Men’s soccer holds top-25 distinction, Sibley earns weekly honor

Men’s soccer holds top-25 distinction, Sibley earns weekly honor

The Lipscomb men’s soccer team was ranked #18 in the United Soccer Coaches’ top 25 ranking released Tuesday. The ranking represents the highest place Lipscomb have reached all season in the rankings, which are used by the NCAA to rank the best Division I programs in the nation. The Bisons are ranked in the top 25 for the fourth straight week and have been included in every regular season poll this season. After falling from #21 to #22 last week, the Bisons jump four places and close in on the top 15. “I think it’s awesome to see our team continue this unbeaten run,” said sophomore defender Will Turner in a statement. “We’ve worked very hard to get to this spot and we have no plans to slow down.” Last week, Lipscomb settled for a 1-1 draw with archrivals Belmont at home, then won in a 2-1 overtime victory at ASUN opponent Bellarmine to stay undefeated on the season. Sporting a 5-0-2 record, the Bisons are the only unbeaten team left in the Atlantic Division, where they rank 1st. In an award-laden week, junior goalkeeper Michael Sibley was also announced as the ASUN Conference Defensive Player of the Week on Tuesday. The London, England native earned his first-ever award after making nine saves and accruing an 82% save percentage across his two matches this week. Sibley and his supporting cast will hit the road to put their perfect record on the line again Tuesday night when they face Butler in Indianapolis. The 2-3-1 Bulldogs host Lipscomb for the second time in the all-time series, which Butler leads 2-0. The...
Bisons, Bucs women play to stalemate

Bisons, Bucs women play to stalemate

The Lipscomb women’s soccer team drew with the East Tennessee State Buccaneers 1-1 at the Lipscomb Soccer Complex in Nashville. Two golden goal overtime periods were not sufficient to find a winner in the Sept. 12 game, after each side grabbed a goal in the first half. ETSU defender Raffaella Giuliano opened the scoring on a perfectly placed free kick. The graduate student from Italy picked out the top left corner on a 25-yard free kick on the right side of the goal, shooting across Bisons goalkeeper CJ Graham and beating her outstretched glove. That goal was Graham’s fifth allowed in 8 matches this year for Lipscomb. Graham, a sophomore from Swannanoa, North Carolina, added 7 saves to her total against the Bucs to reach 37 on the season. The home team would rectify the situation in the 36th minute when true freshman striker Shadia Valenzuela equalized. Valenzuela, a native of Buenaventura in the Colombian province of Cali, blasted a shot into the back of the ETSU net from close range, finishing off a quality service from fellow substitute Tori Wheeler on the left flank. Wheeler, a sophomore from Seattle, Washington, put up her first assist of the year in her seventh appearance this season. Despite a valiant effort from both sides, neither Lipscomb nor ETSU could find a goal after Valenzuela’s finish in the first 45. Sophomore defender Summer Ellmore came the closest for the Bisons, striking the post on a low effort inside the box. The Mount Juliet, Tennessee native found space at the top of the box and shot across freshman goalkeeper Shu Ohba’s goal, but a...
‘Monsters University’ outdoor screening is success despite technical difficulties

‘Monsters University’ outdoor screening is success despite technical difficulties

To celebrate the first week of classes, the Office of Community Life hosted a drive-in movie night at Woodmont Hills Church of Christ this past Friday. Despite facing some screening challenges during the film, the showing was an enjoyable and eventful night for students.  Lipscomb students were given the opportunity to suggest ideas and then vote on the movie to be shown.; Monsters University was the chosen film. As students drove into the parking lot, Student Activity Board volunteers directed them to spots. Once settled, students were able to grab a sweet treat to eat during the movie at the snack table. Since this movie is a prequel to Monsters Inc., the story of how the main characters, Mike and Sully, met was greeted with laughter from the audience. Another early scene featuring a chaotic party was compared to Nordista Freeze’s Wednesday Nights We Eat performance during Quest Week by students. Despite its G-rating and young target audience, Monsters University was the perfect film for the occasion. Its messages of responding with determination and resilience to challenges can easily be motivational to college students who have faced a difficult past year of confusion and disappointment.   However, those themes are well-balanced with the fun-filled journey the main characters, Mike and Sully, take to turn their college’s most incompetent fraternity into the champions of the Scare Games, a multi-event competition designed to prove who the best scarer is.    Unfortunately, during the movie’s climax, the screen’s generator ran out of gas, causing Monsters University to cut off suddenly. SGA President Grant Hitchcock communicated the situation by quickly moving from car to car, explaining that a...
Lady Bisons softball season ends with tournament loss to top-ranked Liberty Flames

