by Russell Vannozzi | Jan 18, 2019 | BREAKING NEWS, News Slider, Sports
Former NFL quarterback Trent Dilfer will soon be on Lipscomb Academy’s payroll. Dilfer was named the Mustangs’ next head football coach at a press conference Friday afternoon. “This is a calling,” Dilfer said. “When God does something this weird in your life, you never doubt it. This isn’t a career move.” Dilfer said he was attracted to the “sense of community” at Lipscomb, and the timing just happened to be right. Former Lipscomb coach Scott Tillman resigned in November after finishing with a 2-9 record in 2018. “There’s a lot that we loved about [coming to Lipscomb],” Dilfer said. A former first-round pick out of Fresno State in 1994, Dilfer spent time as a starter and backup for five NFL teams — the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Baltimore Ravens, Seattle Seahawks, Cleveland Browns and San Francisco 49ers. The highlight of Dilfer’s NFL career came when he helped the Baltimore Ravens defeat the New York Giants 34-7 in Super Bowl XXXV in 2001. The 6-foot-4 California native appeared in 130 career games and threw for 20,518 yards and 113 touchdowns over his 14-season career. “The people that have had a football journey like mine understand that the game part of it is awesome,” Dilfer said. “But it’s what it does to your soul, your core, and the people you play with that is so much bigger than what happens between the lines.” After his retirement in 2007, Dilfer joined the NFL Network as an analyst. He eventually signed a contract with ESPN in 2010 and served as a backup announcer for Monday Night Football. However, Dilfer was a victim of ESPN’s mass layoff...
by Grant Ledgister | Jan 17, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
The scoring started early for senior forward Rob Marberry and didn’t stop until the game was over. From the opening tip-off, Marberry showed why he’s one of the top scorers in the ASUN Conference. He scored Lipscomb’s first 10 points on perfect 5-5 shooting, giving way to a 70-52 Lipscomb victory. Lipscomb (13-4, 4-0 ASUN) came into the game looking to stay perfect within conference play, while NJIT was looking to bounce back from a six-point loss to UNA. NJIT (13-5, 1-2 ASUN) has been great at home, dropping only a single game at the WEC. The game started out quickly for the Bisons, as the team was able to force four turnovers within the first five minutes to jump out to a 10-4 lead. NJIT was able to get Lipscomb’s lead down to three points on a Diandre Wilson three-pointer to end a several-minute long scoring drought that affected both teams. With seven minutes to go in the first half, the Bisons started rolling. The Bison’s smothering defense was able to keep the Highlanders at bay, which turned into more opportunities for the offense. Over the next five minutes, Lipscomb would go on an 11-2 run, including holding its opponent scoreless for another several-minute stretch. At the half, Lipscomb was ahead 36-20. The team forced 11 turnovers – though the Bisons committed eight of their own. By the end of the game, NJIT had amassed a total of 21 turnovers. “You can’t get deflections and steals and be great helpers defensively if you’re not where you’re supposed to be,” Lipscomb coach Casey Alexander said on the turnover number....
by Russell Vannozzi | Jan 15, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
Following the success of its championship 2018 season, Lipscomb women’s soccer coach Kevin O’Brien had more good news to share Monday. The team announced the arrival of two SEC transfers – forward Cami Rogers from Auburn and midfielder Danielle Van Liere from Florida. Both players are eligible for the 2019 season. “They’re going to create more depth, and if they work hard, they could be starters for us,” O’Brien said. “Because you play so many games in rapid succession, it’s important to have a deep team and be able to rotate your squad.” Rogers scored two goals in 15 games as a freshman at Auburn in 2018. She tallied 86 career goals at Prattville High School near Montgomery, Alabama. “She has electric pace and is good at running at defenders,” O’Brien said. “She’ll fit into how we play with our transition and counter-attacking style.” Van Liere appeared in 15 matches over three seasons at Florida. O’Brien said her passing ability from the center midfielder position will provide a boost for the Lady Bisons. “She’s technical, intelligent and is a really good passer,” he said. “We have talented forwards, but their runs [toward the goal] don’t mean anything if we don’t have someone to pass them the ball.” Rogers and Van Liere join forward Allie Dunn as Lipscomb’s 2nd and 3rd transfers from the SEC. Dunn played at Arkansas in 2017 and figured to be a promising addition for the Lady Bisons before an injury derailed her 2018 campaign. Lipscomb is coming off its most successful season in program history after finishing with a 15-5-2 record and winning its first-ever...
