Story Links
2024-25 University Credit Union Athletes of The Week
The University Credit Union Athletes of the Week are selected by the Athletic Communications staff. May 19, 2025
CESAR SALAZAR, MEN’S TRACK AND FIELD, SOPHOMORE, THROWS
Cesar Salazar finished fourth in the men’s shot put event at The Big West Championships. His mark of 18.07m […]
2024-25 University Credit Union Athletes of The Week
The University Credit Union Athletes of the Week are selected by the Athletic Communications staff.
May 19, 2025
CESAR SALAZAR, MEN’S TRACK AND FIELD, SOPHOMORE, THROWS
Cesar Salazar finished fourth in the men’s shot put event at The Big West Championships. His mark of 18.07m is a new personal record and improved upon his second-best all-time mark in school history.
FEYI OLUKANNI, WOMEN’S TRACK AND FIELD, JUNIOR, THROWS
Feyi Olukanni won the women’s shot put title at The Big West Championships with a final mark of 14.82m. She also set personal bests in the hammer and discus. Olukanni is on the school’s all-time leaderboard in all three events, sitting at second in shot put, fifth in discus and eighth in hammer. Her win in the shot put also gave her All-Big West honors.
May 12, 2025
J.C. ALLEN, BASEBALL, JUNIOR, THIRD BASE
Third baseman J.C. Allen knocked four home runs in the final home series of the season against UC Davis over the weekend. The junior led the team with nine RBI, six runs scored and 16 total bases with a 1.778 slugging percentage. Allen finished the weekend 4-for-9 (.444) with five walks and one hit-by-pitch for a .667 on base percentage. His four homers moved him into second place on the team with 12 total this season, which ranks third in the Big West. Allen collected two home runs in the Friday opener—his second game this season with multiple homers—and hit his first Triton grand slam in the Sunday finale.
INDIA CALDWELL, SOFTBALL, SENIOR, RIGHT-HANDED PITCHER
Leading the Tritons to their first Big West conference championship win, India Caldwell allowed zero earned runs on five hits, three walks, and seven strikeouts. The Triton ace held the Gauchos scoreless for six innings before a few unearned runs came in. The right-hander went on to pitch 11.2 more innings over UC San Diego’s next two games. Caldwell’s overall time at the 2025 Big West Softball Championship had her finish with a 2.52 ERA, 2 complete games, 6 earned runs, and 17 strikeouts.
May 5, 2025
ALLYSON ABANDONATO, WOMEN’S TRACK AND FIELD, JUNIOR, DISTANCE
Allyson Abandonato set two personal bests and one school record last weekend at UC Irvine’s Steve Scott Invitational. Her school record came on Friday in the 800m, where she ran 2:08.88 to finish fifth. Abandonato then ran 4:56.94 in the mile on Saturday for a new personal best.
Spencer Seid struck out eight of the 14 batters he faced in 3.2 innings to close out the 4-0 shutout of No. 8 UC Irvine on Saturday afternoon. Seid entered in relief for the Tritons in the sixth with two on with one out for UCI, forcing an infield fly and recording a strikeout to end the inning. Another two batters reached in the seventh and one more in the eighth but both times Seid ended the inning with a strikeout to maintain the shutout. The lefty struck out the final four batters he faced in the contest to earn his third save of the season.
April 28, 2025
MICHAEL CROSSLAND, BASEBALL, SOPHOMORE, CENTER FIELD
Michael Crossland finished the week 6-for-16 (.375) with two doubles, three walks, five RBI and two runs scored to help the Tritons to a 3-1 week. The sophomore center fielder recorded a .500 slugging percentage and .474 on base percentage helping UC San Diego earn the program’s first series win over UC Santa Barbara.
VARSITY EIGHT, WOMEN’S ROWING
The UC San Diego varsity eight crew knocked off crosstown rival USD on Sunday morning at the Triton Invitational, winning the dual by a comfortable nine-second margin. The Tritons finished the 2,000m course in 6:43.72 to USD’s 6:52.86. Rowing for the Tritons was Kiera Cooper, Natasha Vallancey, Laine Bradley, Annica Ford, Samantha Anderson, Lily Feagler, Matti Key and Rachel Cuneo. Sabina Petersen was the coxswain. Six members of the crew were seniors, with Sunday’s race their final at home in their Triton careers.
April 21, 2025
ZARA WASSERMAN, SOFTBALL, SOPHOMORE, FIRST BASE
Leading UC San Diego to a three-game sweep, Zara Wasserman went 6-for-10 over three games with three doubles knocked and nine runners batted in. The sophomore was critical in the finale comeback as she hit two doubles and earned a walk to bring in five to help the Tritons win by one run. In all three games, she was perfect in the field with 16 putouts and one assist – so far this season she is the only consistent starter to not have committed an error.
