HICKORY, N.C. – It was another great year for the Lenoir-Rhyne Athletics program. Lenoir-Rhyne students and faculty accomplished so much during the calendar year. Below are the top 10 stories of 2025.

#10 – Volleyball earns third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance

Head coach Nicole Barringer has the Lenoir-Rhyne volleyball team rolling. Under Barringer’s leadership the Bears advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the third straight season, a program first. They took down Lander 3-1 to advance to the third round for just the third time in Lenoir-Rhyne volleyball history. They posted an intense reverse sweep of Anderson to advance to their second consecutive SAC Championship. 

Individually, Emmaleigh Allen was named the South Atlantic Conference Volleyball Scholar Athlete of the Year, a Lenoir-Rhyne volleyball first. Five Bear were named to the All-SAC Team while Averie Dale, Kaylie Cleaver, and Hadley Prince were AVCA Honorable Mention All-Americans. 

#9 – Track and Field success

Lenoir-Rhyne Track & Field saw continued success this season, highlighted by the incredible performance of Alexis Brown. Brown set the NCAA DII records in the 100m (10.93), outdoor 200m (22.35), and indoor 200m (22.88). She won national titles in all those events, bringing her career total to eight national titles. Due to her accomplishments she was named the SAC Female Athlete of the Year, USTFCCCA National Track Athlete of the Year, and CWSA Honda DII Female Athlete of the Year. 

As a team the Bears were runner-ups on both the men’s and women’s side at both the indoor and outdoor championships. Oliver Thatcher and Miranda Marr were each named to the All-America Second Team in their respective multi events at the national championships, while the 4x100m team finished seventh at nationals, earning All-America First Team status. Joining them at the national championships was the women’s 4x400m team and Havyn Spain in the 400m. Both Spain and the 4x400m team set school records throughout the year.

#8 – Tye Roberson becomes first AFCA All-America First Team honoree since 2015

Tye Roberson was named to the AFCA, AP, and Don Hansen All-America First Team due to his excellence in the return game. The Laurens, South Carolina, native set a new program record with an average of 41.9 yards per kick return this season. That average led NCAA DII and was second amongst all NCAA division. He was one of just two NCAA DII athletes with three kick return touchdowns, returning one for 98 yards against Anderson, 87 yards against Mars Hill, and 95 yards vs. Catawba. He is the first AFCA First Team All-America honoree since offensive Joe Ray in 2015.

#7 – Softball wins back-to-back SAC Tournament Championships

For the 10th time in program history and the second consecutive year, the Lenoir-Rhyne softball team won the South Atlantic Conference Tournament Championship. This was their first back-to-back title since they won four straight from 2010-13. Madison Wilson was named SAC Tournament MVP due to her incredible performances both on the mound and at the plate. Madison Primm and Lani Warren joined a prestigious group as they were named both NFCA All-Americans and CSC Academic All-Americans. During a win over Emory & Henry head coach Shena Hollar picked up her 1000th win at Lenoir-Rhyne, and her 1,063 career victories places her third among active NCAA DII coaches.

This season the Lenoir-Rhyne softball team played their games in the brand new McCrorie Family Stadium. This stadium sits in the upper echelon of NCAA DII, featuring stadium-style seating, extended dugouts, concession stand, two VIP viewing areas, and a brand new press box with included soundproof broadcast booth. The stadium is named in honor of Hank McCrorie ’60, and his wife, Bernice McRCrorie, who made the lead gift in support of the project. 

#6 – Women’s Soccer claims third NCAA Regional Title in five years

Despite both roster and coaching turnover, the Lenoir-Rhyne women’s soccer team continues to win. Head coach Justin Maullin and his squad finished with a record of 13-5-3 and won their third regional title in five years, taking down Columbus State (1-0), North Georgia (1-0), and Lander (1-0) en route to the championship. They would eventually fall 2-1 in the national quarterfinals to eventual national champion Florida Tech. Lenoir-Rhyne remains the only SAC school since 2017 to win a women’s soccer regional.

Seven Bears were named to the SAC All-Conference team, two on the first team, one on the second, and three on the third. This year was the program’s 17th full season (9-1-1 in shortened Covid year) that they finished with double-digit wins, a streak that dates back to 2008. Their NCAA tournament appearance was the program’s 12th, and sixth consecutive. Due to their on field accomplishments Lenoir-Rhyne finished the season ranked eighth in the United Soccer Coaches national poll.

