KUCHING: Sarawak’s water polo team clinched gold at the Malaysian Schools Sports Council (MSSM) Aquatic Championship 2025, held at the MBJB Aquatic Centre, Larkin Arena in Johor Bahru from May 24 to 28.

Coach Voon Yong Hui expressed pride in the team’s performance, especially given the challenges faced during the season.

“I’m happy with the result we achieved. It wasn’t easy, as several of our senior players are currently sitting for exams.

“Our juniors stepped up and performed exceptionally well. They have a bright future ahead,” he told Sarawak Tribune when contacted recently.

All seven players on Sarawak’s water polo team come from the Power Aquatic Swimming Club (PASC), highlighting the club’s key role in nurturing young talent.

Their presence formed the backbone of the state team and contributed significantly to Sarawak’s success at the national-level championship.

The seven PASC athletes who formed the core of the gold-winning squad are Bryan Lee Ming Yik, Jeremiah Luk Kah, Jon Marcus Ling Kwong Cheng, Ong Zong Lian, Presley Phang Yi Qi, Samuel Chong Yue Yang, and Tay Kee Ren.

BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The University of Houston Men’s Track & Field program secured five tickets in four events to the NCAA Track & Field Outdoor Championships at the West First Round inside E.B. Cushing Stadium on Friday.
 

The men’s squad will compete at the 2025 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, in Eugene, Ore., from June 11-14, in the decathlon, high jump, 110-meter hurdles, 400-meter and 4×400-meter relay. Senior Grant Levesque qualified for the National Championship in the decathlon following competition at the Big 12 Championship.
 
After finishing in last place at the 2024 NCAA West First Round, senior Jamar Marshall Jr., ran the third fastest time of the day at 13.19 in the 110-meter hurdles to punch his ticket. Marshall Jr.’s mark of 13.19 is the third all-time fastest time run at the West First Round.  
 
The Cougars earned a second ticket in the event with senior John Adesola qualifying with a wind-assisted time of 13.26 (+2.5) for second in his heat.
 
20 minutes later, Adesola competed in the 100-meter with a time of 10.09, missing the qualification by one spot. The senior started his day in the 4×100-meter relay alongside freshman Noah Hanson, junior Ryan Mulholland and senior Brice Chabot with a time of 39.48, missing Nationals by one spot.
 
Senior Trey East III qualified for his first NCAA Division I Championships in the 400-meter with a time of 45.84.
 
East III earned a second qualification in the 4×400-meter relay with a split time of 44.25 alongside freshmen Damarien Jacobs, King Taylor and Sahfi Reed with a season best time of 3:03.49. The relay squad moved to fifth on Houston’s all-time performance list.
 
Sophomore Antrea Mita qualified for his second outdoor National Championship in the men’s high jump after a clearance of 2.17m (7′-1.50). Senior My’Kell Beck finished 18^th with a mark of 2.09m while junior Turey Stoudemire concluded the season in 33^rd place at 2.04m.
 
Senior Adam Mason concluded his career with the Cougars in 18th place with a time of 1:48.48 in the 800-meter.
 
Senior Kevin Grubbs concluded the season in the men’s discus with a 23^rd overall finish at 56.17m.
 
In the men’s triple jump, graduate Caleb Malbrough concluded his collegiate career in 20^th place with a season-best mark of 15.70m. Junior Kevin Snyder placed 25^th with a mark of 15.53m.
 
SATURDAY SCHEDULE
5 p.m. – Women’s 4×100-meter relay: Carlysia Cresser, Taylor Jackson, Norah Nwonumah, Matilde Ochoa
6:15 p.m. – Women’s 100-meter hurdles: Kaycee McCoy
7:05 p.m. – Women’s 800-meter: Invida Maurina
 
SUPPORT YOUR COOGS
Fans can make a direct impact on the success of Houston Track and Field by supporting LinkingCoogs – UH’s very own NIL collective – and by joining the Podium Club which provides support directly to Houston Track and Field for needs beyond its operating budget.

STAY CONNECTED

Fans can receive updates on #HTownSpeedCity by following @UHCougarTF on X and catch up with the latest news and notes on the team by clicking LIKE on the team’s Facebook page at UHCougarTF or on the team’s Instagram page at @uhcougartf.

