by Hunter Patterson | Jun 24, 2011 | News Slider, Sports
Last month it was announced that Belmont would be the leaving the A-Sun and becoming 12th member of the Ohio Valley Conference. While it was announced on the 13th of May, Belmont will not officially join the OVC until July 1, 2012. Belmont president Robert Fisher was intentional in explaining that the move was a strategic one that was made for the student-athletes and the budget of the university. Belmont will have to pay $200,000 to leave the Atlantic Sun Conference, however, the school’s travel costs will drop immensely. “You don’t have to get on a plane to go anywhere,” Dr. Fisher said. “And the students won’t have to miss as many classes.” Missing classes is something that Belmont and Lipscomb have dealt with in the past because of the long travels the two schools make to Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas. This bodes even worse for Lipscomb now, since their travel partner will no longer be making the trips. Usually, Lipscomb and Belmont would share a plane when traveling to Florida to play teams like North Florida and Jacksonville. Now, Belmont’s longest road trip will be a six hour bus ride to Edwardsville, Ill. to play Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville. All of Belmont’s current teams – other than men’s soccer – will be recognized by the OVC in 2012. And despite reports, Belmont does not plan to add football anytime soon. With the addition of the Bruins, the OVC now has five teams in Tennessee: Austin Peay State, the University of Tennessee at Martin, Tennessee Tech, Tennessee State and now, Belmont. Think of it this way; TSU...
by Tim Ghianni | May 17, 2011 | News Slider, Sports
With the season said and done and exams winding down, the Lady Bisons bid farewell to two influential seniors, Kara Jackson and Julianne McMeen. “We are graduating two seniors who have laid a great foundation for our team,” women’s assistant coach Jamie Aid said. “I appreciate all the hard work they have put in for their teammates and for this program. I wish these two ladies all the success in the world.” Jackson spent four years as a Lady Bison, playing consistently at positions 1-4 throughout her career. Aid said Jackson’s willingness to compete and heart for the game were greatly respected by her coaches and teammates. “Kara is a strong-willed, determined individual,” Aid said. “Kara always did two things for me that I respected as a coach” 1) when it was time to play, she was out there on that court to compete; and 2) her heart was always in the right place. “She will be missed next year as a part of the Lady Bison tennis team; however, I am so happy for her as she is starting a new chapter in her life with marrying another Lipscomb grad and pursuing her passion for teaching. I have no doubt that she will be very successful” After graduation, Jackson, an education major from Dayton, Ohio, said she has big plans for the summer. “I’m getting married May 21st and have already begun the process of moving to our new home in Ohio and looking for a teaching position,” Jackson said. When looking back on her career as a Lady Bison, Jackson said she knows Lipscomb was where God...
by Ashlan Williams | May 14, 2011 | News Slider, Sports
With the season wrapped up and the the school year coming to a close, the Bisons say goodbye as they send off three graduating seniors: Mario Hernandez, Joe McArdle, and James Murrell Hernandez has spent 3½ years at Lipscomb and on the Bisons tennis team. A senior political science major from Vancouver, Canada, and captain for this season’s team, Hernandez made a name for himself in the Lipscomb tennis program. “Mario was nominated the team’s captain at the end of the fall because of his strong leadership on and off the court,” men’s assistant coach Mike Sherman said. “He was the perfect example of being a great ambassador for the Bisons, carrying himself with class and honor at all times. Because the guys respected him, he was able to effectively lead the team to the conference tournament. “On top of this, his drive to succeed motivated other team members to push themselves beyond their expectations. Mario will be able to use his attitude of leadership and humility to affect every one he meets in the future. I expect he will be a great leader in whatever industry he pursues.” Hernandez will graduate in December after completing his final semester at Lipscomb. Following his graduation, he plans to tend the States’ Navy Officer Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island. When reflecting on his career as a Bison, Hernandez said he is proud to have helped the program improve. “I just loved being a part of the movement to improve the Lipscomb tennis program in all areas,” Hernandez said. “When I came in as a freshman, we didn’t really get any...
