Kristian Kuld has been named the head coach of Oregon’s beach volleyball program, following 11 successful seasons as an assistant coach at Long Beach State. His tenure at LBSU included five NCAA Championship appearances and more than 225 wins. Kuld’s arrival coincides with the upcoming construction of new beach volleyball facilities at Oregon. Athletic director Rob Mullens expressed excitement about Kuld’s impressive background and commitment to student-athlete excellence. Kuld aims to build a strong program while enhancing Oregon’s athletic legacy.

By the Numbers

• Kuld led Long Beach State to five NCAA Championships and 225 wins over 11 seasons.
• Helped secure two Big West Conference titles (2025, 2023) and a runner-up finish (2024).

State of Play

• Oregon will play its home matches in 2026 at new facilities currently being developed.
• Kuld aims to leverage Oregon’s resources and reputation to enhance the program.

What’s Next

Kuld’s immediate focus will be on recruiting to strengthen Oregon’s team ahead of the new facilities opening. His long-term vision includes establishing Oregon as a top competitor in beach volleyball nationally. Stakeholders expect a progressive shift in the program’s performance and reputation under his leadership.

Bottom Line

Kristian Kuld’s hiring represents a strategic move for Oregon beach volleyball, promising enhanced competitiveness and a focus on student-athlete development. His coaching pedigree and vision may well transform the program into a formidable force in collegiate beach volleyball.

PELLA—A pair of Central College’s May graduates, Amber Vroman (Seneca, Illinois) and Cael Cox (Ankeny), each received the Gary Dirksen Student-Athlete Academic Award.
           
The awards go annually to the female and male senior student-athletes with the highest cumulative grade point average.
           
Vroman won American Rivers indoor and outdoor women’s track and field titles in the pole vault this past season. She owns both the indoor and outdoor school records in the event. She’s a three-time academic all-conference honoree and was a CSC Academic All-District selection in 2023.
           
She graduated with a kinesiology major and a 3.99 cumulative GPA.
           
Cox was a multi-year wrestling team co-captain, a three-time academic all-conference honoree, a CSC Academic All-District selection and an NWCA Scholar All-American. He received Central’s Outstanding Freshman Award in 2021-22 and the Coaches’ Award in 2022-23.
           
He graduated with an engineering major and a 3.99 cumulative GPA.
 

RANDOLPH — There is only one senior banner left hanging on the far wall of Randolph’s gym: setter Kevin Tinio. All the others have been taken down.

Tinio will get to keep his place of honor for a few more days. The Rams outlasted Garfield, 25-23, 21-25, 29-27 to win Group 2 North on June 6.

It is the first sectional trophy for the 5-year-old boys volleyball team. Randolph advances to face the Group 2 South champion for the overall title on Wednesday at South Brunswick.

Tinio had an inkling this would be a solid season as soon as practice started. It was the bonds between the other starters who have played together for Xtreme Volleyball Academy in Ledgewood.

Tinio only started playing volleyball as a Randolph freshman, but he stepped into the leadership role as the team’s lone senior. It was particularly important after the Rams (25-4) were upset on their home floor in a Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference tournament semifinal.

“That loss from NJACs started the fire in us,” said Tinio, who plans to continue his academic and volleyball careers at Widener. “We’ve got to lock in. We saw we could really take it this far if we took it seriously.”

More: ‘Playing for something bigger than ourselves,’ Jefferson claims NJAC boys volleyball title

Fourth-seeded Garfield (21-10) came in as the defending sectional champion, with more than two decades of history. The Boilermakers had gone undefeated in the NJIC-American without even dropping a game, and won their first Bergen County Tournament title.

All that experience helped fuel Garfield – which upset top seed Ramapo in a June 4 semifinal – during long rallies, and as match point seesawed back and forth.

Boilermakers coach Heidi Dawson called timeout with Randolph ahead, 24-23. Senior outside Ylan Tapper put the ball down, tying the score. But sophomore Jan Rostek gave the Rams the lead back on a crosscourt kill.

Tapper had Garfield’s kills in the final stretch of the third game. But finally, Cole Cantada put the ball down and the Boilermakers were unable to respond.

“It stinks to lose that way,” said Dawson, a Garfield alumnus who founded the boys program in 1998 and coached there until 2005. “I’m very proud of this group. … It’s been a struggle to get some respect, because Ylan is such an amazing player. But it’s not a one-man show. There’s a lot of hard work going on, and a real team effort.”

More: 2025 Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference boys volleyball postseason awards

Tapper had a game-high 30 kills, a block, three aces and 11 digs. Junior middle Ben Barninger led Randolph with 10 kills, three blocks, three digs and an ace. Tinio added 26 assists, a kill, four blocks and two digs.

“We accomplished beautiful things,” said Rostek, who had nine kills, three blocks and two digs. “How we fight, that’s really beautiful. I don’t think you can put that in a stat book.”

EUGENE, Ore. — Lane Transit District (LTD) plans to help people get around during the 2025 NCAA outdoor track and field championships, taking place at the University of Oregon’s Hayward Field from Wednesday, June 11 through Saturday, June 14.

“We are so excited to host these championships, but the event creates a lot of congestion in the university area,” said Eric Breitenstein, LTD’s Marketing Director. “If you hop on LTD, you don’t have to hunt for parking or deal with traffic. Plus, our buses are air-conditioned, you’ll save on gas, and meet fellow track fans.”

This is the 16th time the championships have been held in Eugene.

In addition to riding EmX to the championships, LTD’s bus system can take people all over the area.

“Once you’ve experienced how easy it is to take the bus, try using it to sample some of our area’s unique sites,” added Breitenstein. “People can explore Coburg’s Antique District, shop locally at 5th Street Public Market, or play disc golf at Dexter Lake Park.”

Details about how to get around via LTD are available here, or you can take a PeaceHealth Rides bike, by LTD’s partners at Cascadia Mobility.

Complete bus schedules are available here.

View LTD service alerts here.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Season tickets for the 2025 Indiana Volleyball campaign are officially on sale through the IU ticket office. Volleyball fans can renew their seats from previous years or can purchase season tickets for the first time at Wilkinson Hall.
 
The priority deadline for all fans to purchase a season package is June 20th. After that, the ticket office will see who can upgrade from General Admission to reserved seating. Single match tickets for the 12 games in Bloomington in 2025 are expected to go on sale in late-July.
 
The Hoosiers have loved playing at Wilkinson Hall over the last two seasons. Head coach Steve Aird has led his team to a 21-7 record (.750 winning percentage) on home soil since 2023 – including two wins over Illinois, a big sweep of UCLA and a Monon Spike victory over Purdue.
 
IU returns a veteran core of talent in 2025 and will surround it with the most-talented freshman class in program history. Lineup mainstays in seniors Candela Alonso-Corcelles and Avry Tatum will lead the offensive charge with high-ranked recruits Jaidyn Jager, Charlotte Vinson and Victoria Gray expected to make an impact.
 
The 2025 campaign begins in Coral Gables against Miami (Fla.) on Friday, August 29th. The home slate begins on Thursday, September 4th against SEMO (7:00 p.m.).