College Sports

Major League Soccer's Meteoric Rise

Rick Burton With the 30th anniversary of Major League Soccer (MLS) fast approaching, it’s obvious MLS has come a long way from its modest beginning in 1996. Once considered an underdog in the American sports landscape, the league has grown into a global player. MLS now draws international stars, record-breaking crowds and major media deals. […]

Published

3 weeks ago

May 7, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Rick Burton

With the 30th anniversary of Major League Soccer (MLS) fast approaching, it’s obvious MLS has come a long way from its modest beginning in 1996. Once considered an underdog in the American sports landscape, the league has grown into a global player. MLS now draws international stars, record-breaking crowds and major media deals.

It’s also become home to a number of former Syracuse student athletes, with Kamal Miller, Deandre Kerr, Alex Bono and Miles Robinson all suiting up for MLS teams. But behind the headlines and highlight reels is a deeper story.

“There’s a long history of failed soccer leagues in North America,” says Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics Professor Rick Burton, who has spent years studying the evolution of MLS. “Many investors, owners and even players lost a lot of money before MLS finally found its footing. That context is important—it shows just how remarkable the league’s success really is.”

This success has taken 30 years to grow. The league started in 1996, with professional soccer returning to the states for the first since 1984, when the North American Soccer League ceased operations.

“What amazed us was just how much MLS had evolved,” Burton says. “When the Apple deal was announced and Inter Miami signed Lionel Messi, the numbers—attendance, rising team values, internationality of players—really stood out.”

Burton, along with Norm O’Reilly, a professor at the University of New England, have studied the rise of soccer’s popularity in the United States, specifically MLS, one of the most diverse leagues on the planet, O’Reilly says. “It’s been that way for years, and that diversity is a huge part of its appeal both domestically and internationally,” he says.

Rise of Major League Soccer book That success is the focus of a new book, “The Rise of Major League Soccer,” co-authored by Burton and O’Reilly and released this week. It offers a comprehensive and research-driven look at how MLS has grown into one of the world’s most dynamic sports leagues, drawing on a wide range of sources, including exclusive demographic data provided by MLS itself.

Both Burton and O’Reilly have also explored how the league has strategically positioned itself for long-term success. Soccer-specific stadiums, a global media partnership with Apple and the arrival of global icons like David Beckham and Lionel Messi have all played a role in reshaping how MLS is perceived.

With the U.S. set to host the FIFA Club World Cup in 2025 and the FIFA World Cup in 2026, the timing for MLS couldn’t be better. “MLS is no longer just a league with potential,” says Burton. “It’s a case study in how vision, strategy and persistence can build something truly global.”

“There are key takeaways, learnings and best practices that sport business professionals can apply in their own work,” says Burton. “We wanted this to be both a compelling story and a useful resource.”

College Sports

2025 Women's DI Recruiting Ranks

The latest 2025 Women’s Division I recruiting class rankings are out for May, as new additions continue to become official. Reclassifications continue to be one of the biggest X-Factors for this year’s classes. With several talented 2008s set to graduate a year early, how those players are able to come into the college game at […]

Published

1 hour ago

May 30, 2025

Your Sports Nation

The latest 2025 Women’s Division I recruiting class rankings are out for May, as new additions continue to become official.

Reclassifications continue to be one of the biggest X-Factors for this year’s classes. With several talented 2008s set to graduate a year early, how those players are able to come into the college game at a younger age and make an impact is difficult to project at this stage.

Transfers have ramped up again in May, with the latest window opening and closing.

Here’s a look at the latest women’s DI recruiting class rankings for the class of 2025.

Please send corrections to rankings@topdrawersoccer.com.

1. Florida State(w) (2)

Commitments: GK Evan O’Steen (Solar SC – No. 15), D Mya Brandon (Michigan Hawks – No. 26), F Jaida McGrew (Charlotte Soccer Academy – No. 40), F Ashlyn Anderson (Indy Premier Soccer Club – No. 44), F Nyanya Touray (Bethesda SC – No. 54), D Kai Price (Concorde Fire SC – No. 57), M Nawreen Ahmad (Fairfax Virginia Union – No. 124), M Omotara Junaid (Arsenal FC), GK Kate Ockene (La Roca Premier), D Sydney Schmidt (Jacksonville FC)

Transfers: M Yuna McCormack (Virginia), D Janet Okeke (NC State), F Erin Flurey (Syracuse), M/F Enasia Colon (Arizona State)

The combination of transfers, reclassifications and a quality international add on paper boosts FSU into the top spot.

