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Kansas State University

By: D. Scott Fritchen The man in purple sits behind an L-shaped polished wood desk flush against the cream wall in his office at Colbert Hills Golf Course. To his left on the other side of the office is a steady, seemingly endless row of golf clubs. On one wall hangs five academic degrees or […]

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By: D. Scott Fritchen

The man in purple sits behind an L-shaped polished wood desk flush against the cream wall in his office at Colbert Hills Golf Course. To his left on the other side of the office is a steady, seemingly endless row of golf clubs. On one wall hangs five academic degrees or golf instruction certificates in pretty frames. But it’s the bright yellow commemorate golf flag encased in glass that first catches the eye. The flag is from the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and bears a black, cursive, handwritten inscription: “Stew, thank you for making this week possible!! Carla Bernat Escuder.”

 

It’s been 26 days since the 21-year-old Kansas State senior captured the most prestigious women’s amateur title in the world on perhaps the world’s most famous golf course while becoming the first golfer to record three rounds in the 60s in ANWA history. Bernat carded a 4-under 68 during the final round at Augusta National Golf Club, becoming the first woman from Spain to win the event.

 

It’s been 14 days since another K-State senior, Sophie Bert, of Belgium, fired a final-round 5-under par 66, rising 13 spots up the leaderboard to capture the Wildcats’ first-ever individual conference championship title at the 2025 Big 12 Championship at Houston Oaks Golf Club in Hockley, Texas. Bert’s 54-hole score of 2-under par 211 made her the only player to finish under par and her final-round total of 66 was the best ever by a K-State player in a conference championship.

 

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It’s been a dizzying past month for the 39-year-old man in purple, second-year K-State head coach Stew Burke, who occupies his office seven hours after arriving in Manhattan at 2:40 a.m., navigating the severe thunderstorms that shook the team van as it crept along the Flint Hills hours after several Wildcats competed in the U.S. Women’s Open qualifier at St. Clair Country Club in Bellville, Illinois.
 
“Torrential rain heading back to Manhattan,” Burke says. “Today, I’m going to eat lunch with my mom and dad. They flew in from Scotland and have been here the last month. After lunch, I’m going to pick up my 4-year-old so she can go to the airport with grandma and grandpa and wave them off.
 
“The last month? Pretty amazing. It’s the way it’s supposed to be. It’s what I want K-State to be. Currently, it is.”
 
At 5:50 a.m. Saturday, the K-State women’s golf team embarks upon a new journey.
 
K-State will fly from Manhattan Regional Airport to Lexington, Kentucky. Following one the best regular seasons in program history, K-State earned a postseason bid for the first time since 2017 as the Wildcats were selected as the No. 5 seed in the 2025 NCAA Lexington Regional. It’s the latest high-water mark for a fast-rising women’s golf program — one determined to bust through the door reserved for blue bloods and take a seat at the table.
 
“Jim Colbert told me the story about Bill Snyder when he was hired and how he told Coach Snyder that it couldn’t be done,” Burke says. “When Jim Colbert called me during the interview process, I said, ‘It can be done. I promise you, it can be done!'”
 

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Burke, the 2022 American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year at Tulane and former K-State assistant coach, was named the Wildcats’ head coach on June 30, 2023, after four seasons leading the Green Wave. In addition to spending parts of three seasons as an assistant coach at K-State, he also served as associate head coach for parts of three seasons at USC.
 
Last season, Burke and assistant coach Rinko Mitsunaga guided K-State to a school-record 290.25 scoring average (it topped the previous team scoring average by over six shots per round), one tournament victory (its first tournament victory away from Manhattan since 2017) and three other top-five finishes, and a third-place finish at the 2024 Big 12 Championship (its highest finish in a conference championship in school history).
 
Last season, K-State was also the first team left out of the 2024 NCAA Regionals.
 
This season, K-State re-established itself with a school-record 287.66 scoring average (nearly three shots better than in 2024) and has a school record-tying two victories and six top-three finishes. This season has also featured five of the top seven team rounds in school history.
 
A dose of national respect arrived on the GOLF Channel shortly after K-State’s regional selection on April 23. Front and center during the afternoon selection show special, the man in purple planted a Powercat flag on TVs across America.
 
“At Kansas State, we’re a hard-working, blue-collar team, and we’re a team everybody can root for,” Burke said on the GOLF Channel. “Maybe we’re not one of the premier blue chippers in women’s college golf, but we’re going to do our best with grit and effort and compete right to the end.”
 

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The NCAA Women’s Golf Regionals features six sites and 12 teams at each site. The top five teams from each regional site will advance to compete in the NCAA Championship on May 16-21 at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, California.
 
The top six overall seeds are all entrenched in the cool club among women’s golf programs: Stanford, South Carolina, Florida State, Arkansas, Oregon and Texas. The other teams among the top 18 seeds include Virginia, Ole Miss, LSU, Ohio State, Arizona State, Auburn, USC, TCU, Wake Forest, Arizona, Northwestern and North Carolina.
 
The Lexington Regional looks this way: 1) Florida State, 2) USC, 3) TCU, 4) Vanderbilt and 5) K-State.
 
“You’ve got to be a disruptor,” Burke says. “I’m sure there are people who don’t want us there. They’re like, ‘Damn.’ Well, we’re pushing our way in. We have to take a little bit of swagger into it. They’re not going to be scared of anybody. The Augusta National Women’s Amateur — our player won it. The conference championship — our player won it.
 
“There’s no reason to be scared of anybody.”
 

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Burke is passionate, thoughtful and well educated by virtue of the three college degrees framed upon his office wall. He played collegiately at Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Missouri, and graduated with a degree in sports management in 2007. Then he earned a master’s degree in educational, school and counseling psychology with an emphasis in positive coaching from Missouri in 2019. Then he earned another master’s degree in sports studies at Tulane in 2021.
 
