BIRMINGHAM – Highlighted by a collective departmental 3.36 GPA, UAB student-athletes once again excelled in the classroom during the Spring 2025 semester.
 
“We are unbelievably proud of our student-athletes and their academic achievements this spring,” said A’dja Jones, Associate Athletic Director for Academics and Student-Athlete Support Services. “At UAB, the pursuit of excellence is something we pride ourselves on. Our students are competing, getting into the community to serve, leading campus organizations and programs, and still raising the bar academically. I would like to give a shout-out to our academic staff who work tirelessly to support and guide our student-athletes and our campus partners for their dedication as well. I am excited to see what new heights our students reach in future semesters.”
 
In what has become a pillar of excellence for UAB student-athletes, 14 of 17 teams earned a 3.2 GPA or better, which was led by UAB men’s tennis who had the highest overall GPA of 3.91, followed by UAB beach volleyball who had the highest female team GPA of 3.79.
 
Individually, 97 student-athletes (26 percent) earned a perfect 4.0 Spring GPA, while 105 Blazers (28 percent) were above a 3.5 and 288 (77 percent) were above a 3.0.
 
Additionally, another pillar of giving back to the community was on full display as UAB Athletics served 1,417 hours of community service in the spring semester alone which equated to $49,317 of economic impact.
 
Your Support Fuels Success!
With your help, Blazer Student-Athletes are given the resources, tools, and opportunities they need to achieve greatness. Every contribution you make directly supports our teams, ensuring they excel not only on the field but in the classroom as well. We invite you to renew your support to UAB Athletics today and for more information on ways to show your generosity through the Blazer Scholarship Fund, capital initiatives, and sport specific giving go to blazerboosters.com or call us at (205) 996-9969.
 

BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION – The next phase of the outdoor season is here for qualifying student-athletes from The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) track & field teams. UTRGV will be represented by a program-record eight Vaqueros at the NCAA West First Round at E.B. Cushing Stadium. 
 
 Action starts Wednesday as sophomore Keamonie Archie competes in men’s long jump at 4:30 p.m. Also Wednesday, junior Corin Burns and freshman Richard Young will run in the first round of the men’s 200-meter dash at 8:45 p.m. 
 
Thursday will see the women’s student-athletes begin their weekend. At 10 a.m., junior Hannah Hilding will take on the first round of women’s hammer throw. Senior Efe Latham is set for a 6 p.m. start in the women’s shot put first round. Junior Nayla Harris makes her NCAA West debut Thursday at 7 p.m. in the first round of the women’s 100-meter dash.
 
Attention turns back to the men on Friday. Junior Aaron Cooper will compete in the first round of the men’s triple jump for the second consecutive year starting at 2:30 p.m. If Burns and/or Young advanced, they’ll run in the quarterfinals of the 200-meter dash at 7:50 p.m. 
 
The meet wraps up Saturday in Bryan-College Station. Junior Achol Maywin will compete in the women’s high jump semifinals starting at 3:30 p.m. If Harris advanced, she’ll run in the quarterfinals of the 100-meter dash at 6:35 p.m. 
 
There will be six heats of the running events and 24 student-athletes will move on to the next round. To advance to the quarterfinals, the Vaqueros sprinters will be chasing a top three finish in their respective heats or one of the next six best times. Twelve competitors will move on from the quarterfinals to the NCAA Championship meet – the top three finishers in each heat plus the next best three times. 
 
Field event athletes in the throws, long and triple jumps will only get three attempts to try and record one of the 12 best marks in their event to secure a spot at the championship meet. 
 
UTRGV Schedule 
Wednesday, May 28 
Men’s long jump first round, 4:30 p.m. 
Keamonie Archie (F1) 
 
Men’s 200-meter dash first round, 8:45 p.m. 
Corin Burns (H3)
Richard Young (H6)
 
Thursday, May 29 
Women’s hammer throw first round, 10 a.m. 
Hannah Hilding (F2) 
 
Women’s shot put first round, 6 p.m. 
Efe Latham (F1) 
 
Women’s 100-meter dash first round, 7 p.m. 
Nayla Harris (H4) 
 
Friday, May 30 
Men’s triple jump first round, 2:30 p.m. 
Aaron Cooper (F2) 
 
Men’s 200-meter dash quarterfinals, 7:50 p.m. 
TBD
 
Saturday, May 31 
Women’s high jump semifinal, 3:30 p.m. 
Achol Maywin (F2) 
 
Women’s 100-meter dash quarterfinals, 6:35 p.m. 
TBD

Support UTRGV Track & Field | Become a Fan on Facebook | Follow us on Twitter | Follow us on Instagram | Follow us on YouTube

 

After a standout 21-2 regular season that included a Lake Conference championship and a run of 12 straight victories, the Eden Prairie High School boys volleyball team enters the postseason as the top seed in the Section 2A tournament.

