College Sports

Allen CC trustees

Walt Whitman, one of America’s greatest poets, spent plenty of time thinking about grass. He is best known for his poetry collection “Leaves of Grass.” In it, he contemplates the “hopeful green stuff,” comparing it to a child, his own disposition, even calling it “the beautiful uncut hair of graves.” Allen Community College trustees spent […]

Published

2 weeks ago

May 29, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Allen Community College trustees spent a fair amount of time considering the green stuff as well Tuesday evening, as they discussed the sorry state of the college’s soccer field and what to do about it during a special board meeting.

The college paid about $52,000 last summer to have the field sprigged with Bermuda grass. (“Sprigging” a field means establishing turf by planting grass stems, or sprigs, as opposed to seed, into the soil.) Whitman might note Bermuda grass is praised for its ability to resist heat and drought, as well as its capacity to withstand heavy traffic.

Allen trustees just know it’s dead. The whole field of it. And in order to have a soccer program this fall, they need that to change.

Brett Wiens of Turf Solutions speaks to ACC trustees Tuesday about the college’s beleaguered soccer field shown below.
Allen Community College trustee Jenny Spillman participates in a special meeting Tuesday.
Allen Community College trustee Corey Schinstock participates in a special meeting Tuesday.

The board’s frustration with the situation was obvious. For two consecutive winters now, the soccer field’s grass has failed to survive. Winterkill has left a brown rectangle surrounded by green, and the prospect of having to pay for a second summer sprigging seemed particularly irksome to trustee Corey Schinstock.

“That’s all on us, right?” he asked, examining the price tag. “There’s no guarantee after what happened the last time?”

Board chair Rebecca Nilges affirmed the cost was the college’s burden to bear.

“OK, that’s all I need to know,” said Schinstock. “To me, if my contractor doesn’t stand behind something he put in, I’m not doing it again. Everybody ought to have some skin in the game, in my opinion.”

“My biggest thing is there ought to be some sort of warranty on this,” said Schinstock. “I’m not talking insurance. I’m talking warranty. Any project I’ve ever been a part of with grass or seed, you get a year warranty on it.” He urged the project be put out to bid.

BRETT WIENS of Turf Solutions was on hand to provide context. Based in McPherson, Turf Solutions has managed the college’s soccer, baseball and softball fields since around 2013. Wiens covered a myriad of factors that could explain why the grass died. Too cold. Too wet. Too dry. But after a thorough exploration of the data, even Wiens was left a bit bewildered, saying, “That’s a very long answer to why the field keeps dying. And I don’t know.”

The trustees also heard Wiens discuss alternatives. Artificial turf would cost more than $1 million and last a decade. Bluegrass, which the Royals play on, does poorly in heat and is more expensive. Fescue is probably the best option, but it’s still more expensive than Bermuda grass, doesn’t withstand heat and traffic as well, and can’t be cut as short as Bermuda grass. (The college’s soccer coaches prefer shorter grass.)

After hearing Wiens out, trustee Gena Clounch asked the question on everyone’s mind: “How can you guarantee this won’t fail again?”

Wiens’ answer was simple. He can’t. There are just too many factors at play, he said. The college could purchase a tarp to cover the field during extreme cold, or even apply a layer of sand over the field in the off-season to insulate the grass. They could even winterize the field in August or September to see if that helps. Trustee Vicki Curry suggested the college look into purchasing a tarp in the near future, saying, “We wouldn’t be out all this money if we’d done that in the beginning.”

The options seemed endless. But in the end, the $53,450 price tag of re-sprigging, and hoping for a milder winter, or at least greener grass come spring, won the day. Athletic Director Doug Desmarteau said men’s and women’s soccer departments will dedicate $10,000 each to the cause, and $15,000 will come from the athletics account. Ryan Sigg, the college’s plant operations director, told the board he had enough funds in the maintenance budget to cover the remaining $18,450.

Desmarteau and Sigg noted the college had already allocated around $13,000 for the field’s maintenance, so the sprigging will only result in about $40,000 in additional expense.

Clounch made the motion to move forward, which passed 5-1. Schinstock was opposed.