His competitive fire ignites without warning.
 
“I kind of had an idea in my head about our first season at K-State and it was very rankings based,” he says. “I like numbers. Personally, I wanted to break every single record here. I wanted to break all the records as quickly as possible. That was a huge motivator. I knew the scores. There was a process to making sure we did the little things right while we talked about big, lofty goals, and the girls bought in. They could see themselves there. That’s always a part of it.
 
“You have to help others to see themselves going where they want to go.”
 

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It didn’t take long for Burke to decide where he wanted to go. He was born and raised in the tiny village Bridge of Weir in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. While the village’s traditional industries are cotton milling and leather tanning, Burke’s father was a precision engineer who manufactured springs for everything from fighter jets to cash registers, and his mother was a schoolteacher.
 
“Dad introduced me to golf when I was 4 as a way to tire me out,” Burke says. “He’d take me and hit balls in a field. It’s a very working-class sport in Scotland. Everybody plays — absolutely everybody. My junior golf course membership between age 10 and 15 was $50. Everybody I grew up with played golf. It’s like baseball in America. We’d go to the club for dinner, have a couple beers, and play a quick five or six holes.”
 
Burke tells of his high school physical education teacher who never turned professional but who made nine birdies in a row on a women’s European Tour event to set a Guiness World Record. The P.E. teacher’s brother-in-law went to college on a golf scholarship. That piqued the interest of Burke, who calls his decision to play college golf in the United States “a no-brainer.”
 
“Then you figure out in year two that you’re maybe not good enough to play at the next level,” he says. “That’s when the interest in teaching and coaching sparked for me.”
 
As for all his degrees?
 
“I kind of get a little bit bored,” he says, chuckling.
 

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As for the toughest challenge breaking into coaching?
 
“The visa process and getting a coach to take a risk,” he says. “I got really lucky. I had helped some golfers who came to the states have a lot of success and started to make a name for myself. K-State head coach Kristi Knight asked me to be her assistant. I was going to a friend’s wedding in St. Louis. The timing was perfect. All the stars were aligned. I loved the opportunity to help something grow. We started that spring and got running.”
 
While at K-State as an assistant, Burke helped raise the Wildcats’ Golfstat ranking from No. 105 into the top 40 as they tallied three team victories and four individual crowns. K-State also posted its top two scoring average marks in school history at the time with Burke on staff in 2014-15 (297.30) and 2015-16 (297.31).
 

Burke 25 SE

Burke left K-State in the spring of 2017 to serve as the assistant coach and later the associate head coach at USC, where he helped guide the Trojans to consecutive appearances in the NCAA Championship semifinals (2017 and 2018) and in the quarterfinals (2019). In 2018-19, USC was the No. 1-ranked team by both Golfstat and Golfweek and captured the 2019 Pac-12 Championship. He coached players that combined for 10 All-America accolades.
 
“Southern Cal is a tough place to be,” Burke says. “If you don’t win, it’s a failure. We won a conference championship and there were no rings. You only got a ring for nationals. That’s since changed. But that environment — everybody is all over the place. You didn’t get to meet very many other coaches every often. You were in a coaching suite and people went to their office and worked and left because they had an hour commute. But you got special things there, too. You were around world-class athletes and great coaches within the area, so you got to learn and pick their brain. You can really make out of it what you want. You can become a great coach, or you can be lazy.”
 
And Burke is not lazy.
 
When Knight retired, Burke immediately called K-State. He went through a formal interview process and waited.
 
“There was an awful 10-day wait because I was the first interview,” he said. “I knew I was the person for the job with how passionate I was about this place. It was my job. I loved the place. Everyone assumed I was getting the job. It was a great job. You’re mentally there, but you’re going to be devastated if you don’t get it.”
 
Burke was immediately impressed with K-State athletic director Gene Taylor.
 
“I knew I had to be well prepared, and he was going to ask the right questions,” Burke says. “I’d interviewed with other Power 4 schools, and those people didn’t know about golf, development, and goals for the program. Gene knew exactly what he was looking for in taking the program forward. It was great to talk with somebody who was speaking your language.”
 

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Burke made meeting with the team his top priority. He was in Spain recruiting at the time and introduced himself to the Wildcats on Zoom. Then he flew to Dallas, Texas, to watch three Wildcats compete in a U.S. Open qualifier. He called the golfers and got to know them. He also phoned Mitsunaga, his assistant coach at Tulane. She was in. Eventually, Carla Bernat, who adores Rinko like a sister, entered the transfer portal and joined Burke and Mitsunaga in Manhattan.
 
“Carla sent me an e-mail: ‘Would you consider me for your roster?’ It was very professional,” Burke says. “I had to give her a hard time.”
 

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Burke and Mitsunaga traveled to five different countries to assemble this 2024-25 K-State team. Bernat hails from Castellon, Spain, as does sophomore Julia Ballester Barrio; senior transfer Sophie Bert is from Deurle, Belgium; junior Noa van Beek is from Oene, Netherlands; sophomore Alenka Navarro is from Mexico City, Mexico; freshman Nanami Nakashima is from Kani, Japan; and freshman Natalia Fiel Ros is from Valencia, Spain.
 
“We had to reestablish the brand, which is what Kristi and I had done the first time around,” Burke says. “Kristi sent me to Europe my first year, and I stayed six weeks. I went to a tournament, flew back, and took a flight somewhere else. People would see me.
 
“They’d say, ‘Oh, it’s the man in purple.'”
 
