“What’s the deal with the Savannah Bananas?” Like five different times over the past few months, someone at this website has posed that question to the rest of the folks who work here. For the uninitiated, I will begin with the most dispassionate, factual answer in the paragraph below. The Savannah Bananas are a group […]
“What’s the deal with the Savannah Bananas?”
Like five different times over the past few months, someone at this website has posed that question to the rest of the folks who work here. For the uninitiated, I will begin with the most dispassionate, factual answer in the paragraph below.
The Savannah Bananas are a group often described as baseball’s Harlem Globetrotters. Originally a legit college summer league team, they got popular by playing sillier exhibition games under modified rules (called “Banana Ball”), and before long they ditched the Coastal Plain League and went all in as a barnstorming troupe. They’re big on TikTok, and that brand awareness has translated into a bunch of sold-out stadium games with major celebrity cameos, like Ryan Howard picking up a bat (and striking out on three pitches) in Philadelphia.
The Bananas’ social team wields a mastery of upbeat algorithmic content, with the Bananas churning out slick, completely inoffensive short-form videos that rack up views. Look at the baseball show; the umpires dance, too!
Even with all their followers, however, the way they’ve translated this social-media success into real-life supersized crowds was pretty confusing to us, and I was brave enough to volunteer to answer our questions definitively by watching Saturday night’s Banana Ball broadcast on ESPN2. It was the Bananas against their usual opponents, the Party Animals, in front of what was announced on TV as more than 70,000 at the NFL field in Nashville. Cam Ward was there. Jevon Kearse was there. Dierks Bentley, though never a Tennessee Titan, was there. And here’s one thing I liked: This guy did a flip while making a routine outfield catch. Neat!
How was the rest of the game, you ask? Well, it’s everything in the Bananas’ zippy TikToks, padded out to two hours with all the additional time it takes to actually make them. Banana Ball, outside your phone, is a slog, with issues that stem from both the challenges of baseball as a sport and the Bananas’ inability to think beyond Hype House aesthetics. I say this as someone who watched on TV and therefore had a close-up view of everything that was happening on the field. For someone who bought tickets, I imagine it’s like sitting on a hill at the park watching some grown men film each other dancing on a baseball diamond far away. I saw the Harlem Globetrotters as a kid, and while I can’t speak to how they hold up in 2025, comparing the Bananas to the Globetrotters is like comparing the wild mouse coaster at your local fair to Space Mountain. Banana Ball feels cheap and unworthy of your time.
The problem begins with the fact that, despite the fast pace and the tweaked rules, this is a real competitive baseball game played by low-level talent. Pitchers don’t always hit their spots, and batters struggle to make solid contact, so you end up with at-bats whose only dose of “fun” are random cuts to other players dancing. (There is so much dancing.) While the players indulge in some random intentional gags that directly impact play—the relief pitcher on stilts was fine—the goofiness is mostly stuck on the periphery, and the extremely difficult nature of hitting a baseball means the Bananas are often hamstrung by their own batting averages. There was one guy, for example, who sang his walk-up song for the whole stadium—kinda cute—and then struck out with runners in scoring position—pretty embarrassing. If you’re into mid-inning gimmicks, like burly men dressed up like Dolly Parton, padded bust and all, racing each other in high heels, then maybe the magic of the Bananas will hold your attention longer. But even a backflip catch felt a little less exciting when I saw it again in the seventh inning.
However, the game action itself isn’t my main problem with the presentation—it’s the dull weightlessness of the whole night. If the Bananas were a “real” minor-league baseball team, I’d have no criticism of them whatsoever. They’d be a Georgia curiosity in the perfectly respectable business of trying to draw fans by any means necessary. The Savannah citizens would show up, root for Their Guys, and guffaw at all the antics. The fatal flaw is when the Bananas play the Party Animals in a stadium like Nashville, and the entire idea of “Your Guys” disappears. Yes, in theory, the Bananas are more famous and are therefore our heroes. But the Party Animals, from a team culture standpoint, are completely indistinguishable from the supposed protagonists. They dance, they wear jerseys that show off their hot bods, and they show just as much personality as the team that bats in the bottom half.
So where’s the hook? Where’s the drama? Where’s the suspense? Even at the most vapid level of kids entertainment, the audience should be wanting someone to do something. But regardless of who’s scoring or who’s winning, the mood in the park is always exactly the same, and it makes for a static and glazed-over viewing experience where there’s little to anticipate or celebrate. A gigantic part of the genius of the Globetrotters concept comes from their foil, the Washington Generals, whose staid style of traditional basketball elevates the clever inventiveness of their opponents. Of course the viewer wants the fun team to triumph over the stuffy team. But in Banana Ball, there’s no telling the difference between the two. In fact, the Party Animals actually made the coolest play of the whole night—a game-ending diving catch at short with the tying run on second. That’s not even Banana Ball. That’s just baseball.
