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Wake Forest Baseball Welcomes Eric Niesen as New Pitching Coach

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Wake Forest Baseball Welcomes Eric Niesen as New Pitching Coach

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Wake Forest baseball head coach Tom Walter announced the addition of Eric Niesen to the program as an assistant coach working directly with the pitching staff. 
 
A former standout pitcher for the Deacs and one of the most respected minds in professional baseball development, Niesen returns to Winston-Salem after a successful run with the Houston Astros, where he most recently served as the organization’s Director of Pitching.
 
During his tenure, he played a key role in crafting and implementing the Astros’ pitching philosophy across all levels of the minor leagues, and was part of the 2022 World Series Championship and 2024 Triple-A National Title with the Sugar Land Space Cowboys.
 
Niesen helped develop MLB talent such as Hunter Brown, Spencer Arrighetti, Colton Gordon, and Ryan Gusto, and contributed to the Astros’ building of a farm system that has produced over 57% of their current Major League roster, ranking among the top three in all of baseball for homegrown players. From 2022 to 2025, 13 minor league pitchers were called up to the Astros. 
 
Under the guidance of Niesen, Houston’s minor league pitching staffs rank among the top ten in strikeout percentage for three consecutive seasons (2022–2024).

Prior to the Astros, Niesen served as the Pitching Coach at Georgetown University, where he led the program to multiple milestones, including a school-record four MLB Draft picks in a single year and significant improvements in ERA and strikeout metrics.
 
In 2019, the Georgetown pitching staff broke the program record for strikeouts in a season (488) and strikeouts per nine innings (9.12). The Hoyas led the BIG EAST  in total strikeouts and three pitchers finished in the top five in the conference in strikeouts. GU ranked 44th in the country at the end of the regular season in strikeouts per nine innings.
 
In his first season with the Hoyas in 2018, the pitching staff improved its team ERA in BIG EAST play by nearly two full runs to 4.58. Two pitchers set single-season individual records as Brent Killam recorded 97 strikeouts and Jimmy Swad registered 12 saves. Georgetown pitchers twice earned BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week honors and three Hoya pitchers were selected to All-BIG EAST teams. The Blue & Gray qualified for the BIG EAST Championship for just the second time since 1986.
 
Niesen is no stranger to Wake Forest, having earned his bachelor’s degree in Communications in 2017 while serving as a Student Assistant Coach on the 2017 team that reached the NCAA Super Regionals. 
 
Before beginning his coaching career, Niesen enjoyed a seven-year professional playing career after being selected in the third round of the 2007 MLB Draft by the New York Mets. He advanced to Double-A with the Mets and was later invited to Major League Spring Training with both the Mets and Seattle Mariners, and pitched at the Triple-A level with the Boston Red Sox during their 2013 World Series championship season. 
 
Niesen also competed internationally in Venezuela and Puerto Rico, pitching in the Venezuelan Winter League Championship for Caribes and pitching in the prestigious Caribbean World Series.
 
As a player for the Demon Deacons, Niesen was a 2007 MLB Draft 3rd-round pick by the New York Mets following a standout collegiate career for the Demon Deacons.

Over his three years in a Wake uniform, Niesen combined to go 14-9, including a 6-5 record with a 3.00 ERA and 85 strikeouts in 84 innings in his final season. 
 
What They’re Saying:

  • Head Baseball Coach Tom Walter:
    • “Eric Niesen is one of the most respected pitching minds at any level of baseball and we are fortunate to have him. His ascent through the Astros organization the last five years is nothing short of remarkable and speaks to who he is and his ability to identify and develop talent. We are thrilled that Eric, his wife Tina and their children Gideon, Casey Rae and Grady are part of the Deacon family.”
  • Pitching Coach Eric Niesen:
    • “I’m incredibly thankful to Coach Walter for the opportunity to return to Wake Forest. There’s something truly special about wearing the Old Gold & Black. With the unmatched resources of the pitching lab and the program’s continued investment, everything is in place for success. I’m excited to get to work and help keep building one of the top pitching staffs in college baseball.”
  • Matt Hobbs, Arkansas Pitching Coach (former Wake Forest Pitching Coach):
    • “Eric is one of the best pitching minds out there and Wake Forest is certainly lucky to have him lead the development of their pitching staff.”

