WEST POINT, N.Y. – The Franklin & Marshall men’s track & field team traveled north in pursuit of national qualifying times at the West Point Twilight Meet on Thursday. Three Diplomats posted top 10 individual finishes at the meet held at Army’s facility.

Zach Houff led Franklin & Marshall on the track as he won his 800 meter heat to finish ninth overall with a time of 1:55.49. That time is just one-hundredth of a second away from a top 10 mark in school history. Owen McCann was 23rd in that same event with a time of 1:59.18.

Dustin Stoetzel had the highest individual finish of the day for the Diplomats as he took seventh in the javelin with his best throw being measured at 51.52 meters. Austin Hadley was 10th in the discus as his best attempt (40.42m) came during his final throw of the meet.

Men’s track & field will now turn its attention to the All-Atlantic Regional Championships. Hosted by Williams College, that championship meet will run from Wednesday, May 14 through Thursday, May 15.

By: Don Rebel


Friday, May 9, 2025 | 12:13 AM

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The WPIAL boys volleyball regular season is over and the district postseason field is set with 26 teams.

The top three teams in each section qualified for the WPIAL playoffs.

If ties of two or more teams for a playoff berth could not be broken by head-to-head tiebreaker, then all of the tied teams clinched.

Here is the final list of teams that qualified for the playoffs through Thursday.

Class 3A

Set with 14 playoff teams. There will be two first round byes

Section 1

*Mt. Lebanon Blue Devils

*Canon-McMillan Big Macs

Peters Township Indians

Baldwin Highlanders

Upper St. Clair Panthers

Section 2

*Latrobe Wildcats

Hempfield Spartans

Penn-Trafford Warriors

• Penn-Trafford ties Armstrong for third place, but Warriors win the head-to-head tiebreaker.

Section 3

*North Allegheny Tigers

Seneca Valley Raiders

Pine-Richland Rams

Section 4

*Gateway Gators

Central Catholic Vikings

North Hills Indians

Class 2A

Set with 12 playoff teams. There will be four first round byes

Section 1

*Derry Trojans

Deer Lakes Lancers

McKeesport Tigers

Section 2

*Shaler Titans

North Catholic Trojans

Mars Fightin’ Planets

Section 3

*Seton LaSalle Rebels

Thomas Jefferson Jaguars

South Park Eagles

Section 4

*Ambridge Bridgers

South Fayette Lions

Hopewell Vikings

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LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference released the 2025 MAAC All-Academic Team for Men’s and Women’s Track and Field on Friday morning.
 
A total of 173 student athletes were named to the 2025 MAAC Men’s and Women’s Outdoor Track and Field All-Academic Team, announced by the league office. To be eligible for the MAAC All-Academic Team, a student-athlete must complete two semesters at their institution and hold a cumulative grade point average of 3.20 on a 4.0 scale.
 
Representing the Jaspers on the Men’s side were Peter Athanailos (Chemical Engineering), Alexander Bilello (Chemical Engineering), Jaiden Bradshaw (Mechanical Engineering), Paul Brennan (Master of Business Administration), Thomas Dubnov Raz (Management), Jackson Haft (Electrical Engineering), Alexander Kristeller (Master of Business Administration), Shane McCorry (Exercise Science), and Brian Oduor (Electrical Engineering).
 
On the Women’s side, Bekah Bouton (Business Analytics), Alexandra Caraher (Criminology), Natalia Cieslak (Chemical Engineering), Makayla Dorvil (Psychology), Martina Martinez Serra (Digital Media Art), Ashlee Okuonke (Computer Science), and Isabella Sing (Psychology).

VILLANOVA, Pa. – The Villanova volleyball program added to its incoming class this week, welcoming three players to the roster for the 2025 campaign on Friday.

First-year Marikate Ritterbusch and transfers Ava Mehrten and Emma Vu join the previously announced trio of freshmen as newcomers to Villanova, each pledging to spend next season on the VU roster.

“I’m super excited for all of our incomers,” head coach Josh Steinbach said. “Adding these three will really help solidify our roster.”