Lady Bisons softball season ends with tournament loss to top-ranked Liberty Flames

After enduring two COVID pauses and numerous other challenges due to  weather and injury, the Lady Bisons — who reached the ASUN tournament for the first time since they won it in 2019 —  lost in the first round to the Liberty Flames in a best of three series.  Because of COVID-19, the tournament was divided into North and South regions, and each region hosted two quarterfinal matchups at the higher seed’s campus site. The winner of each quarterfinal in the both the North and the South matchup advanced to the four-team, double-elimination tournament hosted by Kennesaw State.  The Lipscomb Lady Bisons came into the tournament with a 17-16 overall and  4-5 conference record, which put them in fourth-place in the Northern division, and they faced off against the overall No. 1 team Liberty in Lynchburg, Virginia, to open the first weekend of tournament play.  The Lady Bisons had were held scoreless when they hosted the Flames just three weeks prior.  In the Friday, May 7, doubleheader, the first game turned into a defensive battle between two of the top pitchers in the conference, Lipscomb’s senior Breana Burke and Liberty’s junior Emily Kirby.  After four solid innings of work, the scoreless game was finally broken up in the fifth when senior infielder Amber Bishop brought home her twin sister senior infielder Autumn Bishop, giving the Flames a 1-0 lead. The game would stay at 1-0, and the Flames would get the game one win. Going into Friday’s second game, the Lady Bisons knew it was a win or go home matchup, and in an eight-inning thriller, they stepped up...
Lady Bisons softball team caps season off with a walk-off win

Lady Bisons softball team caps season off with a walk-off win

Fans of the Lipscomb softball team were treated to a nail-biter Wednesday after three late-game runs secured a 3-2 victory for the team over Tennessee State. This was the team’s first game back since April 20 due to a recent team quarantine, which led to questions about if the team would come out slow. That was soon answered after the early innings of the game. The Lady Bisons weren’t able to create offense early and trailed 2-0 through five innings. The Lady Tigers two runs came in the third inning after junior shortstop Lauren Farias scored on an error, and sophomore outfielder Analeigh Coursey scored by way of a sac fly. The offensive drought came to an end in the sixth inning when sophomore outfielder Presley Leebrick led off the inning with a solo homer to right field. That burst of offense set up what would be an eventful final inning. Breanna Burke pitched a strong final inning, not allowing any hits and striking out two batters in the process. The bottom half of the inning started with a double to centerfield from senior infielder Jenna Endris. Following that, sophomore infielder Kelly Paulson, entered the game as a pinch-runner. Paulson advanced to third off a sac bunt from junior outfielder Jessie Brown. Paulson then scored from a single to right center by junior outfielder Abby Davis. Following the hit, Davis stole second base. This all set up a walk-off ground single batted by junior infielder Amy Vetula. The win boosted the team to a winning record, finishing the regular season at 17-16. The Lady Bisons will hit the road for the first round of the ASUN tournament facing the Liberty Flames. The first...
Students to feel impact of Biden’s policies about loan forgiveness, school affordability

Students to feel impact of Biden’s policies about loan forgiveness, school affordability

The new administration and lawmakers in D.C. are wrestling with solutions to relieve the vast amount of student debt and the rising cost of higher education. Any solutions or changes will hit home for many Lipscomb students, who take out more than 11 million in student loans each school year.  Lipscomb’s financial aid office is awaiting changes from the federal level and advocating on behalf of students. Director of Financial Aid Tiffany Summers and Director of the Office of Neighborhood, Community and Government Relations Amanda Martin are each working within college associations to obtain information surrounding upcoming potential policy changes. “I would say there’s a lot that we’re watching right now, certainly higher education was an important part of the administration’s (election) platform,” says Martin. “There can definitely be a difference between what is on the platform and what actually gets done when somebody gets in office.”  One of the hot-button issues surrounding President Joe Biden’s higher education plan is student debt forgiveness. Opponents argue loan forgiveness would disproportionately benefit high-income individuals, while supporters contend Biden could do more. “There’s definitely a lot of debate nationally around student loan debt, and so one of the pillars of Biden’s higher education plan was that he wanted to forgive $10,000 worth of student loan debt for everyone,” said Summers. “It’s certainly unclear what any actual student loan action is going to look like. There are some that argue Biden should by executive order forgive $50,000 in student debt for everyone or forgive all student loan debt, which would cost somewhere around $1.5 trillion.” Early this February, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Sen. Elizabeth...