 

– UHCougars.com –

BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Sir Jonathan Sims became the third Tarleton State Track and Field athlete to punch his ticket to the NCAA National Championships after his performance on Day 3 of the NCAA West First Rounds on Friday at E.B. Cushing Stadium.
 
Sir Jonathan Sims joins fellow jumpers, Lokesh Sathyanathan and Prestina Ochonogor who punched their tickets to Track Town USA in the long jump on each of the first two days.

“Time after time, Sir Jonathan has proved that he belongs on the big stage,” said head coach Bobby Carter. “I’m so proud of this young man. It’s always good to see the growth. He will be ready for the big show in two weeks and I’m excited to see what’s to come. “

 

Sims best jump came on his second attempt. The Arizona transfer posted a 15.83-meter leap on his opening attempt, but he had more left in the tank. Sims came back on his second jump nearly matching his season best with a 15.97-meter performance. He took one final jump landing at 15.64 meters. He finished ninth earning himself a top 12 slot.

 

“We got the job done,” said Sims after the event. “Long jump didn’t go as well as I planned, but I put my head down and I got ready for triple jump. I came out and got our business done. I appreciate my teammates for always pushing me all season. I appreciate my coaches and most importantly my trainers. We do a lot and there is a lot going on with our bodies, but they definitely take care of us. I just appreciate everyone, and we are going to Oregon, y’all!”

 

The junior entered the meet with a season best of 15.99 meters. Sims will return to the NCAA National Championships for his second consecutive season. Last year he was one of four jumpers to reach Oregon in both the long and triple jumps. He posted a pair of All-American Honorable Mention performances in his debut at the National Championships.

 

Gabriele Tosti entered the meet with the third best triple jump in the NCAA. He finished just outside of the top 12 at 14^th with his first jump his only counting attempt at 15.83 meters.

 

On Saturday, Cameron will be running in three events all with the chances to punch herself a ticket to Oregon. She will start in the 4×100 relay scheduled to run at 5 p.m. with her teammates, Hanna Dudley, Amandine Estival and Lauren Roy. She will then run in the third heat of the 100 meters slated to start at 6:35 p.m. Her final race of the day will be in the 200 racing out of the first heat at 7:50 p.m. Sofia DeGroot will make her NCAA West debut in the triple jump at 2:30 p.m.

With just one day left at the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds, the top 12 in each event of the final day will earn themselves a trip to Eugene. The Purple and White have two individuals still looking to punch their tickets to Eugene, Ore., as well as a four-women relay team. The NCAA National Championships will be held at Hayward Field from June 11-14.

 

COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The Wichita State men’s track and field team punched four more tickets to the NCAA Outdoor Championships Friday at the NCAA West Preliminaries at E.B. Cushing Station.
 
Sophomore Josh Parrish earned his second entry to the NCAA Championships, finishing third in his 110-meter hurdles quarterfinal with a time of 13.56 claim an auto-qualifying spot.
 
Shortly after, redshirt-junior Yared Kidane punched his ticket with a gutsy finish in the 800-meter quarterfinals, running 1:47.35 to finish 12^th overall claim the final qualifying spot.
 
In the next race, sophomore Jason Parrish auto-qualified in the 400-meter hurdles, running his third-straight sub-50 second race to finish third in his quarterfinal and get the big Q.
 
Capping the night, the Wichita State quartet of Joakim Genereux, Josh Parrish, Kidane, and Jason Parrish clocked another school record time in the 4×400-meter relay, running 3:06.38 to finish fourth in the second heat. With three heats of quarterfinals, the top three in each heat automatically advanced to the NCAA Championships, and the next three fastest times would fill out the field. The Shockers sat in the final qualifying spot prior to the third heat, needing their time to be faster than the fourth-place team in the final heat. Watching with bated breath, Wichita State saw their hopes of making it to Eugene, Ore. slip away when TCU finished fourth in 3:04.12, leaving the Shockers in 13^th place as the first team out.
 