Ava Mehrten

Graduate Student / Opposite Hitter / 6’1

Walnut Creek, California / Carondelet High / University of California, Berkeley

Instagram: @avamehrten

UC Berkeley: Spent four seasons with the Bears … Totaled 136 kills, 94 blocks and 186 points in her time at Berkeley … Contributed 51 total blocks with 0.64 blocks per set in 2024 as a redshirt junior with eight kills at Syracuse and a season-high six blocks vs. Notre Dame … Third on the team in blocks (64) and fourth in kills (90) in 2023 … Earned Wolf Pack Invitational MVP and posted a career-high nine blocks and 19 kills on .452 hitting against Nevada … Redshirted her true freshman season in 2021 … Earned All-ACC Academic in her senior year and a Pac-12 Fall Academic Honor Roll in 2023.

Carondelet High School: Played four years of volleyball … Earned Second Team All-League in her sophomore season … Earned a PrepVolleyball Sophomore 79 special mention in 2018 … Qualified for states in 2019 and made it to the semifinals in 2018 … Back-to-back NCVA champion in 2018 & 2019.

Personal: Born 1/22/03 … One of three children of Caroline and Will … Has two siblings, Pierce and Drew … Plans to pursue an MBA … Chose to attend Villanova because of “its strong academic reputation, outstanding MBA program and close-knit community. The collaborative environment, combined with a dedicated team and coaching staff, truly sets Villanova apart as the ideal place for my personal and professional growth”

Steinbach on Mehrten: “Ava is a physical presence at the net which will help bolster our team defensively, she’s got a natural blocking feel. Offensively she will give us some pop, adding a lefty attacker will give us some variety that we haven’t had in a few years.”

Marikate Ritterbusch

Freshman / Defensive Specialist / 5’7

Palatine, Illinois / Benet Academy

Instagram: @marikateritterbusch / X: @MKRitterbusch25

Benet Academy: Played three years of varsity volleyball, completing her career with a combined record of 111-7 … Team finished as the state runner up three times … Won team’s Sportsmanship Award as a senior … Played club with Sky High Volleyball club, placing fifth at the 2024 Sunshine Qualifier … Named to AVCA Phenom and JVA Girls watch lists … Also played three years of softball in addition to freshman basketball … Member of the National Honors Society … Earned AP Scholar with Honor and Highest Distinction of Academic Honor Roll six times … Named an AAU Academic All-American in 2022.

Personal: Born 7/10/06 … One of two children of CJ and Mary Catherine … Has one brother, Matthew … Aunt Patricia Dart played volleyball at Wichita State and pair of uncles, Peter (Northern Illinois) and Brian McAdams (UW-Stevens Point) played college football … Plans to major in civil engineering … Chose to attend Villanova because of “the commitment to academic excellence, superb athletics and strong Catholic faith.”

Steinbach on Ritterbusch: “Marikate is a really nice defender coming from a good club and high school program where she’s been playing at a really high level. She’ll give us added depth at defensive specialist and her serve receive skills are excellent so I’m hopeful that she can impact our gym immediately.”

Emma Vu

Graduate Student / Setter / 5’5

Allen, Texas / Allen High / Iona University

Instagram: @emma.vu9

Iona University: Played three seasons as a setter for the Gaels from 2022-24 … Accumulated 821 assists (4.77 per set), 47 aces, 27 kills, 296 digs and five blocks in over 55 matches played … Put forth a career high with 5.28 assists per set and 32 aces as a senior … Earned 2024 MAAC All-Academic Team … Graduated magna cum laude from Iona with a BBA in marketing and a sociology minor .. Member of Beta Gamma Sigma and dean’s list in six different semesters.

Allen High School: Played three years of volleyball … Multiple-time academic all-district and all-state … Member of the Gifted & Talented Program and National Honor Society … Played club with Dallas Premier Volleyball and was named to the 2021 JVA Ultra Ankle watch list.

Personal: Born 8/30/04 … One of four children of Jim and Tara … Has three siblings: Joshua, Cole and Cooper … Chose to attend Villanova because of “the top tier academics, competitive athletics and strong sense of community. I felt at home and knew this was a place I could challenge myself and grow.” … Plans to major in marketing.

Steinbach on Vu: “Emma has been a consistent presence for Iona as their main setter for the past three years. The offense she’s been running looks a lot like ours so she’ll fit in very well to what we do offensively.”

