A Nebraska track and field star won a national honor after a record-setting week. Axelina Johansson was named Big Ten Field Athlete of the Week and USTFCCCA National Athlete of the Week. 

Johansson set a school record, a Swedish record and an NCAA indoor record in the shot put with a throw of 19.72m (64-8 ½). She set the records while winning the shot put title at the Husker Holiday Open.

She’s had an accomplished career, competing in the 2024 Summer Olympics and finishing tenth overall. The Hok, Sweden native, also won an NCAA title in the shot put in 2023.

Nebraska returns to competition on Friday, Jan. 16 and Saturday, Jan. 17 at the Graduate Classic at the Devaney Center Indoor Track.

Bob Byrnes, one of the most respected and beloved track and field and cross-country officials in New Jersey, died on Thursday morning from injuries he sustained following an unexpected medical episode at a track and field meet on Wednesday, according to Marc MacNaughton, a friend and colleague of Byrnes.

Byrnes was officiating at the DeSchriver Invitational at Drew University in Madison at the time.

“We had paramedics and police there quickly, and Bob was taken to Morristown Medical Center, where he sadly passed away,” said MacNaughton. “Bob passed away doing what he loved – officiating the sport he gave so much of his time, heart, and passion to. He was on the track, serving the athletes and the community he cherished. A true fixture in our track family, Bob’s dedication, kindness, and steady presence will never be forgotten. He was a mentor to me. May he rest in eternal peace.”

Anyone who knew Bob will tell you that he had a gift for being able to make athletes feel relaxed before they competed, using his witty sense of humor to tell jokes and his unique storytelling to create laughter that helped settle the nerves of the competitors.

Bob’s influence reached generations of athletes, coaches, and officials. His professionalism, fairness, mentorship, and steady leadership shaped New Jersey track & field and cross country in ways that will endure long beyond his years of service. Bob’s legacy will always live on through the thousands of athletes, coaches, and officials whose lives he impacted forever!

Here is a look at all the different ways that Byrnes impacted the sport.

Officiating track and field wasn’t work to Bob; it was a way of life – a life he devoted wholeheartedly to the athletes of our state. He gave countless hours to the sport of track and field and cross country, serving with passion, integrity, and an unwavering commitment to ensuring every athlete had a fair, safe, memorable, and fun experience.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Senior Eva Hudson had 29 kills Thursday night inside the T-Mobile Center including the match-clinching swing as the top-seeded Kentucky Volleyball team beat third-seeded Wisconsin 3-2 (12-25, 25-22, 21-25, 26-24, 15-13) to advance into Sunday afternoon’s NCAA National Championship match in Kansas City.

The Wildcats will play fellow Southeastern Conference school Texas A&M on Sunday in the 2025 NCAA National Championship match, after the Aggies beat Pittsburgh 3-0 on Thursday night in the first national semifinal. The match will be 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC on Sunday. Wisconsin, who was the Big Ten’s lone remaining team in the NCAA Tournament, finishes its season with a 28-5 overall record and a 17-3 mark in league play.

Hudson had 29 kills in the match, hitting .455 with only four errors on 55 swings. The American Volleyball Coaches’ Association National Player of the Year finalist had seven digs and a pair of blocks in the match as well. Hudson was joined by her teammate Brooklyn DeLeye, who had 15 kills in the match with 14 digs. Freshman Kassie O’Brien in her first-career NCAA Final Four match had 54 assists in the match alongside a pair of kills and nine digs. Brooklyn DeLeye’s five blocks led the match for UK, who registered eight as a team.

Wisconsin’s Mimi Colyer had 32 kills in the match to lead all players in the match.

Set 1

Wisconsin took the opening set, 25-12 as the Badgers hit .682 in the first with 15 kills on its 22 swings. The Wildcats were behind from the get-go as Kentucky dropped the opening three points and the Badgers quickly ran their lead to six at 8-2 as UK called its first timeout trailing by a half dozen. The UW lead then grew to nine at 15-6 as UK had to call its second timeout down by a set-high nine points at the time. Wisconsin continued to pile on, scoring on 12 of its first 12 swings and 15 of its 22 in the set to close things out, 25-12. It was the largest margin of defeat in a single set for UK since 2018 when UK lost 25-10 to Nebraska in the Minneapolis Regional semifinal.

Set 2

Kentucky closed the second set on a 6-1 run to even the match and made things 1-1 with a 25-22 second-set victory. The Wildcats never trailed by more than two points the entire set, leading 7-4 in the early stanza with a few stuffs from Lizzie Carr and Kassie O’Brien to get the momentum back on the Wildcats side. Wisconsin took its first timeout after the longest rally of the match made things 16-15 in favor of the Badgers and UK responded by squaring the set at 20-20, the first tie of the set since things were 14-14 before the media timeout. With things at 20 all, Kentucky then ran off six of the last seven points led by Eva Hudson’s four terminations in the red zone to hand Kentucky the set, 25-22. UK picked up set point at 24-20 and called a timeout after UW ran off two points in a row to make things 24-22, but a first-ball sideout by Hudson on the left pin ended the set and Kentucky squared the match. In the second set, UK hit .258 with the Badgers hitting .229. Through two sets, UK had Eva Hudson with nine kills leading the way and 17 assists from Kassie O’Brien and six digs from Molly Tuozzo.