College Sports

Daniel Park – Associate Head Coach – Cowgirl Golf Coaches

Daniel Park is in his first season as Oklahoma State’s associate head coach after successful stints at Houston (2021-25) and UTSA (2018-21). Head coach Annie Young announced the hire on June 11, 2025, stating: “I am thrilled to have Daniel join our coaching staff. He is one of the best in the business. […]

Published

40 minutes ago

June 12, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Daniel Park is in his first season as Oklahoma State’s associate head coach after successful stints at Houston (2021-25) and UTSA (2018-21).

Head coach Annie Young announced the hire on June 11, 2025, stating:

“I am thrilled to have Daniel join our coaching staff. He is one of the best in the business. We’re excited to have him and his family in Stillwater.”

Park spent a portion of his summer working with some of the world’s best men’s and women’s collegiate golfers at the 2025 Arnold Palmer Cup, a Ryder Cup-style competition played at Congaree Golf Club in Ridgeland, S.C. He served as an assistant coach for Team International, which outscored the United States, 35-25, to claim its first win since 2022 and first on U.S. soil since 2020.

At Houston (2021-25):

Park helped coach the Cougars to three NCAA Regional appearances in four years under head coach Lydia Lasprilla. During his tenure, the team racked up four tournament titles along with the two highest postseason finishes in program history. The 2025 Cougars placed sixth at the Columbus Regional (just three strokes shy of an NCAA Championship berth) after tying for sixth at the 2024 Auburn Regional (two strokes back).

Five of Park’s Cougars earned all-conference honors and two more made the Big 12’s all-tournament team. UH student-athletes also excelled off the course, combining for 15 conference all-academic honors and nine WGCA All-American Scholar Athlete nods.

Park was promoted to associate head coach ahead of the 2024-25 season, during which the Cougars tied a school record with three team titles and finished 27th in the final Scoreboard by Clippd national team rankings. In addition, junior Moa Svedenskiold was a two-time medalist and advanced to the NCAA Championship as an individual.

In 2023-24, Park helped Houston make a successful leap from the American Athletic Conference to the Big 12. Svedenskiold became the program’s first All-Big 12 recipient and set a new single-season school record for stroke average (71.47).

The Cougars opened their season with the third-lowest 54-hole tournament total in NCAA history (-48, 816) at the Sam Golden Invitational, helped by a school record 268 (-20) in the final round, and a brilliant debut from freshman Ellen Yates, who fired a 14-under, 202 to finish atop the leaderboard.

A trio of Houston freshmen enjoyed similar success in 2022-23 helping the Cougars return to the NCAA Regionals for the first time since 2021. Svedenskiold became the first Houston rookie to win a tournament title, capturing medalist honors at the Jim West Challenge, and later landed on the American Athletic Conference’s all-league team. Fellow freshman Natalie Saint Germain tied the school’s low-18 record with a 64 in the Final Round of the Schooner Fall Classic.

In Park’s debut season (2021-22), the Cougars played some of their best golf by season’s end, finishing runner-up at the AAC Championship in Pinehurst, N.C. Three Cougars earned all-conference honors — Nicole Abelar, Maria Jose Martinez and Annie Kim – with Kim landing a spot in the NCAA Franklin Regional field.

At UTSA (2018-21):

Prior to Houston, Park spent three seasons at the University of Texas at San Antonio working with head coach Summer Batiste. The pair led the Roadrunners to five tournament titles, including the 2019 Conference USA crown, as well as two NCAA Regional appearances.

Park coached four different UTSA golfers to all-conference honors, including 2019 CUSA medalist Ana Gonzalez.

The Roadrunners also performed well in the classroom under his watch, earning 16 CUSA Commissioner’s Honor Roll spots, four CUSA Commissioner’s Academic Medals and one WGCA All-American Scholar nod. The program twice earned NCAA Public Recognition Awards after posting perfect Academic Progress Rate (APR) scores in 2019 and 2020.

UTSA earned only the second at-large berth in program history in 2021 and went on to secure a 13^th place finish at the Louisville Regional.

The 2020 squad was on a similar trajectory, winning two of its last three tournaments before the season was shut down in mid-March by COVID-19.

During the pandemic, Park used his downtime to complete Level 2 certification from the Titleist Performance Institute.

In 2018-19, Park helped lead UTSA to three team titles, highlighted by a 12-stroke win at the CUSA Championship. The Roadrunners set the program’s 54-hole record with a 10-under, 854 to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Norman Regional.

