Sports

No. 7 Beach Volleyball’s Hashman and Robertson named AVCA Pair of the Week

Story Links AUSTIN, Texas – Katie Hashman and Emma Grace Robertson were named AVCA’s Pair of the Week on Monday. The Longhorn duo became the first pair to ever win the award after leading Texas to its first CCSA Championship title in Baton Rouge, La. The Texas No. 2s went 3-0 at […]

Published

1 month ago

April 28, 2025

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AUSTIN, Texas – Katie Hashman and Emma Grace Robertson were named AVCA’s Pair of the Week on Monday.

The Longhorn duo became the first pair to ever win the award after leading Texas to its first CCSA Championship title in Baton Rouge, La. The Texas No. 2s went 3-0 at the conference tournament defeating No. 8 Florida State twice and added a win against South Carolina.

The pair have the third-best record on the team and are the third pairing with 24 or more wins. The duo has helped lead Texas to a 29-7 season and earned its first bid to the National Collegiate Volleyball Championships.

Results from CCSA Championships:

W, 2-1, against South Caroline (21-13, 21-23, 23-21)

W, 2-0 against No. 8 FSU (21-17, 21-16)

W, 2-0 against No. 8 FSU (21-16, 14-21, 24-22)

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Sports

Softball Ranked No. 9 in Final NFCA Poll of 2025

Story Links Final NFCA Poll LOUISVILLE, Ky. – West Texas A&M softball ranked No. 9 in the final National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Top 25 Poll for 2025. The Lady Buffs ranked inside the top 10 in 13 of the 15 polls released including three weeks at No. 1. UT […]

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14 minutes ago

June 4, 2025

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Final NFCA Poll

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – West Texas A&M softball ranked No. 9 in the final National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Top 25 Poll for 2025. The Lady Buffs ranked inside the top 10 in 13 of the 15 polls released including three weeks at No. 1.

UT Tyler earned the top spot in the poll after repeating as National Champions, finishing with a 62-5 record. Tampa checked in at No. 2 after ending the season as the National Runner-ups. National semifinalists Western Washington and Pace come in at No. 3 and No. 4, respectfully. National Championship participants No. 5 Central Oklahoma, No. 6 Saginaw Valley State, No. 7 North Georgia, and No. 8 Shippensburg along with two Super Regional squads – No. 9 West Texas A&M and No. 10 Francis Marion make up the top 10.

The South Central region was represented by four teams with UT Tyler leading the way at No. 1. West Texas A&M (9^th), Angelo State (13^th), and Oklahoma Christian (25^th) earned spots in the rankings.

The Lady Buffs finished the 2025 campaign with a 56-8 record including 40-4 in Lone Star Conference play, claiming a share of the regular season title. In postseason play, WT made the LSC Tournament Championship game, hosted and won the South Central Region II bracket, and advanced to the South Central Super Regional round before falling to No. 1-ranked UT Tyler in a best of three series.

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Sports

Volleyball to host pair of summer camps

Story Links JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (June 3, 2025) – East Tennessee State University volleyball head coach Lindsey Devine announced the program’s pair of summer camps on Tuesday. ETSU will host an All-Skills Camp on June 16 and 17. Open to players from 4th-12th grade, it is for players with a basic to […]

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15 minutes ago

June 4, 2025

Your Sports Nation

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (June 3, 2025) – East Tennessee State University volleyball head coach Lindsey Devine announced the program’s pair of summer camps on Tuesday.

ETSU will host an All-Skills Camp on June 16 and 17. Open to players from 4th-12th grade, it is for players with a basic to solid understanding of volleyball and will provide position-specific instruction.

On July 18 and 19, the Bucs will host an Elite College Prospect Camp. Designed for campers with significant playing experience, it will take your game to the collegiate level by exposing you to the daily training systems in a NCAA Division 1 program.

To register or for more information, go here.

For more information on Buccaneer volleyball, follow @ETSUVolleyball on X (Twitter), Instagram and Facebook, and visit ETSUBucs.com.

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Sports

Central York boys’ volleyball sweeps Seneca Valley in PIAA playoff showdown

The Panthers made quick work of the Raiders in a first-round matchup of teams ranked among the state’s best. Ryan Vandersloot | For The York Dispatch York Suburban student lives out her childhood dream of wrestling York Suburban wrestler Angela Imorhoa wrestles to claim her spot at the state level tournament in March at the […]

Published

34 minutes ago

June 4, 2025

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The Panthers made quick work of the Raiders in a first-round matchup of teams ranked among the state’s best.

