by Erin Franklin | May 13, 2017 | News Slider, Sports
In back-to-back years, men’s and women’s golf earned the NCAA’s Academic Progress Rate (APR) Public Recognition Awards. The NCAA released the APR results for Division 1 teams on Wednesday, with the Lipscomb Bisons as a whole being recognized for their high APR. Lipscomb Athletic Director Philip Hutcheson credits the Bisons’ success in the area to recruiting strong student-athletes at the beginning. “Our coaches know that Lipscomb is a school that prides itself on academics, and we don’t want our athletes to be any different than the rest of our student body in that regard,” Hutcheson said. For each academic term, APR measures student-athletes eligibility and retention. All teams must reach a score of 930 to qualify for the postseason and can face penalties for low scores. In addition to each Lipscomb athletic program receiving high APR scores for 2015-2016, men’s and women’s golf were honored with the Public Recognition Award, which is given to only the top-10 percent of programs in the nation. “I try to emphasize those things that anyone’s friends, teacher or parents would emphasize — things like showing up for class, making sure to understand what your assignments are and when they’re due, and even simple things like sitting up front, introducing yourself to your teacher and letting them know your schedule so that you can get ahead of any things that might get in the way academically,” Hutcheson noted. “Each one of our teams take pride in doing well academically.” Hutcheson stated that, ultimately, his goal as athletic director is to recognize that Lipscomb is primarily an academic institution where student-athletes can come to earn...
by Tanner Allen | May 1, 2017 | News Slider, Sports
In the Lady Bisons last home series before conference tournament, Lipscomb struggled to get anything going offensively losing 9-1, 2-0 and 6-2. Things started off rough in game one for sophomore pitcher Mandy Jordan as she gave up a two-run homerun in the top of the first. Lipscomb scored one in the bottom of the second inning, but that is as close as the team would get. Jordan was pulled after three innings, after giving up five runs on six hits. It was the first time in 11 starts that she was unable to throw a complete game. Things weren’t much better for freshman relief pitcher Chloe Yeager. She gave up four runs in the last three innings and also walked four batters, as Kennesaw State went on to win game one of the doubleheader 9-1 after run-ruling the Lady Bisons in six innings. “Game one felt like every time we were turning around we were making some kind of mental mistake, whether it was an error defensively or miscues offensively,” head coach Kristin Ryman said. Game two was much more of a pitchers’ duel between Lipscomb’s McCarley Thomas and Kennesaw’s Abigail Green. After three innings the score was still 0-0, but Kennesaw State’s Courtney Sutter hit a solo home run to give them the lead. Sutter then had an RBI single in the fourth inning, and that was all Kennesaw would need as it went on to win game two of the double header 2-0. Sutter leads the ASUN in RBI’s (42) and home runs (11). “We knew Sutter was a great hitter,” Coach Ryman said. “This is...
by Erin Franklin | Apr 28, 2017 | News Slider, Sports
The Lady Bisons softball team has proved the mental side of the game is just as important as the physical side this season. With a “Battle of the Boulevard” win over Belmont Tuesday night, the Lady Bisons are continuing their strong season in the ASUN conference, holding a 34-13 record and showing that they know how to win. “The mental side of the game can help everybody,” Head Coach Kristin Ryman said. “Several years ago we started doing some stuff with them to just get them out of how they think. Sometimes they have one bad at bat, and they think, ‘I’m terrible at softball; why am I even playing?’ and make it really extreme. It’s easy to do that, but having these little exercises that they do can really help bring them back to reality.” Ryman, who is in her 12th season with the Lady Bisons, said she thinks the mental game is the next big thing to be targeted at the college level, even more so than it already is. Therefore, strengthening the mental side is something the team has worked on improving each year. This semester, the coaches started bringing index cards to games and practices. On them, the players would write down their goals and affirmations before they would step onto the field. “They all stand out there outside of that left field gate, and before they ever walk in, they just kind of have a moment to let go of whatever they have going on during the school day, whether they feel they did poorly on a test, or they’re having issues with a boyfriend, and realize...
