LINCOLN — On occasion, a defining moment for a player, team and athletic department can come after a loss.
High School Sports
Two inspirational athletes to be honored by Allstate Sugar Bowl
Bowl to Present Jimmy Collins Awards to Brother Martin Wrestler and Crescent City Classic Racer NEW ORLEANS (June 23, 2025) – Noah Confident, a top-four state finisher in wrestling, and Brian Marelo, a 15-year old competitor in the Crescent City Classic road race, have been selected to receive Jimmy Collins Awards from the Allstate Sugar […]

Bowl to Present Jimmy Collins Awards to Brother Martin Wrestler and Crescent City Classic Racer
NEW ORLEANS (June 23, 2025) – Noah Confident, a top-four state finisher in wrestling, and Brian Marelo, a 15-year old competitor in the Crescent City Classic road race, have been selected to receive Jimmy Collins Awards from the Allstate Sugar Bowl’s New Orleans Sports Awards Committee.
The New Orleans Sports Awards Committee has selected annual award winners in a variety of categories since 1958; it also selects Sugar Bowl Athletes of the Month and each year’s New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame class. Overall, 30 individuals and two teams will be honored for their achievements at the 2024-25 Allstate Sugar Bowl Sports Awards Banquet presented by LCMC Health on August 2. Honorees are currently being announced, wrapping up with the Corbett Awards for the top male and female amateur athletes in the state on July 8 and 9.
While there are many different categories of awards presented by the New Orleans Sports Awards Committee, some years the Committee finds that there are people deserving of recognition who do not necessarily fit into one specific category. For that reason, the Committee presents the Jimmy Collins Awards to outstanding individuals and organizations.
Collins was a longtime New Orleans sportswriter who is credited with creating the New Orleans Sports Awards and forming the Sports Awards Committee in 1958.
Noah Confident, who was born with one leg, has established himself as a high-level athlete. The 17-year-old achieved a pair of top-four finishes in Division I Wrestling at the LHSAA Championships (2024 and 2025).
“My way of wrestling is different from other people because it’s less of a hand fight and it’s more shots and just slowing down my opponent to be at my pace,” he said. “Overall, it’s just wrestling and doing the stuff I know how to do. I’m already low, so I don’t have to get low to get their legs. I just snatch and pull and try to get them down to the mat.”
“Starting out, I wasn’t even worried about winning or losing. I just wanted to wrestle. Then going into the next year, I just wanted to get better and learn more technique and everything. I wasn’t really thinking about tournaments. I just wanted to get better at wrestling. Then in my junior year I really thought about going to state and having that goal set in mind. Even though I didn’t (win at the state championship), I’m still proud of myself for getting there.
Brian Marelo competed against 18,200 fellow racers in the 47th Crescent City Classic on April 19. The 15-year-old entered the race with a goal of 55 minutes and he finished the race in 45 minutes and 52 seconds, faster than 96% of the finishers. Unlike most of the racers, Marelo competed in a lightweight chair with cantilevered wheels – he has spina bifida; he was born with his spinal cord growing out of his back and doctors said he would likely never be able to get out of bed, let alone walk. He has dealt with many challenges that came with his diagnosis, including epilepsy and hydrocephalus requiring a shunt and has undergone 20 operations in his 15 years.
“I wasn’t supposed to be able to do all these things I currently do,” said Marelo. “You’re only going to hurt yourself if you believe you can’t. But if you try, you might find out that you can.”
He hopes to attend the University of Alabama, which has a renowned adaptive sports program, and he also has 2032 Paralympic ambitions.
The Allstate Sugar Bowl will continue announcing its annual awards tomorrow (Tuesday) with the Outstanding Boys and Girls Prep Coaches of the Year from New Orleans.
