By: Rebecca Osowski

After finishing fifth in the Eastern Semifinal of the Women’s Fleet Race National Championship, the Big Green moved onto championship racing, one of 18 teams to qualify for the final round.
 
Dartmouth sailed in six races, posting 45 points to sit in fifth place after the first day of racing.
 
The Big Green finished tenth in the first A Division race but began a steady climb back into the top five. Dartmouth finished sixth in the first B Division race before going on to finish ninth to put the Big Green in sixth.
 
In the third set of races, both boats finished in the top five. The A Division took third before the B Division sailed to second place, the highest Big Green finish of the day.
 
With the first day of racing concluded, the Big Green sit sixth points behind fourth place Stanford. Tulane leads the way with 27 total points, 20 in the A Division and seven in the B Division. Georgetown (38) and Brown (38) sit in second and third.
 
The Big Green hold a three point lead over sixth place MIT. Yale, who won the western semifinal sits in eighth place with 52 points, followed by Harvard with 54 points.
 

“Everyone is a leader,” said Anna Baxter ’25 when I asked her about her experience being a captain of Amherst College’s women’s hockey team, which advanced to the NCAA Division III national championship this year. “Everyone has something to say. Everyone leads by action.”

Perhaps Baxter herself is the best demonstration of leading by action. Hockey star, role model in the classroom, and a chemistry thesis student soon to pursue a career in dentistry, Baxter has managed to act as a leader both on and off the ice.

Born to Play

Baxter has been playing hockey for most of her life. Growing up in Joliet, Illinois, Baxter started with hockey at only eight years old, playing for the Chicago Hawks boys program. She then transitioned to Tier 1 hockey — the highest level of youth hockey — at age 12, playing for Chicago Mission.

Baxter continued with hockey into her teenage years. Since her high school did not have a team, she played for a club team, which had a season lasting from August until May. Most of her middle and high school years were devoted to hockey, but she enjoyed it greatly.

Baxter’s talent was recognized by Jeff Matthews, the head coach of Amherst’s hockey team, when Baxter played for her club team at nationals in Marlborough, Massachusetts, her freshman year of high school. Baxter admitted that she had never heard of Amherst College — or any small liberal arts school from the New England area — prior to this moment. “I’m from Illinois, and most people from my school, when they go to college, it’s somewhere in the Midwest,” Baxter said.

Nonetheless, Baxter was recruited and admitted to Amherst for hockey. While she had several other options available, Baxter said that the college felt right for her.

Aye Aye, Captain

Baxter was selected as captain of the Amherst women’s hockey team through a team vote. Although the title is in itself an honor, it was the way Baxter’s teammates spoke of her character that proved her abilities as a leader.

Co-captain Emily Hohmann ’26 described her experience working and playing with Baxter as a pleasure. “[She] knows exactly what to say in every moment. When we were kind of down in the dumps in certain games, she knew exactly how to light a fire [in us],” Hohmann said.

Hohmann felt that she was able to work with Baxter as both a mentor and a co-leader. She described her admiration for Baxter’s approach to being captain and how she has always provided the team with words of encouragement.

“Anna Baxter is one of the best role models and leaders that I’ve ever encountered,” she said. “[She] just knew all the right words, and when we needed a pat on the shoulder, she was there to give one.”

To her teammate Kelsey Stewart ’25, Baxter is “definitely a natural-born leader.” Stewart was particularly inspired by Baxter’s ability to make time for both academics and athletics while succeeding at both. She also shared that she greatly enjoyed getting to know Baxter personally: “She’s just one of the most genuine [and] funny people I know. There’s never a dull moment with her.”

Baxter herself described her experience as captain with humility. “[It was] a responsibility that I was very grateful for,” she said. “I think it was so easy because everyone that Jeff — my coach — recruits is a leader in their own way.”

Surrounded by Loved Ones

Anna described her family as something central to her life. Baxter’s two siblings are volleyball players, with one sister being a recent graduate from Clarkson University and the other being a current student there. Her father is a firefighter, and her mother is a teacher. Even if she can’t spend as much time with her family anymore, she still cherishes them. Not only is she close with her immediate family, but she also has a strong relationship with her extended relatives. Baxter’s desire to have a career centered around long-term relationships stems from the bonds she has with family members.

