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11 Lobos Lace Up for NCAA Outdoor Championships – University of New Mexico Lobos athletics

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“CHAMPIONS WEAR TURQUOISE”
It was 2011 when UNM first donned turquoise at NCAA Championships, an idea hatched by former UNM Head Coach Joe Franklin at the time. In their first iteration, the uniforms were originally white and dip-dyed by hand — three times, to be exact— in order to reach the proper turquoise color. The Lobos didn’t get officially printed turquoise uniforms for nationals until after they won their first women’s NCAA team Championship in 2015.

More than a decade later, wearing turquoise has become both a privilege and a tradition that honors the state of New Mexico that the Lobos represent. Only UNM athletes that reach the NCAA Championship race in cross country or qualify for NCAA Indoor or Outdoor Championships wear turquoise — the color is meant to be earned and worn with pride.

THE RISE OF HABTOM SAMUEL
Read more about the unrelenting will — and obstacle-laden journey — that has taken sophomore Habtom Samuel to new heights ahead of his second NCAA Outdoor Championship appearance.

GAUSON INKS FIVE-YEAR EXTENSION AFTER BIG SECOND YEAR
University of New Mexico Vice President/Director of Athletics Fernando Lovo has announced that Head Cross Country/Track & Field Coach Darren Gauson has received a five-year contract that will keep Gauson at the helm of UNM’s nationally ranked programs through the 2029-30 season.

“Darren has elevated every aspect of our program,” said Lovo. “In just two years, he’s built a championship culture and a team that consistently performs on the national stage. His leadership, vision, and ability to develop talent are exactly what we look for. Securing Coach Gauson was a top priority. He embodies what we’re about: excellence and championships.”

Gauson in just two seasons at UNM has won five Mountain West Coach of the Year Awards, being named Men’s Cross Country Coach of the Year in both 2023 and 2024, Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year in 2024 and both Women’s Indoor and Women’s Outdoor Coach of the Year in 2025.  In that span, his teams have won five Mountain West titles, four of which have come this year.

That included UNM’s first Mountain West title in women’s outdoor track and field, a win which clinched the first sweep of all three women’s titles in UNM history.

“I am very appreciative of President Stokes, the Board of Regents, and Athletic Director Fernando Lovo for their amazing support of Lobo Cross Country and Track & Field,” said Gauson. “Sustained excellence is only possible when there is clear alignment and strong support—qualities that are firmly in place at the University of New Mexico. It is a tremendous honor to serve this program and I am eager to bring future championships to our great state. I would also like to extend my sincere thanks to Amy Beggin and my dedicated staff for their invaluable contributions. I look forward to continuing to build championship-caliber teams alongside them.”

In his two seasons with UNM, Gauson has coached eight All-Americans in cross country including three runner-up finishes, along with 11 All-Americans in indoor and outdoor track and field to go with one national champion and one runner-up. That number will likely increase as UNM heads to the NCAA Outdoor National Championships next week.  UNM qualified 11 student-athletes into the field, second only to Harvard among non-P4 institutions, and tied for the second-most all-time at UNM.  UNM ranks tied for 28th among the 68 Power-4 conference schools in terms of total qualifying student-athletes.

The 11 qualifiers came after sending a whopping 27 to the NCAA West Regionals, up from 12 a year ago. In the 2024-25 academic year alone, New Mexico athletes set 22 new program records with 58 performances that rank among the Top 10 in program history – among them, eight performances ranked among the Top 5 in collegiate history.

In 2024-25, the Lobo cross country teams both finished in the national Top 10 for the first time in school history, with the women’s team finishing seventh and the men’s team finishing ninth. In both the men’s and women’s races, UNM had the national runner-up, including a miraculous finish by Habtom Samuel, who ran much of the race in Wisconsin on a frozen track with just one shoe after losing it halfway through the race.

UNM’s men’s point total of 272 in that 2024 race was the lowest in program history.

