SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The Santa Clara University men’s water polo team announced Tuesday its 2025 schedule, which includes 11 home dates, six West Coast Conference games and participation in three marquee tournaments.
 
The Broncos (13-11, 2-4 WCC) will host three WCC games, two against last season’s top-two finishers in the standings – Pacific (Oct. 5) and Pepperdine (Nov. 14). They’ll also host major non-conference clashes against nationally ranked programs UC Davis (Sept. 27), UC Santa Barbara (Oct. 3), Long Beach State (Oct. 11), and Stanford (Nov. 5). Santa Clara will also host its annual Julian Fraser Memorial tournament on Oct. 24-26.
 
Single-game tickets for all 2025 home games are available now. Click here to purchase tickets online, call the Broncos ticket office at (408-554-4660), or email broncotickets@scu.edu.
 
“As a coaching staff, we are really excited for what is in store this coming season,” said Santa Clara University head coach Keith Wilbur. “Between tournaments, non-conference head-to-head games and conference play within the WCC, we face a lot of really strong opponents in 2025.”
 
Santa Clara kicks off its season in August with two games in one day on Aug. 30. It takes on Fresno Pacific before facing host UC Merced in the Central Valley. It then heads to the annual Princeton Invitational on the East Coast on Sept. 5-7, where it’ll play three games in three days. Two weeks later, the Broncos head to Southern California to take part in the MPSF Invite against some of the top programs in the country, hosted by UCLA this season.
 
“In my time at Santa Clara, this will be our toughest strength of schedule in a season, and the team is really looking forward to the challenge,” added Wilbur.
 
WCC road trips to California Baptist (Oct. 16), San Jose State (Oct. 18) and Air Force (Nov. 8) round out the regular season schedule. The third annual WCC Tournament will be held on Nov. 21-23 on the campus of the Air Force Academy in Colorado. The NCAA Championship is being hosted this season by Stanford from Dec. 5-7.

Conway, Ark.- The College Sports Communicators have released their Academic All-District teams for Baseball with Ian Guthrie & Owen Shaw making the list.

Guthrie slashed .313/.387/.433 in 134 at-bats, hitting 11 extra-base hits with 2 home runs. Guthrie was also named to the All-SAA Sportsmanship team.

Shaw led the team with a .347 batting average and a .970 OPS while driving in 36 runs and slugging .520 with 21 extra-base hits.

Both were named All-SAA Honorable Mention this past season. 

Student-athletes must compete in 90 percent of the institution’s games played OR must start in at least 66 percent of the institution’s games. For pitchers, a student-athlete must have made at least 17 appearances OR pitched 35 innings. 

The 2025 Academic All-District® Baseball Teams, selected by College Sports Communicators, recognize the nation’s top student-athletes for their combined performances on the diamond and in the classroom. The CSC Academic All-America® program separately recognizes honorees in four divisions — NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA.

The Division II and III CSC Academic All-America® programs are partially financially supported by the NCAA Division II and III national governance structures to assist CSC with handling the awards fulfillment aspects for the 2024-25 Divisions II and III Academic All-America® programs. The NAIA CSC Academic All-America® program is partially financially supported through the NAIA governance structure.

Layo

Name: Bode Layo

High school: Portage Area

Hometown: Portage

Sport: Track and field

Events: Jumping

College choice: PennWest California

Other colleges considered: Shippensburg, IUP, Robert Morris

Why I picked PennWest California: “I chose CALU because it just felt like home, and the coaches are great.”

Greatest high school achievement: Finishing fourth in the state in the high jump

Coach Lance Hudak’s quote: “On behalf of the entire Portage Mustang track and field program, we would like to congratulate Bode on his signing with California PA to continue his academic and track and field career as a Vulcan. Over the last three years, he has developed into a top high school high jumper in PA. Under Coach (Brady) Wert’s tutelage at Cal, the sky is the limit in what Bode is yet to accomplish.”

How I got my start in track and field: “I wasn’t a fan of baseball, and I figured, ‘hey, we’ll give it a shot.”’

Favorite college growing up: Penn State

Other interests: Hunting, fishing, video games

What getting to play in college means to me: “It means the world to me. It was always a goal even if I didn’t know what sport. I knew I wanted to compete at the next level.”

Probable college major: Business

Parents: Breanna and Deven Layo

CHICO, Calif. – Action News Now has gained new insights into the investigation involving Chico Unified Head Girls Volleyball coach Chas Konopka.

Back in March, several of the players on the volleyball team brought their complaints against Coach Konopka to the Chico Unified board trustees, labeling him as “mean” and “out of line.”

A formal complaint was filed, and Action News Now has been following the developments closely over the past few months.

On Monday, Chico High Athletic Director Jason Alvistur mentioned to Action News Now that Konopka was cleared of the charges.

However, Alvistur clarified on Tuesday that Konopka was actually cleared to coach, not exonerated of all allegations.

A representative for the Chico Unified School District said the investigation had concluded but is now being appealed.

“We can confirm that through the comprehensive investigation, Chico Unified has identified areas within our school athletic programs to be improved, including training for coaches and clarification of the complaint process,” the representative said.

The district plans to implement additional training and support for the 2025-26 athletic staff, focusing on best practices for interacting with student-athletes.