The Eagles wrapped up their schedule with back-to-back five-set wins over Wayzata and Eastview, then defeated Hopkins to clinch the conference title. Their lone loss in the final stretch – and just their second all season – came in straight sets to St. Michael-Albertville (STMA) on Thursday, May 22.

“That was a tough match for us and we just struggled all night,” head coach Steph Chapek said. “Definitely having the late loss was tough for us emotionally. This is an amazing group of seniors and juniors and they are ready for playoffs and left the loss behind us.”

Eden Prairie will face the winner of Tuesday night’s play-in match between Burnsville and Southwest Christian/Holy Family on Wednesday, May 28. A win would send the Eagles to the section semifinal on Friday against either Prior Lake or Mound Westonka. Shakopee and Jefferson – both of whom Eden Prairie beat earlier this season – are top contenders on the other side of the bracket.

Chapek said the team’s adaptability has been a key strength throughout the year, noting that lineup changes and injuries forced the Eagles to evolve.

“We are a different team,” she said, “but also will need to really use our strengths of ball control and teamwork to win our section.”

Setter Deion Lange, a senior captain, said the team is focused heading into the playoffs.

“Last Thursday’s match against STMA we had an off night and they played well,” Lange said. “We talked after as a team and are ready to bounce back heading into sections.”

Lange said the team’s chemistry has developed over several seasons together – both on and off the court.

“I love this team, they are some of my best friends,” he said. “You can often find us grabbing food together after a match and playing sand volleyball on days we don’t have practice.”

Lange also reflected on the broader significance of the 2025 season, the first sanctioned by the Minnesota State High School League.

“When I was 12 years old in 2019, I spoke at the Region 6AA board meeting in front of a number of athletic directors,” he said. “I spoke about what volleyball meant to me and why I thought it should be sanctioned. In 2022, several of my teammates and I attended the regional assembly meeting for the official vote. We were heartbroken when it was one vote short from passing. Finally, in 2023, they announced that the vote had passed … just in time for my senior year.”

Chapek credited a skilled and deep roster for the team’s success. Outside hitters Avi Kommalapati and Gabe Hernandez have provided steady play in both the front and back rows. Lange has led the offense at setter, with Ghauthamansankar Padmanaban anchoring the defense. Key contributions have also come off the bench from Daniel Jiang and Om Narendra.

“As far as maturity, we are a very emotional team,” Chapek said. “Learning to channel that emotion and energy back into the team for the benefit of each other has been a big focus.”

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – Lindenwood University finished in third for the Ohio Valley Conference Commissioner’s Cup during the 2024-25 school year the league office announced on Tuesday. This marked the highest finish in school history after joining the conference during the 2022-23 season. The award is a symbol of overall athletic excellence in Conference-sponsored championships.

“I’m incredibly proud of our student-athletes, coaches and staff for their outstanding performance in this year’s OVC Commissioner’s Cup,” said Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Jason Coomer. “This achievement reflects our ongoing commitment to building a successful and well-rounded athletics program. The progress we’ve made over the past year has been tremendous and it’s a testament to the hard work and dedication of everyone involved.”

Southeast Missouri State University finished with 107.0 points, which was 2.5 points ahead of second-place Little Rock (who shared last year’s Cup). The Redhawks were bolstered by first-place finishes in football, volleyball, men’s basketball, women’s indoor and outdoor track, men’s outdoor track and women’s tennis.

Little Rock was second (104.5) and followed by Lindenwood (93), Eastern Illinois (92.5), Tennessee Tech (90), SIUE (80.5), Southern Indiana (78), Tennessee State and UT Martin (64 each), Morehead State (58.5) and Western Illinois (56.5).

Lindenwood finished with a third place or better during the regular season in six different sports. Women’s soccer and women’s volleyball brought home the first two OVC Tournament Championships in program history while women’s basketball finished second during the regular season and made an appearance in their first OVC Championship game.

The 2024-25 season marked the 16th for the Commissioner’s Cup, which was previously known as the All-Sports Trophy. The award (which started in 1962-63 for men’s sports and 1980-81 for women’s sports) was previously divided into a Men’s All-Sport Champion and a Women’s All-Sport Champion. Points were awarded for each of the league’s sponsored sports and each school was required to count its totals from each sport in its grand total.

The points system now has schools count 13 total sports in the final standings. Among those 13, schools are required to count the point totals of three main sports (men’s basketball, women’s basketball, and volleyball) as well as the highest finishing men’s and women’s track & field sport (either cross country, indoor track & field or outdoor track & field). Schools that sponsor football are required to count it as one of its 13 sports.

