Sports

Obituary

Published

4 months ago

August 30, 2025

Marc Hill carved out a 14-year career as a backup catcher, including playing behind two Hall of Famers. Then he spent nearly 20 more years as a coach and manager, in both professional baseball and independent teams across the country. Hill, 73, died on August 24, his family announced on Facebook. Hill, who had been hospitalized for several days, died from complications of a liver ailment. During his playing career, Hill played for the St. Louis Cardinals (1973-74), San Francisco Giants (1975-80), Seattle Mariners (1980) and Chicago White Sox (1981-86).

Marc Kevin Hill was born in Pike County Hospital in Louisiana, MO, on February 18, 1952, but he grew up in nearby Elsberry. His first taste of catching came with the Elsberry Khoury League, where he played for 6 years. Hill was also a talented basketball player at Elsberry High School, usually scoring double digits in his games. He was named to the Class-M All-District basketball team in 1969. He stood about 6’3″ and weighed 200 pounds. When he was named to the East Missouri All-Star Team as a unanimous pick in 1970, the Columbia Daily Tribune described him as “big, burly Marc Hill” and said he was “a great jumper for a man built much like a pro football defensive end.” Hill initially was a pitcher/shortstop for the high school baseball team, but as he matured and bulked up, he moved behind the plate and became one of Missouri’s top high school catchers. He was named to the All-State Second Team as a senior in 1970. Hill was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 10th Round of the 1970 June Amateur Draft, and he signed with the team days later. The Cardinals sent scouts Fred McAlister and Joe Mathes to watch Hill, and they were impressed. “He has a real major league arm and good catching ability,” McAlister said. “And he also has a chance of developing into a respectable major-league hitter.” There was an element of destiny in Hill beginning his professional career with a St. Louis team. His father, Henry Edward Hill, played briefly in the St. Louis Browns organization in the 1940s.

Source: *St. Louis Post-Dispatch*, April 11, 1984.

Hill debuted with the Gulf Coast League Cardinals and batted .192 in 28 games and played well as catcher. He was named Rookie Catcher of the Year and was rewarded by spending several weeks with the Cardinals big-league club as a batting practice catcher. Hill improved his batting average to .232 with Cedar Rapids in 1971 and hit his first professional home run. In 1972, he hit 8 home runs while driving in 69 runs for two different Class-A teams, St. Petersburg and Modesto. He was added to the Cardinals’ 40-man roster that October, but the obstacle in Hill’s path to the majors was Ted Simmons, St. Louis’ 22-year-old All-Star catcher. Not only was Simmons an excellent hitter and catcher, but he also rarely took days off. Whoever ended up as his backup wouldn’t be guaranteed many starts at all.

St. Louis moved Hill up to Double-A Arkansas in 1973, and he batted .241 with 9 homers. His defensive abilities made a fan out of his manager, Tom Burgess. He said the young catcher “throws better than [Johnny] Bench, or anybody… Hill will move Ted Simmons to another position.” Hill was promoted to Triple-A Tulsa at the end of August and proceeded to rip the cover off the ball. In one of his first games, he homered twice and drove in 5 runs in a 6-2 win over Wichita. He batted .414 in 9 games with Tulsa and was promoted late in the season to St. Louis. Hill started a game on September 28, and he went 0-for-3 with a strikeout and double play as Mike Thompson and Diego Segui combined on a 3-0 shutout of Philadelphia. Hill returned to Tulsa in 1974, as the parent club had Simmons as the starting catcher and veteran Tim McCarver as the backup. He hit steadily and maintained a patient outlook. “I might be going crazy reading every day Simmons was 2-for-4 and wondering if I was going to be traded,” he told the Tulsa Daily World. “But Mr. Kennedy [Bob Kennedy, general manager] told me they would never have spent this much time with me if they hadn’t intended for me to be their catcher. So I don’t worry about Simmons. I figure it’s just a matter of time until I am catching and he’s on first [base].”

Hill gets some coaching instructions from San Francisco’s Wes Westrum. Source: *The Indianapolis News*, March 5, 1975.

