2025 AQUATICS GB SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS It’s been a slower-than-anticipated start to the 2025 Aquatics GB Swimming Championships, but there’s the potential for things to pick up in a hurry during the third finals session. For one thing, the men’s 100 backstroke final goes this evening. The men’s 200 freestyle final has earned its reputation as […]
It’s been a slower-than-anticipated start to the 2025 Aquatics GB Swimming Championships, but there’s the potential for things to pick up in a hurry during the third finals session.
For one thing, the men’s 100 backstroke final goes this evening. The men’s 200 freestyle final has earned its reputation as the “must-see” race at any British Championships, but the men’s 100 backstroke fight has leapt forward in the past year as Oliver Morgan and Jonny Marshall have both reached new heights. Morgan owns the British record from last year’s British Trials for the Olympics and owns a season-best of 52.71 that’s now fifth in the world after a blistering Russian Championships.
Morgan was under the Aquatics GB consideration time with a 53.14, putting him ahead of Matthew Ward (53.60) and fellow Olympian Marshall (53.76). Ward’s effort this morning was a personal best while Marshall, who is fresh off a second-place finish in the 100-yard backstroke at the NCAA Championships, owns a lifetime best of 53.03.
On the women’s side, there’s the potential for Angharad Evans to unleash something special in the 200 breaststroke. She sits over five seconds ahead of the field after prelims with a solid 2:25.36. This certainly won’t be the closest race of the evening, but Evans brings a season-best of 2:22.64 to London, which is just four-hundredths off the fastest time in the world this year.
18-year-old Eva Okaro will look to do similar damage in the women’s 50 freestyle. She’s the SCM world junior record holder after ripping 23.66 for fourth at the Short Course World Championships last December. This morning, Okaro was the only swimmer in the field to break 25 seconds, missing the lifetime best she swam last month by .10 with a 24.80.
The session caps with the men’s 100 freestyle, another exciting races as individual qualification and relay spots are on the line. Olympian and British record holder Matt Richards swam a season-best 48.07 in prelims that secured him lane four for the final. 17-year-old Jacob Mills is right behind him after swimming 48.11 in his first sub-49 second effort. The swim is a new 17-year-old British age-group record and ties the overall British junior record Jacob Whittle set in 2021.
Whittle is in the British Open final as well. It’s a final stacked with Olympians; even without Duncan Scott, there’s Richards, Whittle, Alex Cohoon, Tom Dean, and Jack McMillan.
Women’s 50-Meter Backstroke
Junior Final
British Record: 27.19 — Kathleen Dawson (2021)
British Junior Record: 28.02 — Lauren Quigley (2013)
Top 3:
Raya Harrand, York/Isabelle Price, Birmingham — 29.52
—
Halle Harris, Poole — 29.59
We got a tie in the first final of the evening, as York’s Raya Harrand and Birmingham’s Isabelle Price hit the wall together in the junior final of the 50 backstroke. They stopped the clock at 29.52, which marks a lifetime best for both swimmers.
Price hadn’t broken 30 seconds before the meet began. She swam 29.83 this morning to break that barrier for the first time, then logged 29.52 to tie for the win this evening. Harrand came into the meet with a lifetime best 29.89, so this is a substantial drop for her as well.
Multi-Class Para Final
S3 British Record: 1:59.47 — Ellie Challis (2024)
S4 British Record: 2:09.32 — Suzanne Warren (2017)
S5 British Record: 1:46.61 — Tully Kearney (2024)
Top 3:
Ellie Challis, Manchester (S3) — 56.25 (863 points)
Paralympic champion Ellie Challis earned another British title tonight, claiming the win in the multi-class para final of the women’s 50 backstroke. She’s the British record holder in this event and scored 863 points to win the race. As she did this morning, she got under the Aquatics GB consideration time for the 2025 Para World Championships, which will take place in Singapore after the 2025 World Aquatic Championships.