2. Clemson(w)* (1)

Commitments: M Carla Small (IMG Academy – No. 7), F Juju Harris (Florida United – No. 8), D Reese Klein (Florida United SC – No. 10), M Neely Kerr (Tophat SC – No. 24), D Jolie Jenkins (VDA – No. 27), D Maddie Costello (SUSA FC Academy – No. 49), D Elle Bissinger (Carolina Elite Soccer Academy – No. 92), F Alessandra Washington (Concorde Fire SC – No. 138), GK Madeline Parrott (Scorpions SC – No. 165), F Natalie Brooks (Concorde Fire SC), M/F Taylor Leib (Alabama FC)

The Tigers take over top spot in this update, with three Top 10 additions and four in the Top 25.

3. Duke(w)* (3)

Commitments: F Avery Oder (Beach FC (CA) – No. 6), D Jocelyn Travers (Bay Area Surf – No. 16), GK Molly Vapensky (FC United (IL) – No. 17), D Daya King (Legends FC – No. 25), D Alexis Coughlin (Legends FC – No. 28), F Kaylee Kim (Bay Area Surf – No. 82), M Kosette Koons-Perdikis (Fairfax Virginia Union)

Duke’s class remains excellent, with U.S. youth national team talent joining. Oder looks like a real impact player in the ACC.

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College Sports

Beth Hanrahan – Women’s Ice Hockey Coach

Published

2 hours ago

May 30, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Beth Hanrahan joined the Brown women’s hockey program as an assistant coach ahead of the 2022-23 season.

A graduate of Providence College, Hanrahan returned to Rhode Island after previously serving as an assistant coach at Mercyhurst University for four seasons.

At Mercyhurst, Hanrahan led recruiting efforts, video sessions and on-ice skill development. During her tenure, the Lakers made three appearances in the College Hockey America conference tournament, capturing the 2020 CHA tournament title to earn the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Elite 8.

Prior to Mercyhurst, Hanrahan spent one season as an assistant at Lindenwood University, assisting the head coach in recruiting and evaluating of prospective Division I student-athletes, providing film analysis and scouting reports, and running the team’s social media accounts.

Hanrahan began her coaching career during the 2016-17 season at Shattuck-St. Mary’s School in Faribault, Minnesota, one of the most successful girls’ hockey programs in the country. She helped develop elite talent at the U16 level to prepare players for the college level by implementing both on-and-off ice training, monitoring academic progress, and coordinating practice and travel plans.

Prior to embarking on her coaching career, Hanrahan played one season for the New York Riveters in the inaugural 2015-16 season of the Nationals Women’s Hockey League.

Hanrahan spent four seasons as a student-athlete at Providence, the last three years of which playing under current Brown head coach, Melanie Ruzzi. Hanrahan totaled 75 points in her career, scoring 45 goals, including a team-leading 15 during her senior season in 2014-15. As a senior, she served as team captain and was named the winner of the ECAC Sportsmanship Award. Hanrahan was voted the team’s MVP following her junior and senior seasons.

Hanrahan graduated from Providence in 2015 with a bachelor’s degree in health policy management and a minor in sociology. She went on to earn her master’s in applied intelligence from Mercyhurst.

COACHING TIMELINE

Season	School/Team	Title
2016-2017	Shattuck-St. Mary’s	Assistant Coach
2017-2018	Lindenwood	Assistant Coach
2018-2022	Mercyhurst	Assistant Coach
2022-Present	Brown	Assistant Coach

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College Sports

Women's Soccer Adds Ngulefac Ahead of 2025 Season

WASHINGTON – GW women’s soccer Head Coach Jeremy Williams announced the addition of Kathleen Ngulefac as a redshirt freshman transfer ahead of the 2025 season. Ngulefac joins the Revolutionaries after spending her first season at Kentucky. A native of Snellville, Ga., Ngulefac did not see game action during her rookie season with the Wildcats. After a standout […]

Published

3 hours ago

May 30, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Women's Soccer Adds Ngulefac Ahead of 2025 Season

WASHINGTON – GW women’s soccer Head Coach Jeremy Williams announced the addition of Kathleen Ngulefac as a redshirt freshman transfer ahead of the 2025 season. Ngulefac joins the Revolutionaries after spending her first season at Kentucky.

A native of Snellville, Ga., Ngulefac did not see game action during her rookie season with the Wildcats. After a standout prep career at Parkview High School, Ngulefac was granted a redshirt during her one season at Kentucky and joins the Buff & Blue with four years of eligibility.

Prior to collegiate soccer, Ngulefac was a member of the Gwinnett Soccer Association, competing in the ECNL. She was honored as a Girls All-Conference First Team honoree for the 2023-24 season in the Southeast Division. In high school, Ngulefac was a First Team All-Region honoree with Parkview. She also earned Class 7A First Team All-County honors and was named to the 7A All-State Girls Team during her senior season in 2023.