She attributed her early interest in STEM to her mother’s job as an A.P. Biology teacher. “If we were to do a fun activity when we were little, it was like making slime or [using] baking soda and vinegar … you know, that kind of stuff,” she said, laughing.

While STEM was never something Baxter was forced into, her family always encouraged her to explore these fields.

Becoming the Woman in STEM

Despite being a chemistry major, Baxter actually began her college experience disliking the subject. She knew that she would go into a STEM field, but was surprised that she eventually chose chemistry because she “absolutely hated it” growing up.

“I think I hated it in high school because when I took it, it was during Covid, and I [thought], ‘This does not make any sense,’” she said.

In addition, Baxter did not feel as prepared for Amherst as many of her peers were. Coming from a Title I public high school, she described Amherst as an academic challenge: a “competitive, high caliber” school she had to adjust to. She recalled that hockey had made this adjustment a lot easier, because she had “a community to rely on.”

Baxter only enrolled in her first chemistry course because of a professor’s recommendation. She eventually discovered a love for the subject due to the excellent professors she encountered, and shortly after, she declared it her major. 

Assistant Professor of Chemistry Christopher Durr shared his experience working with Baxter: “I really got to know Anna when she took ‘Inorganic Chemistry’ [with] me. Anna’s the best … She just makes every class feel more fun and more interesting because she always comes prepared. She’s always ready to go.”

Durr also spoke highly of Anna’s work ethic and personable qualities. “Whatever team I put her in [had] a good time,” he said.

Durr recognized that Baxter is a phenomenal athlete in addition to an excellent student. “I’m the [Interim] Faculty Athletic Representative for the college, and so I would always go and see her and the team play,” he said. “It’s cool to get to see your student … crush it in the classroom and then also do the same athletically.”

Baxter also began to feel more certain of her academic ability through the support of her community. She shared that her interest for research has developed alongside her self-confidence. “When I first came in, the idea of writing a thesis … was like, ‘Absolutely not,’” she said. Now, Baxter has completed a thesis in the chemistry department titled “Controlled Synthesis of Lamellar Polymer Brush Structures,” where she explored a new strategy to grow organic polymer bristles from inorganic clay sheets a few nanometers thick. The final product, called a polymer-clay nanocomposite, is expected to have enhanced mechanical and thermal properties that can be applied in the biomedical, aeronautical, and green packaging industries.

Baxter’s thesis supervisor, Professor of Chemistry Sandra Burkett, described Baxter’s work ethic as a “no nonsense, get stuff done” attitude. “She’s just so organized,” Burkett said. She explained how impressive it was for Baxter to be able to tackle an experimental thesis while studying for her dental exam. “It’s remarkable what she’s managed to juggle in her time, and [she’s] just so positive about everything.”

Hohmann also witnessed Baxter’s drive to succeed. “She’s very determined,” she said. “Whatever she sets her mind on, she’ll get there no matter what, which is cool to watch.”

Durr added that Baxter went to both NCAA and NESCAC hockey national championships while still managing to stay on top of her coursework and completing a thesis. “To be able to do everything that she does and [to] do it at a really high level is really impressive … I don’t know how she did it,” he said.

Smile Big For the Dentist!

When asked how she chose to be pre-dental, Baxter said that she actually didn’t know what she wanted to do the entirety of her freshman year. In December of her sophomore year, she confided this to her dentist, who then invited her to shadow him. This experience made her “fall in love” with dentistry.

Baxter said that she wanted to be in a field where long-term relationships, like the ones she has formed with her family and community, are possible. “With dentistry, you see [the same] people for like 20 years. You know these people forever, and I like that form of community,” she said.

Baxter’s hockey teammates feel very confident in her future career as a dentist. “I plan on flying out to wherever she has her practice and going [to] her for all of my dental work,” Stewart said.

“It’s just funny because anytime anyone has anything going on with their mouth, it’ll be like, ‘Bax, what’s going on?’” Hohmann said. “And she knows exactly what to say [and] what to do.”

