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NWSL expansion team Boston Legacy gets White Stadium court win

Published

8 months ago

April 3, 2025

NWSL expansion team Boston Legacy gets White Stadium court win

A Superior Court Justice on Wednesday ruled that the renovation of White Stadium, the future home of Boston Legacy FC in the NWSL, is not in violation of state law.

Judge Matthew Nestor found that the Franklin Park stadium parcel, where the stadium is being revitalized, is not subject to Article 97 of the Massachusetts Constitution, allowing the project to proceed as planned.

The decision is a major win for Boston Legacy and the City of Boston, which have long championed their vision of bringing professional women’s soccer back to the city through a public-private partnership that would renovate the historic stadium, which will remain at 10,000-seat capacity once the work has been completed.

The stadium would be shared by the professional team and Boston Public Schools (BPS). A release from the City of Boston last month said the renovation will triple the available hours the BPS can use the stadium to between 750-900 per year.

“With today’s ruling, we are pleased to continue the revitalization of White Stadium alongside the city of Boston,” Jennifer Epstein, Boston Legacy FC’s controlling manager, said in a statement. “Boston Public Schools students and the communities around Franklin Park have long deserved the type of generational investment this project delivers.”

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, a staunch supporter of the project, called the decision a “historic victory” in a separate statement.

“A renovated White Stadium will be open and used by BPS students, coaches, and community 15 hours per day, more than 345 days per year,” Wu said in the statement. “We thank the Superior Court for twice affirming this vital project for our students and community as a year-round facility that will inspire the next generation of Boston students.”

The team is slated to begin play in 2026 alongside another expansion club in Denver. Construction is expected to finish next winter, in time for the start of the 2026 NWSL season.

The end of this legal challenge removes a major hurdle for Boston Legacy, which has had a turbulent journey since Boston Unity Soccer Partners LLC, the investors group behind the club, was awarded NWSL expansion rights in September 2023

The White Stadium lawsuit, filed five months later, hoped to halt the project altogether.

The plaintiffs — the Emerald Necklace Conservancy and several residents who live near Franklin Park — argued the project would equate to the privatization of public land that was legally mandated to remain public.

The plaintiffs, in their challenge against White Stadium, were met with various setbacks along the way. They failed to convince the Suffolk Superior Court judge to provide an injunction last March and then were denied their request for a trial delay.

One day before the trial, a ruling by Nestor essentially threw out half of the plaintiffs’ case, signaling that his decision may eventually sway in the defendant’s favor. The judge in that pre-trial hearing ruled that the conservancy had no standing to bring a case against the defendants on the matter of whether the George Robert White Trust, which owns the stadium and the parcel of land where it sits, could make a deal with the city.

The conservancy’s president, Karen Mauney-Brodek, said in a statement on Wednesday that their group was “deeply disappointed” by Nestor’s decision and that they “plan to assess our legal options.”

“Our advocacy for Franklin Park and the community is about supporting our kids and the park with a truly public stadium. The communities around the park should be central to decision-making for our parks, not asked their opinion after decisions are already made,” Mauney-Brodek said in the statement. “We are proud to stand with community leaders who are not being heard. It’s our organization’s mission to work with all to protect and support Franklin Park and the rest of the Emerald Necklace for today and the future.”

The cost of the stadium project is expected to exceed $200 million, with the NWSL club responsible for more than half of those costs. The debate over the future of White Stadium has become a hotly debated subject in the city’s current mayoral race, which inadvertently brings with it a version of soccer politics.

Boston’s current mayor, Michelle Wu, has been a staunch supporter of the White Stadium project, as well as the NWSL team behind it. The incumbent is facing a unique challenge by Josh Kraft, who has been an outspoken critic of the stadium.

Kraft – son of New England Patriots and New England Revolution owner Robert Kraft – also has ties to his family’s push to build their own soccer-specific stadium for the Revolution in Everett, which would require an agreement with the city.

(Andrew Burke-Stevenson/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

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Women’s Volleyball Puts Three on AVCA All-East Coast Region Team – Penn State

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1 minute ago

December 10, 2025

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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Three Penn State women’s volleyball players earned All-East Coast Region honors as announced by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) on Tuesday. Gillian Grimes, Kennedy Martin, and Maggie Mendelson all received the award after helping the Nittany Lions qualify for the NCAA Tournament for the 45^th-consecutive season.

Grimes earned All-East Coast Region for the first time following her final collegiate season. The senior was a much-needed consistent player and presence as a team captain for Penn State. She was named the Big Ten Libero of the Year thanks to her impressive passing numbers. Defensively, she finished with 441 digs (3.64/set) and contributed offensively with her 30 aces. A two-time All-Big Ten selection, Grimes now turns her attention to the pro ranks as she will play for the San Diego Mojo in Major League Volleyball.