So what does someone want to see in a Savannah Bananas game? I guess they want to see the players dance. But they saw that already online. There’s no need to go to the stadium and catch it again with a worse view. Just give your local minor-league boys a shot this summer. They’re probably doing something almost as weird.
Story Links INDIANAPOLIS, IN — On Thursday afternoon, the NCAA released its list of qualifiers for the 2025 NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Outdoor Track and Field First Rounds, featuring Alex Kristeller and Paul Brennan in the Men’s Hammer Throw and Lewis Forster in the Men’s Javelin Throw. The trio of Jaspers […]
INDIANAPOLIS, IN — On Thursday afternoon, the NCAA released its list of qualifiers for the 2025 NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Outdoor Track and Field First Rounds, featuring Alex Kristeller and Paul Brennan in the Men’s Hammer Throw and Lewis Forster in the Men’s Javelin Throw. The trio of Jaspers will travel down to the East First Round Site at the University of North Florida next week to compete against the region’s best.
“Qualifying for the NCAA First Round is a well-deserved honor for Alex, Paul, and Lewis,” said Kerri Inman, director of cross country and track & field at Manhattan University. “They have their focus and sights set on qualifying for the Final in Eugene, Oregon, and will continue to make us proud with their efforts.”
Senior Alex Kristeller will enter the Men’s Hammer competition as the 14th-ranked athlete in the East. Kristeller is fresh off winning gold in the hammer at the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships, which took place at Rider University on May 10 and 11. At MAACs, Kristeller launched his throw 65.11m to land atop the field. In 2024, he finished 16th place at the East First Round, narrowly missing out on the East’s Top 12, who qualified for the 2024 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon. Kristeller’s personal best in the hammer is 66.90m.
Graduate student Paul Brennan is set to compete in the East First Round for the first time. The former Princeton University standout secured second place in the hammer at this month’s MAAC Outdoor Championships, compiling a score of 60.21m. The Cranbury, New Jersey native notched a personal best of 64.79m at the Ramapo Track & Field Invitational in March. He took first place at Ramapo and, a week later, was also runner-up at the Metropolitan Outdoor Track & Field Championship. Brennan enters next week’s competition as the 24th-ranked hammer thrower in the East.
Sophomore Lewis Forster made the Top 48 for the Men’s Javelin Throw, punching his ticket as the 47th-ranked athlete in the field. For the second straight year, Forster finished as the runner-up in the javelin at the MAAC Outdoor Championships. He was edged by Mount St. Mary’s freshman Brandon Falconer, who will be seeded 14th at the East First Round. By qualifying for Jacksonville, Forster continues to grow his pedigree after becoming the U-20 Javelin National Champion last summer in his home country of England. In March, Forster set his new personal best of 62.97m, taking home sixth place at the competitive Raleigh Relays.
The First Round of the Men’s Hammer Throw in the East First Round will take place on Wednesday, May 28, at 10:00 AM ET. Meanwhile, the Men’s Javelin event is scheduled for 2:30 PM ET that same day. All events for the East First Round (May 28-31) will be held at Visit Jax Track at Hodges Stadium and will be available to watch live on ESPN+ with a subscription.
The top 12 in each event will qualify for the 2025 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon, which will take place from June 11 to 14. Last year, former Jasper RJ Decker finished 17th in the nation in the Men’s Hammer Throw, earning him All-American Honorable Mention status.
For more information on the events at the East First Round Site, click HERE.
Follow Manhattan Track & Field on Instagram (@jaspersxctf) and X (@Jaspers_Track).
Anyone in the stands for a Hahnville volleyball game over the past few seasons knows the scenario well: Mariah Mott receiving a pass from her setter, leaping high into the air and slamming a thunderous kill through the opposing defense. It never failed to garner a strong reaction from the Tiger fans in Boutte – […]
Anyone in the stands for a Hahnville volleyball game over the past few seasons knows the scenario well: Mariah Mott receiving a pass from her setter, leaping high into the air and slamming a thunderous kill through the opposing defense.
It never failed to garner a strong reaction from the Tiger fans in Boutte – and Mott loved creating those moments.
“It’s an incredible feeling when you get that perfect kill,” Mott said. “I liked to add a little stare down to it – kind of like, you guys didn’t dig that or block that.”
Those were the kind of momentum-shifting plays Mott was known for over a dominant career as a Lady Tiger. As a senior, she led the way for a Tigers team that reached the state volleyball tournament for the first time in a decade. Mott has been the most dangerous offensive threat for Hahnville, and her skills were noted and appreciated by college scouts: she’s headed to Southern University on scholarship.
