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The Bobcats went on the road and took down the Cougars in the District 3 Class 3A quarterfinals Thursday evening.

PALMYRA — It wasn’t clean and it certainly wasn’t pretty, but the Northeastern boys’ volleyball team is back where they’ve grown accustomed to being over the past two decades — the PIAA playoffs.

On the road against Palmyra on Thursday evening, the Bobcats dominated enough to land a berth in the District 3 Class 3A semifinals. Thanks to big nights from seniors Hugh Rogers and Koltrin Forry, the Northeastern boys weathered several dry runs to sweep the Cougars, 25-20, 25-21, 25-20, and earn a shot at top-seeded Cumberland Valley next Tuesday.

Rogers finished with 15 kills and Forry had 12 for the No. 13-seed Bobcats (16-3), who secured their first state tournament berth since 2021 with the victory over the tournament’s No. 5 seed. But head coach George Miller knows there’s still plenty to clean up.

“We had more than a few errors,” Bobcats coach George Miller said. “Errors that we just shouldn’t be doing at this time of the year, and consequently, we found ourselves in a tight one.”

There’s no question that the York-Adams League champs have the talent to compete against the best in the state. They battled and preserved in their five-set, first-round clash against No. 4 Warwick — ranked eighth in last week’s PVCA rankings to Northeastern’s ninth — on Tuesday, which earned them the right to face a scrappy Palmyra side.

Miller, however, thought his team had chances to make life much easier on itself Thursday. Rarely one to yell and carry on, Miller called his first timeout in Set 1 and gave his team a short, but emotional, rant.

“I felt like defensively we were giving them a lot of respect,” Miller said. “Probably too much, and they were kind of blowing us up. Now, (Palmyra) is a good team and they have good hitters, but good golly.”

Palmyra’s gym isn’t especially large by area, and certainly not in terms of ceiling height. There were more than a few times balls hit the ceiling, which featured a pair of AC ducts that run parallel to the sidelines.

“This is a tough place to play in,” Miller said. “But both teams have the same restrictions.”

While the Bobcats did enough to survive, Miller is under no illusion that a similar performance against Cumberland Valley in the semifinals will yield a positive result. The Eagles are ranked No. 1 in all of PIAA Class 3A, swept the Bobcats in a regular-season showdown and have dropped only a couple of sets all season — including weekend tournaments against the best competition in the state.

“I mean, we’re all quite happy to get back to states,” said Miller, who has been on the bench for all nine of Northeastern’s state titles (1992, 1993, 2012-18). “But the goal isn’t to just get to states … it’s to win the thing, and before we can get there, we still have a couple of big matches ahead of us, starting with Cumberland Valley.”

It’s certainly rare for a state-ranked team to be the 13th seed in its district bracket, but the District 3-3A field includes nine different teams who were ranked by statewide coaches this season. The Bobcats know they set themselves up for a lower seed by losing a contest against Dallastown in the regular season, but now they’re back at full strength and finding their groove.

“We were dealing with some injuries back then,” setter Jacob Zambito said of the Dallastown setback. “We had to mix up the lineups a little bit and find something that would work.”

Zambito, who dished out 39 assists Thursday, has no doubt that the current lineup is the best one for the squad. After dropping that contest against Cumberland Valley on April 28, the Bobcats have knocked off four state-ranked opponents — Warwick, York Suburban and Central York twice. The Panthers, who ousted Ceddar Crest 3-1 Thursday to make it two Y-A squads in the semifinals, have just those two losses to their ledger so far.

“Once we got into May, we started focusing on our lineup and our positions,” Zambito said. “And now I think we’re sailing.”

So does Zambito think an underdog Northeastern side could pull off the upset Tuesday? He wouldn’t bet against it.

“We actually took the first set that they lost all year against them up at the State College tournament,” Zambito said. “They may have lost more, but we were the first ones to take a set against them. Knowing that is something that I think is going to be a big motivator for us Tuesday.”