Loughborough’s Tully Kearney touched the wall first in 43.05, earning 640 points for the bronze medal behind Claire Connon‘s 54.11 for 713 points.
British Open Final
World Record: 26.86 — Kaylee McKeown, Australia (2023)
European Record: 27.10 — Kira Toussaint, Netherlands (2021)
British Record: 27.19 — Kathleen Dawson (2021)
2025 Aquatics GB Worlds Consideration Time: —
Top 3:
Lauren Cox, Loughborough — 27.72
Blythe Kinsman, Mt. Kelly — 27.93
Kathleen Dawson, Stirling — 28.48
After a disappointing 100 backstroke yesterday, Lauren Cox rallied by winning the 50. The 2023 Worlds bronze medalist in this event, Cox charged to the event win in 27.72, .21 seconds ahead of teenager Blythe Kinsman. Cox was slightly off her season-best of 27.60 with the swim.
Kinsman had a breakout swim this morning, blasting a 28.09 to lead the field into the final. She backed that up tonight, dipping under 28 seconds for the first time in her career with a lifetime best 27.93. She was the only swimmer to join Cox under 28 seconds in the final as the British and Scottish record holder Kathleen Dawson earned bronze in 28.48 as she continues her return to racing post-injury.
Men’s 1500-Meter Freestyle
British Open — Fastest Heat
World Record: 14:30.67 — Bobby Finke, United States (2024)
European Record: 14:32.80 — Gregorio Paltrinieri, Italy (2022)
Alex Sargeant led the race for the first 350 meters, but by the 400 mark, the Arizona-State trained Reece Grady inched into the lead. The two swimmers in the middle of the pool had pulled slightly ahead of the rest of the field, though two lanes over from Grady, Luke Hornsey wasn’t letting the pair get too far ahead.
At the halfway mark, Grady held about a 1.3 second lead over Sargeant. Grady continued to extend his lead as the race continued, pulling more than two seconds ahead by the 1000-mark. Hornsey almost completely closed the gap to Sargeant. The Swansea swimmer kicked into gear at the 1000-mark.
It looked for a moment like he may be able to run down Grady, but Grady found another level as well. He closed strong over the final few lengths, once again widening the cap. He stopped the clock at 15:21.54, undercutting his lifetime best by about four-tenths to win his first British title.
Sargeant won the silver in 15:25.47, almost four seconds behind Grady at the final touch. The 19-year-old Hornsey swam a big lifetime best of 15:26.14 to win bronze.
Women’s 200-Meter Breaststroke
Junior Final
British Record: 2:20.89 — Molly Renshaw (2021)
British Junior Record: 2:23.82 — Molly Renshaw (2014)
Top 3:
Amalie Smith, RTW Monson — 2:28.61
Theodora Taylor, Torfaen — 2:29.87
Mabli Collyer, Repton — 2:32.38
Team GB will have two swimmers in the 200 breaststroke at this summer’s European Junior Championships. Amalie Smith had an excellent swim in the finals, beating the reigning European Junior silver medalist, Theodora Taylor, by over a second. Smith earned the win 2:28.61, bettering the lifetime best of 2:29.77 that she swam in February.
Taylor took second in 2:29.87, safely under the European Juniors consideration time of 2:30.97. She owns a lifetime best of 2:28.71, which she swam to win that silver medal in Vilnius last summer.
British Open Final
World Record: 2:17.55 — Evgeniia Chikunova, Russia (2023)
European Record: 2:17.55 — Evgeniia Chikunova, Russia (2023)
Angharad Evans punched her ticket to the 2025 World Championships by swimming a lifetime best 2:21.86 to get well under the qualification time for Singapore. Evans was on Molly Renshaw‘s British record pace for much of the race, turning at the 100-mark in 1:07.95.