It still happens to Burke, where he’ll be driving in a major city somewhere in the United States, wearing the Powercat, and he’ll pause and say to himself, “I get to do this! I don’t believe it!” Or he’ll be walking a golf course in a different country, his competitive juices on fire, much like they were when he got Nakashima over California, Clemson, Baylor and UCLA.
 

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K-State women’s golf has its foot firmly in the door. The Wildcats are crashing the party. Burke offered a warning of sorts soon after appearing on the GOLF Channel.
 
“Blue-chip programs get so much coverage,” Burke says. “There are other programs that can beat these top schools. We want to make sure we’re getting our seat at the table.”
 
It’s been quite a journey from growing up hitting golf balls into a field in Scotland. And it’s been quite a year for the Wildcats.
 
The best still could be to come.
 
“I don’t want to say this is the best team we’ve ever had,” Burke says. “On paper, yeah… but if we don’t get to nationals, I’ll be disappointed.”
 
There will be a time at the NCAA Lexington Regional, where much like at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, Burke pauses for a second and breathes in the moment. It could happen on day one. Or on day two. But the time will come when Burke fully digests the enormity of the quest. And the quests to come.
 
The man in purple is leading the way as the Wildcats navigate the greens and plant their proverbial flag at Keene Trace Golf Club in a NCAA Regional for the first time in eight years. And the man in purple appreciates the journey.
 
“I’ve learned you can achieve what you put your mind to,” Burke says. “You have to be relentless. I wanted to be here. Once I got here, I wanted to make it great.”
 
He pauses.
 
“Maybe we’re not great yet,” he says, “but we’re certainly on the pathway to it.”



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College World Series: Start times, TV info announced as 2025 tournament field is set

Arizona has waited four years to get back to the College World Series. It won’t have to wait much longer to hit the field in Omaha. The Wildcats’ opening game in the CWS against Coastal Carolina is set for an 11 a.m. PT start on Friday at Charles Schwab Field Omaha, with the game airing […]

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Arizona has waited four years to get back to the College World Series. It won’t have to wait much longer to hit the field in Omaha.

The Wildcats’ opening game in the CWS against Coastal Carolina is set for an 11 a.m. PT start on Friday at Charles Schwab Field Omaha, with the game airing on ESPN. The other matchup on Arizona’s side of the bracket, between Louisville and Oregon State, is scheduled for 4 p.m. PT on Friday.

The other half of the bracket starts play Saturday, with UCLA taking on Murray State—the last team to qualify on Monday—at 11 a.m. PT and Arkansas facing LSU in an all-SEC battle at 4 p.m. PT.

Arizona (44-19) is making its 19th appearance in the CWS, first since 2021, after winning the Chapel Hill Super Regional in three games over the weekend. That came after sweeping through the Eugene Regional on the heels of a Big 12 Tournament title.

Coastal Carolina (53-11) holds the nation’s longest active win streak at 23 games, having won the Sun Belt conference tourney and then sweeping through a home regional and a Super Regional at Auburn. This is the Chanticleers’ first trip to Omaha since 2016 when they beat the UA in three games for the national title.

The College World Series is a double-elimination format during bracket play, with Arizona guaranteed to play Sunday regardless of the first game’s result. Bracket finals are set for June 18-19, with the best-of-3 championship series starting June 21.



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ESPN Veteran Talks Life in Montana, NIL Deals & More

She got her start in horse racing, and her husband had a 30-plus year career in D1 football. We had a great time catching up with former ESPN sports reporter Jeannine Edwards, who now lives in Red Lodge. We talked about life in Montana, her recent appearance on the Outkick podcast talking about men in […]

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June 10, 2025

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She got her start in horse racing, and her husband had a 30-plus year career in D1 football. We had a great time catching up with former ESPN sports reporter Jeannine Edwards, who now lives in Red Lodge.

We talked about life in Montana, her recent appearance on the Outkick podcast talking about men in women’s sports, and how NIL deals are totally changing college sports.

She started as an apprentice trainer and jockey, and ended up on ESPN Sportscenter. You can see her in the photo above reporting on the sidelines for college football.

What does she think about Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deals in college sports?  

Edwards: “I can only speak to my experience as both a reporter and being the wife of a coach. It has completely changed the- you can just sense that the whole atmosphere has sort of been permeated with this now. It’s all about the money. And, you know, there’s that old saying, the love of money is the root of all evil. It’s not actually money that’s the root of all evil. It’s the love of money.”

What about men in women’s sports and the transgender debate? 

Edwards: “First of all, I think if there were enough transgender athletes out there, why don’t they create their own division? Okay, let’s have a third- let’s have a third section, then. Let’s do a third gender. And that way it’s really fair, because that way the men can compete with the men, and the women can compete with the women, and the trans people can compete with their own and let’s call it a day. I personally don’t agree with men competing against women. It’s just physiologically not a fair competition. Men are bigger, they’re stronger, they have greater lung capacity, they have more bone density, they have more muscle mass. It doesn’t matter if you take hormones, those physiological assets and attributes have been there since the day you were born, and as you started growing through childhood and puberty, you’re just built differently than a woman.”

Remember when ESPN Sportscenter was THE show to watch each day, before ESPN got more political than politics? 

Edwards: “They did kind of lose their way for a while. And it was- it was a little unsettling, because politics- none of that stuff had ever come up before in any production meetings, in any directives that would come down the pike. But then we started getting directives about, you know, covering different issues- LGBTQ and this and that. And it was like, what does this have to do with the game on tomorrow, what does this have to do with Michigan and Ohio State?”

 

 

16 Wildest Foods Sold in NFL Stadiums

Pizza Burgers? Cotton Candy Burritos? Cannoli Nachos? It must be football season!