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Fall 2025 SouthCoast High School Girls Volleyball Super Team

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Jan. 9, 2026, 4:02 a.m. ET

The high school girls volleyball season on the SouthCoast was a strong one. Of the area’s nine teams,  five — Dartmouth, Fairhaven, GNB Voc-Tech, Old Rochester and Wareham — qualified for the 2025 MIAA playoffs.

Old Rochester had the deepest run, reaching the Division 3 Elite 8 after winning the South Coast Conference Large Division crown. 



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No. 2 UH men’s volleyball makes easy work of No. 7 Loyola Chicago

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T&F Set to Host Penn Select

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PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania men’s and women’s track & field teams return to the Ott Center on Jan. 10, hosting the Penn Select. 

Field events are scheduled to begin at Noon with weight throw, high jump, pole vault, and long jump. Running events will start at 2:00 p.m. with the women’s mile. 

PENN SELECT

Saturday, January 10

Jane and David Ott Center for Track and Field | Philadelphia, Pa. 
 

Live Results, Schedule of Events, Watch Live – (ESPN+) 

Tickets – $5 Youth (2-12), $10 Adult  

Teams Competing

Delaware State, Howard, LaSalle, Lehigh, Morgan State, Penn, Rider, Rutgers, St. Joseph’s, Temple, Townson, and Villanova.

Quaker Notemeal

Jessica Oji made her collegiate debut in shot put at the Penn Opener (Dec. 5), breaking the Ivy League indoor record with a mark of 17.72m (58′ 1.75″). 

Adannia Agbo broke the school record in the triple jump recording a distance of 13.05m (42′ 9.75″), rank second in the NCAA. 

Jake Rose won six of seven events in the men’s heptathlon scoring 5647 points, setting a school record. 

Freshman Joseph “Tiago” Socarras took over the track in the men’s 1000m crossing the finish line first with a school record time of 2:20.39. 

Penn closed out the meet with a fifth school record, as the 4x400m relay team of Leo FrancisNayyir Newash-Campbell, Tiago Socarras, and Ryan Matulonis ran 3:09.78 to claim victory. 

NCAA Top 25

2. Jessica Oji, Shot Put – 17.72m 

2. Adannia Agbo, Triple Jump – 13.05m 

5. Jake Rose, Heptathlon – 5647 pts

16. Matthew Kathiravelu, Triple Jump – 15.06m 

22. Keira Beaumont, 60m – 7.44

25. Ryan Matulonis, 60m H – 7.96

25. Raina Pietrzak, Pentathlon – 3560 pts

6. Men’s 4x400m – 3:09.78

17. Women’s 4x400m – 3:45.22

Leading the Ivy League 

Keira Beaumont, 60m – 7.44

Tiago Socarras, 1000m – 2:20.39

Ryan Matulonis, 60m H – 7.96

Mark Hellwig, High Jump – 2:06m

Jake Rose, Long Jump – 7.12m 

Paris Ivery, Long Jump – 5.96m

Adannia Agbo, Triple Jump – 13.05m  

Jessica Oji, Shot Put – 17.72m 

Jake Rose, Heptathlon – 5647 pts

Men’s 4x400m – 3:09.78

Women’s 4x400m – 3:45.22

Ivy League Athlete of the Week

Jessica Oji – Dec. 9 

Jake Rose – Dec. 9 

Upcoming Meets 

Jan. 17 – Quaker Invitational (Ott Center)

Jan. 22-24 – Penn 10 Elite (Ott Center) 

Jan. 30 – Penn Invitational (Ott Center)

Jan. 30 – 31 – Stan Scott Invitational (Lubbock, Texas)

About the Ott Center 

The 73,000-square foot facility on River Fields Drive is connected to the Hollenback Center, adjacent to the Schuylkill River and south of Penn Park. Designed to be filled with natural light, the new building features large, clear story windows which face the Schuylkill River and align with the multi-story windows on the flanks of Hollenback, which was originally the campus powerplant.

 

The facility is designed to honor Penn’s long tradition of excellence in track and field and will enhance and provide support to the Penn Relays – the oldest and largest track and field event in the country.

The facility contains a banked 200 meter running track designed around specific geometric relationships between the straight and curved track sections to produce optimal conditions for running events, two long jump/triple jump runways, two pole vault runways, an eight-lane infield for sprints, hurdles and high jump, and a throwing area for the shot put and weight throw. With spectator seating of more than 1,000, the Ott Center will be able to host a series of exciting youth, high school and college events for years to come.