She fell off the record pace over the final 50 meters but still hit a lifetime best by about eight-tenths of a second. The time makes her the third British woman to break 2:22 in the event and she moves from fifth to third among British women in the event’s all-time rankings. Evans best event is the 100 breast but she’s making rapid improvements in the 200 breast and now takes over as the fastest swimmer in the world this season.
50 breaststroke winner Kara Hanlon hit a lifetime best in this final as well. She swam a 2:24.07 to earn the silver medal, improving from the 2:24.59 she swam this time last year. She also moves up the event’s all-time ranking, passing Sophie Taylor for seventh.
Men’s 100-Meter Backstroke
Junior Final
British Record: 52.70 — Oliver Morgan (2024)
British Junior Record: 54.10 — Matthew Ward (2024)
Top 3:
Daniel Ransom, Leeds — 55.30
Rio Daodu, Mt. Kelly — 55.91
Toby Godsell, Millfield — 56.00
The top three swimmers all cracked the European Juniors consideration time. It was Mt. Kelly’s Rio Daodu who led the race around at the halfway point, splitting 26.69. Daniel Ransom, the top seed in the junior final, was a tenth behind him. Ransom had a strong second 50 meters, splitting 28.5 to get ahead of Daodu and stop the clock first.
Daodu held on for silver in 55.91, .61 seconds behind Ransom’s 55.30.
Multi-Class Para Final
S8 British Record: 1:04.46 — Oliver Hynd (2016)
S14 British Record: 58.77 — Mark Tompsett (2025)
Top 3:
Mark Tompsett, Bolton Metro (S14) — 58.28 (912 points) S14 European Record
William Ellard, Norwich (S14) — 59.48 (858 points)
Louis Lawlor, Glasgow (S14) — 1:01.37 (781 points)
Mark Tompsett set his second 100 backstroke S14 European record of the day to win the multi-class para final of the men’s 100 backstroke. Tompsett won bronze in this event at the Paris Paralympic Games. He was out fast tonight, making the turn in 28.06. His Paralympic teammate William Ellard followed four-tenths behind him.
After the fast start, Tompsett held on down the stretch, stopping the clock in 58.28. That chopped .49 seconds off the S14 European record he swam during the prelims. He was well under the Para Worlds Consideration time as was Ellard, who clipped that standard by .01 seconds with a 59.48.
British Open Final
World Record: 51.60 — Thomas Ceccon, Italy (2022)
European Record: 51.60 — Thomas Ceccon, Italy (2022)
After a 52.71 in-season a couple of months ago, it seemed clear that Ollie Morgan was on strong form this season after a breakout 2024 where he broke the super-suited British record in the 100 backstroke. He affirmed that this evening, ripping a 52.12 that destroys the British record he swam last season and earns him a ticket to the 2025 World Championships.
Morgan was out fast, turning in 25.24, well under his British record pace. He came back in 26.88, leaving the rest of the field behind. His final time ties David Plummer as the 13th fastest performer in history. He moves back up the world’s season-rankings to second behind only Kliment Kolesnikov.
Jonny Marshall earned the silver medal over a second behind Morgan. He swam a 53.21, which leaves him just a hundredth off the Aquatics GB Worlds Consideration time. The organizing body does have discretionary picks at their disposal, so they will have the option to add Marshall to the Worlds squad later if they choose.
Bath’s Matthew Ward won bronze in 53.52. It was his second lifetime best of the day as he dropped another eight-hundredths from the 53.60 standard he swam this morning.
Women’s 50 Freestyle
Junior Final
British Record: 23.96 — Francesca Halsall (2014)
British Junior Record: 24.53 — Francesca Halsall (2009)
Top 3:
Annabelle Compton, Wycombe — 25.66
Phoebe Cooper, Sheffield — 25.81
Meghan Higgs, Millfield — 25.86
Multi-Class Para Final
S7 British Record: 33.26 — Susannah Rodgers (2016)
S9 British Record: 29.21 — Louise Watkin (2009)
S10 British Record: 28.22 — Zara Mullooly (2019)
S11 British Record: 30.64 — Scarlett Humphrey (2024)
Scarlett Humphrey was just two-hundredths off her own 50 freestyle S11 British record tonight. She earned the win by swimming a 30.66, which translated to 842 para points. It was just enough to win her the gold ahead of her Paralympic teammate Callie-Ann Warrington, who earned 841 points after a 28.71 swim of her own.