But that wasn’t the end of the road as there had been a red flag in the first heat, leaving the relay results under review. The Shockers stuck around at the track while multiple protests were filed and reviewed, and a disqualification of Cal Poly, the 12^th-place team, for taking two steps on the lane line pushed Wichita State up into the final qualifying spot, sending the relay the NCAA Championships. While Kidane and the Parrish twins had already locked in entries to the championship meet, Genereux, the senior, who thought his track and field career had come to an end, celebrated joining his teammates at Hayward Field in June.
 

By Nate Raymond

BOSTON (Reuters) -A U.S. appeals court on Friday reinstated a former University of Southern California water polo coach’s bribery conviction arising from his role in the nationwide “Varsity Blues” college admissions scandal.

The Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a trial judge wrongly overturned a jury’s 2022 verdict finding Jovan Vavic guilty of conspiring to commit federal programs bribery by accepting payments to help wealthy parents’ children gain admission to USC as fake athletic recruits.

The judge had set Vavic’s conviction aside and ordered a new trial after concluding the prosecution during closing arguments misstated what it needed legally to prove its case, which arose out of the investigation dubbed “Operation Varsity Blues.”

But U.S. Circuit Judge Julie Rikelman, writing for a three-judge panel, said that while part of Vavic’s conviction could no longer stand following an appellate ruling in a different “Varsity Blues” case, the prosecution’s closing arguments were not contrary to the judge’s jury instructions on the law.

The ruling opens the door to Vavic being sentenced three years after the jury’s verdict. His lawyers did not respond to requests for comment.

He was among dozens of people charged in 2019 in the investigation, which exposed how some wealthy parents went to extreme lengths to secure spots for their children at schools like Yale, Georgetown and USC.

They did so with the help of William “Rick” Singer, a California college admissions consultant who was sentenced in 2023 to 3-1/2 years in prison after admitting he facilitated college entrance exam cheating and helped bribe coaches to secure his clients’ children’s admission as phony athletes.

More than 50 people, including coaches and parents, pleaded guilty.

Prosecutors claimed that in exchange for more than $200,000, Vavic helped mislead USC admissions officials into believing children of Singer’s clients belonged on his championship team.

While prosecutors said some money that Singer paid went toward Vavic’s children’s private school tuition, another $100,000 went to a USC account used to fund the water polo team.

(Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston; Editing by David Gregorio)

By: Hunter McKay

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Chance Cross of the Kennesaw State men’s track and field team punched his ticket to Eugene, Oregon in the 100m at NCAA East First Rounds Friday at Visit Jax Track at Hodges Stadium on the campus of the University of North Florida.
 
Cross ran a time of 10.09 seconds to finish third in his heat and tenth overall. Cross’ time is the fastest wind-legal men’s 100m mark in program history. He is the second Owl to reach the semifinals in program history joining Drew Duggans, who went in 2015. The junior will compete in the semifinals at 8:25 p.m. ET on Wednesday, June 11.
 
Notable Performances

• Chance Cross, Xavier Parris, Nicholas Mabilo, and Eric Young II ran a time of 39.32 seconds in the 4x100m relay to place 13th. That time established a new school record and narrowly missed qualifying for Eugene.
• Justin Campbell closed his KSU career with a personal-best mark of 15.79m (51’9.75″) to finish 13^th. That mark ranks sixth in program history.
• Fellow senior Lloyd Hill also wrapped up his career placing 21^st in the triple jump with a leap of 15.43m (50’7.5″).
• Kenyatta Bennett cleared a personal-best height of 2.15m (7’0.5″) to place 13^th in the high jump. The freshman’s mark tied for the fourth-highest mark in program history.
• In his final race as an Owl, Jeremiah Sims placed 19^th in the 110m hurdles with a time of 13.73 seconds.  
• Four women will compete for KSU on day four of the NCAA East First Rounds on Saturday, May 30.

 
The Owls Fund
The Owls Fund is the primary fundraising arm of Kennesaw State Athletics with the goal of supporting our student-athletes, coaches and each of our 18 NCAA Division I programs. Through initiatives such as Legacy Lockers, the Dot Martin Scholarship Golf Classic, sport-specific giving opportunities, general donations and season tickets, The Owls Fund connects fans with KSU’s programs and student-athletes. Members receive exclusive benefits such as hospitality seating areas and events at Kennesaw State home games, and more. Joining The Owls Fund here and discover more opportunities on how you can support Kennesaw State Athletics.