by Russell Vannozzi | Apr 24, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
Lipscomb guard Kenny Cooper is transferring to Western Kentucky, the Hilltoppers announced in a release Wednesday. Cooper entered his name in the transfer portal April 15, just five days after coach Casey Alexander bolted for the same job at Belmont. He then took an official visit to Bowling Green last weekend. “We’re excited to have Kenny join our program,” WKU coach Rick Stansbury said. “He’s a high-character young man from a great family. He has the valuable ability to make players around him better, and he’ll bring a wealth of experience and toughness to our team.” The loss of Cooper is a tough blow to an already-depleted Lipscomb roster, which is graduating five key seniors. He was set to be the team’s top returning player, having averaged 9.8 points, 4.5 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game this season. Cooper is currently a junior with one year of eligibility remaining. Non-grad transfers typically have to sit one season before playing, but he plans to apply for an eligibility waiver from the NCAA. Other schools that showed interest in Cooper included Butler, Virginia Tech, Missouri State, UNC Charlotte, Southern Illinois and Loyola Chicago, according to Corey Evans of Rivals.com. Cooper’s departure leaves Lipscomb with just one scholarship point guard in rising sophomore Alex Jones. Columbia Academy’s Carson Cary will be a walk-on next season, and rising senior John Matt Merritt is also a walk-on. New coach Lennie Acuff could look to the transfer portal to fill Cooper’s spot. Nearly 700 players from Division I schools were exploring transfer options as of last week. Photo by McKenzi...
by Tyler Harvey | Feb 20, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
No scoreboard, no music, and no P.A. system: that’s how the Lipscomb baseball team played its game against Western Kentucky thanks to the power being out on campus Tuesday. However, the atmosphere of the game didn’t stop Lipscomb freshman starting pitcher Tyler Guilfoil from tossing a scoreless outing in the first game of his career, putting the Bisons in position for a 3-1 win at Ken Dugan Field. Guilfoil limited the Hilltoppers to only one hit and one walk to go with nine strikeouts in five innings pitched. “For [his] first time out there, you can’t [ask for] any more than that,” Lipscomb coach Jeff Forehand said. The Atmosphere The atmosphere was reminiscent of a little league game or a game being played in the early days of baseball before electricity. The only sounds were the bats hitting the ball, the ball hitting the gloves and the cheers of the crowd. The only people who really knew the score the entire game were the players on the field and the people in the press box, since the scoreboard was among the things not working due to the power outage. “I think we get spoiled having the music and the scoreboard and all the amenities going on sometimes,” Coach Forehand said. “It affected the game, but not enough to where we couldn’t play the game.” The game was also cold, and the temperature stayed in the upper 30s and low 40s. The Game Both starting pitchers were making their collegiate debuts. Guilfoil started his Lipscomb career on the right note by retiring the first seven hitters he faced. WKU’s freshman...
by Chad Johnson | Mar 24, 2015 | News Slider, Sports
It was a tale of two games for the Lipscomb softball team on Tuesday afternoon. After dropping the first game 9-2, the Lady Bisons bounced back winning 3-1 in game two against Western Kentucky at Draper Diamond at Smith Stadium. In game one, the Lady Toppers opened the score in the third inning, but Lipscomb tied the score in the bottom of third. Junior outfielder Brittany Elmore hit a single to right field, then stole second before junior infielder Baylee Williams drove her home on a single up the middle. Things began to unravel for the Lady Bisons in the fifth inning as the Hilltoppers capitalized on two hits, two walks and two hit batters for five runs. Elmore scored the only other run in the bottom of the fifth on an error. She also stole three bases, bringing her season total to 27. The Lady Toppers went on to score two more runs in the sixth before adding their ninth and final run in the last inning. Junior Tanner Sanders was accredited with the loss. She surrendered seven runs, five hits, walked seven and struck out two batters in five innings of work. Sophomore McCarley Thomas gave up two hits and two earned runs in two innings of relief. Following the first game, Lipscomb coach Kristin Ryman stressed that the team needed the leaders to step up. “Leadership’s a big thing for us,” Ryman said. “We’ve got to play with a little bit more fire. It starts with our seniors — them bringing that fire and leadership everyday in practice and then bringing it on game day.” In game two, senior outfielder Brianne Welch opened the third inning with...
by Jesica Parsley | Mar 22, 2015 | Sports
The Lipscomb softball team won one of three games in this weekend’s series against Stetson at Draper Diamond at Smith Stadium. The Lady Bisons took game one of the series Saturday 10-3. Stetson scored three runs in the first inning, but Lipscomb responded with four runs. Junior infielder Baylee Williams hit a sacrifice fly to score junior outfielder Brittany Elmore for Lipscomb’s first run of the game. Freshman catcher Abby Fenichel hit a double to score Lipscomb’s third and fourth runs in the first inning. Senior outfielder Brianne Welch led off the sixth inning with a solo home run. Senior outfielder Gracey Aguirre hit a two-run home run with two outs in the sixth to round out the Lady Bison’s scoring in game one. Senior infielder Paige Neely had three hits and two RBIs. Junior Kelly Young pitched seven innings, giving up just four hits with 10 strikeouts. Stetson took game two on Saturday 4-0. Lipscomb only managed to get three hits from Neely, Fenichel and sophomore infielder Mimi Cartwright. Stetson scored all four runs in the third, including a home run from Demi Meza. Junior Tanner Sanders pitched seven innings, giving up six hits with five strikeouts. Stetson took the series in game three on Sunday 6-3 in eight innings. The Lady Bisons scored one run in the first and second inning. Young took a no-hitter into the sixth. Stetson rallied late in the sixth inning, starting with a solo home run from Brittany Hawn. Another home run from Stetson’s Amanda Grimaldo in the seventh pushed the Hatters ahead 3-2. Lipscomb responded with a run in the bottom of the seventh when sophomore Becca Dean scored...
by Sarah McGee | Nov 17, 2014 | News Slider, Sports
The men’s golf team at Lipscomb put the finishing touches on the most successful fall season since the athletic program made the move to NCAA Division I. Will Brewer, director of golf and the head coach of the men’s golf team, was impressed with the fall as the team met most of his expectations including winning a tournament as a team and also having an individual player win as well. But the team is still planning on improving by working on the basic fundamentals, and making sure that all of the players are in the right mindset during each match. “We continue to talk about process,” Brewer said. “How you think, how you prepare for a particular shot. It allows you to swing unimpeded and helps you take a better shot.” By focusing on the process, it allows for the players to gain confidence and produce a better shot. Brewer said maintaining concentration during a golf game is important. “We’ll continue to work on the fundamentals and the things that we have to do to get better.” Brewer said. The top finishes for the men in the fall included a first place finish at the Kenny Perry Invitational hosted by Western Kentucky, a third place finish at the Pinetree Intercollegiate hosted by Kennesaw State and a sixth place finish at The Grove Invitational, co-hosted by Lipscomb and Middle Tennessee State, in College Grove. The Bisons had an outstanding recruiting class for the 2014 season, and that showed out on the golf course. Freshman Dawson Armstrong was a standout new team member. Armstrong was the MVP of the season despite...