The Lobos’ sweep of the men’s and women’s cross country titles were the first for UNM – and in the Mountain West – since 2014.  UNM’s Pamela Kosgei was a finalist for the Honda Sports Award, recognizing the best student-athlete in cross country.  At different points this season, Kosgei, Habtom Samuel and Ishmael Kipkurui have all been named to the Bowerman Watch List, awarded to the top track & field athlete in the country.

LOBO TRIO RANKED AMONG TOP 25 NCAA TRACK STARS
In NCAA Track & Field’s Top 25 D-I Both-Genders All-Events rankings released three weeks ago from Stan Becton, Habtom Samuel (No. 5), Ishmael Kipkurui (No. 6) and Pamela Kosgei (No. 8) all cracked the Top 10.

LOBOS VS. THE WORLD
Entering this week, the Lobos have seen three different athletes post world-leading marks in three events – Pamela Kosgei (9:15.63) and Matthew Kosgei (8:22.13) led the world in women’s and men’s steeplechase, with Ishmael Kipkurui’s 26:50.21 NCAA-record performance at Sound Running’s THE TEN leading the world in the men’s 10,000m. Behind Kipkurui, Habtom Samuel’s 26:51.06 clocking at THE TEN – the No. 2 performance in NCAA history – also ranked No. 2 in the world.

HANNA KIESS KEEPS CLIMBING
400 hurdler Hanna Kiess – a walk-on who joined the team ahead of last indoor season – has posted a new personal best in eight of her last 10 races dating back to her first outdoor season in 2024, climbing up the UNM all-time list in the process.

In her very first 400 meter Hurdle race of the season she clipped off a 59.50 which moved her up to fourth-fastest all-time at UNM– she followed two weeks later with another PB (59.29) and the next day grabbed another PB (58.73) at two different meets at Long Beach State. That performance moved her to #3 all-time at UNM before another PB (58.40) that moved her up to #2 all-time. In MW prelims, she easily advanced to the final with a 59.27 – still the ninth-fastest time in Lobo history. In the five-decade history of Lobo women’s track (1975-present) there had only been seven athletes who ever dipped under the 60.00 threshold in the 400 meter Hurdles – of those seven, one was her coach, Kyra Mohns.

In the final, Kiess produced yet another stunning improvement, holding off a Colorado State athlete down the stretch to finish as runner-up with a 58.03 performance that moved her up to No. 30 in the West Region and ensured she’ll get to race at least once more this year in addition to running a leg of the women’s 4x400m relay.

That 58.03 time broke a UNM record held by Shannon Vessup (58.10) that had stood untouched since 1984 and Kiess improved on it further at NCAA West Regional Prelims, becoming the first Lobo woman to run below 58 seconds with a 57.70 personal best in College Station. Less than two hours later, she ran the fastest 4x400m relay leg of her career to help UNM’s relay advance to Eugene.

JUDY RONO’S STOCK IS RISING
Judy Rono now owns the fastest time in UNM history in the 1,500m (4:09.07) after taking more than two seconds off her previous best (4:11.45) from Bryan Clay to advance on time. Rono and the previous 1,500m program record holder Abbe Goldstein are the only Lobo women to run below 4:12 in school history. Rono is now a two-time MW Champion in the 800m, winning gold in both indoor and outdoor in her first collegiate season. 

Rono improved on her season best as she took home MW gold in the 800m in Clovis, clocking a 2:03.91 time that stands as the second-fastest 800m in program history and fastest by a Lobo woman since 1976 (2:03.98). She also showed some range later in the same day, posting a 5,000m PR as part of a 30-point effort for the Lobo women in the event, posting a 16:11.64 to finish fourth.

RANKINGS CHECK-IN
After both the UNM men and women stayed ranked among the Top 30 in the nation for all six USTFCCCA TFRI rankings of the indoor season, both teams cracked the Top 10 in the same weekly ranking for the first time in program history this year and have both remained in the 

The UNM men remain at No. 8  – their ninth week in a row in the Top 10 – after rising matching a program-best with a No. 6 national ranking in Week #4 and Week #9. Their previous best was No. 18 in the final week of the 2011 season.