COLTON LOMANTO, BASEBALL, REDSHIRT SENIOR, FIRST BASE
Colton Lomanto led the Tritons to a 3-1 week, finishing 8-for-16 (.500) with a 1.125 slugging percentage. Lomanto collected eight RBI and seven runs scored. Five of his eight hits were for extra bases, knocking two doubles, one triple and two home runs. Additionally, he tallied two walks and was hit by a pitch for a .579 on base percentage and was 1-for-1 in stolen bases.
April 14, 2025
NATHAN TSENG, MEN’S GOLF, JUNIOR
Nathan Tseng placed a career-best third to help the Tritons win their first full-field tournament at the El Macero Classic. Tseng finished 3-under par with rounds of 74 (+2), 70 (-2), and 69 (-3) in the 111-player field. After Friday’s opening round, Tseng was in 42nd place. His 70 in round two elevated him into 16th place, while his final round 69 on Sunday vaulted him up 13 spots into third on the leader board.
ELISE NISHIMURA, SOFTBALL, SOPHOMORE, SECOND BASE
Helping the Tritons to a series win, sophomore transfer Elise Nishimura led the way at the plate with a .429 batting average scoring three runs on three hits and batting in two more. On defense, the second baseman was critical with 6 putouts and 10 assists.
April 7, 2025
KENDALL THOMAS, WOMEN’S WATER POLO, SENIOR, UTILITY
• In the team’s lone game of the week senior Kendall Thomas was integral in a 19-12 win on the road at No. 22 CSUN
• Scored a game co-high 4 goals
• 4 of her 5 shots found the back of the net
• Both goals were natural and none were scored on a power play
• Thomas has scored 12 goals over her last four games
ANTHONY CHERFAN, MEN’S VOLLEYBALL, SENIOR, OPPOSITE
• Over two Big West matches and 7 sets, led the Tritons with 32 kills (4.57/set) while hitting .385 … His 35 points were also a team best … Also totaled 1 ace, 9 digs, and 4 blocks
• In a 3-1 home win vs. #4 UC Irvine, led all players with 20 kills while hitting .386 … Also had 6 digs and 3 blocks
• In a 3-0 loss at UC Irvine, led all Tritons with 12 kills while hitting .381 … Also contributed 3 digs, a block, and an ace
March 31, 2025
SECOND VARSITY EIGHT+, MEN’S ROWING
The 2V8+ boat claimed the Marine Corps 2V Cup on Sunday at the San Diego Crew Classic, beating six other boats in the grand final. The Tritons finished the race five seconds clear of their nearest competitor and also won Saturday’s prelim race by a comfortable margin. Rowing for the Tritons was Kevork Tchakmakjian, Charlie Josephbek, Bryce Blair, Archie McKirdy, Mattis Hevin, Andrew Saska, Michael McMaster and Charles Talley. Vahram Tchakmakjian was the coxswain.
JULIA HAYNES, WOMEN’S TENNIS, GRAD STUDENT
First year Triton Julia Haynes was 3-0 in singles action, leading UC San Diego to a pair of Big West wins last week. Playing at the No. 1 position as she has all season, Haynes began the week with a 6-3, 6-3 triumph over Dartmouth’s Peyton Capuano. Haynes was a 6-3, 6-1 winner over UC Riverside’s Ramey Yu on Wednesday – a 4-0 UC San Diego victory. The following day at UC Irvine, Haynes bested UCI’s Kayla Meraz, 6-1, 6-1, in another Tritons’ win. Haynes paired with senior Kelly Leung at first doubles for the first time Wednesday, and that duo earned a pair of conference wins as well: 6-1 over UCR and 6-3 over UCI. Ranked 57th nationally in the latest ITA rankings, Haynes is 13-2 this spring at No. 1 singles, having won seven straight decisions. As a team, the Tritons are 4-2 in The Big West – doubling their previous high for wins in any conference season since moving to Division I.
March 24, 2025
FEYI OLUKANNI, WOMEN’S TRACK AND FIELD, JUNIOR, SHOT PUT
Feyi Olukanni won the shot put event at this weekend’s Aztec Invitational with a personal-best mark of 14.80m. That throw is the best in The Big West so far this season and is also good for second-best in program history.
KATHERINE KIM, WOMEN’S FENCING, FRESHMAN, FOIL
Freshman Katherine Kim shined at her first trip to the National Collegiate Fencing Championships, earning Second Team All-American honors. Kim finished seventh, which is the third-best finish all-time by a Triton female fencer. The foilist had a record of 15-8. Her best win came over Harvard’s Lauren Scruggs, who won a team gold and individual silver medal at the Paris Olympics. Kim’s performance came despite spraining her ankle last week, she was on crutches until the day before the competition.
Sophomore guard Sumayah Sugapong led UC San Diego women’s basketball to The 2025 Big West Championship in the Tritons’ first season of eligibility and earned Tournament Most Valuable Player. Sugapong averaged 19.0 points and collected 14 rebounds, eight steals and six assists in three games to help the Tritons clinch a berth to their first NCAA Division I Tournament. The San Diego native shot 40.4 percent from the field (23-of-57) and 75 percent (9-of-12) from the free throw line. Sugapong recorded a career-high 29 points and added six steals to spark a comeback victory over Cal Poly in Thursday’s quarterfinal. On Friday, she scored the game winner with .2 seconds left to upset No. 1-seeded Hawai’i and send the Tritons to the finals. The play earned No. 3 on ESPN’s Sports Center Top 10. In the championship, Sugapong tallied 11 points, seven rebounds and three assists to clinch the conference title for UC San Diego.