“We worked so hard (to reach state),” said Mott. “The eight seniors, we knew it was our time. We saw the team getting better and better, taking another step each year, all of the bits and pieces of everything we put together. We’d say, ok, we need to come back in the summer and put in the work, prepare ourselves for our district games and playoff season. And we made it.”
It was one of the most successful seasons in Hahnville history. The team went 32-8, including a second-round victory over a strong St. Joseph’s squad, and earned district championship honors along the way.
Mott began playing volleyball around the age of 6. She became more serious about the sport in her 8th grade year when she started playing club volleyball. When her prep career with Hahnville got underway, she began thinking about the potential of playing at the next level, and became determined to work toward making that a reality.
And today, it indeed is reality.
“It’s exciting,” said Mott. “I’m excited to be headed to Southern and to get that chance to experience college volleyball culture.”
Mott said that Southern being an HBCU appealed to her, as did its very strong nursing program. Mott plans to major in nursing – Mott has always looked up to her aunt, who is a nurse, and said she wants to go into a field that enables her to take care of people.
As for what Southern in getting in Mott, she summed up her approach to the game.
“I’m an aggressive player. I don’t really like to lose,” Mott said.
While Mott was very well known for her stellar volleyball play at Hahnville, she was a well-rounded athlete who also excelled in track and field. She also proved a quick study in that department. She joined the team as a junior and helped spur the 4×400 relay team to qualify for the state championship meet that season. As a senior, she was a state qualifier in four events – she was a member of the 4×200 and 4×400 relay qualifiers, while she individually qualified in the triple jump and 300-meter hurdles. She was the regional champion in the 300-meter hurdles, while the 4×400 squad also nailed down regional championship honors.
“Before I became a volleyball person, I was a track person,” Mott said. “I wanted to run track in college. That changed once I got into volleyball, but I figured as a junior it would be really fun to join the track and field team, it’ll keep me in shape. When I got there, I just loved it. I loved the coaches, loved the team.”
Mott was also voted homecoming queen as a senior – an honor she said she was not expecting at all.
In fact, it took a little nudge from mom to run.
“I was never going to,” Mott said. “I told my mom, I play volleyball, they know me from that, but otherwise I just walk around, keep my head down. She was like, no, put your name on it and run.”
Mott made a flyer and soon enough was named among the top 10 vote getters. Still, on the night of the announcement at Hahnville’s homecoming game, she said she was simply happy to be there.
“When I didn’t hear my name called for first or second maid, I assumed that was it, I’m not going to win anything. Then they said homecoming queen – Mariah Mott … it was very unexpected. Somebody told me I had the best reaction to winning it – it was just really unexpected and I was so happy.”
LMU beach volleyball and Head Coach John Mayer have announced the addition of former AVP professional Angela “Benny” White as the program’s assistant coach ahead of the 2024 season. The 2026 season will be White’s third at LMU. Following her role leading the Lions to the NCAA National Championship Game in 2025, White has added […]
In 2025, LMU won a school-record 38 duals, including defeating 12 opponents ranked in the top-10 and multiple wins over #1 ranked opponents. In the NCAA Championships, LMU opened with a 3-0 sweep over #13 FAU before putting together one of the most impressive single days in program history. On Saturday, May 3, 2025, LMU knocked off four-time defending national champions USC, 3-1, to advance to that afternoon’s semifinals. The Lions then took down top-seeded #1 UCLA in a reverse sweep in the semifinals to advance to the Sunday’s championship dual. In the national title game, LMU and TCU split courts two through five to set up championship point in the third set of Court 1, before the Horned Frogs eventually ended LMU’s season. White helped mentor Michelle Shaffer and Chloe Hooker to AVCA Second Team All-American recognition, as well as AVCA Top Flight Pairs on four different courts with Flight 2 (Anna Pelloia and Chloe Hooker), Flight 3 (Abbey Thorup and Lisa Luini), Flight 4 (Isabelle Reffel and Magdalena Rabitsch), and Flight 5 (Tanon Rosenthal and Giuliana Poletti Corrales) all winning over 75% of their matches on those courts. The WCC Awards continued as LMU earned the WCC Pair of the Year, the WCC Defensive Player of the Year, and the WCC Co-Freshman of the Year, along with seven First Team All-WCC and three Second Team All-WCC selections.
In 2024, White helped lead the Lions to the 2024 NCAA Championships in Gulf Shores, Alabama and finish the year ranked eighth in the final AVCA Beach Volleyball poll. The Lions won a game at the NCAA Championships, defeating #9 Hawaii, 3-1. White helped coach two AVCA First Team All-Americans, the WCC Pair of the Year, the WCC Defensive Player of the Year, four First Team All-WCC performers, and two Second Team All-WCC Performers.
“We are so excited to be adding Benny and her family to our LMU team,” said Mayer. “We feel that she is such a great fit because she is someone who is caring, fun to be around, and absolutely committed to learning.”
