce the engagement of their daughter, Ann Elizabeth Goodwin, to Justin Andrew Schommer, son of Aletha and Bernard Schommer of Munich, N.D. Goodwin is a 1994 graduate of Danville High School. She received a bachelor's degree in 1998 from the University of Notre Dame and a 2005 degree from Washington University's George Warren Brown School of Social Work. She is a child advocate at Community Violence Intervention Center in Grand Forks, N.D. Schommer is a 1992 graduate of Munich High School in North Dakota.

The West Jessamine girls' golf team has played in a handful of tournaments over the last two weeks. On Aug. 8, Grace Rose was tied for first after 18 holes at the Notre Dame Invitational. The sophomore shot a 75 to force a playoff but ended up coming in second. Two days earlier on Aug. 6, Rose tied for fourth at the Shelbyville Invitational, shooting a 74. At the Mason County Invitational on Aug. 4, West placed fifth with a team score of 340. Rose had the best finish on the team, tying for second with a 72. On Thursday, the Lady Colts will host Western Hills at Connemara at 4:30 p.m. On Saturday, West will face Anderson County at Wild Turkey Trace at 8:30 a.m.

The top 25 teams in the The Associated Press' women's college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses: 1. Baylor (37)     2. Notre Dame 3. UConn (3) 4. Stanford     5. Duke          6. California   7. Maryland   8. Penn St.     9. Georgia    10. Kentucky     11. Louisville     12. Tennessee   13. Purdue       14. Texas A&M     15. South Carolina  16. North Carolina  17. UCLA 18. Dayton 19. Florida St. 20. Delaware 21. Colorado 22. Oklahoma St. 23. Oklahoma 24. Syracuse 25. Iowa St. Others receiving votes: Green Bay 31, Nebraska 20, West Virginia 20, Michigan St. 19, Michigan 13, Toledo 11, Kansas 7, UTEP 5, Villanova 4, Washington 4, Miami 2, Middle Tennessee 2, Pacific 2, SMU 2, Creighton 1, Iowa 1, Wyoming 1.

Joseph and Shelia Topmiller of Villa Hills announce the engagement of their daughter, Barbara Ellen Topmiller of Lexington, to M. Chase Thompson of Lexington, son of Terry and Sandy Thompson of Cape Coral, Fla. The bride is a graduate of Notre Dame Academy in Park Hills and the University of Kentucky with a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering. She is employed by Lexmark as a development engineer. The groom is a graduate of George Rogers Clark High School and the University of Kentucky with a Bachelor of Business Administration in decision science and informations systems.

Megan Ruth Culler and Tanner John Freeman announce their engagement. The bride-to-be is the daughter of Paul and Debbie Culler of Nicholasville. She is a 2004 graduate of Paul Laurence Dunbar High School and a 2008 graduate of the University of Kentucky with a B.S. in biotechnology. She is currently an MD/Ph.D. student at Vanderbilt University, where she is studying virology. The future groom is the son of Katherine Hauvin of Houma, La., and David and Susan Freeman of Houma, La. He is a 2003 graduate of Vanderbilt Catholic High School and a 2007 graduate of the University Notre Dame with a B.S. in biochemistry.

Hogue-Nowac Monica Danielle Hogue and Gary John Nowac Jr. were married May 16 at the Georgian Manor, Hocking Hills, Ohio, by B.J. King. The bride is the daughter of Skip and Rebecca Hogue of Danville. She is a 1997 graduate of Danville High School and a 2001 graduate of Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio, with a bachelor's degree in electronic media. She is employed by Pavetech International as marketing director. The groom is the son of Betty Jane Nowac of Leroy, Ohio, and Gary and Anita Nowac of Chardon, Ohio.