Set 3

The Badgers took a 2-1 lead in the match with a 25-21 third-set victory. UW hit .386 in the set with 21 kills to only four errors with Kentucky clipping the ball at a .333 clip, but seeing the luck in the set run out on a 3-0 Badger run to close things out and hand the Badgers the 2-1 lead in the match. Kentucky fell down 12-7 in the opening parts of the set before slowly chipping away to pull within two points at 16-14 and close to within two for the first time since it was 9-7. Wisconsin called a timeout with UK on a 3-0 run having crept to 21-20 and only needing one point to square the set. Out of the Badger timeout, Kentucky had a hitting error on an extended rally and then UW won a challenge to make things 24-21 and closed out the set on a touch off the block to win the set, 25-21. Through three set, UK was hitting .326 as a team, but was struggling with the UW offense with Wisconsin hitting .396 as a team and Mimi Collier having 22 kills on 42 swings with a .395 hitting efficiency. Eva Hudson led Kentucky with 14 kills on 32 swings adding in seven digs and a pair of blocks.

Set 4

Kentucky managed to force the match to a decisive fifth set with a 26-24 fourth set victory as UK hit .270 and won it on its fourth set point to seal the deal and send the match to a fifth set. UK fell behind early in the set with UW leading by a pair of sideouts at 13-10 before a successful Kentucky challenge made things 13 all and things were back to square one. Kentucky took a 15-13 lead into the media timeout thanks to an ace by Molly Tuozzo that clipped the net and that would be UK’s largest lead of the set before a kill by Eva Hudson made things 19-16 and UW burned its first timeout. Wisconsin pulled back into things with the Badgers pulling to within 21-20 and making things a one-point set. Kentucky worked around a Badger timeout to arrive at set point with a 24-21 lead and saw all three set points evaporate as things were evened again at 24 all. UK got a thunderous kill from Brooklyn DeLeye for 25-24 and then a kill for the Wildcats on an extended rally ended the set as UK forced things to a fifth at 26-24.

Set 5

Kentucky jumped out to a 4-1 lead thanks to lethal swings in transition and the Wildcats were ahead 6-1 before the blink of an eye as Trinity Ward was serving bullets and pushed UK into the lead with a 5-0 service run after things were square at 1-1. Wisconsin then brought itself off the deck as the teams changed sides with UK leading 8-2 and the Badgers saw themselves get to within 8-5 after a quick 3-0 run. A crushing blow by Brooklyn DeLeye got UK back on track to a sideout and Kentucky got to 10 first at 10-6. Kentucky picked up match point at 14-11 and after a hitting error by UK and a transition kill by UW, the Wildcats called for their first timeout needing one sideout for the match. The serve by UW was sent to Hudson who passed to O’Brien off the net and Hudson buried her 29th kill of the match to the floor to seal the deal.

For the latest on UK Volleyball, follow the Wildcats on Twitter and Instagram at @KentuckyVB.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – It was announced today [Dec. 19] that Providence College will induct 10 individuals into its Athletics Hall of Fame, in addition to the 2013 Women’s Cross Country Team, which claimed the program’s second NCAA Division I National Championship. Inductees will be honored on Friday, June 5 at 6:30 p.m. at the Ruane Friar Development Center on the Providence College campus. Fans can purchase tickets to the event using the following link: 2026 Providence College Athletics Hall of Fame Ceremony
 

The inductees will be Lisa Brown-Miller ’88 (women’s ice hockey), Bryce Cotton ’14 (men’s basketball), Gerry Deegan (men’s cross country/track), Danette Doetzel ’09 (women’s cross country/track), Paul Guay ’90 (men’s ice hockey), Paul Kostacopolous ’87 (baseball – student-athlete & head coach), John Linehan ’02 (men’s basketball), Kerry Lyons ’94 (women’s soccer), Emily Sisson ’14 (women’s cross country/track) and Paula Wagoner ’98 (field hockey). Members of the 2013 women’s cross country team who will be inducted are Sarah Mary Collins ’16, Molly Keating ’16, Erin Murphy ’14, Laura Nagel ’14, Catarina Rocha ’17, Grace Thek ’14 and Sisson.
 
