BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Former Kentucky Wildcat, Kaz Brown, is a Professional Volleyball Federation champion after she and the Orlando Valkyries defeated the Indy Ignite in four sets on Mother’s Day to claim the league’s second ever title.

“The overwhelming emotion was joy,” Brown said. “The moment felt very joyful to be spending that championship weekend with teammates, with family, with friends, which is one of the biggest perks.”

But before she was winning championships at the professional level, Brown dominated at the University of Kentucky, becoming the Wildcats all time leader in total blocks, solo blocks and block assists. After college, she would take her talents overseas, playing volleyball in Germany, Ukraine, France and Greece for a handful of years. That experience would shape her into the player she is today, becoming the first ever Middle Blocker of the Year in 2024.

“Being overseas prepared me a lot from a mental standpoint,” Brown said. You’re kind of over there alone and you kind of have to be the one to check yourself and and keep yourself in check. I think that benefited me greatly in my professional career.”

In the 2025 regular season, Brown set new career highs with 228 kills, 73 blocks, 56 digs and 19 aces. And in the playoffs, she picked up right where she left off, finishing with a career high seven blocks in the semifinals against the Atlanta Vibe and helping Orlando close out in day for the championship.

“I would have to say our experience is really what set us apart,” Brown said. “Having players who have been on a big stage before and have been able to perform and compete at that level, I think was huge for us.”

From Lexington stand out to 2025 champion, Brown is proving that Kentucky talent belongs at the top.

“I love the University of Kentucky,” Brown said. “I had the best four years of my life there to date. And so to be able to win a title at the pro level, I mean, I have I have so many people to thank, And the University of Kentucky volleyball program is definitely at the top of that list.”

NCAA Reforms Put Olympic Sports on the Ropes: What’s at Stake for Swimming and Beyond

The Knight Commission will convene Tuesday, May 20, for what may be one of the most consequential conversations in the history of college athletics. With NCAA President Charlie Baker on the agenda and Olympic sport leaders in attendance, the stakes are high—and for swimming, they’re personal. Formed in 1989, the Knight Commission is designed to promote reform in collegiate athletics.

Triggered by the $2.8 billion House v. NCAA settlement, the collegiate sports model is shifting fast. Schools are preparing to directly pay athletes. Scholarship limits are being lifted. And in the scramble to manage new financial pressures, Olympic sports are being cut.

Cal Poly eliminated men’s and women’s swimming this spring, citing a $450,000 annual burden from the settlement. Grand Canyon dropped its nationally ranked men’s volleyball team. Coaches from every corner of the country are already reducing rosters—often without notice. This isn’t theoretical. It’s happening now.

While football and men’s basketball will absorb the coming changes, non-revenue sports are left to fend for themselves. And the NCAA’s own data confirms the threat: more than 65% of U.S. Olympians have come through college programs.

What’s at Risk

Swimming & Diving is not alone. Programs across Olympic sports—from wrestling to rowing to track—are bracing for impact. Some will lose scholarships. Others will shrink teams. A few may be gone for good. Here’s a look at how Division I sports stack up under the pressure of the settlement:

What We’re Looking For

The May 20 meeting will set the tone for how Olympic sports are—or aren’t—protected going forward. Swimming World will be in the room, listening to what Baker and others say not just about revenue sharing and governance, but about opportunity, equity, and the role of swimming and similar sports in the future of college athletics.

We know the scoreboard. We know the cuts. And we know what’s at stake.

Now it’s time to see who will stand up for the sports that built Team USA.

We’ll have a followup after the meeting with analysis and insight from Tuesday’s session. Until then, the message is clear:

The pipeline to the Olympics runs through college campuses. Let’s not shut it down.

BOWIE, MD – Bowie State standout thrower Yassine Kamara is set to make her second-straight appearance at the 2025 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships, that will take place from Thursday, May 22 to Saturday, May 24 in Pueblo, Colo., at Colorado State University Pueblo’s Thunderbowl Stadium. 

Meet: NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championship

When: Thursday, May. 22 – Saturday, May. 24

Location: Pueblo, Colo. (CSUP Thunderbowl)

Meet Information: Click Here

Event Schedule: Click Here

Watch: Click Here

Tickets: Click Here

Also accompanying Bowie State from the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) conference is Claflin University who leads the league with four student-athletes while Johnson C. Smith and Virginia State add two qualifiers each, respectively.

Kamara will compete in the women’s discus throw on Friday, May 23 at 2 p.m., and the women’s shot put on Saturday, May 24 at 1:15 p.m., both taking place at CSUP Thunderbowl Stadium.

Last Timeout

Kamara’s last outing was during the CIAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships where she captured the gold medal in the discus with a throw of 50.16 meters and secured the silver medal in the shot put with a mark of 13.09 meters at the Durham County Stadium in Durham, N.C., on May 3.

For the most up-to-date information on Bowie State Athletics and its 13 varsity sport teams, visit bsubulldogs.com.

(Red Oak) — Red Oak senior Nicole Bond took her time with her college decision, eventually making the call to play volleyball at Northeast Community College in Norfolk, Nebraska.

“I kind of just decided to fully sign with them in March,” Bond said. “I looked at a lot of two-year colleges because that’s kind of where I wanted to go. I didn’t have a good feeling from most of the ones I went to, but then Northeast looked at my film and I decided to go on a visit there.”

Bond initially was attracted to their volleyball program, and the more she learned about Northeast, the more she realized it was her next stop.

“I really liked their campus and their facilities,” Bond said. “Just their program in general and their coach. There was a point where I had no idea where to go, so I kind of just looked up two-year colleges near me and they happened to pop up. It worked out in a great way.”

Bond had a big senior season for the Tigers in the back row, finishing the year with an average of 3.9 digs per set.

“I don’t think (Northeast) is too big, and everything is a walkable distance,” Bond said. “Their weight program is really good, which is important to me. Just the fitness and all that is involved with athletics. And then I also just liked the distance from Red Oak. I don’t feel like it’s super far, and their volleyball program was so good. And they have a really good program for my major, which is exercise science.”

Listen to much more with Bond on her college decision in the audio file below.