by Tanner Allen | Apr 27, 2017 | News Slider, Sports
The city of Nashville has rallied around the local hockey team, the Nashville Predators. The Preds start their second-round series Wednesday night against the St. Louis Blues. Coming into the playoffs the Predators were the eighth-seed and scheduled to play against the top-seeded Chicago Blackhawks. Going into the series no one gave the Predators a chance. ESPN polled their hockey analysts and every one of them predicted the Blackhawks to win the series, but the Predators proved them wrong. The Predators came out and swept the Blackhawks in four games to punch their ticket to the second-round. “Getting a chance to go to game three of the series and see the excitement in the arena was really incredible,” senior Chase Whiting said. The cheapest price for tickets in round two is $90 right now, but the Predators know that not everyone can justify or afford spending $90 on a single ticket. They have created a way to give these people a chance to go to a game. On the day of a home game on the NHL app, starting at 10 a.m., the first 50 people have a chance to buy $15 tickets. “We do this so that everyone has an opportunity to experience a game in Bridgestone Arena,” Predators CEO and President Sean Henry has said. Game one of the series against the Blues will be Wednesday night in St. Louis, but there still are ways to experience the excitement of the game. For every road game during the playoffs, the Predators will be hosting a watch party on the plaza at Bridgestone Arena, with entertainment starting 30 minutes before puck-drop. Plenty of...
by Eric Ansett | Apr 26, 2017 | News Slider, Sports
Unforced errors are a coach’s worst nightmare, and baseball’s Jeff Forehand is no exception. The Lipscomb Bisons had plenty of opportunities to defeat their cross-town rival Belmont at Dugan field on Tuesday night, but missed opportunities on offense and defense proved too much to overcome as the Bisons eventually fell 9-7 in a game that lasted over four hours. The Bruins jumped out to an early lead thanks to Hunter Holland’s grand slam with two outs in the top of the 1st. Although the deficit would eventually be 6-1, Lipscomb was able to crawl back into the game thanks to a six-run third inning, making it all the more difficult to eventually take the loss. The loss moved the Bisons to 20-18 on the season as they remained 6-6 in conference play. “I think we handled it pretty well initially,” Forehand said. “But then we just kept putting ourselves in bad spots either by getting behind in the count or giving up a leadoff walk. We bailed ourselves out of those situations a few times, but that’s not something that any team can do consistently.” The Bison’s six-run outburst in the third was a two-out rally sparked by Jake Perry’s 2-run bomb to right field. Belmont’s pitchers struggled with command in the inning, allowing the Bisons to load the bases before Michael Gigliotti was hit by a pitch to bring in Allan Hooker. A throwing error on a ground ball to second allowed Jackson Furstace and Tyler Bethune to score on the very next batter, giving Lipscomb a 7-6 lead. Belmont would quickly regain the lead in the 5th,...
by Lindsey Nance | Apr 26, 2017 | News Slider, Sports
It was no coincidence that the song “Takin’ Care of Business” was blaring in E.S. Rose Park as Lipscomb stepped on the field because that’s exactly what the Bisons did in their 5-0 shutout over Belmont. It was a picture-perfect day for the annual “Battle of the Boulevard” face-off. The field was freshly groomed with a jaw-dropping Nashville skyline in the horizon. The Lady Bisons were more than ready to hit the field Tuesday night after resting since last Thursday’s win over Chattanooga. “It felt like we were almost having to force our energy and effort at times,” head coach Kristin Ryman said. “We had to work through that and get back into a game mode. It is nice to get some rest, but there is something to be said about being in game mode too.” Lipscomb landed three runs in just the second inning following a beautiful two-RBI single by Abby Fenichel. “On a night when the ball wasn’t flying off of bats for either team I thought Abby had some really well-hit balls,” Ryman said. Fenichel would go on to lead the pack with three runs bated in and two hits. Another easy run was scored in the fourth off of a bloop single to left field from Fenichel. Belmont appeared to be in a frenzy as it switched out its second baseman, catcher and shortstop after Lipscomb’s hot start. The Lady Bisons were unscathed by the changes and remained in the driver’s seat. The highlight of Lipscomb’s defense was ace Mandy Jordan. Jordan struck out 13 batters, allowed four hits and did not walk a single...
