by Russell Vannozzi | Mar 20, 2018 | News Slider, Opinion, Sports
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Season-ending losses are typically filled with tears and disappointment, frustration of what could have been had a certain play or shot fallen differently. But when Lipscomb lost to North Carolina by a score of 84-66 in the first round of the NCAA basketball tournament on Friday, it didn’t bring the type of shock that usually comes in March. Yes, there were a few hung heads and some tears from the Bisons, who had hoped to pull an upset against the defending national champions. However, when the team returned to their Holiday Inn in uptown Charlotte, the lobby wasn’t filled with sadness. Seniors Aaron Korn and George Brammeier were seen hugging family members. Rob Marberry took a seat on a couch to talk with friends, sporting a bruise after taking an elbow to the face early in the game. Other players opted to get up to their rooms and pack for the team’s charter flight back to Nashville. Junior forward Eli Pepper leaned over to me and said, “We’ll be back…just need to put together a 40-minute performance next year.” There were no signs of a crushing defeat. How could anyone be overly upset? The Bisons won their first-ever ASUN tournament title and stood their ground in their March Madness debut. “It’s an honor just to be part of this Lipscomb basketball team and what the program has become,” sophomore guard Kenny Cooper said. “(Making) our first tournament and being part of (the Big Dance) exceeded our expectations.” Sure, it’s cliché to say that one loss doesn’t define an otherwise successful season, or to call the team...
by Russell Vannozzi | Mar 14, 2018 | News Slider, Opinion, Sports
Sunday’s TBS Selection Show brought plenty of anticipation as the Lipscomb basketball team learned the destination of its first-ever NCAA tournament game. The answer? A date with the North Carolina Tar Heels in Charlotte. After the initial excitement wore off, a harsh reality set in: the Bisons must take down Goliath for their season to extend past Friday’s matchup against the defending national champions. Nearly every national analyst has picked the Tar Heels to win, and rightfully so. Coached by Roy Williams, North Carolina has won seven national titles and is routinely in the hunt for a Final Four berth. Most Vegas oddsmakers have the Tar Heels as a 19-point favorite against the Bisons. But North Carolina hasn’t been untouchable this season. While most of their losses came against highly ranked teams, the Tar Heels dropped a 79-75 contest to Wofford on Dec. 20 at home. Just three days earlier, Tennessee came within five points of beating the Tar Heels in Knoxville. Nonetheless, ESPN’s Matchup Predictor gave the Bisons just a 3.3 percent chance of beating the 25-10 Tar Heels. The Athletic’s Ken Pomeroy echoed those sentiments, giving Lipscomb a 4.1 percent chance of reaching the second round. Other media outlets acknowledged Lipscomb’s outside chance at an upset. SB Nation’s Alex Kirshner listed the game his “Category 4: It’s possible. Don’t laugh” upset pick, while Tennessee State coach Dana Ford told 104.5 The Zone’s Midday 180 show that the Bisons’ shooting prowess makes them a contender. “I like Lipscomb’s chances because in order to win in (the NCAA) tournament as a lower seed, you must make threes,” Ford told...
by Elizabeth Cluck | Mar 14, 2018 | News Slider, Opinion
Go. The call seems so strong. Go. Go to Guatemala, and be the hands and feet of Jesus. Go serve with passion and purpose, knowing that the Lord is going before you and is with you every step of the way. Then why has the journey to get here been so hard? Let me tell you a story. I remember sitting on the bench outside of Dr. Bradshaw’s office at 7:30 in the morning each day during the fall semester of my freshmen year to work on my homework (lol #ambitiousfreshman). Dr. Bradshaw (true to character) struck up a conversation with me. That exchange ended with this statement: “Elizabeth, you should apply for the Guatemala team.” And the rest was history. As I sit here in Guatemala right now, I’m reminded of how thankful I am for this mission trip. Being a part of this team for three years has been one of my only constants of my time here at Lipscomb. Semesters bring about new classes, new friends, healing and brokenness, but the Guatemala team has been the community that has been there through it all. Through this trip, I have been reminded of my passion for medicine, and the physical and spiritual healing it can provide. This year started out just like every other year. Our team started meeting in early October, and we spent a ton of time building community and preparing for the adventure that awaited us. GoFundme pages started popping up all over my Facebook page––everything seemed to be pretty normal. Then, as is typical of junior year, everything hit the fan: -Due to...