Box Score | UCI Presser | UH Presser
FULLERTON, Calif. — No. 1 seed UC Irvine (40-13) defeated the No. 4 seed Hawai’i (34-20) by a final score of 7-5 on day two of the 2025 Big West Baseball Championship, presented by Ontario International Airport, Thursday at Goodwin Field. The Anteaters advance to the semifinals of the winner’s bracket and will face No. 2 seed Cal Poly on Friday, May 23 at 3 p.m. PT. Hawai’i will face No. 3 seed Cal State Fullerton in an elimination game on Friday, May 23 at 7 p.m. PT. 

UCI took an early lead with three runs in the first inning with RBIs coming from Anthony Martinez, Jacob McCombs and Chase Call.

‘Eaters get on the board first! ??@UCIbsb‘s Anthony Martinez gets the RBI. #?????????????????????? x #NCAABaseball x @UCIAthletics pic.twitter.com/74RbyymEvq

— The Big West (@BigWestSports) May 22, 2025

Hawai’i responded with two runs in the next half inning as Kamana Nahaku and Draven Nushida each drove in a run. The Anteaters increased their lead to 6-2 in the bottom of the second inning after a Rainbow Warrior error and RBI from McCombs. 

Hawai’i closed the gap with a three-run homer from Ben Zeigler-Namoa in the seventh inning to cut the margin to one run.

 

A 3-Run ?????? for the ‘Bows!

Ben Zeigler-Namoa goes deep for @HawaiiBaseball to pull the ‘Bows within 1?. #?????????????????????? x #NCAABaseball x @HawaiiAthletics pic.twitter.com/Px9Y5tlrqk

— The Big West (@BigWestSports) May 23, 2025

UCI scored an insurance run in the eighth, driven in by Will Bermudez, and closer Max Martin shut the door to givethe Anteaters the victory. 

UCI’s pitching staff of Riley Kelly, Ricky Ojeda and Martin recorded nine strikeouts in the game, while its offense capitalized on Hawai’i’s error in the second inning and four hit batters.

Bermudez highlighted the game for the Anteaters by getting in base every plate appearance with a 2-for-2 effort, two walks drawn and two runs scored. Martinez made a notable impact with two RBIs.  McCombs also added to the scoreboard with two RBIs. On the pitching side, Kelly delivered a solid performance, recording five strikeouts over 4.1 innings, while allowing two earned runs. Ojeda earned the win, pitching 3.0 relief innings, to move to a perfect 13-0 pitching record on the season. Martin earned save number 14 on the season allowing only one hit in 1.2 innings of work. 

Zeigler-Namoa made a significant impact for the Rainbow Warriors with a home run and three RBIs. Jordan Donahue led the team with three hits. On the pitching side, Ethan Thomas excelled in relief, pitching 2.1 innings without allowing a hit or run and striking out three batters. 

 

Gallery: (5-22-2025) 2025 BSB Champs: No. 1 UCI vs No. 4 UH

Lindsay High senior Kaylene Magana was one of four seniors in Tulare County to be honored with the Tulare County Office of Education’s Pursuing Victory with Honor Scholarship.

Magana was honored on Tuesday during TCOE’s second annual PVWH Honors Banquet. At the dinner this year’s Provident-Salierno PVWH Scholarship winners and honored student-athletes who exhibit great character and sportsmanship on and off the field were announced. PVWH is a part of the CHARACTER COUNTS! Program.

The annual Provident-Salierno PVWH Scholarship program awards four Tulare County seniors a $500 scholarship for their academic achievements and their exemplary character on and off the field.

Magana, who participated in soccer and track at LHS, was one of the four awarded the scholarship. She will attend UCLA and will major in business and economics.

The other three athletes honored were Dinuba’s Ava Arias, Tulare Union’s Nathan Christiansen and Woodlake’s Alyssa Coelho.

In addition 22 students from 13 high schools were recognized as their schools’ PVWH Student-Athletes of the Year. Students were nominated for the award by coaches and athletic directors.

Among those honored were Monache’s Ariel Bermudez, who placed basketball, and Ace Guilliams, who participated in water polo and swimming.

