The Herald-Tribune with sponsor Carl Reynolds Law are proud to honor area high school sports programs with our Top Teams list and poll this season. This will be a monthly feature Sarasota and Manatee high school teams that rise above the rest.

The Grand Canyon track and field teams head to Arlington, Texas, for the WAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships on Thursday through Saturday.

The men’s squad is looking to complete a five-peat of outdoor WAC titles. The Lopes have 10 WAC titles dating back to 2016 for men’s and women’s outdoor programs. The women’s program looks to win its first outdoor title since the 2021 season, while the men’s look to secure their fifth championship in a row. 

GCU looks to continue to dominate in events like the men’s 110m hurdles, where the top-four fastest times this season all come from different Lopes. In the women’s 400m, the Lopes hold the top-two fastest times.

With an attempt at a five-peat on the horizon, Lopes head coach Tom Flood is confident in his team: “We are very excited and confident in both of our teams’ abilities to have very successful WAC Outdoor Championship meets again this year.”

With multiple school records being broken this outdoor season, the Lopes are ready to defend their title this weekend. 

“Both teams are very well balanced, and we will look to a great group of seniors to lead the way and for some very talented newcomers to make a lot of noise,” Flood said.

According to the WAC Pre-Championship Coaches Poll, the men’s team is projected to finish on top, while the women’s team is projected to finish top three. 

“The WAC is a very competitive track and field conference,” Flood said. “Both of our teams know that no one is going to hand them anything and that they are going to have to fight for every point they get.”

The 2025 WAC Track and Field championships will be held at Maverick Stadium from Thursday through Saturday. The events will be broadcasted live on ESPN+ starting at 3 p.m. (Phoenix time) on Thursday, 2 p.m. on Friday and 2 p.m. on Saturday.

 

O P I N I O N

Stand up. Speak up. Its your turn.

Trump would give refugee status to White South Africans.  Whites comprise 7% of South Africa’s population; nevertheless, they control 80% of the wealth.  Don’t grant refugee status to people living well. They don’t need it.  

While visiting South Africa, I talked with an Afrikaner very concerned about how to fund a pool for the local water polo club.  South Africa is a wealthy, developed country, where, for example, they performed the world’s first heart transplant and held the World Cup soccer finals.  Poor White South Africans exist, but it can handle its own.  South Africans need American refugee status as much as a fish needs a bicycle.

Crime touches White South Africans.  While sad, this makes sense.  When asked why he robbed banks, Willie Sutton said, “Because that’s where the money is.”  South African criminals also go where the money is.  Recall: Whites control 80% of South Africa’s wealth.

But Trump doesn’t care about South Africans. White refugee status is a con.  

Two reasons motivate Trump’s South African scam.  First, he wants to please his South African advisor, Elon Musk.  Second, to distract Americans from his dismantling of our government.  Cronyism lets him import Musk’s toadies.  “Distractionism” covers his illegal actions: kill America’s government, institute welfare for the wealthy, and line his pockets.  

Silence Trump’s executive microphone.  Make his actions visible and then make him answer for them.  Tell Congress to start checking and balancing.  We didn’t elect a king.  

Beg to differ? Agree to disagree? Post your response below using our DISQUS commenting app. Got issues of your own? Thoughtful prose on topics of general interest are welcome. Send to [email protected] for consideration.

Performance brands boost budgets as CPMs stabilize and audience reach expands

AUSTIN, Texas, May 14, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Keynes Digital, the leading performance advertising partner for CTV, announced today that advertisers are embracing live sports programming on CTV like never before, with 20% of Keynes’ advertisers activating live sports in April. The move signals a major shift from branding experiments to strategic, performance-driven investments and highlights the accelerating trend toward programmatic access to premium sports content.

On average, these performance-focused brands increased their CTV budgets by 11% specifically to accommodate live sports placements, underscoring confidence in sports programming’s ability to expand audience reach without compromising measurable outcomes.

