What distinguishes great water polo from a good water polo? The most skilled play happens beneath the surface. Olympians shave their pubes off so opponents don’t tug them off. Others, having smoothing down their regulation fingernails, bite them before play, creating a sharpness that allows them to scratch under water. 

This is something the menacing Jake (Kayo Martin) tells Ben (Everett Blunck) early on in Charlie Pollinger’s The Plague. The film, premiering as part of Un Certain Regard at Cannes Film Festival—follows Ben’s arrival in 2003 for a summer at the Tom Lerner Water Polo camp. Rather than a central part of the drama, water polo is only the mise-en-scène for a thrillingly controlled tale of social contagion, violence and pubescent masculinity which translates European arthouse sensibility stateside. 

Ben is a slightly awkward boy who has recently moved to the West from Boston is keen to fit in. His teammates, a Greek chorus of 12 and 13 year-old boys  with Jake as their bully-in-chief, play explicit rounds of ‘would you rather’ and reel over phallic humour. Their Beta coach (Joel Edgerton)—Daddy Wags—fails to command too much authority. It’s a confident move from Pollinger to keep Edgerton’s role firmly on the sideline—or poolside—allowing the excellent performances of the child actors to shine both as a collective, sportive body and as matching individuals—Lord of the Flies-style. 

At his first lunch, Ben is quickly given the nickname ‘Soppy’ after he is marked out as being unable to pronounce the ‘t’ in ‘stop’. But the real horror lies on the table beyond. Eli, a less athletic, stranger boy—arguably just daring to be himself—is outcast, leper-like, by his peers for having ‘the plague’, his long-sleeves covering a rash across his torso. 

Dave Filias and Xander Swann have been selected to represent the Middlebury men’s track and field team at the NCAA Championship. The top-22 athletes in each respective event garnered a spot in the outdoor meet to be held in northeastern Ohio.

FILIAS’ HIGHLIGHTS

• Filias is making his third-consecutive appearance at the national outdoor event.
• He qualified in the hammer throw for the second-straight spring.
• Filias is the three-time champion in the discipline at the NESCAC Championship, winning this year’s title with a toss of 57.47 meters.
• The senior is the school-record holder in the event, hurling the implement to a distance of 61.22m to secure the conference crown a year ago. 
• Filias is ranked 11th coming into the national meet, just 2.21 meters out of the third spot. He posted his entry distance of 60.37m to claim first at the Julie LaFreniere Commonwealth Invitational.  
• He finished 13th on the national stage last season with a toss of 57.41m. During his first championship two years ago, Filias claimed 15th with a heave of 55.74m.
• The Panther has won the  event four times this spring, including at the Division III New England Championships and the conference championship for the second year in a row. His triumphs garnered him all-region and All-NESCAC accolades, respectively.
• He was tabbed the NESCAC Men’s Field Athlete of the Week in back-to-back weeks after winning the crown at the Amherst Spring Fling and the Julie LaFreniere Commonwealth Invite title earlier this season.

SWANN’S HIGHLIGHTS

• Swann will appear in his first outdoor championship.
• He was recognized as the league’s Sabasteanski Award Winner, given to the top male and female performer during the conference championship.
• The senior qualified for the NCAA meet in the 400-meter hurdles. He is seeded sixth with a qualifying time and personal-best clocking of 51.96 during the NESCAC Championships. That effort was good for second place. 
• The top-six competitors in the 400 hurdles are separated by 0.49 seconds.
• Swann’s time in the event is just 0.01 seconds off the school-record clocking of 51.95 by Kevin Bright in 2006. 

ABOUT THE COMPETITION

• In the hammer, there will be a new champion as last year’s title holder has graduated.
• Wilmington’s Nathen Borgan, who finished as the runner-up a year ago, leads the way this spring with a toss of 66.21m, while teammate JJ Durr (64.33m) and Yakob Ekoue from Wisconsin-Eau Claire (62.58m) are slotted second and third. 
• The 400 hurdles will feature a new national champion following the graduation of Dubuque’s JoJo Frost (51.04). 
• Susquehanna’s Ben Bulger boasts the nation’s fastest time this season, stopping the clock at 51.47 during the Landmark Conference Championship. He was 19th a year ago with a clocking of 54.40. Bethel’s Jayson Ekiyor (51.57) and Colin Scanlon (51.63) are seeded second and third, respectively. 