Martin put together one of the greatest statistical seasons in program history, etching her name in the Penn State record books. She set program records for the 25-point rally scoring era (2008-present) in kills (634), kills/set (5.42), points (728) and points/set (6.22). She was a first-team All-Big Ten selection in her first season in the conference and now adds All-East Coast Region recognition to the two All-Southeast Region awards she won at Florida.

Mendelson closes her collegiate volleyball career with her first All-East Coast Region award. The middle blocker hit .363 with 2.19 kills/set and tallied 91 blocks to lead the team’s defense at the net. She had 10 matches with double-digit kills, nine of which came during Big Ten play. She hit .500 or better in five of those matches.

Penn State has now had a middle blocker make an all-region team in back-to-back seasons as Mendelson joins Taylor Trammell (2024) as the recipients of the award. Grimes is the first Penn State libero to make all-region since Jenna Hampton in 2021, while Martin is the team’s first right side to earn the honor since 2021.

The 2025 Penn State women’s volleyball season is presented by Musselman’s.

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Ugolini Named AVCA All-Region – America East Conference

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17 minutes ago

December 10, 2025

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<br /> Ugolini Named AVCA All-Region – America East Conference <br />

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BOSTON – After claiming America East Player of the Year honors, Bryant’s Arianna Ugolini has been named Honorable Mention All-Region by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.

Ugolini led the conference in kills (419), service aces (43), and points (476.5) while helping Bryant claim a share of its first-ever regular season title. She is Bryant’s first-ever Player of the Year in volleyball and was a First-Team All-Conference selection.

ABOUT AMERICA EAST

Founded in 1979, the America East Conference is an elite NCAA Division I athletic conference that fosters an environment for student-athletes to become champions. Comprised of academically renowned, like-minded member institutions located in the Northeast region of the United States, America East is committed to broad-based excellence and progressive in its approach to supporting its more than 3,500 student-athletes across 18 sponsored sports. For more information, visit www.AmericaEast.com and follow the America East Conference and its social media channels, @AmericaEast.

– America East Conference – Where Champions Rise –

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Behrend sprinter wins at Houghton December Classic

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33 minutes ago

December 10, 2025

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ERIE, Pa. — Penn State Behrend runner Carter Tobin won the 60-meter dash at the Houghton December Classic. He finished in 6.85 seconds — a qualifying time for the All-Atlantic Region Track and Field Conference.

Tobin, a sophomore from Irwin, placed third in the 200-meter dash, finishing in 22.22 seconds.

Lee Qualk, a freshman from Coal Center, placed third in the triple jump, clearing a distance of 7.13 meters.

In the women’s events, the 4×200 relay team — Anna Buck, Caroline McDevitt, Abigail Falk and Ruby Lormejuste — placed third, finishing in 1:54.41.

Behrend’s basketball, swimming and diving and wrestling teams also were in action last week. Here are the scores and highlights:

Men’s basketball

Penn State Behrend 69, Carlow 53
Penn State Behrend 75, La Roche 71

Jacob Dunkle, a freshman from Washington, scored 23 points and grabbed nine rebounds against La Roche. Dolan Waldo, a senior from Pittsburgh, scored a career-high 19 points and grabbed 11 rebounds.

Women’s basketball

Penn State Behrend 94, Carlow 38
La Roche 68, Penn State Behrend 64

Alaina Fabin, a sophomore from Indiana, scored a career-high 23 points and grabbed 12 rebounds against La Roche. Emma Marsteller, a sophomore from Sandy Lake, scored 21 points and grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds against Carlow.

Men’s swimming and diving

Penn State Behrend 129, Allegheny 70

Behrend’s 200 medley relay team — Nevin Rutherford, Evan Tritt, Nicolin Pierce and Michael Kali — won, finishing in 1:45.52. Isaac Stoeckle, a sophomore from Pittsburgh, won the 1,000 freestyle, finishing in 10:57.86. Kyle Malec, a freshman from Edinboro, won the diving events; he earned 198.35 points in the 1-meter event and 195.25 points in the 3-meter event.

Women’s swimming and diving

Penn State Behrend 154, Allegheny 106

Kaitlyn True, a freshman from Denton, Texas, won the 100 freestyle (59.42) and the 100 breaststroke (1:14.31). Izzy Sheridan, a senior from Orefield, won the 100 backstroke, finishing in 1:07.79. Rylee Ondrejko, a freshman from Washington, won the diving events; she earned 139.80 points in the 1-meter event and 150.20 points in the 3-meter event.

Wrestling

Fifth (of 14 teams) at the RIT Invitational

Mason Savitz, a freshman from Corry, won the 165-pound weight class. He finished the tournament 5-0, with one fall and two major decisions.

