by Erika Plunkett | Dec 17, 2020 | News Slider, Sports
After last minute cancellations and rescheduling, Lipscomb women’s basketball hosted the Morehead State Eagles in a Thursday afternoon matinee matchup and survived a series of runs to pull off the 79-73 win. In a game that involved a total of six lead changes and three ties, Lipscomb jumped out to an early lead 11-2 going into the first media break. The Eagles quickly adjusted to a full court press which forced seven early turnovers from the Bisons, and Morehead State took the lead into the second quarter. Lipscomb head coach Lauren Sumski said, “I wish we could have gotten rid of the last five minutes of the first quarter.” The Eagles continued their scoring, including a couple uncharacteristic threes, to complete the 19 point turnaround. Morehead State then led the Bisons by nine, before Lipscomb switched to a zone defense and went on a 19-0 run of their own, led by key shots from redshirt junior guard Sydney Shelton, who shot her 14 points in the first half. The Bisons’ success from their second quarter changes marked a big change from a year ago. Coach Sumski attributed the 19-0 run to her girls doing a really good job sticking with and trusting the plan. “Basketball is a game of runs,” said senior forward Taylor Clark. “Our biggest growth from last year to this year is withstanding runs.” But it was the Eagles who came out stronger in the second half rapidly cutting into the Bisons’ 12 point with an 8-0 before taking a five point lead of their own into the fourth quarter, led by junior forward Ellie Jo...
by Mckenzi Harris | Mar 1, 2020 | News Slider, Sports
The Lady Bisons started with a lead but lost it to Liberty right before halftime eventually costing them the game 70 to 79 on senior day. “We were expecting to compete,” said head coach Lauren Sumski. “We were expecting to play a little bit smarter in the sense of taking care of the ball, but everything else was about what we expected. I thought our young ladies shot the ball well and played hard.” Even trailing late in the fourth quarter, the Lady Bisons fought until the end. Casey Collier fouled out with 1:04 left in the 4th quarter. And the team was fouling back and forth from 1:04 to the end. “At the end, were just a team that doesn’t quit and just tries to find opportunities,” said Sumski. The Bisons scored at least 20 in the first, third, and fourth quarters, but only seven in the second quarter. The Liberty Flames gained their lead in the middle of the second quarter and the Bisons didn’t gain their lead back after that. Carleigh Short was injured during the game and walked off the court. “I just know she got hurt and walked off the court,” said Sumski. “Carleigh is probably my physically and mentally toughest player so I knew when she walked off the court, she was done. So I’m gonna see what we can do to get her back by this weekend.” The Lady Bisons finished the regular season with a record of 7-22 (4-12) including this loss and Liberty improves to 17-11 (10-5). The Lady Bisons will play FGCU in the first round of the ASUN...
by Spencer Boehme | Dec 16, 2019 | News Slider, Radio, Sports
Lipscomb basketball fans can catch two women’s away games and one men’s home game on the Bison this week. You can listen for free at thebisonradio.com and on the new iPhone app. The women play at UT Martin on Monday at 11 a.m. CT and then again at Tennessee Tech on Saturday at 2 p.m., while the men play at home against Tennessee Tech on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. Spencer Boehme will handle play-by-play duties for all three broadcasts. Pregame shows start approximately 10 minutes before the first tip. The Lady Bisons are 2-8, while the Bisons are 4-6. The men’s game against the Golden Eagles is the second of a home-and-home series; Lipscomb won 78-65 in Cookeville in...
by Spencer Boehme | Dec 8, 2019 | News Slider, Radio, Sports
Live radio coverage of Lipscomb basketball continues this week on the Bison. Fans of the Lipscomb men’s and women’s basketball teams can listen to Sunday’s and Wednesday’s games on The Bison. The games will be streamed live at thebisonradio.com and on the new iPhone app. The men’s team faces an old foe in Trevecca on Sunday at 4 p.m. CT. John Tomlinson will call play-by-play, while Spencer Boehme will handle color duties. The women’s team takes on crosstown rival Belmont on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. CT. Spencer Boehme will work play-by-play, while Micah Kennedy will serve as...
by Erin Franklin | May 3, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
Lauren Sumski says she’s always been the “baby” in the room. The new head coach for Lipscomb women’s basketball is only 27 years old — making her one of the youngest coaches in Division I right now. She was the youngest head coach in Division III when she coached at Rhodes right before the move to Lipscomb. As I sat down with Sumski to hear her thoughts on her new role, she recalled this trend in her life, reflecting back to when she was an eighth-grader playing on the varsity team. Not only was she just playing on the team as a middle schooler, but she was serving as varsity captain. And again, at age 13, she played on a 17U team while still in middle school. She jokingly added she still even has trouble getting a rental car sometimes since companies don’t think she looks old enough. “When I was in middle school, I was playing up,” Sumski recalled. “I was playing 17-and-under basketball when I was 13. So all of my teammates were just a lot older than me. They had a lot different interests than me, and I was just the baby of the group.” But she said she thinks God has blessed her with a special maturity to be able to relate to those older than her. This, coupled with her natural intelligence (in college, she was accepted to medical school in Memphis before deciding to pursue coaching), has come in handy as she’s often stepped up to serve in roles typically reserved for those older. Throughout her life, she’s been able to develop this intergenerational openness,...