CHAMPIONSHIP INFORMATION

• Location: Geneva, Ohio
• Host Site: SPIRE Institute’s Outdoor Track & Field Facility
• Schedule: (Event times are approximate and subject to change)

  • Thursday, May 22

    • 6:10 p.m. – 400 Hurdles (preliminaries) 

  • Saturday, May 24

    • 1:45 p.m. – Hammer throw (preliminaries and final) 
    • 3:15 p.m. – 400 Hurdles (final) 

• Championship Central

The NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships are from May 22-24, 2025 at the SPIRE Institute’s Outdoor Track & Field facility in Geneva, Ohio.

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Austin Peay State University’s track and field team concluded its second day at the 2025 Atlantic Sun Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships, Friday, at Hodges Stadium on the campus of North Florida.

The Governors began the Friday’s events with the discus toss, as Emma Tucker set her second personal best in as many days with a 39.78-meter throw. Heading to the long jump, Amani Sharif earned a four-place finish with a personal-best 5.78-meter lead leap, which was just a centimeter off the third-place mark in the event. 

A trio of Governors then competed in the 400-meter dash preliminaries, with all three – Taylin Segree, Mia McGee, and Alexis Arnett – posting qualifying marks and both Segree and Arnett posting the best marks of their careers. 

In sprint events, Alijanae Cole and Seven Pettus both set personal records and Gabrielle Miller earning a qualifying time for Saturday’s finale. 

In the Govs’ final event of the day, Shaye Foster broke program record – for the second time this season – in the 3000-meter steeplechase with a time of 11:12.94, which bested her own record set at the Outdoor Music City Challenge 

The Governors are back in action for the final day of the 2025 ASUN Outdoor Track and Field Championships, where Myra Eriksson will compete in the pole vault at 3 p.m. Emmani Roberts, Denim Goddard, Ja’Kyah Montgomery, and Eriksson then will compete in the triple jump at 4 p.m. Track events then will begin at 6 p.m. with the Govs’ competing in the the 4×100-meter relays

 For news and updates throughout the Governors’ postseason stay, follow the Austin Peay track and field team on X or Instagram (@GovsXCTF) or check back at LetsGoPeay.com for the latest news and stories.

As it turns out, the third time wasn’t a charm for the Benicia High School boys volleyball team on Thursday.

After losing to Berean Christian twice in the regular season, the Panthers fell to the Eagles once more — this time in a 25-23, 26-24, 25-13 sweep in the North Coast Section Division IV championship game.

“The guys played to the best of their ability,” Benicia head coach Maynard Patacsil said. “Things just didn’t go the way we would have liked. Still extremely proud to get this far.”

Although it wasn’t the ending they envisioned, the 12th-seeded Panthers put together a run to remember, pulling off three straight upsets to reach the program’s first section title game since it returned to having the sport in 2019.

“It’s just amazing to see how far we’ve gotten,” said sophomore setter Jacob Santos. “Last year we didn’t even make it past the first round of the playoffs. Now here we are at the championship.”

Benicia fought hard against the second-seeded Eagles, but lost each of the first two back-and-forth frames on controversial calls, allowing Berean Christian to take advantage of the demoralized Panthers in the final set.

“I could only fight for the kids as much as I could with the referees,” Patacsil said. “That’s my job, but then they have to fight for themselves on the court. The ball just didn’t fall in our favor.”

The Panthers will now turn their attention towards the Northern California State Playoffs, which begin on Tuesday. Benicia will find out its opponent when brackets are released on Sunday.

“It all just depends on how we take this,” Santos said. “It’s not just one player, it’s the whole team, so the whole team has to work together and bring it back next week.”

The championship atmosphere was on full display in the first set, with both sides trading kills to meet at 5-5 and 17-17.

The Eagles found separation with a 4-0 run, but the Panthers clawed their way back, narrowing the deficit to 23-22 after Duncan Seeley capped off a 3-0 spurt with a service ace.

Berean Christian’s Preston Fehr silenced the run with a cross-court kill before both sides traded errors to clinch the set for the Eagles.

Berean Christian’s front row gave Benicia problems in the first set, recording four blocks – two of which coming on double blocks from Lukas Mittone and Steven Sun.

“They brought the intensity knowing that we were going to be swinging a little bit more,” Patacsil said. “We were trying to adjust, but again, they got lucky with a lot of the balls.”

Mittone showcased his attacking prowess in the second set, landing two kills to give the Eagles an early 7-4 lead.

Seeley and Alex Washburn answered with back-to-back kills before Santos took control of the set, scoring four of Benicia’s next five points to put the Panthers ahead, 11-7.

