Brent McBurney retires as Perry High School wrestling coach
Under Brent McBurney, Perry won 12 Federal League championships and were the OHSAA Division I team state runner-up five times.His teams compiled a 133-33 record in dual meets with him as the head coach.McBurney was named the 2024 Ohio High School Wrestling Coaches Association State Coach of the Year.PERRY TWP. — The tenure of one of […]
Under Brent McBurney, Perry won 12 Federal League championships and were the OHSAA Division I team state runner-up five times.His teams compiled a 133-33 record in dual meets with him as the head coach.McBurney was named the 2024 Ohio High School Wrestling Coaches Association State Coach of the Year.PERRY TWP. — The tenure of one of the most successful high school wrestling coaches in the history of Stark County has come to an end.Perry High School announced in a Thursday press release that head wrestling coach Brent McBurney has decided to retire.McBurney was a coach on the Perry staff for the past 20 years. He had a record of 133-33 in dual meets and won 12 Federal League Championships. McBurney coached multiple individual state champions and led Perry to five OHSAA Division I runner up finishes in the team standings at the state tournament.“It has been my honor and privilege to lead and be part of the Perry Wrestling program for the last 20 years,” McBurney wrote in a press release. “At this time I will be stepping down as the head wrestling coach and looking forward to being able to watch my son compete in college and my daughter finish out soccer in high school. I appreciate the support of the administration and community over the years.”McBurney also helped Perry become the first public school program in the history of the state to qualify its entire lineup for the OHSAA State Tournament this winter. He was named the Ohio High School Wrestling Coaches Association State Coach of the Year this past season for his efforts.Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
“Perry High School is grateful to Coach McBurney for his years of service and dedication to our students and the community,” athletic director Kevin Yoder wrote in a press release. “During his time at Perry our wrestling program was not only one of the best wrestling programs in the state, but also in the country. Coach McBurney was a class act at all times and great to work with. He along with his coaching staff and wrestlers represented our school and community in the best possible way at all times, and his impact on the wrestling program and the student-athletes he coached will not be forgotten. We wish him all the best in his future endeavors.”
The will look for a successor immediately. Perry will provide updates on the search in the coming weeks.
Women’s Track and Field Wins 16th-Straight Outdoor Championship
Story Links
FINISH: 1st – 187 points – out of 9 teams LOCATION: Wildcat Stadium – Durham, N.H. SHORT STORY: The women’s track and field team swept two podiums and landed multiple personal records to tally a 59-point win for the 16th consecutive outdoor track and field championship title. […]
SHORT STORY:The women’s track and field team swept two podiums and landed multiple personal records to tally a 59-point win for the 16th consecutive outdoor track and field championship title.
INDIVIDUAL AWARDS: Shantae Pryce (Coaches’ Award)
TEAM SCORES:1. UAlbany 187, 2. New Hampshire 128, 3. Bryant 127.5, 4. Binghamton 106.5, 5. UMBC 105, 6. Maine 72, 7. Vermont 55, 8. UMass Lowell 43, 9. NJIT 33
KEY NOTES
Due to thunderstorms in the area, day one’s first round track events were canceled after running the 1500m and 100m hurdle prelims. Only the women’s pole vault and men’s and women’s hammer throw completed competition on Saturday.
The 100m sprinters swept the podium and the 200m sprinters finished with three in the top four. Shantae Pryce won both the 100m and the 200m dash.
Adaliz Hunt (second) and Shenequa Vassell (third) joined Pryce in entering the program’s 100m top 10 in fourth through sixth place, respectively.
Pryce, Hunt, Vassell, and Toni Galloway opened the track on Sunday with a 4x100m win.
Galloway (first), Kate Del Gandio (second), and Brinesha Derrick-Bain combined to sweep the 100m hurdle podium. Shanise Staats added a fourth scorer for UAlbany with a sixth-place finish.
Derrick-Bain tabbed her second medal of the meet with a hard-fought runner-up finish in the 400m hurdles.
In one of the few events on Saturday, Katie Iocca PR’d and became eighth-best in program history with a fifth-place finish in the steeplechase.
In the field, the Great Danes landed five individual wins – Amelia Benjamin (HJ), Leann Nicholas (TJ), Lalenii Grant (DT), Stephanie Green (HT), and Beatriz Mora Herencia (JT).
Repeating their performance at indoor championships, Miyanah Robinson joined Benjamin on the podium with a second-place finish.
Keegan Collins finished just outside of all-conference contention in the hammer throw with a personal record. She is now seventh in program history with a 55.18-meter throw.