Jimmy Collins Special Awards: Noah Confident, Brother Martin Wrestling; Brian Marelo, Hahnville
Outstanding Boys Prep Coach of the Year, New Orleans: June 24 (Tuesday)
Outstanding Girls Prep Coach of the Year, New Orleans: June 24 (Tuesday)
Outstanding Female Amateur Athlete, New Orleans: June 25 (Wednesday)
Outstanding Male Amateur Athlete, New Orleans: June 25 (Wednesday)
Outstanding Boys Prep Team, New Orleans: June 26 (Thursday)
Outstanding Girls Prep Team, New Orleans: June 26 (Thursday)
Outstanding Collegiate Coach, Louisiana: June 27 (Friday)
Eddie Robinson Award – July 7 (Monday)
Corbett Award – Male: July 8 (Tuesday)
Corbett Award – Female: July 9 (Wednesday)
Women in Sport Scholarships: July 23 (Wednesday)
New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2025:
Shan Foster, Basketball, Bonnabel HS/Vanderbilt/NBA, 2001-13
Temeka Johnson, Basketball, Bonnabel HS/LSU/WNBA, 1997-2018
Joe McKnight, Football, John Curtis Christian School/USC/NFL, 2004-16
Andy Russo, Basketball, Fortier HS/USL/Brother Martin HS, 1956-78
The New Orleans Sports Awards Committee came together when Collins spearheaded a group of sports journalists to form a sports awards committee to immortalize local sports history. For 13 years, the committee honored local athletes each month and a variety of annual award winners. In 1970, the Sugar Bowl stepped in to sponsor and revitalize the committee, leading to the creation of the New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame in 1971, honoring 10 legends from the Crescent City in its first induction class. While adding the responsibility of selecting Hall of Famers, the committee has continued to recognize the top athlete in the Greater New Orleans area each month as well as a range of annual awards – the honors enter their 69th year in 2025.
The Allstate Sugar Bowl has established itself as one of the premier college football bowl games, having hosted 29 national champions, 110 Hall of Fame players, 55 Hall of Fame coaches and 21 Heisman Trophy winners in its 91-year history. The 92nd Allstate Sugar Bowl Football Classic, which will double as a College Football Playoff Quarterfinal, is scheduled to be played on January 1, 2026. In addition to football, the Sugar Bowl Committee annually invests over $1 million into the community through the hosting and sponsorship of sporting events, awards, scholarships and clinics. Through these efforts, the organization supports and honors thousands of student-athletes each year, while injecting over $2.5 billion into the local economy in the last decade. For more information, visit www.AllstateSugarBowl.org.
High School Sports
HIGHLIGHTS
SPOKANE, Wash. — The final round of the 38th annual Rosauers Open Invitational came down to the final two holes at Indian Canyon Golf Course on Sunday afternoon. The last two groups led the field and featured the last three Rosauers champions: amateur Andrew Von Lossow (2024), Conner Robbins (2023) and Daniel Campbell (2022) as the two groups […]


SPOKANE, Wash. — The final round of the 38th annual Rosauers Open Invitational came down to the final two holes at Indian Canyon Golf Course on Sunday afternoon.
The last two groups led the field and featured the last three Rosauers champions: amateur Andrew Von Lossow (2024), Conner Robbins (2023) and Daniel Campbell (2022) as the two groups bunched up on hole 17.
Seattle Topgolf’s Darren Black was in the final group and struggled on hole 17 carding a double bogey which opened the door for Von Lossow, Campbell and Robbins who had already teed off on hole 18.
Von Lossow’s tee shot found the dirt between two trees on the right side of the finishing fairway forcing him to punch out on his approach shot. The punch shot flew the green as his ball landed just above the fringe in the rough for his eagle look.
The chip from off the green rolled below the hole as Von Lossow would make the birdie putt and finish at 13-under for the tournament.
Campbell’s tee shot landed in the rough just feet away from the left side of the fairway. His approach shot would also sail over the green but land on the backside in the rough for a downhill chip for eagle.
Robbins had the best approach shot after finding the fairway as his ball landed on the dance floor for a green in regulation, but it left him with a left-to-right breaking putt downhill for eagle. Robbins could not convert on the eagle look and finished the tournament at 13-under tied for second place with Von Lossow.
Campbell would chip his third shot passed the hole but in a good spot to clean up for birdie and unknowingly win the tournament at 14-under par.
The best bet in the final group to try and tie Campbell and send the tournament to a playoff was PNW Golf Academy’s James Hall who was bogey free and 3-under through the back nine of his final round.
Hall needed an eagle on hole 18 to tie Campbell at 14-under, but his approach shot landed in the greenside sand bunker. Hall would splash it out but couldn’t hole out as he two-putted for par to finish 12-under tied for fourth place.
You can find the full overall results of the 38th annual Rosauers Open Invitational by clicking here.
High School Sports
HIGHLIGHTS
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Spokane Velocity FC lost its second straight match in USL League One, falling 3-0 to the Chattanooga Red Wolves SC, which remains unbeaten on its home pitch this season. Just three minutes into the match, midfielder Yanis Lelin capitalized on a ball played deep into Spokane’s zone. His shot was just beyond […]


CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Spokane Velocity FC lost its second straight match in USL League One, falling 3-0 to the Chattanooga Red Wolves SC, which remains unbeaten on its home pitch this season.
