by Aaron Schmelzer | Apr 25, 2014 | News Slider, Sports
Student athletes and coaches filled the court of Allen Arena on Thursday night, but this time, it was not for a game. The Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) hosted the inaugural Lippy Awards in Allen Arena to honor various members of Lipscomb University’s sports teams. The awards show was hosted by student TJ Ojehomon and women’s soccer assistant coach Chris Klotz. Both female and male athletes of the year were competitive categories, but for the female award, sophomore cross country/track and field runner Dani Walker and junior volleyball player Jewell Dobson tied. On the men’s side, track and field high-jumper Gemikal Prude, who broke the high jump record earlier in the year, won as well. Prude said that winning the award was a blessing. “Winning this is quite the blessing,” Prude said. “It’s a feeling that can’t really be described, especially when you feel as if you’re undeserving.” The biggest award of the night, the Best Team Award, went to the women’s track and field/cross country. Senior runner Lacey Printz said that the team worked hard and credited the coaches and team captains for keeping the team focused. “This is the most incredible team we’ve had, and we just love running together and just having fun and doing it for God’s glory,” Printz said. To open the night, the James R. Byers Award was presented to senior track and field sprinter Tucker Peabody, senior volleyball player Caitlin Dotson and junior cross country/track and field runner Tessa Hoefle. The award is given to a top senior athlete who displays outstanding Christian leadership and excels academically and athletically. The honors had...
by Michael Fox | Aug 27, 2012 | News Slider, Sports
Track and field standout Matt Deery was remembered Thursday, Aug. 23, as a good teammate and friend who had an infectious smile and impacted the lives of everyone around him. Teammate and roommate Nelson Scott said Deery enjoyed brightening the lives of others.The Lipscomb community gathered in Collins Alumni Auditorium to celebrate the life of Deery, who died Aug. 1 as the result of injuries sustained in an automobile accident in Upper Nazareth Township, Pa. He was honored by his teammates, coaches and university administrators during the service. “With his heartfelt smile and his kind words, Matt could make anyone’s day. He loved doing that,” said Scott. President L. Randolph Lowry told the friends, teammates, family members and others gathered for the service that they will not be alone in their time of need. “This is about a community. We will walk this journey with you,” he said. Deery, who would have been a sophomore this fall, was the ideal teammate. “He was loved and respected by everyone on the team. He pursued excellence with a passion. But he was humble and as concerned with his teammates as he was with himself,” said Bill Taylor, Lipscomb’s track and field head coach. “And, he was as tough as they come. He represented the type of athlete that we try to recruit and the people who make up this team.” The Phillipsburg, N.J., native became the first track and field athlete in Lipscomb history to earn second-team All-Atlantic Sun Conference honors at the conference indoor championship this past season with a second-place pole vault of 4.55m (14’11”). He also won a...
by Emily Snell | Aug 24, 2012 | News Slider, Sports
In the semester’s first installment of Lumination News, Caitlin Selle and Nick Glende are behind the news desk to update you about what’s happened on campus over the summer and during the first week of classes. Madeline Smith shares what’s new in entertainment news, while Kelly Dean brings you up to speed with Lipscomb sports. Jeremy Keck offers a look at the weather forecast. Videos feature comments from friends of Matt Deery, whose memorial service took place on campus Thursday; a recap of QuestWeek; details about changes to campus buildings, meal plans and parking; and information about the Joshua Project, a mentoring program started by the Campus Ministry...
by Emily Snell | Aug 3, 2012 | News Slider, Sports
Matthew Deery, an All-Atlantic Sun honoree for track and field who died Aug. 1, in a car wreck near his hometown, was remembered as “an incredible guy” by his friends and coaches at Lipscomb. “He’s the kind of guy that, if everybody was a little more like him, the world would be a better place,” said Houston Ward, Deery’s friend and a fellow rising sophomore, who participates in discus, shotput and hammer-throw on the track team. “Matt was a really great guy,” Ward said. “He was the kind of guy that would give you a ride to the airport, and you’d offer him cash and he’d turn it down. He always had a huge smile on his face. He was a goof ball, but he worked incredibly hard. He just had so many great qualities about him. It’s such a shame to see him go at such a young age.” Deery, a Phillipsburg, N.J. native, was killed Wednesday, Aug. 1, in Upper Nazareth Township, Penn., when his Jeep swerved into oncoming traffic to avoid a turning vehicle, colliding head-on with a tractor-trailer cab. Upper Nazareth Township Police Chief Alan Siegfried told Lumination the accident occurred when a Nissan Altima in front of Deery’s Jeep stopped to wait for an oncoming semitrailer to pass before making a left turn. Siegfried said it seemed apparent that Deery didn’t see the semitrailer and swerved to avoid the car in front of him, hitting the eastbound truck. Track and field Head Coach Bill Taylor said, according to Deery’s parents, the young athlete was on his way to practice pole vaulting, in preparation for...
by Emily Snell | Aug 2, 2012 | News Slider, Sports
It is with deep sadness that the Lipscomb University athletic department announces that rising sophomore Matt Deery, a track and field standout, lost his life in an automobile accident in Upper Nazareth Township, Pa., on Wednesday afternoon. An All-Atlantic Sun Conference honoree for the Bisons in just his first season of competition, Deery was honored by his teammates and coaches as “Freshman of the Year” and as the “Fightin’ Bison” award recipient given to the toughest competitor on the team. “Matt was an incredible athlete and an even more incredible person,” Lipscomb track and field Head Coach Bill Taylor said. “Everyone loved him. He was a smart, caring, likable guy. He was a gifted athlete, yet he was so humble. “It’s really hard to comprehend this right now. Matt was a wonderful person with a gigantic future. He is going to be greatly missed by everyone who knew him. I know our entire team is praying for his family, his friends and each other.” Deery became the first Lipscomb field athlete in school history to earn second-team all-conference honors at the A-Sun indoor championships this past season with a second-place pole vault of 4.55m (14’ 11”). The Philipsburg, N.J., native went on to earn a bronze medal in the heptathlon at the A-Sun meet earning 4,889 points that set a school record. “We are obviously heartbroken for Matt’s family and friends, and I ask that you please be in prayer for comfort and peace all of those who will be grieving over his loss,” said Lipscomb Director of Athletics Philip Hutcheson. “Matt was a very special student athlete and...
