by Hunter Patterson | May 22, 2010 | News Slider, Sports
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama Crimson Tide (50-9) beat the Lipscomb Lady Bisons 5-2, to close out game three of the NCAA Softball Tuscaloosa Regional. Alabama got out to an early lead, piling on three runs in the first inning against the NCAA ERA leader Whitney Kiihnl. The Tide then tacked on a run in both the fourth and fifth innings while Lipscomb scored runs in the fifth and sixth innings to narrow the gap. UA freshman Kayla Braud paced the Tide at the plate, collecting two hits and pushing her regional total to five. Junior Kelsi Dunne (28-4) earned her 15th straight win by allowing two runs, one earned, on five hits. The right-hander struck out 10 and walked one. Kiihnl was tagged with just her fourth loss of the season, allowing five runs, two earned, in four innings of work. Lipscomb returns to action today at 6:30 p.m. against the winner of this afternoon’s UAB-Alcorn State game which is slated to get underway at 4:30 p.m. The winner of the 6:30 p.m. game will face Alabama Sunday at 1:30...
by Hunter Patterson | May 18, 2010 | Sports
On Sunday night the Lady Bisons found out where their journey to a National Championship would begin—Tuscaloosa, Ala. The Lady Bisons clinched a berth in the NCAA tournament after winning the Atlantic Sun Tournament earlier that weekend, defeating USC Upstate 11-0. The team was also the A-Sun regular season champions. Lipscomb was on the winning side of the scoreboard a remarkable 48 times this season. At the end of the regular season their final record stood at 48-11 overall and 18-2 in the Atlantic Sun. While the team dominated the Atlantic Sun, the voters for postseason awards took notice. Six players were all conference, and head coach Kristin Ryman was named coach of the year. The Lady Bisons were lead on the mound this year by sophomore Whitney Kiihnl. Kiihnl went 31-3 on the season, posting an ERA of 0.74. That ERA was good enough for the best in the nation. In 41 appearances (213 innings), Kiihnl only gave up 22 earned runs. Kiihnl also ranks 14th in strikeouts per seven innings with 10.5. The Lady Bisons were also a force from the plate. Kellie Sirus finished the season ranked 17th in home runs with 17. As a team, Lipscomb finished the season ranked twelfth in the nation in batting average and 27th in slugging percentage. With those types of numbers, Lipscomb has caused a stir in the NCAA Softball polls. Lipscomb cracked the top 25 in a few polls this season, getting the national recognition that the team deserves. After Selection Sunday Lipscomb found themselves in the the very top group along with number one ranked Alabama, Alcorn...
by Hunter Patterson | May 11, 2010 | News Slider, Sports
The Lipscomb Lady Bisons’ domination of the Atlantic Sun Conference continues. Sophomore pitcher Whitney Kiihnl was named conference Player of the Year and was the unanimous choice as conference Pitcher of the Year by a vote of A-Sun coaches and sports information directors. Lady Bisons coach Kristin Ryman, who has guided the Lady Bisons to the A-Sun regular season championship, was named A-Sun Coach of the Year. She also won the award in 2008 when the Lady Bisons tied for the regular season title. Kiihnl has a 28 wins overall and is 11-0 in A-Sun games. She has five shutouts, including a perfect game against Austin Peay Feb. 26. She was a five-time A-Sun Pitcher of the Week this season. “I am so happy for Whitney,” Ryman said. “She has put together an unbelievable year both in the circle and at the plate. I couldn’t be more proud of her. “With as many good players as we have, she still stands out. I think she is very deserving of both awards, and I think it is cool that the coaches in the A-Sun think the same way. Whitney is truly one of the most well-respected players in our league. I think the most exciting thing for us is that we get her for two more years.” She has been the leader nationally in NCAA Division I in earned run average for most of the season with a .71. Kiihnl also doubled as a designated player this season, batting .361, fourth highest overall in the A-Sun. “She has done it all for us this year,” Ryman said. “She is obviously...