The full statement from Chico Unified School District can be read in its entirety below:

“In March, Chico Unified was made aware of concerns regarding the Chico High School volleyball program. Chico Unified worked with all involved to conduct a comprehensive investigation. The complaint investigation and resolution process can take a long time and is intended to allow all parties to be heard in order to determine any necessary actions moving forward. The process also provides for an appeal process. As a result, the Chico High School volleyball complaint has yet to be resolved. Any reference to allegations being unfounded or individuals being cleared of allegations are not accurate as the complaint process is still ongoing.

CUSD takes complaints seriously and is responsible for conducting a comprehensive investigation. While the complaint investigation process can be long, it is intended to allow all parties to be heard and to determine any necessary actions moving forward. The process also provides for an appeal process. As a result, the complaint has yet to be resolved.

Chico Unified appreciates those students and families who are willing to share their concerns. Their communication allowed us to identify areas of needed improvement. We believe we can always improve and are confident the concerns addressed through this process will benefit not just the volleyball program but our entire athletic program.

While we cannot discuss specific details, we can confirm that through the comprehensive investigation, Chico Unified has identified areas within our school athletic programs to be improved, including training for coaches and clarification of the complaint process. Chico Unified will be working to make the complaint process clearer for athletes to understand so complaints and concerns can be addressed when they occur. The 2025-26 athletic staff will also have extra training and coaching support materials specifically focused on best practices for interacting with student-athletes.

Chico Unified is committed to ongoing improvement in all our programs, including our high school athletic programs.”

*AI assisted with the formatting of this story. Click here to see how Action News Now uses AI*

STOCKTON, Calif. – The University of the Pacific is giving back to the community by soaking in the sun with its annual summer swim school at the Chris Kjeldsen Pool.

Running from June 2 to August 7, the swimming program provides 30-minute lessons that meet four times a week during two-week sessions. The lessons are instructed by professionals and Pacific student-athletes who are familiar with the swimming pool and community.

“The swim school is very beneficial to the community,” said Anna Weber, a 2025 graduate who is helping oversee the program this year. “It’s nice to give the kids and the community a chance to swim in our pool. We have a lot of our student-athletes that help teach the swimming lessons. It’s special because not many universities offer a program like this to collaborate with Division I student-athletes, and we enjoy the experience all summer long.”

The classes range from one-year-old to 15+ years old age groups with the sessions spread out across morning and evening times. Over 900 swimmers have signed up for this year’s sessions thus far as the program continues to invite those to the university’s pool facility from all around the San Joaquin County.

The university and the community coming together sheds a positive light for the campus connecting with future Tigers, just like how Pacific swim head coach Katelyne Herrington learned nearly three decades ago.

“The Pacific swim school is such a great way to connect with the community, teaching one of the most important lifesaving skills,” Herrington said. “Most, if not all, the instructors are swimmers or water polo players at Pacific that come from a high level of swim experience, which is pretty neat and special for the youth. Born and raised in Stockton myself, I took lessons as a kid almost 30 years ago and can still remember the experience and the instructor who was on the college swim team.”

For more information about the Pacific summer swim school, visit the link here.

#PacificProud

 

Rutgers track and field qualified eight of its athletes to compete in the 2025 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships, which will take place Wednesday, June 11 through Saturday, June 14 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. The eight qualifications are a school record, with the Scarlet Knights competing in men’s and women’s competitions across disciplines on both the track and in the field.

Rutgers overcame several challenges during the NCAA East First Round, including weather delays, midnight start times because of the delays, and 95-degree temperatures in Jacksonville. However, as track and field director Bobby Farrell said to scarletknights.com, “None of that affected their focus and drive. Not only did we get eight out of 16 through to the NCAA Finals, but 13 out of 16 placed in the top 20. We came to compete.”

The remarkable performances included several school records on the track. Charlee Crawford broke the Rutgers women’s 400-meter record twice, surpassing a 42-year-old record set by Lori McCauley in 1983 with a first heat time of 52.18. In the quarterfinals, she broke that record with a time of 51.80, breaking the 52-second mark.

Chris Serrao broke another school record in the men’s 110-meter hurdles, with a time of 13.49, surging past Eugene Norman’s previous record set in 1984. Bryce Tucker ran a time of 50 seconds flat to punch his ticket to the NCAA Championships. Crawford, Serrao, and Tucker will look to continue their performances and compete for podium finishes in Eugene.

Joining the track athletes are remarkable performers inside the oval. Chloe Timberg will look to defend her national title in the women’s pole vault after clearing a height of 4.24m (13’ 11”). In the men’s pole vault, Nico Morales and Kevin O’Sullivan will make their NCAA championship debuts after clearing heights of 5.33m (17’ 5.75”) in qualifiers.

Paige Floriea will also make her NCAA Championship debut in the long jump, with a qualifying mark of 6.22m (20’ 5”) in Jacksonville. Floriea is in her first season as a Scarlet Knight after transferring from UNC. To round out the field, Steve Coponi qualified on the first day of competition in the javelin toss, with a throw of 69.87m (229’ 2”) to secure his first trip to the national competition. To bring some perspective, that is the equivalent of more than 75 yards on a football field.

With track and field representing Rutgers in the final athletic competition of the 2024-25 school year, be sure to cheer on the Scarlet Knights as they compete on the national stage!