The Cardinals released veteran first baseman Jim Hickman in July 1974 and brought Hill to the majors. He was given several starts, with Simmons displacing Joe Torre at first base. He singled off Cincinnati’s Don Gullett on July 16, 1974, for his first major-league hit. He later doubled off Pedro Borbon and scored his first run on a Jim Dwyer sacrifice fly. Hill batted over .300 during his week as a regular catcher, but then Simmons returned to his normal position and Hill spent the rest of the season in the minors or coming off the bench with the Cardinals. In 10 games, he batted .238. That October, St. Louis traded Hill to San Francisco for catcher Ken Rudolph and pitcher Elias Sosa.

The Giants had good-but-not-great catchers in Dave Rader and Mike Sadek, so Hill was able to get a share of the catching duties during his time with the Giants. San Francisco had heard the good things about Hill’s defense and throwing arm, and he made a favorable impression in spring training by starting his workouts before the other players even arrived. Well, Giants minor-league manager Rocky Bridges was less impressed when he saw Hill working up a sweat all alone on the field. “Isn’t it awful? He really wants to play. If he isn’t careful, he can louse things up for everybody else,” Bridges cracked. Hill played in 72 games, including 434 innings at catcher, and he committed 2 errors for a .994 fielding percentage. He threw out 36.5% of would-be base stealers, which was above league average. Offensively, Hill batted just .214, but he hit 5 home runs and drove in 23 runs. His first major-league homer came in his first start for the Giants on April 12, and it was a 2-run shot off Atlanta’s Carl Morton. Hill’s average dropped to .183 in 1976, and his season ended in August after he tore ligaments in his knee. After recovering, Hill saw his playing time increase in 1977, as he topped 100 games played in a season for the first time in his major-league career. He had his ups and downs at the plate, but even when his batting average fell below .220, his throwing arm never slumped. He was 0-for-3 in a game against Cincinnati on May 25, but he threw out Dave Concepcion and Ed Armbrister trying to steal, shutting down two rallies in a 6-5 Giants win. Concepcion had stolen 13 bases in a row before Hill caught him. The catcher also got used to working with the Giants pitching staff. “Now that I’m catching them a little more I know what they like and don’t like,” he explained. Hill ended the year with a .250/.316/.366 slash line in 108 games. He hit 9 home runs and drove in 50, which were both career bests. During his time with the Giants, he acquired the nickname of “Booter,” a variation of “Boot” Hill.

During spring training in 1978, the Giants traded Alexander in a massive deal to land pitcher Vida Blue from Oakland. Not only did the move give the Giants an ace pitcher, but it essentially handed the starting catcher role to Hill. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been first string,” he said. Hill got off to a slow start and spent much of the first half of the season batting around .200. He did, however, steal his one and only career base on May 2 against St. Louis — off catcher Ted Simmons of all people. Giants owner Bob Lurie had promised to buy the first base Hill ever stole and have it bronzed for the catcher. Hill’s bat picked up in the summer, and he hit .278 over the final three months of the season. All total, Hill slashed .243/.329/.316 in a career-high 117 games. He had one of his best offensive games the following year, on April 19, 1979. He contributed to a 14-10 win over San Diego with 4 RBIs, including a 3-run homer off Mickey Lolich. That game aside, Hill spent much of the season under .200 and lost playing time to Sadek and rookie catcher Dennis Littlejohn. He had just brought his batting average up to .207 when he was involved in a home plate collision with New York Mets catcher John Stearns on July 24. Stearns knocked him down, and the Giants catcher landed on his right hand, losing the ball in the process. Not only was Stearns called safe, but Hill also broke his wrist, ending his season.

San Francisco ensured that the starting catcher for 1980 would be Hill — Milt Hill, who signed a 5-year contract as a free agent. Marc Hill appeared in 17 games for the Giants and hit .171 before he was placed on waivers on June 20. He was claimed by the Seattle Mariners but didn’t play much for his new team until manager Darrell Johnson was replaced by Maury Wills. Wills had worked as a baserunning instructor with the Giants, and he began giving Hill starts over light-hitting catcher Larry Cox. He hit well enough over the remainder of the season to bat .229 for Seattle and .207 overall. He and Seattle parted ways after the season, as Hill was seeking a multiyear contract as a free agent. “I don’t feel I’m worth $250,000 a year — like a Milt May — and I don’t think any ballclub is going to pay me that,” Hill told the Kitsap Sun. “But I’m looking for a good contract with some security. You never know when you’re going to get hurt in this game.”