New Zealand native Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones lifted the Tritons to their first Big West Championship with a pair of wins in Henderson. The tournament’s Most Valuable Player, Tait-Jones scored 20 points, grabbed eight rebounds and registered nine assists with just one turnover as the Tritons topped UC Santa Barbara in Friday’s semifinal. Tait-Jones scored 14 with eight rebounds in the championship game, a win over UC Irvine. For the week, he averaged 17 points, eight rebounds, and 8.5 assists as the Tritons ran their win streak to 15 straight games. The team’s 30 overall wins to date have matched a program single season record.
March 10, 2025
SUNNY SHARMA, MEN’S FENCING, JUNIOR, EPEE
Sunny Sharma won the NCAA West Regional Men’s Epee Championship on Saturday with a 9-1 record, two wins clear of the next-closest competitor. On Sunday, Sharma helped the UC San Diego men capture the first MPSF Team Championship in program history with a 30-25 victory over Air Force. He finished second in the MPSF individual event.
KATHERINE KIM, WOMEN’S FENCING, FRESHMAN, FOIL
Freshman Katherine Kim made a splash in her first career postseason appearance, winning the NCAA West Regional Women’s Foil Championship on Saturday with a perfect 9-0 record. On Sunday, Kim helped the UC San Diego women win the first MPSF Team Championship in program history with a 30-20 victory over Air Force. Kim captured the clinching point for the Tritons. In the MPSF individual event she finished second.
March 3, 2025
SYLVANA NORTHROP, WOMEN’S TRACK AND FIELD, SENIOR, DISTANCE
Sylvana Northrop crushed one of the Tritons’ longest-standing school records by over 10 seconds en route to winning the 3000m at the Riverside City College Invitational. Her time of 9:24.62 bested a mark that had stood since 2000.
Junior Spencer Seid set UC San Diego’s Division I single game record with 13 strikeouts to earn the 8-2 win over No. 23 Cincinnati on Saturday. Seid pitched a career-long 7.0 innings, allowing one run on six hits with no walks. The lefthander used 97 pitched to hold the Bearcats in check for his second win of the season.
February 24, 2025
ALEX LEOPARD, BASEBALL, JUNIOR, OUTFIELDER
Alex Leopard had a stellar week as UC San Diego won all three of its games in the Tony Gwynn Legacy. The lefty was 6-for-12 (.500) with five of those hits going for extra bases: three doubles, a triple, and two homers. He drove in seven runs and scored seven runs for the week, posting a 1.417 slugging percentage. Leopard was 3-3 with two doubles and a homer in a win over Pepperdine, and he was 2-4 with a key two-run homer as the Tritons handed Utah its first loss of the season on Sunday night.
CAROLINE CHRISTL, WOMEN’S WATER POLO, SENIOR, UTILITY
Caroline Christl scored a team-high 12 goals over four games to lead UC San Diego to a sixth-place finish, the team’s highest ever, at UC Irvine’s 16-team Barbara Kalbus Invitational. In a win against UCI, she racked up a career-high 7 goals and added an assist to match her career best with 8 points. She opened the tourney with a goal and an assist as the Tritons defeated UC Davis. In a loss to No. 1 Stanford, Christl scored once. Finally, she finished with a hat trick in a loss to fourth-ranked California.
February 17, 2025
ASIA KOZAN, WOMEN’S SWIM, SOPHOMORE, MEDLEY
Dominating the first Big West Swim and Dive Championships since 2010, sophomore Asia Kozan won four championship titles and set four UC San Diego program records and Big West meet records. Setting the tone on the first night, the sophomore standout swam the opening leg of the women’s 800 free relay and won the title with a time of 7:11.65 – 11 seconds than their seed time. As the lead leg of the relay, Kozan’s 200 free broke another UC San Diego and Big West meet record with a time of 1:45.32. On night two, Kozan secured another championship title, Big West meet record, UC San Diego program record, and the NCAA B cut in the 200 IM when she swam a time of 1:57.67. Winning her third title on night three, she earned another NCAA B cut and championship title in the 400 IM. Making a mark on the final night, Kozan won her fourth Big West title in the 100 free with a blazing time of 48.47.
HAYDEN GRAY, MEN’S BASKETBALL, SENIOR, GUARD
UC San Diego point guard Hayden Gray led the Tritons to a pair of Big West wins last week. He averaged 12.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.5 steals per game as UC San Diego won by 19 at Cal State Bakersfield and 25 at home over UC Davis. The Tritons have won a league-best seven straight. Gray leads the nation in steals (90) and steals per game (3.5).
