Men’s Cross Country
The Piedmont men’s cross country team started out on the right foot in its first race of the season, finishing 2nd out of eight teams at the University of North Georgia Invitational.
The Lions were headlined by senior Walker Capelle, who finished 3rd overall in the race and would also be named the CCS Runner of the Week for the first time of his career, completing race with a personal best time of 26:35.0.
“Walker had a fantastic race on Friday,” head coach James Jimison said. “It was a great first step towards what we hope are much bigger things for him and the team this season.”
Senior Layton Bradford would be the only other Lion to finish inside the Top 10, with a time of 27:12.1.
The next event for the team is the Converse Kickoff in Spartanburg, South Carolina on Sept. 21.
—Ben Leffert
Women’s Cross Country
The Piedmont University women’s cross country team kicked off their season at the UNG Invite early Friday night.
“I would have to say most of us were very nervous because it was the first real meet of the season,” said sophomore Hayden Linn. “We knew what to expect for the most part, the pressure of winning helped push us further as a team.”
Junior Skyler Seeber spotlighted the meet for her squad, as she finished in seventh place with a time of 19:30.7. She was also the first finisher for the Lady Lions and the only DIII runner in the top 10.
Junior Hannah Marlowe delivered a personal record (PR) time of 21:34.1 while junior Bella Caccamo turned in a PR of her own with a time of 21:48.9.
Senior Tanea Davis and sophomore Hayden Linn capped off the event for the Lions. Davis turned in a time of 22:36:3 while Linn ran a 26:12:7.
Up next, the Lady Lions will travel to Spartanburg, South Carolina on Sept. 21 for the Converse kickoff.
—Zach Avila
Volleyball
The Piedmont volleyball team was swept in a triple-header on Sept. 13-14 at Berry College, falling 3-0 to Transylvania University, Berry College and Averett University, falling to 0-6 on the season.
“This past weekend was a learning experience, and I’m proud of all the girls for staying positive,” senior middle blocker Jessica Sconyers said. “I’m excited for our upcoming game against Bob Jones, I think both teams are evenly matched. I hope our coach prepares us for what they bring to the table.”
Over the three matches, Sconyers led the team with 10 kills and two blocks. Junior outside hitter Katie Hubbard tallied seven kills and a block. Freshman setter and right-side Mary Brit Tallevast had five kills. Junior outside hitter Katie Hubbard had 3 kills and 1 block. Senior setter Vanessa Manzo paced the Lady Lions with 24 assists and 10 digs. Defensively, junior libero Zoe Coelho led the squad with 18 digs.
The women’s volleyball team opens their home season at Cave Arena against Bob Jones University on Sept. 19.
—John Dieterly
Women’s Soccer
The Piedmont women’s soccer team went 1-0-2 over its past three games, only allowing one goal in a 1-1 draw against Brevard 1-1, a 0-0 draw at Meredith College 0-0 and a 1-0 win over Pfeiffer 1-0 on Saturday.
“Sometimes in close games, it’s easy to get caught watching,” says senior goalkeeper Haylee Dornan, who started in goal in the three contests. “But we did a good job of staying focused and the girls worked really hard.”
Dornan saved 13 of the 14 shots she faced starting with 10 saves against Brevard in the 1-1 draw. The game went into halftime scoreless, with junior Sierra Judson scoring seven minutes into the second half. Later on, Brevard hit a long-ranged shot to tie the game at one. The last 14 minutes involved many back-and-forth attacks to break the tie, all of which fell short.
Two days later, the Lady Lions found themselves in Raleigh, North Carolina against Meredith College. Both teams pitched perfect shutouts leaving the game scoreless for all 90 minutes. This game was the definition of a stalemate with limited attacks and only 14 shots, six from Piedmont and eight from Meredith.
The Lady Lions finished off the week on Saturday afternoon at Pfeiffer, where a second-half goal decided the win for Piedmont. This game did not look like a one-goal game on paper as the Lions outshot the Falcons 18-4. Junior Jocelyn Maseda scored her first goal of the season to send the team home happy, finishing the week in the win column.
Piedmont (2-1-3) will have this week off before they go back on the road to Sewanee on Monday, Sept. 23. This will be their last game before conference play.
—Colin Hackshaw
Men’s Soccer
The men’s soccer team played two games last week, losing 2-0 to Berry College on Sept. 11 and playing Greensboro College to a 1-1 draw on Sept. 13, bringing their record to 4-2-1.
“Coming off five away games in eight days, our team started to show a bit of tiredness going into those last two games,” sophomore defender Nathan Jacome said. “Some things we did well as a team was communicate with one another and create scoring chances, which leads to something we can improve on — essentially finishing those chances we create.”
Although the Lions scored no goals against Berry, junior goalkeeper Bobby Wood was a bright spot, responsible for seven saves. Senior James Cash scored Piedmont’s only goal against Greensboro, assisted by Cristi Pascaru and Colin Vogel.
After seven road games to start the season, the Lions are looking forward to their home opener on Sept. 21 against Pfeiffer.
—Grant Prather
Women’s Tennis
The Piedmont women’s tennis team traveled to Sweet Briar College this past weekend where they played in The Battle of the Blue Ridge, coming back with many victories.
The team dominated in wins with 13 singles wins and three double wins. Key players included sophomore Oliva Carpenter, senior Hollan Rabensdorf and freshmen Sarah Sanabia, who each went 2-0 and were champions in their pods. The Lady Lions now have a 13-10 overall record in singles matches.
In doubles play, sophomore Brooklyn Bolch and freshman Caroline Morrison won 6-3 over a doubles team from Washington College, while Carpenter and sophomore Abby Gayle Moody defeated Guliford 7-5.
“I’ve played better but I learned from it,” said Morrison. “I expect better results in the near future.”
The Lion’s next match will be a doubleheader against Pfeiffer University at home on Sept. 20.
—Skylar Smith
Men’s Tennis
To kick off their fall schedule, the Piedmont men’s tennis team competed in the Rome Invitational as they started the season 1-1.
Piedmont played in the afternoon on Friday against Berry College, losing 5-2. The Lions struggled in doubles play as they were swept 3-0 by the Vikings. Sophomore Mark Backeberg and Junior Connor Phelps won their singles matches against Berry.
Piedmont bounced back Saturday morning against Shorter with a 5-2 team win.
The Lions went 2-1 in doubles and 4-2 in singles, with senior Simon Johnstone and junior Yannick Navarro winning their first-ever doubles match together. Sophomore Rohan Kavali and graduate student Bryce VanOrder won their singles matches against shorter to close the tournament.
The squad will next play in the ITA Regionals in Rome, Georgia, on Sept. 26-29.
—Damyon Traylor