Chrysanthemum Osorio increased her javelin throw distance and improved her top-10 placement to fourth with a fourth-place finish.
Tallying three medals and several personal records, Kate Del Gandio was a workhorse with a second-place finish in the heptathlon and 100m hurdles and a third-place finish in the 200m dash.
SCORERS & PERSONAL RECORDS
100m
1. Shantae Pryce – 11.68 (personal record) (fifth in program history)
2. Adaliz Hunt – 11.69 (personal record) (sixth in program history)
3. Shenequa Vassell – 11.71 (personal record) (seventh in program history)
24. Evanni McDuffie – 13.32 (personal record)
200m
1. Shantae Pryce – 23.95 (personal record) (eighth in program history)
3. Kate Del Gandio – 24.25
4. Shenequa Vassell – 24.34 (personal record)
Javelin Throw
1. Beatriz Mora Herencia – 46.72m (153-3)
4. Chrysanthemum Osorio – 42.43m (139-2) (personal record) (fourth in program history)
Heptathlon
2. Kate Del Gandio – 4687 (personal record) (fourth in program history) 100mH (13.91), HJ (1.48m), SP (7.63m), 200m (24.19) (PR), LJ (5.47) (PR), JT (23.51m) (PR), 800m (2:28.32)
13. Marissa Gordon – 4000 (personal record) 100mH (15.17), HJ (1.48m), SP (8.27m), 200m (25.71) (PR), LJ (5.23m), JT (8.08m), 800m (2:33.70) (PR)
15. Grace Adeyeye – 2719 100mH (17.12), HJ (1.42m), SP (8.70m), 200m (29.11), LJ (3.82), JT (19.72m), 800m (3:45.54)
NEXT:The Great Danes will continue the season at the West Point Twilight on Thursday (May 8).
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.
College Track and Field: Area athletes win conference titles at AMC Championships
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. — Six area graduates won event titles during the American Midwest Conference outdoor track and field championships, which were held last Wednesday and Thursday at SIU-Edwardsville’s Ralph Korte Stadium. Columbia College swept the team championships. The men totaled 267 points in 21 events and the women scored 211 points. Three area graduates won […]
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. — Six area graduates won event titles during the American Midwest Conference outdoor track and field championships, which were held last Wednesday and Thursday at SIU-Edwardsville’s Ralph Korte Stadium.
Columbia College swept the team championships. The men totaled 267 points in 21 events and the women scored 211 points.
Three area graduates won multiple titles for Columbia College.
Graduate student Campbell Nichols (Russellville High School) took first place in the men’s 800-meter run with a time of 1:56.38. Nichols was also a champion in his other event, helping the Cougars to a title in the 4×800-meter relay with a time of 7:50.85.
Sophomore Caleigh Huot (Fatima High School) was a conference champion in the women’s 400-meter dash, clocking a winning time of 59.24 seconds.
Senior Gracie Schultz (Belle High School) took first place in the women’s long jump with a leap of 16 feet, 8¾ inches.
Huot and Schultz also accounted for two of the four legs on the Cougars’ 4×100-meter relay, which won a title with a time of 49.77 seconds.
Columbia College freshman Easton Haslag (Fatima High School) claimed the conference title in the men’s javelin with a throw of 176-6.
Columbia College freshman Lauren Berhorst (Fatima High School) placed first in the women’s 10,000-meter run with a time of 42:10.55.
Also winning a conference title at the AMC meet was William Woods senior Jenson Starr (Helias High School), who finished first in the men’s 10,000 with a time of 34:09.07. The Owls took third place in the men’s team standings with 126 points.
PHS boys volleyball team competes in 1st tournament
The Philomath High School boys volleyball team played in its first-ever tournament Saturday with a trip to West Salem. The Warriors finished fourth in morning pool play and were placed in the “bronze bracket” for an afternoon matchup against McNary. “We struggled in the morning and couldn’t create any consistent play,” PHS coach Helen Bennett […]
The Philomath High School boys volleyball team played in its first-ever tournament Saturday with a trip to West Salem.
The Warriors finished fourth in morning pool play and were placed in the “bronze bracket” for an afternoon matchup against McNary.
“We struggled in the morning and couldn’t create any consistent play,” PHS coach Helen Bennett said. “Part of that was playing against good 5A and 6A teams but when we struggle in serving and give them free points, it makes the opponent’s job easier. We found our energy and better play in the afternoon.”
McNary took the first set over the Warriors but Philomath won the next two sets to take the match.
