Sports
Ja Morant injury changed Warriors' play
Could the Memphis Grizzlies have walked away with a win against the Warriors on Tuesday at Chase Center if star guard Ja Morant hadn’t sustained an ankle injury during the third quarter? Without discounting Golden State’s merit in its 121-116 win over Memphis, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith believes so. “But in the same breath, let’s […]


Could the Memphis Grizzlies have walked away with a win against the Warriors on Tuesday at Chase Center if star guard Ja Morant hadn’t sustained an ankle injury during the third quarter?
Without discounting Golden State’s merit in its 121-116 win over Memphis, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith believes so.
“But in the same breath, let’s make sure we understand partially anyways what happened,” Smith said Wednesday on “First Take.” “Ja Morant did get hurt. And if Ja Morant, considering some of the plays that he was making, had remained healthy throughout…”
In the dying minutes of the third quarter of Tuesday night’s pivotal NBA play-in tournament game, Morant landed awkwardly on the foot of Warriors guard Buddy Hield.
Soon after Memphis’ medical staff attended to Morant, the 25-year-old limped to the charity line and sank a free throw before hobbling back to the bench.
Morant scored a team-high 18 points on 7-of-14 shooting before sustaining the injury. He returned with 9:26 left in the fourth quarter and finished with 22 points.
As Smith argued, the Grizzlies, despite experiencing noticeable ups and downs throughout the game, fought until the end behind the likes of its star players.
“You look at Desmond Bane and what he was doing,” Smith added. “Jaren Jackson looked alive a little bit late. You saw Ja Morant and how he tried to play through the obvious pain from that ankle injury.”
In sports there’s no shortage of what-ifs, and, merely, that’s what Smith is proposing.
“I would just look at it from that standpoint – not taking anything away from the Golden State Warriors,” Smith concluded.
“But you did find yourself saying, especially in the end, if Ja Morant had not gotten hurt, we might be saying something different this morning.”
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Sports
NY Mets minor league pitching pipeline chock
The winds of change are clearly blowing through the New York Mets organization, particularly when it comes to pitching development. Since the arrival of David Stearns, the Mets have seemingly unlocked a new level of pitching transformation at the major league level. This newfound prowess isn’t confined to Queens, however. Across the various minor league […]


The winds of change are clearly blowing through the New York Mets organization, particularly when it comes to pitching development. Since the arrival of David Stearns, the Mets have seemingly unlocked a new level of pitching transformation at the major league level. This newfound prowess isn’t confined to Queens, however. Across the various minor league circuits and Mets affiliates, a palpable improvement in pitching staffs, especially their ability to generate swings and misses, has become increasingly evident this season.
According to Will Sammon of The Athletic, the Mets currently rank second in Major League Baseball in the sheer number of minor league pitchers boasting a strikeout rate of 30% or higher. This impressive statistic underscores that the Mets’ pitching infrastructure is evolving into a significant advantage not only at the MLB level but is also beginning to bear fruit within the farm system – a crucial area where the Mets have yearned for consistent success for quite some time.
Strikeout surge throughout Mets system
The Mets are now showcasing a wealth of promising pitching talent across all levels of their minor league affiliates. While the organization might not possess the same echelon of top-tier prospect pedigree it did in the previous decade, the potential within their bullpen ranks is undeniable. Many of the pitchers highlighted by Sammon in his recent post on X are demonstrating an exceptional ability to rack up strikeouts.
A compelling case in point is Raimon Gomez, whose electric velocity has garnered attention. He currently sports an impressive 36.4% strikeout rate while simultaneously inducing near-elite levels of weak contact, allowing a mere 12% hard-hit ball rate. Similarly, Jack Wenninger, a Double-A Mets pitcher, appears to be on a trajectory to contribute at the major league level sooner rather than later. His stellar strikeout-to-walk ratio highlights not only his ability to miss bats but also his commendable command.
Perhaps the most captivating pitching prospect within the Mets’ system since last season is Jonah Tong. This young left-hander, currently dominating hitters at the Double-A level, has put up staggering numbers.
According to Fangraphs, Tong boasts an absurd 44.7% strikeout rate, holding opposing hitters to a paltry .162 batting average, all while maintaining an ERA around 2.50 supported by an equally impressive Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP). Tong is joined on this list of high-strikeout arms by Blade Tidwell, who has already experienced his MLB debut, albeit in a less-than-efficient outing. However, Tidwell has consistently demonstrated a strong ability to limit damage during his time in the minor leagues.
The data clearly indicates a system-wide boost in pitching prowess. Among all eligible pitchers within their organization, the Mets boast at least 43 hurlers who are striking out batters at a rate of at least one per inning. This figure surpasses even the Boston Red Sox, the team cited by Sammon as leading the league in the percentage of minor league pitchers with a 30% or higher strikeout rate.
The burgeoning strikeout numbers throughout the Mets’ minor league system offer a compelling glimpse into a brighter future for the organization’s pitching depth. This wave of arms, capable of consistently missing bats, signals a significant step forward in the Mets’ long-term strategy and provides a much-needed foundation of talent that could pay dividends in the years to come.
Sports
Sammi Thiele Joining Emory For 5th Year After Undergraduate Career With Austin College
Sammi Thiele will join Emory for the upcoming 2025-2026 school year to use her COVID-19 fifth year of eligibility. Thiele spent her undergraduate career at Austin College and spent the last year finishing her masters degree at Austin College while teaching at the local high school as the head swim coach. In addition to swimming […]