In Auburn, Ala. (2015-17):

Park came to San Antonio from Auburn, Ala., where he held dual roles as marketing and tournament director for the Southeastern Junior Golf Tour and as a golf coach at Auburn High School.

Park also served as a tournament services intern with Global Golf Management in Opelika, Ala., where he helped promote event opportunities and assisted with general operations during PGA Tour’s 2017 Barbasol Championship.

As a Student-Athlete:

A former standout collegiate golfer for Alabama State, Park helped lead the Hornets to three consecutive Southwestern Athletic Conference championships from 2013-15. As a senior, he earned First Team All-SWAC honors and was a Cleveland/Srixon All-American Scholar.

Education:

Park graduated summa cum laude from Alabama State with a 3.94 GPA while majoring in communications and minoring in finance. He was a President’s Award recipient and made the Dean’s Honor Roll in every year of college.

From 2015-17, Park worked as a public speaking instructor with Auburn University’s Communications Department while completing his master’s degree in communication.

Personal:

Park is a native of Kendall, England. He and his wife, Shanon, were married in 2017 and have a son, Lucas David, born in May 2024.

The Park File:

Coaching Experience:

2025-Pr. – Oklahoma State, Associate Head Coach

June 2025 – Arnold Palmer Cup, Assistant Coach (Team International)

2024-25 – Houston, Associate Head Coach

2021-24 – Houston, Assistant Coach

2018-21 – UTSA, Assistant Coach

2017-18 – Auburn HS, Varsity Assistant/JV Head Coach

Postseason History:

2025 – NCAA Championship Individual Qualifier (Moa Svedenskiold, Houston)

2025 – NCAA Columbus Regional (Houston)

2024 – NCAA Auburn Regional (Houston)

2023 – NCAA Pullman Regional (Houston)

2022 – NCAA Franklin Regional Individual Qualifier (Annie Kim, Houston)

2021 – NCAA Louisville Regional (UTSA)

2019 – NCAA Norman Regional (UTSA)

Playing Experience:

2012-15 – Alabama State

3x SWAC Team Champions (2013, 2014, 2015)

First Team All-SWAC (2015)

Cleveland/Srixon All-American Scholar (2015)

3x Letterman (2013, 2014, 2015)

Personal:

Hometown: Kendall, England

Education: Alabama State (2015), Auburn (2017)

Wife: Shanon

Son: Lucas David

Link

College Sports

Herb Brooks National Hockey Center to be renovated with state funds

SAINT CLOUD — The Huskies’ den is getting an upgrade. The Herb Brooks National Hockey Center is receiving $12.9 million from a bonding bill passed by the Minnesota Legislature on Tuesday, June 10 in a special session. The $700 million package addresses statewide projects using money from a state bond and general fund bill. Aside from […]

Published

1 hour ago

June 12, 2025

Your Sports Nation

SAINT CLOUD — The Huskies’ den is getting an upgrade.

The Herb Brooks National Hockey Center is receiving $12.9 million from a bonding bill passed by the Minnesota Legislature on Tuesday, June 10 in a special session. The $700 million package addresses statewide projects using money from a state bond and general fund bill. Aside from the historic Herb, some of the infrastructure projects are in water systems, transportation and housing.

St. Cloud representative Dan Wolgamott (DFL-14B) advocated for the funding as co-chair of the house higher education committee.

“I’m proud of all we accomplished for St. Cloud during the most bipartisan session in Minnesota House history,” Wolgamott said in a statement. “Our key achievements will get more police officers on our streets, tackle the healthcare workforce shortages, attract and incentivize developers to downtown St. Cloud, and provide much-needed renovations to the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center.”

St. Cloud Technical and Community College also received $1.3 million in infrastructure funding as part of the bonding package, passed the same day as the remainder of the state budget.

The SCSU athletic department will release a statement on its plans for the investment by the end of the week, according to athletics communications director Andrew Melroe.

The Herb Brooks National Hockey Center was built in 1989 to facilitate the SCSU men’s and women’s teams’ move to NCAA Division I. It now hosts the Huskies, the Division III St. John’s University Johnnies, youth teams and community events. Last summer, it hosted then-presidential candidate Donald Trump for a rally that sat an estimated 8,000 people.