Triton senior Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones led UC San Diego to a pair of Big West wins, propelling the Tritons into a tie atop the conference standings. The New Zealand native scored 28 on 9-of-15 shooting in a home win over UC Riverside and followed that up with a 22 point, eight rebound, eight assist performance in the Tritons’ win at UC Irvine – snapping UCI’s 22-game home win streak. For the week, Tait-Jones averaged 25 points, 7.5 rebounds and six assists per game. The nation’s leader in made free throws and free throw attempts, Tait-Jones was 16-of-19 from the stripe last week (84.2%).
KELLY LEUNG, WOMEN’S TENNIS, SENIOR
Triton senior Kelly Leung clinched a dramatic comeback win for UC San Diego with her straight sets win at No. 3 as UC San Diego came from down 3-0 to top Long Beach State, 4-3, in The Big West opener for both teams. Leung battled for a 7-6 (6), 7-5 win over LBSU’s Daria Malaescu needing a quadruple match point to earn her first win of the season at third singles, and, more importantly, lock up the Tritons’ first-ever win over the Beach. Earlier Saturday in doubles, Leung teamed with Adriana Tabares for a 6-2 win over LBSU’s Diana Di Simone/Thea Jagare on court two.
February 3, 2025
CAROLINE CHRISTL, WOMEN’S WATER POLO, SENIOR, UTILITY
• Led all Tritons with 13 goals over four Triton Invitational games
• Scored five goals including the game-winner in sudden victory overtime against No. 7 Arizona State
• Totaled four points on three goals and an assist vs. No. 1-ranked UCLA
• Also registered four points on three goals and an assist vs. No. 10 Long Beach State
• Five points on two goals and three assists vs. No. 7 Fresno State
• Team went 1-3 and placed 8th of 16 teams
SUNNY SHARMA, MEN’S FENCING, JUNIOR, EPEE
Sunny Sharma went 17-3 (.850) across 10 matches at the Schiller Duals, UC San Diego’s final regular season contest of the season. His epee squad went 8-2, while the men’s team as a whole finished 7-3. Sharma’s best performances were a 3-0 result against Stanford and 2-1 records versus Air Force, No. 2 Notre Dame and No. 6 Ohio State. The junior’s .850 winning percentage and 17 wins are both the best marks of his career at a single competition.
January 27, 2025
BEKZHAN YESSENGELDY, MEN’S SWIM, FRESHMAN, MEDLEY
Wrapping up the regular season with a win, Triton newcomer Bekzhan Yessengeldy represented the gold and blue in four events to help the men to victory over CBU on Saturday afternoon in La Jolla. Yessengeldy won the 200 breast with a time of 1:59.94 and went on to win the 200 IM with a time of 1:50.09. Finishing third in the 100 breast, Yessengeldy tallied a total of 23 points for the Tritons.
EVA BOEHKE, WOMEN’S SWIM, SOPHOMORE, MEDLEY
Wrapping home competition, sophomore Eva Boehlke scored 29 points for the Triton women to propel them to a resounding victory over the visiting Lancers. Boehlke opened the meet with a win in the 200 medley relay swimming the backstroke leg for a final time of 1:39.43 – only a second away from the program record. The sophomore went on to win the 100 back with a time of 54.87 and won the 100 fly with a time of 54.20.
January 20, 2025
SABRINA MA, WOMEN’S BASKETBALL, JUNIOR, GUARD
Sabrina Ma recorded back-to-back 17-point performances to propel UC San Diego to a 2-0 week. The junior guard was 9-of-15 (60 percent) from three-point range and shot 57.9 percent from the floor to lead the Tritons with 34 total points. Ma scored a team-high 17 points—including four made three-pointers—to help UC San Diego hand Long Beach State its first conference loss, 79-68. She began Saturday’s contest against UC Riverside 5-for-5 from beyond the arc and led the team once again with 17 points in a 59-58 victory. The Tritons have now won five consecutive games in LionTree Arena. Ma also finished the week with seven rebounds, two assists, two blocks and two steals.
Senior Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones led the Tritons in a pair of road games last week, averaging 25 points, 5.5 rebounds and three assists. Tait-Jones scored 18 points on 6-of-8 shooting in a 26-point win at Long Beach State. On Saturday, he posted the fourth 30-plus point game in the program’s Division I era, scoring 32 at UC Riverside. Tait-Jones was remarkably efficient last week, connecting on 15-of-26 shot attempts (57.7%). From the free throw line, he shot 80% – draining 20 of 25 attempts. The New Zealand native leads the nation in both made free throws (134) and free throw tries (168) this season.
Over three wins – all sweeps – setter Bryce Dvorak paced the Tritons to a .376 (100-26-197) attack. He racked up 84 assists over nine sets, good for a 9.3 assists per set average. In addition, Dvorak totaled 12 service aces, 11 digs, and seven kills. He hit .778 with the seven kills and zero errors in nine attacks. Dvorak’s seven aces against Saint Francis are the most by any Triton in the team’s Division I/II era (since 2001).