Likewise, the UNM women remained in the Top 25 for the ninth week in a row, coming in at No. 23 this week. In the time since they clocked in at No. 7 in the nation in the final regular-season ranking of the 2019 season, the Lobo women had only cracked the Top 10 as a team once until Week 2’s No. 8 ranking, coming in at No. 9 in the nation in Week 4 in 2022.

2025 Outdoor USTFCCCA National Rankings
  Week #1 Week #2 Week #3 Week #4 Week #5 Week #6 Week #7 Week #8 Week #9 Week #10
New Mexico Men #18 #9 #10 #6 #7 #8 #8 #8 #6 #9
New Mexico Women #47 #8 #10 #20 #20 #21 #21 #20 #20 #23

UNM MEN’S TRACK & FIELD – WEEK 10 USTFCCCA TFRI RANKINGS

  • National Rank: No. 8 (–)
  • Mountain Region Rank: No. 4 (–)
  • Mountain West Conference Rank: No. 2 (–)

UNM WOMEN’S TRACK & FIELD – WEEK 10 USTFCCCA TFRI RANKINGS

  • National Rank: No. 23 (–)
  • Mountain Region Rank: No. 5 (-1)
  • Mountain West Conference Rank: No. 1 (–)

UNM MEN’S TRACK & FIELD – WEEK 8 USTFCCCA #EVENTSQUAD RANKINGS (Top 100 only)

  • Men’s 100m – No. 25
  • Men’s 200m – No. 63
  • Men’s 1,500m – No. 15
  • Men’s 5,000m – No. 1
  • Men’s 10,000m – No. 1
  • Men’s 400m Hurdles – No. 13

UNM WOMEN’S TRACK & FIELD – WEEK 8 USTFCCCA #EVENTSQUAD RANKINGS (Top 100)

  • Women’s 200m – No. 60
  • Women’s 400m – No. 17
  • Women’s 800m – No. 42
  • Women’s 1,500m – No. 14
  • Women’s 5,000m – No. 2
  • Women’s 10,000m – No. 2
  • Women’s Steeplechase – No. 7
  • Women’s Pole Vault – No. 32





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USC Women’s Volleyball Falls to Cal Poly in NCAA Second Round Bout

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December 6, 2025

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LOS ANGELES – The fourth-seeded No. 14-ranked USC women’s volleyball team (25-7) fell in five sets (25-19, 25-20, 20-25, 14-25, 15-7) to Cal Poly (27-7) in the second round of the 2025 NCAA tournament and was eliminated from the postseason at Galen Center on Friday, Dec. 5.
 
KEY PLAYERS

  • Fr. OPP Abigail Mullen led all scorers with 21.5 points earned on a match-high 17 kills (7e, 39att, .256) to go with 10 digs for her eighth double-double. She also had five blocks and two service aces.

  • Fr. S Reese Messer put up her 11th double-double with 46 assists and 11 digs. She also added six blocks (one solo) and had three kills on eight swings (.375).

  • RS So. OH London Wijay had 10 kills (3e, 38att, .184) and 12 digs for her eighth double-double (17th career).

  • RS So. MB Leah Ford had nine kills (1e) on 17 swings to hit .471 and led the team with seven blocks.

  • So. MB Mia Tvrdy played just the last three sets but finished with eight kills on 10 swings (.800) and had two blocks, two digs and a two-handed jump-set assist on a kill by Mullen.

  • Sr. MB Rylie McGinest had six kills (1e, 13att, .385) to go with one block.

  • Fr. LIB Taylor Deckert led the team with 13 digs and added six assists. Sr. LIB Gala Trubint had four digs and a service ace.

  • For the Mustangs, Emma Fredrick led with 17 kills and had 17 digs to lead all players. Kendall Beshear and Annabelle Thalken each had 12 kills. Beshear had 14 digs for the double-double and served a pair of aces. Emme Bullis put up 44 assists with 12 digs for a double-double.

