by Erika Plunkett | Nov 3, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
Arriving on the heels of one of the worst seasons in program history, new women’s basketball head coach Lauren Sumski is embracing the doubters as the motivation for her team. “We were excited,” Sumski said.“I was fired up when they [the ASUN preseason poll] picked us ninth.” This is just the response you would expect if you have spent any time with the young head coach. Her excitement, enthusiasm and can-do attitude are a breath of fresh air for a team that many times last season seemed defeated before they even took the court. “Usually, all of those preseason rankings are just based off of the former season, and that’s exactly where we finished,” Sumski said. “We don’t make any qualms about it; we never have.” But Sumski knows something that the poll voters do not: this is an entirely new team. “We have a lot of returners who I think have stepped up and improved in different ways,” she said. “We have some transfers that I think are going to add to us tremendously. And I think we have some young kids who are really going to be able to step up and help us really early as well.” One of those returners is junior guard Taylor Clark, who was voted as ASUN preseason player of the year. Clark, who missed parts of last season with injuries, was Lipscomb’s leading scorer last season and the only player who averaged double-digit points. Adding to the Lady Bisons’ roster is former Kentucky guard and redshirt sophomore transfer Dorie Harrison, who played all 32 games for the Wildcats and averaged 6.7...
by Mckenzi Harris | Jul 23, 2019 | BREAKING NEWS, News Slider
A rule-change by the NCAA has forced Lipscomb to move the three-point lines around the goals at Allen Arena back to the international distance, forcing cosmetic changes to the striping on the floor. The international distance is 22 feet, 1-3/4 inches, quite a bit farther than the old NCAA distance of 20-feet, nine inches from the basket. The NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel “also approved resetting the shot clock at 20 seconds after a field goal attempt hits the rim and the offensive team rebounds the ball in the front-court,” according to the NCAA. This new shot-clock rule, as well as an international distance three-point line, were experimental rules in the 2019 NIT, in which Lipscomb’s men made it to the championship game. The NCAA decided a full 30-second shot clock is not needed, since the offensive team has already secured the rebound and is in the front-court. The new three-point striping will mean necessary change to the relatively new Lipscomb court. The court in Allen Arena had to be redone after Liberty University in 2013 claimed sole use of the “LU” logo, eventually forcing Lipscomb to replace the initials on the court with the university’s name. Currently, the only visible change being made to the court is the moving back of the three-point line. Photos by Co-Managing Editor, Erika...
by Spencer Boehme | Apr 23, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Lipscomb announced Monday that Rhodes College head coach Lauren Sumski has been hired as the new women’s basketball coach. Lady Bisons fans were formally introduced to the former D-III coach at a welcoming conference Tuesday afternoon in the Hall of Fame room. “There were many candidates that we had,” Lipscomb athletic director Philip Hutcheson said. “High school, college, all levels, people from all over the country who were interested in the job. And I think that’s a credit to the Lipscomb community.” The biggest takeaway from Sumski’s introduction is how noticeably enthusiastic and energetic she was from the get-go. “I’d be remiss to not thank Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior, for allowing me to be here,” Sumski said. “I’d be remiss to not thank President Lowry and Hutch, as they affectionately call him.” During what was a brutal 2018-19 season, the Lady Bisons began the year with a 2-1 record. They followed that with 19 straight losses before scraping a couple conference wins to finish the year 4-25. “This is just a reset,” Sumski said. “This isn’t a rebuild. We’re going to take every single day, and we’re going to work to be the best people we can be, the best students we can be, the best athletes we can be.” So how much of this “reset” will affect the current coaching staff? “I’m speaking with [Lipscomb assistant] Hannah Phillips,” Sumski said. “I love her. I just wanna make sure that we gel, and we click. And then outside of that, we’re just kind of taking it day-by-day. I’ve met with Kelsey [Gregory], who’s also been here.”...
by Erika Plunkett | Feb 20, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
On Tuesday night, the Lipscomb women’s basketball team fell to high-flying Florida Gulf Coast University 80-46 in Nashville. The struggles for the Lady Bisons (3-23, 1-12 ASUN) began before either team took the court. Due to a severe power outage on Lipscomb’s campus, the game was moved from the Lady Bisons’ home court in Allen Arena to a couple miles up the road at Belmont’s Curb Event Center. The Lady Bisons opened the game on a 5-0 run and held the advantage for much of the first quarter. In the first seven minutes, Lipscomb saw six different players record points. When asked about this early momentum, Lipscomb coach Greg Brown said he was not surprised. “It’s how we anticipated coming in,” Brown said. “We had good movement. I thought we mixed up our defense and took them out of rhythm, and we both played pretty well those first four or five minutes. It’s the ability to sustain.” And he was right. Lipscomb was unable to sustain its tempo, and the lead was short-lived, as the Eagles (22-4, 13-0 ASUN) answered with a 27-point run spanning the first and second quarters. Lipscomb’s scoring drought lasted for over 11 minutes until junior guard Anna Hammaker finally found the basket with just under two minutes left before halftime. Much of the Eagles’ success came from outside the arc, as they finished the night with 49 attempts from three-point range, surpassing Lipscomb’s total field goal attempts. FGCU converted on 15 of these attempts, led by junior forward Nasrin Ulel’s five threes. “There’s nothing they do that’s tricky,” Brown said. “They just cut really hard....
by Spencer Boehme | Feb 9, 2019 | News Slider, Sports, Uncategorized
The Lipscomb women’s basketball team took down Jacksonville University 61-58 on Saturday afternoon, breaking a 19-game losing streak dating back to mid-November. The Lady Bisons led by 17 at halftime and by 13 with 7:37 left in the fourth quarter, but Jacksonville nearly came back. The game ended on a missed three-point jumper by senior guard Jasmyn Brown with two seconds left, and Lipscomb forward Kailey Rosenbaum scooped the rebound. It’s the first win for the Lady Bisons (3-20, 1-9 ASUN) since Nov. 15, a game in which they edged Alabama A&M 62-58 to begin the year 2-1. Jacksonville dropped to 12-12 (5-6 ASUN). Junior guard Carleigh Short scored a team-high 22 points on 7-of-13 shooting, while Rosenbaum added 16. Redshirt sophomore forward Emily Kmec led the team with eight rebounds, and freshman forward Taylor Hammack threw in four assists. For the Dolphins, Brown led with 16 points, while senior forward Trudy Walker grabbed 15 boards. Senior guard Rolanda Hayes tabbed three assists. The Lady Bisons now have their first ASUN win, but they still rank at the bottom of the ASUN standings. Lipscomb plays at Liberty on Tuesday. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT. Photo by McKenzi...