Hill initially didn’t get any takers in baseball’s re-entry draft, which was the early version of modern free agency. He almost returned to the Mariners but signed with the Chicago White Sox on a 1-year deal. The only catchers the Sox had were Hill and Jim Essian… until the team landed Carlton Fisk about a month later, after the Boston Red Sox made an infamous contract snafu and lost their All-Star catcher. The signing virtually eliminated Hill’s chance to play, and he was hitless in 6 at-bats during the strike-shortened 1981 season. But Sox manager Tony La Russa valued Hill’s experience and defensive skills, and the catcher made Chicago his home for the rest of his playing career. He got his first White Sox hit on May 1, 1982, and he hit his first Sox homer a week later, helping to spur a comeback 7-4 win over Seattle. Fisk was one of the team’s most productive hitters, but Hill became a valuable backup. During the team’s division-winning season of 1983, he played in 58 games and batted .226 while letting the veteran Fisk get much-needed breaks. He also threw out runners at a 37.7% rate, above league average. “I don’t see any holes on this team,” Hill said about the White Sox in September. “We just have the type of club that if you give us an opportunity to win, we will beat you.” Chicago ultimately lost to Baltimore in the AL Championship Series 4 games; Hill didn’t make an appearance in the series.

Hill tags out Milwaukee’s Ed Romero. Source: *Des Moines Register*, April 25, 1985.

Hill saw the most playing time with the White Sox in 1984, when he appeared in 77 games and batted .233 with 5 home runs and 20 RBIs. He filled in well when Fisk was injured, and he didn’t complain when La Russa gave playing time to rookie catcher Joel Skinner. “I’ve never met anybody as totally unselfish as Marc Hill,” the manager said. “He’s as good a man to have on a club as any I’ve seen, and he’s got talent. There are a lot of us, like I was, who are good guys on a club, but we can’t play. He can play.” The return of Fisk to full health in 1985 and ’86, and the emergence of rookie catchers, left Hill with limited playing time. He played in 40 games in 1985 and batted .133 in 95 plate appearances. In 22 games in 1986, Hill hit .158 — 3 singles in 19 at-bats. The White Sox promoted catcher Scott Bradley to the majors on May 27, 1986, and released Hill. He remained with the team as a catching instructor for the rest of the season and was re-signed as a free agent in October, after catcher Ron Karkovice injured his thumb on a foul tip. He did not make an appearance in the team’s final games, and when the season ended, so did Hill’s playing career.

Over 14 seasons, Hill appeared in a total of 737 games. He slashed .223/.295/.317, and his 404 hits included 62 doubles, 3 triples and 34 home runs. He drove in 198 runs and scored 146 times. Hill had a career .990 fielding percentage behind the plate and threw out 35 percent of all baserunners.

Since Hill was already working as a White Sox instructor in 1986, his transition into a secondary career was already in the works. He wasn’t expecting to be named a manager so soon, but new White Sox general manager Larry Himes asked Hill to manage the Daytona Beach Admirals of the Class-A Florida State League. He said it gave him a new appreciation for his former managers like La Russa and Jim Fregosi. “I didn’t think there would be so many things to do,” Hill said. “But I have to make reports on our players. I also have to make reports on every player in the league twice a year. There’s 14 teams in this league — that’s a lot of reports.” After that season, he served as a coach for the Houston Astros and New York Yankees. Yankees catcher Matt Nokes heaped praise on Hill for improving his throwing mechanics. “Marc totally changed my throwing motion. Throwing was my biggest weakness,” the All-Star catcher said. “He has me throwing in a compact motion instead of the long style I had been using. He also changed my release. The difference is amazing. I get rid of the ball much quicker now, with more on the throw.”

The Seattle Mariners had Hill manage in the minors in 1992-94, and then he managed in the Pittsburgh system from 1995 to 1997. He was named Manager of the Year in 1992 with the Peninsula Pilots of the Carolina League. He managed the independent River City Rascals of the Frontier League in 2003 after several years as a minor-league instructor for the Pirates. Among the players he coached or managed during his career were Sammy Sosa, Raul Mondesi and Alex Rodriguez. Hill is survived by his children, Kevin, Kyle and Kara, and his wife, Judi.

