Athletics 10/15/2007 4:00:00 PM Presbyterian College Athletics

PC Excelling In NCAA Division I

Coming into the year many people in the nation, region and even this area pretty much had become resigned that it was going to be a down year on the playing fields for the Blue Hose due to the institution changing NCAA Division's and moving into the highest one.

Well, the Blue Hose athletic teams have more than shown that is not the case.

In fact, it is pretty much a certainty that most of those with a vested interested in the Blue Hose have been overwhelmingly surprised with the competitive spirit of the school on the playing fields this fall.

Every fall team has shown that they are more than ready to compete at the highest level.

The volleyball team led by second-year head coach Chris Belshe has led the way for the Blue Hose this fall, rattling off 15 straight wins at one point.

Belshe's team won or shared three NCAA Division I tournaments during the first full month of the season in September.

They even had a player featured in Sports Illustrated as senior Lauren Mason (Peachtree City, Ga.), who was named Most Valuable Player of two DI tournaments in September, was honored for her accomplishments by the national publication.

The Blue Hose football team has also more than held their own so far as Bobby Bentley in his first season at the helm has led the Blue Hose to three straight wins and a 4-3 record entering their showdown this weekend with Coastal Carolina.

The Blue Hose picked up their biggest victory of the year last week against future Big South foe VMI by the resounding score of 45-21. The victory earned Bentley and the Blue Hose their first win over a Big South opponent in their inaugural year in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision in their first try.

Many single game records have fallen since the arrival of Bentley as the Hurlin' Hose, who are currently second in the nation in passing yards, have used the passing game as well as the running game to great effect.

The Blue Hose used mainly the run to acquire wins over NCCU and VMI in the three-game winning streak, while the pass was the main weapon of choice against North Greenville.

In fact, PC quarterback Tim Webb (Lugoff, S.C.) broke almost every record in the book as he passed for a school record 648 yards and seven touchdowns in the win over the Crusaders.

The 648 yards are an FCS record and the fifth-most all-time in all divisions, including the NAIA. Webb's exploits just like Mason's earned him national praise as he was featured in USA Today, The New York Times and on both SI.com and ESPN.com.

Webb was even named the National Offensive Player of the Week by Don Hansen's Football Gazette.

The PC men's and women's soccer teams have also had some success on the pitch this season. The Blue Hose women's soccer team at one point in the season tallied three straight wins, winning games over the SoCon's The Citadel and the Atlantic Sun's Campbell and Lipscomb.

The Blue Hose did not just win the contests either as they also shut out all three opponents, winning by a combined score of 11-0.

The PC men's soccer team has shown that they are more than ready to compete in the tough Big South Conference. In fact, the Blue Hose are currently 1-2-1 against teams that they will continually face in conference over the next few years.

The Blue Hose are also coming off their first home win of the season as they defeated former South Atlantic Conference rival and future Big South Conference rival Gardner-Webb at Martin Soccer Stadium on Thursday, Oct. 11 by the score of 2-1.

In his first season in charge of the Cross Country program at PC, Thad Palmer has shown that the PC Cross Country program is ready to compete at the next level. Palmer's Blue Hose have beaten many DI Cross Country programs, including the Big South's Charleston Southern, in their travels during the season and both the men's and the women's teams finished second overall at the Limestone Invitational earlier this fall.

Even the out of season sports that have fall tournaments have proven that they are ready to compete at the Division I level.

The Blue Hose men's tennis team competed in the East Tennessee State Fall Invitational and had five players win their singles flight championship at the event, including Michael Nicol (Spartanburg, S.C.), who claimed the championship in the Blue division.

The women's tennis team has also shown that they are ready as Abby Diminich claimed the championship in the Singles Flight B division of the Georgia College & State Women's Fall Championship on Sept. 29.
Diminich (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) won four matches to claim the victory, defeating Tampa's Scudder 6-3, 6-1 to claim the first championship of the fall for the Blue Hose.

The PC women's golf team also fared well in their first NCAA Division I tournament at the Draper Intercollegiate. The Blue Hose women concluded the event in 12th place, which placed them ahead of three DI programs.
The Blue Hose men's golf program has started off its time in NCAA Division I with a bang, finishing fourth and seventh in their two events so far in the fall.

PC concluded the Poplar Hill Intercollegiate with sole possession of fourth place with a three round team score of 904 (298-297-307). The Blue Hose had three players finish in the top 25 individually led by Thomas Todd (Laurens, S.C.), who concluded the event tied with one person for seventh with a three round tally of 220 (73-73-74).

The Blue Hose followed that up by finishing the 23rd-annual Raines Development Group Intercollegiate Tournament at the par 72, 7,101-yard Country Club of South Carolina course in a tie for seventh place overall.

Two Blue Hose finished in the top 25 individually in the event. Todd led all Blue Hose golfers at the Raines Development Group Intercollegiate, carding a three-round score of 223 (74-76-73) to place 23rd.Teammate Patrick Coleman (Columbus, Ga.), who finished day one of the event as the top Blue Hose scorer, ended his efforts just behind Todd in a tie for 25th with a three-round tally of 224 (74-72-78).

The Blue Hose success will undoubtedly carry over to the basketball courts. The Blue Hose men's and women's basketball teams started practicing over the weekend are looking as if they will make a name for themselves as well in the upcoming season.

The future is bright for the Blue Hose!

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Players Mentioned

#15 Tim Webb: QB; 6' 2"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

#15 Tim Webb
: 6' 2"; Sophomore
: QB

Players Mentioned

#15 Tim Webb

Players Mentioned

#15 Tim Webb