Keep up with the Villanova University volleyball program through social media by following on X formerly known as Twitter (@NovaVolleyball) and Instagram (@novavolleyball) and ‘liking’ on Facebook (/NovaVolleyball).
 

For 14-year-old Ava O’Malley, thoughts of making the Olympic team were far from her mind when she contested the national 16 and under championships as part of the 167-team Australian Youth Water Polo Championships in Perth last month.

Daughter of team manager Bianca O’Malley, Ava was experiencing her first taste of national competition and her Geraldton team finished far from the medals.

“It was worth the training and effort that our team put in to get there. The games were tough, but it was good seeing the players from around the country and all the different skill levels. Being part of this team with these amazing girls and our coach Gilly was a really positive experience,” she said.

Geraldton is a port city of 42,000 people, shipping iron ore, wheat, lupin, talc, zinc, mineral sands and the like to the world. It also boasts a water polo competition of about 500 players.

This year, Geraldton sent three teams to the national championships, 420km south — 16 and under and 18 and under girls and an 18 and under boys’ team. Several others players competed for composite teams. It was one team up on the previous two years when it sent a boys’ and a girls’ team.

Jimmy Horsman is an older player at 17 with three years’ experience of the nationals and this year the team grabbed the bronze medal in the green division.

“For three years, most of us boys have played underaged in the 18s’ competition and for us to get bronze, it definitely shows how much we learnt and adapted to being in an older age group. Versing bigger bodies and smarter men definitely made us prepared for what was to come in the 2025 competition.

“I feel like the boys really stood up and grabbed the opportunity of being the older and bigger people in the competition this year. AYC is such a great competition to be a part of,” Hagan said.

It was a family affair with mother Amy Hagan refereeing across all age groups and younger sister Delta Hagan competing in the 16 & under age group.

These players are typical of what it means to travel vast distances in Australia and compete at the highest level in their age groups. Not all will go on to higher honours, but it typifies what our sport is delivering to players in regional centres.

In Western Australia, a boys’ team travelled from Port Hedland in the far north and two teams attended from Busselton in the south-west. It is showing the popularity of the sport and the urge to expose players to a higher level of play.

The AYC is the biggest water polo tournament in the southern hemisphere and the large number of teams travelling from the east coast made this the biggest of the two years it has been staged in Perth — a city with a glorious water polo past.

There were a staggering 565 matches played and many of those were played in Australia’s premier water polo venue — currently called the High Performance Centre — which has staged two FINA World Championships, a women’s water polo World Cup, four youth water polo championships and a men’s Olympic Qualification Tournament.

Water Polo Australia chief executive officer Tim Welsford said: “The Australian Youth Water Polo Championships is always a highlight on our annual calendar, and this year’s event has been no different.

“On behalf of Water Polo Australia, thank you to all the clubs, officials, volunteers and supporters for making the 2025 Australian Youth Water Polo Championships in Perth such a memorable event.

“Our AYWPC teams and players also had the opportunity to cheer on and support our Ord Minnett Aussie Sharks in the three-test series against New Zealand, which was a resounding success.”

There were 57 teams from New South Wales, 43 from Western Australia, 37 from Queensland, 10 from Victoria, seven from Australian Capital Territory and five each from South Australia and Tasmania. There were three overseas teams.

There were 565 matches in 10 days of competition in eight pools at four venues. There were two divisions in each age group, except 12 & unders, while 65 referees and delegates controlled the matches.

Live streaming played a big part in the promotion of the event with 250 matches covered with cameras pointed on to three pools each day.

Typical of the spectators were parents who had made their mark on the sport, including Olympic champions and other former internationals, including four-time Olympian Thomas Whalan, who manned the clock for his child’s match.

The next two editions will be staged in Queensland with Brisbane securing the rights.

“Brisbane has proven itself time and again as a premier sporting destination. We’re thrilled to be returning for two more years, especially as we continue to grow momentum on the green and gold runway to the Brisbane Olympics,” Wellsford said. 

“Since the AYWPC launched in Brisbane in 2018, it has grown year on year and is now the pinnacle event for our clubs on the national water polo calendar and also has attracted interest internationally with clubs from New Zealand, and the USA also taking part,” he said.

The 2026 edition will be staged on April 8-18 and contain more players with Olympic aspirations.

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