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Sports

Allick Joins LOVB Madison – University of Nebraska

Published

1 hour ago

December 20, 2025

Your Sports Nation

LOVB Madison announced on Friday that Nebraska senior middle blocker Rebekah Allick will be joining their squad for the 2026 League One Volleyball season.

Allick will join former Husker Callie Schwarzenbach on LOVB Madison’s roster.

Allick concluded her Husker career with AVCA All-America Second Team honors, the first All-America honor of her career after being named All-Region three times. She also earned All-Big Ten First Team accolades for the first time after twice earning second-team honors.

Allick had the best season of her standout career with 2.56 kills per set on .450 hitting with a team-high 1.27 blocks per set. Her .450 hitting percentage ranked as the No. 4 single-season mark in school history, as well as the No. 4 mark in the country on the season.

She finished her Husker career at No. 5 in career blocks in the rally-scoring era with 543, and her career blocks per set average of 1.31 ranked fourth. Allick was on the AVCA Player of the Year Watch List at the midway point of the season. She was also named to the AVCA All-First Serve Team, and she was the AVCA National Player of the Week and Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week after two standout performances to begin the season against Pitt and Stanford.

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Women’s Volleyball Adds Two Transfers for 2026 Season

Published

1 hour ago

December 20, 2025

Your Sports Nation

HONOLULU — University of Hawai’i women’s volleyball head coach Robyn Ah Mow announced the additions of two productive pin hitters who will join the Rainbow Wahine as transfers for the 2026 season.

Maëli Cormier, a 6-foot-2 opposite/outside hitter who spent her freshman year at Oregon State, and Panna Ratkai, a 5-foot-10 outside hitter who played at Dayton last season, have signed with the Rainbow Wahine and will enroll at UH for the spring semester. Cormier will have three seasons of eligibility remaining while Ratkai will spend her senior season at UH and both bring international experience with them to Mānoa.

“Both Maëli and Panna add a lot of maturity and competitiveness that will immediately upgrade our gym and culture the moment they step foot on campus,” Ah Mow said. “We are very excited to add them both to our ‘ohana and can’t wait to get to work when spring training begins.”

Cormier, originally from Les Îles de la Madeleine, Quebec, Canada, earned a spot on the West Coast Conference’s All-Freshman Team after averaging 2.63 kills per set for Oregon State in the 2025 season. She played in 28 matches with 12 starts and finished second on the team with 266 total kills. She posted double-figure kills in 13 matches with a season-high 20 in a five-set win over Saint Mary’s. She hit better than .300 in 10 matches and went over .400 five times. She was also the starting opposite with Canada’s U-21 team at the 2024 NORCECA Continental Championship in Toronto and led the team with 35 kills in the tournament. She also played with Canada’s U19 team in 2022 and was selected to the National Excellence Program in 2022 and ’23. She played club volleyball for Élans de Garneau and was a 2025 Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association All-Canadian selection.

Ratkai, originally from Budapest, Hungary, was a two-time Horizon League Offensive Player of the Year at Purdue Fort Wayne before spending the 2025 season at Dayton. After redshirting in 2022, Ratkai put away 1,048 kills and averaged 4.62 per set over her two seasons at Purdue Fort Wayne. She finished the 2024 season ranked 15^th in the nation with 4.57 kills per set and 19^th with 5.17 points per set and was an AVCA All-America Honorable Mention selection. She also had 586 digs and recorded 30 double-doubles in her two seasons with the Mastodons. Ratkai competed with the Hungarian National Team last summer and played in 41 sets and posted 82 kills and 71 digs at Dayton this past season.

Cormier and Ratkai join incoming freshmen Cameron Holcomb and Rachel Purser in UH’s signing class for the 2026 season.