“Live sports content attracts affluent, engaged viewers who are increasingly streaming-first,” said Dan Larkman, CEO of Keynes Digital. “Although certain sports such as baseball and golf tend to skew male, live sporting events generally offer broad appeal to high-intent, diverse audiences sought by performance brands.”

The growth of ad-supported platforms like Tubi and FuboTV has democratized access to premium live sports events previously restricted to costly direct deals or upfront commitments. Now, mid-sized and growth-oriented brands can programmatically access marquee sports inventory more efficiently, often at CPMs significantly lower than traditional cable.

This greater availability of inventory has contributed to CPM stabilization. Keynes Digital observed an 8% average drop in live sports CPMs year-over-year, driven primarily by the increasing supply offered through AVOD and FAST channels. These environments consistently deliver strong engagement, particularly on platforms like Peacock.

In addition to efficiency, advertisers leveraging live sports have reported impressive results. Golf-specific networks alone delivered increases of over 6% in site conversions and visits, alongside a 20% boost in incremental reach. These outcomes underscore that live sports advertising is transitioning from experimentation to an essential component of digital advertising strategies.

“With MLB season underway, golf continuing to build momentum, and high-profile events in leagues such as MLS, the Premier League, UFC, and Formula 1 on the horizon, the coming months present exceptional programmatic advertising opportunities,” Larkman said. “Advertisers who strategically secure placements ahead of spikes in demand will be best positioned to capitalize on this growing opportunity.”

Story Continues

No. 1 Long Beach State men’s volleyball returned to the Walter Pyramid on Tuesday, May 13 fresh off its NCAA Championship victory over UCLA to celebrate with the Long Beach community. Photo credit: Madison Yang

“Excuse my voice, I just finished winning a national championship,” said a hoarse redshirt junior opposite and team captain, Skyler Varga, to a round of laughs and applause from the Long Beach State community. 

A year and one week removed from losing the national title game on their home floor to the University of California, Los Angeles Bruins, No. 1 Long Beach State men’s volleyball (30-3) made its triumphant return to The Walter Pyramid on Tuesday, May 13, as national champions.

The Beach bested the Bruins in a 3-0 sweep on Monday, May 12, to claim their fourth national title in the university’s history.

A day later, the team that will now go down in program history forever, was met with cascading cheers and congratulations from the LBSU fans in a celebratory pep rally.

“We have, by far, the best fans. There’s a couple other institutions that like to claim that; it’s not even close,” LBSU head coach Alan Knipe said. “You guys are amazing, and you can feel the energy in all our matches when we played here.”

Redshirt junior opposite and now-NCAA champion Skyler Varga walks through the sea of Long Beach State faithful as they await high-fives. Photo credit: Madison Yang

Knipe, Varga and freshmen setter and AVCA National Player of the Year Moni Nikolov spoke at the podium to fans at the pep rally and expressed deep appreciation for their support for the program on their journey to the title. 

Knipe cited seeing a video of LBSU fans erupt in joy after the match point at a watch party at Legends Sports Bar as a moment that “brought tears to [his] eyes.” 

“[The fans] truly pushed us to be better,” Nikolov said. “As much as we wanted to win this for us, we also wanted to win this for you guys.”

The Beach had the highest home game attendance in school history this season.

Nikolov, who broke an NCAA single-season record with an astounding 106 aces, was named NCAA All-Tournament MVP after racking up 27 assists, six kills, four aces, two digs and two blocks against UCLA.

Knipe reiterated his post-game comments from Monday during Tuesday’s rally, emphasizing the remarkable season delivered by the athlete known as “The Bulgarian Prince.”

LBSU freshman setter Moni Nikolov walks through the tunnel of LBSU fans, as he and the newly crowned champions made their return to LBSU on Tuesday, May 13. Photo credit: Madison Yang

“It’s the most impactful season anyone’s ever had in our sport for one year,” Knipe said.