Ryan Vandersloot
| For The York Dispatch

EMIGSVILLE — It was an inevitable truth that one of the best boys’ volleyball teams in the state of Pennsylvania this spring would be suffering a season-ending defeat Tuesday evening.

Fortunately for Central York, the Panthers weren’t that team.

Hosting District 7 (WPIAL) runner-up Seneca Valley in the first round of the PIAA Class 3A playoffs, Central wasted little time taking the upper hand. A stout block, a scrappy defense and a heavy dose of outside hitters Patrick Siewert and John He got the District 3 runners-up off to a good start. While the visiting Raiders — who had a five-plus hour drive from north of Pittsburgh to York — were certainly no pushovers, the visitors were a beat behind throughout the night.

In just over an hour and 15 minutes, the Panthers completed an impressive 25-19, 25-20, 25-23 victory to punch their ticket to the state quarterfinals for the third year in a row.

“We did a lot of film review on (Seneca Valley),” said Siewert, who finished with 10 kills, six digs and two blocks. “We knew where their middles were going to be and they were both very good. They got most of their sets on film, and to be able to adjust to that and get some key blocks, especially in the second and third sets, was huge for us.”

He, a York-Adams League first team all-star this year after earning Player of the Year honors in 2024, showcased his hitting, defensive and service games throughout the contest. He scored a handful of big points in Sets 1 and 2 to set the stage for what would be a very satisfying sweep.

He, however, pointed out that the Raiders, who entered the contest ranked No. 3 in Class 3A by the Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association — Central was ranked No. 5 — helped out with some sloppy play at times.

“They made a bunch of service errors, which helped us,” said He, who finished with 18 kills and eight digs. “That gave us a lot of momentum and it just got us ahead.”

The Seneca Valley defense did start to find an adjustment to He on the outside as the match progressed. Balls that were hitting the floor in Sets 1 and 2 were getting tipped or dug up in Set 3; on one play in particular, He saw a pair of rolls saved by fingertips to keep the point alive for the Raiders.

As He pointed out, those saves only delayed the inevitable.

“I was so glad that we still got that point,” He said with a smile.

The roll, a soft touch over a block that often forces the defense to scramble, has been a nifty add to He’s high-powered attack. Like a changeup in baseball, a well-timed roll can leave opponents shaking their heads when it works.

“The defense is usually back on their heels when you’re taking big swings and swinging hard,” He said. “(The roll) kind of changes things up and makes them have to move.”

While the Raiders are headed home for the season, the Panthers (17-3) will be moving on to Saturday’s quarterfinals against District 1 runner-up Spring-Ford. The location and time have yet to be determined.

Spring-Ford, which defeated District 12 champ Northeast on Tuesday afternoon, is a team the Panthers haven’t seen live in person. That may not be a bad thing, according to Siewert.

“We haven’t played (Seneca Valley) the entire year, so it was kind of questionable what was going to come at us,” Siewert said. “We didn’t know if they were going to switch things around. We’re going to have to prepare to adjust for Spring-Ford, who we haven’t seen all year either. But they’re in the PIAA quarterfinals, so we know that they’re going to be a very tough team.”

Setter Lance Shaffer dished out 32 assists to go with eight digs, while Aden Thompson had seven kills and four blocks from the middle for the Panthers.

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Sports

Loaded Schedule Awaits Men’s Water Polo in 2025

Published

42 minutes ago

June 4, 2025

Your Sports Nation

The Santa Clara University men’s water polo team has announced its challenging 2025 schedule, featuring 11 home games and six West Coast Conference (WCC) matchups. The Broncos will compete against top rivals, including Pacific and Pepperdine, while also hosting prominent non-conference games against ranked teams like UC Davis and Stanford. The season opens on August 30 with two matches and includes participation in high-profile tournaments, including the Princeton Invitational and the MPSF Invite. Coach Keith Wilbur emphasizes the daunting nature of this season’s schedule, which he describes as their toughest yet. The WCC Tournament will take place from November 21-23, culminating with the NCAA Championship at Stanford in December.

