Courtesy: Cal Athletics

The California men’s water polo team announced a challenging 2025 schedule Friday, highlighted by all four semifinalists from last year’s NCAA Championship and at least eight opponents who finished 2024 ranked in the final CWPA poll.

The Golden Bears, who wrapped up last season ranked No. 6 in the country, open the campaign Aug. 30-31 at the Air Force Open. Their first regular-season home game takes place Sept. 27 against Pepperdine.

Cal’s MPSF opener is scheduled for Oct. 4 against defending national champion UCLA at Spieker Aquatics Complex. The Bears will face 2024 NCAA runner-up USC the next day.

Cal has home and away MPSF games against UCLA, USC and Stanford – three of the four semifinalists at last year’s NCAA Championships. The fourth semifinalist – Fordham – visits Berkeley on Oct. 23.

The Bears will also participate in the annual MPSF Invitational, which features eight of the top teams in the country. The MPSF Championship and the 2025 NCAA Championship will be hosted by Stanford.

Cal also is slated to host two of the top water polo clubs in Europe an exhibition tournament Sept. 1-5. Club Natacio Atletic-Barceloneta (CNAB) – the 2025 Champions League bronze medalist – as well as perennial French league champion CN Marseille will visit Berkeley. Recently graduated Cal All-American Max Casabella plays for CNAB.

Sacha Velly & Caroline Jouisse Claim French Double At European Aquatics Open Water Swimming Cup 2025

The second leg of the European Aquatics Open Water Swimming Cup 2025 saw Sacha Velly and Caroline Jouisse claim a French double as they took the respective men’s and women’s titles at the Parque Urbano de Albarquel in Setubal, Portugal.

Following the first leg in Cyprus last month, 21 men and 10 women took to the pontoon at 11am local time for the 10km, six-lap race.

Velly surged to a well-measured victory in the men’s race, clocking 1:51:45.58 as he dropped Italy’s Fabio Dalu and Türkiye’s Berk Boz in a thrilling final lap of the 1.66km circuit.

Velly sat just behind the pace for much of the race, letting Dalu and others exchange the lead through the early and middle laps. He made his decisive move on the final lap where he overhauled Dalu. His back-end speed was too much for the Italian as he opened up a huge gap to take the win by 22 seconds with Dalu touching the panel in 1:52:08.52 and Boz in 1:52:10.72.

Also of note was Nathan Wiffen – twin of Olympic 800 free champion Daniel – who finished ninth on his open water debut in 1:53:54.17.

l-r: Lisa Pou, Caroline Jouisse, Giulia Berton: Photo Courtesy: Antonella Mannara/European Aquatics

Velly enjoyed a fine junior career that saw him claim the world and European junior open water titles in 2024. So far this year, the 20-year-old has finished second at the World Aquatics World Cup last week in Setubal as well as securing three top-six finishes including relay bronze at the European Aquatics Open Water Swimming Championships in Stari Grad.

Jouisse delivered a textbook performance, timing her finish to perfection in a race that saw the top three separated by less than three seconds.

Jouisse, who had already impressed with a strong swim in Setubal at the World Cup last weekend, earning bronze, touched in 2:00:57.09, holding challenges from Monaco’s Lisa Pou (2:00:58.97) and Italy’s Giulia Berton (2:00:59.88), who finished in second and third respectively. The trio exchanged positions through the race, staying within sight of each other through all six laps.

Turkey’s Su Inal, who took the 5km European Junior title at the Championships two days prior, led at multiple checkpoints and eventually finished fourth in 2:02:31.69, while Germany’s Lara Braun claimed fifth in 2:02:35.24.

The European Aquatics Open Water Swimming Cup 2025 returns for the third leg in Paris at the end of July. It then moves on to Barcelona, before the finale in Razanac at the end of September.

The event followed the European Aquatics Junior Open Water Swimming Championships 2025 that was also held in Setubal immediately prior.

There French duo Emile Mesmacque and Lou-Ann Gaudaire won their respective 10ks before both went on to clinch the knockout 3k sprint titles.

Greece also had a strong showing with Konstantinos Chourdakis and Nikolaos Kakoulakis won the boys’ 7.5 and 5k titles respectively while Napsugar Nagy (Hungary) and Su Inal (Turkiye) claimed the girls’ crowns.

Hungary sealed the Team Trophy after three days of racing and also topped the overall medal table with eight podium finishes – including two golds – and capped off their campaign with a memorable victory in the 4x1500m U16 Mixed Team event to underline their remarkable consistency across age groups and distances.

The penultimate race of the championships, the U19 Mixed Team relay, delivered an unforgettable three-way sprint to the finish where Italy edged out France and Hungary by just 0.07 seconds.

Janae Edmondson was a standout high school athlete with big dreams until a tragic crash changed everything. Now, she and her family are speaking out about their journey.

Inside the Edmondson home, you’ll find a lot of love — a family bond that’s always been strong and has only deepened through unimaginable tragedy.

“We spend a lot of time together. Probably too much for her with Mom and Dad,” Francine Edmondson said.

Their lives changed forever in 2023 during a trip to St. Louis for Janae’s volleyball tournament.

“It will never leave. Something you can’t unsee,” Francine said.

They were walking downtown, headed back to their hotel, when disaster struck.

“The car snatching Janae out of my hand and pinning her against a parked car. Hearing the screams that she can’t feel her legs. Looking down to see they were completely severed,” James Edmondson said.

James’s quick thinking and military background helped save his daughter’s life, though he still struggles with the moment.

Janae was crushed from the waist down. More than 30 surgeries later, and after finishing physical therapy, she is in remarkably good spirits.

“I don’t think too much ahead or dwell on the past or anything like that. I go day by day,” Janae said.

Now 20 years old, she’s coaching volleyball and attending Middle Tennessee State University.

“I coach at MIDTN, my old club that I played at, and we’re coaching 13,” Janae said.

The man who changed her life, Daniel Riley, was sentenced to nearly 19 years in prison. He was out on bond and wearing a GPS monitor with dozens of violations — and shouldn’t have been behind the wheel.

After two years, the Edmondsons settled with the city of St. Louis for $450,000.

Janae’s medical costs are in the millions, but Missouri law caps civil damages at just over $517,000 — no matter what a jury might award.

“The people cared, not the city. [The city] didn’t care or have enough compassion to say, ‘You know what? We’ve changed her life. What should we do?’” Francine said.

When things became overwhelming, they leaned on faith.

Through it all, Janae’s parents say they couldn’t be prouder of their daughter.

“She could’ve withdrawn and went into a shell,” James said.

But that’s not who she is.

“If I didn’t have the mindset that I still have, I’d be not where I am — with my ability to walk and all that,” Janae said.

“Lean on God. He’s going to get you through it,” she added.

The Edmondsons are deeply grateful for the support they’ve received from the Middle Tennessee community and beyond. They say this journey would’ve been nearly impossible without it.

Now, Janae is giving back — helping with MTSU’s volleyball camp this summer, where student-athletes from across the country will be attending. She’s also getting more comfortable with her prosthetics.

This story was reported on-air by Aaron Cantrell and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

Longtime breakfast tradition continues for friends who met through Big Brothers Big Sisters mentorship

This is a beautiful story of chosen family, proving a father figure doesn’t have to have biology in common to make a difference in a child’s life. The story of De’Andre and Alex will remind you that our relationships help determine the course of our lives. And that being supportive of someone – through a meal, a shared experience or even swim lessons can make all the difference.

– Rebecca Schleicher