Gallery Credit: Matthew Wilkening





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Summer living in State College | Blogs

Picture this: Summer rolls around at Penn State’s University Park campus, but something’s off. The place is usually swarming with students, but by May the town becomes deserted. The crowds thin out, the sun’s out (sometimes) and suddenly there’s room to breathe and enjoy what’s around you. Let’s talk about the outdoors first, since you’re […]

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Picture this: Summer rolls around at Penn State’s University Park campus, but something’s off. The place is usually swarming with students, but by May the town becomes deserted. The crowds thin out, the sun’s out (sometimes) and suddenly there’s room to breathe and enjoy what’s around you.

Let’s talk about the outdoors first, since you’re pretty much surrounded by it. If hiking is your jam, you’ve got to visit the Mount Nittany Trail. You’ll see the whole town, sprawled out below you.

If you’re not into sweating buckets, Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center may be more your speed — think easy trails, birds chirping and the occasional turtle sighting if you’re lucky.

Cyclists, listen up. The Penn State Bike Path is your new best friend. It’s not the most excruciating, but it snakes through campus and leads you right into a bunch of parks.

If by chance you’re more into the animals of Central Pennsylvania, you might be delighted to know that State College and the surrounding areas are renowned for their trout fishing. For you pool people, the McCoy Natatorium is a top-tier spot for all visitors.

As unassuming as a college town with no college kids can be, State College stays busy with events throughout summer. The Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts, aka Arts Fest, is the Super Bowl of town events.

Artists, live music and food that’ll have you breaking your diet fill the crowded streets and leave those attending in awe of its sheer size and presence.

As far as food is concerned, I could go on forever. You’re not living if you haven’t hit up The Corner Room for a classic breakfast or pancakes at The Waffle Shop. If you want quick, Irving’s is clutch — bagels, coffee and breakfast galore.

Shopping? There’s the Nittany Mall, but the real treasures are the downtown boutiques. Places like Allen Street and Calder Square are filled to the brim with shops for all your needs and wants.

Do you need gear for your next biking adventure? The Bicycle Shop is where it’s at. And if you need to rep blue and white, hit up the Penn State Bookstore.

With the State College Spikes residing at Medlar Field, there is no shortage of sports, more specifically baseball, in State College.

If you want to feel fancy and artsy, the Palmer Museum of Art on campus has rotating exhibits all summer long. Right down the street in Boalsburg is the Pennsylvania Military Museum, which is filled with a ton of interesting history.

The Penn State Golf Course is a great place to visit if you’re staying in State College for the summer. While the spring and fall also prove great times to visit, the warmth of a summer day out on the golf course is a beautiful thing you can’t get everywhere. Cherish it.

Of course, I couldn’t end this list without mentioning the Arboretum at Penn State. It’s truly a sight to behold, with flowers everywhere, shady paths and a killer spot for golden hour photos.

The bottom line is summer at University Park is underrated. Whether you want to eat your body weight in pancakes, vibe to live music or just sit in the grass and do absolutely nothing, State College has you covered. It’s not just a campus but a whole summer playground.

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Area students honored for academic achievements at colleges, universities

ALVERNIA UNIVERSITY Area residents awarded degrees Alvernia University celebrated more than 550 students in the Class of 2025 at the Santander Arena in downtown Reading on May 10. Local graduates include: • Hailey Davidson, Wilkes-Barre, Bachelor of Science in healthcare science • Shawn Loyack, Duryea, Doctor of Philosophy in educational leadership. BELMONT UNIVERSITY Local […]

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ALVERNIA UNIVERSITY

Area residents awarded degrees

Alvernia University celebrated more than 550 students in the Class of 2025 at the Santander Arena in downtown Reading on May 10.

Local graduates include:

• Hailey Davidson, Wilkes-Barre, Bachelor of Science in healthcare science

• Shawn Loyack, Duryea, Doctor of Philosophy in educational leadership.

BELMONT UNIVERSITY

Local students make dean’s list

Belmont University announced the following local residents were named to the dean’s list for the spring 2025 semester.

Approximately 47% of the University’s 6,912 undergraduate students qualified. Approximately 47% of the University’s 6,912 undergraduate students qualified.

Dean’s List eligibility is based on a minimum course load of 12 hours and a quality grade point average of 3.5 with no grade below a C.

• Gabriella Randazzo, Dallas.

• Kathleen Washko, Drums.

BOB JONES UNIVERSITY

Local students named to president’s list

The following local residents are among over 590 Bob Jones University students named to the president’s list for high academic achievement during the Spring 2025 semester.

To qualify, students must earn a 3.75 or higher grade point average for the semester.

• Eylan Nicolle Martinez Diaz, Hazleton, a senior multimedia journalism major.

• Kaitlyn Shaver, Wyoming, a freshman business administration major.

COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Area resident participates in model EU simulation

Kamila Gonzalez Aquino, Hazleton, participated in the annual University of Pittsburgh Model European Union simulation hosted by Susquehanna University this spring. The students passed several resolutions pertaining to the war in Ukraine and sustainable agriculture.

The Spanish delegation of Amelia Alfiero, of Pipersville, and Hughie Curran, of Bloomsburg, from CU-Bloomsburg won Best Position Paper. The Romanian delegation of Dallas Schultz, of Wellsboro, and Eli Kaufman, of Nelson, from CU-Mansfield and the Swedish delegation of Salahudinn Abdul-Hamid, of State College, and Dom Lazzaro, of Milford, from CU-Bloomsburg both won Honorable Mentions for Best Delegation.

Other delegations included Austria, Cassidy Clarke, of Philadelphia, and Gianna Benz, of Corning, New York, CU-Mansfield; Bulgaria, Gabe Haines, of Danville, CU-Bloomsburg; Cyprus, Kamila Gonzalez Aquino, of Hazleton, CU-Bloomsburg; and Hungary, Leif Tolan, of Orangeville, CU-Bloomsburg.