Just three minutes into the match, midfielder Yanis Lelin capitalized on a ball played deep into Spokane’s zone. His shot was just beyond the outstretched hands of goalkeeper Carlos Merancio, igniting the home crowd and giving the Red Wolves an early 1-0 lead.
In the 32nd minute, Spokane was awarded a penalty kick for a penalty committed against Annuar Pelaez, but his penalty kick was blocked by Chattanooga’s goalie to keep it 1-0 in Chattanooga’s favor.
The Red Wolves continued their dominance as the first half progressed. In the 37th minute, Omar Hernandez scored with a perfect free kick off the top crossbar. The ball went straight off the frame and in without Merancio ever having a chance at stopping the ball.
The final score of the game came in the 47th minute when a cross ball was headed into the net by Zahir Vazquez. Vazquez fully laid out for the header to bury the ball in the back of the net. The 3-0 goal put the match out of reach, securing Chattanooga’s third shutout in four matches.Spokane remains in first place in USL League One with 29 points and a two-point lead on Chattanooga, which moved into second place with the win.Velocity FC will play next on July 26 in the USL Cup against Sacramento Republic FC, before returning to league play on Aug. 2 against Union Omaha.
High School Sports
Walkoff highlights Cole Young's surge with Seattle Mariners
Less than two months into his major league career, Cole Young has already played the role of walkoff hero twice for the Seattle Mariners. Young’s walkoff in 11th sends M’s to wild win over Astros Young’s latest walkoff came in the 11th inning on Saturday night, when he lined a one-out RBI single down the […]

Less than two months into his major league career, Cole Young has already played the role of walkoff hero twice for the Seattle Mariners.
Young’s walkoff in 11th sends M’s to wild win over Astros
Young’s latest walkoff came in the 11th inning on Saturday night, when he lined a one-out RBI single down the right-field line to give the Mariners a 7-6 win over the AL West rival Houston Astros.
It came exactly seven weeks after the 21-year-old Young capped his May 31 debut with a walkoff RBI fielder’s choice in an 11-inning victory over the Minnesota Twins.
“It’s awesome,” Young said after Saturday’s game-winning hit, which ended with him being stormed by his teammates during a frenzied celebration in shallow right field. “I mean, this is what you play for. … To be a part of that moment, it’s amazing.”
With the winning run on third in the 11th, Young fell behind 1-2 after swinging through a fastball from Astros reliever Héctor Neris.
Young immediately stepped out of the box and took a moment to compose himself, then fouled off another fastball before sending a below-the-zone 84 mph splitter into right field for the winning hit.
“You kind of saw his frustration there in his at-bat,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. “He stepped out there after the (swing and miss) and kind of calmed himself down a little bit and collected himself and then was able to deliver big-time.
“And that’s the mark of someone who’s really gaining experience and understanding situations. … Just a great at-bat in a really tough situation.”
Young got off to a slow 1-for-19 start over his first six career games. But since then, he’s batted .295 over his past 31 games. He’s currently riding a seven-game hitting streak, while going 9 for 24 with two home runs and a double over that span.
Young’s game-winner on Saturday night made him the youngest Mariners player with a walkoff base hit since Alex Rodriguez did so at age 20 in 1996.
“I think just trying to simplify everything and not trying to do too much – I think that’s the biggest thing for me,” Young said of his mindset in clutch situations.
“I’m not trying to go up and hit a home run. I’m just trying to put the ball in play, and usually good things happen. So if I can just keep that mindset simple and easy, it helps me.”
Young’s walkoff gave the Mariners their fifth straight win and moved them within three games of the first-place Astros.
“I’m just glad we won tonight,” Young said. “It was amazing.”
Seattle Mariners coverage
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• Two players vital to Seattle Mariners’ second-half success
• Notebook: M’s name starter for finale vs Astros, sign 18 draft picks
• Passan: Seattle Mariners pulled off an ‘absolute coup’ for their future
• MLB trade deadline: Could Seattle Mariners target bat, reliever together?
