Flordia Gulf Coast rallies in 8th, downs Bisons 10-9

The Bisons dropped game two of the weekend’s three game series on Saturday, losing 10-9 to Florida Gulf Coast.Lipscomb lead for most of the game, however allowed four runs in the 8th.  That allowed FGCU to improve their already good record in to the A-Sun to 13-4. The Bisons were not able to rally in the bottom half of the 9th with runners on base.  Lipscomb loaded the bases with one out.  The game ended with the Bisons leaving all three on base, losing 10-9. Lipscomb’s record is now 12-34 overall and 5-6 in the Atlantic Sun. Kyle Henry and M.L. Williams both had three RBIs on the day for the Bisons.  Andrew Nickerson had a three-hit game, while junior Corey Hale tallied two hits. Josh Cotham was given the loss, giving up four runs in three innings.  Alex Ross started the game for the Bisons. The box score can be viewed here, along with a full recap from...
Pitching takes backseat to hitting as Bisons defeat Eagles 10-8

Pitching takes backseat to hitting as Bisons defeat Eagles 10-8

The Bisons earned a hard fought victory over Florida Gulf Coast Friday night at Ken Dugan Field. The Bisons faced Florida Gulf Coast’s pitcher Chris Sale, who has been getting much attention from pro scouts after being named MVP of the Cape Cod League. Sale came into the game with a 5-0 record and a 1.41 ERA on the season, however, the Bisons were not intimidated. Senior Tyler Wilson was the early contributor for the Bisons with a single in the bottom of the first. Two batters later he would score on a Cory Hale sac fly that put the Bisons on top early 1-0. In the bottom of the third Wilson continued to lead the Bisons with a solo homerun that put the Bisons up 2-0. In the bottom of the fourth Zach Messer wanted in on some of the action as he homered over the left field fence to increase the Bisons lead to 3-0. Tyler Wilson continued his dominance with another base hit in the bottom of the fifth. He advanced to second base on an errant pitch by Sale, and then scored on a single by his brother Lee Wilson that put the Bisons up 4-0. Cory Hale, who also had a great night at bat going 2 for 3, singled to advance Wilson to third. Zach Messer then hit a triple that brought both Wilson and Hale across the plate. Messer would score on an errant pitch, and the Bisons ended the inning with the score 7-0. However, the Eagles did not come into the game with a 21-12 record for nothing. In the...
Lady Bisons shutout Stetson, sweep series

Lady Bisons shutout Stetson, sweep series

The Lady Bisons added two more wins to their total on Friday, sweeping the Stetson Hatters in a double header.  Lipscomb defeated Stetson 5-0 in game one and 1-0 in game two. Going into Friday night the Lady Bisons knew that the double header against Stetson would be a pivotal one. Leading the Atlantic Sun by three games, Lipscomb did not want second place Stetson to gain any ground whatsoever. The Lady Bisons did just that, shutting out the Hatters in both games. Whitney Kiihnl pitched a complete game one-hitter to improve her record to 23-2 on the season.  This was also her ninth shutout of the season. Abby Keese, the leading hitter for the A-Sun, and Kellie Sirus, slugging percentage leader for the A-Sun, both homered for the Lady Bisons. Lauren Dortwegt and Christen Campbell each added two hits a piece for Lipscomb.  Sirus, along with her home run, had 4 RBIs in game one. Game one’s box score can be viewed here. Game two of the evening would result in a shutout as well, this time though because of pitcher Christen Campbell. Shutting out Stetson, the Lady Bisons’ lone run would come courtesy of a solo home run from Courtney Billington.  This was Billington’s fourth home run of the season. Game two’s box score can be viewed here. The two wins improved the Lipscomb’s record to 35-9 overall and 12-2 in the Atlantic Sun. The Lady Bisons will host Florida Gulf Coast Tomorrow at Draper Diamond at 12 and 2 p.m. Be sure to check back at Lumination Network for more game...
Smith gets set for Friday night showdown

Smith gets set for Friday night showdown

Bisons senior pitcher Josh Smith is no stranger to the spotlight, but he may have to share it on Friday night when the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles visit with their major-league pitching prospect Chris Sale. The two teams will open the weekend series Friday night at 6 p.m. at Ken Dugan Field.  Both Smith and Sale are expected to take the mound in what should be a showdown between two future draft choices. Smith, a fifth-year senior from Margate, Fla., has set the tone this season in Lipscomb’s weekend series.  The Bisons ace has tallied a 6-1 record while posting the Atlantic Sun’s fourth-best ERA of 2.98. Typically, when the Bisons right-handed pitcher takes the mound, he garners all of the attention.  However, with the A-Sun’s top pitcher coming to town this weekend, fans should be in for quite a treat. Smith said he looked forward to the opportunity to pitch against Sale. “He is a definite first-round pick,” Smith said. “He is everything you want in a Friday-night guy.  It is definitely going to be a fun day. Being from the same state as some of these guys, I actually played growing up against some of them.  My sister goes to school there, so there is definitely a little something extra in this game.” Smith has thrown three consecutive complete-game victories for the Bisons over the last three Friday nights.  During that span, he struck out 41 batters while giving up only 25 hits.  On the year, Smith leads the A-Sun with 70 strikeouts. The Bisons veteran leader gives all of the credit to his teammates for the success...
This week in sports, April 5-11

This week in sports, April 5-11

The past week was successful for the Lipscomb athletic teams. The baseball team won its weekend series with Kennesaw State 2-1.  Josh Smith and Davey Hackett were the winning pitchers on Saturday and Sunday.  You can see the box scores here.  Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 The Bisons dropped two games earlier in the week to Tennessee Tech.  The Bisons record now stands at 12-21 overall and 4-5 in the Atlantic Sun. The Lady Bison softball team went 4-2 over the past week, winning games against TSU, Kennesaw State, and Mercer.  Lipscomb lost one game each to Kennesaw and Mercer.  The two losses were the teams first conference losses.  The teams record is now 33-9 overall and 10-2 in the Atlantic Sun.  The game story for the TSU games can be read here. Whitney Kiihnl was also named Atlantic Sun player of the week for the fourth time this past week.  The press release can be read here. The golf team finished 24th in the Bluegrass Invitational this weekend in Kentucky.  Brandon Farmer lead all Lipscomb golfers with a 29th place finish for the weekend. The men’s and women’s tennis teams dropped matches against Belmont this week.  The men lost 4-3 and the women 5-2. In basketball news, Junior forward Adnan Hodzic declared for the NBA draft on Thursday.  Hodzic finished second in the nation in scoring with 22.7 points.  Hodzic did not hire an agent, therefore he has until May 8 to withdraw his name from the draft.  Upon declaring for the draft, Hodzic will have the opportunity to work out for various NBA teams.  Adnan was also named an...