GEISINGER COLLEGE OF HEALTH SCIENCES

School of Medicine holds 13th commencement ceremony

Geisinger College of Health Sciences’ School of Medicine held its 13th commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 10. 115 members of the class of 2025 received a diploma.

Local graduates include:

• Madison Hurst, Dallas.

• Kyle Kidd, Harveys Lake.

• Benjamin Krouse, Hunlock Creek.

• Aaron Piavis, Wapwallopen.

• Jay Solgama, Mountain Top.

• Leah Thomas, Wilkes-Barre.

KUTZTOWN UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Drums student inducted into mathematics honor society

Jess Shovlin, Drums, was inducted into Kappa Mu Epsilon National Mathematics Honor Society at Kutztown University.

Kappa Mu Epsilon is a specialized honor society in Mathematics. KME was founded in 1931 to promote the interest of mathematics among undergraduate students. Its chapters are located in colleges and universities of recognized standing which offer a strong mathematics major. The chapters’ members are selected from students of mathematics and other closely related fields who have maintained standards of scholarship, have professional merit, and have attained academic distinction.

MISERICORDIA UNIVERSITY

Area students named to spring dean’s list

The following local students were named to the dean’s list for the spring 2025 semester. Students at Misericordia University qualify for the dean’s list with a 3.55 grade point average or higher.

• Siwar Abdo, Dallas.

• Matthew Albrecht, Wyoming.

• Lauren Amend, Mountain Top.

• Brian Antigua, Duryea.

• Abigail Armitage, Avoca.

• Megan Armitage, Avoca.

• Matthew Ash, Sweet Valley.

• Aleia Atherton, Wilkes-Barre.

• Bradley Augenstein, Duryea.

• Bianka Avila, Plains Township.

• Lexi Baggett, Shavertown.

• Makayla Banks, Nanticoke.

• Erynn Barancho, Plains Township.

• Mason Baranski, Wyoming.

• Sabrina Barlow, Dallas.

• Krista Biago, Plains Township.

• Rebecca Biddinger, Sugar Notch.

• Olivia Bilbow, Mountain Top.

• Owen Blake, Shavertown.

• Dayonna Bobbett, Wilkes-Barre.

• Ryan Bonin, West Wyoming.

• Kylee Bork, Wilkes-Barre.

• William Brady, Mountain Top.

• Madison Brdaric, Shavertown.

• Aaliyah Brennan, Harveys Lake.

• Allyson Brodie, Hanover Township.

• Michael Brown, West Wyoming.

• Rylie Bucknavage, Harveys Lake.

• Arianna Bugno, Pittston.

• Elizabeth Burney, Pittston.

• Andrew Burns, Freeland.

• Ella Burns, Dallas.

• Peyton Burns, Dallas.

• Lauren Callahan, Harveys Lake.

• Ava Carey, Courtdale.

• Emma Carey, Shickshinny.

• Isabella Cassano, Shavertown.

• Litzy Castro, Wilkes-Barre.

• Damian Cavuto, Wyoming.

• Noah Ceklosky, Wapwallopen.

• Arianna Champi, Dupont.

• Alexi Chervenitski, Shavertown.

• Marina Ciavarella, Hanover Township.

• Nadia Costagliola, Pittston.

• Quinn Crispell, Swoyersville.

• Claire Cunningham, Wilkes-Barre.

• Madelyn Dalley, Kingston.

• Isabella Dalmas, Nanticoke.

• Taylor Dalmas, Sugar Notch.

• Abigail Davitt, Duryea.

• Kara Domzalski, Shavertown.

• Margaret Donish, Freeland.

• Thomas Doran, Dallas.

• Olivia Dowling, Shavertown.

• Janelle Dudek, Pittston Township.

• David Durko, Ashley.

• Hanna Dutzer, Hazle Townnship.

• Jennifer Eddy, Shickshinny.

• Alyssa Evans, Nanticoke.

• Rebecca Fick, Dallas.

• Molly Fielding, Dallas.

• Adrianna Filler, Sugarloaf.

• Lindsey Franchella, Shickshinny.

• Paige Frank, Shavertown.

• Caelan Gallagher, Dallas.

• Jerzey Gallagher, Ashely.

• Carmen Garcia, Wilkes-Barre.

• Melissa Giomboni, Plains Township.

• Anthony Giovinazzo, Edwardsville.

• Brooklyn Giovinazzo, Edwardsville.

• Sarah Greco, Hazleton.

• Tessily Gregory, Dallas.

• Hailey Halagarda, Avoca.

• Reagan Halbach, Shavertown.

• Magdalyn Hallman, West Wyoming.

• Jayden Halstead, Wilkes-Barre.

• Deven Hazlak, White Haven.

• Riley Heller, Wapwallopen.

• Alana Hoats, West Wyoming.

• Chad Hutchins, Dallas.

• Morgan Janeski, Exeter.

• Maura Jenceleski, Nanticoke.

• Allison Jones, Harveys Lake.

• Halle Jones, Dallas.

• Carmella Karcutskie, Harding.

• Misha Kazmierski, Dallas.

• Cassie Kern, Dallas.

• Olivia Kiwak, Harding.

• Erica Kline, Mountain Top.

• Layla Kolodzieski, Avoca.

• Dylan Kostik, Wyoming.

• Kurtis Kowalski, Hunlock Creek.

• Jeffrey Kozerski, Bear Creek Township.

• Ryan Krakosky, Shavertown.

• Isabella Krashnak, Jenkins Township.

• Lily Kratz, Nanticoke.

• Emily Krevey, Pittston.

• Isabella Kropiewnicki, Nanticoke.

• Courtney Krushin, Wilkes-Barre.

• Kiera Kupsho, Drums.