by Aaron Schmelzer | Apr 25, 2011 | Sports
With a trip to Buffalo, NY and a bid to the Division III National Tournament within their grasp, the Lipscomb Ultimate team took to the field with high hopes. “We knew going in that we had a shot to win the tournament, so we were kind of disappointed that we didn’t,” said Jordan Bates, a senior marketing major from Nashville. “But at the same time, we fought through a lot of fatigue and windy weather to get some quality wins. So we were happy overall.” The regional tournament was hosted Milledgeville, Ga., for all Division III (DIII) schools in the southeast region. Any school with 7,500 students or less qualified under DIII, and any school with more is considered Division I (DI). The Ultimate team went up against Spring Hill in their first game and beat them by a final score of 15-1. They took on Florida Tech for their second match, whom they also beat 15-1. Lipscomb then took on Georgia College and State University, the veteran team hosting the tournament, and lost 10-15. This was a hard fought loss, as the Lipscomb men who came back from being down 8-1 at the half just couldn’t gain enough momentum to win. The team wasn’t able to take their entire squad to the tournament due to scheduling conflicts, and their lack of subs caught up with them. The exhausted team lost a close game to Southern Polytech State 14-15 to close out the day. Lipscomb’s men bounced back on Sunday and beat Florida Tech 15-12, then avenged their loss to Southern Polytech State with a 15-13 win to take...
by Ashlan Williams | Apr 19, 2011 | News Slider, Sports
Freshman Oliver Strecker was named to the Atlantic Sun All-Conference First Team on Tuesday. The second semester transfer from Auburn University is the first Bison to ever receive first-team honors. Freshman David Salazar also received honors, earning a spot on the A-Sun’s All-Freshman team. Head coach Andrew Harris said both players were well deserving of their honors. “Both Oliver Strecker and David Salazar deserve a tremendous amount of credit this year,” Harris said. “They were both put in difficult situations as freshmen but, obviously, have shown great strength competing in one of the strongest tennis conferences in the country.” Strecker, who is originally from Gemmingen, Germany, finished the season 11-6 overall, 5-5 in the A-Sun, spending the entire season at the No. 1 spot. “Oliver has been playing No. 1 singles since the beginning of the spring,” Harris said. “He transferred here from Auburn, which has been helpful for him this year, because he has seen the competition at this level and understands what it takes to be successful. “We are looking for even stronger things from him next season stepping more into a leadership role. This summer and next fall will be critical for his development.” Spending time at both No. 2 and No. 3, Salazar posted a 9-8 overall record and finished 6-4 in the A-Sun. “Salazar has been playing primarily between No. 2 and No. 3 singles this spring and has been a great warrior on the court,” Harris said. “Everyone I talk to says they enjoy watching Salazar compete and the way he fights for every point. He is a true grinder in the tennis...
by Hunter Patterson | Apr 18, 2011 | News Slider, Sports
“What is a winner? Someone who wins everyone contest, but there is not anyone like that. A winner is someone that never lets a failure or a loss be his or her final destination.” Those were some of the encouraging and inspiring words spoken by Mike Krzyzewski at the Third Annual Don Meyer Evening of Excellence held on Saturday night. Better known as Coach K, Krzyzewski has won four NCAA Championships as the head basketball coach at Duke. Elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2001, Coach K boasts the most wins in NCAA Tournament history with 78. Saturday, though, he was not coaching the Blue Devils to victory in Cameron Indoor. He was instead being introduced by fellow Hall of Famer Don Meyer to speak in Allen Arena. University president Randy Lowry started off the evening welcoming the sold out crowd to Allen Arena. Lowry also highlighted the several accomplishments that Lipscomb’s athletic program had achieved over the calendar year. Following a short video, athletic director Philip Hutcheson took the stage and talked about the impact that Don Meyer left on him and the campus. On the stage next was former Lipscomb basketball coach Don Meyer. Coaching at Lipscomb from 1975-1999, Meyer led Lipscomb to victory 665 times. The Evening of Excellence is not only named after Meyer, but it embodies his character as well. Better known as Coach, he boiled the game of basketball down to the ‘little things.’ “Everyone makes notes, everyone says yes ma’am and no ma’am, and everyone picks up trash,” Meyer said. Unable to attend last year’s event because of scheduling conflicts,...