High School Sports
Nebraska Athletics highlights
LINCOLN — On occasion, a defining moment for a player, team and athletic department can come after a loss. And when the Nebraska softball team fell one run short of making the Women’s College World Series in May, do-it-all Husker pitcher and hitter Jordy Bahl didn’t want herself or her teammates to miss a lesson. […]

And when the Nebraska softball team fell one run short of making the Women’s College World Series in May, do-it-all Husker pitcher and hitter Jordy Bahl didn’t want herself or her teammates to miss a lesson.
“In the locker room we talked about ‘watch Tennessee celebrate,’” Bahl said after NU’s 1-0 super regional loss to the Volunteers. “Let it burn as bad as it can. Watch them celebrate. Watch them hold their ticket, watch them put those hats on and watch them in the World Series.
“Because I feel like that’s how you’re able to gain the most out of being on the other end of that.”
The 2025 NFCA player of the year, who had a 1.56 ERA and 23 homers, reinforced a department-wide tone from the 2024-25 athletic year. Compete and succeed, even if a national title doesn’t come with the effort.
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For the Husker wrestling team, two individual NCAA titles — for 149-pounder Ridge Lovett and 157-pounder Antrell Taylor — came with a national runner-up finish at the NCAA championships, Nebraska’s best under coach Mark Manning, who got lifted up on the shoulders of his team in Philadelphia. He won NCAA tournament coach of the year for his efforts.
“A lot of coaches are in it for the money,” Taylor said at a press conference. “But Manning, he’s in it for every aspect of your life.”
Softball and wrestling success helped fuel NU’s highest Director’s Cup finish in 15 years. The Huskers came in 21st overall, good to earn Athletic Director Troy Dannen, in his first full year on the job, a $180,000 bonus.
Dannen’s deftest work, though, may have come during a historic change in the Husker volleyball program when legendary coach John Cook chose, after the leading the team to another Final Four, to retire from the sport, passing the baton to former player and former assistant Dani Busboom Kelly, who’d led Louisville to the national title match.
Cook, Busboom Kelly and Dannen quietly arranged the ducks in late January without a single leak getting out.
“Hell, yeah, I’m going to miss it,” Cook said. “But I’m going to be the biggest cheerleader.”
Busboom Kelly was introduced a week later at Devaney Center, with tons of fans from her high school alma mater, Adams Freeman, in the audience.
“The expectations aren’t changing,” she said that day.
That sounds like Nebraska in 2024-25.
More highlights from the year:
Decisions made, streaks broken
Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola took off toward the outfield bleachers for an impromptu extra celebration. As a true freshman, he’d just led the Huskers to their first bowl berth since 2016 and their first bowl win since 2015, beating Boston College 20-15 in a cold, wet Pinstripe Bowl.
Yankee Stadium was more than large enough for the chilled crowd on hand. The weather didn’t dampen NU’s excitement.
“That was a lot of fun,” Raiola said, summing up the week in New York. It’s the most fun the Huskers have had in a season, too, though valleys alternated with the peaks.
NU posted its first winning season since 2016, and ended the bowl drought by winning its sixth regular-season game of the year against Wisconsin, which had won the previous 10 meetings in every way imaginable. Nebraska left no doubt against the struggling Badgers in a 44-25 rout that left players and fans mingling on the field.
That had happened earlier in the season, too, when the Huskers shut down Colorado stars Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter in a 28-10 win that wasn’t as close as the score suggested. Nebraska rose to as high as No. 22 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll before losses to Illinois and Indiana sent the team tumbling out.
NU nearly upset eventual national champion Ohio State before a loss to UCLA moved coach Matt Rhule enough to demote his offensive coordinator, Marcus Satterfield, and hire Dana Holgorsen on the fly. The decision, rare and risky, paid off with wins over Wisconsin and BC and an eventual contract for Holgorsen to keep calling plays at Nebraska.
“The way he does things is different from how I’ve done things,” Rhule said. “I was appealing to him because of that and he was appealing to me because of that.”
Historic basketball careers end
One of the top players in NU women’s basketball history, Alexis Markowski, completed her career with 1,902 points, 1,220 rebounds, 120 starts and three NCAA tournament berths. The Lincoln Pius X graduate, who switched her commitment from South Dakota State to NU after the COVID-19 pandemic, also delivered countless pep talks to teammates over her four years as a fiery vocal leader.
“I remember my first meeting with coach (Amy) Williams, and the only thing I said was, ‘I’m just gonna win, coach. I just want to win. That’s all I want to do.’ And I feel like we brought winning back together at Nebraska.”
