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Softball tournament honors Birkenstock, donates to diabetes research

Kalista led Marlboro to the Class A state championship in June, crafting a storybook ending to a stellar high school career. The former Journal Player of the Year will begin her first college softball season next month.Among those involved were Emma Jackson, Samantha Maleck, Kaitlyn Gordon, Taylor Castellani, Emily Hite and Kiera Del Salto of […]

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Softball tournament honors Birkenstock, donates to diabetes research

Kalista led Marlboro to the Class A state championship in June, crafting a storybook ending to a stellar high school career. The former Journal Player of the Year will begin her first college softball season next month.Among those involved were Emma Jackson, Samantha Maleck, Kaitlyn Gordon, Taylor Castellani, Emily Hite and Kiera Del Salto of Marlboro. Roy C. Ketcham was represented by Claire Moore, Christiana Simou, Grace Hotle and Mia Metz.Before heading back to Florida, she reunited with a few of her former teammates who dedicated a portion of their holiday break to this competition, and its cause.Golden:Gunsett, Birkenstock star as Marlboro captures Class A state title

Marlboro softball players Emma Jackson and Samantha Maleck, who won co-MVP of the Strikeout Diabetes Classic, are flanked by Jameson and Kalista Birkenstock. The softball tournament is held in honor of James Birkenstock, who died of the disease in 2018.

And so was birthed an idea that became the Strikeout Diabetes Classic, a winter softball tournament that serves as a memorial to James T. Birkenstock and a fundraiser for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, a New York-based organization that helps fund the study and development of Type 1 diabetes treatments.Understandably so.The Huskies 14U National team that Kalista played for, and that Locke coached, won the tournament that year. That trophy, Locke said, still is displayed prominently in Kalista’s room.

James Birkenstock battled diabetes for most of his life and eventually succumbed to the disease, dying of diabetic shock at age 43 and leaving behind, among several loved ones, a twin son and daughter.

James Birkenstock, in an old family photo, is posed with his son Jameson and daughter Kalista. James Birkenstock died of diabetic shock in 2018 at age 43. Kalista and Jameson, Marlboro graduates, are now college students.

Among the teams involved were the Dutchess Debs 18U, the Beacon Extreme 16U, Huskies 18U Moore and a thrown-together roster they playfully called “The Misfits.”The fundraising was aided by local businesses, including Baja 28 and Piece of the Game, that donated sports memorabilia, gift cards and other items to be raffled.

After a round of pool play last Saturday, the top four teams advanced to a gold bracket and the others to silver. The Lady Dukes 18U squad went 7-0 overall and won the gold championship, beating the Run & Gun Lady Nightmares of Connecticut in the final on Dec. 29. Jackson and Maleck shared MVP honors. The Empire State Huskies 16U Exarchakis beat the Huskies 16U Premier in the silver final.Far out:Hopewell Junction teen competes in skiing world championships in Kazakhstan

The Lady Dukes 18U team went undefeated and won the gold championship of the Strikeout Diabetes Classic on Dec. 29, 2024. The indoor softball tournament is held in memory of James Birkenstock and raises money for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

Stephen Haynes: shaynes@poughkeepsiejournal.com; 845-437-4826; Twitter: @StephenHaynes4It certainly is difficult to lose a parent suddenly and prematurely, particularly as a child, and the pain of that absence does linger.

The Huskies, Kalista said, deserve “special thanks” for entering four of its teams into the tournament to help support her cause.The event, organized by Locke, was held last weekend as the Hudson Valley Sportsdome in Milton hosted eight high-level travel teams. The tournament, in its three years, has raised more than ,000.Locke first put the wheels in motion for this in 2020, contacting the Sportsdome that fall once some COVID restrictions had been loosened. Despite the challenges and the additional hurdles to clear then, that inaugural event was a success.

The Empire State Huskies 16U Exarchakis travel softball team won the final of the silver bracket at the Strikeout Diabetes Classic on Dec. 29, 2024. The tournament honors James Birkenstock and raises money for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

“I’m grateful to Greg for all the work he put in to pull this off and make it work while I was home,” said Kalista Birkenstock, a former Marlboro softball star who now is a freshman at Florida Gulf Coast University. Jameson attends Keiser University in Fort Lauderdale.“I’m also thankful for all the support we got from the teams, my former teammates and the community to help raise money and awareness for this disease,” Kalista continued. “It’s great to have something like this in memory of my dad.”

It seemed fitting, as sports always have been a centerpiece for their family. The twins’ mom, Kristie Brand, was a collegiate athlete and Locke played baseball at Pace University.“The kids were trying to think of something they could do to honor their dad,” Greg Locke said of a 2020 conversation with his stepchildren, Kalista and Jameson, two years after their father passed. “Kalista was like, ‘What if we did something around softball?’”But for Kalista Birkenstock and her Marlboro family, there is comfort in honoring her father’s memory and purpose in a cause.

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Senior Spotlight | News | coastalview.com

Ahead of Carpinteria High School’s (CHS) June graduation, Coastal View News photographer Robin Karlsson spoke to members of the class of 2025 about their goals, what they’ll miss about CHS, and what’s next. Over the next few weeks, pick up a copy of Coastal View News each week to read about more members of the […]

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Ahead of Carpinteria High School’s (CHS) June graduation, Coastal View News photographer Robin Karlsson spoke to members of the class of 2025 about their goals, what they’ll miss about CHS, and what’s next. Over the next few weeks, pick up a copy of Coastal View News each week to read about more members of the class of 2025 before they graduate on June 11. 