“Jaxon Allen came in the second set and served tough to lead the team as we went on a seven-point run to finish the set,” Bennett said. “We had all the momentum and that carried us into the decisive third set.”
The win moved PHS forward into the bronze bracket’s finale against West Salem. The Titans, playing on their home court, won in two sets.
“West Salem was both fun and challenging to play against as they have some talented players,” Bennett said. “We had some highlights of great defensive plays that led to some offensive kills.”
Bennett said a highlight of the tournament occurred during a one-hour delay in between pool and bracket play
“Players from all different teams mixed together to play ‘Queen of the Court,’ which is a 3-on-3 game,” Bennett said. “Our boys mixed in, too, and had fun and made friends. It was cool to see and what to me playing volleyball is all about — creating friendships, camaraderie and having a whole bunch of fun.”
Philomath (9-4) will get back into league play Tuesday with a home tripleheader against Marshfield (3:30 p.m.), North Bend (5 p.m.) and Newport (7 p.m.).
Hopkins Cruises to 15th Consecutive Centennial Conference Title
Story Links
COLLEGEVILLE, PA – The Johns Hopkins women’s outdoor track team closed out its 15th consecutive Centennial Conference title on Sunday at Ursinus as the Blue Jays rolled up 338.5 points to easily outdistance runner-up Dickinson, which totaled 125.5 points. Swarthmore (109 points), Ursinsu (66.5) and Franklin & Marshall (47) rounded […]
COLLEGEVILLE, PA – The Johns Hopkins women’s outdoor track team closed out its 15th consecutive Centennial Conference title on Sunday at Ursinus as the Blue Jays rolled up 338.5 points to easily outdistance runner-up Dickinson, which totaled 125.5 points. Swarthmore (109 points), Ursinsu (66.5) and Franklin & Marshall (47) rounded out the top five in the final team standings.
The 338.5 points the Blue Jays rolled up shatter the previous Centennial Conference record of 281.5, which Johns Hopkins set a year ago. In addition, the title this season is the sixth of the 15 that the Blue Jays have won at Ursinus.
In addition to the team title, the Blue Jays also nabbed the Outstanding Field Performer of the Meet in junior Erika Ezumba.
Johns Hopkins added seven gold medals on Sunday to help fuel its run final-day surge. First-place finishes and top performances in those events on the final day of the three-day championship included:
Erika Ezumba (Shot Put) – The first of Ezumba’s six attempts went for 12.10-meters, which would have been good enough for third at the end, but she added tosses of 12.85-meters on her fourth attempt and what proved to be the winning mark of 12.92-meters on her sixth and final toss. She adds her first-place showing in the shot put to her previous gold medal in the hammer throw. Phoebe Williams added a fourth-place finish in the shot put with a toss of 11.55-meters.
4×100-Relay – The Blue Jays’ 4×100-relay team of Mirra Klimov, Lianne Saussy, Anna Zinsser and Lauren Phillips set Johns Hopkins, Centennial Conference a CC Championship meet records and punched up the 25th-best time in the nation to date as they crossed in 47.30 seconds to beat runner-up Bryn Mawr by nearly two seconds.
Annie Huang (1500) – Huang led a dominant performance in the 1500-meter run as the Blue Jays grabbed the top four spots and nine of the top 10 finishers, including seven of eight scoring positions. Huang eased to a first-place finish in 4:31.84 and she was followed closely by Emma Kothari (4:34.02), Harrinee Senthilkumar (4:34.53) and Adriana Catalano (4:35.63). In all, the Blue Jay grabbed 35 of the 39 team points available in the event. This is the third consecutive year and the ninth time overall that JHU has produced the 1500-meter champion.
Lauren Phillips (400) – Phillips claimed her third consecutive 400-meter title and the seventh title in the event all-time for Johns Hopkins as she was 1.36 seconds ahead of Dickinson’s Maddie Brown when she crossed in 56.48. Ryan Bigelow added a fifth-place finish with a season-best time of 1:01.06.
Mirra Klimov (100) – For the fourth consecutive year and the 11th time in program history, the Blue Jays produced the 100-meter champion as Klimov as she clocked a personal-best 12.06 seconds to grab gold. Ellie Lewis (3rd / 12.53), Anna Zinsser (4th / 12.63) and Claire Wang (6th / 12.76) rounded out the four scoring runners for Johns Hopkins.