The entire podium was made up of Paralympians as Rebecca Redfern rounded out the podium, swimming 28.77 to score 786 points.
British Open Final
World Record: 23.61 — Sarah Sjostrom, Sweden (2023)
European Record: 23.61 — Sarah Sjostrom, Sweden (2023)
British Record: 23.96 — Francesca Halsall (2014)
2025 Aquatics GB Worlds Consideration Time: 24.61
Top 3:
Eva Okaro, Repton — 24.48 *Worlds Consideration Time*
18-year-old Eva Okaro earned her ticket to the 2025 World Aquatic Championships in the 50 freestyle. She was only a tenth off the lifetime best she swam earlier this year in the heats and crushed her personal standard tonight. Her winning time of 24.48 a best by over two-tenths and .13 seconds under the Worlds Consideration time.
Okaro’s time ties Milou Van Wijk for fifth-fastest in the world this season. She’s also now the third-fastest British woman in history, behind Francesca Halsall and Anna Hopkin.
She was the only swimmer in the final to break 25 seconds, as the 32-year-old Rebecca Guy clocked 25.02 for the silver medal. Skye Carter and Darcy Revitt tied for third in 25.19. Revitt is another swimmer who made the trip after closing out the NCAA season in the United States; she swims for Washington State.
Men’s 100 Freestyle
Junior Final
Top 3:
Gabriel Shepherd, Leeds – 49.34
Jack Brown, Plymouth – 49.62
Rio Daodu, Mt. Kelly – 49.95
The top three boys in the 100 freestyle junior final all cracked 50 seconds, with the top two under the European Juniors consideration time. Leeds’ Gabriel Shepherd touched first, powering to a 49.34. He won the race by .28 seconds ahead of Plymouth’s Jack Brown.
After taking second in the 100 backstroke junior final earlier this sesson, Daodu was back on the blocks for the 100 freestyle junior final. He ended his double with another top three finish, swimming 49.95 to break the 50-second barrier for the first time.
Multi-Class Para Final
S4 British Record: 1:33.30 — Lyndon Longhorne (2021)
S6 British Record: 1:09.83 — Sascha Kindred (2014)
S8 British Record: 58.19 — Josef Craig (2016)
S9 British Record: 56.29 — Lewis White (2018)
S10 British Record: 54.40 — Robert Welbourn (2008)
S13 British Record: 25.25 — Matthew Redfern (2023)
Top 3:
Tomas Navarro-Barber, Portsmouth (S9) — 57.52 (748 points)
Kieran Williams, Manchester (S10) — 56.05 (737 points)
Roan Brennan, Basildon (S10) — 56.11 (735 points)
Tomas Navarro-Barber swam a lifetime best 57.52 to win his second title of these championships. He won the 400 freestyle on the first night of competition and showcased his range tonight by winning the 100 freestyle with 748 para points. Navarro-Barber said he’d tapered a bit for this meet, but his main focus are the championships in June, which are another Para World Swimming Championships qualification opportunity for the British para swimmers.
Manchester’s Kieran Williams earned silver with 737 points, edging out Basildon’s Roan Brennan by just two points.
British Open Final
World Record: 46.40 — Pan Zhanle, China (2024)
European Record: 46.86 — David Popovici, Romania (2022)
British Record: 47.45 — Matt Richards (2023)
2025 Aquatics GB Worlds Consideration Time: 48.06
Top 4:
Matt Richards, Manchester — 47.92 *Worlds Consideration Time*
Matt Richards got the job done in the open final of the men’s 100 freestyle. He’s preselected to the World Championship team in the 200 freestyle but added the 100 freestyle to his program by winning tonight in 47.92. He lead from start-to-finish, making the turn at 22.86 and coming home in 25.06.