Though the Husker men fell short of both the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments because of a stunning late-season collapse, forward Brice Williams still earned All-Big Ten honors after averaging 20.4 points per game. NU won the College Basketball Crown tournament at the end of the year.
Other notables
Track and field: Nebraska men’s high jumper Tyus Wilson and women’s shot putter Alexlina Johansson both won NCAA indoor track and field individual national titles last season.
Bowling: Jillian Martin won women’s bowler of the year from the National Tenpin Coaches Association. Martin also won a pro bowling major title (the USBC Queens) in 2024.
Baseball: Husker baseball won its second straight Big Ten tournament at Schwab Field, punching its ticket for the NCAA tournament thanks in part to a stunning dropped fly ball by Michigan State during the Big Ten event. NU was blasted, twice, by Oklahoma in the NCAAs.
Swimming: Gena Jorgenson finished her decorated swimming career as a two-time All-American in the 1,650-yard freestyle.
Gymnastics: NU men’s gymnast Taylor Christopulos won the Nissen-Emery Award for top senior men’s gymnast. He’s the fourth Husker to do so.
Tennis: The Husker men’s tennis team made its third-ever NCAA tournament under second-year coach Peter Kobelt, losing in the first round to Baylor.
Photos: Nebraska volleyball spring game against South Dakota State
Nebraska takes on South Dakota State during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Fans chant “Go Big Red!” before Nebraska takes on South Dakota State during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Fans cheer as Nebraska takes on South Dakota State during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
A fan hold s a sign during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Former Nebraska vollyeball coach John Cook talks to Nebraska head coach Dani Busboom Kelly before a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Former Nebraska vollyeball coach John Cook talks to Nebraska head coach Dani Busboom Kelly before a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
South Dakota State head coach Dan Georgalas waits to take on Nebraska during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Fans cheer on Nebraska as they take on South Dakota State during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Fans cheer on Nebraska before they take on South Dakota State during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Teraya Sigler (11) hits the ball toward South Dakota State during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Olivia Mauch (10) serves against South Dakota State during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska celebrates a point against South Dakota State during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Taylor Landfair (12) celebrates a point against South Dakota State during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
A fan hold s a sign during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
South Dakota State’s Katelyn Van Kirk (3) hits the ball toward Nebraska’s Rebekah Allick (5) and Campbell Flynn (4) during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
South Dakota State’s Joslyn Richardson (17) bumps the ball against Nebraska during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Andi Jackson (15) hits the ball past South Dakota State’s Sylvie Zgonc (10) during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
South Dakota State celebrates a point against Nebraska during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Campbell Flynn (4) sets the ball during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska celebrates winning the first set against South Dakota State during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Husker fans queue outside Ord High School before a spring game match between Nebraska and South Dakota State in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Michael DeGroff and his daughter Malone, 6, walk across I Street to queue for the Nebraska spring game match against South Dakota State in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Husker fans queue outside Ord High School before a spring game match between Nebraska and South Dakota State in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Fans file into Ord High School before a spring game match between Nebraska and South Dakota State in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Fans file into Ord High School before a spring game match between Nebraska and South Dakota State in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Video & Administrative Coordinator Nate Wilson and Nebraska head coach Dani Busboom Kelly watch their team during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
South Dakota State’s Madison Burr (8) hits the ball between Nebraska’s Harper Murray (27) and Rebekah Allick (5) during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Harper Murray (27) celebrates after match point against South Dakota State during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Teraya Sigler (11) and Taylor Landfair (12) embrace during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska head coach Dani Busboom Kelly reacts as a group of fans sing “Happy Birthday” after a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