“I think that it’s a humongous victory not just for Husky hockey, not just for St Cloud State University, not just for downtown St Cloud, but for our whole community (considering) the economic benefits that the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center provides for our local economy,” Wolgamott said in an interview.

For several years, St. Cloud State officials have campaigned for state funding to upgrade the original refrigerant system for its two ice sheets from R-22, which has been outlawed for its damage to the ozone in the atmosphere. The Municipal Athletic Complex is upgrading its system to ammonia this summer, part of a $16 million project that includes roof work, new locker rooms and more training and mechanical space.

One difference between the sheets at the MAC and the National Hockey Center is the size of the ice — SCSU plays on the larger Olympic rink compared to NHL dimensions. Most teams, including all of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference, play on the smaller ice. Two rinks in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association are bigger than NHL and smaller than Olympic.

The arena had been upgraded recently. Before last season, the video boards and sound system were upgraded thanks to $1.3 million in gifts. In 2019, the school added a new workout room connected to the nearly $20 million addition in 2013 that built a new atrium, suites and locker rooms.

Contact reporter Reid Glenn at rglenn@gannett.com

Link

College Sports

Female athletes appeal NCAA settlement arguing it violates Title IX

An attorney representing the athletes said in a statement that the settlement violates Title IX, the federal law that bans sex-based discrimination in education. Eight female athletes filed an appeal Wednesday of a landmark NCAA antitrust settlement, arguing that women would not receive their fair share of $2.7 billion in back pay for athletes who […]

Published

1 hour ago

June 12, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Female athletes appeal NCAA settlement arguing it violates Title IX

An attorney representing the athletes said in a statement that the settlement violates Title IX, the federal law that bans sex-based discrimination in education.

Eight female athletes filed an appeal Wednesday of a landmark NCAA antitrust settlement, arguing that women would not receive their fair share of $2.7 billion in back pay for athletes who were barred from making money off their name, image and likeness.

U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken approved the settlement last week, clearing the way for direct payments from universities to athletes and the end of the NCAA’s amateurism model.

The athletes who appealed the settlement competed in soccer, volleyball and track. They are: Kacie Breeding of Vanderbilt; Lexi Drumm, Emma Appleman, Emmie Wannemacher, Riley Hass, Savannah Baron and Elizabeth Arnold of the College of Charleston; and Kate Johnson of Virginia. They have standing to appeal because they previously filed objections to the proposed settlement.

Ashlyn Hare, one of the attorneys representing the athletes, said in a statement that the settlement violates Title IX, the federal law that bans sex-based discrimination in education.

“We support a settlement of the case, but not an inaccurate one that violates federal law. The calculation of past damages is based on an error that ignores Title IX and deprives female athletes of $1.1 billion,” Hare said. “Paying out the money as proposed would be a massive error that would cause irreparable harm to women’s sports.”

The House settlement figures to financially benefit football and basketball stars at the biggest schools, who are likely to receive a big chunk of the $20.5 million per year that colleges are permitted to share with athletes over the next year. Some athletes in other sports that don’t make money for their schools could lose their partial scholarships or see their roster spots cut.

“This is a football and basketball damages settlement with no real benefit to female athletes,” Hare said. “Congress has expressly rejected efforts to exempt revenue-generating sports like football and basketball from Title IX’s antidiscrimination mandate. The NCAA agreed with us. Our argument on appeal is the exact same argument the conferences and NCAA made prior to settling the case.”

The appeal was filed by the law firm Hutchinson Black and Cook of Boulder, Colorado, and was first reported by Front Office Sports. It would be heard by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

College Sports

SEC communications staff members honored with College Sports Communicators 25-Year Awards

The Southeastern Conference is proud to recognize two of its communications staff members, Jill Skotarczak and Tammy Wilson, who have been honored by College Sports Communicators (CSC) with the prestigious 25-Year Award. The award is presented to CSC members who have completed 25 years in the athletics communications profession and is vetted and voted on […]

Published

2 hours ago

June 12, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Link

College Sports

RPI Engineers women’s hockey schedule released – Troy Record

DANBURY, Conn. — ECAC Hockey unveiled its 2025-26 women’s league schedule, setting the stage for another thrilling season of collegiate hockey battles. The quest for the ECAC Hockey regular season title will take place over the league’s traditional 132-game slate, beginning on October 24 and concluding with the ECAC Hockey Women’s Championships from February 20 […]