WACO, Texas – Baylor volleyball has finalized its 2025 match schedule, featuring the Baylor Classic with Northwestern, Saint Mary’s (CA) and Rice.
 
The Bears will play a total of eight non-conference matches with just three of them at home.
 
With the full schedule announced, BU will face a total of eight teams who made the 2024 NCAA Tournament. The Bears’ 2025 schedule can be viewed and downloaded here.
 

To start the season in August, BU will play an exhibition match at Texas A&M at Reed Arena on Wednesday, August 20.
 
Baylor will travel to Baton Rouge, La., for three matches at LSU, facing South Alabama (8/29), SMU (8/30) and the Tigers (8/31).
 
To serve up the home slate, the Bears welcome Northwestern, Saint Mary’s (CA) and Rice for the 20^th iteration of the Baylor Classic. The match with the Wildcats will be Thursday, Sept. 4, with NU facing the Gaels on Friday before SMC plays against Baylor. Saturday’s lone match will be the Gaels against the Owls, and the tournament will end with BU facing Rice on Sunday, Sept. 7.
 
Baylor will travel to Gainesville, Fla., to play the Florida Gators on Sunday, Sept. 14, before facing UCF to start Big 12 play on Tuesday, Sept. 16.
 
The final match of non-conference will be former Big 12 foe Texas: BU traveling down to Austin on Friday, Sept. 19 for that match.
 
Baylor will play a total of 12 home matches in the 2025 season, with 14 on the road.
 
Fans interested in purchasing tickets for the upcoming Baylor Volleyball season can visit BaylorBears.com/Tickets. Tickets will officially go on sale in early June. All seats are general admission for volleyball in the Ferrell Center.
 
Directly support Baylor Volleyball by contributing to the Excellence Fund or joining the One Way Club!
 
To stay up to date all year long on all things Baylor volleyball, follow the team on Facebook, TikTok, X (Twitter) and Instagram: @BaylorVBall.
 
 

 – BaylorBears.com –

South Carolina Beach Volleyball just leveled up big time with a new head coach. The Gamecocks have officially hired José Loiola, a former World Champion and Olympian, as the next coach of the volleyball program. Loiola is highly regarded as one of the most talented minds in the sport, and he is bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience to Columbia.

Loiola joins the Gamecocks after a standout stint as an assistant at UCLA, where he helped to guide the Bruins to a 30-6 season, and the No. 1 seed in the 2024 NCAA Tournament. He arrives with an extensive resume from coaching with Team USA’s Development Program to the U21 National Team.

Before dominating at the coaching level, Loiola dominated in the sand himself. The Brazilian native won the 1999 Beach Volleyball World Championship with Emanuel Rego and earned Olympic honors by competing in the 2000 Sydney Games. Loiola’s second-place finish in the 2001 World Championships with Ricardo Santos cemented his status as one of the best to ever do it.

South Carolina Athletic Director Jeremiah Donati referred to Loiola’s hiring as a game-changer:

“José’s background and knowledge in beach volleyball is unmatched. His passion will create a culture of excellence here in Columbia.”

And Loiola himself said, “Everything I’ve done in my life has led me here. With my passion and commitment to developing both the player and the person, we will make this a place where potential becomes legacy.”

The beach is coming to Columbia, and it is bringing a champion with it.

From the moment our conversation started, I could tell that Lillia Hammond ’25 had a strong sense of curiosity and creativity about her. I already knew that it was extraordinary to be a dual-degree engineering student at Dartmouth College while double majoring in physics and art history at Amherst, but I had no idea what I was about to learn about where her curiosity and skill have taken her.

In discussing how her passion for both disciplines has been fostered through the different stages of her life, I got to know someone who spends her time exploring everything from aerospace engineering to artistic creation, while still making the time to encourage those searching for their passion to do the same. 

