PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers Athletics placed 132 Scarlet Knights on the 2024-25 Big Ten Distinguished Scholars list, the conference announced. It marks the fifth-consecutive academic year that over 125 Rutgers student-athletes were named to the list.

A total of 33 Scarlet Knights earned a perfect 4.0 grade point average (GPA) during the previous academic term. Those individuals are listed below; 

• Lucy Bannatyne, Field Hockey
• Paulina Niklaus, Field Hockey
• Tyler Needham, Football
• Emily Leese, Gymnastics
• Gianna Ortiz, Gymnastics
• Aidan Flynn, Men’s Soccer
• Noah Kriesman, Men’s Track and Field
• Nico Morales, Men’s Track and Field
• Alissa Kinkela, Volleyball
• Emma Baeyens, Women’s Cross Country
• Emily James, Women’s Golf
• Krystal Li, Women’s Golf
• Lucrezia Rossettin, Women’s Golf
• Erin Duggan, Women’s Lacrosse
• Victoria Goldrick, Women’s Lacrosse
• Kimberly Greenblatt, Women’s Lacrosse
• Madison Karpe, Women’s Lacrosse
• Kelsey Klein, Women’s Lacrosse
• A’Mya Dill-El, Women’s Rowing
• Julia Galesi, Women’s Rowing
• Ruby Hatfield, Women’s Rowing
• Kathryn Koleto, Women’s Rowing
• Sydney Lehrer, Women’s Rowing
• Claire Nealon , Women’s Rowing
• Orian Gablan, Women’s Swimming & Diving
• Grace Hagemaster, Women’s Swimming & Diving
• Katherine Lang, Women’s Swimming & Diving
• Hale Oal, Women’s Swimming & Diving
• Natalie Schick, Women’s Swimming & Diving
• Jade Smits, Women’s Swimming & Diving
• Charlee Crawford, Women’s Track and Field
• Emma Keating, Women’s Track and Field
• Suzy Lacombe, Women’s Track and Field

Big Ten Faculty Representatives established the Distinguished Scholar Award in 2008 to supplement the Academic All-Big Ten program. Distinguished Scholar Award recipients must have earned Academic All-Big Ten recognition in the previous academic year, must have been enrolled full time at the institution for the entire previous academic year (two semesters or three quarters) and earned a minimum GPA of 3.70 or better during the previous academic year, excluding any summer grades. The Academic All-Big Ten threshold is a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher for a student’s academic career.

Rutgers Big Ten Distinguished Scholar Selections by Sport

Baseball (3)

• RJ Johnson Jr.
• JD Jones           
• Joe Mazza

Field Hockey (10)

• Natalie Arnold             
• Lucy Bannatyne          
• Olivia Beattie
• Guillermina Causarano
• Ava Cickavage
• Sophia Howard           
• Vicky Jure        
• Paulina Niklaus           
• Indy Van Ek     
• Puck Winter   

Football (10)

• Djibril Abdou Rahman            
• DJ Allen            
• Joe De Croce 
• Moses Gbagbe-Sowah          
• Kyonte Hamilton        
• Nelson Monegro Breton
• Tyler Needham            
• Nick Oliveira  
• Terrence Salami          
• Reggie Sutton

Gymnastics (9)

• Elia Aird            
• Olivia DiNovi 
• Campbell Earley        
• Emily Leese   
• Jacqueline Manifold
• Gianna Ortiz  
• Anna Pagliaro
• Matis Rains    
• Ginger Richards          

Men’s Cross Country (1)

Men’s Golf (1)

Men’s Lacrosse (5)

• Brock Desmarais       
• Justin Lawler 
• Dean Scalamandre   
• Cardin Stoller
• Marco Wimmershoff

Men’s Soccer (4)

• Nicholas Collins
• Aidan Flynn    
• Andrew Noel 
• Erick Ruiz        

Men’s Track and Field (9)

• Steven Coponi             
• Ian Habjan      
• Noah Kriesman           
• Nico Morales 
• Zachary Novak            
• Brian O’ Sullivan         
• Robert Paneque         
• Sincere Robinson      
• Zachary Semerjian   

Softball (2)

• Jillian Anderson          
• Georgia Ingle 

Volleyball (2)

• Makenzie Dyrstad      
• Alissa Kinkela

Women’s Basketball (2)

• Kennedy Brandt
• Awa Sidibe     

Women’s Cross Country (3)

• Emma Baeyens          
• Lorena David 
• Casey Walter

Women’s Golf (4)

• Emily James   
• Krystal Li          
• Lorena Rossettin        
• Lucrezia Rossettin     

Women’s Lacrosse (14)