2026 University of Hawai’i Women’s Volleyball Signees

Name	Pos.	Ht.	Yr.	Hometown (High School/Last School)
Maëli Cormier	OH/OPP	6-2	So.	Les Îles de la Madeleine, Quebec, Canada (Cegep Garneau/Oregon State)
Cameron Holcomb	L/DS	5-8	Fr.	San Marcos, Calif. (San Marcos HS)
Panna Ratkai	OH	5-10	Sr.	Budapest, Hungary (Gödölloi Török Ignác Gimnázium/Dayton)
Rachel Purser	MB	6-3	Fr.	Henderson, Nev. (Coronado HS)

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Creighton volleyball adds second high-major transfer commitment in Ayden Ames

Published

2 hours ago

December 20, 2025

Your Sports Nation

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – Creighton volleyball is on a heater in the NCAA transfer portal, which opened Dec. 7 and closes Jan. 5.

Texas middle blocker transfer Ayden Ames committed to the Bluejays Friday.

A former Nebraska commit before flipping to Texas in 2023, Ames averaged 1.52 kills and 1.11 blocks per set with a .368 hitting percentage as a sophomore this season. She has two years of eligibility remaining.

Ames is the second transfer commitment this offseason, joining former Kansas setter Katie Dalton, who pledged to Creighton for her final season on Dec. 17.

Dalton helped lead the Jayhawks to a NCAA regional semifinal appearance, where they lost to Nebraska. She averaged 8.76 assists and 2.27 digs per set and earned All-Big 12 Second-Team honors.

Bluejays’ coach Brian Rosen has two AVCA Second-Team All-Americans to replace in outside hitter Ava Martin and middle blocker Kiara Reinhardt. They also lose Third-Team All-American setter Annalea Maeder.

Yet, the program still made an NCAA regional final this season despite losing seven seniors and two All-Americans from the 2024 roster.

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No. 1 seed Kentucky volleyball advances to National Championship after beating No. 3 seed Wisconsin in 5-set thriller – Kentucky Kernel

Published

2 hours ago

December 20, 2025

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No. 1 seed Kentucky volleyball (30-2, 15-0 SEC) advances to the 2025 National Championship with a 3-2 win over No. 3 seed Wisconsin (28-5, 17-3 Big Ten) in the Final Four.

This will be Kentucky’s second National Championship appearance in program history, with the first coming in the 2020-21 season when Kentucky took home the title.

Kentucky Wildcats outside hitter Eva Hudson celebrates after scoring a point during the Final Four volleyball match against Wisconsin on Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Mo. Photo by Will Luckett | Photo Manager

Wisconsin dominated the first set from start to finish, taking a 1-0 match lead with a 25-12 win in set one. Kentucky used a 6-0 run late in set two to pull ahead and even the match with a 25-22 set two victory. The Badgers attack simply overpowered Kentucky again in set three, allowing Wisconsin to win the set 25-21 and take a 2-1 lead in the match. Kentucky fended off a late comeback attempt by Wisconsin in set four, taking the set 26-24 to even the match at 2-2 and force set five. Kentucky got out to a 8-2 lead early in set five before taking the set 15-13, winning the match.

AVCA All-American First Team member Mimi Colyer was the driving force behind a Badger attack that kept the pressure on all night. She led the match with 32 kills and had a .348% hitting percentage.

Behind Colyer, Wisconsin totaled 77 kills and hit .375% in the match.

The Wildcats powerful outside hitter duo of Eva Hudson and Brooklyn DeLeye were the engine of Kentucky’s attack. Hudson had a team leading 29 kills for a new season high and hit .455%. DeLeye added 15 kills of her own and led the team in blocks with five and digs with 14.

The Wildcats totaled 65 kills with a .254% hitting percentage.

Set One

Wisconsin began the match with a 3-0 run, with back-to-back kills from Colyer.

The Badgers extended this lead to 8-2 with a 3-0 run, this forced Kentucky to take its first timeout early in the first set.

Wisconsin had seven kills with a perfect 1.000% hitting percentage at this point, the Badgers were overwhelming the Cats defense early.

The Badgers perfect hitting continued through 10 attempts, pushing Wisconsin ahead 15-6. This forced Kentucky to take its second timeout of the set.

The Wildcats defense has been a strength this season, but Wisconsin’s attack tore it up in the first half of set one.

Wisconsin continued to extend its lead following UK’s timeout, pulling ahead 21-9 with a 5-1 run.

The Badgers dominated set one, taking a 1-0 lead with a 25-12 set win.

Wisconsin recorded 15 kills in the first set with a .682% hitting percentage, the Badgers made zero attack errors.