#5 – Lenoir-Rhyne Administration leadership transition

2025 was a year for new leadership at Lenoir-Rhyne University, with Daron Montgomery ’95 completing his first year as Vice President for Athletics. Montgomery has provided stability and a renewed vision for LR’s Division II athletic programs. This milestone coincides with the inauguration of President Summer McGee and her first six months of leadership, during which Dr. McGee has set a clear strategic direction and energized the campus community. Together, their early tenures signal a promising future for collaboration and continued growth at Lenoir-Rhyne.

#4 – Women’s Triathlon wins third national title in four years

Head coach Harley Mason has built a dynasty in Hickory. Her Bears squad won their third DII Women’s Triathlon title in four years, avenging last year’s loss to Wingate with a four-point victory. Zoila Sicilia joined teammate Sabrina Fleig as the only women’s triathletes to win a national title, taking home the individual crown with a time of 1:03:59. Fleig finished runner-up behind Sicilia and Claudia Teran-Romagosa was fourth. All three were named CTCA First Team All-Americans, while Isis Gaskin was a Second Team honoree and Alex Linden an Honorable Mention. Coach Mason picked up her fourth consecutive National Coach of the Year award and has now taken home that honor every year she has coached the Bears.

#3 – Beyond the Bricks

Lenoir-Rhyne athletes excelled in the classroom, posting a 3.44 average GPA for the 2025 calendar year. 262 athletes posted 4.00 GPAs and 789 finished with at least a 3.50 in either the spring or fall semester. Every varsity team on campus had above a 3.00 team GPA. 21 teams posted at least a 3.50 in either the spring or fall semester. Additionally, LR won the South Atlantic Conference’s league-wide challenge for Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), an award based on participation in Play4Kay, Make-A-Wish, Team Impact, Community Service, and overall sports GPA.

#2 – Men’s Basketball’s run to the Elite Eight

Head coach Brent Owen and staff led the Bears to arguably their best season in program history in 2024-25, setting a program record for wins (29) and advancing to the NCAA DII Elite Eight for the first time in program history. Lenoir-Rhyne brought home their first SAC Tournament Championship since 2003 with an 82-78 comeback victory over Lincoln Memorial in the championship. The run continued a week later when the Bears won their first NCAA Southeast Regional championship thanks to a 76-73 overtime victory over UNC Pembroke. 

For his efforts coach Owen was named South Atlantic Conference Coach of the Year and NABC Southeast District Co-Coach of the Year. Ziare Wells, Hantz Louis-Jeune, and Conrad Luczynski were named to the All-SAC Team, with Wells being named SAC Newcomer of the Year and SAC Tournament MVP. Luczynski scored 60 points over three games in the Southeast Regional and was named Tournament MVP. 

#1 – Baseball’s magical run to national semi-finals

Under the guidance of first-year head coach Adam Skonieczki, the Lenoir-Rhyne baseball team put together a magical season that saw them advance all the way to the national semi-finals. The Bears finished runners-up to Catawba in both the South Atlantic Conference regular season and tournament championships. After breezing through the NCAA Southeast Regional at Belmont Abbey, Lenoir-Rhyne won their final two games in a best-of-three series at Catawba to claim the first NCAA Southeast Regional Championship in program history. Lenoir-Rhyne went 2-2 at the NCAA Championships, coming within one game of the championship series. They finished the year with a No. 4 ranking by the NCBWA.

This offense was quite possibly the most potent in NCAA DII history, as they finished the season ranked first in DII history in home runs (137), third in total bases (1,365), eighth in RBI’s (570), and 20th in slugging percentage (.617). Mackenzie Wainwright set new NCAA DII records for hits (121) and total bases (234), and is third all time in runs (102). Wainwright, Sal Carricato, and Cole Stanford were all named All-Americans and Stanford became the first Bear to ever be honored with Academic All-American status. Wainwright was named the Southeast Regional Player of the Year by the D2CCA, NCBWA, and ABCA and Adam Skonieczki was the ABCA Region Coach of the Year and Perfect Game National Coach of the Year.