Sammi Thiele will join Emory for the upcoming 2025-2026 school year to use her COVID-19 fifth year of eligibility. Thiele spent her undergraduate career at Austin College and spent the last year finishing her masters degree at Austin College while teaching at the local high school as the head swim coach. In addition to swimming at Austin College, she also played water polo for four years.
“So incredibly excited to announce my commitment to swim at 5th year at Emory University while pursuing a master’s in business management”
As a junior, Thiele qualified for the 2023 NCAA Championships finishing 23rd in the 100 backstroke in a 56.73. That was just off her lifetime best at the time of a 56.23 that she swam at the 2023 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championships.
She made huge strides as a senior, dropping about a second and a half in the 100 backstroke to finish 3rd at 2024 NCAAs touching in a 54.73. She also was 7th in the 200 back in a 2:02.55 but swam a 1:59.67 in prelims. She finished 4th in the 200 IM in a lifetime best of a 2:01.86.
Thiele’s SCY best times are:
- 100 back: 54.73
- 200 back: 1:59.67
- 200 IM: 2:01.86
The Emory women finished 6th at the 2024 NCAA Championships, the last meet Thiele swam at, and moved up to 5th this past season with 337 points. Denison was 4th with 370.5 points.
Thiele’s time from 2024 NCAAs in the 100 back would have finished 4th this year. Emory notably did not have any ‘A’ finalists in the event but had two ‘B’ finalists. Her 200 back best time would have been 7th at 2025 NCAAs, adding points to another event the team had no ‘A’ finalists in. Emory also had zero ‘A’ finalists in the 200 IM, an event she would have been 5th in.
Sports
Bissoondial, Men’s 4×100 Meter Relay Nab Spots in NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships
Story Links Indianapolis, IN — WPI graduate student Avinash Bissoondial (Millbury, MA) and the Engineers 4x100m relay squad of Sam Manteria (Wilbraham, MA), Ethan Schnyer (Nashua, NH), Alex Cole (Weymouth, MA), and Tristan Andrew (Newtown, CT) have earned spots in next weekend’s NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The three-day […]