HOW IT HAPPENED

  • The Mustangs never trailed in the opening frame to grab a 25-19 win. Both teams registered 15.0 points, but the Mustangs committed fewer unforced errors to come out on top. The Trojans had 13 kills with five from McGinest but hit just .146 with seven errors on 41 swings. Cal Poly had just 11 kills but hit .258 and had a 3-1 edge in blocks. Both teams each served an ace, but the Trojans served six errors to the Mustangs’ two in the loss.

  • The teams were tied 13 times and the lead changed hands five times before Cal Poly took a 2-0 lead with a 25-20 win in set two. Mullen had five kills to lead the Trojans, but USC totaled just 10 kills and hit .147 in the set. Both teams had three blocks apiece, but the Mustangs still hit .270 with 15 kills (5e) on 37 swings with five more kills from Beshear. 

  • USC secured a 25-20 set-three win on the second of two service aces from Dani Thomas-Nathan. Tvrdy came in and sparked the Trojans with the first kill of the frame and finished with five on just six swings. Mullen tallied six kills on 12 swings without an error and helped USC hit .326 (18k, 4e, 43att). The Trojans had four blocks to help hold the Mustangs to a .194 attack rate with 10 kills (4e) on 31 swings. USC never trailed and led by five twice before winning by five.

  • Back-to-back Mustang errors broke the eighth and final tie of the fourth and put the Trojans in front, 11-9, en route to a 25-14 win. USC continued to push and moved in front by six, 17-11, on a block by Mullen and Ford. Back-to-back kills from Mullen put USC on top by seven, 19-12, and her tool kill made it a 10-point USC lead at 23-13. Mullen and Wijay each scored four kills in the fourth as the Trojans hit .448 (14k, 1e, 29att) and had three blocks to hold Cal Poly to a .081 hitting percentage with 12 kills (9e) on 37 attacks.

  • Cal Poly broke a three-all tie in the fifth with a 6-0 run and was never threatened on the way to a 15-7 win to seal the 3-2 win. Beshear had a six-serve run that included a service ace to put the Mustangs on top by six, 10-4. The Trojans could get no closer than within five despite every effort. The Mustangs hit .316 with eight kills (2e) on 19 swings over USC’s .091 rate in the fifth with five kills (3e) on 22 attempts.

MATCH NOTES

  • USC fell to 13-6 all-time against Cal Poly. The teams met for the first time since 2012.

  • The Women of Troy fell to 15-4 at home this season and to 231-64 (.783) all-time at Galen Center, which includes a 21-5 mark in NCAA tournament matches.

  • USC goes to 131-45 (.744) all-time in the postseason with an 85-38 (.691) mark in the NCAA tournament.

  • The Trojans fell to 14-11 in the second round of the NCAA tournament.

For more information on the USC women’s volleyball team and a complete schedule and results, please visit USCTrojans.com/WVB. Fans of the Women of Troy can follow @USCWomensVolley on Facebook, X, TikTok, and Instagram.
 



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Indiana volleyball vs Colorado NCAA tournament final score, game updates, next

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December 6, 2025

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7:57 pm ET December 5, 2025

When does Indiana volleyball play next? Indiana volleyball next game, opponent in NCAA tournament

Aaron Ferguson

Details are still to come on the next weekend of the NCAA tournament. The certainties: IU is headed to Austin, Texas as UT hosts that quadrant as the No. 1 seed. The first and second rounds in Austin will finish Saturday night. No. 8-seed Penn State awaits the winner of Texas and Florida A&M in Saturday’s second round match.