South Dakota State’s Rylee Martin (5) celebrates after a block against Nebraska’s Harper Murray (27) during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Skyler Pierce (21) hits the ball against South Dakota State’s Annalee Ventling-Brown (13) during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Rebekah Allick (5) goes up to block against South Dakota State’s Madison Burr (8) during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Andi Jackson (15) goes up to block against South Dakota State’s Rylee Martin (5) during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Andi Jackson (15) spikes the ball during a spring game match against South Dakota State in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Ryan Hunter (18) and Andi Jackson (15) go up to block against South Dakota State’s Sylvie Zgonc (10) during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Rebekah Allick (5) serves the ball during a spring game match against South Dakota State in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Campbell Flynn (4) goes up to block against South Dakota State’s Katie Van Egdom (16) during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Teraya Sigler (11) hits the ball against South Dakota State’s Rylee Martin (5) during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Rebekah Allick (5) and Harper Murray (27) go up to block against South Dakota State during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Harper Murray (27) hits the ball against South Dakota State’s Rylee Martin (5) during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Teraya Sigler (11) hits the ball during a spring game match against South Dakota State in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Rebekah Allick (5) and Harper Murray (27) block against against South Dakota State during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Skyler Pierce (21) and Rebekah Allick (5) go up to block against South Dakota State’s Katie Van Egdom (16) during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
South Dakota State’s Alia Schlimgen (14) hits the ballduring a spring game match against Nebraska in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Harper Murray (27) spikes the ball past South Dakota State’s Madison Burr (8) and Rylee Martin (5) during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Skyler Pierce (21) and Andi Jackson (15) go up to block against South Dakota State’s Sylvie Zgonc (10) during a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Maisie Boesiger (7) hits the ball during a spring game match against South Dakota State in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
South Dakota State’s Sylvie Zgonc (10) and Katie Van Egdom (16) go for the ball during a spring game match against Nebraska in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska players sign autographs after a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Keri Leimbach (1) smiles after signing a t-shirt for a fan after a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Campbell Flynn (4) poses for a selfie after a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
Nebraska’s Taylor Landfair (12) talks with Addalynne Trampe, 7, after a spring game match in Ord, Neb., on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
High School Sports
Mark Patton
Overview: Tyler Bremner surpassed Dillon Tate, the No. 4 selection in 2015, as the highest MLB Draft pick in UCSB baseball history Tyler Bremner passed on the trip to Atlanta for last week’s Major League Baseball draft. The Coca-Cola Roxy concert venue is a nice place to visit, especially if they’re celebrating you as a […]

Overview:
Tyler Bremner surpassed Dillon Tate, the No. 4 selection in 2015, as the highest MLB Draft pick in UCSB baseball history
Tyler Bremner passed on the trip to Atlanta for last week’s Major League Baseball draft.
The Coca-Cola Roxy concert venue is a nice place to visit, especially if they’re celebrating you as a first-round pick.
But UC Santa Barbara’s junior All-American wanted to be home in San Diego, in the embrace of family and friends, for such a life-changing event.
His mother, after all, had grinded out her own extra innings to see him through the most trying baseball season of his life.
Gaucho coach Andrew Checketts was amazed every time Jennifer Bremner gutted through her own grim challenge to make the 200-plus-mile journey to Caesar Uyesaka Stadium to watch her son pitch.
But by early May, her stage-4 breast cancer had made that impossible.
“She was awesome,” Checketts told Noozhawk. “There isn’t any doubt in Tyler’s mind how much his mom cared about him and loved him, and was fighting to hang in there until the draft.”

Tyler tearfully hugged his father, Jason, and sisters Hailey and Sierra, while celebrating with a roomful of relatives and friends when Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred made the televised announcement:
The Los Angeles Angels took UCSB’s star righthander with the No. 2 overall pick, confounding every expert who had constructed a mock draft.
Just a week earlier, the Bremners’ circle of family and friends had gathered for a different kind of celebration: the one of his mother’s life.
Jennifer Bremner had made it all the way through her son’s final Gaucho season before dying on June 11. She was just 54.
“I know she’s watching over me, and I know she’s so proud of me,” Bremner said during a video call with the news media. “She was honestly one of my biggest supporters.
“She came out to all the games, and all the way up to the point where her body wouldn’t let her anymore.
“I know she’s out there watching.”
Sophomore Sensation
Bremner had been closely watched by MLB scouts and executives ever since his Gaucho season of 2024.
His win-loss record of 11-1, earned-run average of 2.54 and strikeout-to-walk ratio of 104-to-21 in 88⅔ innings ranked among college baseball’s best that season.
Bremner continued to flash elite stuff that summer — a fastball that touched 98 mph and a changeup that scouts rated as the best of the entire 2025 draft class — during a nearly flawless stint with Team USA’s collegiate team.

But other “stuff” happened when autumn bled into winter.
“He’d been a little sore, throwing-wise, so we shut him down,” Checketts said. “And then he got sick.
“He got sick in November and December and lost 12 pounds. I don’t know what it ended up being. Bronchitis?
“He’d get a little better and then it would come back. So we sent him home.”
Bremner’s world took a tragic turn for the worse when he got there.
A physical examination just before Christmas revealed that his mother’s cancer had spread from her lungs and was now present throughout her body.
The diagnosis was a death sentence.