Baxter plans on applying to dental school this year for matriculation in 2026. She hopes to use a gap year at home to deepen her understanding of dentistry by working as an assistant.

Durr believes that Baxter is someone other students should look up to. “I think Anna is a really great example of a student who kind of does a little bit of everything and does it with a smile on her face and just makes everybody’s day that much better,” he said.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Some of Harvard’s sports teams would be virtually wiped out by a Trump administration decision announced on Thursday that would make the Ivy League school with the nation’s largest athletic program ineligible for international student visas.

Seven of the eight rowers on the men’s heavyweight crew team that just won the Eastern Sprints title — and is headed to the national championships — list international hometowns on the school’s website. Mick Thompson, the leading scorer last season, and Jack Bar, who was a captain, are among a handful of Canadians on the men’s hockey roster; 10 of the 13 members of the men’s squash team and more than half of the women’s soccer and golf rosters also list foreign hometowns.

Harvard’s 42 varsity sports teams are the most in the nation, and Sportico reported last month that 21% of the players on the school’s rosters for the 2024-25 seasons — or 196 out of 919 athletes — had international hometowns. The site noted that some could be U.S. citizens or green card holders who wouldn’t need one of the international visas at issue in an escalating fight premised by the administration’s assertions that the school failed to protect Jewish students from antisemitism.

The Department of Homeland Security on Thursday revoked Harvard’s ability to enroll international students, saying the school has created an unsafe campus environment by allowing “anti-American, pro-terrorist agitators” to assault Jewish students on campus. The move could force as many as 6,800 foreign students at the school outside of Boston — more than a quarter of its total enrollment — to transfer or leave the country.

Harvard called the action unlawful and said it is working to provide guidance to students. President Alan Garber, noting that he is himself Jewish, said last month after filing a lawsuit to halt a federal funding freeze that the school “will continue to fight hate with the urgency it demands as we fully comply with our obligations under the law. That is not only our legal responsibility. It is our moral imperative.”

Harvard athletic director Erin McDermott previously declined an interview request from The Associated Press on the potential impact of the visa ban. A Harvard athletics spokesman on Thursday referred a request for comment to the school’s main media information office, which did not immediately respond. The AP also requested comment from three Harvard coaches, who did not respond.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, a former Harvard hockey player, declined to comment when contacted by the AP. Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, a Democrat who played basketball at Harvard, said the athletes are among 85,000 foreign students who come to the state to “study, conduct research, start businesses, and create jobs and innovations.”

“President Trump is punishing our students and hurting our economy, all as part of his agenda to silence anyone who disagrees with him,” she said. “The only ones who benefit from Donald Trump’s actions are China and other countries who are already recruiting these students. It’s the exact opposite of America First.”

The latest chapter of the U.S.-Canada rivalry is expected to unfold at the World Para Ice Hockey Championship, starting Saturday and live on Peacock from Buffalo, New York.

The U.S. is the four-time reigning Paralympic champion, but last year Canada won the world title, snapping a streak of more than 20 consecutive losses to the Americans.

Declan Farmer, the most prolific scorer in U.S. history with more than 200 goals, said the U.S.-Canada rivalry had been “a little dormant” for a few years during the American domination.

Not anymore. Canada also won the teams’ most recent meeting on March 29. At worlds, they’ll face off in the May 31 final should each team top its group and win its semifinal.

“(Now) there’s full butterflies beforehand,” said Farmer, who made his Paralympic debut in 2014 at age 16. “You’ve got to execute. You’ve got to get the job done. You have to be at your best to win. It’s not just about showing up anymore, which is a good, healthy place to be.”

Already this year, Canada beat the U.S. in the 4 Nations Face-Off final in men’s hockey in February. In April, the U.S. beat Canada in the IIHF World Championship final in women’s hockey. Both games went to overtime.

In Para hockey, Canada has rebuilt since a 5-0 loss in the 2022 Paralympic final.