It’s a season-best for Richards, improving on the 48.07 he swam in prelims. His prelims time ranked him fifth in the world this year, but he now leapfrogs Kim Youngbeom‘s 47.96 for fourth.
Jacob Mills continued to impress this evening, taking silver in 48.03. It’s his second lifetime best of the day as he shaved eight-hundredths off the 48.11 he swam this morning. In addition to getting under the Worlds consideration time, Mills now owns the overall British Junior record outright. His 48.11 tied him with Jacob Whittle‘s 2021 effort, but Mills has full control of the record now as he approaches the 48-second barrier.
Alex Painter had a strong start out of lane 1. He’s coming off a breakout in yards during the NCAA season, where he trains at Florida with Marshall. He was second at the turn (22.96) but Olympians Tom Dean and Whittle were able to just pip him at the wall. In his sole event at these championships, Dean touched third with a 48.40, booking a spot on the men’s 4×100 freestyle relay. Whittle took fourth in 48.45, getting the better of Painter by two-hundredths.
2025 Worlds Qualifiers Through Day 3
Pre-Selected
Ben Proud – men’s 50m free
Matt Richards – men’s 200m free, men’s 4x200m free relay
Duncan Scott – men’s 200m IM, men’s 4x200m free relay
Carcarey Named to USA Water Polo Junior National Team Squad for World Aquatics U20 Junior World Championships
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IRVINE, Calif. – Pepperdine water polo rising junior Jon Carcarey has been named to the USA Water Polo Junior National Team roster for the upcoming World Aquatics U20 Junior World Championships later this month in Zagreb, Croatia, as announced Thursday by head coach Jack Kocur. “It’s definitely a big honor,” […]
IRVINE, Calif. – Pepperdine water polo rising junior Jon Carcarey has been named to the USA Water Polo Junior National Team roster for the upcoming World Aquatics U20 Junior World Championships later this month in Zagreb, Croatia, as announced Thursday by head coach Jack Kocur.
“It’s definitely a big honor,” said Carcarey. “It’s something I’ve looked forward to and always wanted to do. Representing the USA is such a great honor for any individual to be able to do and being able to do it with my brothers in Croatia will just be an awesome experience.”
The roster consists of 15 athletes, as the United States is one of 20 countries competing for the junior world championship.
Team USA will compete in Group A, drawing group play fixtures with Croatia, Hungary and Montenegro across the first three days of action.
Carcarey has competed with the national team across various levels, including with the youth national team during his high school career. “I’m looking forward to seeing what other talent is out there in those countries and to see where I am at and where team USA is at for this level,” Carcarey added.
The Americans will open with a matchup against the host nation, Croatia, at 10 a.m. PDT on Saturday, June 14. The squad will return for an 8:30 a.m. PDT tilt with Hungary on June 15 before concluding group play at 8:30 a.m. PDT on June 16 against Montenegro.
The tournament will continue into the knockout stages with a champion set to be crowned on June 21.
Carcarey posted 35 goals and 18 assists during his sophomore campaign for the Waves in 2024 to go along with 20 steals as a key utility for the Waves. He recorded a point in 24 of 27 games played in 2024 and has accumulated 60 goals career goals at Pepperdine.
“We are very excited that Jon gets to represent Team USA and Pepperdine in the U20 World Aquatics World Championships,” said Pepperdine head water polo coach Merrill Moses. “He has been an integral part of our success at Pepperdine and now he gets to showcase his skills and talent on the world stage. He was voted Defensive Player of the Year for Pepperdine last year and we know that he will help Team USA achieve its goals of being successful in this tournament.”
Live streaming and statistics information for the tournament will be available at a later date.
