Bell, Cupidan Named Zaxby’s Athlete of the Week

Tusculum University lacrosse attack Keegan Bell and basketball forward Yolizma Cupidan have been named the Zaxby’s Athletes of the Week.  Cupidan earns this honor for a second time this year.

Bell set school single-game records with seven goals and 10 points in the Pioneers’ 23-8 win over Lees-McRae on Saturday. Bell scored two goals in the first quarter, four in the second and one more in the third to break the previous records of six goals and eight points in a game. Bell’s seven goals came on eight shots on goal.

The native of Port Coquitlam, British Columbia is tied for second in the South Atlantic Conference with 11 points and tied for third with eight goals this season. Following his scoring outburst, Bell is now tied for sixth in program history with 86 points and is tied for fifth with 52 career goals.

Cupidan averaged 17.0 points and 7.5 rebounds as the Pioneers defeated Hiwassee (74-30) and Queens (58-41) last week. Against Hiwassee, Cupidan had career highs of 21 points and nine rebounds while shooting 8-for-14 from the field and 3-for-4 from three-point range. In the win over Queens, Cupidan scored 13 points on 6-for-10 shooting and had six rebounds. The Ocoee, Florida native also averaged 3.0 steals per game during the week, with four steals against Hiwassee matching her season high.

For the season, Cupidan is fourth on the team in scoring at 10.9 points per game and leads the team in field goal percentage at 49.7 percent (sixth in the SAC). She ranks second on the team in rebounding (4.5 per game), assists (2.2 per game) and steals (1.9 per game), and averages a team-high 34.6 minutes per game.

The Tusculum University Athlete of the Week Award is sponsored by Zaxby’s, located at 3280 Andrew Johnson Highway in Greeneville.  The Zaxby’s Athlete of the Week Award honors one male and one female athlete each week from an in-season sport.