by Ashlan Williams | Apr 1, 2011 | News Slider, Sports
The Bisons and Lady Bisons head for the Carolinas this weekend to face Atlantic Sun foes USC Upstate and Campbell on Friday and Saturday as the season begins to wind down and the A-Sun tournament nears. Coming out of last weekend, both teams went winless to slide their A-Sun records back two matches. Although their record didn’t see any improvement, men’s and women’s head coach Andrew Harris said there were definitely positive results. “Last weekend was certainly a challenge for everyone,” Harris said. “Between the weather and the matches themselves, our program certainly went through some trials last week. However, it showed both teams that, when they play at a high level and focus on the intensity of the moment, good things can happen.” On the men’s side, two close 4-3 losses last weekend to North Florida and Jacksonville dropped their A-Sun record to 3-4. As they prepare for Upstate and Campbell, Harris said the Bisons will once again need to focus on securing the doubles point and transferring that focus into singles. “With both matches coming up this weekend, the guys definitely know they are going to have to bring their A-game,” Harris said. “They have proven to themselves throughout the year that they can compete with any team. The key right now is winning the doubles point and keeping their composure throughout the course of the match.” After failing to follow through last weekend, Harris said he has high expectations for the two upcoming matches. “They struggled staying focused on the task at hand last week and it cost them,” Harris said. “We addressed it with them...
by Ashlan Williams | Mar 11, 2011 | News Slider, Sports
With their first weekend of conference play tucked away under their belts, the Bisons and Lady Bisons tennis teams are preparing to face the Atlantic Sun’s top competitor, East Tennessee State University on at 1 p.m. Saturday in Johnson City. After picking up wins on both the men’s and women’s side in their opening weekend of A-Sun play, head coach Andrew Harris said the teams are working to improve for ETSU this coming weekend. “Both teams are looking forward to another conference weekend,” Harris said. “After the matches against Mercer and Kennesaw State this past weekend, the teams recognize things we need to continue to work on as well as building on things we did well. Both ETSU’s men’s and women’s teams ranked first in the A-Sun preseason poll and pose a tough challenge for the Bisons and Lady Bisons this weekend. And with Spring Break just around the corner, Johnson City will be the teams’ first stop out of a series of three road matches. Harris said ETSU will bring strong competition to begin their road play. “ETSU has restructured their coaching staff similar to ours this past summer with Yaser Zaatini now overseeing both teams,” Harris said. “Their women’s program last year lost to UNF in the A-Sun finals, and their men’s program has annually been one of the more consistent teams in the country the past five years. This will be our first of three road matches over the next week, so we know we will have our work cut out for us come Saturday.” The women, coming off a successful weekend, picked up their first...
by Ashlan Williams | Mar 4, 2011 | Sports
They’ve been training the last eight months for what will begin today, March 4. With two days of matches against Atlantic Sun foes, the weekend could set the tone for the season, for both the Bisons and Lady Bisons tennis teams. Lipscomb begins the six weeks of A-Sun conference competition by hosting Mercer University at noon Friday at the Huston-Marsh-Griffith Tennis Center. For men’s and women’s head coach Andrew Harris, the most exciting part will be opening up conference play on Lipscomb’s home courts in the great outdoors. “I think the biggest thing for our program right now is being able to finally start playing outside on campus,” Harris said. “Since Jan. 10, we have been practicing inside every night and playing all of our non-conference matches indoors. “So to be able to get outside last week for practice and have our conference matches here this weekend will be a huge boost for us, just from a motivational standpoint.” Both the men’s and women’s teams will begin the toughest portion of their schedule Friday with matches against Mercer before facing A-Sun rival Kennesaw State on Saturday morning. So far this season, the Lady Bisons have posted a 1-5 non-conference record heading into Friday’s opener. Harris said the women’s enthusiasm will help them as they begin conference play. “Our ladies continue to show a lot of heart and courage by coming to practice each night and creating a standard of energy and excitement,” Harris said. “Everyone of our ladies knows that they have a tremendous opportunity this year to set the bar high for the next few years for our...
by Ashlan Williams | Feb 24, 2011 | News Slider, Sports
The Bisons and Lady Bisons track teams not only it the ground running – literally –to polish off their indoor season in February, they also set a new pace for smashing records. Since Feb. 2, the men’s and women’s teams have combined to break and re-break 13 school records. “This is not going to be a season of breaking someone else’s records,” freshman Tessa Hoefle said. “It’s going to be a season of making our own.” The teams’ first February meet, the ETSU Niswonger Invite, featured three of the 13 record-breaking races. Freshman Dani Walker stole two of Lipscomb’s records in Johnson City, taking down teammate Amanda Twigg’s records in the indoor 800 meter and mile races. The first day of the meet, Walker posted a time of 2:15.62 in the 800, beating out Twigg’s former record of 2:16.79. On day two, Walker claimed the mile record with a time of 5:08.97, nearly a second and a half quicker than Twigg’s previous record. Although she has made a name for herself in the Lipscomb record books in a short amount of time, Walker said her goal is not necessarily to break records. “My focus has not been on breaking the records of Lipscomb’s past,” Walker said. “Of course, I hope that records will be broken on the way, but it’s more important to me that I’m a part of the team of the present. The only person I focus on being faster than is the girl next to me and ultimately myself.” Freshman Tucker Peabody recorded the third school-best time of the meet for the Bisons. Peabody took down...
by Ashlan Williams | Feb 7, 2011 | News Slider, Sports
A complete transformation of the men’s tennis team could surprise those who put the Bisons at the bottom in the preseason poll – based on last year’s 4-14 record – into A-Sun contenders. “This team is certainly the deepest team we have had here at Lipscomb, and we are expecting some great things from this group,” head coach Andrew Harris said. “The challenge for this group of guys will be mixing in the new players as well as the returning players.” It’s a welcome challenge for the team that was bolstered with five top players in recent months. Over Christmas break, the Bisons strengthened their lineup with the addition of three new players to their roster. Combined with their two freshman recruits acquired in the fall, the Bisons now have a deeper roster and hopes of surprising foes with a seemingly brand-new team. One of the Bisons’ transfers is actually a familiar face to Lipscomb. Sophomore Colby Shaw came to Lipscomb for his freshman year but transferred to the University of Kentucky for the fall semester of his sophomore year. Shaw had an impressive freshman season with the Bisons, posting a 9-3 singles record. However, for five months of his freshman year, he sat out of tennis while recovering from mononucleosis. Shaw attributes much of his decision to transfer to UK to the impact the illness had on his experience at Lipscomb. After spending a semester at UK, Shaw says it was easy to reverse course and return to Lipscomb. “As soon as I decided to leave and stop playing tennis, I realized I was going to regret it,”...