• Sabrina Kyttle, Exeter.

• Naviah Labar, Mountain Top.

• Megan Lasher, Harding.

• Olivia Latoski, Wyoming.

• Julia Lazo, Mountain Top.

• Emily Leahy, Hunlock Creek.

• Alyson Lenker, Wilkes-Barre.

• Andrew Lewis, Dallas.

• Alyssa Little, Shavertown.

• Jasen Lobacz, Hunlock Creek.

• Evan Lukowich, Nanticoke.

• Tracey Lyles, Dallas.

• Riley Makausky, Swoyersville.

• Meagan Manzella, Dallas.

• Kaitlyn Marley, Hazle Township.

• Colin Marshall, Dallas.

• John Matlock, Trucksville.

• Amanda McCormick, Harding.

• Tavian McKenna, Kingston.

• Rebecca Meehan, Harveys Lake.

• Esabella Mendola, Wilkes-Barre.

• Jyanna Mendola, Wilkes-Barre.

• Jesse Mikoliczyk, Harding.

• Trevor Miller, Mountain Top.

• Helen Minnick, Ashley.

• Amanda Misson, Wyoming.

• Leiry Montalvo, Nanticoke.

• Lorena Morgan, Pringle.

• Michael Moscatelli, Pittston.

• Sarah Myrthel, Shickshinny.

• Ava Nastasiak, Harveys Lake.

• Isabella Nee, Old Forge.

• Matthew Nice, Shavertown.

• Alexus Nichols, Nanticoke.

• Jordan Nichols, Dallas.

• Alexandria Nicoletti, Wilkes-Barre.

• Grace O’Donnell, Shavertown.

• Aidan Paduck, Harveys Lake.

• Kaydence Palfreyman, Dallas.

• Maddison Park, Dallas.

• Paloma Parreno, Dallas.

• Abigail Pecha, Kingston.

• Alexandra Pehala, Dallas.

• Nadia Peimany, Mountain Top.

• Nicholas Pelliccia, Harding.

• Bruna Pereira, Hunlock Creek.

• Joseph Peters, Dallas.

• Sophia Piccolotti, Dallas.

• Jared Piontkowski, Nanticoke.

• Colby Powell, Dallas.

• Brayden Powers, Duryea.

• Matthew Prociak, Wilkes-Barre

• Molly Reott, Dallas.

• Emma Rinaldi, Pittston.

• Samantha Romero, Kingston.

• Alyssa Ryman, Wilkes-Barre.

• Schalee Salvo, Harveys Lake.

• Hannah Sayre, Sweet Valley.

• Alyssa Schweiss, Kingston.

• Nora Seeherman, Wilkes-Barre.

• Rachael Sennett, Wilkes-Barre.

• Polina Serbina, Mountain Top.

• Dana Sherman-Chakan, Shavertown.

• Ashley Shpock, Drums.

• Eleanor Shuleski, Wilkes-Barre.

• Morgan Slusser, West Pittston.

• Madison Smith, Plains Township.

• Lacey Sorber, Hunlock Creek.

• Joseph Souder, Pringle.

• Victoria Spaciano, Shavertown.

• Scott Spako, Wilkes-Barre.

• Nickolas Spiccioli, Kingston.

• Meghan Starosta, Shavertown.

• Sarah Steeber, Shickshinny.

• Rachel Strange, Hunlock Creek.

• Emma Stroud, Sweet Valley.

• Madelyn Stuart, Harveys Lake.

• Jasmine Talbot, Harveys Lake.

• Michael Talerico, Duryea.

• Ryan Tarreto, Dallas.

• Brianna Tejeda Zoquier, Hazleton.

• Katelyn Tereska, Harveys Lake.

• Myles Tirpak, Shavertown.

• Ryan Vallach, Dallas.

• Maria Villano, Dallas.

• Nicholas Vincelli, Shavertown.

• Chloe Vinnacombe, Larksville.

• Julia Warren, Plains Township.

• Daniel Wheeler, Shavertown.

• Danielle Whitman, Avoca.

• Joshua Wickard, Sweet Valley.

• Andrew Wilk, Shavertown.

• Kelly Williams, Shavertown.

• Kaila Windsor, Dallas, PA.

• West Hazleton.

• Emily Woss, Mountain Top.

• Corbin Wright, Pittston.

• Vivian Wright, Dallas.

• Chloe Wyberski, Edwardsville.

• Ashleigh Yedlock, Mountain Top.

• Isabella Zelinski, Harding.

• Nicole Zurawski, Mountain Top.

PENNSYLVANIA WESTERN UNIVERSITY

Local students named to spring dean’s list

Pennsylvania Western University recognized nearly 3,000 students who were named to the spring 2025 dean’s list. The following local students were honored for outstanding academic excellence during the spring semester.

• Ryan Covelens, White Haven, California Campus.

• Veronica Warunek, Forty Fort, California Campus.

• Connor Matteo, Drums, California Campus.

• Jalyn Cook, Mountain Top, California Campus.

• Madeline Palmiero, Mountain Top, Clarion Campus.

• Emma Slivinski, Kingston, Clarion Campus.

• Livia Sandu, Drums, California Campus.

• Gianna Slodysko, Hughestown, Edinboro Campus.

• Carly Glaser, Wapwallopen, California Campus.

• Emily Ouimet, Nescopeck, California Campus.

• Daniela Baez Reyes, Hanover Township, PennWest Online Campus.

• Alex Covelens, White Haven, Edinboro Campus.

In order to attain this highly regarded academic honor, degree-seeking students must earn a semester grade point average of 3.4 or higher and complete a minimum of 12 graded credit hours.

SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE UNIVERSITY

Area residents make dean’s list

Southern New Hampshire University announced the following local students were named to the spring 2025 dean’s list. The spring terms run from January to May.