Indianapolis, IN — WPI graduate student Avinash Bissoondial (Millbury, MA) and the Engineers 4x100m relay squad of Sam Manteria (Wilbraham, MA), Ethan Schnyer (Nashua, NH), Alex Cole (Weymouth, MA), and Tristan Andrew (Newtown, CT) have earned spots in next weekend’s NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The three-day event will begin on Thursday, May 22 at the SPIRE Institute’s Outdoor Track and Field and hosted by the North Coast Athletic Conference.
The 4×100 meter relay will make its debut Thursday at 5:15pm in the preliminaries. The foursome secured a spot in field on the final day of competition on Thursday, May 15th by smashing their own school record in a time of 40.66 at the UMass Amherst Final Qualifier. The Crimson and Gray shared the 12th best time nationwide with Roanoke and WPI was the only New England in either of the two men’s relay event’s 16-team fields. If the Engineers are qualify for the finals, they would race again on Saturday, May 24th at 1:05pm.
Bissoondial will be making his first appearance at an NCAA Track and Field Championships but is no stranger to NCAA competition as the graduate student appeared in three Cross Country championships, including this past fall, and was an alternate for a fourth championship. Bissoondial will race in the 5,000 meters and secured his spot in Ohio by winning last weekend’s Farley Inter Regional Extravaganza (FIRE) Meet at Williams. The graduate student shattered his own school record by 25 seconds by registering a time of 14:09.22, the 13th quickest in the 22-person field. The 5,000 meter is the penultimate track event on Saturday and slated for a 5pm start.
NCAA Selections
Sports
Govs Earn Four Silvers to Conclude ASUN Championships
Story Links Final Results Photo Gallery JACKSONVILLE – Austin Peay State University’s track and field team earned four silver medals on the final day of the 2025 Atlantic Sun Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championship, with freshman Taylin Segree being a […]

JACKSONVILLE – Austin Peay State University’s track and field team earned four silver medals on the final day of the 2025 Atlantic Sun Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championship, with freshman Taylin Segree being a part of three of those podium finishes, Saturday, at Hodges Stadium on the campus of North Florida.
Austin Peay’s first points of the day came in the triple jump, with both Denim Goddard and Myra Eriksson recording counting scores. Emma Tucker then posted the second-best mark of her career in the shot put with a 13.10-meter hurl in the event.
The Governors’ first podium finish of the afternoon came in the 4×100-meter relay, with Gabrielle Miller, Gabrielle Hoskins, Alijanae Cole, and Segree finishing as the runner-up in the event with a time of 45.81.
Next up on the track, Sydney Freeman posted a personal best in the 1500-meter for the fourth-straight meet in which she shaved over two and a half seconds off her previous best set two weeks ago at Vanderbilt’s Music City Challenge.
After qualifying in the 100-meter hurdles yesterday, freshman Emmani Roberts bested her season’s best mark by nearly two seconds with a time of 14.89 to earn fifth in the event.
Segree’s second medal of the day came in the 400-meter where she posted the second-best mark of her freshman campaign with a time of 53.81. Segree’s mark in the 400-meter trails only her previous personal best set yesterday in the preliminary round by six hundredths of a second. Alexis Arnett’s time of 55.84 was a personal best, as the junior earned a fifth-place finish in the event.
Busiwa Asinga then earned APSU’s third silver medal of the day in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 1:00.47.
In its final event of the day, Mia McGee, Cole, Arnett, and Segree sprinted to a silver finish in the 4×400-meter relays.
This weekend, the Governors obtained their largest point-total since joining the ASUN Conference prior to the 2023 season with 61, while also having their most finalists in the championships at 17.
Sports
Track and Field Earns Three Top-Eight Finishes on Final Day of SEC Outdoor Championships
Story Links LEXINGTON, Ky. – University of Missouri track and field capped off the Southeastern Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships with three top-eight finishes on Saturday at UK Track & Field Complex. Ames Burton was the first scorer for the women’s team on the final day of competition, adding three points […]

