The Lipscomb volleyball team will hang three banners in Allen Arena tonight in a ceremony during the Battle of the Boulevard event, the university’s biggest athletic rivalry game.
The team’s success will be recognized when the Atlantic Sun regular and post-season banners and 2011 NCAA tournament banner are presented.
Brandon Rosenthal, the team’s head coach, said he thinks the banners work as a source of motivation for the team.
“I think for the girls to see the banners, to see them dropped tonight is definitely a little bit of motivation,” he said, adding that it helps the girls think of “not just your team but all of the people that came before you that helped you get to that spot.”
The volleyball team has appeared in the NCAA tournament four of the last five years, and Rosenthal said it’s nice to see the girls being rewarded for their hard work.
The three new banners will finish filling one side of Allen Arena, and any new banners will have to be hung on a second wall.
“When we initially put them up, I was joking and said, ‘we need to leave room; we plan to win a lot more,’” Rosenthal said. “And here we are. I think there’s no doubt, our girls come in to every season and the expectations are already set.”
Rosenthal said Lipscomb is focused on building a successful program, not just a winning team.
“With a team, when you lose girls, or when you graduate girls, you have to rebuild,” he said. “With a program, it’s just that expectation coming in. The great part about it is, the senior girls take those freshmen girls under their wing, so when they come in, they already know what’s at stake.”
Rosenthal also said he thinks the team’s victories come from the hard work of its members.
“I think a lot of it is just work ethic and understanding the way we do things,” he said. “Our freshmen girls come in during summer school and get an opportunity to get some work done in the weight room. But also all of our returning girls come in and do some work on their own. That sets a big tone, as a coach, when they’re doing things on their own.”
This semester, Rosenthal said the team has a few clinics planned for children and may also offer something for Lipscomb students. He said they plan to continue promoting the program.
“We’ve got to continue to push our name,” he said. “We’ve got to get it known to the freshmen coming in that Lipscomb volleyball is the real deal and that a lot of good things happen here.”