Kentucky recorded just nine kills with a .056% hitting percentage, thanks largely to seven attack errors.

Wisconsin’s Colyer and Carter Booth both recorded seven kills in set one.

The Wildcats seemed to lack any answers for Wisconsin’s attack in the set, and couldn’t get their own going.

Set Two

Kentucky pulled out to a 3-1 in the second set, thanks to a kill and block assist from DeLeye.

This lead was extended to 6-3 after a 3-1 run by Kentucky.

Wisconsin mounted 6-2 run to take a 10-9 lead.

Wisconsin took a 15-14 lead into the media timeout after the set was tied at 10-10, 11-11, 12-12, 13-13 and 14-14.

a 3-0 Wildcat run allowed Kentucky to pull ahead 21-20, forcing Wisconsin to take its second timeout of the set.

Kentucky continued its run through the timeout, with another 3-0 run to force set point at 24-20.

Wisconsin stayed alive with a 2-0 run that shortened Kentucky’s lead to two points. Kentucky called its first timeout of the set as a result.

Hudson recorded her sixth kill of the set after the timeout, allowing Kentucky to win set two 25-22 and even the match at 1-1.

The Badgers attack cooled off in the second set, while Kentucky’s began to find its rhythm.

Wisconsin had 14 kills in set two with a hitting percentage of .229%. The Badgers had six attack errors after having none in the first set. The Badgers also recorded six service errors.

Kentucky had 13 kills with a .258% hitting percentage.

Hudson not only led UK in kills in the set, she also recorded two blocks and four digs.

Booth had five kills in the set, bringing her total to 12 kills at a .786% hitting percentage through two sets.

Set Three

Colyer recorded four straight kills as Wisconsin got out to a 4-2 lead in set two.

Another 4-2 run by the Badgers gave them a 8-5 lead, with Colyer accounting for five of those points.

An injury forced Wisconsin to call its first timeout of the set with an early lead.

Wisconsin mounted a 4-1 run after its timeout to pull ahead 12-7, this forced Kentucky’s first timeout of the set.

The Wildcats mounted a 4-1 run that shortened the Badgers lead to 15-13.

A 3-0 run by Kentucky allowed the Wildcats to pull within one, Wisconsin called its second timeout of the set with a 21-20 lead.

Wisconsin forced set point at 24-21, leading to the Wildcats second timeout of the set.

The Badgers won the first rally out of the timeout to win set three 25-21, taking a 2-1 match lead.

Colyer had 12 kills in set three, leading the Badgers oppressive attack. Wisconsin had 21 kills total and hit .386% in the set.

The Wildcats had their best attacking set of the match with 16 kills and a .326% hitting percentage, but they were unable to keep up with Wisconsin.

DeLeye and Hudson each had five kills in the set.

Kassie O’Brien assisted on 15 of the Cats 16 kills in the set, nearly doubling her match total.

Set Four

Kentucky got out to a 3-1 lead in set four, Wisconsin responded with a 4-1 run that put the Badgers ahead 6-4.

The Wildcats mounted a 3-0 run, taking a 7-6 lead with a service ace from Molly Tuozzo.

Wisconsin responded with a 3-0 run of its own to pull ahead 9-7.

Kentucky went into the media timeout on a 5-1 run, allowing the Cats to hold a 15-13 lead. Hudson was responsible for 3 of these points, with two kills and a service ace.

A 3-1 Wildcat run allowed Kentucky to extend its lead to 19-16.

Wisconsin took a timeout after Kentucky pulled ahead 20-17.

The Badgers pulled within one point twice but called another timeout when UK pulled ahead 23-21.

The Wildcats forced set point at 24-21, but the Badgers pulled back to within one and forced a Kentucky timeout.

Wisconsin evened the set at 24-24, but Kentucky scored on two consecutive rallies to win the set 26-24. This evened the match at 2-2, forcing a shortened fifth set.

Set Five

A service ace by Trinity Ward gave UK a 2-1 lead in set five, a solo block by Lizzie Carr brought the lead to 3-1. Hudson’s kill turned this into a 4-0 run that forced a Wisconsin timeout.

The Wildcats continued through the timeout, an error by Wisconsin and kill from DeLeye put UK ahead 6-1.