Little Lillia 

Hammond has been fascinated with math since childhood, something she told me her grandfather sparked in her. “He would drive me to school every morning, and I was in the backseat. I was in second [or] third grade, and he would give me algebra problems to solve on a little whiteboard, and I would get home from school, and we would do more, she said” 

Her interest in engineering also began early, having been influenced by her father’s job as an electrician. “He was always in the garage tinkering or doing a project,” Hammond said. He often invited her to join him, feeding her early interest in learning about STEM. 

Even during allotted reading time in elementary school, Hammond practiced long division instead. “I was a strange kid,” she told me. “Everyone thought it was weird.”

Beginning in high school, however, Hammond fell in love with visual art. Her freshman year photography class inspired her to get her first camera. With her interest in art piqued, she went on to spend a lot of her time in the dark room. “I would go in there during lunch and just relax and make prints.”

Hammond’s affinity for design and creativity only grew from there. She soon enrolled in photoshop classes and signed up for her school’s literary magazine. But she still made efforts to stay engaged with STEM: During her summers, she worked as a counselor for a nearby science camp.

Beyond science, math, and art, however, Hammond also competed for her school’s volleyball and basketball teams. She also played on a club volleyball team. “I was very into athletics,” she said. “Every day I’d have two or four-hour practices, and weekends were [pretty much] for tournaments or games.”

Drawn to STEM — Must Be Magnetic 

Having already kindled her creative pursuits, Hammond viewed Amherst as an opportunity to further develop her long-held interest in STEM. What she remembers most vividly about her first year, she told me, was how close-knit the physics community was. “We had the physics lounge, everyone was so supportive, and our TAs were so giving. They put so much effort into their teaching.” 

Another important aspect of Hammond’s time at Amherst has been her decision to pursue Amherst’s 3-2 engineering program, a dual-degree program where students spend three years studying physics at Amherst and then transfer to Dartmouth to complete two years of engineering studies, resulting in two bachelor’s degrees. Her interest in the program came from the support of faculty. Since she had already written letters of recommendation for her past applications and knew how exceptional the opportunity would be for Hammond, Professor of Physics Ashley Carter informed her about it and pushed her to submit the application 36 hours before the deadline. 

Despite her hesitancy to leave Amherst, Hammond decided to pursue engineering at Dartmouth upon her acceptance to the program. “Once I got there and started taking these engineering classes, I was like, this is absolutely what I meant to do. I love this.”

While she said that she had completed the prerequisites by chance, the extensive planning that goes into the 3-2 application can be strenuous. To prevent future applicants from dealing with the same problems she faced, Hammond has been “mentoring a bunch of underclassmen [who are] trying to get into the program, or at least guiding them, telling my story.” 

Lillia “The Machine” Hammond & The Machine Shop

Finding time for creativity as such a busy Amherst student can be difficult. For Hammond, however, working it into her daily life has been fruitful. “I absolutely prioritize the fun stuff … My art history major is a creative outlet that I can work into my schedule.” 

The machine shop, located in the Science Center, is also a way for Hammond to fuel her creativity in her spare time. It became clear, as our conversation went on, that the projects she produces there hold a special place in her heart.

The summer after her freshman year, Hammond participated in the Science Undergraduate Research Fellowships (SURF) program. In addition to this, she also participated in a three-week metalworking course, which made her “instantly love” the machine shop. 

“When my sophomore year started up, I would go in between classes …  I made a lot of cool projects.” From a kaleidoscope to an air engine to a cribbage board for her Grandpa, the passion behind these projects and the 10 hours a week she spends in the shop is visible to anyone around her.

In my conversation with Jim Kubasek, the head of the machine shop, he said, “Some students come back and they want to do something and explore a little. With her, it’s been more conquering.” 

Hammond shared her appreciation for how he had “dedicated so much time guiding me and teaching me, really took me under his wing.” The artistry and zeal for turning ideas into reality have opened yet another path for Hammond. For her, the machine shop is the place where she realized what she wanted to pursue as a career. 

