Sports
San Diego’s water polo players shine during college season
Sophia Sanders, the CIF San Diego Section girls water polo player of the year while at Bishop’s, won her second NCAA Championship after Stanford beat USC 11-7 in the NCAA title game in Indianapolis on May 11.
A driver, she finished the season with 20 goals with four multi-goal games and 14 assists while playing in all 26 games for the 25-1 Cardinal.
In the NCAA tournament, Sanders scored a goal against Hawaii and one against Wagner. Last season, Sanders had 44 goals and 19 assists with 15 multi-goal games.
Stanford’s only loss came in a 12-11 setback to USC. The Cardinal then won 10 games in a row, all against ranked teams.
Record setter
Riley Hull (Helix) broke the Villanova freshman women ‘s water polo scoring record with 81 goals. She also had 36 assists and finished with 117 points, including a season-high 10 in a match against VMI.
Hull, who also played field hockey at Helix, was the MAAC rookie of the year as well as honorable mention All-American. An NCAA Division I program, Villanova was 21-12 this season, losing to Marist in the semifinals of the conference tournament. After one season, Hull ranks third in team history in goals and fifth in points.
More water polo
Maggie Johnson (Bishop’s) was one of USC’s captains this season, finishing the season with 23 goals and 58 assists. Isabel Zimmerman (Cathedral Catholic) played in all 34 games for the 29-5 Trojans with 20 goals and 15 assists.
• Julia Bonaguido (Bishop’s) helped Cal to a 19-5 record and a spot in the NCAA Championships with 36 goals.
• Freshman attacker Jenna Human (Santana) had nine goals for UCLA, which went to the eight-team NCAA Championships and finished 20-6. Camille Greenlee (Bishop’s) redshirted for the Bruins this season.
• Lisbon Zeigler (Bishop’s) scored the game-winning goal as Pomona-Pitzer beat Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 9-8 to capture its fourth straight NCAA Division III championship. She finished the season with 27 goals and 15 assists. The Sagehens finished the season 25-10 while playing Division I teams like USC and UCLA.
Baseball
Right-hander Cody Delvecchio (Mission Hills) was the only local player in the College World Series. He started for UCLA against Arkansas, going four innings, allowing seven hits and three runs over four innings. He didn’t walk a batter and struck out three. Delvecchio finished his junior season with a 1-4 record. He made eight starts, working 27 innings with 12 walks and 39 strikeouts.
• Ryan Lovato (Madison/Grossmont College) was a student manager and bullpen catcher for College World Series champion LSU. An outfielder, Lovato started his college playing career at Cal State San Bernardino before transferring to Grossmont College and on to LSU.
• Zach Daubet (Clairemont) and Ryan Fenn (Granite Hills) helped lead Cal Poly to a 43-19 record and berh in the NCAA Regionals. Daubet, who was a first-team All-Big West selection, hit .360 with nine homers, 29 RBIs and scored 53 runs.
Fenn hit a team-leading .365 with a pair of homers, 42 RBIs and a team-leading 54 runs. He drove in two against Oregon and three hits against Utah Valley. Arizona beat Cal Poly twice to win the regional.
• Left-hander Jackson Betancourt (Mira Mesa) led NCAA Division II Montana State Billings to its first playoff win. He finished the season 5-3 with a 3.61 ERA. A senior, he is the Great Northwest Athletic Conference’s all-time leader in starts. Catcher Jason Wright (Westview) played in 18 games for the Yellowjackets with two homers and 11 RBIs.
Softball
Indiana Langford (Poway) was Michigan’s top hitter, batting .406. A junior second baseman, she raised her average 77 points from last season, had 20 multi-hit games and had a 20-game on-base streak. She was named first-team All-Big Ten as well as All-Big Ten Tournament. She registered a hit and scored two runs in both games against Texas and Central Florida in the NCAA regionals. Michigan finished the season 39-21.
Basketball
Sophomore guard Shea Fitzgerald (Cathedral Catholic), playing at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, NY, was named Liberty League player of the year and all-region and was NCAA Division III third-team All-American. He is the first player in school history to garner All-American honors. He averaged 19.7 points a game with a team-leading 75 assists while playing a team-leading 31.7 minutes a game. He scored 20 or more points in 12 games and had a career high 34 points against Middlebury and Cortland.
In the pros
Tyler Nevin (Poway), who played 68 games in the major leagues across four seasons with the Orioles, Tigers and Athletics, batting .204 with 12 homers and 49 RBIs, has signed a two-year contract extension with the Seibu Lions of the Japanese Pacific League.
Nevin, a 28-year-old corner infielder/outfielder, is hitting .269 with five homers and 32 RBIs in 68 games. The Lions are 37-31 and in fourth place in the Pacific League, trailing the Nippon-Ham Fighters, Orix Blue Whales and Softbank Hawks.
• Infielder Hannah Flippen (Bonita Vista/Utah), catcher Sharlize Palacios (Eastlake/UCLA) and pitcher Megan Faraimo (Cathedral Catholic/UCLA) are playing for the Talons in the Athletes Unlimited Softball League. Flippen is hitting .410 with two homers and 13 RBIs. Palacios is hitting .268 with a pair of homers and five RBIs. Faraimo is 1-0 in seven appearances. The Talons are 9-3 and tied for first with the Bandits. The league is based in Wichita.
• Erika Piancastelli (Carlsbad/McNeese State) is playing for the Volts in the AUSL.
John Maffei’s Alumni Report appears during the college season. Readers are encouraged to send items on local athletes to john.maffei@sduniontribune.com.
Originally Published:
Sports
Amadi Garners MEAC Weekly Honor
NORFOLK, Va. – With the first indoor meet completed, the Eagles earned a weekly conference honor, announced by the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference on Wednesday afternoon. North Carolina Central’s Zion Amadi was named the MEAC Men’s Track Athlete of the Week.
Amadi had podium finishes in two races at the Visit Winston-Salem College Kick-Off on Dec. 6, while moving up the school record books. He won the men’s 400m seeded race with a time of 47.78 seconds, which moved him up to third all-time at NCCU in the Division I era. Amadi now sits behind Gordon Lewis (47.11 – 2019) and Donnell Carter (47.70 – 2022).
The sophomore placed second in the 200m seeded race at the JDL Fast Track. Amadi would also break the school record in the event in 21.13 seconds. Lewis held that record since the 2019-20 season (21.27). Amadi broke meet records in both events as well.
The Eagles are back to work after the holiday break, staying local for the Dick Taylor Challenge on Jan. 16-17, hosted by North Carolina at the Eddie Smith Field House in Chapel Hill.
For more information on NCCU Athletics, visit NCCUEaglePride.com.
Sports
Banwo, Lyons Receive MEAC Weekly Accolades
NORFOLK, Va. (December 10, 2025) – The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) revealed its women’s track & field weekly accolades where Howard University swept the awards. The announcement came Wednesday afternoon.
Senior thrower Temi Banwo (Allen, Texas) won Field Athlete of the Week while junior sprinter Yahnari Lyons (Hampton, Ga.) took home Track Athlete of the Week.
At the HBCU & Ivy Challenge (Dec. 5), Banwo placed fourth in the shot put with a MEAC-best mark of 13.88 meters and earned bronze in the weight throw with another conference-leading toss of 16.92 meters.
For Lyons, she won the 200-meter dash with a MEAC-leading time of 24.11, which sits 11th in the country.
On Dec. 13, HU returns to the Northeast for the Seahawk Shootout, hosted by Wagner College.
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at www.HUBison.com or the MEAC website at www.MEACSports.com.
Sports
Cincinnati Enquirer names 2025 girls volleyball all-city teams
Updated Dec. 10, 2025, 8:20 p.m. ET
The 2025 high school girls volleyball season brought two state championships to Cincinnati and a state runner-up to Northern Kentucky.
But more than that, the action on the court each night showcased some of the best talent each state had to offer.
Here are The Enquirer’s 2025 all-city teams for each division in Ohio, plus Northern Kentucky and Indiana.
Sports
Pitt volleyball to host 2026 Opening Spike Classic
Pitt volleyball will begin the 2026 campaign with two major tests, as the Panthers were announced as hosts for the Opening Spike Classic, featuring matchups against Kansas and Wisconsin.
The two-day event at Petersen Events Center will be televised nationally on ESPN and see Pitt play the Jayhawks Aug. 28 and Badgers on Aug. 30. Stanford and Wisconsin also play on the event’s first day, followed by the Jayhawks vs. the Cardinal on Day 2.
The Opening Spike Classic debuted last season with the Badgers playing host to matches featuring Kansas, Creighton and Texas.
“We’re excited to kick off opening weekend by hosting three of the best teams in the country,” Pitt coach Dan Fisher said in statement. “Fans can look forward to high-level volleyball right here in Pittsburgh. If we want to be the best, we have to play the best, and we’re doing that right away.”
The No. 1-seeded Panthers (28-4, 18-2 ACC) host No. 4 Minnesota at 7 p.m. Thursday in the NCAA Tournament regional semifinals.
A win over the Gophers would propel the Panthers, who have advanced to the Final Four for the last four consecutive seasons, to the Elite 8, where they’d face the winner of the regional semifinal match between No. 2 SMU and No. 3 Purdue.
Next year’s Opening Spike Classic participants — Stanford, Kansas and Wisconsin — are all also currently competing for a national title.
No. 4 Kansas faces No. 1 Nebraska on Friday night, while No. 2 Stanford and No. 3 Wisconsin square off in the afternoon.
The Opening Spike Classic is organized by PlayFly Sports in collaboration with JMI Sports, exclusive multimedia rights holder for Pitt Athletics.
“We are thrilled to be bringing this event back for a second year and to build on the momentum we created with the event launch last year,” said Michael Neuman, co-head of Playfly Sports Consulting. “The Opening Spike Classic is a celebration of women’s achievements in sports, and there is no better way to recognize that than by bringing together these top college volleyball teams to compete.”
Justin Guerriero is a TribLive reporter covering the Penguins, Pirates and college sports. A Pittsburgh native, he is a Central Catholic and University of Colorado graduate. He joined the Trib in 2022 after covering the Colorado Buffaloes for Rivals and freelancing for the Denver Post. He can be reached at jguerriero@triblive.com.
Sports
Nebraska Huskers Dominate All-Region Volleyball Honors
Nebraska is once again taking the collegiate volleyball world by storm, entering the 2025 NCAA Tournament as the No. 1 overall seed. So it’s no surprise the Huskers dominated some of the sport’s top honors announced on Tuesday.
AVCA West All-Region Team
Bergen Reilly