O’Brien recorded a kill then assisted Hudson to put Kentucky ahead 8-2 at the side switch.

Wisconsin came out of the side switch with a 4-1 run to shrink UK’s lead to 9-6.

DeLeye’s third kill of the set put Kentucky ahead 11-7, forcing Wisconsin to call a timeout.

Wisconsin mounted a 2-0 run out of the timeout, coming within two points.

A kill by Hudson forced match point at 14-11, but Wisconsin responded with a 2-0 run to cut the Wildcats lead to 14-13. This forced a timeout from Kentucky.

Kentucky came out of the timeout and forced a block error to win the match with a 15-13 victory in set five.

The Wildcats will take on No. 3 seed Texas A&M in the 2025 National Championship at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri, on Sunday, Dec. 21, at 5 p.m. ET.

It will be the first time in NCAA history that two SEC teams will face off in the National Championship. The Wildcats are the only team to win the National Championship as a member of the SEC.

The Wildcats went on the road to defeat Texas A&M in four sets on Oct. 8, 2025, en route to Kentucky’s undefeated SEC run and ninth consecutive SEC regular season title.

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Jackson, Reilly Take Home AVCA Positional Awards – University of Nebraska

Published

5 hours ago

December 20, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Nebraska volleyball’s Andi Jackson and Bergen Reilly received top positional awards at the AVCA Awards Banquet at the Kansas City Convention Center on Friday.

Jackson was named the Middle Blocker of the Year, while Reilly was named the Setter of the Year. The AVCA positional awards are new this season.

Pitt junior Olivia Babock was named the AVCA Player of the Year for the second straight season, as well as Opposite of the Year. Wisconsin’s Mimi Colyer took home Outside Hitter of the Year, and Iowa State libero Rachel Van Gorp was Libero of the Year.

Reilly set the Huskers to a school-record .351 hitting percentage, as the Big Red concluded their season with a 33-1 overall record and 20-0 mark in Big Ten play en route to a third straight conference title. Reilly averaged 10.47 assists per set and 2.70 digs per set. She also totaled 73 kills, 67 blocks and 19 aces.

Reilly was named a first-team AVCA All-American, Big Ten Player of the Year, Big Ten Setter of the Year, AVCA Region Player of the Year and All-Big Ten First Team. NU’s .351 hitting percentage ranks first nationally and is the best hitting percentage by a Big Ten team since 2009 Penn State.

A junior from Sioux Falls, S.D., Reilly set Nebraska to a .400 or better hitting percentage nine times this season, a school record in the rally-scoring era. Reilly had double-doubles in all six of the Husker matches that went longer than three sets, and she had four double-doubles in sweeps.

A three-time AVCA All-American and one of four finalists for AVCA Player of the Year, Reilly ranks No. 3 in school history in career assists in the rally-scoring era with 3,723. Her career assists per set average of 10.70 ranks No. 4 among active Division I players and No. 2 in school history in the rally-scoring era.

Jackson was chosen to the AVCA All-America First Team for the second straight year, as well as the All-Big Ten First Team. She was also an AVCA Player of the Year Semifinalist and AVCA All-Region Team for the third straight year.

The junior middle blocker from Brighton, Colo., averaged 2.74 kills per set on .467 hitting with 1.12 blocks per set and 16 aces. Her .467 hitting percentage led the nation and was the No. 3 hitting percentage in school history for a single season.

In conference-only matches, Jackson hit .559 to break the Big Ten record for hitting percentage in conference-only matches in a season, which was .541 by Arielle Wilson from Penn State in 2008. Jackson ended her junior season with a career hitting percentage of .437, which is the No. 1 mark in school history and the No. 1 mark among active Division I players.

