HARROGATE, Tenn. – For the first time of the fall, eight Lincoln Memorial University athletic programs will be in action as men's and women's soccer and women's volleyball continue their 2019 campaigns. Women's bowling will open up its 2019-20 season over the weekend with men's and women's tennis taking part in their first dual match of the fall Friday. Both men's and women's golf continue the fall portion of their 2019-20 journeys to kick off the week.
 
Throughout 2019-20, LMU athletics will provide a look ahead at the week's calendar of athletic events, both home and away, previewing each team's competition/s and highlighting team's news, notes, performances and more.
 
Men's Golf
The LMU men's golf team is riding on good vibes to the Sunshine State. Fresh off its first tournament win of the season, the Railsplitters enter the top-notch playing field of the Copperhead Championship at the par-71, 7,209-yard Innisbrook Golf Resort in Palm Harbor, Florida. According to the latest Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) rankings, the top five teams in the nation - Lynn, Florida Southern, West Florida, Barry and Saint Leo, in that order - will be in attendance.
 
Fourteenth-ranked LMU is one of 10 top-15 teams participating with the other four being No. 7 Georgia Southwestern, No. 12 Florida Tech, No. 13 Nova Southeastern and No. 15 Lander. The 17-team playing field also includes No. 22 Limestone, No. 24 Columbus State, No. 26 Valdosta State, No. 27 Flagler, along with Queens and Wingate who are both receiving votes in the national poll, and unranked Georgia College, giving the Railsplitters a great deal of competition.
 
Hitting the links for LMU is State Farm Intercollegiate individual medalist Dan Bradbury as he will be accompanied by junior Luke Harries, senior Harry Boyle, sophomore Hamish McColm and freshman Erik Fogel. Behind a shotgun start at 8:30 a.m. each day, the five Railsplitters will play 36 holes Monday followed by 18 more Tuesday to wrap up the 54-hole tournament. To follow along, live scoring link can be found here or by clicking the link at the top of the page.
 
Women's Golf
The Lady Railsplitters return to the links for competition following a two-week break from tournament action. LMU will take on the Sixth Annual LeeAnn Noble Memorial, a two-day tournament hosted by North Georgia in Dahlonega, Georgia, Monday and Tuesday at the Achasta Golf Club.
 
In addition to the Lady Railsplitters, host North Georgia and Lee University, who is ranked 14th nationally according to the latest Women's Golf Coaches Association (WGCA) rankings, 12 other teams will take on the par-72, 5,934-yard course for the two rounds of play. Catawba, Columbus State, Converse, Erskine, King, Montevallo, Newberry, North Greenville, Southern Wesleyan, UNC Pembroke, West Georgia and Young Harris will all be in action at the Achasta Golf Club.
 
Monday's opening round will feature a double-tee start from holes one and 10 beginning at 9 a.m. Sophomore Sophia Gray, freshmen Annika Lagos and Kelsee Neely, sophomore Ella Morton and junior Harper Cherry will represent LMU and tee off from hole one starting at 10:20 a.m. Monday morning.
 
Women's Soccer
It's a big week for the women's soccer team. After dropping a 1-nil match to Catawba at the LMU Soccer Complex Saturday, the Lady Railsplitters prep for a pair of South Atlantic Conference road games with the first against Tusculum at 5 p.m. Wednesday followed by a trip to Anderson for a 1 p.m. start Saturday.
 
Historically, the Lady Railsplitters (8-3, 2-3) haven't had a lot of success versus the Pioneers (6-6, 2-3). LMU is 10-16-3 all-time against the in-state SAC foe as it has lost three straight in the series and is looking for its first victory in Greenville since 2011. Prior to this weekend Tusculum had only one conference win, coming against the Lady Railsplitters' weekend opponent Anderson, before taking down top-seeded and previously undefeated Wingate Sunday afternoon, 1-0.
 
Like Tusculum, the Trojans (5-4, 3-3) have had their ways with LMU recently, winning four straight against the Lady Railsplitters and limiting the Blue and Gray to a 4-5-1 head-to-head record. LMU, who sits in a three-way tie with six points in the SAC standings, is looking for its first victory in Anderson, South Carolina, since 2010 when the Lady Railsplitters left victorious, 2-1. Before hosting LMU, fifth-place Anderson will take on nationally-ranked North Georgia to gear up for more league action.
 
Men's Soccer
The LMU men's soccer program traveled to Mylan Park in Morgantown, West Virginia, to take on Salem University last Tuesday in non-conference action. Senior forward Ueslei Silva got the Railsplitters on the board first when converting on a penalty kick in the 25th minute of play. Eventually, the host Tigers scored twice to take the 2-1 victory over LMU.
 
Over the weekend on Saturday afternoon, the Railsplitters hosted conference opponent Catawba at the LMU Soccer Complex. During the contest there were an even amount of opportunities for both squads to score, although, Catawba's Borja Gaspar notched a header in the 85th minute of play, leading to a 1-0 setback for the Blue and Gray.
 
This week, the Railsplitters have a pair of SAC matchups starting at Tusculum in Greenville, Tennessee, Wednesday, Oct. 16 at 7:30 p.m. Heading into Wednesday's affair, LMU is 7-3-4 all-time in their meetings with the Pioneers. The last time the two teams met things ended in a 2-1 victory for the Railsplitters in Harrogate.
 
On Saturday, the Railsplitters will remain on the road for another SAC tilt at Anderson in South Carolina. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. LMU holds a 7-4-1 head-to-head record against Anderson dating back to September of 2007.
 
