by Ashlan Williams | May 14, 2011 | News Slider, Sports
With the season wrapped up and the the school year coming to a close, the Bisons say goodbye as they send off three graduating seniors: Mario Hernandez, Joe McArdle, and James Murrell Hernandez has spent 3½ years at Lipscomb and on the Bisons tennis team. A senior political science major from Vancouver, Canada, and captain for this season’s team, Hernandez made a name for himself in the Lipscomb tennis program. “Mario was nominated the team’s captain at the end of the fall because of his strong leadership on and off the court,” men’s assistant coach Mike Sherman said. “He was the perfect example of being a great ambassador for the Bisons, carrying himself with class and honor at all times. Because the guys respected him, he was able to effectively lead the team to the conference tournament. “On top of this, his drive to succeed motivated other team members to push themselves beyond their expectations. Mario will be able to use his attitude of leadership and humility to affect every one he meets in the future. I expect he will be a great leader in whatever industry he pursues.” Hernandez will graduate in December after completing his final semester at Lipscomb. Following his graduation, he plans to tend the States’ Navy Officer Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island. When reflecting on his career as a Bison, Hernandez said he is proud to have helped the program improve. “I just loved being a part of the movement to improve the Lipscomb tennis program in all areas,” Hernandez said. “When I came in as a freshman, we didn’t really get any...
by Aaron Schmelzer | Apr 25, 2011 | Sports
With a trip to Buffalo, NY and a bid to the Division III National Tournament within their grasp, the Lipscomb Ultimate team took to the field with high hopes. “We knew going in that we had a shot to win the tournament, so we were kind of disappointed that we didn’t,” said Jordan Bates, a senior marketing major from Nashville. “But at the same time, we fought through a lot of fatigue and windy weather to get some quality wins. So we were happy overall.” The regional tournament was hosted Milledgeville, Ga., for all Division III (DIII) schools in the southeast region. Any school with 7,500 students or less qualified under DIII, and any school with more is considered Division I (DI). The Ultimate team went up against Spring Hill in their first game and beat them by a final score of 15-1. They took on Florida Tech for their second match, whom they also beat 15-1. Lipscomb then took on Georgia College and State University, the veteran team hosting the tournament, and lost 10-15. This was a hard fought loss, as the Lipscomb men who came back from being down 8-1 at the half just couldn’t gain enough momentum to win. The team wasn’t able to take their entire squad to the tournament due to scheduling conflicts, and their lack of subs caught up with them. The exhausted team lost a close game to Southern Polytech State 14-15 to close out the day. Lipscomb’s men bounced back on Sunday and beat Florida Tech 15-12, then avenged their loss to Southern Polytech State with a 15-13 win to take...
by Ashlan Williams | Apr 19, 2011 | News Slider, Sports
Freshman Oliver Strecker was named to the Atlantic Sun All-Conference First Team on Tuesday. The second semester transfer from Auburn University is the first Bison to ever receive first-team honors. Freshman David Salazar also received honors, earning a spot on the A-Sun’s All-Freshman team. Head coach Andrew Harris said both players were well deserving of their honors. “Both Oliver Strecker and David Salazar deserve a tremendous amount of credit this year,” Harris said. “They were both put in difficult situations as freshmen but, obviously, have shown great strength competing in one of the strongest tennis conferences in the country.” Strecker, who is originally from Gemmingen, Germany, finished the season 11-6 overall, 5-5 in the A-Sun, spending the entire season at the No. 1 spot. “Oliver has been playing No. 1 singles since the beginning of the spring,” Harris said. “He transferred here from Auburn, which has been helpful for him this year, because he has seen the competition at this level and understands what it takes to be successful. “We are looking for even stronger things from him next season stepping more into a leadership role. This summer and next fall will be critical for his development.” Spending time at both No. 2 and No. 3, Salazar posted a 9-8 overall record and finished 6-4 in the A-Sun. “Salazar has been playing primarily between No. 2 and No. 3 singles this spring and has been a great warrior on the court,” Harris said. “Everyone I talk to says they enjoy watching Salazar compete and the way he fights for every point. He is a true grinder in the tennis...
by Hunter Patterson | Apr 18, 2011 | News Slider, Sports
“What is a winner? Someone who wins everyone contest, but there is not anyone like that. A winner is someone that never lets a failure or a loss be his or her final destination.” Those were some of the encouraging and inspiring words spoken by Mike Krzyzewski at the Third Annual Don Meyer Evening of Excellence held on Saturday night. Better known as Coach K, Krzyzewski has won four NCAA Championships as the head basketball coach at Duke. Elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2001, Coach K boasts the most wins in NCAA Tournament history with 78. Saturday, though, he was not coaching the Blue Devils to victory in Cameron Indoor. He was instead being introduced by fellow Hall of Famer Don Meyer to speak in Allen Arena. University president Randy Lowry started off the evening welcoming the sold out crowd to Allen Arena. Lowry also highlighted the several accomplishments that Lipscomb’s athletic program had achieved over the calendar year. Following a short video, athletic director Philip Hutcheson took the stage and talked about the impact that Don Meyer left on him and the campus. On the stage next was former Lipscomb basketball coach Don Meyer. Coaching at Lipscomb from 1975-1999, Meyer led Lipscomb to victory 665 times. The Evening of Excellence is not only named after Meyer, but it embodies his character as well. Better known as Coach, he boiled the game of basketball down to the ‘little things.’ “Everyone makes notes, everyone says yes ma’am and no ma’am, and everyone picks up trash,” Meyer said. Unable to attend last year’s event because of scheduling conflicts,...
by Ashlan Williams | Apr 15, 2011 | News Slider, Sports
The Bisons are in DeLand, Fla., as the No. 6 seed in the 2011 Atlantic Sun Men’s Tennis Championships, where they were set to face No. 3 seed Campbell University in today’s first-round action. The trip marks the first time in school history the Bisons (7-10 overall, 4-6 A-Sun) have earned a top-6 seed in the conference tournament. The Bisons are looking to post their first post-season victory. The Bisons last saw their first-round opponent on April 2, when they fell to the Camels 6-1. Head coach Andrew Harris said the Bisons will need to start out strong in doubles to get out of the first round. “Anytime you are in a conference championship like this, the doubles point is extremely critical,” Harris said. “Once the singles matches are completed, they stop all remaining matches.” Harris said the Bisons also need to vamp up their singles play as well as their mindset. “Honestly, we have not played at the level in singles the last few matches that we have become accustomed to seeing in the spring,” Harris said. “The guys understand that they don’t have to play unbelievably to win, but they understand they need to compete at a higher level to have success (today). “These guys have been working hard all year long, and they will give themselves the best opportunity possible to be successful.” Campbell finished the regular season 16-4 overall and 7-3 in the A-Sun. The Camels also boast the A-Sun’s player of the year, Senior Davy Sum, who unanimously won the title. Freshman Fernando Guillen also earned the honor of freshman of the year, while Dominik...