LEXINGTON, Ky. – University of Missouri track and field capped off the Southeastern Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships with three top-eight finishes on Saturday at UK Track & Field Complex.
Ames Burton was the first scorer for the women’s team on the final day of competition, adding three points from a sixth-place finish in discus after a 54.40m (178-6) mark. On the men’s side, Skylar Coffey and Sterling Scott earned eighth-place finishes, with Coffey adding a point from discus with a season-best throw of 57.71m (189-4) and Scott’s 15.65m (51-4.25) in triple jump.
Tarique George joined Coffey in the top-10 finishers in men’s discus, taking ninth with a throw of 57.58m (188-11), a personal-best result. Kobi Walker and Mirriam Chepkirui posted individual records in the women’s 5000m, finishing 27th in 16:33.66 and 28th in 16:34.99, respectively.
In the men’s 5000m, Tyler Freiner closed out the day with a personal-record time of 14:08.81 to take 14th, just behind the team’s top finisher in the event, Drew Rogers, who earned a 12th-place result in 14:02.04.
UP NEXT
The Tigers continue postseason action at NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships West Region Preliminary Round at E.B. Cushing Stadium in College Station, Texas, on May 28-31. Competitors will receive a berth to the competition if they are ranked among the top 48 marks in the region in each event.
FOLLOW THE TIGERS
For all the latest on Mizzou Cross Country and Track & Field, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the teams on Facebook, Instagram and X (MizzouTFXC).
Sports
Kennedy volleyball relies on survival skills to beat Esperanza in D5 final – Orange County Register
Kennedy volleyball players win the volleyball CIF Southern Section Division 5 Championships against Esperanza in Norwalk on Saturday, May 17, 2025. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG) Kennedy volleyball players win the volleyball CIF Southern Section Division 5 Championships against Esperanza in Norwalk on Saturday, May 17, 2025. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County […]

NORWALK – Kennedy’s boys volleyball team beat Esperanza in four close and entertaining sets, 23-25, 27-25, 25-20, 26-24, in the CIF Southern Section Division 5 championship match Saturday at Cerritos College.
As Fighting Irish senior libero Karl Narshall said afterward, “We survived.”
The athleticism and quality of play from both teams showed the depth of talent of Southern California high school boys volleyball. The match featured explosive kill shots, seemingly impossible digs and sharp serving from both teams.
It is the second boys volleyball championship for the Fighting Irish, who won their other title in 2017.
The Fighting Irish (20-10) continue their season in the CIF Southern California Regional playoffs that begin Tuesday. Regional brackets will be released Sunday. Six teams from CIF-SS Division 1 and the champions of Division 2-9 are invited to play in the regional.
Esperanza finished the 19-14.
Kennedy senior opposite hitter Logan Benda had 17 kills. Senior middle blocker Seth Sainz had 15 kills and sophomore outside hitter Kaiden Kim had seven kills.
Jaden Baena had 19 assists and Jason Narike had 16 assists.
Narike scored the match’s final two points with service aces.
Esperanza senior outside hitter had a match-high 22 kills. Senior outside hitter Tyler Lemmon added 16 kills for the Aztecs.
Travis Walker, in his 20th year coaching Kennedy’s boys volleyball team, said his team was close to self-destructing in various matches during the season.
“We knew we’ve had the most talent on the floor any time we’re out there,” Walker said. “It’s just a matter of, ‘Can we get through those three or four errors we’re going to make.’ That’s been our Achilles’ heel all year.”
Esperanza led for much of the first set and won it 25-23.
“If you play a team like Esperanza,” Walker said, “they’re going to take advantage of your errors and they did.”
Kennedy led most of the way in the second set. Esperanza caught up at 25-25 but the Irish won it 27-25.
Kennedy led all the way in the third set, a 25-21 win that ended with one of Sainz’s many high-velocity kills. The fourth set was a great back-and-forth battle, with Narike’s two aces to the back left corner providing the match-winning points.
Narshall said Kennedy has struggled with consistency at times.
“Volleyball is a momentum sport,” said Narshall, who had a team-leading nine digs Saturday. “It’s not all about huge plays and huge aces. It’s all about playing the game, winning the rally.
“We made a lot of errors in that last set, and we barely made it out alive.”
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