Full-time undergraduate students who have earned a minimum grade-point average of 3.500 to 3.699 for the reporting term are named to the Dean’s List. Full-time status is achieved by earning 12 credits over each 16-week term or paired 8-week terms grouped in fall, winter/spring, and summer.

• Yanceys Nunez Santos, Mountain Top.

• Carriann reed, Wilkes-Barre.

• Katherine Aracena, Kingston.

• Corey Wilson, Edwardsville.

• Kevin Yozviak, Swoyersville.

• Tina Sams, Wilkes-Barre.

• Candis Santana, Wilkes-Barre.

• Teddi Kaple, Shickshinny.

• Taylor Farrell, Wyoming.

• Alicia Dukes, Nanticoke.

• Ashleigh Schaszberger, Monroe Township.

• Cassandra Santos, Freeland.

• Maria Pastorella, Drums.

• Jayden Johnson, Hazleton.

• Rochelle Flores Benitez, Hazleton.

Area residents make president’s list

SNHU announced the following students were named to the spring 2025 president’s list.

Full-time undergraduate students who have earned a minimum grade-point average of 3.700 and above for the reporting term are named to the president’s list. Full-time status is achieved by earning 12 credits over each 16-week term or paired 8-week terms grouped in fall, winter/spring, and summer.

• Konnor Krackenfels, Luzerne.

• Alyssa Fritz, Hanover Township.

• Samantha Baum, Kingston.

• Ashley Ruckman, Swoyersville.

• Ashley Booth, Edwardsville.

• Kylee Eltringham, Wilkes-Barre.

• Kenneth Rasnake, Wilks-Barre.

• Danielle Richard, Wilkes-Barre.

• Jennifer Evans, White Haven.

• Gregory Mullins, Shickshinny.

• Leha Hislop, Plymouth.

• Stephanie Petteway, Plymouth.

• Matthew Dwojewski, West Pittston.

• Courtney McDonald, Dupont.

• Sarah Berholtz, Hunlock Creek.

• Crystal Kotansky, Freeland.

• Astrid Cabrera, DRUMS.

• Lillian Miller, Conyngham.

• Brian Lange, Hazle Township.

• Bridget Suarez Martinez, Hazleton.

• Randy Ortiz, Hazleton.

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND GLOBAL CAMPUS

West Hazleton resident earns degree, makes president’s list

Alba Iris Espinosa, West Hazleton, earned a Master of Business Administration and was named to the president’s list at University of Maryland Global Campus in winter 2025. To qualify for the prestigious president’s list at UMGC, students must have graduated with a cumulative grade point average of 4.0.

Espinosa was one of nearly 900 students who earned degrees from UMGC in the winter 2025 term.

THE UNIVERSITY OF SCRANTON

Ashley student presents at 2025 HamSCI Workshop

Cuong Nguyen, Ashley, was among the 10 University of Scranton students — three graduate students and seven undergraduates — who recently presented research at the eighth annual HamSCI Workshop. This two-day program attracted amateur radio operators and enthusiasts from around the world, coming together to collaborate on their latest findings, strategies and outlooks.

Physics professor Nathaniel Frissell, Ph.D., presented and chaired multiple sessions at the event for the group he founded, which was hosted this year on March 14-15 at the New Jersey Institute of Technology.

Nguyen, a graduate student pursuing a master’s degree in software engineering, presented “Software Development for the Grape Personal Space Weather Station.”

In addition to Dr. Frissell, Rachel Frissell, faculty specialist in the Physics and Engineering Department, presented “Understanding HamSCI Magnetometers Measurements and Observations;” and Kornyanat Hozumi, Ph.D., a post-doctoral research associate, presented “HamSCI as a Tool for Equatorial Plasma Bubbles Study.” Also attending the workshop were faculty members Bob Spalletta, Ph.D., professor of physics and engineering; Argyrios Varonides, Ph.D., professor of physics and engineering; and Christine Zakzewski, Ph.D., associate professor of physics and engineering.

Duryea student presents at Brain and Behavior Conference

Andrew M. Mauriello, Duryea, was among The University of Scranton undergraduate students who made poster presentations for the 2025 University of Scranton Brain and Behavior Conference, held Apr. 26 at the Loyola Science Center on campus.

Mauriello, a biochemistry, cell and molecular biology major, presented “Isolating and identifying candidate Neuro2a cells deficient in Hsd17b7.”



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College commissioners laud $2.8B settlement, call for Congress to act – Orange County Register

By ERIC OLSON AP College Football Writer Conference commissioners lauded a judge’s approval of a $2.8 billion antitrust lawsuit settlement as a means for bringing stability and fairness to an out-of-control college athletics industry but acknowledged there would be growing pains in implementing its terms. In a 30-minute virtual news conference on Monday, commissioners of […]

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By ERIC OLSON AP College Football Writer

Conference commissioners lauded a judge’s approval of a $2.8 billion antitrust lawsuit settlement as a means for bringing stability and fairness to an out-of-control college athletics industry but acknowledged there would be growing pains in implementing its terms.

In a 30-minute virtual news conference on Monday, commissioners of the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC renewed their call for congressional action to supplement and even codify the settlement and emphasized that cooperation at every level of college sports would be necessary to make it work.

They said it was too early to address how violators of rules surrounding revenue sharing and name, image and likeness (NIL) agreements would be punished and noted newly hired College Sports Commission CEO Bryan Seeley would play a major role in determining penalties.

The new era of college athletics has arrived after U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken gave final approval on Friday night to what’s known as House vs. NCAA. Beginning July 1, each school can share up to about $20.5 million with their athletes – those payments will be in addition to scholarships and other benefits the athletes already receive. Beginning June 7, athletes have to report third-party NIL deals of $600 or more to the College Sports Commission, which will analyze them to make sure they pay appropriate “market value” for the services being provided by athletes.