• Makenna Boutin         
• Katie Buck      
• Ava Chiarella 
• Kayleigh Coughlin      
• Erin Devine    
• Erin Duggan   
• Gianna Eglauf              
• Victoria Goldrick        
• Kimberly Greenblatt 
• Madison Karpe            
• Kelsey Klein   
• Sophia Rowell              
• Samantha Swanovich             
• Grace Toth      

Women’s Rowing (20)

• Lauren Andersen       
• Elli Arbogast
• Madison Cancro
• Megan Cherichello   
• A’Mya Dill-El
• Katharina Dowlin       
• Abigail Franks
• Julia Galesi     
• Madeline Galesi         
• Catherine Garvey       
• Ruby Hatfield
• Vanessa Karayiannis
• Kathryn Koleto
• Sydney Lehrer              
• Madison Miller            
• Catherine Montgomery         
• Claire Nealon
• Emily Szopa   
• Seher Talukdar            
• Sofia Ulinski  

Women’s Soccer (7)

• Kassidy Banks             
• Olivia Bodmer              
• Kylie Daigle    
• Cameron Kennett      
• Olivia Russomanno  
• Tehya Scheuten          
• Patricia Tsokos           

Women’s Swimming and Diving (13)

• Sephora Ford 
• Orian Gablan
• Grace Hagemaster   
• Ella Hall           
• Katherine Lang            
• Shannon Meadway   
• Hale Oal          
• Holly Prasanto             
• Natalie Schick             
• Elinor Schinsky           
• Jade Smits      
• Emma Solseng            
• Molly Urkiel    

Women’s Tennis (2)

• Jackeline Lopez
• Mai Nguyen

Women’s Track and Field (9)

• Anna Barber  
• Bailey Bertrand           
• Celine-Jada Brown    
• Charlee Crawford
• Kelly Enterline             
• Samantha Gravatt     
• Emma Keating             
• Suzy Lacombe
• Kristina Tossas

Wrestling (2)

• Alfred DeSantis
• Hadyn Packer

Under the bright lights of the Brazosport ISD Board Meeting, a wave of pride washed over the room as the achievements of the Ladybug Water Polo team were celebrated. The team, fresh off their victory as the 2024 UIL state champions, has made history by clinching the title for the third consecutive year, a feat that speaks volumes about their dedication and teamwork.

Head coach Robert Brown and assistant coach Kyle Painter stood proudly as the team was recognized for their remarkable journey. With an impressive season record of 28 wins and just 2 losses, the Ladybugs showcased their resilience, overcoming challenges and setting high goals throughout the year. Their path to the championship was marked by significant victories, including a thrilling 14-8 win over Southlake Carroll in the semifinals and a nail-biting 11-9 overtime victory against Foster in the state championship game.

Since water polo became a UIL sanctioned sport in 2022, the Ladybugs have consistently excelled, boasting a combined record of 76 wins and 9 losses over the past three years. Notably, seven of those losses were to Foster, making their championship win even sweeter. The team’s success is not just a reflection of their athletic prowess but also of the unwavering support from families, staff, and fans who rallied behind them throughout the season.

As the meeting continued, the board took a moment to express gratitude to the water polo families and fans for their steadfast encouragement. The celebration culminated in the introduction of the team members, each recognized for their contributions to this historic achievement.

This championship is more than just a title; it symbolizes the spirit of determination and collaboration that unites the Brazosport community. As the Ladybugs prepare for the next season, their legacy of excellence continues to inspire, reminding everyone of what can be achieved through hard work and unity.

The College Football Playoff could remain at 12 teams if the Southeastern Conference and Big Ten can’t come to an agreement, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said Monday.

“That’s fine,” Sankey said as SEC media days kicked off in Atlanta. “We have a 12-team playoff, five conference champions. That can stay if we can’t agree.”

Coaches in the SEC would like to see a 16-team playoff that follows the “5+11” model, made up of the five highest-ranked conference champions and 11 at-large bids.

The Big Ten has proposed a format where the Big Ten and SEC would each get four automatic bids, with two going to both the ACC and Big 12 and one more to the highest-ranked champion of another conference. The rest of the field — either 14 or 16 teams — would come from at-large bids.

“We had a different view coming out of (SEC meetings) around the notion of allocations, if you will,” Sankey said, referring to automatic bids. “I think you’ll probably hear that again from our coaches. The Big Ten has a different view, that’s fine.”

Although all sides at least seem to favor increasing the size of the field, Sankey said it’s not a foregone conclusion.

“I think there’s this notion that there has to be this magic moment and something has to happen with expansion, and it has to be forced,” he said.

There is a Dec. 1 deadline to determine a format for the CFP in 2026 and beyond.

–Field Level Media

OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — Sports officials have a tough job and it’s been a challenge to recruit new ones.