by Cavin Jacobson | Mar 12, 2018 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider, Opinion
In 1962, Madeleine L’Engle was told that her complex children’s book, “A Wrinkle in Time” would be a huge flop. Publishers told her that children couldn’t grasp the intricate science presented in the story, and they were averse to the idea of a female preteen being the lead of a sci-fi adventure. They felt that young boys– the main market for science fiction– wouldn’t be interested in a story about a girl. Luckily, the small publishing company Farrar, Straus & Giroux took a risk on “A Wrinkle in Time.” The novel was a massive hit, which is why, 56 years later, Disney gave a budget of $103 million to director Ava DuVernay to adapt the now-beloved book into a cinematic adventure. In DuVernay’s adaption, Meg Murry (Storm Reid) is a shy, rebellious high schooler whose father went missing three years prior. Her younger brother, Charles Wallace Murry (Deric McCabe) is a child prodigy who was adopted by the family right before the disappearance of their father. After a bad day at school where Meg was sent to the Principal’s office for lashing out against a bully, her family is visited by an eccentrically-dressed woman named Mrs. Whatsit (Reese Witherspoon). The next day, while Meg is walking the dog with Charles Wallace, they run into Calvin O’keefe (Levi Miller) a popular kid at school who, with no explanation other than, “I feel like I should be here,” decides to go with Meg and Charles Wallace as they explore an abandoned house. The house ends up being the home to Mrs. Who (Mindy Kaling). Later on, while relaxing in Meg’s backyard,...
by Lindsey Nance | Mar 11, 2018 | News Slider, Opinion, Sports
It’s Thursday, March 1, in Allen Arena. The Bisons have just trounced the Jacksonville Dolphins in the conference tournament to stamp their ticket to the ASUN championship game for the first time in 12 years. Now, it’s time to celebrate. The cheerleading team is screaming so loud my ears are ringing beccause we all know what happens next. We have one day to prepare to jump on a plane and takeoff for Ft. Myers, Florida, to take on the No. 1 seeded Eagles. Head cheerleading coach Sherie Eubanks quickly hands out our flight assignments with itineraries, and I run home to start packing for my 5 a.m. flight on Saturday morning. I can’t sleep that night because I am so excited about getting the opportunity to cheer in the Conference Championship game my senior year. On Saturday morning, my teammates roll into the airport one by one, exhausted but so ecstatic for this new opportunity. Our flight takes us to Chicago where we have a three hour layover, and then we are just hours away from our destination and warm, sandy beaches. We arrive at our condo on the beach around 8:00 that night, and we are all so pumped up about the big game on Sunday, we rush to bed like kids on Christmas Eve awaiting their many presents. This is what we have been dreaming of all season, and it is just within our grasp. The Sunday of the game is hectic. We drive to eat, and the streets are flooded with blue and green in anticipation for the championship game. People along the streets and in...
by Russell Vannozzi | Mar 7, 2018 | News Slider, Opinion, Sports
FORT MYERS, Fla. – On March 4, 2006, the Belmont basketball team topped Lipscomb in the ASUN championship game, using a three-point play from Justin Hare and a strong overtime performance to squeak out a 74-69 victory. Exactly 12 years later, the Lipscomb basketball team was back in the title game, and it wasn’t going to be denied this time around. The Bisons used a 60-point first half to build a sizable lead, only to have to hold on for a 108-96 victory over Florida Gulf Coast on Sunday at Alico Arena. The difference the second time around? Head coach Casey Alexander, who was an assistant at Belmont when the Bruins advanced to their first NCAA tournament by sending the Bisons packing in 2006. The Belmont ties to the Lipscomb coaching staff (also including assistants Roger Idstrom and Steve Drabyn) have been well documented when the Battle of the Boulevard rolls around each year. In fact, the Belmont-Lipscomb games generally bring boatloads of media attention to both schools. What hasn’t been as well-documented? The Lipscomb basketball team when they aren’t playing Belmont. One glance at press row during a typical ASUN conference game yields two broadcasters, a Lumination Network staffer and occasionally a member of the local Nashville media. Since that fateful day in 2006, Belmont and Lipscomb went in opposite directions. The Bruins qualified for six additional NCAA tournaments while the Bisons watched on television. In turn, Belmont has largely overshadowed Lipscomb on the court over the last decade. That changed this season. Behind a pair of Battle of the Boulevard victories, the 2017-18 edition of the Lipscomb basketball team appeared...