Some of the topics addressed Monday:

Binding conferences to terms

The conferences drafted a document that would bind institutions to enforcement policies even if their state laws are contradictory. It would require schools to waive their right to pursue legal challenges against the CSC. It also would exempt the commission from lawsuits from member schools over enforcement decisions, instead offering arbitration as the main settlement option.

Consequences for not signing the agreement would include risking the loss of league membership and participation against other teams from the Power Four conferences.

Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark said the document remains a work in progress but that he’s gotten no pushback from his schools.

“I look to get that executed here in short order,” he said, “and know it will be very necessary for all the conferences to execute as well.”

Directives on revenue sharing

There has been no directive given to individual schools on how to determine the allocation of revenue-sharing payments, commissioners said. It’s widely acknowledged that athletes in football and basketball are expected to receive the majority of the money.

“I know for all five of us no one is forgetting about their Olympic sports and continuing to make sure we’ve invested a high level for all of our sports,” ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said.

College Sports Commission CEO

The commissioners said Seeley, as MLB executive vice president of legal and operations, was uniquely qualified to lead the CSC, which is charged with making sure schools adhere to the rules.

“Culture doesn’t change overnight,” Seeley told The Athletic over the weekend. “I don’t expect that to happen overnight, but I do think that the schools that have signed on to the settlement want rules and want rules to be enforced. Otherwise they wouldn’t have signed on to the settlement. I think student-athletes want a different system. So I think there is a desire for rules enforcement. There’s a desire for transparency.”

Sankey said Seeley is well-versed in areas of implementation, development and adjustment of rules and in NIL disputes requiring arbitration.

Yormark said: “You want people not to run away from a situation but to run to a situation. He ran here, and he’s very passionate to make a difference and to course correct what’s been going on in the industry.”

Skepticism about enforcement

Deloitte’s “NIL Go” program and LBI Software will track NIL deals and revenue-sharing contracts, and the commissioners shot down skepticism about the ability of those tools to enforce terms of the settlement. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said football and basketball coaches he spoke with in February were unanimous in wanting regulation. Sankey said he has asked the same question at every level – including up to the university presidents.

“If you want an unregulated, open system, just raise your hand and let me know,” Sankey said. “And universally, the answer is, ‘No, we want oversight. We want guardrails. We want structure.’ Those individuals don’t have the luxury to just say that in meeting rooms, period. They don’t have the luxury to just be anonymous sources. They have a responsibility to make what they’ve sought – what they’ve asked for – to make it work.”

Congressional action

NCAA president Charlie Baker has been pushing Congress for a limited antitrust exemption that would protect college sports from another series of lawsuits, and the commissioners want a uniform federal NIL law that would supersede wide-ranging state laws.

“We’re not going to have Final Fours and College Football Playoffs and College World Series with 50 different standards,” Sankey said, “so that’s a starting point.”

Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti said the willingness of administrators to modernize the college athletics model should prompt federal lawmakers to move on codifying the settlement.

Sankey’s meeting with Trump

Sankey confirmed a Yahoo Sports report that he and Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua played golf with President Donald Trump on Sunday. Sankey said he appreciates Trump’s interest in college sports and that it was helpful to share perspectives on the path forward. Trump reportedly considered a presidential commission on college sports earlier this year.

Sankey declined to disclose details of their talks.

“I think those are best left for the moment on the golf course,” he said.

Even with a multitude of questions still looming, Phillips said college athletics is in a “much better place” than it was 48 hours ago, before the settlement was approved.

“What’s not debatable is that this new model does bring stability and fairness to student-athletes in college sports,” Phillips said. “We’ve been in an unregulated environment with no rules and no enforcement. It has paralyzed the NCAA in Indianapolis, and we’re responsible for certainly some of that. We’re now going to have a foundation and structure laying out those rules. The new structure provides our student-athletes with more opportunities and benefits than ever before.”



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Griff ’25, Chavez ’28 earn men’s tennis all-America honors for doubles

Story Links 2025 ITA Division III Men’s Tennis All-Americans Hamilton College’s Connor Griff ’25 (Purchase, N.Y./Harrison HS) and Antonio Chavez ’28 (Tegucigalpa, Honduras/Emilio Sanchez American School) earned 2025 Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Division III Men’s Tennis All-America honors on Thursday, June 5 when […]

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Hamilton College’s Connor Griff ’25 (Purchase, N.Y./Harrison HS) and Antonio Chavez ’28 (Tegucigalpa, Honduras/Emilio Sanchez American School) earned 2025 Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Division III Men’s Tennis All-America honors on Thursday, June 5 when the organization released its list.

Griff and Chavez were one of 22 doubles teams honored by the ITA. They are the first all-Americans in Hamilton men’s tennis team history.

All-America honors are awarded to doubles teams that are a top four seed in the NCAA doubles tournament, win one round at the NCAA doubles tournament, finish in the top 10 in the final ITA Collegiate Tennis Rankings, win an ITA fall regional tournament, or win a first-round match at the ITA National Small College Championships (ITA Cup).

Griff and Chavez reached the finals of the Division III Northeast Regional championships at Drew University in late September and qualified for the 2024 ITA Cup. They defeated University of Mary Washington’s Evan Fisher and Brock Ladehoff by scores of 6-1 and 7-6 (6) in the first round of the NCAA Division III doubles draw at the Rome (Ga.) Tennis Center at Berry College.

Griff and Chavez finished the 2024-25 season with a record of 16-12 as a doubles pairing. They played the majority of their matches as the Continentals’ top doubles team.

 



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