By the Numbers

11 home games scheduled for 2025.
3 marquee tournaments planned, including the annual Julian Fraser Memorial tournament.

State of Play

Coach Keith Wilbur highlights the competition strength as unprecedented for the program.
Broncos will face top-ranked teams in critical early season matchups.

What’s Next

As they prepare for the season, the team will focus on strategic training to meet the elevated competition level. Upcoming games are anticipated to be a significant benchmark for growth and performance assessment.

Bottom Line

The 2025 season’s loaded schedule presents an opportunity for Santa Clara to test its mettle against top-tier opponents and elevate the program’s profile nationally.

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Sports

Holland Christian volleyball wins five-set comeback in quarters

SPARTA – Sam VandeWege began the game sitting on the bench. But the Holland Christian junior ended the game with his teammates chanting “MVP! MVP!” As he walked off the court. “I didn’t play the first two (games today),” said VandeWege, who was out for three weeks with a high-ankle sprain. “Sitting on the bench […]

Published

55 minutes ago

June 4, 2025

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SPARTA – Sam VandeWege began the game sitting on the bench. But the Holland Christian junior ended the game with his teammates chanting “MVP! MVP!” As he walked off the court.

“I didn’t play the first two (games today),” said VandeWege, who was out for three weeks with a high-ankle sprain. “Sitting on the bench the past three postseason games in the tournament, it was so stressful for me. It felt good to play again and be helpful.”

Holland Christian rallied to beat Grand Rapids Christian in five games in a Division 2 boys volleyball state quarterfinal on Tuesday at Sparta High School.

“I’m really proud of how the team stepped up when it mattered,” Holland Christian coach Mark Walraven said. “We’ve struggled with slow starts all season and today was no different. They dug deep.”

Holland Christian advances to the state semifinals at 1 p.m. on Friday at Hudsonville. The state title game is Saturday at 1 p.m. also at Hudsonville.

When the Maroons lost the first two games 25-21 and 25-19 on Tuesday, they had to do something or their season would be over.

So Coach Walraven looked down his bench and asked VandeWege if he could play.

“He didn’t warm up much because we weren’t sure if we were going to play him,” Walraven said. “We weren’t going to use him, but we were falling behind. He’s obviously a big contributor to the team. He did a great job and made a difference for us.”

VandeWege was exited to yank off his warmup and get on the court.

“Coach asked me If I could play,” he said. “I looked back at my parents and they said ‘go for it!’ If my parents were good with it then I was gonna play for my team.”

He was the spark the Maroons needed. They would rally to win the next two games 25-11 and 25-18 to force a fifth game.

“This was the first Game 5 of the year for us,” senior Grant VanderZee said. “The first two sets were a killer. We were down on ourselves. Once the ball started to go down we took a big lead in the third. It was a good rally and we came out with the win.”

VanderZee, who was named the state’s first-ever Mr. Volleyball Award winner last week, had a booming spike to clinch the win in the fifth game.

“A lot of people knew it was gonna go to me,” he said. “It means a lot. We’ve got one of the best setters in the state in Spencer Walraven.”

VanderZee isn’t going to play college volleyball. He plans to just be a student when he heads to Grand Canyon University in Phoenix. But he’s heard the school might start a beach volleyball team. And he plans to try out.

VandeWege had to laugh when he was shaking hands with Grand Rapids Christian after the game.

“I play club volleyball with Jack (Scholten),” he said of the Eagles sophomore. “When I was going through the hand-shake line, they told me they were disappointed that I came in for that third game.”

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2025 Montana All-Star Volleyball Classic rosters

BILLINGS — Organizers believe this year’s Midland Roundtable Montana All-Star Volleyball Classic is going to be the best yet. Now in its fourth year, the match will be played on a Friday as a standalone event for the first time. Previously the all-star volleyball match was played on a Saturday before the Montana-Wyoming All-Star boys and […]

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2 hours ago

June 4, 2025

Your Sports Nation

BILLINGS — Organizers believe this year’s Midland Roundtable Montana All-Star Volleyball Classic is going to be the best yet.

Now in its fourth year, the match will be played on a Friday as a standalone event for the first time. Previously the all-star volleyball match was played on a Saturday before the Montana-Wyoming All-Star boys and girls basketball games.