Following the speeches, the team flooded out to the sea of LBSU faithful to greet fans, take pictures and sign autographs. 

“To be able to fist pump Moni and take a picture with him is amazing—that man’s a once-in-a-generation type player,” senior journalism major Enrique Rodriguez said. 

After meeting and celebrating with LBSU fans in front of the Pyramid, the team  continued the party on Wednesday, May 14, with a “Trophy Tour Victory Drive” in Downtown Long Beach.

“There’s a lot of school pride that they’re bringing the trophy home,” junior political science major Eduarda Duraes said. “It’s really awesome to have such amazing players right here at my school, and to be able to give that school spirit.”

Cal ended its season in its NCAA championship opener with a loss to Hawaii last Friday.

Facing off in Indiana University’s natatorium, the No. 4 Bears and No. 5 Rainbow Wahine prepared for a battle to advance to the second round. In its previous matchup this season Feb. 22, Cal narrowly lost 11-12. This weekend’s game unraveled similarly, with the Bears falling 7-8.

Cal’s defeat meant a step back from last year’s tournament showing when it lost to UCLA 4-7 in the final. The Bears’ run to second place came at the Wahines’ expense. Then-No. 3 Cal upset then-No. 2 Hawaii, that time swimming away with a 9-6 upset.

Seemingly keen for payback, the Rainbow Wahine burst off the line to put up a 3-0 lead in the first quarter. Their first two goals came from even strength possessions. Then, with 48 seconds remaining, Cal suffered an exclusion, allowing Hawaii to score on a six-on-five with 38 seconds left.

Less than 30 seconds into the second period, the refs ejected another Bear, and the Rainbow Wahine quickly capitalized. Now down by four, Cal had to dial in.

Freshman Miriam Bogachenko took advantage of a powerplay to send the ball flying into the back of the net with 7:02 remaining in the quarter. Fueled by this newfound momentum, the Bears put up two more uncontested goals — first off an even strength possession before beating the opposing goalie on another six-on-five.

For Bogachenko, the energy had been good the whole game, but it took a quarter for shots to start landing.

“We (were) in a lot of good positions (on) offense, but in the final shots the ball just didn’t go into the net. But this is the type of game (where) you just need to keep going because at some point it will enter,” Bogachenko said.

With its lead reduced to 4-3, Hawaii scored again to go into halftime with a 2-point lead.

Cal used the break to regroup and opened the second half with wind in its sails. On the first possession, freshman Eszter Varró scored her second goal of the game. Two minutes later, the rookie capitalized on a power play to complete a hat trick.

After trailing for more than two quarters, the Bears finally stood level with the Rainbow Wahine, but they were still not satisfied. Cal drew another exclusion, this time opening up senior Rozanne Voorvelt for a goal to give the Bears their first — and only — lead of the game.

In the fourth quarter, Hawaii pulled away. The Rainbow Wahine put up three uncontested goals to distance themselves from the competition. With nine seconds remaining, Bogachenko scored her second goal, but it wasn’t enough to overcome Hawaii’s lead.

Hawaii held onto its slim 8-7 edge to advance to the second round of the NCAA Championship. Cal, meanwhile, finished its season with a 19-6 record overall.

“It’s actually really sad how the season ended for us because I really believed in this team (and) that we (could) make good results in the NCAAs,” Bogachenko said. “I’m so excited still to be part of this team and to play for them, but it’s sad that it ended like this because we will never be the same squad.”

Although the Bears went home early, the strong performance by the freshman class gives Cal a strong foundation for next season. Of the Bears’ seven goals, six came from freshman: Varró had a hat trick, Bogachenko scored twice and Rosalie Hassett contributed a point.

“It has just given us even more motivation for the (coming) years because we know that we will make it to be the champions in the near future. It’s something that we are going to work the hardest that we can (for), and we will set up the right things to achieve this goal because it’s something that we definitely can do with the players that are going to be on the team,” Bogachenko said. “It will be a bright future for Cal water polo.”