“Some of the younger guys that (weren’t) really quite ready to compete against us line for line, where they just need a couple years to come along, and now they’re making some progress,” Farmer said. “I think it’s really as simple as that, and we just kind of have to keep matching their pace of improvement.”

2025 World Para Ice Hockey Championship Schedule

The Milan Cortina Paralympics open on March 6, 2026.

GAME SCHEDULE – ALL TIMES CT

Game 1 | Friday, May 23 at 4 p.m. 

Game 2 | Saturday, May 24 at 2 p.m.

Game 3 | TBD (if necessary game)

HOW TO FOLLOW

Game one will be broadcast on ESPN2, while Saturday’s game will be available on ESPN. A radio broadcast will be offered on The Franchise 2 1560 AM and 103. FM. Live stats will be available on statbroadcast.com.

MAY I?

The Sooners are 246-70 in May in head coach Patty Gasso‘s 31 seasons with the Sooners, while turning in a 92-8 record in the program’s eight championship seasons. 

50 WINS

The Sooners are looking for 50 wins for the ninth consecutive season … the last time OU hasn’t reached that milestone was in 2015 … OU is 48-7 on the season and on a five game winning streak. 

NCAA SUPER REGIONAL SNAPSHOT

The Sooners are 159-52 all-time in the NCAA Tournament … the Sooners are 6-6 against Alabama in the NCAA Tournament and … 13 of OU’s 21 games against Alabama have been played in the postseason … 10 of those games have taken place in Oklahoma City … OU and Alabama have never played in Norman .. the Sooners are hosting their 12th super regional … OU has notched 16 consecutive wins in super regional play … Oklahoma and Alabama met in the 2015 Super Regionals in Tuscaloosa … OU is playing its sixth super regional against a current member of the SEC … OU is 46-9 against current SEC teams in the NCAA Tournament … Oklahoma is looking for its 18th Women’s College World Series and ninth in a row.

LOWRY’S SEASONING

Audrey Lowry has pitched four consecutive scoreless outings, while also retiring the last 15 batters that she’s faced dating back to May 2 at Florida. During the SEC Tournament she earned the win and retired nine consecutive batters against No. 6/7 Arkansas. 

TWENTY-WON

Righty Sam Landry went 3-0 last weekend, spinning three innings of work in all of OU’s wins. Landry is 22-4 on the season, ranking first among all active pitchers in the nation with 85 career wins.

PICK YOUR POISON

Kasidi Pickering hit three home runs and drove in nine runs during the regionals last weekend. She hit a grand slam and also homered twice in the same game, posting the 10th two-home run game by a Sooner in NCAA Regionals history. Pickering is hitting .476 (20-for-42) in 17 NCAA Tournament games, while homering nine times and driving in 22 runs. She’s had a two-homer game in two different contests this season. 

ALL-REGION HONORS

Eight different Sooners earned NFCA Midwest All-Region honors. It’s the sixth time that OU has had eight honorees for a single season, tied for a program record. Sam Landry, Gabbie Garcia, Ella Parker and Kasidi Pickering earned first team recognition, while Nelly McEnroe-Marinas and Cydney Sanders were tabbed to the second team. Ailana Agbayani and Abigale Dayton took home third team honors. 

SEC RECORD BOOK WATCH

The Sooners hit an SEC Tournament single game record six home runs in the 8-6 win against No. 6/7 Arkansas in the semifinals May 9. OU also set the record for biggest comeback win in SEC Tournament history, overcoming a 6-1 deficit.

PFP QUEEN

Sam Landry gets to just about everything in the circle. The right-handed pitcher leads the SEC among hurlers with 49 assists.

COMEBACK KIDS

With the 8-6 win against No. 6/7 Arkansas, the Sooners earned their 17th comeback victory on the season. The comeback win in the SEC Championship Semifinals was OU’s largest comeback since 2018.

BRINGING OUR BOOM

Oklahoma has 110 home runs this season, becoming the first program to hit at least 100 home runs in six straight years. Gabbie Garcia leads the way with 18, while 13 Sooners have at least two.

MAGIC NUMBER

Oklahoma is 41-0 when scoring at least six runs. The Sooners earned three run-rule wins on the weekend during regionals, bringing Oklahoma to 22 such victories this season. 

