Transylvania

The Centre College men’s tennis team won two of three doubles matches to defeat Transylvania 5-4 Thursday at Lexington. Ben Newstadt and Xan Witherington won 8-5 at No. 1, and Kit Brunner and Matt Doss scored an 8-6 win at No. 2. Newstadt (No. 1), Witherington (No. 2) and Andrew Howard (No. 3) also won singles matches for Centre (3-7). Women’s Tennis At Lexington, Karolyn and Kathryn Hays won their fourth straight doubles match to lead Centre to a 9-0 victory over Transylvania.

The Centre College baseball team lost 3-2 to Transylvania on Wednesday at Gary Wright Field after Transy scored in each of its last three at-bats. Centre (10-18) led 2-0 after six innings, but Transy (13-11) scored single runs in the seventh, eighth and ninth to hand the Colonels their eighth straight defeat. The Pioneers outhit the Colonels 9-3 but pushed across the go-ahead run without a hit, taking advantage of three Centre errors in the ninth inning. Losing pitcher Trey Litsey allowed two runs on two hits and two walks in two innings.

LIBERTY¿— There was no other school Nicole Coffman wanted to go to more than Transylvania. The school evidently wanted her, too, because the Transy coaches came to see Casey County’s final two regional basketball games even after Coffman tore the anterior cruciate ligament in her left¿knee in the 12th Region Tournament opener against Lincoln County and could not play. That loyalty solidified her decision, and the Casey senior said will be playing for the Pioneers next year. “I wasn’t absolutely decided yet, but it did help me decide and it showed they still cared and showed it (the knee injury)

The defense was decent, and the rebounding was pretty good. But the shooting was putrid, and nothing else Centre College did could mask that. The Colonels struggled to put the ball in the basket from the start of Tuesday night’s game, and it cost them their first loss of the season, as they shot a chilly 32 percent from the field in a 56-51 loss to Transylvania at Alumni Gymnasium. Centre started cold and never really warmed up in its home opener, and coach Greg Mason said its shooting woes canceled out any success it had in other areas.

LEXINGTON - One season after ending a 13-year losing streak to their closest rivals, the Centre College swim teams made it two wins in a row over Transylvania. Centre's men and women swept Transy on Tuesday, with the men winning 156-77 and the women winning 142-84. "I am very happy with our results tonight," Centre coach Dean Brownley said. "We trained hard in Florida (two weeks ago) and had a very challenging training session this morning before we left, so I was truly surprised at how well we swam with how broken down we were.

The Centre College volleyball team beat Transylvania for the second time this season Tuesday, downing the host Pioneers 26-28, 25-19, 14-25, 25-18, 17-15. Sophomore Stephanie Woeste had eight kills and four block, while senior Kelly McCoy added seven kills and 2.5 blocks. Senior Laura Broughton had 22 digs and senior Mary Brieschke had 19 assists for Centre (13-8). The Colonels will play at the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference East/West Divisional #2 Saturday and Sunday, in Colorado Springs, Colo.

LEXINGTON - A more confident Ethan Spurlin has been a much better Ethan Spurlin for the Transylvania basketball team this year. The 6-4 junior forward from Lincoln County has made great strides since the end of his sophomore season, and said he feels more at ease on the floor. “I feel a lot more confident than I did last year, and I understand my role a little bit better. I just take my opportunities and make the most of them,”¿Spurlin said. “Experience has helped a lot. The most important thing was practicing, just being more focused during practice and having more intensity.” Spurlin has almost doubled his output from a year ago. He scored a career-high 29 points on 8-for-11 shooting from the field and 13 of 15 at the free throw line Monday in the Pioneers' 85-80 win at Thomas More, adding seven rebounds and four assists as Transylvania moved to 3-0. Spurlin had 18 points and 11 rebounds last week in a win over Centre College, and he's averaging a team-high 23 points and a team-high nine boards per game and is shooting nearly 67 percent from the floor early in the season for the Pioneers.

“Four more years?” Not so fast. Bryon Ellis heard that chant last year when the Centre College men lost to Transylvania for the fourth consecutive season, sending Centre's 2012 seniors away without a single win against their biggest rival. That streak was well on its way to five Wednesday night before Ellis and the Colonels put a stop to it, rallying from a 16-point deficit to defeat Transy 70-64 before a near-capacity crowd at Alumni Gymnasium. Blake Scinta's 3-point goal with 8 seconds left in regulation tied the game, and Centre sank three more 3-pointers in overtime to secure its first victory over Transy since December 2007, a win that Ellis, a senior, said should help erase some bad memories.

Connor Blevins is trying to help lead the Boyle County baseball team in any way he can. The Boyle senior has moved into the third spot in the batting order and has given his team a strong defensive presence in right field. “I've been waiting on the ball longer, driving to the opposite field with power. Just trying to do my part and get some leadership on the field,” Blevins said. “I take a lot of pride in (defense) and definitely work out in the offseason and have gotten a lot stronger.” Boyle coach Kyle Wynn said Blevins has been a leader and productive player for the Rebels (13-10)

HARRODSBURG - Mercer County seniors Megan Hilbert and Taylor Schroeder have made decisions on where they will play college softball. Hilbert has committed to play for Transylvania and will hold a ceremony today at Mercer. Schroeder is heading to University of the Cumberlands and will sign with the school Friday. Hilbert, a third baseman and pitcher, committed two Transylvania “a few weeks” ago and said everything about the school and program fit her. “The campus is my favorite and the coach is my favorite and the softball team really nice,” said Hilbert, who picked Transylvania over Georgetown, Lindsey Wilson and St. John Fisher College of New York.