Sumayah Sugapong averaged 17.0 points to lead UC San Diego women’s basketball last week. The sophomore guard collected six rebounds, six assists and five steals, totaling 34 points in two games for the Tritons. She finished two points shy of her career high at Cal Poly, adding four rebounds—including three offensive boards—and three steals. At UC Irvine, Sugapong tallied 11 points, three assists, two steals and two rebounds. She currently ranks first in the Big West in assists, steals and field goal attempts.
January 6, 2025
KATHERINE KIM, WOMEN’S FENCING, FRESHMAN, FOIL
Katherine Kim finished third out of 142 fencers at this weekend’s North American Cup. She went 4-1 in pool play and won five consecutive knockout bouts to reach the semifinal round, where she fell to the No. 1 seed. Kim entered the competition ranked 23rd nationally and picked up three victories in the knockout rounds over fencers seeded above her.
UC San Diego senior Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones was remarkably efficient in the Tritons’ 39-point win at Cal State Fullerton. The New Zealand native connected on 8-of-10 field goal tries and was a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line, finishing with a game-high 24 points in just 27 minutes played. Tait-Jones added five rebounds and four assists in the win. UC San Diego has won 11 straight, the second-longest active win streak in the nation.
December 30, 2024
NORDIN KAPIC, MEN’S BASKETBALL, JUNIOR, FORWARD
First-year Triton Nordin Kapic knocked down a pair of threes and scored 15 points in UC San Diego’s 58-point win over Occidental Saturday in the team’s final non-conference game. Kapic grabbed five rebounds and was 3-4 from the free throw line over 15 minutes played. The Austria native was one of seven Tritons to score in double figures. UC San Diego won its final ten games in 2024.
Senior forward Kayanna Spriggs led the Tritons with 17 points for the second consecutive game—one shy of her career mark—helping UC San Diego wrap its non-conference schedule with a victory over Life Pacific, 71-30. Spriggs finished 8-for-9 from the floor and collected nine rebounds—including four offensive boards in the contest. She added a career-best four blocks and two steals to help the Triton defense match their lowest point total for an opponent in the Division I era.
Senior forward Kayanna Spriggs averaged a double-double for UC San Diego with 11.5 points and 12.5 rebounds per game in a 1-1 week. Spriggs tallied her first double-figure rebounding performance of the season against Northern Kentucky with 10 boards in the contest. She followed it up with a season-high 17 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Tritons to victory against La Salle. Saturday’s game against the Explorers marked Spriggs’ first double-double at UC San Diego, finishing two boards shy of her career high. She added three assists and one steal for the week.
Sharpshooter Tyler McGhie paced the Tritons in a pair of road wins last week. McGhie scored 26 and was 6-of-14 from distance with six rebounds and three steals as the Tritons won at Utah State Tuesday – handing the Aggies their first loss of the season and just their fourth at home in their last 46 games. On Saturday, McGhie matched his season high with 27, draining seven-of-10 from beyond the arc as the Tritons won at USD. The seven threes matched a career high. McGhie averaged 26.5 points with no turnovers and was 13-for-24 from distance (54.2%) this week. UC San Diego is in the midst of a nine-game win streak, the program’s longest in Division I. The Tritons won three true road games over a seven-day stretch from Dec. 15-21.
Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones scored 21 points in UC San Diego’s win at Idaho on Sunday. Tait-Jones was remarkably efficient, connecting on 8-of-9 field goal tries (.889). The New Zealand native finished with five rebounds, a block, and a steal in the win. The victory was the team’s seventh straight – the longest win streak in the program’s Division I era.
Damilola Sule recorded a career-high 18 points and matched her career high with 12 rebounds for her first double-double of the season at California Baptist. The senior forward put together a nearly perfect game, shooting 5-for-6 (.833) from the field and 8-for-8 from the free throw line with no turnovers to help the Tritons earn the program’s first Division I win over CBU, 81-58.
UC San Diego guard Gracie Gallegos averaged 15.5 points and 7.0 rebounds for the Tritons in the opening week of Big West play. Gallegos recorded a career-high 20 points including 3-for-3 from three-point range and was one rebound shy of her second career double-double at Cal State Bakersfield. She also scored double figures against UC Santa Barbara with 11 points, five rebounds and three assists. For the week, Gallegos collected 31 points, 14 rebounds, four assists and three steals. She shot 83.3 percent (5-for-6) from beyond the arc and 57.9 percent from the field on the week.
NORDIN KAPIC, MEN’S BASKETBALL, JUNIOR, FORWARD
First-year Triton Nordin Kapic paced UC San Diego in a pair of Big West wins. Kapic averaged 22 points per game on 56% shooting. He scored 19 points and grabbed six rebounds in Thursday’s win at UCSB. On Saturday, Kapic sank a career-high seven three-pointers on eight tries and finished with a season-high 25 points as the Tritons downed Bakersfield. Kapic was 8-9 from the free throw line for the week.
First-year Triton Justin Rochelin was one of six in double figures in UC San Diego’s record-setting win over La Verne Saturday. Rochelin scored a career-high 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting. He also pulled down four rebounds over 17 minutes off the bench in the 76-point Triton win.
