By Cort Reynolds
Visiting Bath defeated Bluffton 7-2 in a girls soccer match Saturday afternoon.
The Lady Pirate kickers fell to 0-2 after the loss.
Bath's Rachel Clark netted three goals in the first 21 minutes to help the visitors race to a 4-0 lead.
Bluffton's Reagan Mittendorf scored in the 30th minute to get the Pirates on the scoreboard. Teammate Kayla White then tallied another goal in the final minute of the first half to cut the deficit to 5-2 just before intermission.
The reigning Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) Football Champions, Hanover College, are picked to repeat as league leaders in 2019 in a vote of the conference’s head coaches as they top the HCAC Football Preseason Poll.
The 2019 season kicks off with non-conference play on Thursday, Sept. 5. The first conference game is Thursday, Sept. 19. The final week of the regular season is Saturday, Nov. 16, with the NCAA Tournament following thereafter.
Listed below is the 2019 HCAC Football Preseason Poll and the 2019 HCAC Players to Watch.
Pegged to defend their title, Transylvania University was selected to win the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) by a vote of league coaches in the 2019 Women’s Golf Preseason Poll.
Listed is the 2019 HCAC Women’s Golf Preseason Poll and the 2019 HCAC Athletes to Watch.
By Cort Reynolds
ELIDA - The Bluffton boys soccer team scored four goals in the first eight minutes and rolled to a 10-0 blowout win over Evergreen Thursday evening in the semifinals of the Kickoff Tournament at Elida.
The Pirates improved to 2-0 with their second straight shutout win. They play an opponent TBA in the Kickoff tourney finals Saturday.
Following a vote of league coaches, Transylvania University was selected to repeat as Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) Champions in the 2019 Volleyball Preseason Poll.
Bluffton is predicted a fourth place finish.
The Pioneers earned nine first place votes, with 99 points. Transy had an impressive 2018 campaign, with a 15-11 overall record and a league mark of 8-1 that clinched the HCAC Regular Season title.
Listed below is the 2019 HCAC Volleyball Preseason Poll and the 2019 HCAC Players to Watch.
In the 2019 Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) men’s and women’s cross country preseason polls, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology is the overwhelming favorite for the men, while the tighter women’s race saw Manchester University emerge as the winner.
In the women’s poll the top three teams were separated by only 10 points, while all three received first-place votes.
The Spartans claimed the top spot with 74 points and five first place nods.