“I told myself before the game, even if we didn’t win or if we were down, I wanted to play to the best of my ability,” Santos said.

Although it looked like Santos extended Benicia’s run with an assist to Washburn, the line judge ruled it an error, awarding the point to the Eagles instead. Berean Christian settled into a rhythm soon after, taking a 20-16 lead.

Similarly to the first set, the Panthers refused to go down quietly, tying the set at 20-20 after Santos punctuated a 4-0 run with a service ace.

The Eagles and Panthers tied twice more before Berean Christian clinched the set on back-to-back Benicia errors. The second of which looked like a Kahbran Marvin kill, but it was ruled he committed a net violation.

After two tight sets, the Eagles overwhelmed the Panthers in the third, racing out to a 16-7 advantage.

Benicia answered with five straight points, but Berean Christian closed out the victory with a 7-1 run capped by a kill from Mittone.

“Calls didn’t go our way. What can you do?,” Patacsil said. “You want it to go a certain way, but it’s all opinions, it’s all objective…I’m not going to put our loss based on that.”

ALBANY, N.Y. – The UAlbany track and field teams are prepared to compete in the Princeton Elite Invitational.
 
MEET INFORMATION
 
Princeton Elite Invitational
DATE: Saturday, May 17 
SITE: Weaver Stadium – Princeton, N.J.
RESULTS: Leone Timing
MORE INFO: Schedule
 
AMERICA EAST OUTDOOR HISTORY

• The UAlbany women have won 18 outdoor titles. They currently hold a 16-year win streak.
• Historically, the women have had the most success in the 400m hurdles with a total of 13 event titles.
• The UAlbany men have won 19 men’s outdoor titles overall.
• Historically, the men have seen the most success in the triple jump with 16 event titles.
• Combined, the Great Danes currently hold 12 men’s and seven women’s America East Outdoor Championship meet records. 
• Overall, UAlbany has won 283 event titles at America East Outdoor Championships.

  • The men have won 165, including 101 track events and 64 field events
  • The women have won 133, including 80 track events and 53 field events.

 
AMERICA EAST OUTDOOR EVENT LEADERS (W/M)
100m: Shantae Pryce / X
200m: Shantae Pryce / X
800m: X / Hassan Abidi
110mH: Toni Galloway / Antwone Messado
High Jump: Miyanah Robinson / Zhi Luncheon-Lowrie & Ja’Lil Reynolds 
Long Jump: X / Louis Gordon
Triple Jump: Leann Nicholas / X
Discus: Lalenii Grant / X
Hammer Throw: Stephanie Green / X
Javelin: Beatriz Mora Herencia / X
Heptathlon: Kate Del Gandio / X
4×100 relay: A. Hunt, Vassell, Galloway, Pryce / Staats Jr., Ogunyeye, Davis-Whittaker, Morris 
 
Full Performance Lists: Women | Men
 
NORTHEAST OUTDOOR RANKINGS
Week 1: Men (8) | Women (5)
Week 2: Men (6) | Women (5)
Week 3: Men (7) | Women (5)
Week 4: Men (5) | Women (5)
Week 5: Men (5) | Women (5)
Week 6: Men (6) | Women (6)
Week 7: Men (7) | Women (6)
 
Full Rankings
 
NORTHEAST OUTDOOR TOP TEN
Hassan Abidi: 800m (2, 1:47.60)
Amelia Benjamin: High Jump (4, 1.76m) 
Kate Del Gandio: 100mh (5, 13.72)
Jed Elmbarki: 3000 Steeplechase (10, 8:54.33)
Toni Galloway: 100mh (1, 13.17w)
Louis Gordon: Long Jump (2, 7.73m)
Lalenii Grant: Discus (2, 54.48m)
Stephanie Green: Hammer (5, 59.33m)
Adaliz Hunt: 100m (7, 11.69)
Zhi Luncheon-Lowrie: High Jump (T4, 2.06m)
Simone Menchini: Long Jump (3, 7.56m) 
Antwone Messado: 110mH (7, 14.21)
Beatriz Mora Herencia: Javelin (1, 49.52m)
Rajay Morris: 200m (7, 21.11)
Leann Nicholas: Triple Jump (10, 12.12m)
Tooni Ogunyeye: 100m (1, 10.27)
Jasir Parker: Triple Jump (10, 14.91m)
Shantae Pryce: 100m (6, 11.68)
Ja’Lil Reynolds: High Jump (T4, 2.06m)
Miyanah Robinson: High Jump (3, 1.77m)
Shavar Staats Jr.: 100m (6, 10.39) 
Shenequa Vassell: 100m (10, 11.71)
4×100 relay: 3, 39.73
                Staats Jr., Ogunyeye, Davis-Whittaker, Morris
4×100 relay: 1, 44.97
                Hunt, Vassell, Galloway, Pryce 
 