It thrust her son back to that terrible year of 2020 — during the early days of COVID-19 — when her condition was first identified as stage 2 breast cancer.
“He had to move out because his mom was going through chemo, and he was going to school (at Scripps Ranch High School),” Checketts said.
“She beat it, and then it came back after his freshman year here at UCSB.”
The weight of the world descended upon Bremner’s thinning, 6-foot-4 frame again last winter just as he was trying to reclaim his strength.
Checketts took it slow when his ace returned to campus in January.
“We knew that with the ramp-up, it was really important to be cautious and careful,” he said. “He didn’t have a full fall, and then he fell far behind physically in December.
“If he said he had a hangnail, I was freaking out.
“If he said he was sore or tired, he was done for the day.”
Starts and Stops
Checketts didn’t let Bremner pitch long enough in his first two starts in mid-February — three innings in each — to get official credit for the win in lopsided games against Campbell and Seattle.
And then the losses came when UCSB entered Big West Conference play. He suffered three in a row from mid-March to early April as the Gauchos’ Friday starter.
Bremner’s worst outing came on March 28 when Long Beach State thumped him for eight hits and six runs — five earned — in the first 3⅔ innings of a 9-6 defeat at Blair Field.
“He was behind on his breaking ball,” Checketts said. “He hadn’t gotten a lot of touches with it until mid-January.
“His command wasn’t very sharp. He was throwing a lot of fastballs down the middle.”

The Gauchos’ league record plummeted to 5-8 by the time Bremner lost a 1-0 pitcher’s duel to UC Davis on April 4.
“There was a lot of pressure on him, and a lot of it was in terms of the draft,” Checketts said. “He wasn’t super-sharp when he came out of the gates.
“It’s hard, between starts, to be counting the money you’re losing, or think about how that can affect you.
“He didn’t verbalize that, but he’s human.”
By midseason, Bremner’s ERA had risen to 4.24 — and all projections of him as a top-five draft pick had vanished.
“Getting away from the field in those moments wasn’t any less stressful because of what was going on with his mom,” Checketts said.
“For a while there, he didn’t have anywhere to turn in terms of relief from the pressure.”
Grace Under Fire
Jen Bremner found her own outlet that April. She wrote a poignant essay about her faith for “Conquer: the journey informed” — an online platform for those affected by cancer.
“I feel like I am swimming in the ocean, desperately trying to get to shore, but the current is too strong and is relentlessly pulling me back out to sea,” she wrote. “I don’t know what my future holds or how much time I have left.
“I don’t know if there will come a day when I no longer want to endure the pain and suffering without the desired result.
“For now, I persevere through the treatment and sickness hoping for brighter days and more time with my loved ones.”
Her son found his own refuge at about the same time. It was atop the baseball mound.

“He started throwing the ball better halfway through the season,” Checketts pointed out. “It felt like the field was the place where he could disengage a bit from the off-the-field stress.
“It was where he could go and focus on something else.”
The strikeouts increased as he gained strength and worked through his mechanics.
He whiffed at least 10 batters in six of his last seven starts. He had reached that number in none of his first seven appearances.
Bremner finished the season with a career-best 111 strikeouts. His average of 12.91 per nine innings ranked fifth nationally.
His three-year total of 295 strikeouts broke UCSB’s career record set 42 years ago by Dan Yokubaitis.
“A big thing for me was just getting the arm on time and keeping the fastball riding through the zone,” Bremner said. “I think the only time I ran into some trouble this year was when the arm was a tick late.
“Once I got the arm in sync and started to see the four seam (fastball) go by bats, you just compete out there … It starts flowing and you start rolling, and you feed off the energy of those positive starts.”
The rocket fuel in his right arm, Bremner admitted, was ignited by “the negative energy” of his mother’s illness.
“As she got worse, that’s when I got stronger on the field,” he said.
He felt like he was “pitching angry … or pitching for her … pitching for something bigger than myself.”
Bremner flared up into a nearly untouchable tempest when his mom’s worsening condition forced her to miss his final three outings.
He struck out 33 batters and allowed just three runs in those three games.
Striking Back
His ERA had improved from 4.24 to 3.49 by season’s end. He struck out 35.6% of the batters he faced in his 14 starts and walked only 6.1%.
And yet, his position in most mock drafts barely changed. ESPN and MLB.com both listed him as the No. 18 pick in their final projections.
Baseball America had him a little better at No. 11.