ALL-SEC                           

Oklahoma earned nine different All-SEC honors, with Coach Gasso being named SEC Coach of the Year and Sam Landry was tabbed Newcomer of the Year. 

RANKED GAMES

The Sooners have played 24 games against ranked teams this season, going 20-6 in such contests. The Sooners earned three sweeps against top 15 programs, including a sweep against No. 3/2 Texas – OU’s first ever three game sweep against a top five team. 

The Sooners have outscored top 25 teams, 157-108. Freshman Gabbie Garcia has paced the Sooners with nine home runs and 30 RBIs in 82 at-bats against ranked teams this season. Sam Landry has fanned 81 batters and gone 10-4 with a 2.28 ERA in her 18 appearances against ranked teams.

ACTIVE CAREER LEADERS

The Sooners have a number of players in the top ten among active leaders in a variety of statistical categories, particularly between the arms of Isabella Smith and Sam Landry. 

-Wins: Sam Landry (first in DI – 85), Isabella Smith (second in DI – 79)

-Innings pitched: Isabella Smith (sixth in DI – 649.3)

-Appearances: Sam Landry (sixth in DI and NCAA – 149), Isabella Smith (seventh in DI and NCAA – 140)

-Strikeouts: Isabella Smith (fifth in DI and 15th in NCAA – 682) 

-Home runs: Cydney Sanders (7th in DI – 56)

-Walks: Cydney Sanders (4th in DI – 152)

THE GIFT OF GAB

Freshman infielder Gabbie Garcia is tied for 6th among all freshmen in Division with 18 home runs. She was named D1Softball Freshman of the Week March 11 and April 8 as well SEC Player of the Week March 18. Earlier this season she became the first OU freshman since Jocelyn Alo to homer in five consecutive games. April 30 she was named to the top spot of the Softball America Shortstops rankings.

AND IT’S OUT OF THE PARK(ER)!

Sophomore Ella Parker is heating up over the past three weekends, having hit safely in 13 of the last 15 games. She’s homered in six of the last ten games, hitting half of her total for the year beginning in the Texas series. 

BALANCE IS KEY    

One of the greatest assets of the OU offense this year has been its balance. The Sooners have six players with at least 11 home runs, with Gabbie Garcia pacing the way with 18 and Kasidi Pickering with 17. 

SYD & CYD

Sydney Barker and Cydney Sanders have combined for six of OU’s 12 RBIs in the SEC Tournament. 

PERFORMING UNDER THE BRIGHT LIGHTS

Nelly McEnroe-Marinas has hit 11 of her 14 home runs in SEC play. She’s had a multi-home run series against South Carolina, Arkansas, Missouri and Mississippi State, and also homered against Alabama and Texas. In total she’s homered against every SEC team OU has faced this season outside of Tennessee and Florida.

BIG BATS

OU has homered in 45 of 55 games this season. Oklahoma has hit five home runs three times, while setting a season high with six homers against Arkansas May 9. Two different players have had streaks of four games in a row with a home run or better.

FRESHIES

Oklahoma freshman have combined to hit 50 of Oklahoma’s 110 home runs, paced by 18 from Gabbie Garcia and 14 from Nelly McEnroe-Marinas. Five different OU freshmen have hit at least two home runs.

NATIONAL NODS

Senior pitcher Sam Landry and sophomore outfielder Kasidi Pickering were both named to the USA Collegiate Softball Player of the Year Top 25 list Wednesday, April 30.

ALL-SEC SOONERS

The Oklahoma Sooners made some noise in the all-tournament team listing. Six Sooners combined for nine total honors. Sam Landry was named SEC Newcomer of the Year, First Team All-SEC and to the all-defensive squad. Kasidi Pickering and Nelly McEnroe-Marinas made the first team. Gabbie Garcia was tabbed to the second team and all-defensive squad, while Ailana Agbayani was also a second team pick. Head Coach Patty Gasso was named SEC Coach of the Year in her first season in the league.