Full Performance Lists: Women | Men
 
NCAA EAST QUALIFIERS (Top 48 Individuals, Top 24 Relays)
Hassan Abidi: 800m (22, 1:47.60)
Toni Galloway: 100mH (17, 13.17w)
Lalenii Grant: Discus (17, 54.48m)
Stephanie Green: Hammer (31, 59.33m)
Louis Gordon: Long Jump (14, 7.73m)
Simone Menchini: Long Jump (34, 7.56m)
Beatriz Mora Herencia: Javelin (19, 49.52m)
Tooni Ogunyeye: 100m (40, 10.27) 
Miyanah Robinson: High Jump (20, 1.77m)
 
Full Performance Lists: Women | Men
 
NCAA TOP 50 
Hassan Abidi: 800m (40, 1:47.60) 
Toni Galloway: 100mH (29, 13.17w) 
Louis Gordon: Long Jump (27, 7.73m)
Lalenii Grant: Discus (40, 54.48m)
Beatriz Mora Herencia: (43, 49.52m) 
 
Full Performance Lists: Women | Men
 
2025 AMERICA EAST OUTDOOR CHAMPIONS
Women
Shantae Pryce: 100m
Shantae Pryce: 200m
Toni Galloway: 100mH
Adaliz Hunt: 4x100m
Shenequa Vassell: 4x100m
Toni Galloway: 4x100m
Shantae Pryce: 4x100m
Amelia Benjamin: High Jump
Leann Nicholas: Triple Jump
Lalenii Grant: Discuss
Stephanie Green: Hammer
Beatriz Mora Herencia: Javelin
Men
Tooni Ogunyeye: 100m
Hassan Abidi: 800m
Antwone Messado: 110mH
Shavar Staats Jr.: 4x100m
Tooni Ogunyeye: 4x100m
Jose Davis-Whittaker: 4x100m
Rajay Morris: 4x100m
Louis Gordon: Long Jump
Jasir Parker: Triple Jump
 
CHAMPIONSHIP PEDIGREE

• The UAlbany cross country/track and field program claimed their first America East Championship victory in 2003 when the men won the indoor championship. Since then, each of the six programs have claimed at least one America East crown.
• The program’s six teams have collectively won 70 of UAlbany’s 140 Division I championship titles with their most recent coming during the outdoor season with both teams winning titles.

 
AE OUTDOOR PERFORMERS OF THE WEEK
Mar. 25

Apr. 8

Apr. 22

Apr. 28

 
2025 AMERICA EAST INDOOR CHAMPIONS
Women
Amelia Benjamin: High Jump
Rebeca Valerie Barrientos Alpha: Triple Jump
Shenequa Vassell: 60m
Men
Tooni Ogunyeye: 60m
Hassan Abidi: 800m
Antwone Messado: 60mH
Ja’Lil Reynolds: High Jump
Simone Menchini: Long Jump
Travis Robinson: Shot Put
 
UP NEXT: Those who qualify will continue their season at the NCAA East Preliminary Rounds in Jacksonville, Florida (May 28-31).
 
Keep up with all of the latest news, highlights, and insights on UAlbany cross country and track and field by following the teams on X, Instagram, and Facebook.
 

DALLAS – Sam Houston senior Brady Christensen has been named to the Conference USA All-Academic team, per a release from league officials on Friday. 

Christensen is in his second year with the Bearkats, coming to SHSU after years at both Iowa Western CC and San Jacinto College. He played in 36 games in 2024, and has been a primary fixture in the Bearkat lineup in 2025.  

He currently is hitting .259 and is tied for the team lead with nine home runs and four triples, while also adding 11 doubles and 33 RBI. 

In the classroom he has excelled as well, holding a 3.36 overall GPA while majoring in General Business. He is a 2-time recipient of the CUSA Commissioner’s Honor Roll in both 2023-24 and 2024-25 and made the Dean’s List at SHSU in the Spring of 2025. 

Christensen is expected to graduate in December 2025 with a BBA in Business Administration before pursuing a Master of Business Administration beginning in the Spring semester of 2026.