“They did an article on him that did a deeper dive into his season,” Checketts said. “They pointed out that, ‘Yeah, his ERA was a little inflated, but his WHIP (walks plus hits per innings pitched) was actually the best of his career.’
“His chase rate was the best of his career. His walk rate was the best of his career.
“They broke down his stuff to show that his average velocity was up.
“I thought they did a good job of giving some context to his year.”

The Angels did a deep dive of their own
“They scouted him a lot,” Checketts said. “They spent some time with him before the draft … He went down to Angel Stadium the week before.
“They got a chance to meet him.”
Nobody was more impressed with Bremner’s makeup than Angels’ scouting director Tim McIlvaine.
“When you sit and you talk to him, you realize the weight that he had lost over the summer, dealing with everything, and then being able to finally put it back on and get going,” McIlvaine said.
“Once you sit down and talk through the whole situation with him, it kind of puts all those worries to bed for us.”
He said he’d put the second half of Bremner’s season “up against anybody in the country.”
Bremner also fit the mold of many of the Angels’ previous first-round picks: college players who can make a quick ascension to the majors.
An elite changeup, McIlvaine said, should give Bremner that opportunity.
“Whenever he’s in trouble, he can go to that changeup,” he said. “He can get outs with that.
“We like his fastball outs with the 98 (mph).
“He’s 6-foot-4 and he’s going to put on more weight still. There’s a lot that you can really dream on.”
Moneyball
Bremner’s lower projections in the mock drafts also enabled the Angels to sign him last week at a bargain price. His bonus of $7,689,525 was more than $2.5 million less than the slot value of a No. 2 pick.
The savings have helped the club sign several other top draftees — high school stars who had the negotiating leverage of a college scholarship offer — to contracts well above their own slot values.
But the machinations of big-league baseball economics haven’t diminished the spiritual lift that Bremner felt when the Angels called his cell phone moments before Manfred announced their pick.
He pulled the phone away from his ear, turned toward his father and choked out the words.
“I’m going to get picked here.”
When the cheering subsided, Bremner admitted to feeling emotionally “overwhelmed” by it all.
“I don’t think this was really something that we thought was a possibility up until really recently, so it was definitely a shock,” he said, “and that’s the emotions coming out.”

He had vented those emotions barely a month earlier by posting a tribute to his late mother on Instagram.
“Saying goodbye to you has been the hardest thing I have had to go through in my life,” he wrote. “Why did this evil disease have to come into the life of such a pure-hearted soul?
“Somehow through all this pain, darkness and suffering there is light. This light will forever shine through the memories I got to experience with her and what she has taught me through the years.”
He continued the message by pointing out how she had “lived her life for me and my sisters.”
“Truly a selfless mother who wanted nothing but the best for her kids,” Bremner wrote. “A proud mom who made me feel loved with every small accomplishment along the way.”
Bremner signed off with the words, “Rest easy my angel.”
And now he is an Angel himself, perhaps in more ways than one.
“I want to spread awareness about cancer,” he told one of his interviewers. “I want to be a good person just as much as I want to be a good baseball player.
“I think that’s something she really taught me.”
High School Sports
Texas Fury Texans and Jaguars Elite win titles at NFL Flag Championships
CANTON, Ohio — The Texas Fury Texans and Jaguars Elite won titles in the NFL Flag Championships on Sunday. The Texans beat the Bad Rabbits Cowboys 19-0 to win the High School Girls division. The Jaguars beat Showtime 13-0 to take the 14U Boys championship. Emery Beckett completed all eight of her pass attempts in […]


CANTON, Ohio — The Texas Fury Texans and Jaguars Elite won titles in the NFL Flag Championships on Sunday.
The Texans beat the Bad Rabbits Cowboys 19-0 to win the High School Girls division. The Jaguars beat Showtime 13-0 to take the 14U Boys championship.
Emery Beckett completed all eight of her pass attempts in the title game for the Texans, throwing two touchdown passes to Zahra Hill and one to Kelsey Quinn. Their coach, Keenan Hughes, was recently hired as the first coach for the women’s flag football team at Concordia University in Austin, Texas.
The Jaguars were led by tournament MVP Brysen Wright, whose one-handed catch earlier in the event drew an incredulous social media response from Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. The 14-year-old Wright scored 10 touchdowns in seven games.
“It’s a fast-paced, exciting and explosive game,” Jaguars coach David Price said. “I think guys like Brysen are really going to help get more eyes on the sport.”
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