Aisling Callahan (5000) – In a race she never trailed, Callahan crossed in 17:44.61 to beat runner-up Liza Barbash of Dickinson by just under six seconds. The title is the second straight in the event for Callahan, who joins Elle Clawson (2017, 2018) as the only two-time champions among Johns Hopkins’ 13 all-time 5,000-meter gold medalists.
4×400-Relay – Johns Hopkins closed out its title in style as the Blue Jays won the final event of the championship – the 4×400-meter relay – by more than 10 seconds. The team of Lauren Phillips, Annie Huang, Harrinee Senthilkumar and Lianne Saussy crossed in a meet-record time of 3:49.28. The time, the second-best in Johns Hopkins history, also ranks 18th in the nation this season.
In addition to events in which the Blue Jays produced the champion, they also got four runner-up finishes to lead the way in four other events. Williams placed second in javelin (33.64-meters), Sara Bartlett (11.66-meters) added a bronze in the triple jump, Lorna Arcese (1:05.96) was the runner-up in the 400-meter hurdles and Lewis was second in the 200 (25.46).
The final medal on the day for Johns Hopkins came in the 800-meter run from sophomore Lily Tremba (2:18.41), who grabbed bronze.
Ocean View boys’ volleyball rallies, falls short versus Lakewood
Ocean View’s grand boys’ volleyball campaign was coming to its end, two sets down and six points behind as Lakewood served for the final point in what would be an impressive road sweep of the No. 1 seed. The Seahawks weren’t going to go so easily though, reeling off eight straight points to force another […]
Ocean View’s grand boys’ volleyball campaign was coming to its end, two sets down and six points behind as Lakewood served for the final point in what would be an impressive road sweep of the No. 1 seed.
The Seahawks weren’t going to go so easily though, reeling off eight straight points to force another set, then reaching the brink of a decisive fifth set before falling, 25-16, 25-21, 24-26, 26-24, in Friday evening’s CIF Southern Section Division 7 second-round clash.
Defeat stings, but first-year head coach Steven Morales, who guided Ocean View (16-9) to the postseason for the first time since a Division 5 semifinal run in 2019, was beaming when it was done. He’s been working since fall toward creating a volleyball culture on campus, and here was the reward. Here was the response to talk “all across campus, everywhere” that the boys’ volleyball team “doesn’t win.”
Ocean View’s Alexander Campos goes down for a dig against Lakewood on Friday.
(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)
Ocean View didn’t win this time, conquered by a school twice its size from a superior league that has played a tougher schedule, but the Seahawks’ fight before a small but vocal crowd was a sign, he said, that this team has arrived.
“Hopefully, this sets a new culture for this program and the school,” he said. “Hopefully, it sets a day where we mean business. It’s our first year. We’ll see what the summer looks like, and fall, then come back next year.”
An Nguyen, coupling a ferocious swing with a 45-inch vertical leap, led the charge, delivering seven kills and two blocks as Ocean View survived six game points and then led seven times in the fourth set, the last with two shots to pull even.
Ocean View’s Max Dalton (3) keeps a long rally alive against Lakewood on Friday.
(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)
“I just want to say all of our guys, all the dedication we put in morning practices, every 6 a.m. from December, January and February, all of us are trying to put our best work in,” said Nguyen, who posted 17 kills and five blocks. “I’m just proud for them. It’s been six years since we made playoffs, they did everything they can, and this is where we are.”
Lakewood (12-10), which will be home for the quarterfinals against Brea Olinda (17-11), dominated the first two sets — Ocean View led just twice, 1-0 in the first set and 16-15 in the second — behind a balanced group led by Carlo Tautai-Reyes (12 kills), Christian Newquist (11 kills, three blocks), Ivan Mandujano (nine kills, five aces) and setter J.J. Fernandez.
The Seahawks, who had gifted the Lancers 17 points through two sets, kept it close into the second rotation in the third before falling behind, 19-13, as Newquist provided two kills and two blocks in an 8-2 run. Valentino Saenz-Castruita’s block on Nguyen 10 points later made it 24-18.
Ocean View’s Tilo Voelkmann (24) puts away a kill past Lakewood’s Ivan Mandujano (4) on Friday.
(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)
Nguyen repelled the first game point with a block on Dereon Groce, Quan Duong served an ace between two Lakewood spikes into the net, two more balls went out of bounds from Lancer touches, and it was even. Nguyen again blocked Groce to push Ocean View ahead, and a misplay on a simple ball extended the game a set.
“These guys refused to lose,” Morales said. “I told them, ‘Hey, at this point, it’s not even volleyball. You’re down to your last point, and you’re down six. Dig deep.’ And that’s what they did. They came back.”