In the opening round of the Big West Championship, Kylie Pries led the Tritons with 20 kills and finished just shy of a double-double with nine digs against Long Beach State. The Tritons’ outside hitter also collected one ace for a team-best 21.0 points. Her 20 kills were a season best for the graduate transfer and set a new career high for the San Juan Capistrano native in her fifth season.
November 25, 2024
AVA McINNES, WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL, SENIOR, OUTSIDE HITTER
On her senior night, outside hitter Ava McInnes set the UC San Diego women’s volleyball all-time program record with 1,531 career kills. With the achievement, she becomes the first Triton competing her entire career in the Division I era to hold an all-time career record in any sport at UC San Diego.
In Saturday’s regular season finale, McInnes recorded a match-high 15 kills to help the Tritons clinch their first ever berth to the Big West Championship. She hit .483 against Cal State Bakersfield with just one error in 29 swings and finished with 17 points on her senior night. For the week, McInnes averaged 4.33 points, 3.50 kills, 1.83 digs and 1.00 block per set. She now holds the program’s career kills record (1,531), the single match kills record (31) and the second place spot in single season kills (469).
Triton senior Tyler McGhie averaged 21 points on 4.3 made threes per game and also dished out 4.3 assists with just one turnover as UC San Diego won three games in three days to claim the Boardwalk Battle championship in Daytona Beach, Fla. McGhie was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. In the opening game, he set a new Division I career high with 27 points scored in a win over La Salle. In the championship game – an 80-45 rout of four-time MAC champion Toledo – McGhie scored 27 more and was 7-for-11 in three-point field goal tries.
November 18, 2024
ANTE BUZOV, MEN’S WATER POLO, SENIOR, UTILITY
Ante Buzov matched his career-best with three goals in Thursday’s Senior Night victory against Westcliff. Two of his goals came in the first quarter and his third was in the fourth period. It was his third career hat trick. He also contributed a drawn exclusion in the game.
MADISON O’CONNELL, WOMEN’S SWIM, FRESHMAN, MEDLEY
Returning to competition after a two week hiatus, UC San Diego women’s swim returned to action against Pepperdine and UC Santa Barbara. Madison O’Connell helped the Triton women to victory over the Waves in a 184.5-109.5 decision and fell to the Gauchos by four points in a final result of 133-129. The freshman was the starter for 200 medley relay and 200 free relay and led the Tritons to victory both times. In her individual performance, O’Connell finished second with a time of 1:49.58 in the 200 free.
November 11, 2024
AVA McINNES, WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL, SENIOR, OUTSIDE HITTER
Ava McInnes led the Tritons with 29 points and 26 kills in a 2-0 weekend to help UC San Diego move into a tie for first place in the Big West. The senior outside hitter averaged 3.63 points and 3.25 kills per set, inching closer to UC San Diego’s all-time kills record. She is currently 32 kills away from moving solely into first place all-time with 1,493 career kills. McInnes led the Tritons offensively in both matches, collecting 14 kills and hitting .294 against UC Irvine on Friday and tallying 12 kills at Cal State Fullerton and hitting .400. For the week she finished with 26 kills on 59 swings with six errors to hit .339.
Triton sharpshooter Tyler McGhie paced UC San Diego over its first two games, averaging 20.5 points per game. He scored a game-high 21 points at San Diego State and followed that up with a 20-point performance in a win over Pepperdine. McGhie connected on a Big West-best ten three-pointers in 20 attempts (50%). He also averaged four rebounds per game and was a perfect 3-for-3 from the free throw line.
November 4, 2024
SUNNY SHARMA, FENCING, JUNIOR, EPEE
Junior Sunny Sharma paced UC San Diego over the weekend at the West Invitational, held in San Diego. Sharma went 12-6 on the weekend including a pair of wins over Ohio State. As a team, the Tritons went 4-2 for the weekend including a 15-12 victory over Ohio State.
SYLVANA NORTHROP, WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY, SENIOR
Making their Big West championship debut, the Triton women finished fourth overall with two top 15 finishes. Sylvana Northrop led the way again for the sixth time this season. The Cupertino runner earned a sixth-place finish running a time of 20:04.1. She is the first cross country Triton to earn All-Conference honors for her top 10 performance.
October 28, 2024
ASIA KOZAN, WOMEN’S SWIM, SOPHOMORE, FREE/MEDLEY
Opening the 2024-25 season on the road, Asia Kozan led the Triton women to victory over UC Davis with three first-place finish swims. The sophomore standout led the sweep of the 200 free with a time of 1:50.17 as the Tritons took first through fourth. Posting a time of 50.78, Kozan won the 100 free and then won the 400 IM with a time of 4:20.16. The Tritons took second in the 200 free relay to end the meet with Kozan swimming the fastest split of her group at 23.05 to end her day with a total of 27 points.
