Bozeman, Mont.- For the past five years at least, Northern Arizona has been the standard when it comes to outdoor track and field in the Big Sky Conference. The Lumberjacks have won nine titles between the men and women’s program, including sweeping both this year. Montana State has seemingly been the only team to challenge NAU, especially the last two seasons. 

The Bobcats have closed the gap between themselves and Northern Arizona, winning the Big Sky title on the men’s side in Bozeman last season, and the women putting up their best point total in program history. The proof of the gap closing is the amount of athletes headed to nationals. NAU will send five total athletes, while MSU will send three individual athletes alongside the first ever women’s 4X400 relay team. 

Senior Rob McManus, a two-time Big Sky Conference winner in the 3,000 meter steeplechase, will represent the Bobcats again on the national stage. McManus expressed how the success of the Bobcats has been growing over the last few years. “It’s a lot of hard work. The men winning the title on this home track last year really showed we’re just so competitive and such a well-rounded team.”

McManus also mentioned the emergence of the women’s team. “The women’s team coming into indoor and outdoor conference this year, just showing that they can really compete with an NAU and be super competitive at the conference level. And I think our women’s teams just really turned it up a notch too.” 

Peyton Garrison, Bobcats junior sprinter and member of the 4X400 relay team, spoke on how special this Montana State program has become. “This program is so special, I think every year we all notice how it just keeps growing, gets getting better, and as you can see, there’s more people going to nationals. And that’s all we can ask for.”

Garrison also mentioned that the closeness of all the girls amongst the team is truly what makes them great, especially on the relay team. The team not only communicates at a high level, but goes to dinner together and spends time with one another often, building chemistry that has led them to history. This will be the first Montana State 4X400 meter relay team to compete at the national event. 

The Montana State women set records at that seemed like almost every meet they showed up to. Whether it was sprints, long distance running, or field events, this Bobcats team has made their mark in history. The Bobcats finished second at the conference championships, finishing behind NAU for the fourth-straight year. A lot of the younger talent is performing at a high-level, showing that the Bobcats could dethrone the Lumberjacks in the near future. 

Hailey Coey, the junior jumper from Billings, is one of those Bobcats that has been tearing up the field events everywhere she goes. Coey has made her mark in long jump, launching herself to a mark of 21-3.50, placing her into the number two spot in Big Sky Conference history. The Billings West graduate jumped over 21 feet during regionals, securing her spot as the first ever Montana State long jumper to qualify for the national meet. Coey also holds the Montana State record for long jump. 

Coey made a statement when speaking on the success of this Bobcats women’s program in 2025. “I think we probably have the best MSU women’s team in school history.” Coey also noted that it excites her to not only be able to represent Montana State on the biggest stage, but to see her fellow teammates, “excel and have great successes.” Another Bobcat athlete speaking on the joy they get from the team performing well, the biggest reason why this team is so successful, they are all bought into the bigger goal. 

Head coach Lyle Weese spoke on the teams ability to bring the best out of one another, “They have, raised each other’s ability level, but to see so many school records, school records in every event group, obviously it’s exciting for our program, but also that so many of them will be back and not graduating.” 

The Bobcats have the opportunity to shrink the gap and break more records next week, as the NCAA National Track and Field Championships begin in Eugene, Oregon. 

By Ethan Hudson

As the 2024/25 school year comes to an end for Greenwich Country Day School (GCDS), so does the spring 2025 athletic season, one that proved to be very successful for GCDS. With a season that yielded a coveted New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) championship, GCDS Athletic Director Tim Helstein had high praise for the Tigers, declaring the season as one of the most successful the school has ever had.

The GCDS Boys Varsity tennis team was among one of the most victorious Tiger programs this spring, capturing the Fairchester Athletic Association (FAA) Tournament team championship (the first in program history), regular season tournament championship, and NEPSAC championship. With a 15-0 regular season record, head coach Steve Feder credited the consistent winning to his players’ attitudes, saying, “I am so proud of our team for their commitment to each other. Tennis is usually an individual sport but our players are completely invested in our team’s success.”

Undefeated seasons for the GCDS spring sports programs do not stop there. Joining the Boys Varsity Tennis team with perfect regular seasons are the Boys Varsity Golf team (11-0) and the Boys Varsity Lacrosse team (16-0). The latter ended the season with a FAA regular season championship, the second in the last three years for the Boys Varsity Lacrosse program. The team benefited from strong veteran leadership throughout the season. “Our senior class in particular deserves a lot of credit – they are flat out winners both on and off the field,” said head coach Andrew Copelan.