HAWAII FIVE-0

Junior second baseman Ailana Agbayani is coming off her first SEC Player of the Week honor April 29 after hitting .750 (6-for-8) with a grand slam, three runs five RBIs and two walks. Agbayani tied a career high with five RBIs in OU’s 7-6 win against No. 3/2 Texas Friday, April 25. She was also named Softball America Star of the Week that same week. All four of her home runs have either come against ranked teams or in postseason play. 

IT’S PERFECT!

The Sooners have spun two perfect games this year between the arms of Isabella Smith and Sam Landry. Smith posted a five-inning perfect game in an 8-0 win against Cal Baptist in her first-ever start with OU. She became the only pitcher in program history to post a perfect game in a debut. Landry followed that up with a five-inning perfect game at No. 23/24 Baylor later in February. 

ROLL CALL!

Oklahoma Softball set program records for series attendance and single game attendance for a regular season series at Love’s Field during the sweep of Texas April 25-27. A total of 13,734 fans saw the series, while game three’s attendance reached a record, 4,609 at Love’s.

RECORD SWEEP

OU has swept four SEC series this year (South Carolina, Arkansas, Mississippi State and Texas), with the latest being a record-setting sweep against No. 3/2 Texas April 25-27. OU’s series sweep against the Longhorns marked the program’s first-ever three-game sweep against a top-five team.

JERSEY COMBOS

OU has worn five different jersey combinations this season and the records in each are in (note credit to Sooner Tracker). 

-White jersey/crimson pants: 10-2

-White jersey/white pants: 8-2

-Crimson jersey/crimson pants: 13-2

-Crimson jersey/white pants: 4-0

-Anthracite: 13-1

CYDNEY SLAMDERS

Cydney Sanders has played in the most games among active Sooners, logging 228 for her career and 167 for her time at Oklahoma. Sanders’ 56 career homers features 33 during her time in Norman, two of which came in the same inning against St. Thomas April 3. She was the first Sooner to do so since Alynah Torres homered twice in the same frame against UT Arlington March 20, 2024. Sanders also surpassed 100 career walks at OU, standing at 109 right now.

USA TEAM

Associate head coaches Jennifer Rocha and JT Gasso were both tabbed to the U.S. Softball Women’s National Team Coaching Pool as announced Monday, May 5. Also on the national scale, OU head coach Patty Gasso was named United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee College Coach of the Year April 29. 

SEC COMMUNITY SERVICE TEAM

Junior lefty Kiertson Deal was named to the SEC Softball Community Service Team Tuesday, May 6, becoming the first-ever Sooner Softball player to take home the award in the program’s first year in the league. The honor is given to student-athletes that have given back to their community with efforts off the field. In the circle Deal has spun two complete games against top-10 teams this year, doing so in the Saturday game against No. 10/9 Tennessee (7-1 win) and No. 3/2 Texas (7-2).

21 IS NO. 1

Sooner righty Sam Landry was picked first overall in the first-ever Athletes Unlimited Softball League Draft Saturday, May 3. Landry is set to play for the AUSL Volts, joining OU alumnae Tiare Jennings on the team.

KEEPIN’ IT 100

Oklahoma has seen a number of players surpass the “100 milestone” in a variety of statistical categories this year, including:

–Sam Landry reached 100 strikeouts this season (April 9 vs. OSU)

–Kasidi Pickering reached 100 career hits (April 9 vs. OSU)

–Ella Parker surpassed 100 career hits (February 28 vs. Marshall), 100 starts and 100 runs (April 26), as well as 100 RBIs (April 27)

–Isabela Emerling reached 100 career RBIs (March 26 at Wichita State)

–Cydney Sanders eclipsed 100 RBIs at OU (April 3 vs. St. Thomas)

–Cydney Sanders surpassed 100 walks at OU (April 26 vs. Texas)

–Kasidi Pickering surpassed 100 runs (May 17 vs. Cal)

–Kasidi Pickering surpassed 100 RBI (May 18 vs. Cal)

 

Hundreds of high school athletes around Northern Nevada will continue their athletic and academic careers in college, and they are being honored at signing ceremonies around the area this spring.