 



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Michigan State Indoor Track & Field Returns to Action at Wolverine Invitational

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Wolverine Invitational

Date:
Saturday, Jan. 10
Location: U-M Indoor Track & Field Building | Ann Arbor, Mich.
Live Results 

EAST LANSING, Mich. – Michigan State track & field returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 10 at the Wolverine Invitational.

This is the Spartans’ first meet since the holiday break. Michigan State will have several sprinters along with a group of field athletes in action.

The field events begin at 10:30 a.m., while the running events start at 11 a.m. Tess Roman will start the running action for MSU in the prelims of the 60m hurdles. Roman will also compete in the women’s shot put. Logan Allen and Dylan Terryberry will follow in the prelims of the 60m hurdles at 11:15 a.m. Last time that Allen competed at the GVSU Holiday Open, he set the Michigan State record with a time of 7.77 in the 60m hurdles.Terryberry will also be in action in the high jump.

In the 300m, Elizabeth Anderson and Alexys Wilson will compete for the Spartans in the final running event for the MSU women. In the field events, the Leila Barmore and Gabrielle Jeffries will be in action in the long jump.

On the men’s side, Michigan State will have three athletes in the 60m dash in Cameron Cheetam, Drew Novak and Carter Bissell. The Spartans will have two more men in field events. Adam Blue will contest the pole vault and Andrew Harding in the long jump.

 



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Five Volleyball Student-Athletes Earn Southland All-Academic Honors

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NEW ORLEANS – Five New Orleans Privateers volleyball players earned a spot on the Southland Conference All-Academic Team that was announced by the conference office on Friday afternoon.
 
Courtney Roundtree, Defne Eciroglu, Vanae Sapp, Alessandra Meoni and Lani Alleman all earned spots on the team.
 
Roundtree has a 3.33 GPA as a Sociology major with a minor in Psychology. The senior middle blocker played every set this season and accrued 236 kills. For her career, Roundtree finished with 653 kills and 199 total blocks. She had a stretch of eight consecutive matches with 10 or more kills this season.
 
Eciroglu currently has a 3.87 cumulative GPA after the fall semester as a Chemistry major. The junior setter entered the top 10 in program history in career assists and now has 1,601 assists in her three years on the Lakefront. She had 713 assists and 198 digs for the 2025 campaign.
 
Sapp finished holds a 4.00 GPA while in a Master’s program for Education. Sapp transferred to the Privateers for her final year in 2025 and finished with 158 kills along with 228 digs. She had a pair of double-doubles against Lamar this season. Sapp also had 10 matches with 10 or more digs on the year.
 

Meoni is also a graduate transfer with a 4.00 GPA. She is in a Master’s program for Mathematics. Meoni finished the year with a team-high 249 kills and added 128 digs and 49 total blocks. She had five double-doubles on the season and had a 20-kill match against Nicholls and a 25-dig performance against East Texas A&M.
 
Alleman currently holds a 3.60 GPA as a Psychology major. The junior libero had 151 digs this season. She also finished her career in the top 15 in career digs per set in program history with 2.34. In her three seasons with the Privateers, Alleman finished with 658 digs in 259 career sets played.
 
These five women are the first Southland volleyball all-academic selections since Kaitlyn Grice in 2018.
 
BLUES ON TUES. NEWSLETTER
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SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans are encouraged to follow @PrivateersVB on Twitter/X, @PrivateersVB on Instagram, like /PrivateersVB on Facebook and subscribe to the PrivateerAthletics YouTube channel.

 





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Cross Country Lands Six on Academic All-MAC Team

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KALAMAZOO, Mich. — The Mid-American Conference announced the 2025 Cross Country Academic All-MAC Team on Thursday morning, celebrating the achievements of 117 student-athletes who have excelled both in competition and in the classroom. The Broncos were headlined by six honorees on this year’s list. 

The Academic All-MAC distinction honors student-athletes who demonstrate outstanding dedication to both their academic and athletic pursuits. To qualify, student-athletes must maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.20 and participate in at least 50% of their team’s competitions during the season.

Ava Kurczewski (3.93, Exercise Science), Lara Machado Pereira (3.76, Biomedical Sciences), Larissa McGrath (3.97, Biomedical Sciences), Lily Overton (3.70, Exercise Science), Lauren Sancrant (3.68, Strategic Communications: Public Relations) and Madison Zarembski (3.98, Elementary Education) were the representatives this season. 

 



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