Women's Bowling
The Lady Railsplitters, who have been tabbed as the No. 13 bowling team in the nation among all divisions by the National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA) heading into the 2019-20 season and the fourth-best program in Division II/III, begin with the Allstate Sugar Bowl Collegiate Invitational this weekend. The three-day season-opening tournament hosted by Tulane at the Colonial Lanes in Harahan, Louisiana, Friday-Sunday features three of the top five teams in the nation according to the NTCA's preseason top 25, five of the top 10 and nine of the top 20.
 
Top-ranked Vanderbilt, in addition to reigning national champion and second-ranked Stephen F. Austin and No. 5 Sam Houston State, all from the Southland Bowling League, will be in attendance in Louisiana. Also on the lanes with LMU will be seventh-ranked Maryland-Eastern Shore, No. 8 North Carolina A&T, tournament host and 14th-ranked Tulane, No. 17 Louisiana Tech and 19th-ranked UAB. Alabama State, Grambling, Jackson State, Southern, Texas Southern, Tusculum and Valparaiso round out the 16-team field of competition.
 
Tusculum, who enters its inaugural year of women's bowling, joins the Lady Railsplitters as the only two non-Division I bowling programs participating in the seventh annual Allstate Sugar Bowl Collegiate Invitational. Both programs are members of the East Coast Conference with both schools being SAC members.
 
Five, five-game Baker matches will take place Friday, followed by traditional team matches Saturday and best 4-of-7 bracket play Baker matches Sunday to determine a tournament champion and team finishes.
 
LMU heads to the New Orleans suburb having reached the ECC Tournament championship match for three-straight years. Entering just their fourth season of existence, the Lady Railsplitters return every starter from a year ago, including ECC Co-Bowler of the Year and all-conference first-team selection junior Christine Hansen. Junior All-ECC First Team honorees Justine Brookover and Tyra Sanchez, along with 2019 All-ECC Second Team pick senior Marisol Dodson, look to have impressive outings once again in 2019-20. LMU also welcomes four freshmen and junior Texas Southern Transfer Shania Carr to this season's squad.
 
In 2018-19, the Lady Railsplitters ranked third nationally in 10th-frame Baker double-strike percentage (30.58%) and sixth in overall strike percentage (44.9%) among all divisions, not to mention owning the eighth-highest overall scoring average (192.2/game).
 
Making its second Allstate Sugar Bowl Collegiate Invitational appearance, LMU placed eighth out of 14 teams in the 2017 version of the annual event.
 
Men's and Women's Tennis
The LMU men's and women's tennis teams will open up dual match play of the 2019-20 season with their lone dual match of the fall Friday as they travel to Emmanuel College for a 2 p.m. start. The teams faced off last season in Harrogate, with LMU winning the men's match 5-2 and the women's 4-3.
 
The men's team features six returners led by senior All-SAC performer Xavier Marti, who missed most of last year due to injury. Also returning are senior Felipe Charry, sophomore Sebastian Colla, junior Iker Moure, sophomore Fabian Sjokvist and senior Jake Tuchmann. This year's squad also features three newcomers.
 
The women return all but one player from last year's team that reached the 2019 SAC Tournament quarterfinals, including the All-SAC doubles duo of junior Julia Valls and senior Julia Loos. Loos was also an All-SAC honorable mention performer in singles last season. Like the men's team, the women's squad features three newcomers for their 2019-20 campaign.
 
Women's Volleyball
The Lady Railsplitter volleyball team stepped out of league action over the weekend and took part in Carson-Newman's SAC/Peach Belt Conference Challenge in Jefferson City, Tennessee, where they faced stiff competition in four Peach Belt Conference opponents. After dropping a pair of four-set affairs to then undefeated USC Aiken, who is receiving votes in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top 25 poll, and Georgia College Friday, LMU played two exciting five-set matches Saturday. Staving off a pair of match points and making a remarkable comeback from two sets down, the Lady Railsplitters earned a 3-2 win over Lander before being edged in a 15-13 fifth set against Augusta. LMU's opponents Saturday had a 27-7 combined record entering the day.
 
This weekend, the Lady Railsplitters step back into SAC play and return to the friendly confines of Mary Mars Gymnasium to begin a five-match homestand. Nationally-ranked and undefeated Wingate visits Harrogate for a 7 p.m. tilt Friday, followed by a 2 p.m. matchup with Coker Saturday.
 
Seeking just its second win ever versus the national power Bulldogs, LMU has won only two sets against Wingate since October of 2016. However, the Lady Railsplitters picked up a 3-2 victory over the Bulldogs on Oct. 28, 2016, inside Mary Mars Gym. The two teams faced each other for the 2018 SAC Tournament title last season as LMU won a marathon of a second set (41-39) to knot the match up at 1-1 before falling in four sets in Hartsville, South Carolina.
 
Contrarily, the Lady Railsplitters are 12-1 all-time against Coker and earned a 3-1 road triumph over the Cobras earlier this season on Sept. 28. In that match, LMU rallied from a 1-0 deficit and tallied 53 kills to pick up its second SAC road victory of the fall. The Lady Railsplitters are a perfect 6-0 in home matchups with Coker and have won four straight in the overall series going back to September of 2017.
 
How to Follow
Stay tuned to LMURailsplitters.com, as well as LMU's social media platforms - @LMURailsplitter on Twitter, @LMURailsplitters on Facebook and @lmurailsplitters on Instagram, for complete coverage of Railsplitter and Lady Railsplitter athletics throughout 2019-20.