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Kirk Dawkins Headed to NCAA National Outdoor Track and Field Meet in 800-Meter Run

Story Links JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Florida A&M University standout Kirk Dawkins secured his place among the nation’s elite middle-distance runners by qualifying for the 2025 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships in the 800-meter run. Dawkins clocked a personal-best time of 1:46.62 during the NCAA East Regional quarterfinals to earn […]

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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Florida A&M University standout Kirk Dawkins secured his place among the nation’s elite middle-distance runners by qualifying for the 2025 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships in the 800-meter run.

Dawkins clocked a personal-best time of 1:46.62 during the NCAA East Regional quarterfinals to earn the opportunity to compete in Eugene, Oregon.

This achievement marks a significant milestone in Dawkins’ athletic career. Earlier in the season, he captured the SWAC Outdoor Championship title in the 800 meters with a time of 1:50.2. The junior’s consistent improvement throughout the season, including a 1:48.01 finish at the East Coast Relays, showcases his dedication and progression.

 



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Cronhardt Concludes Outdoor Season – Missouri State

Story Links COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Missouri State track and field’s Ella Cronhardt concluded the outdoor season in the West First Round of the NCAA Track and Field Championship this evening. The distance runner posted a time of 10:57.09 in the 3000-meter steeplechase, finishing 45th overall in the event.   Cronhardt became MoState […]

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COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Missouri State track and field’s Ella Cronhardt concluded the outdoor season in the West First Round of the NCAA Track and Field Championship this evening. The distance runner posted a time of 10:57.09 in the 3000-meter steeplechase, finishing 45th overall in the event.
 
Cronhardt became MoState track and field’s first NCAA Regional Qualifier since 2022 (Rochelle Etienne and Jamilah James) and the first in the steeplechase event since Grace Breiten in 2019. 
 
The final event of the track and field season also concludes Missouri State’s tenure in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Bears will join Conference USA on July 1, 2025. 
 
 

#GoBears



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Gwenno Goode Advances To NCAA Championhips In The 3K Steeplechase

Story Links JACKSONVILLE, Fla.  – La Salle University women’s track and field athlete Gwenno Goode advanced to the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field National Championships in the 3,000-meter steeplechase on Saturday during the final day of the NCAA East Preliminaries at Hodges Stadium. Goode becomes the first La Salle female to make […]

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JACKSONVILLE, Fla.  – La Salle University women’s track and field athlete Gwenno Goode advanced to the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field National Championships in the 3,000-meter steeplechase on Saturday during the final day of the NCAA East Preliminaries at Hodges Stadium.

Goode becomes the first La Salle female to make it to Nationals since 2023 when El Mancini qualified in the 10,000-meter run. She is the second runner in program history to advance in the steeplechase, after Grace Mancini did it in 2021.

The Barry, Wales native placed fourth in her steeplechase heat and was 11th out of 48 overall with a time of 10:01.65, becoming one of the 12 individuals to qualify for Nationals. It was the second time she ran in the event at the NCAA East Preliminaries, finishing 28th last year with a time of 10:32.75.

Goode’s race marks another achievement for her collegiate racing career at La Salle. Last fall, Goode qualified for the NCAA Cross Country National Championships, after earning All-Region honors at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships. She also won the individual title at the Atlantic 10 Cross Championships in the fall of 2024. In the indoor track & field season, she took gold medals at the conference championships in both the 3,000-meter run and the distance medley relay.

Now, the distance runner will turn her attention to the NCAA National Championships, which will be held at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. from June 11-14.



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MEN’S C WATER POLO. The leader arrives. The Navy is chasing the feat

Last act of the regular season in the men’s C series for the Marina Militare: coach Carlo Foti’s team will write the last chapter of this intense second round, in which they lost only one match, winning all the others. Today’s opponent will be a battleship: the league leaders Can Milano, who will visit the […]

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Last act of the regular season in the men’s C series for the Marina Militare: coach Carlo Foti’s team will write the last chapter of this intense second round, in which they lost only one match, winning all the others. Today’s opponent will be a battleship: the league leaders Can Milano, who will visit the boys with the stars this afternoon at the ‘Mori’ swimming pool in Spezia at 17 pm. “This will be the last match of the championship and we want to finish well and analyze and evaluate the position” begins the coach in the pre-match, who makes an initial assessment of this season. “We are light, we have had a great championship and we know it, despite a thousand difficulties with the locations and the trips. I can only be happy with what I have seen from my boys, both in the C series and in the youth teams and we are working well”.

In the first leg, the Milanese won with a clear 10-6, but at home the team will also be able to count on the support of their home crowd. The team will take to the field with a full squad. For the other teams in the province, they will be back in the pool next week: in Promozione-serie D, Lerici Sport will face Camogli on Tuesday for the last challenge of the season, while the players of the women’s B team still have two matches to go: the first will be on June 6 away, again against Camogli.

C.T.



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Maywin Wraps Up Women’s Track & Field Season at NCAA West First Round

Story Links BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION – Junior Achol Maywin wrapped up The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley’s (UTRGV) women’s outdoor track & field season Saturday as she competed in the women’s high jump semifinals at the NCAA West First Round hosted by Texas A&M at E.B. Cushing Stadium.    Maywin cleared 1.71 meters on her […]

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BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION – Junior Achol Maywin wrapped up The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley’s (UTRGV) women’s outdoor track & field season Saturday as she competed in the women’s high jump semifinals at the NCAA West First Round hosted by Texas A&M at E.B. Cushing Stadium. 
 
Maywin cleared 1.71 meters on her second attempt, matching the ninth-best high jump in outdoor program history. She was one of nine student-athletes to clear 1.71 meters and tied for 32nd at the regional meet. Nine women recorded no height. 
 
Maywin finishes her debut season at UTRGV with the program record (1.77m) and seven of the top 10 high jumps in the outdoor record books. 
 
UTRGV RESULTS
Saturday, May 31 
Women’s high jump semifinal
32. Achol Maywin, 1.71m
· T-9th in program history 

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