7:55 pm ET December 5, 2025

Indiana volleyball celebrates Sweet 16 berth

Aaron Ferguson

Here’s how it looked as IU won its second-round match against Colorado:

7:50 pm ET December 5, 2025

Indiana volleyball highlights in win vs Colorado

Aaron Ferguson

Here’s a look inside Wilkinson Hall for IU’s win:

7:42 pm ET December 5, 2025

Indiana volleyball stats in win vs Colorado

Aaron Ferguson

The Hoosiers hit .378 for the match and had an 11-2 blocking advantage against the Buffs. The serving pressure wasn’t there like it was against Toledo, but IU played solid defensively and were able to clinch its second Sweet 16 appearance — its other was 15 years ago in 2010.

Candela Alonso-Corcelles led the way with 16 kills with just one error on 27 swings, an efficient .556. Freshman Jaidyn Jager added 15 kills (.375). The middles did plenty of work with Madi Sell having seven blocks and Victoria Gray adding four. Avry Tatum also had five blocks with eight kills. Setter Teodora Krickovic had 29 assists, eight digs and three blocks.

Colorado hit .208 for the match, led by Ana Burilovi’s 19 kills (.239) and an efficient seven on 11 swings for Cayla Payne (.545). But nine service errors did not help the Buffs, particularly with five in the first set.



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Kansas women’s volleyball vs Miami (Fl.): NCAA tournament final result

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3 hours ago

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December 6, 2025

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Updated Dec. 5, 2025, 8:26 p.m. CT



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Former UH volleyball player, youth coach accused of producing child porn

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December 6, 2025

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HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A former youth volleyball coach who played on the University of Hawaii men’s volleyball team was arrested and charged with production of child pornography, allegedly with a former player.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Hawaii, announced Friday that Elias David, 37, of Waimanalo, was charged by criminal complaint on Dec. 3.

He was employed as a firefighter for the Department of Defense and worked at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Federal Fire Station 9.

According to the criminal complaint filed by the FBI, a 17-year-old told her aunt she was having sexual intercourse with David, who was a family friend and her volleyball coach since she was 13 years old.

Court documents said the teen’s relationship began with David in 2023 after a volleyball trip to Las Vegas. She was 16 at the time.

The teen told investigators that David was providing extra training to prepare her for college. She also admitted to engaging in different types of sexual contact with David that including oral and vaginal sex, documents said.

She also said that their sexual activities occurred at the fire station where he worked, at a nearby warehouse, as well as at David’s home and vehicle, documents said.

David was arrested in July of 2024 for sexual assault in the second degree. He waived his Miranda rights and was interviewed.

During his interview with investigators, David said they “began to develop feelings for each other and ‘fell in love,’” and admitted that he and the teen engaged in a sexual relationship, documents said.

David said that the romantic phase of the relationship began around March 2023, and admitted to ordering ride share services for the teen so she could leave her house to meet him at or near his workplace, documents said.

Investigators said they found 97 graphic videos of the two of them on her phone and 78 emails referring to ride share trips and GPS location data.

David played for the University of Hawaii men’s volleyball team in 2009.

If convicted, he could face up to 30 years in prison.

Copyright 2025 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.



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Iowa State Tops St. Thomas, Advances to Second Round

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December 6, 2025

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MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – No. 23 Iowa State (23-7, 12-6 Big 12) won in five against St. Thomas (21-10, 11-5 Summit) in the NCAA Championship First Round Friday night. No. 5-seed ISU advances to the second round to meet the winner of No. 4-seed Minnesota vs. Fairfield tomorrow at 7 p.m.

After St. Thomas took the first 25-21, ISU answered outhitting UST .552-.143 in the second to tie up the match with a set score of 25-13. The Cyclones took the match lead after another dominant set score of 25-16, but St. Thomas would win the fourth 25-21 to extend the match to a fifth. ISU used a 7-0 run in the fifth to flip the momentum and seal the victory.

Big 12 Libero of the Year Rachel Van Gorp was her usual self and had her third-straight match with 20 or more digs, ending the night with a career-high 33. The total is the second-most in an NCAA Tournament match by a Cyclone, and most since 2012. It was also match No. 35 in a row with double-figure digs and her 50th-career match in double figures.