Brown-Miller, who will be inducted posthumously, is tied for 13th all-time in scoring at Providence with 154 points (92 goals, 62 assists). Her 92 goals rank as the seventh-highest total at the College. In 1985, her freshman season, she scored the winning goal against New Hampshire as Providence captured the ECAC Championship title. In 1988, she was the ECAC Division I Player of the Year. She also made the ECAC All-Star Team her sophomore and senior years. Brown-Miller played for the 1998 Gold Medal U.S. Olympic Team. She also played on six U.S. Women’s National Teams (1990, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1996 and 1997), recording 13 goals and 25 assists in 30 games. She was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009 as a member of the 1998 U.S. Olympic Team.
 
Although not heavily recruited out of high school, Cotton left his mark on Friartown. In his final two seasons, Cotton helped bring the Friars to the NIT (2013) and NCAA Tournament (2014). In his junior season, Cotton earned All-BIG EAST First-Team honors. He was the league scoring leader (18.3 points BIG EAST, 19.7 overall) in 2013. As a senior he did everything for the Friars, leading the team to its first BIG EAST title since 1994 and its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2004. He led the BIG EAST in assists (6.1 apg) and ranked second in the league in scoring (21.8 ppg, 23.4 ppg BIG EAST play). Cotton led the nation in minutes played (39.9 mpg). He established the team record for minutes played in a season at 1,398. He finished his career with 1,975 points and currently ranks fifth all-time in scoring at PC. In addition to earning Associated Press Honorable Mention All-America accolades in 2014, Cotton also was named BIG EAST Tournament Most Outstanding Player, First Team All-BIG EAST and a Lute Olson All-American. After going undrafted in the 2014 NBA draft, Cotton had a number of short stints in the NBA over his first two professional seasons, playing for the Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns and Memphis Grizzlies. He also played in the NBA Development League, China, Turkey and Italy between 2014 and 2018. He has enjoyed a long and decorated career in the Australian National Basketball League (NBL). As a member of the Perth Wildcats between 2017 and 2025, he won three NBL championships and five NBL Most Valuable Player Awards. He is also a two-time NBL Grand Final MVP, eight-time All-NBL First Team recipient and collected eight NBL scoring titles. He currently plays for the Adelaide 36ers of the Australian National Basketball League (NBL).
 
Deegan is one of five Friars to ever win a NCAA title. In 1978, Deegan captured the NCAA Indoor two-mile run. He earned All-America honors in cross country in 1977 after finishing third at the NCAA Championship. He also received All-America accolades during the 1978 indoor season (two-mile run) and the outdoor season where he placed second in the 5,000 meters at the NCAA Championship. 
 
Doetzel claimed an NCAA 10,000-meter title, five All-America honors and three BIG EAST titles during her career at Providence College. She claimed the 10,000-meter BIG EAST title twice (2008, 2009) and the 3,000-meter indoor title in 2009. Doetzel became the sixth PC female athlete to win an NCAA individual title when she captured the 10,000 meters at the 2009 NCAA Outdoor Track Championships. She became the first Providence College Track athlete to win an NCAA title in the 10,000 meters. 
 
Guay, while only playing two seasons with the Friars, made quite the impression upon hockey fans in Rhode Island. He scored 34 goals in his last season as a Friar, the most goals in a single season in program history. In just 75 games, Guay registered 57 goals and 48 assists. He was a member of the 1982-83 All-New England squad and was an ECAC Second Team selection. He was the first Providence College Friar to become a hockey Olympian. After attending the Sports Festival for the 1984 Olympics, Guay made the 1984 U.S. Olympic Team. Guay decided to forego his last two years of eligibility to play for the Philadelphia Flyers. He continued his NHL career in Boston, New York (Islanders), Hartford and Los Angeles, appearing in a total of 117 NHL games over seven seasons.
 
In seven seasons as a head coach of the Friar baseball program, Kostacopoulos registered a 220-137-1 mark (.616) and he led the team to two NCAA Tournament appearances. His Friar squads also posted an 87-61 BIG EAST record (.588), finishing first during the regular season in 1995 and 1996. Kostacopoulos served as an assistant at Providence for two seasons before he became the youngest Division I head coach in the country in 1990 at age 25. By his third season in charge, Providence was 29-23 in 1992 and won the Big East Tournament to advance to the NCAA South I Regional. In 1995, the Friars were 44-15 and won a school-record 16 BIG EAST games to claim the regular-season BIG EAST Championship, going on to finish as the tournament runner-up and receive an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. In Kostacopoulos’ time with the Friars, he was named the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Northeast Coach of the Year in 1992 and 1995 and received both BIG EAST and New England Coach-of-the-Year honors in 1995. Kostacopoulos earned his bachelor’s degree from Providence College in 1987, capping a four-year career as a member of the Friar baseball team in which he played 139 games and batted .260. As a senior, he was both captain and defensive player of the year. Three future Major League Baseball players played under Kostacopoulos at Providence. Lou Merloni (1990–1993), John McDonald (1995–1996) and Keith Reed (1996). He left Providence in 1996 to coach at Maine. He spent nine years at Maine, where he led his Black Bear teams to a 274-195 mark. Kostacopoulos was named the Head Coach at Navy in 2006. He guided the Midshipmen for 18 seasons and producing a 523-373-5 record (.591). He retired from the Naval Academy in 2023 after coaching for 34 years and amassing a 1,017-705-5 record (.590). Kostacopoulos also is a member of the Maryland Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame (2018) and the Maine Baseball Hall of Fame (2014). He is married to former Friar women’s basketball standout Joanie Powers and he serves as the athletic director at St. Mary’s High School in Annapolis, Maryland.
 