LUCAS ROMAGUERA, MEN’S WATER POLO, SENIOR, ATTACKER
Senior Lucas Romaguera totaled six points on five goals and an assist for 12th-ranked UC San Diego over two games last week. He registered his fourth hat trick of the season in an overtime loss at 11th-ranked Big West opponent Long Beach State. The Brazilian also had two drawn exclusions, a steal, and a field block against the Beach. The next day in La Jolla, he tallied two goals, an assist, and a steal in a victory vs. Whittier. Romaguera extended his goal-scoring streak to four games with his performances.
October 21, 2024
FELIPE FERREIRA, MEN’S WATER POLO, SENIOR, ATTACKER
Felipe Ferreira played a major role in UC San Diego earning its first Big West win of the season this past week. Against Cal State Fullerton Friday in La Jolla, the senior attacker totaled three points on a pair of goals and an assist while also grabbing a steal. It was Ferreira’s 10th-straight game with at least one point.
SYLVANA NORTHROP, WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY, SENIOR
UC San Diego cross country wrapped the regular season on the road at the Highlander Invite where team captain and senior Sylvana Northrop won the women’s 6K for a second-place team finish. The senior jumped out with the front group of the race right away and stuck with them until making a move in the final 800m to pull away and win the race with a time of 20:27.7.
October 14, 2024
LANDON AKERSTROM, MEN’S WATER POLO, SOPHOMORE, ATTACKER
Landon Akerstrom continued his scoring ways this past week for No. 13 UC San Diego, racking up seven points on six goals and an assist over two road games. In the team’s Big West opener, a 12-11 loss at No. 5 UC Irvine, Akerstrom found the net four times, a game-high, while adding a steal and a drawn exclusion. The next night at 16th-rankeed Loyola Marymount, he registered two goals, an assist, two drawn exclusions, and a steal as the Tritons defeated the Lions 10-3 in Los Angeles. Akerstrom is now the Big West lead in goals scored with 45. He has notched at least one goal in his last 11 games and had multiple goals in eight of those.
AVA McINNES, WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL, SENIOR, OUTSIDE HITTER
Senior outside hitter Ava McInnes averaged 3.75 kills per set, with 30.5 total points to lead UC San Diego to a 2-0 weekend on the road. McInnes recorded her 200th kill of the season and 1,400th career kill for the Tritons at CSUN (Oct. 12). She recorded a .328 hitting percentage with 30 total kills in eight sets. On Friday at Cal State Bakersfield, McInnes collected a match-high 17 kills, hitting at a .394 clip. On Saturday at CSUN, she finished in double-figures once again with 13 kills.
October 7, 2024
JULIA HAYNES, WOMEN’S TENNIS, GRAD STUDENT
Playing as a Triton for the first time, UC San Diego grad student Julia Haynes won the singles championship at the Beach Tennis Fall Tournament, hosted by Long Beach State. Playing as the tournament’s top seed in an event which featured nine Big West schools, Haynes went a perfect 5-0 over the four-day event to win the title in dominant fashion. In Sunday’s championship, Haynes was a 6-4, 6-2 winner over UC Santa Barbara’s Raphaelle Leroux, the tournament’s third seed. For the weekend, Haynes won 10 of the 11 sets she played.
MAX CARVALHO, MEN’S SOCCER, SENIOR, FORWARD
The senior forward led the Tritons in the opening week of Big West conference play earning a goal and tallying an assist. Against No. 22 UC Santa Barbara, Carvalho’s goal in the sixth minute held strong into the second half as the lone goal scored between both squads. Returning home on Saturday, Carvalho continued his offensive action against CSUN as he assisted Quinn Sellers in scoring the game winner and earning the Tritons’ second win of the season.
September 30, 2024
BENNETT AXLINE, MEN’S WATER POLO, JUNIOR, UTILITY
Junior Bennett Axline scored five goals over two games for the Tritons this past week including a hat trick against No. 1 Loyola Marymount. His three scores against the Lions led to a 12-9 Triton victory in the annual Battle of the Kings game in front of 1,300 fans in La Jolla. Axline also contributed four drawn exclusions, two steals, and a field block in the game. Against Pacific, the fifth-ranked team in the country, the San Diego native scored twice, both coming during power plays. In addition, he logged two drawn exclusions and two steals. Axline is riding a seven-game goal-scoring streak with multiple goals in four of those. He is second on the team with 23 goals so far this season.
Freshman Audrey Hollis recorded a double-double in each of UC San Diego’s matches on the opening weekend of Big West play. The Tritons’ setter/opposite averaged 2.00 kills, 6.13 assists and 2.13 digs with 20.5 total points in two matches. Hollis collected a career-high 15 kills, adding 22 assists, six digs, two aces and one block against UC Riverside on Thursday. Against UC Davis, she finished with 27 assists, 11 digs, two blocks and one kill on Saturday.
September 16, 2024
RAQUEL KALPAKOFF, WOMEN’S SOCCER, SENIOR, FORWARD
UC San Diego senior forward Raquel Kalpakoff led the way for the Tritons again last week, scoring the team’s lone goal in a 1-0 road win at San Diego State – the Tritons’ first-ever victory over the Aztecs. In the 18th minute, Kalpakoff raced into the box, taking a centering feed and firing a left-footed rocket into the back of the net to put UC San Diego in front. Kalpakoff leads the team and ranks third in The Big West with four goals scored this season. Her pair of game-winners sits second in the conference.