Scores, updates and video links for Penn State Behrend athletics are posted at psblions.com.

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Big West Trio Lands on AVCA All-Pacific Region Listings

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34 minutes ago

December 10, 2025

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Representing three member-institutions, a trio of Big West women’s volleyball players have been announced as American Volleyball Coaches’ Association (AVCA) All-Pacific Region honorable mention student-athletes.

Big West Player of the Year Jade Light helped UC Davis to their first regular-season Big West title while pacing the Aggies and the conference in both kills (4.01) and points (4.52) per set in 2025. Posting consecutive seasons of 400+ kills, the outside hitter from Sloughhouse, Calif., has tallied 1,162 career strikes and is just the 13th UC Davis player to reach the four-digit plateau. Light stands as the first – and only – Aggie to earn Player of the Year honors in UC Davis’ last season of league membership while also earning first-team All-Big West distinction.

UC Santa Barbara redshirt sophomore Eva Travis claimed a first career All-Region distinction after trailing only Light in both kills (3.93) and points (4.42) per set to lead the Gauchos back to The Big West postseason finishing the year tied for second in the conference standings. The product of Aliso Viejo, Calif., finished the year with six 20-point games reaching double-figures in all 28 matches played and started, earning All-Big West second-team honors.

Finally, Cal Poly middle blocker and Big West Championship Most Valuable Player Chloe Leluge made the listings after a stellar sophomore campaign. The powerful net play provided by the Bend, Ore., native has resulted in 126 total blocks, or 1.02 per set, along with 2.30 kills per set while sporting an efficient .383 hitting percentage for The Big West champions. Leluge and the Mustangs upended No. 5 seed BYU and knocked off host and No. 4 seed USC last weekend to advance to the regional semifinals of the NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship. Cal Poly is set to square off with No. 1 seed Kentucky in the Round of 16 on Thursday at 12:30 p.m. PT.

Last year, the AVCA instituted a new 10-region alignment based upon state lines rather than conference alignment. In the new configuration, the Pacific Region consists of the states of California, Hawai’i and Arizona.

Regardless of various regional changes throughout the years, The Big West has enjoyed at least one All-Region/All-District selection every season, since 1986. Dating back to the 2015 season, this marks the ninth set of All-Region listings to include at least three Big West performers.

AVCA All-Pacific Region

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Frantzich and Nemecek land MIAC Athlete of the Week accolades

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49 minutes ago

December 10, 2025

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BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – First year Svea Frantzich and senior Lance Nemecek of the St. Olaf College women’s and men’s track and field teams were named one of the two Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Athletes of the Week in their respective sports on Tuesday.

Frantzich was chosen as the MIAC Women’s Field Athlete of the Week, while Nemecek collected MIAC Men’s Track Athlete of the Week honors, with both Oles landing the first MIAC Athlete of the Week accolades of their careers.

Frantzich recorded the fifth-highest pentathlon score in NCAA Division III this season with 3,005 points in her collegiate debut at the M City Classic on Friday. Frantzich posted top-10 all-time performances on St. Olaf’s indoor list in the 60-meter hurdles (9.47) and long jump (5.44m) on her way to compiling the No. 8 pentathlon score on the Oles’ all-time performers’ list.

Nemecek ran the second-fastest 800-meter time in NCAA Division III this season with a meet record time of 1:54.02 at the M City Classic on Friday. Nemecek’s time ranks third on both St. Olaf’s all-time performers’ and performances lists. He also led off the first-place 4×400-meter relay that won the event in a meet-record time of 3:21.77, which ranks fifth nationally and second on both St. Olaf lists.

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No. 3 Volleyball lands four on AVCA Southwest Region Team

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50 minutes ago

December 10, 2025

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AUSTIN, Texas – No. 3 Texas Volleyball landed four on the AVCA Southwest All-Region Team, led by Torrey Stafford who was named AVCA Southwest Region Player of the Year.

Stafford became the fifth Longhorn to earn the award, which marked the seventh overall award joining Chiaka Ogbogu (’17), Micaya White (’18), Logan Eggleston (20-22) and Madisen Skinner (’23). Stafford leads the Longhorns with 488 kills, has totaled 4.74 kills per set, is hitting .359 and leads the team with 32 aces.

Stafford was also named to the All-Region Team along with freshman Cari Spears, sophomore Ayden Ames and senior Emma Halter.

Spears was also tabbed as the AVCA Southwest Region Freshman of the year. Texas has now won the award three-straight seasons following Ames and Ella Swindle.

Texas is set to host #15 Indiana on Dec. 12 at 11 a.m. CT at Gregory Gym in the Sweet 16.

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