The Centre College baseball team lost 3-2 to Transylvania on Wednesday at Gary Wright Field after Transy scored in each of its last three at-bats. Centre (10-18) led 2-0 after six innings, but Transy (13-11) scored single runs in the seventh, eighth and ninth to hand the Colonels their eighth straight defeat. The Pioneers outhit the Colonels 9-3 but pushed across the go-ahead run without a hit, taking advantage of three Centre errors in the ninth inning. Losing pitcher Trey Litsey allowed two runs on two hits and two walks in two innings.

Trey Litsey drove in the winning run with an 11th-inning single and pitched four shutout innings Wednesday as the Centre College baseball team rallied to defeat Transylvania 6-5 in Lexington. Centre (10-10) trailed 5-3 before tying the game with two runs in the eighth inning, and Litsey's two-out hit put the Colonels on top and put them back at .500 following losses in six of their previous seven games. Aaron Ammann led off the 11th inning with a double to left field but was in danger of being stranded at second base before Litsey singled to right.

“Four more years?” Not so fast. Bryon Ellis heard that chant last year when the Centre College men lost to Transylvania for the fourth consecutive season, sending Centre's 2012 seniors away without a single win against their biggest rival. That streak was well on its way to five Wednesday night before Ellis and the Colonels put a stop to it, rallying from a 16-point deficit to defeat Transy 70-64 before a near-capacity crowd at Alumni Gymnasium. Blake Scinta's 3-point goal with 8 seconds left in regulation tied the game, and Centre sank three more 3-pointers in overtime to secure its first victory over Transy since December 2007, a win that Ellis, a senior, said should help erase some bad memories.

LEXINGTON - When Ethan Spurlin helped Lincoln County get to the state tournament, he got a chance to play at Rupp Arena. At the time, he thought that was extra special. However, he's been back at Rupp Arena playing for Transylvania in exhibition games against Kentucky in each of the last two years. In 2011, he helped hold future NBA No. 1 draft pick and Olympic gold medalist Anthony Davis to six points in a game against the eventual NCAA champion Wildcats, and on Monday night he had 11 points and five rebounds in a 74-28 loss to Kentucky and got to go against Nerlens Noel, the nation's top-ranked recruit in 2012, and another bevvy of talented players.

Barbara Parks scored two goals Saturday to help the Centre College field hockey team defeat Transylvania 6-1 at Danville for its third straight victory. Courtney Kuiper, Erin Bacon, Chelsea Klein and Sydney White also scored for Centre (4-4, 2-2 Southern Athletic Association), which had 39 shots and allowed Transy (1-8, 0-4) only six. Alexis Hebert had three assists; Parks had one.

LEXINGTON - A more confident Ethan Spurlin has been a much better Ethan Spurlin for the Transylvania basketball team this year. The 6-4 junior forward from Lincoln County has made great strides since the end of his sophomore season, and said he feels more at ease on the floor. “I feel a lot more confident than I did last year, and I understand my role a little bit better. I just take my opportunities and make the most of them,” Spurlin said. “Experience has helped a lot. The most important thing was practicing, just being more focused during practice and having more intensity.” Spurlin has almost doubled his output from a year ago. He scored a career-high 29 points on 8-for-11 shooting from the field and 13 of 15 at the free throw line Monday in the Pioneers' 85-80 win at Thomas More, adding seven rebounds and four assists as Transylvania moved to 3-0. Spurlin had 18 points and 11 rebounds last week in a win over Centre College, and he's averaging a team-high 23 points and a team-high nine boards per game and is shooting nearly 67 percent from the floor early in the season for the Pioneers.

LEXINGTON - A more confident Ethan Spurlin has been a much better Ethan Spurlin for the Transylvania basketball team this year. The 6-4 junior forward from Lincoln County has made great strides since the end of his sophomore season, and said he feels more at ease on the floor. “I feel a lot more confident than I did last year, and I understand my role a little bit better. I just take my opportunities and make the most of them,”¿Spurlin said. “Experience has helped a lot. The most important thing was practicing, just being more focused during practice and having more intensity.” Spurlin has almost doubled his output from a year ago. He scored a career-high 29 points on 8-for-11 shooting from the field and 13 of 15 at the free throw line Monday in the Pioneers' 85-80 win at Thomas More, adding seven rebounds and four assists as Transylvania moved to 3-0. Spurlin had 18 points and 11 rebounds last week in a win over Centre College, and he's averaging a team-high 23 points and a team-high nine boards per game and is shooting nearly 67 percent from the floor early in the season for the Pioneers.

LEXINGTON - Centre College coach Greg Mason knew all about Transylvania's Brandon Rash. But the Colonels had no answer for him Tuesday, as the junior dominated inside and scored 28 points to lead the Pioneers to a 74-62 win at the Beck Center, the second straight loss for Centre. “He's a really tough matchup, I think he's a first or second team All-American. He's why we had to go zone,”Ã?¿Mason, the Centre coach, said. “Everybody that plays Transy knows they have really good shooters, but we didn't have a matchup for Rash.