Men’s Junior National Team (Hometown/School/Club)
1. Charles Mills (Tiburon, CA/USC/San Francisco Water Polo)
2. Baxter Chelsom (Los Angeles, CA/UC Davis/Los Angeles Premier)
3. Peter Castillo (Costa Mesa, CA/UCLA/Newport Beach WPC)
4. William Schneider (San Clemente, CA/Stanford/Mission WPC)
5. Jon Carcarey (Santa Maria, CA/Pepperdine/SOCAL)
6. Gavin Appeldorn (Newport Beach, CA/Princeton/Newport Beach WPC)
7. Ryder Dodd (Long Beach, CA/UCLA/Mission WPC)
8. Ryan Ohl (Greenwich, CT/Stanford/Greenwich Aquatics)
9. Landon Akerstrom (Costa Mesa, CA/UC San Diego/SOCAL)
10. Connor Ohl (Newport Beach, CA/Newport Harbor HS/Newport Beach WPC)
11. Benjamin Liechty (Newport Beach, CA/UCLA/Newport Beach WPC)
12. Bode Brinkema (San Juan Capistrano, CA/UCLA/Mission WPC)
13. Kiefer Black (San Diego, CA/Naval Academy/La Jolla United)
14. Max Zelikov (Boca Raton, FL/Stanford/South Florida WPC)
15. Corbin Stanley (Yorba Linda, CA/Long Beach State/SOCAL)
Staff
Jack Kocur – Head Coach
Felix Mercado – Assistant Coach
Alex Rodriguez – Assistant Coach
Derek Clappis – Assistant Coach
2025 World Aquatics Men’s Junior World Championships Schedule (subject to change)
Emy Ntekpere jumps into the record books – The Observer
Emy Ntekpere is finishing her second year at Central and has already written her name not only in Central Washington University’s Track and Field record book but also in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference’s (GNAC) and National Collegiate Athletic Association’s Division II (NCAA DII) record books. In 2025 alone, Ntekpere won the Women’s GNAC Athlete […]
Emy Ntekpere is finishing her second year at Central and has already written her name not only in Central Washington University’s Track and Field record book but also in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference’s (GNAC) and National Collegiate Athletic Association’s Division II (NCAA DII) record books. In 2025 alone, Ntekpere won the Women’s GNAC Athlete of the year in both Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field, won three national championships, won four individual gold medals at the GNAC Outdoor Championships (the first woman to do so in the league’s history), and has broken three school records along with two GNAC records. In 2024, Ntekpere won GNAC’s Indoor Track and Field Female Freshman of the Year award.
Ntekpere’s record breaking feats started in High School at Washington State’s Skyview High School where in her senior year, Ntekpere placed third in the school’s all time 100 meter hurdle and 300 meter hurdle. While current athletes have placed ahead of her in both hurdle events, Ntekpere set the school’s record for High Jump that still stands at the time of writing. Ntekpere never planned on continuing her Track and Field career to the collegiate level until June of 2023. “I kind of thought after high school, that would just be it,” Ntekpere said. “Then I get a call from a college and I’m like ‘oh my gosh, I can still keep doing track’… it was like a dream come true for me.”
While the opportunity was beyond exciting, Ntekpere knew the challenges it would bring. “The competition is obviously much harder,” Ntekpere said.
Emy Ntekpere celebrating National Championship win on March 15.
“When I was in High School, it was kind of easier until I got to state [competitions]. But now it’s hard all the time, and I always have competition. And that’s really good, I’m always being pushed constantly. So I just really love that I can come to college and still do what I love.”
Despite being outside of the top three of the Triple Jump event only twice, Ntekpere never competed in the Triple Jump at Skyview. It was at CWU where the 5-foot-7-inch sophomore discovered her hidden talent. “It was kind of crazy because I was like ‘okay, I like to jump, so I’ll do these jumps anyways, and see how it goes.’ Like it was kind of fun for me because I’ve never done it before but I actually turned out to be pretty good,” Ntekpere said. Since starting the Triple Jump event for the first time last year, Ntekpere has already broken both the CWU record and the GNAC record.