In this story, you’ll meet Craig Wiedel who has been a volleyball referee for 30 years. He’s stuck around through referee shortages and actively works to recruit more officials in Nebraska.

His why: giving back and the love of competition.

• Craig Wiedel began officiating volleyball as a side job while he was in college.
• Thirty years later, volleyball is now a full-time gig: he referees, assigns other officials in Nebraska to games and is the Commissioner for USA Volleyball Great Plains Region.
• “There hasn’t been a day that I can say I don’t enjoy doing what I do,” Wiedel said.

WATCH KELSEY’S STORY:

Local volleyball referee entering 30th year of officiating, also works to recruit more refs in Nebraska

What began as a side hustle turned into a career.

“I started reffing when I was 18 to make a little extra money in college,” Craig Wiedel, a volleyball referee based in Nebraska, said. “All I do now for a career is volleyball which is kind of fun.”

This will be his 30th year officiating volleyball.

“I’ve done all sports,” Wiedel said. “I’ve officiated them all, but what I like about volleyball is it’s fast.”

Which is why the career accountant made a switch in his early 40s.

“Being around so many people that have the same passion,” Wiedel said. “It’s just like one big family and that’s what I appreciate about it.”

Over the last few years, there has been a national shortage of sports officials.

In fact, a 2024 NSAA survey found about 64% of officials across all sports considered quitting at some point.

On the other hand, Wiedel said the numbers for volleyball refs in Nebraska are increasing.

“Whenever I go somewhere, they’re like ‘Oh, you’re recruiting refs again,’” he said. “But honestly, half the time you just have to ask the people and they want to do it.”

He says if a ref sticks around for three years, it’s likely they’ll ref for many more.

Like Hiliary Vanness, a former player, now a fifth-year official.

“In the moment it may seem kind of stressful,” she said, “but at the end of the match, just playing good volleyball, watching good volleyball, officiating good volleyball, that’s really the best part.”

Wiedel said sometimes he still has to crunch numbers to ensure games in Nebraska have officials.

“When I assign in the fall, there’s nights that I will go to bed having to find four or five refs for the next day because we’re that short,” he said. “We’ve grown it a lot, but we still have a long ways to go with that.”

But Wiedel said he’s more than happy to do it to grow the sport.

“Just do what you love to do,” he said. “There hasn’t been a day that I can say I don’t enjoy doing what I do.”

What started as a casual conversation between a few friends last summer turned into a heartfelt reunion for UWM track and field alumni this summer.

More than 100 former Panthers, family members and friends gathered June 28 in Milwaukee’s Best Place at the Historic Pabst Brewery to share memories and catch up on each other’s lives. They also heard from the team’s current athletes , including six-time Horizon League Coach of the Year Andrew Basler and hurdler Natalie Block, who became UWM’s first Division 1 All-American at the 2025 NCAA Championships.

Michael Hirsch, who ran track and cross country for the Panthers from 1976-80, was in Milwaukee a year prior visiting some fellow former runners. In a particularly nostalgic moment, one friend half-jokingly said that they needed to get everyone back together.

So Hirsch, now a dean at Huston-Tillotson University in Austin, Texas, took up the challenge, embarking on a year’s worth of logistical and organizational efforts.

He’d put together a smaller gathering back in the late 1990s, but this one quickly grew into a much more complex task, and Hirsch thanked the UWM Alumni Association and the many people who helped track everyone down. Emails were searched for and shared, as was the occasional physical address, and social media sleuths played their part.

All the work came to fruition in Best Place’s Great Hall. As a slideshow of photos and articles from days gone by played in the background, old friends exchanged hugs and smiles, laughter and remembrances.

“I love these people. My UWM days are some of the best days of my life, and I have a wonderful life,” Hirsch said in a quieter  moment. “These are strong people, smart people, kind people, forgiving people, teammates and their families. I was just hoping to see them, and I was hoping that people would spend a lot of time talking and smiling.”

And you didn’t have to be part of those track classes from the 1970s and ’80s to appreciate the scene.

“I love seeing the photos, seeing the classic uniforms and some of those old surfaces, it’s crazy that they’re running on that,” said Block, who heads into her final UWM season after placing 12th in the 400-meter hurdles at the 2025 NCAA Championships, the best-ever national finish among Panther women. “It’s super-cool to see, because that’s how the program grew. You can see it carry forward through generations.”

Hirsch, meanwhile, is proud of how Block and the current generation continue to carry the baton.

“UWM fosters that sort of excellence,” Hirsch said. “We met at the Klotsche Center earlier today, and the coach was talking us through how they support their athletes and how proud he is of their athletes and  how successful and hardworking Natalie has been. Our experience was at a different time, and she’s reached a higher level of excellence, and it’s brilliant.”