In addition to the boys varsity team, the GCDS Girls Varsity Lacrosse team capped off an impressive season, qualifying for the FAA semifinal. Senior Ella Wilner made history this season becoming the first player to score a 200th career goal in GCDS Girls Lacrosse history.

Although not all programs were fortunate enough to go undefeated in the FAA, athletes from all respective teams still turned out some impressive performances this spring. Junior Grace Gapen, a member of GCDS’s track and field team won first place at the NEPSAC Track and Field championships, winning both shot put and discus.

Yet the individual accolades for the Tigers do not stop there. After every athletic season, GCDS distributes their “Pride Award” for each sport, one that goes to a student-athlete who has overcome adversity, shown true dedication, and growth throughout the season. For Varsity Baseball, Bryce Hill and Mason Zuniga received the award. For Varsity Softball, Gabby Zarro was the recipient. For Boys Varsity Tennis, Julian Toub received the award. For Girls Varsity Tennis, Brynn Forlizzi and Jane Loverro were the recipients. For Boys Varsity Golf, Brennan Cunnion received the award. For Girls Varsity Golf, Charlotte Datwent was the recipient. For Boys Varsity Lacrosse, Parkin Overbay received the award. For Girls Varsity Lacrosse, Chloe Morris was the recipient. For Varsity Rowing, Cate Auerswald and Sof ia Orr received the award. For Varsity Sailing, Harrison Thompson was the recipient. For Varsity Track and Field, Romell Sarsoza and Annetta Solari received the award. For Girls Water Polo, Fiorella Deus was the recipient

As important as performance is for athletes during games, their behavior after the final whistle is something that GCDS does not take lightly. That’s why, similar to the Pride Award, one student-athlete from every team is selected as the recipient of the “Coaches Award,” which goes to an athlete who demonstrated exemplary sportsmanship throughout the season.

This year, the Tigers truly showed their sportsmanship stripes. In fact, some teams had more than one recipient, such as MD Mutescu and Katherine Salce of the Varsity Rowing team, Liam Kennon, Mia Secko-Thompson, and Charlie Maloney of the Varsity Track and Field team, William Bugbee, Steve Carre, and Griffyn Flood of the Boys Varsity Lacrosse team, Bianca Amen and Ella Wilner of the Girls Varsity Lacrosse team, and Kathryn Byxbee, Talia SandhuZach Cole, Nico Della Pietra, and Austin Nelson of the Girls Water Polo team. Landon Ristau of the Varsity Baseball team received the award, as well as Peter Manuel of the Boys Varsity Golf team, Alex Darwent of the Girls Varsity Golf team, Grant Zucconi of the Varsity Sailing team, Sophia Schwartz of the Varsity Softball team, Felipe Miguens of the Boys Varsity Tennis team, and Abby Greenlatt of the Girls Varsity Tennis team.

Because of so many notable individual seasons this year, GCDS will be graduating 20 senior student-athletes who have committed to play their respective sports at the college level, ranging from NCAA Division I to Division III.

Ben Bilden will be playing soccer at Dartmouth; MD Mutescu will be rowing at Northeastern; Austin Nelson will be playing water polo at George Washington; Eli Rosen will be running track and field at Emory; Ella Larken will be rowing at Villanova; Brianna McDermott will be playing basketball at Holy Cross; Owen Chickering will be sailing at Northeastern; Dylan Kellan will be playing lacrosse at Notre Dame; Wyatt Lupo will be playing golf at Hamilton; Mia Rodgers will be playing golf at Wesleyan; Emily Behr will be swimming at Trinity; Bobby Jones will be playing lacrosse at MIT; Griffyn Flood will be playing lacrosse at Wesleyan; Danielle Braver will be playing soccer at William Smith; Brennan Cunnion will be playing football at Dennison; Luca Corsano Leopizzi will be playing football at Johns Hopkins; Stephen Carre will be playing lacrosse at Sacred Heart; Jackson Anderson will be rowing at Princeton; Elle Price will be playing hockey at Albertus Magnus; Ella Wilner will be playing lacrosse at Clemson. These former Tigers are sure to keep dominating, regardless of the color of their uniforms.

The spring 2025 athletic season resulted in a plethora of medals, trophies, and memories for GCDS student-athletes. Helstein expressed his content with this year’s athletes, saying “It was a pleasure to watch you practice and compete with pride and purpose. It is without question that I can say, ‘You have earned your stripes!’ Go Tigers!”