“In terms of the exact moment, it might have been when I was working on this kaleidoscope project.” Even though it was a very complicated process with complex material, she said, it “solidified I want to do this forever. Even if I’m not involved in a machine shop in my career as a mechanical engineer, I want to have a mill and a lathe in my garage.” 

Lab Rat

Hammond spent last summer in Brownsville, Texas, working with the SpaceX Starship Payload Engineering team at Starbase. There, she came up with and ran a test to make sure the door on the spaceship that holds cargo wouldn’t wear out too quickly. She also helped create special tools to build that door.

“It was a very cool project to be involved in,” she said. “You’re there, modeling and doing math on your computer, and when you turn around, there’s a 12-story rocket behind you, and on the way to lunch, you just go touch it casually.” 

As it turns out, Hammond’s hands-on experience goes beyond her time at SpaceX. Her upperclassman years have been defined by hands-on experiences in the field. Since 2023, she has been working as a mechanical engineering research assistant at the 317 Rocket Lab at Dartmouth College. “It’s really cool to get people [to] branch out to a different field, where I get to pursue or get to really do mechanical engineering work.”

To complete her thesis, Hammond worked remotely with the 317 Lab. By next March, they plan to launch rockets into the upper atmosphere in rural Alaska, with the hopes that the specialized instruments will provide new insights into the Aurora Borealis. In addition, she is augmenting instruments that go on rockets, “including sub-payloads, which get ejected [in the air].”

In the future, Hammond said that she would like to see work environments similar to the ones she experienced in these two facilities. In both jobs, Hammond felt that community momentum was key to success. As she described her experience at SpaceX, “it felt like everyone was sprinting together, and you’re motivated by everyone else’s drive to get stuff done,” while at the 317 Lab, “everyone’s very kind and very motivated to teach, learn, and work together.”

Newton’s Laws and Volleyballs

Hammond’s collaboration and leadership have flourished far beyond the lab environment. As the co-president of Spectra, the college’s physics and astronomy club, and co-captain of Amherst Club Volleyball (ACVB), she has taken on leadership roles that have given her the ability to provide “administrative mentorship,” as she calls it, to underclassmen. 

She described Spectra as “a great way for younger students to get involved in research, or get guidance for classes.” She felt that “it’s sort of the hub for the physics community to get together.”

When I asked about the volleyball team, her face lit up. “Oh, my God, I love ACVB! That’s my family.” As co-captain, Hammond has learned a lot about leadership. “It’s been a great way to learn about different types of leadership and what works, what doesn’t; what motivates people, what doesn’t.”

Fran Torres ’26, Hammond’s ACVB co-captain, said that Hammond “carries this confidence and leadership, which is something I’ve admired about her since I got here and that I continue to admire.”

Doing behind the scenes work, like organizing practices and integrating new players into the team has been a way to “tune out the rest of Amherst … and just play hard for like 10 hours a week.”

It’s Hammond Time

When I asked if her younger self would be surprised about who she is now and what she has accomplished, Hammond replied, “Surprised? I don’t think so. But I think she’d be super happy, because I get a little bit of everything that I love.”

When I spoke with Carter about Hammond’s drive, she shared, “One time I got to the Science Center really early and stayed late. That morning, I saw Lillia at the ground floor tables working on problem sets with friends. That night, I saw her again in the machine shop making an engine in her free time. She showed me how it worked and then quickly headed off to club volleyball.”

Speaking about all her diverging interests, Hammond commented, “I do a lot of different things, and I don’t want to say it’s a perfect balance, because there’s a lot going on all the time in my life, but I haven’t had to sacrifice anything that I love for another part,” she told me. 

As “truly one of the most amazing students I have come across,” according to Carter, and “the most driven student I’ve worked with,” according to Kubasek, it is clear that Hammond’s passion, leadership, and dedication leave a lasting impact on everyone around her, and will continue to do so during her next year at Dartmouth and in the aerospace industry in the future. 

Had she not explored every possibility and let her interests guide her, Hammond would not be where she is today. To anyone looking to spark their passion, she recommends you “take small steps towards your desire,” and let your interests guide you.