Junior setter Bergen Reilly showcased Nebraska’s excellence on multiple levels. She was one of five Huskers named to the AVCA West All-Region Team, which is an impressive accomplishment on its own. This marks her third straight year earning All-Region recognition, and she has continued her high-level play this season. Thanks in part to Reilly’s elite setting, Nebraska is on track to break the single-season school record with a .353 team hitting percentage. That mark leads the nation and is the best posted by any Big Ten team since Penn State in 2009.
This set is ridiculous. Happened in Nebraska’s season opener in August. Turned out to be a sign of what was to come during Bergen Reilly’s junior campaign.
She’s the 2025 Big Ten Player of the Year & Setter of the Year. #Huskers @BergenReilly @1011_News pic.twitter.com/8EJTVkwMji
— Kevin Sjuts (@kevinsjuts) December 3, 2025
Reilly’s standout season did not end there. She was also named the AVCA West Region Player of the Year, becoming the fourth Husker and the third in a row to earn the honor, joining Kelly Hunter (2017), Merritt Beason (2023) and Lexi Rodriguez (2024). She continues to collect accolades this season as the 2025 Big Ten Setter of the Year and a First-Team All-Big Ten selection. She also earned the 2025 Big Ten Volleyball Player of the Year, the first time she has received that award.
Rebekah Allick