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Sports

YSU Collegiate Invitational Presented by Southwoods Health Meet Information

Published

6 hours ago

December 19, 2025

Your Sports Nation

2026 Youngstown State University Indoor Track & Field 14th Annual Collegiate Invitational Meet Presented by Southwoods Health will start at 1 pm | Friday, Jan. 16

Entry Registration Opens up on Direct Athletics :

Friday, December 19 at 5pm

Time Schedule of Events

Running Events start at 1pm

All Field Events start at 1pm

Running Events — Rolling Schedule Women first, Men to Follow

1pm Women 5000M

Men’s 60M Hurdles Qualifying Round

Women’s 60M Hurdles Qualifying Round

Women’s 60M Dash Qualifying Round

Men’s 60M Dash Qualifying Round

Men’s 5000M

Men’s 60M Hurdles PRELIMS

Women’s 60M Hurdles PRELIMS

Women’s 60M Dash PRELIMS

Men’s 60M Dash PRELIMS

Women’s Mile Run

Men’s Mile Run

Women’s 400M

Men’s 400M

Women’s 60M Hurdles FINALS

Men’s 60M Hurdles FINALS

Women’s 60M Dash FINALS

Men’s 60M Dash FINALS

Women’s 500M Dash FINALS

Men’s 500M Dash FINALS

Women’s 800m

Men’s 800m

Women’s 200M Dash

Men’s 200M Dash

Women’s 3000M Run

Men’s 3000M Run

Women’s 1600M Relay

Men’s 1600M Relay

Field Events Start at 12noon

Seeded Women’s Pole Vault

Seeded Men’s Pole Vault

Unseeded Women’s Pole Vault

Unseeded Men’s Pole Vault

Women’s High Jump–Men’s High Jump to follow

Women’s Weight Throw–Men’s Weight Throw to follow

Men’s Shot Put–Women’s Shot Put to follow

Men (West Pit) and Women (East Pit)

Long Jump–Triple Jump follow 20 minutes upon completion of Long Jump

**Finals in field events will consist of the top Nine marks from the qualifying rounds.**

Meet : Open NCAA sanctioned Indoor Track & Field Competition.

Timing: Fully automatic FinishLynx system

Location: The Watson and Tressel Training Site (WATTS) on the YSU campus. The WATTS features a full-length Shaw Sportexe Power Blade HP+ synthetic turf system football field, a 300-meter state-of-the-art mondo track surface, two long-jump pits, a high-jump pit, four batting cages, protective netting, training room and locker rooms.

GPS address: 651 Elm St. | Youngstown, OH 44555

Entries: Entries are due by Tuesday, January 13 by 7pm on Direct Athletics, consisting of event entries with best marks from the previous year or realistic projected marks. All entries will be done on-line at www.directathletics.com.

Please visit the Direct Athletics website at your earliest convenience in order to familiarize yourself with how the entry process works.

Also, please limit FIVE athletes per event. If you have an event with more than five quality athletes, please text Brian Gorby at (330) 519-7591 and we’ll help to get more entry’s added, if needed.

We always try to help accommodate additional team /individual additional Entry’s.

**Note: Please check YSUsports.com after the entry deadline for changes or adjustments to the meet time schedule!

Internet Entry Lists: Final entry lists will be posted on our website, YSUsports.com on Thursday, January 15. Please check to make sure your athletes are entered correctly. If there are mistakes or scratches, please email bdgorby@ysu.edu & ysutrackmeets@gmail.com .

Entry Fees: $ 500 per each team, men & women genders are separate, consisting of 10 or more individuals in unlimited events are paid online, when you complete Entry’s on Direct Athletics or $ 25 per individual event entry & paid online at Direct Athletics.

ENTRY FEES

$ 25 per ENTRY (i.e. 2 events entered would be $ 50 ) Entry fees must be paid in advance online when you enter on DirectAthletics (all major credit and debit cards accepted).

Relay only Entry’s $ 7 per runner for a total of $ 28 per relay team.

REFUND POLICY

Outside of meet cancellation, there is a strict NO REFUND policy on entry fees.

Absolutely no refunds will be processed due to scratches, change of plans, inability to travel, illness, injuries, etc.

Spikes: ONLY 1/4 inch or shorter pyramid spikes will be allowed and all spikes will be checked prior to events. NO pin or needle spikes, spike elements, or any other type of spike will be allowed.

High Jump: All high jump competitions will be conducted on the Mondo surface.

Sections/Heats/Flights: Flights will be seeded by distance with best marks in the latest sections/flights.

Finals in field events will consist of the top nine marks from the qualifying rounds.

There will be prelims and finals in the 60 and 60h. All other races will be run as sections against time with the fastest heats being run first.

Implement Weigh-In: 30 minutes prior to event at the Throws area.

Link