Seventeen Edmonds-Woodway student athletes who will be competing at the collegiate level signed their national letters of intent during a ceremony at the high school Thursday afternoon. Teammates, family members and coaches were in attendance to watch as the athletes committed to continuing their athletic careers in college.

The athletes are:

Abby McCorvey – Edmonds College – Softball

Catie Ingalls – Nebraska Wesleyan University – Softball

Kate Baldock – Emerson College – Soccer

Gabbie Martin-Mazzeo – Pomona-Pitzer College – Soccer

Isak Haverlock – Olympic College – Baseball

Josh Akiyama – Shoreline Community College – Baseball

Noah Ushikubo – Northwest University – Track and Field

Nick Manz – Northwest Nazarene University – Track and Field

Luke Adams – Carroll University – Cross Country/Track and Field

Soloman September – Illinois College – Football

Rienna Mostrales – Everett Community College – Volleyball

Adison Oliver – Montana State University – Dance

Madison Morales-Tomas – University of Washington – Dance

Sumire Talik-Martinez – Delaware State University – Equestrian

Simone Bennett – Grinnell College – Swim

Boden Chapek – University of Washington – Rowing

Cameron Hiatt – Dartmouth College – Basketball

EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — UTEP’s Marissa Simpson and Loubna Benhadja are about a week away from the most important track and field meet of the 2025 season.

Last weekend, after great performances at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field West First Round, Simpson and Benhadja punched their ticket to the 2025 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.

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Before the pair of Miners head to Eugene, Oregon, UTEP made sure to celebrate their achievements with a small sendoff surprise party at Kidd Field.

Simpson is going to her third consecutive outdoor championships, and fifth overall, including her two indoor trips in 2024 and 2025. Benhadja is making her second trip overall, but first in the 400 hurdles. Benhadja competed at the 2024 championships in the 4×400-meter relay.

On Thursday, June 12, Simpson is scheduled to compete in the women’s 100-meter hurdles semifinal at 5:05 p.m. PT/6:05 MT, and Benhadja will run the 400-meter hurdles semifinal at 6:14 p.m. PT/7:14 MT.

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Every collegiate track star’s dream at the start of the 2025 outdoor track and field season is to step foot on Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, for the National Outdoor Track and Field Championships.

Holy Redeemer’s Joshua Rocha topped the voting for offensive players while Crestwood’s Luke Joseph and Jeff Stec were named first-team for defensive players and coach of they year, respectively, on the WVC’s boys volleyball All-Star teams.

Rocha and Royals teammate Jack Wasiakoswki both made the first team as Redeemer prepares for Saturday’s PIAA Class 2A quarterfinal match against York Suburban at 3 p.m. at Exeter Township High School.

Joining them on the first team were JJ Stec (Crestwood), Gino Gualandi (Delaware Valley), Jordany Rodriguez Disla (Wilkes-Barre Area), Luke Peereboom (Delaware Valley), Carlos Guzman (Berwick) and Zachary MacBain (Tunkhannock). They rounded out the top eight vote-getters among offensive players.

The second team was comprised of Jackson Matash (Berwick), Kendrick Oritz (Hazleton Area), Tom McLaughlin (Crestwood), Carter Brunn (Dallas), Davyn Piatt (Hanover Area), Zachary Zubritski (Nanticoke Area), Brady Rushton (Nanticoke Area) and Eric Choi (Delaware Valley).

Honorable mentions went to Grant Nielsen (Delaware Valley), Reylie Ramirez (Wilkes-Barre Area), Max Mohutsky (Holy Redeemer), Ireneo Panecatl (Hanover Area), Evan Thomas (Hazleton Area), Jack Greening (Delaware Valley), Zachary Koons (Crestwood), Christopher Miller (Dallas), Clark Groth (Crestwood), Carlos Tecotl (Wyoming Valley West) and Zabwon Welch (Wyoming Valley West).

Joseph led the defensive player voting to earn a first-team spot. Wyoming Valley West’s Derek Romero was second team and Wilkes-Barre Area’s Jose Carinna was honorable mention.

The Comets’ Jeff Stec received three votes for coach of the year, edging out Holy Redeemer’s Jack Kablick Sr., Hanover Area’s John Garnett and Wyoming Valley West’s Ryan Hettes. Also receiving votes were Nanticoke Area’s Deb Gavin and Wilkes-Barre Area’s Huy Nguyen.