by Russell Vannozzi | Jan 13, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
Senior guard Garrison Mathews is rewriting the Lipscomb basketball record books. Thanks to a 20-point performance against Stetson on Saturday, Mathews eclipsed the 2,000-point mark for his career and passed Adnan Hodzic (2,002) as the school’s leading scorer in the NCAA Division I era, which began with the 2001-02 season. “I struggled my freshman year, and I didn’t think I’d be at this point when I got here,” Mathews said. “I knew I had to work hard, and I did. I’ve got great coaches and teammates that have helped me along the way.” Senior forward Rob Marberry led all scorers with 23 points, and freshman Jake Wolfe emerged as an offensive threat with 16 points in Lipscomb’s 95-71 thrashing of the Hatters in front of 1,388 Allen Arena fans. “The scoring was really spread out, which was awesome to see,” Marberry said. “Teams don’t really know how to guard us. They can’t tell if it’s going to be one guy’s night or another player’s [night].” Lipscomb (12-4, 3-0 ASUN) started slow, and Stetson held a 19-18 lead after nine minutes of play. But the Bisons finished the final 10 minutes of the first half on a 38-11 run to take a 56-30 halftime lead and quell any concerns of a Stetson upset. “When you create a margin like that at halftime, you’ve obviously played well,” Lipscomb coach Casey Alexander said. “I was not pleased with the consistency of play. I felt like we had a lot of breakdowns and it wasn’t really clean, but I’ll take it overall.” Mathews also set Lipscomb’s record for three-pointers in the NCAA era....
by Erika Plunkett | Jan 12, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
For the first time this season, Lipscomb’s women’s basketball team was able to dress its entire team. But the return of redshirt sophomore forward Emily Kmec and freshman guard/forward Taylor Hammack did not prove to be enough to defeat the Stetson Hatters. Saturday’s 65-80 loss moved the Lady Bisons to a 2-14 record, while Stetson improved to 7-9. Lipscomb has now lost 13 straight games. Leading Stetson to the win was junior guard Addi Walters, who shot 7-of-12 from behind the arc and totaled a season-high 25 points. When asked how he was going to address this defensive lapse moving forward, Lipscomb coach Coach Greg Brown said that his focus is on “awareness and communication.” “We just didn’t communicate very well. There was nothing [offensively] where they would get us in a bind. We just weren’t aware out there to take care of those things.” Offensively, the Lady Bisons’ leading scorer, sophomore guard Taylor Clark, was able to contribute only six points. She got into foul trouble early, which limited her playing time. Despite these mistakes, there were a number of bright spots for Lipscomb, including freshman guard Jane Deason, who led the Lady Bisons with twenty points. Although this was a career high, her performance was no surprise to her coaches who have time and time again observed her work ethic. “Jane just continues to play hard,” Brown said. “Like all freshmen there is a learning curve, but she listens. She was one of the last ones to leave here last night. After practice she was playing some pickup, and then she turned around and was on the...
by Lumination Staff | Jan 12, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
The Lipscomb men’s and women’s basketball teams are back in action on Saturday, Jan. 12, as the Stetson Hatters pay a visit to Allen Arena for a doubleheader. The women’s game will tip off at 1:30 p.m. CT and will be followed by the men’s contest at 4 p.m. Lumination Radio will broadcast both games, which can be streamed by clicking HERE. Sophomore Spencer Boehme will serve as the play-by-play announcer, while senior Russell Vannozzi will serve as the color commentator. Lumination will carry select men’s and women’s basketball games throughout the 2018-19 season. Stay tuned to our Facebook, Twitter and radio homepage for programming...