Iowa State had a dominant night at the service line, serving to the fourth 10-plus ace match this season, and 28th of Christy Johnson-Lynch‘s career with 12 through the night. ISU was led by Nayeli Ti’a with five aces to tie the NCAA Tournament school record, while Van Gorp had four, now the second-most in a tournament match.

Alea Goolsby had her 15th match this season with 10-plus kills, leading ISU with 15. Ti’a delivered 14 kills for her 13th match this season with 10-plus, and Lilly Wachholz (12) and Amiree Hendricks-Walker (10) made for four in double figures.

SET ONE

At 6-6, Morgan Brandt tricked St. Thomas with a setter kill while Tierney Jackson served up an ace but UST followed to again knot the score. The Tommies flipped the lead at 11-10 and took the next two as Iowa State called the first timeout. Ti’a slammed down her second kill out of the timeout, but St. Thomas kept with the lead reaching 20 first (20-17). ISU cut its deficit to one at 22-21, but the Tommies ended the first on a run of three for the set win.

SET TWO

Ti’a had a no-doubt kill to make it 1-1, while the Tommies denied ISU the lead while going up 4-2. Goolsby’s third kill tied it, and the Cyclones took their first lead at 6-5 on a block. UST flipped the advantage in its favor briefly, but ISU set out on an 11-0 run to take it right back and run ahead 18-8. A Brandt ace put the Cyclones at set point and an attack error by the Tommies sealed the set at 25-13. ISU did not have a single attack error in the frame.

SET THREE

Back-to-back aces by Ti’a brought Iowa State ahead 6-2, while Ti’a delivered another bringing the scoreboard to 9-2. Goolsby’s seventh kill at .400 capped a Cyclone run of seven on the next play, but a UST scoring run of four came soon after as the Tommies came within three (13-10). Iowa State had a run of four of their own to keep command of the lead, while the Cyclones took the match lead on Goolsby’s 10th kill at 25-16.

SET FOUR

A 4-0 scoring run took the Tommies ahead 7-3 as ISU then called an early timeout. Iowa State would go on to knot the score at 13s on yet another ace by Ti’a, while a UST attack error gave ISU its first lead of the set. That lead was not safe as the Tommies went ahead 19-15 to cause Iowa State’s final timeout of the set. The Cyclones had a late run of three, but St. Thomas pushed on to force a fifth at 25-21.

SET FIVE

Iowa State took the first point on a kill by Ti’a, but St. Thomas followed going ahead 5-2. ISU did not let up, hitting a run of four to take a 6-5 lead and cause a UST timeout. The run stretched to seven as Iowa State switched sides with the lead of 8-5, and Goolsby capped the run next with a kill. ISU would go on to win it 15-8 after a St. Thomas service error.



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Updates, highlights as Wisconsin advances with sweep vs North Carolina

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December 6, 2025

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9:43 pm CT December 5, 2025

See some highlights from Wisconsin’s NCAA tournament win vs North Carolina

John Steppe

9:39 pm CT December 5, 2025

Mimi Colyer’s stats vs. North Carolina in second round of NCAA tournament

John Steppe

  • 22 kills
  • 5 attack errors
  • 42 total attacks
  • .405 hitting percentage
  • 13 digs
  • 3 blocks

9:37 pm CT December 5, 2025

Wisconsin vs. North Carolina NCAA tournament final stats comparison

John Steppe

  • Kills: Wisconsin 60, North Carolina 37
  • Hitting percentage: Wisconsin .365, North Carolina .233
  • Service aces: Wisconsin 2, North Carolina 0
  • Service errors: North Carolina 5, Wisconsin 8
  • Digs: Wisconsin 56, North Carolina 40
  • Total team blocks: North Carolina 6, Wisconsin 5

9:33 pm CT December 5, 2025

Wisconsin coach Kelly Sheffield comments on Badgers’ NCAA tournament win vs. North Carolina

John Steppe



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