Points are distributed based on the number of schools that sponsor the sport (e.g. if 10 schools sponsor a sport, the champion will earn 10 points, 9 points for second place, 8 points for third place, etc.). In addition, winners of OVC Tournaments (soccer, volleyball, basketball, tennis, beach volleyball, softball and baseball as well as the football champion) get one additional bonus point.

“While we’re proud of how far we have come, our ultimate goal remains to bring home the Commissioner’s Cup and we are excited about the continued growth and high-level performance of our student-athletes as we look ahead to next season,” said Coomer.

ST. LOUIS – Indiana State was announced as the 2025 MVC Women’s Track and Field Program of the Year Tuesday afternoon by the conference office.
 
The Sycamores continued their dominance of the Missouri Valley Conference during the 2024-25 campaign, sweeping the MVC Women’s Indoor and Outdoor Championships for the second straight season. Indiana State also posted its highest finish at the MVC Women’s Cross Country Championships since 1997, finishing as runner-up.
 
The Sycamores had multiple major performances to propel them to the top of the charts in the MVC. Emma Gresham became the first Indiana State athlete to capture the MVC Women’s Cross Country Individual Championship since 2003 with a school record 6K performance of 20:09.7, while Rachel Mehringer shattered conference records in both the indoor 60m hurdles (8.19) and outdoor 100m hurdles (13.04). Gresham was also an All-Region honoree, Indiana State’s first since 2017, at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional.
 
Indiana State women’s cross country/track and field athletes set 51 program top-10 marks over the course of the 2024-25 campaign (13 cross country, 17 indoor track and field, 21 outdoor track and field), while six school records were broken across the 2024-25 cross country/track and field calendar. Gresham (cross country – 4K, 5K, 6K), Mehringer (indoor – 60m hurdles, outdoor – 100m hurdles) and Lillian Gibbs (javelin) all broke program records during the season, while 24 all-conference accolades were earned by Sycamore women’s cross country/track and field athletes during the season (two cross country, 11 indoor track and field, 11 outdoor track and field).
 
In addition to Gresham’s cross country conference title, Indiana State had eight conference champions across its MVC Indoor-Outdoor Championship sweep. Mehringer (60m hurdles, 100m hurdles) and Jahnel Bowman (triple jump) took home titles at both the indoor and outdoor championships, Janiya Bowman (long jump) and Niesha Anderson (weight throw) won indoor titles, while Brooklyn Pfaff (pole vault) and Emma Yoder (discus) won outdoor titles.
 
Indiana State was also second in the 2025 MVC Men’s Track and Field Program of the Year rankings, after winning its fourth straight MVC Outdoor Championship and finishing second at the MVC Indoor Championships.
 
Follow the Sycamores

For the latest information on the Sycamore Track & Field and Cross Country teams, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook and Twitter. Fans can also receive updates on Sycamore Athletics by downloading the March On App from the both the App Store and the Google Play Store.
 

– #MarchOn –

Youngstown State’s volleyball team will open the 2025 season hosting a tournament at Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center as part of a 29-match regular-season slate, Head Coach Riley Jarrett announced on Tuesday.

The Penguins will host the YSU Invitational, presented by Mercy Health, to open Jarrett’s second campaign on Aug. 29-30. The four-team event will bring Canisius, Duquesne and Mercyhurst to campus, and it will be the first of three non-conference tournaments over the first three weekends of the season. YSU will play in events at Saint Francis (Pa.) and the College of Charleston in September, and the Penguins will host Akron and Kent State on consecutive nights on Sept. 18-19 to close the non-conference portion of their schedule.

YSU’s 24th Horizon League season will start with a pair of contests at Green Bay on Sept. 26-27, and the conference home opener will be Sept. 30 against Robert Morris. YSU will remain home to host Northern Kentucky the first weekend of October before playing back-to-back road series at Wright State and IU Indy the following two weeks.

Youngstown State will welcome Milwaukee on Oct. 24-25, and its final three road matches of the regular season will be the following week. The Penguins will complete their home-and-home with RMU on Oct. 28, and they’ll play at Oakland on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1.

YSU will be home for the final two weekends of the regular season, and its schedule will shift to Thursday and Friday for those two series. The Penguins will take on Cleveland State on Nov. 6-7, and they’ll host Purdue Fort Wayne on Nov. 13-14 in the final week.

Schedule Notes

• Home Tournament: YSU is hosting a tournament on the opening weekend for the fifth time in the last seven seasons.
• Horizon League Opener: Sept. 26 at Green Bay
• Horizon League Home Opener: Sept. 30 vs. Robert Morris
• First-Time Opponents: Lafayette, Stetson