Senior middle blocker Rebekah Allick is putting together one of the strongest seasons of her Husker career. She continues to be a reliable presence on both sides of the net, contributing efficient offense while anchoring Nebraska’s front-row defense. Her play earned her All-Big Ten First Team honors for the first time, a deserved recognition after years of consistent contributions.
POWER from Rebekah Allick.
📺: ESPN+ x @HuskerVB pic.twitter.com/PLd7Dn9UQk
— Big Ten Volleyball (@B1GVolleyball) December 6, 2025
Allick has also climbed into rare company in the program’s rally-scoring era. With 536 career blocks, she now ranks fifth all-time at Nebraska, a mark that also places her fifth among active Division I players. Her presence at the net has been a integral part of Nebraska’s identity this season, and she continues to rise to the moment when it matters most.
Laney Choboy

Junior libero Laney Choboy has been the steady heartbeat of Nebraska’s backcourt all season. She’s the one holding things down defensively, reading attacks and keeping rallies alive with the kind of confidence and toughness every championship team needs. Her efforts earned her a spot on the All-Big Ten Second Team.
Relive all of Laney Choboy’s great saves on this play 🤯
📺: FS1 pic.twitter.com/6rI7zxaMjR
— Big Ten Volleyball (@B1GVolleyball) November 7, 2025
Choboy has already totaled 276 digs on the year and counting, a testament to just how reliable she is in big moments. She’s delivered several standout performances, including a career-best 20 digs against Illinois and another strong night with 15 at Minnesota. When the Huskers need a spark on defense, she’s almost always the one providing it.
Andi Jackson