Ngulefac joins an incoming class of Revolutionaries that includes Jasmine Black, Anna Cornejo, Caroline Donmoyer, Naomi Kim and Lucy Stenning. She’ll be the only transfer student among the newcomers, with the other five arriving in Foggy Bottom as first-years.

Follow GWsports.com this summer for the announcement of GW’s 2025 schedule.

College Sports

Waimea Athletics awards first college scholarship

WAIMEA — The Waimea Athletics College Scholarship Committee proudly announces that Caylee Cook, a 2025 graduate of Kamehameha-Hawaii, has been selected as a recipient of the inaugural Waimea Athletics College Scholarship. WAIMEA — The Waimea Athletics College Scholarship Committee proudly announces that Caylee Cook, a 2025 graduate of Kamehameha-Hawaii, has been selected as a recipient […]

Published

3 hours ago

May 30, 2025

Your Sports Nation

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College Sports

SEC Gymnastics Championships to include all 9 schools moving forward

Arkansas won’t have to worry about being left out of the SEC Gymnastics Championships moving forward. The 2025 Southeastern Conference Spring Meetings concluded Thursday, with SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey addressing several topics, including conference athletic directors approving including all nine SEC schools that sponsor gymnastics to participate in the SEC Gymnastics Championships starting in 2026. […]

Published

4 hours ago

May 30, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Arkansas won’t have to worry about being left out of the SEC Gymnastics Championships moving forward.

The 2025 Southeastern Conference Spring Meetings concluded Thursday, with SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey addressing several topics, including conference athletic directors approving including all nine SEC schools that sponsor gymnastics to participate in the SEC Gymnastics Championships starting in 2026.

After a season that saw the Razorbacks beat LSU and Florida – teams ranked No. 2 in the nation at the time of competition – during the regular season, Arkansas still ended up as the ninth place team in the SEC by National Qualifying Score (NQS) and was subsequently eliminated from competing at the conference championship meet. This, despite being the No. 16 team in the country at the time (the Razorbacks would finish No. 12 overall after the NCAA tournament). The team also lost out on an away meet score to potentially include in its NQS, which could’ve impacted postseason seeding.

With the addition of Oklahoma to the SEC gymnastics ranks, the conference changed the format of the meet for 2025, opting to leave one school – whoever finished last in the regular season rankings by NQS – out of the conference championship, including individuals. This decision faced backlash from fans, athletes, and coaches throughout the season, especially as Arkansas proved it was capable of wreaking havoc on the conference’s top teams.

Part of the hang up on having nine teams was the issue of having five teams in either the afternoon or evening session, which would mean adding a bye rotation and increasing the runtime of the meet by approximately 20-30 minutes – a potential obstacle for the meet broadcast as networks continue to try to optimize the viewer experience. According to Whole Hog Sports, the 2026 SEC Gymnastics Championships will see the bottom four teams compete in the afternoon session and the top five teams compete in the evening session.

“All nine [teams] will be invited,” Sankey said. “Noting just the high level of competition and the impact on some of the score opportunities, it’s important for all of us to compete together.”

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College Sports

Kickoff Time Announced for OSU’s Game at Oregon

STILLWATER – Oklahoma State’s September 6 game at Oregon kicks off at 2:30 p.m. CT on CBS, announced Thursday by the Big Ten. It marks the fourth time in program history and the first time since the 1987 Sun Bowl that Oklahoma State has played on CBS. With Thursday’s announcement from the Big 12 […]

Published

4 hours ago

May 30, 2025

Your Sports Nation

STILLWATER – Oklahoma State’s September 6 game at Oregon kicks off at 2:30 p.m. CT on CBS, announced Thursday by the Big Ten.

It marks the fourth time in program history and the first time since the 1987 Sun Bowl that Oklahoma State has played on CBS.

With Thursday’s announcement from the Big 12 of OSU’s first two home game kickoff times, the non-conference schedule is complete.

The Cowboys’ season opener against UT Martin on Thursday, August 28, kicks at 6:30 p.m. CT on ESPN+ and the Gateway First Bank Turnpike Classic against Tulsa on Friday, September 19, starts at 6 p.m. CT on ESPN.

Kickoff times for OSU’s conference slate will be announced within two weeks prior to each game.

Season tickets that include all seven home Cowboy football games are on sale now at okstate.com/tickets. The OSU ticket office can also be reached via call/text at 877-255-4678 or through email at tickets@okstate.edu.

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