Published

2 hours ago

June 12, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Originally Published: June 11, 2025 at 7:32 PM EDT

Link

College Sports

Union Men’s Hockey Unveils 2025-26 Schedule

Story Links Men’s Hockey 2025-26 Schedule SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – The Union College men’s hockey team unveiled its 2025-26 schedule on Wednesday afternoon, highlighted by 18 regular-season games and one exhibition contest at the brand-new M&T Bank Center as well as the program’s second trip […]

Published

4 hours ago

June 11, 2025

Your Sports Nation

SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – The Union College men’s hockey team unveiled its 2025-26 schedule on Wednesday afternoon, highlighted by 18 regular-season games and one exhibition contest at the brand-new M&T Bank Center as well as the program’s second trip across the pond for the annual Friendship Four in Belfast.

“We are incredibly excited for the 2025-26 season and cannot wait to be back in front of our fans at our new home,” said head coach Josh Hauge. “The M&T Bank Center is a huge step forward for the future of Union Hockey, and we look forward to getting into the building and taking to the ice for the first time. We also have an incredible opportunity to head to Northern Ireland for the Friendship Four, which will be a great experience for our student-athletes and staff as well as our fans.”

The 2025-26 schedule comprises 34 regular-season games and two exhibitions, with the team’s 22 ECAC Hockey matchups complemented by 12 competitive non-conference contests – including seven of the 12 to be played in Schenectady.

The new season gets underway on October 3 with an exhibition at Colgate University, followed the next day by the first men’s game at M&T Bank Center against Army West Point on Saturday, October 4 at 5 p.m.

Following a weekend series at Mercyhurst University on October 10-11, Union will not leave the Capital Region for over a month thanks to seven home games and the back-end of a weekend home-and-home with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. The home stretch starts with two games against Niagara University on October 17-18 before a home date with RPI to end October and an away matchup in Troy to start November. ECAC play continues the following weekend with North Country rivals Clarkson University and St. Lawrence University on November 7-8 before closing out the time at home with non-conference games against UMass Lowell (November 14) and the University of New Hampshire (November 15).

The Garnet Chargers will be away from home for the next two weekends, albeit with greatly varying distances from Schenectady. The team heads to Cornell University and Colgate University on November 21-22 before crossing the pond to take part in the annual Friendship Four event in Belfast, Northern Ireland on November 28-29. Union will battle with Sacred Heart University, Miami (Ohio) University and Rochester Institute of Technology for control of the Belpot Trophy, as Union looks to become the first team to win the event twice since its inception in 2015.

Union closes out 2025 with four more games on home ice, getting back into conference play on December 5-6 against Princeton University and Quinnipiac University before a pair of non-conference games against the University of Alaska Fairbanks on December 12-13.

After a bevy of home games in the opening half of the season, the Garnet Chargers will play only seven games in Schenectady over the season’s final two months. The second half kicks off with an exhibition against the Royal Military College of Canada on January 3, followed by a road weekend at Quinnipiac and Princeton on January 9-10.

The team plays its first games of the year with Brown University and Yale University at home on January 16-17, followed by a season-long stretch of five straight games away from home. A tentatively scheduled Monday night matchup at Harvard University on January 19 would finish a busy stretch of three games in four days, followed by the annual Mayors’ Cup game against RPI on January 24, as the Garnet Chargers look for a fifth-straight win in the annual matchup in Albany. A solo game at Dartmouth College comes up next to end the month of January, and February begins with a trip to the North Country to face St. Lawrence and Clarkson on February 6-7.

The team finally returns home for two against Colgate and Cornell on February 13-14. The squad then closes out the home portion of the regular season with games against Harvard (February 20) and Dartmouth (February 21), highlighted by Senior Day on Saturday against the Big Green. The regular season finishes up at Yale and Brown on February 27-28.

Season tickets for the 2025-26 season are available now by visiting UnionAthletics.com/tickets. Benefits of season tickets include the ability to renew the same seats on an annual basis; tickets to the Women’s Ice Breaker Tournament in October and the annual Mayors’ Cup games at MVP Arena; access to special events only for season ticket holders, including a preseason meet-and-greet with the men’s and women’s teams at M&T Bank Center; as well as other perks. Single-game tickets will be made available for purchase later in the summer.