Born and raised in Plano, Texas, White played collegiately on the indoor team at LSU before starting her professional career both on the court and in the sand. Her stops as a professional player include playing indoor in Italy before transitioning to beach volleyball with the AVP and USA Volleyball.
Since 2020, White has served as Assistant Director of Silver Beach Volleyball Club in Austin, Texas where she was named 2022 AVCA Beach Volleyball Coach of the Year. Previous coaching experience includes time with East Coach Power in Philadelphia, Penn., The Winward School in Mar Vista, Calif., and Elite Beach Volleyball Club in Manhattan Beach, Calif.
“She was a high-level player on the AVP and someone who did it the right way as a both a hard worker and a great teammate,” said Mayer. “She’s always been great at bringing the best out of the people around her. We are excited to learn from her!”
Benny is married to former LSU track and field athlete Sadiki White. The couple has two sons Sadiki Jabari Jr. and Mehki.
Story Links FARGO, N.D. – The North Dakota State women’s track & field team will send nine entries to the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds, scheduled for May 28-31 in College Station, Texas. A total of seven Bison women will compete, with Nyariek Kur and Adison Kapitzke qualified in a […]
FARGO, N.D. – The North Dakota State women’s track & field team will send nine entries to the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds, scheduled for May 28-31 in College Station, Texas. A total of seven Bison women will compete, with Nyariek Kur and Adison Kapitzke qualified in a pair of events.
The NCAA announced the top 48 declared entries in all individual events and the top 24 relay teams in each region on Thursday. The top 12 finishers in each event at the Preliminary Rounds will advance to the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore., on June 11-14.
Sophomore Arienne Birch will be the top-ranked Bison entering next week’s meet at No. 7 in the West for the high jump, followed by senior Grace Emineth at No. 16 in the long jump.
NDSU Women’s Qualifiers (in order of event rank)
7. Arienne Birch (high jump)
16. Grace Emineth (long jump)
32. Jacee Johannsen (pole vault)
33. Nyariek Kur (triple jump)
35. Merrideth Spiers (hammer throw)
40. Adison Kapitzke (shot put)
43. Annabel Thorstenson (hammer throw)
47. Nyariek Kur (long jump)
47. Adison Kapitzke (hammer throw)
No. 2 seed Cal Poly takes on No. 3 seed CSU Fullerton in the Mustangs’ tournament opener Cal Poly will take on CSU Fullerton at Goodwin Field in Fullerton, Calif., in their first matchup of the Big West Conference Tournament. First pitch is at 7 p.m. This is the first Big West postseason tournament since […]
Cal Poly will take on CSU Fullerton at Goodwin Field in Fullerton, Calif., in their first matchup of the Big West Conference Tournament. First pitch is at 7 p.m. This is the first Big West postseason tournament since 1998, and the Mustangs’ first playoff game since they hosted a regional in 2014. Stay tuned for live updates!
Youngster Jade Arnold, the 18-year-old coach of the Nordek 14&U Girls’ team, juggles competing for the Victorian Phoenix women’s team in the Australian Water Polo League (AWL) and volunteering her time coaching in the ACT pathways system. Inspired by her mother, Sharyn, assistant coach for the Sydney 2000 Olympic gold medal winning team; Jade discovered […]
Youngster Jade Arnold, the 18-year-old coach of the Nordek 14&U Girls’ team, juggles competing for the Victorian Phoenix women’s team in the Australian Water Polo League (AWL) and volunteering her time coaching in the ACT pathways system.
Inspired by her mother, Sharyn, assistant coach for the Sydney 2000 Olympic gold medal winning team; Jade discovered her passion for following in her mum’s footsteps to mentor the next generation of water polo athletes.
Jade takes immense pride in nurturing young talent, dedicating herself to their growth both in and out of the pool. Witnessing the transformation of the ACT teams in recent times, she has observed the improvement in their confidence, teamwork and competitive spirit.
“I love watching kids grow and get better,” Jade said.
“Coming from the ACT, a few years ago we were losing almost every game. And now this new generation of kids are doing a really good job.
“I just love seeing that development and that growth, it’s really rewarding watching them,” she said.
With the Australian Waterpolo League season wrapping up last month, Jade credits her coach, Rowie Webster, as a key influence on her own coaching style.
“She is a huge inspiration. She has been so encouraging and motivating, and helped me grow. I want to be able to do the same for my kids to make them better.”
Reflecting on her own coaching experience at the 2025 Australian Youth Water Polo Championships held in Perth, Jade values the people who have contributed towards her development as a player, coach and person out of the pool.
“I’ve had amazing coaches in my experience and I want to be that person for my team.”
“I love this sport, it’s a huge part of my family.”
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