This year’s all-star volleyball match, sponsored by Scheels, is Friday, June 13, at 6 p.m. at Lockwood High School. Warm-ups begin at 5:30 p.m.

“I think it was a great idea for the fact that I think it’s a long time for people to come to the games, when it starts at 3 o’clock and ends at 10 o’clock,” said the volleyball all-star chairperson, Laurie Kelly of volleyball being showcased on Friday. “That’s kind of hard for people to be there that long.”

Hardin volleyball vs. Billings Central — Hardin’s Taiya Guptill jumps and cheers during a match against Billings Central at Hardin High School on Oct. 10, 2024. Guptill will be playing for the Red team in this year’s Midland Roundtable Montana All-Star Volleyball Classic Friday, June 13, at the Lockwood High School gym at 6 p.m.

AMY LYNN NELSON, Billings Gazette

On Tuesday, the Roundtable announced the rosters for the all-star match. The players selected to participate were previously announced in early April. For the 2024 game, it was decided to first select the players and then later to divide the all-stars into two balanced squads instead of an East vs. West format as was previously used.

A committee divided the 18 graduating high school seniors from the Class of 2025 into two teams evenly by position. Aubrey Beaumont of Rocky Mountain College will lead the Blue team and Maureen Boyle of Carroll College will be the head coach of the Red team.

“Most of our players are multi-talented and can play most every position,” said Kelly.

Last year, Boyle coached the Red team to victory, winning by scores of 25-16, 23-25, 27-25, 25-23.

All 18 players selected to participate in the all-star volleyball match will be playing college volleyball. Among those is Bozeman Gallatin’s Cadence Lundgren, a member of the Blue team, who earned the 2024-25 Gatorade Montana Volleyball Player of the Year award and who will be attending Kansas State University.

“Looking at this group and looking how talented they are, and where they are all going, is pretty impressive,” said Kelly.

Over 425 Montanans in the class of 2025 have committed to or signed with college athletic programs so far.

Players will report on Thursday, June 12, and practice at the Lockwood High School gym later that night.

“They’ll only have one practice this year,” said Kelly. “But they are all in club volleyball. They all just finished in May playing club volleyball. So, they’ve practiced and their last game wasn’t in November. They’re ready to go.”

This year, a free clinic for youth players was also added to the lineup. The clinic, which filled up fast, will be from 3:30 p.m.-5:30 p.m. prior to the all-star match. The All-Star players and coaching staff will be conducting the clinic. The campers will receive free admission to the match.

“This is a chance for our All-Stars to give back to the young players in the area and to share the joy of the game and remember their journey,” said Kelly. “It started for them in the same way — in a gym with their role models and coaches.”

Midland Roundtable Montana All-Star Volleyball Classic

Friday, June 13, 6 p.m.

At Lockwood High School gym

Blue team: Addie Falls Down, S, Billings Senior, Montana State-Northern; Avaree Thompson, DS, Billings Senior, Dickinson State University; Taylor Speake, DS, Bozeman Gallatin, Central Washington University; Sofia Kimmel, OH, Bozeman, Carroll College; Juliana McFarland, OH, Belgrade, Dordt University; Jaycee Cleveland, S, Butte, Dickinson State University; Claire Hoadley, MH, Lone Peak, Rocky Mountain College; Ellie Reinertson, RSH, Gardiner, Montana Tech; Cadence Lundgren, MH, Bozeman Gallatin, Kansas State University. Coach: Aubrey Beaumont, Rocky Mountain College.

Red team: Ella Goeltz, DS, Florence, University of Providence; Taiya Guptill, S, Hardin, Miles Community College; Birdie Heuiser, MH, Helena, Carroll College; Kennedie Noseep, DS, Billings Skyview, Central Wyoming College; Morgan Jones, OH, Bozeman, Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville; Gianna Ruprecht, OH, Columbus, Rocky Mountain College; Hope Gonsioroski, RSH, Baker, Lubbock Christian University; Lauren Fox, S, Bozeman, Carroll College; Nora Dominick, MH, Shields Valley, University of Montana Western. Coach: Maureen Boyle, Carroll College.

Email Gazette Sports Editor John Letasky at john.letasky@406mtsports.com or follow him on X/Twitter at @GazSportsJohnL

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