By MONTE DUTTON

At the introduction of Presbyterian College’s new women’s basketball coach, it wouldn’t have been much different if the people there had gathered for Thanksgiving.

Players, even some who won’t be around next year, filed in. Quinton Ferrell and staff were represented. Steve Englehart, the head football coach, was there. The college president, Dr. Anita Gustafson, lent her disarming, gracious presence. The new coach had family members there. Fans in town took seats.

In that sense, all was appropriate.

The athletics director welcomed the new coach to “the PC family.” The new coach said she was impressed by “the family here.”

“The first time I spoke with the new coach, it was evident that she was about family,” Dee Nichols said. “The people love and respect.

“She’s committed to on building a program based on academic integrity and recruiting talented women who are the right fit for PC.”

This is reassuring, the knowledge that PC isn’t in the business of corruption and running off moribund misfits.

How could the upstanding folks in the room be wrong?

Presbyterian College launched “a nationwide search” to find a successor to Alaura Sharp as women’s basketball head coach.

Tiffany Sardin, introduced as the choice on Friday afternoon, is certainly well traveled.

Most recently, Sardin was associate head coach at Saint Louis University in 2022-23. Before that, she was head coach for two seasons at Chicago State.

After playing collegiately at the University of Virginia and professionally in Portugal, Sardin went on to coach at Mount Olive (N.C.), Illinois-Chicago, Boston University, Clemson, Longwood, Chicago State and Saint Louis.

Sardin has coached in the state (Clemson) and conference (Longwood is also in the Big South).

Presbyterian athletics director Dee Nichols said seven were interviewed leading up to Sardin’s selection.

“All the stops I’ve had have been different and unique in a sense,” Sardin said.

A delegation of players from Sharp’s illustrious final team attended, including Tilda Sjokvist, who is in the transfer protocol, and Bryanna Brady, whose career ended with the Blue Hose’ loss to national champion in the NCAA Tournament.

She has coached 10 all-conference players in five different alignments.

Sardin is a native of Chicago. The Cougars upset Wisconsin in her latter season, but her two-season record (the first was under COVID) was 4-37. Chicago State has gone 7-48 in the two seasons since she stepped down and was 1-26 this year.

Sardin said, “Hard work is just part of my DNA. … We’re going to have to get after it and continue to make special things happen.”

Sharp’s PC career closed with a rush as the Blue Hose (21-15) pulled three straight upsets to win the Big South tournament and upended Sacred Heart, 49-42, in the play-in game of the NCAA tournament. National champion South Carolina ended PC’s season, 91-39. She then accepted Appalachian State’s offer to become head coach there after six seasons with the Blue Hose.

“I’m ready to go,” said Sardin. “We’ve got a lot of work to do, but I’m excited and ready to get going.”

Presbyterian may have lost some wind from its sails in the first game of a crucial Big South baseball series at High Point.

The Blue Hose had won six of their previous seven conference games leading into Friday evening’s 13-3 thrashing at the hands of the Panthers, who moved to within a game of PC in the standings.

Presbyterian (19-19, 10-3) dropped a game to High Point (20-18, 9-4) in a heated race at the top.

Friday’s contest followed by three nights a 24-3 loss to Wofford.

Blue Hose ace Daniel Eagen (L, 4-1) scuffled, allowing three hits but seven earned runs in 5-2/3 innings. He walked four and struck out six.

Gus Hughes (W, 5-4) gave up four hits and three runs, walking two and fanning seven.

High Point’s three-run fourth escaped a 3-3 tie, and the Panthers added five runs in the sixth inning, one in the seventh and one in the eighth.

Peyton Carr, Eric Grintz and Brayden Simpson all homered for the Panthers. Carr drove in three runs. Simpson scored four.

Joel Dragoo and Noah Lebron homered for the Blue Hose, both solo blasts. Jackson Hugus doubled. Jay Wetherington singled for the only other hit.

The teams play again at Williard Stadium on Saturday at 4 p.m.

Take a look at the box here.

In the second round of the Big South Men’s Golf Championship, Presbyterian College’s Lleyton Renner fired a 7-under-par 64 to jump 22 spots in the individual competition at Ocean Creek in Fripp Island.

High Point moved into first place with a 271 on Friday, six strokes ahead of first-round leader Gardner-Webb, eight up on Longwood.

High Point’s Fred Roberts, who was 8-under for the round, shot 63. He leads Longwood’s Justin LaRue by a stroke.

Renner is tied for ninth. As a team, PC is sixth.

Six members of the men’s tennis team earned Big South all-conference honors.

Freshman Evgenios Vasilakis claimed the Big South Freshman of the Year award.

The doubles tandem of senior Javier Matos and sophomore Denim Yadav were first team in doubles. Matos, junior Pedro Cardoso, and sophomore David Mamalat were second team in singles. The doubles duo of Mamalat and freshman Marco Foglieni were second team doubles.

Yadav was named to the all-academic team.

PC’s Taylor Reaves was PC’s only inclusion on the Big South’s women’s golf all-conference team. She was named to the all-academic team.

High Point’s Ella Perna  is Women’s Golfer of the Year, while teammate Anna Howertonis Freshman of the Year

Charleston Southern head coach Chan Metts is Coach of the Year.  Gardner-Webb junior Neza Siftar is Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

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