Linehan left Providence College with the NCAA career steals record and is known as one of the greatest defenders to ever play for the Friars. His NCAA steals record stood for 20 years before being broken in 2022. In his senior year as a Friar (2002), Linehan recorded 139 steals to total 385 in his career. He also scored 990 career points. Linehan was voted Defensive Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons (2001 and 2002). In 2001, he was named to the Basketball Times Third Team All-America, NABC All-District Second Team and the All-BIG EAST Second Team. In 2002, Linehan was an Associated Press All-America Honorable Mention as well as the NABC, ESPN.com, Basketball America and CollegeInsider.com Defensive Player of the Year. He was also named to the Second Team All-BIG EAST, USBWA All-District 1, NABC First Team All-District 1 and the Preseason All-BIG EAST First Team. During the 2001 NBA Playoffs, Kobe Bryant was asked to name the toughest defender he ever faced. Bryant responded, “John Linehan.” After graduating Linehan, played professionally in the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) and the Continental Basketball Association (CBA), where he won the league championship with the Dakota Wizards in 2004. After winning the CBA championship, Linehan moved to Europe and played professionally in France and Estonia until 2015. He then began his career as a basketball coach in 2015 and has served as an assistant coach at Drexel, Brown, Hartford, Georgia and Saint Joseph’s. Currently, he is an assistant coach at BYU.
 
Lyons helped guide the women’s soccer team to the BIG EAST title in 1993 enroute to the program’s first NCAA Tournament appearance. Lyons was a prolific scorer, having finished her career with 98 points on 41 goals and 16 assists. To date, she remains the program leader in career goals (41) and career points (98). She also scored a program-record 17 goals during the 1992 campaign.
 
Sisson became the third Friar to earn multiple NCAA titles in the same year. Sisson claimed the NCAA Indoor and Outdoor 5,000-meter titles in her final year at Providence. On her journey to becoming a two-time NCAA Champion, she also broke Kim Smith’s NCAA Indoor 5,000-meter record (15:12.22) with a solo effort at the 2015 BIG EAST Indoor Championship. Sisson also co-captained the 2013 NCAA Championship cross country team to the program’s second NCAA title. Over the course of her career at Providence, Sisson claimed 10 All-America honors and seven BIG EAST titles. Her 10 All-America honors are tied for the most all-time at Providence College. Sisson competed in the 10,000 meters at the 2020 Olympics. In 2022, Sisson broke the American half marathon record with a time of 1:06:52 and the American marathon record in a time of 2:18.29. Sisson competed in the marathon at the 2024 Paris Olympics finishing 23rd in a time of 2:29.53. 
 
Wagoner was a two-time All-American for the field hockey program, having earned NFHCA Third-Team honors in 1996 and Second-Team accolades in 1997. She also was a three-time NFHCA Division I All-Northeast Region First-Team selection and three-time All-BIG EAST First-Team honoree (1995, 1996, 1997). Wagoner is one of only two players in program history to earn All-BIG EAST First-Team recognition three times, and the only field hockey player from Providence College to be named BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year, which she earned in 1997. As a freshman in 1994, she claimed BIG EAST Rookie of the Year and was named to the BIG EAST All-Rookie Team. Wagoner completed her career with 66 points on 15 goals and 36 assists. Her 36 assists rank fourth all-time at Providence and she still holds the single season record for assists (19), which she set in 1997. She helped guide her team to three BIG EAST Tournament appearances and advanced to the Championship Game in 1996. 
 
The 2013 women’s cross country team had one of the most successful seasons in Friar history, winning seven of eight races, defending the 2012 Northeast Regional title and capturing the program’s sixth BIG EAST title on the journey to taking the ultimate crown. The 2013 NCAA title marked the second NCAA Championship in program history. The team produced three All-Americans, including Emily Sisson ’14, Laura Nagel ’14 and Sarah Collins ’16. In addition to Sisson, Nagel and Collins, the other members of the team were Molly Keating ’16, Erin Murphy ’14, Catarina Rocha ’17 and Grace Thek ’14. 
 
 
– GO FRIARS! –