HAHIRA – Valwood School student-athletes made waves at the First Coast Volleyball Jax Beach Series earlier in May, clinching championship titles and earning an opportunity at the upcoming 2025 USA Volleyball Beach National Championships.

On Sunday, May 11, junior athletes competed in the junior division of the beach volleyball tournament held in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. In the Girls 14U division, Valwood 8th graders Caroline Copeland and Nola Hughes emerged victorious, showcasing strong teamwork and skill throughout the day to lock in first place.

Beckham Gallahan, a current 4th grader at Valwood School, and Landry Melvin, a 6th grade student at Hahira Middle School, dominated the Girls 12U division to secure first place.

Both teams’ first-place finishes earned them coveted bids to the 2025 USA Volleyball Beach National Championships in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where they will compete against top talent from across the country later this summer.

A season filled with accolades and broken records was rewarded with the ultimate prize for the Pella Christian girls track and field team, as they became the first girls sports team in school history to win a team State Championship on Saturday at Drake Stadium in Des Moines. 

Entering the day with 20 points from Bailey Vos winning the 400m dash and the 4x200m relay team winning their race earlier in the weekend, the Eagles were victorious in five races on Championship Saturday and racked up 60 of their 80 points to run away with the Class 2A title. Pella Christian began the day with Lexi Terpstra, Amaia Agre, Meredith Van Wyk, and Bailey Vos winning the sprint medley relay in 1:46.68. The Eagles continued to show their dominance in the sprints a short time later, as Rachel Kacmarynski defended her Championship in the 100m dash in a Class 2A State Meet record time of 11.92, while Terpstra added a seventh place finish in a personal best 12.50. A one-two finish in the 200m dash gave Pella Christian another 18 points in the team title race, as Meredith Van Wyk (24.87) edged out teammate Bailey Vos (25.04) to defend her State Title in the event. 

The Eagles secured the Overall Team Championship in the second to last race of the day, as the quartet of Terpstra, Agre, Claire Westerkamp, and Kacmaryski broke the school and Class 2A State Meet record in the 4x100m relay with a time of 48.22 seconds. Westerkamp said it was a great feeling to be able to end her high school athletic career as a member of Pella Christian’s first-ever girls State Championship team.

“Grateful and thankful are my two biggest words. I’m truly blessed to have been able to run with these girls, and I think that everybody just trusting the process and giving everything to God definitely helped, but it’s been such a blessing to be able to compete with these girls throughout this whole season.”

Pella Christian capped off the team title by doing what they did in every event they competed in over the weekend, winning the 4x400m relay with Kacmarynski, Van Wyk, Maisy Meinders, and Vos running a school record time of 3:55.54. Pella Christian head coach Keith Anderson said that he and the girls knew they were capable of winning State as a team, but that it was still a surreal feeling to reach the pinnacle of Class 2A.

“I don’t even know if words can describe it [this feeling] right now, this has been something that’s been on our radar since the end of last season when we finished runner up to Van Meter. We knew we had everybody coming back and that we were going to be faster and stronger, so the last month or so is when things started to come together. We started placing people in their various events to maximize points and I would say that these last three days that everything went exactly as planned.”

The State Champion Eagles girls track and field team graduates two seniors from the program in Claire Westerkamp and Faith Kacmarynski. 

Naperville North takes a dive in the pool one last time in the third place game of the IHSA girls water polo state series. The Huskies are looking to end the season and head Coach Andy McWhirter’s career on a high note as they take on York. After defeating Fremd in the quarterfinals, North fell to Stevenson 9-7 in the semifinals. The Dukes are coming off a semifinal loss to Lyons Township earlier in the day. This highlight is sponsored by BMO.

Both teams are even at one until Payton Schrier from the Huskies breaks the tie by scoring on the penalty shot.

Podkasik duo steals the show for the Huskies

More from Naperville North this time with Mia Podkasik who receives the Natalie Brown dry pass and connects for the goal.

Then the other Podkasik in Ava, takes notes from sister Mia and fires a dart into the back of the net for a 4-2 Huskie lead.

York cuts into the deficit with Haylie Morgan lobbing to leading scorer Emily Jensen who targets the left corner to make it a one-goal game.

The Huskies answer the call as Cate Czochora lobs her shot past the goalie for some breathing room.

Right before the half the Huskies add on another tally with Molly Depies finding Ava Podkasik and launches her shot in for the goal. North holds an 8-4 lead at the break.

York tallies some goals to stay in it

The Dukes start the second half on a positive note thanks this goal by Natalie Tuerk to get York back in it.

Then they get a turnover on defense and once in transition, Jensen capitalizes with yet another goal. York trail 9-6 as we head to the fourth.

However, the Huskies stay on pace as Mia Podkasik steals the momentum back with a big time goal to push the lead up to 10-6.

Naperville North girls water polo captures 2025 IHSA third place trophy

Later on Schrier seals the deal with a skipper and that helps Naperville North secure the girls water polo third place trophy by the score of 12-9 over York. The Huskies send retiring head coach Andy McWhirter out with a bang for his 549th career win. The Huskies finish the regular season with a final record of 28-7-1.

For more prep sports highlights, visit the Naperville Sports Weekly page.

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KREX)— Junior college baseball is back on the Western Slope, and with 10 teams in town for the JUCO World Series, one local training facility is quickly becoming a go-to hub for players looking to stay sharp — and level up.

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Armor Athletics, a Grand Junction-based sports training facility, is buzzing with activity this week as JUCO teams utilize the space to prepare for one of the biggest stages in junior college baseball. For facility owner Brett Armour, the moment is both personal and inspiring.

“As the JUCO guys are training, I’m showing our local players how quiet and controlled their movements are,” Armour said. “This is their job right now to be great at baseball.”

Located in the heart of town, Armor Athletics isn’t just hosting visiting collegiate talent it’s shaping the next generation of Western Slope athletes.

Armour says the goal has always been to provide Western Slope athletes with opportunities comparable to those in larger cities.

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“There are a lot of good athletes out here,” he said. “They just need exposure and the right resources to develop. That’s what we’re trying to provide.”

As teams from across the country arrive for the JUCO World Series, some are turning to Armor Athletics as their training base. For Armour, it’s a rewarding full-circle moment.

“It’s flattering, especially knowing these players come from programs with high-end facilities,” he said. “When they come here and are impressed that tells me we did something right.”

He adds that the facility was never meant to be just “good enough.”

“We set out to build something great and to maintain that standard every day,” Armour said.

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For many junior college athletes, the road to Grand Junction has been anything but easy.

“JUCO baseball is different. It’s gritty, it’s a grind not a lot of glamour,” Armour said. “You become brothers chasing a national title. That’s what makes this tournament special.”

As the JUCO World Series kicks off, it’s clear that Grand Junction’s role in junior college baseball isn’t just about hosting it’s about growing the game, one athlete at a time.

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