by Hunter Patterson | May 10, 2010 | News Slider, Sports
NASHVILLE – Adnan Hodzic withdrew from the National Basketball Association draft late Thursday and will return to Lipscomb University this fall for his senior season. “By declaring for this year’s draft, I was able to learn more about the draft process while getting my name in front of scouts and team management,” Hodzic said. “I’m thankful for the support of the Lipscomb family and I look forward to working hard with my teammates to accomplish great things next year.” Hodzic, a 6-foot-8 forward from Sarajevo, Bosnia, entered the draft on April 8. By not hiring an agent, Hodzic retains his eligibility as the Bisons seek back-to-back Atlantic Sun Conference regular season titles along with the program’s first bid to the NCAA tournament. “I am excited that Adnan is returning to Lipscomb for his senior season,” Lipscomb coach Scott Sanderson said. “He’s a tireless worker and provides a strong presence for the team both on and off the court. I think he gained valuable experience through the process and I am pleased that he chose to finish his education.” Hodzic, the nation’s second leading scorer last year and the Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Year, with be joined on the floor next year by three other seniors – Josh Slater, Brandon Brown, and Michael Teller. Slater was a first team All-Conference selection last year. Hodzic is on pace to graduate next May with a degree in Marketing. He joined 86 other Lipscomb fall sport athletes in being named to the A-Sun All-Academic team for achieving a GPA of 3.0 in the semester of competition. This story was taken...
by Hunter Patterson | May 3, 2010 | Sports
MACON, Ga. – Lipscomb’s Mollie Mitchell recorded her third Atlantic Sun Softball Player of the Week award and second on the season after batting .800 for the week (4-for-5), with one home run and five RBIs, while Jacksonville’s Ashley Iveson recorded a 0.47 ERA and struck out 17 batters, while holding opponents to a .115 batting average in 15 innings of work. Mitchell and the Lady Bisons closed out the A-Sun portion of their regular season with a pair of wins at Belmont by a combined 28-1 tally and finish league play with a mark of 18-2. Mitchell, a native of Suwanee, Ga., posted a three-run homer, her fourth of the season, in the 20-1 win Wednesday against the Lady Bisons’ Music City rival. The sophomore holds a streak of 343.2 consecutive innings behind the plate for Lipscomb. Against Kennesaw State, Iveson set the new Jacksonville single season record in wins with her 16th victory after scattering two hits and fanning 12 batters to earn her seventh complete-game shutout of the season. The Kissimmee, Fla. native’s 12 strikeouts also tallied her sixth double-digit strikeout effort of the season, setting a new single-season record. Iveson allowed one run on four hits and four strikeouts in the game one loss at Mercer, but bounced back with two strikeouts in two scoreless relief frames in game two to help JU get the win. Fans can follow the Atlantic Sun on Twitter and on Facebook. Visit twitter.com/AtlanticSun to begin receiving updates on conference news, weekly awards, and from A-Sun championships. Atlantic Sun followers with a Facebook account can become a “fan” of the...
by Hunter Patterson | Apr 26, 2010 | News Slider, Sports
Lipscomb sophomore, senior help team tally winning week at the plate, in the circle. From AtlanticSun.org MACON, Ga. – Lipscomb’s Mollie Mitchell recorded her second Atlantic Sun Softball Player of the Week award after a spectacular week at the plate for the Lady Bisons, batting .538 (7-12) with two home runs and three RBIs in three of four games, while fellow teammate Whitney Kiihnl tallied a perfect 3-0 record on the week, including a no-hitter and winning both games of a doubleheader at Campbell to clinch the Lady Bisons the regular season title. Mitchell has caught every game for the Lady Bisons this season while maintaining a top 10 batting average in the conference. The sophomore catcher posted two homeruns in Tuesday’s 7-5 loss to Alabama-Birmingham. The Suwanee, Ga. native also tallied multiple hits in three of the four games as the Lady Bisons went 3-1, including a 2-0 sweep of Campbell Saturday to clinch the A-Sun regular season championship. Kiihnl won 1-0 against Alabama-Birmingham Tuesday and then beat Campbell 4-1 as a starter and combined with Christen Campbell in game two for a 2-0 win against Campbell Saturday. In the 4-1 victory, the Batesville, Miss. native drove in two runs with her first triple of the season. Kiihnl boasts 11 shutouts on her own and has combined for eight more. The Lady Bisons’ 40 wins rank as an NCAA era program record. Fans can follow the Atlantic Sun on Twitter and on Facebook. Visit twitter.com/AtlanticSun to begin receiving updates on conference news, weekly awards, and from A-Sun championships. Atlantic Sun followers with a Facebook account can become a “fan”...