Junior middle blocker Andi Jackson has been one of Nebraska’s most consistent and explosive attackers this season. She continues to elevate her game year after year, earning All-Big Ten First Team honors for the second consecutive season.
ANDI. FREAKING. JACKSON.
ARE YOU KIDDING????? 🤭🤭🤭🤭
🎥: ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/U4rR21nfcu
— Nebraska Volleyball (@HuskerVB) December 6, 2025
Jackson has also established herself as one of the most efficient hitters in the country. Her hitting percentage not only leads the nation but also stands as the best single-season mark in Nebraska volleyball history. Combined with her reliable performance at the net defensively, Jackson has become a foundational piece of the Huskers’ success.
Harper Murray

Junior outside hitter Harper Murray has emerged as one of Nebraska’s top offensive threats this season, setting career highs with 3.51 kills per set and a .299 hitting percentage. Her strong play earned her All-Big Ten First Team honors for the first time.
HARPER MURRAY ISN’T PLAYING AROUND 🤫#NCAAWVB x 🎥 ESPNU / @HuskerVB pic.twitter.com/qy97P7nUn2
— NCAA Women’s Volleyball (@NCAAVolleyball) December 10, 2023
Murray contributes in every phase of the game. She averages 2.14 digs per set, leads the team with 30 aces, and adds 58 blocks, giving her a team-leading 4.16 points per set. Her all-around skill and steady production make her a key piece of the Huskers’ success.
Honorable Mention
Virginia Adriano

Freshman opposite hitter Virginia Adriano is already giving a glimpse of Nebraska’s future, earning a spot on the Big Ten All-Freshman Team in her debut season. Originally from Turin, Italy, Adriano has quickly made an impact on both sides of the net, averaging 2.20 kills per set with a .284 hitting percentage, along with 0.66 blocks per set and 14 service aces.
You can hear the force when Virginia Adriano makes contact with the. ball 😳
📺: Big Ten Network pic.twitter.com/zz1nBAMbVR
— Big Ten Volleyball (@B1GVolleyball) September 7, 2025
She has risen to the occasion in conference matches as well, contributing 2.34 kills per set with a .318 hitting percentage. Beyond her on-court contributions, Adriano’s presence shows the growing opportunities for international athletes in college volleyball, opening doors for future players from around the world. Her all-around play and poise as a freshman indicate she will be a major contributor for the Huskers for years to come.
Taylor Landfair

Senior outside hitter Taylor Landfair has been a key player for Nebraska this season, hitting a career-best .316 and averaging 2.09 kills per set, which earned her All-Big Ten Second Team honors.
TAYLOR. LANDFAIR.
THAT’S THE TWEET. #GBR pic.twitter.com/eHPbCZmucI
— Nebraska Volleyball (@HuskerVB) November 15, 2025
Landfair’s impact goes beyond this season. She was a 2022 AVCA All-American and has appeared in the most career matches of any active Division I player, with 151 contests. She also ranks 20th among active Division I players with 1,517 career kills, reflecting her consistency and durability throughout her Husker career.
Head Coach

The players can only go as far as their head coach allows, and Nebraska head coach Kelly Busboom has given them every opportunity to flourish. Busboom was honored as the AVCA West Region Coach of the Year.
In her first year at the helm, Busboom led the Huskers to a perfect 30-0 regular-season record, including a 20-0 mark in Big Ten competition. Her debut earned her AVCA West Region Coach of the Year honors and the Big Ten Coach of the Year award, making her the first coach in program history to capture a conference title in their inaugural season.
Given the dedication and performance of these players, it was clear that Busboom was the coach most deserving of such recognition.
These awards and honors are well-earned, but they also tell a bigger story. The Huskers extended their win streak to 32 with a sweep of Kansas State on Saturday, Dec. 6, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, remaining undefeated. This team is full of talented players who understand what it takes to win.
Week after week, they perform at the highest level, delivering a masterclass in volleyball and making a definitive statement in the collegiate game. Many of these athletes are on their way to becoming Nebraska volleyball legends, leaving a lasting mark on the program.
More From Nebraska On SI
Stay up to date on all things Huskers by bookmarking Nebraska Cornhuskers On SI, subscribing to HuskerMax on YouTube, and visiting HuskerMax.com daily.
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