On May 22, The Observer released a story recapping the events of the GNAC Outdoor championship. During their respective interviews, freshman David Brown, sophomore Lauryn McGough, and junior Carley Huber all gave a shout out to Ntekpere, showing the overwhelming amount of support the Track and Field team has for the sophomore Sprinter. Ntekpere responded to the shoutout during her interview, specifically Huber. “They make you better in all types of ways, in and out of sports, especially Carley [Huber],” Ntekpere said. “She is somebody I met last year and I didn’t know how big of an impact she would have on me… They’re amazing support systems. Every single [teammate]. All of them are going to be in my heart always.” Ntekpere went on to describe how even when teammates couldn’t make the event, they would still text her plenty of support and keep up with every result as they were announced.
Success does not come without fear however. Many great athletes become afraid that they’ve reached their peak once they taste success and Ntekpere isn’t an exception. “I am afraid [this is the peak],” Ntekpere said. “But I don’t know, ever since I was little, I just had this feeling each year is just gonna be better than the year before. I thought last year was my peak, honestly. Then this year came. As long as you have the mindset of the work’s not done yet… you’ll never feel like you’re at your peak.”
Emy Ntekpere in the air.
Ntekpere finished this year with the GNAC Field Athlete of the Year for both indoor and outdoor competition. She also won three national championships, two for outdoor and one for indoor.
For preparation of the various meets, invitationals, and championships through the year, Ntekpere has plenty of superstitions but regardless, she pushes through. “I try to tell myself, it’s gonna be a great day regardless of what you do and how you feel. You just have to trust yourself,” Ntekpere said. “No matter what happens, I’m still a great athlete, and I can accomplish a lot of things.”
Earlier in the quarter, The Observer did an investigative piece on the Track and Field coaches and the difference of their relationships between the top athletes and the rest. According to Ntekpere, there is little difference. “They care about us in all types of ways,” Ntekpere said. “Sure, there may not be as much focus, but [the coaches] treat us all with the same amount of respect and time and friendship.”
While Ntekpere plans to rest and practice her workouts over the summer, she left a message for all the CWU students. “I’m proud of all of the Wildcats that are here, that are in athletics or not. Everybody is here doing something, they’re all on a mission. I’m so proud of everyone here at CWU. They’re all doing great, fantastic things and they’re all trying their hardest and that’s all you can really ask for.” Ntekpere will be returning to CWU in the fall quarter to start her junior year.
Hopkins/St. Louis Park Rallies to Beat Wayzata in Section 6 Boys Volleyball Final
4:30 PM | Thursday, June 5, 2025 The Hopkins/St. Louis Park boys volleyball team rallied to win the final two sets and beat Wayzata 3-2 in the Section 6 final. The Royals lost the first set 25-17 and fell behind 18-12 in the second before rallying to win the second 26-24. The Trojans took the […]
As most of you know, Los Robles Hospital is planning to close its pediatric ward July1. I think Los Robles is a great hospital with great leadership but I think this decision is a big mistake. The CEO cites that with a relatively low volume of children needing hospitalization, those beds would be better used […]
As most of you know, Los Robles Hospital is planning to close its pediatric ward July1. I think Los Robles is a great hospital with great leadership but I think this decision is a big mistake.
The CEO cites that with a relatively low volume of children needing hospitalization, those beds would be better used for the growing number of sick adults and that low volume units could be a quality care liability.
Theoretically that could be true, but the Los Robles pediatric unit has 5-star experienced nurses supervised by either the patients’ own pediatrician or 5-star pediatric hospitalists taking care of the patient with close contact with the patients’ own doctor collaborating on the case.