First-year Lakewood coach Daniel Lozada, also directing a turnaround, called the sequence “unacceptable” and discussed it with his team at length after the handshakes. He thought Ocean View committed a double-hit violation on the first game point and said the “down” referee agreed with him.
“She said the [chief] ref didn’t want to finish the [match] on that,” said Lozada, who coached the Seahawks during the COVID-shortened 2020 season. “Which to me is unacceptable, but it is what it is. We battled through it. We got bad calls, but some calls went our way in that fourth set.”
The fourth set featured a dozen lead changes, half of those from 15-15, and only one lead (Ocean View at 7-4) greater than two points, and Ocean View surged ahead, 24-22, from a ball off the ceiling that the Lancers couldn’t corral and Tyler Chiangtong’s ace.
Lakewood scored the last four points, the equalizer and winner on Mandujano aces.
Ocean View’s Alex McCarrick (4) and An Nguyen (1) make a key block for a point against Lakewood on Friday.
(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)
“Unfortunately, we weren’t able to close that fourth set. But great year, great year,” Morales said. “I feel like this is just a taste. This is the beginning of what could be. We only lose one starting senior — An, our best player and an amazing player — and return everybody else. So it’s just a taste of what next year can be.”
Nguyen is hopeful.
“Sometimes it takes time to change,” he said. “People say that we’re not good, but then we just practice day in and day out and try our best on game day. … Hopefully, [we] can start showing our school that we’re a volleyball school. We’re not some school that has no name in volleyball.”
Ocean View’s Alex McCarrick (4) puts away an overpass kill for a point against Lakewood on Friday.
Men’s Track & Field Ties For Fifth at A-10 Championship
Story Links
Fairfax, Va. – (May 4, 2025) – The Fordham men’s track & field team finished in a tie for fifth place at the 2025 Atlantic 10 Outdoor Track & Field Championship, held at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia.
The Rams finished with a score of […]
Fairfax, Va. – (May 4, 2025) – The Fordham men’s track & field team finished in a tie for fifth place at the 2025 Atlantic 10 Outdoor Track & Field Championship, held at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia.
The Rams finished with a score of 62 points along with Duquesne. It is Fordham’s highest point total at the Atlantic 10 Outdoor Track & Field Championship since 2019.
Fordham had plenty of highlights on Sunday, none bigger than Njam Abdul-Latif being named the Atlantic 10 Most Outstanding Track Performer of the Championship, as well as earning the Most Outstanding Rookie Performer. He is only the second person to capture both awards, joining Darius Law of Charlotte in 2008.
Abdul-Latif kicked off his day by anchoring the 4×100 relay to a fourth place finish with Dakota Strain, Matthew Nurse, and Liam Volz in a time of 41.48 seconds. He then earned Second Team All-Atlantic 10 honors by picking up the silver medal in the 100-meter dash at 10.51 seconds. He ended the day by winning the 200-meter dash event in 21.17 seconds.
The parade of podium finishes continued with the 1,500-meter final, where the trio of Rodolfo Sanchez, Nathan Bezuneh, and Sean Reidy all scored points for the Rams. Sanchez took Second Team All-Atlantic 10 honors and the silver medal in 3:49.55, with Bezuneh taking the bronze for third at 3:49.81 and Reidy in fourth at 3:50.03.
Ben Borchers continued the scoring for Fordham in the 800-meter final, placing eighth in 1:56.26.
Each of those runners, Sanchez, Borchers, Reidy, and Bezuneh, later returned to the track in the 4×800 relay, taking the bronze medal and a third place finish in 7:32.10. The 4×400 relay also scored for the Rams, as Kevin Callaghan, Nelson Lindsay, Matthew Nurse, and Sam Freeman placed fifth in 3:12.96.
The final Fordham scorer for the Championship was George Pomer in the decathlon, finishing seventh with a score of 5,858 points. On day two, he was second in the 1,500 meters (4;39.08), seventh in the 110-meter hurdles (16.37) and pole vault (11′ 3 ¾”), and eighth in the discus throw (93′ 0″) and javelin throw (129′ 3″).
The last events with Fordham competitors were the 5,000-meter run and the triple jump. Luke Cramer was 15th in the triple jump with a mark of 42′ 2 ¾”, while Matthew Mason was the top Ram in the 5,000 meters in 18th place at 14:48.57.
The Rams will now prepare for the IC4A Championship, May 17-18, which is back in Fairfax, Virginia at George Mason University.