Most pediatric admissions are brief for conditions such as jaundice, appendicitis, asthma flares, dehydration or cellulitis. My experience is that Los Robles takes care of those conditions better than any hospital I have seen.
Wouldn’t it be better to have those children in town with their own doctor and family at their side instead of the current plan to transfer these patients on the bumper-to-bumper 101? This plan is incredibly costly with potentially dangerous delays via ambulance and even more costly and hazardous via helicopter on patients who could be handled so well immediately at Los Robles.
Please contact the hospital and your politicians to convince HCA to keep this wonderful pediatric ward open. The Conejo Valley deserves the best for its children.
Kenneth Saul Thousand Oaks Dr, Saul serves as chief of pediatrics for the Los Robles Hospital.
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Gophers men’s track and field set records and place second at the Big Ten Championships – The Minnesota Daily
The Gophers walked away with 10 medals between the men and women, sending 39 athletes to the NCAA West Regionals. The men’s team tied with Wisconsin, both earning 81 points. The men’s track and field team jumped around the top ten of NCAA national rankings all season. They peaked at number two in early April, […]
The Gophers walked away with 10 medals between the men and women, sending 39 athletes to the NCAA West Regionals. The men’s team tied with Wisconsin, both earning 81 points.
The men’s track and field team jumped around the top ten of NCAA national rankings all season. They peaked at number two in early April, but at the time of the meet were ranked sixth.
Day 1 of the championships ended with the Gophers leading in points. The men had 4 events: hammer throw, pole vault, javelin and the 10,000-meter run.
The men’s Gophers took home first and second in the hammer throw, as well as second in the pole vault.
Senior Jak Urlacher earned the silver medal with the best pole vault performance by a Minnesota pole vaulter in 28 years, moving him to No. 2 in Gophers history.
The meet was Urlacher’s last Big Ten Championship, but when asked about the pressure of performing well in his final year, he said he was not worried about it.
“I like pressure, personally,” Urlacher said. “I typically jump better at championship meets, the goal for me is just to go out and put together my best meet, and be able to jump what I’m capable of.”
On Day 2, the men competed in the long jump, high jump, decathlon, shot put and 3000-meter steeplechase.
The standout performance for the Gophers was sophomore Charles Godfred.
Godfred’s first jump attempt was ruled illegal but the jump, he said, would have likely beaten the meet record.
“I knew I was supposed to do that for my first jump,” Godfred said. “I was shocked when they raised the flag. I was just a pinch away. I think the jump was about 8.20 something.”
The meet record is 8.13 meters, set in 1935 by Jesse Owens. Godfred broke that record at other meets, but has yet to do it at the Big Ten Championships.
Godfred came in first for the second year in a row, despite not using all of his jump attempts. He said he chose not to use them due to injury risk.
“Due to the rain and bad weather, the board was a bit slippery and I didn’t want to take the risk,” Godfred said.
The rest of the track events were done on the final day of competition. The final meet record for the Gophers came from the men’s 4×100 meter relay team.
The team consisted of juniors Zion Campbell and Aaron Charles, senior Devin Augustine, and graduate student Kion Benjaminbroke their own meet record they set in 2023.
Benjamin spoke about his expectations for the meet, especially because this is his final year with the Gophers.
“We came into the meet having the meet record already. So, the goal was to break the meet record on Hayward Field,” Benjamin said. “We had one job, and that was to come home with the gold medal. I just wanted to leave (my teammates) with a bang. I think that’s exactly what we did.”
Augustine put up the most individual points for the men, with 18. Augustine competed in the 100-meter, 200-meter and 4×100 meter relay. He placed third in the 200-meter and seventh in the 100-meter.
Senior hammer thrower, Kostas Zaltos, was also awarded the Big Ten Men’s Field Athlete of the Championships.
The Gophers had six athletes on the men’s All-Big Ten First Team, the most in the Big Ten.
‘Brunson is the BEST closer in the game’ – Perk 
| First Take