JACOB LEVY, MEN’S FENCING, JUNIOR, FOIL
Triton junior Jacob Levy won gold in the men’s foil at UC San Diego’s BladeRunner at LionTree Arena. Seeded 20th, Levy posted a perfect 7-0 record to take the top spot in the men’s Division I-A foil. Last year at BladeRunner, Levy finished 12th in the event.
September 9, 2024
LOGAN ESTES, MEN’S WATER POLO, SR., GK
Senior goalie Logan Estes was instrumental in guiding UC San Diego to a 3-1 record at its own season-opening Triton Invitational. Over the four games, Estes racked up 34 saves, an average of 8.5 stops per contest. He also accumulated seven steals, the most by any Triton during the tourney. Estes had a double-digit save total in two games, matching his career-high with 14 against Pomona-Pitzer and turning aside 11 scoring chances vs. UCLA, the No. 1-ranked team in the country. He also had seven stops vs. Bucknell and two against UC Merced. Estes’ four steals vs. Bucknell also equaled his career best.
Junior Jasmine Saran was named tournament MVP at the Kristen Dickmann Invitational, hosted at Navy. The Tritons’ middle blocker averaged 2.00 kills and 1.00 blocks per set to help UC San Diego go 2-1 over the weekend. Saran totaled 12 blocks and three solo stops, adding 24 kills in three matches. The Temecula native tallied six kills and four blocks in a three-set victory over Navy on Friday. She followed up with 12 kills and five blocks against Liberty and ended the weekend with six kills and three blocks against Cornell.
September 2, 2024
SYLVANA NORTHROP, WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY, SR., 5K
Opening the season at the Mark Covert Classic, senior captain Sylvana Northrop led the Triton women to a first place team victory on Saturday, Aug. 31. Coming from behind and nearly stealing the race on a late kick, Northrop posted the highest finish for both squads taking second place with a time of 17:48.0.
ZENO CASTIGLIONI, MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY, SR., 8K
Opening the season at the Mark Covert Classic, the Triton men were led by Zeno Castiglioni for a third-place finish as a team. Castiglioni posted a time of 24:31.3 for eighth place. His time was a full minute faster than the team’s fast time in 2023.
August 26, 2024
COURTNEY HILLIARD, WOMEN’S SOCCER, SR., FORWARD
Women’s soccer senior captain Courtney Hilliard scored a goal and added an assist as UC San Diego posted a clean sheet in a 3-0 victory over Nevada on August 25. Through two weeks of play, Hilliard leads the team with five points and is tied for the team lead with a pair of goals. Hilliard has scored six career goals, good for third in the program’s brief Division I history.
NOLAN PREMACK, MEN’S SOCCER, SR., GOALKEEPER
Making his UC San Diego debut this week, senior transfer Nolan Premack tallied a total of 12 saves over 180 minutes. Facing No. 20 Duke on Sunday night, Premack faced a total of 20 shots and made a total of nine saves for a new career high.
TJ Vorva takes over CBC volleyball program: ‘He’s locked in’
By Joe Harris | Special to the Post-Dispatch It was an offer TJ Vorva simply couldn’t refuse. Vorva was announced as CBC’s new boys volleyball coach last week, but the process started with a call from outgoing coach Alex Erbs. “He hit me up and was like, hey, you know, I got some other endeavors […]
Vorva was announced as CBC’s new boys volleyball coach last week, but the process started with a call from outgoing coach Alex Erbs.
“He hit me up and was like, hey, you know, I got some other endeavors that I need to kind of focus on a little bit more moving forward,” Vorva said. “But you can tell he’s so passionate about the program that he’s like, I don’t want to just hand it off to anybody and kind of lose some of the traditions and some of the stuff that I’ve built up.”
From there, Erbs introduced Vorva to CBC athletic director Scott Pingel and the hiring process began.
“We just had really, really good conversations where it seemed like we were all kind of on the same page in terms of goals and where we want to, you know, take the program moving forward,” Vorva said.
People are also reading…
Erbs will stay on as an assistant. It is a reunion for Vorva and Erbs as the two coached together on the club circuit.
“My big thing is I’ve kind of seen the game from the travel side, and I’ve seen the game from the college side, and there just seems to be a lot of disconnect from the high school age groups,” Vorva said. “Then when they get to college, they’re, you know, one step behind. So, there’s some things that we can do, especially with, you know, the offensive philosophy, a lot of the setting stuff, just to kind of open up the offense a little bit, and not rely on just the best hitters getting the ball 24/7. It’s kind of creating a lot of different lanes for offense to be able to accomplish that.”
Vorva’s last coaching stop was a promotion to the men’s volleyball head coach position at the now defunct Fontbonne University in May 2023 after serving as an assistant coach for two seasons. He played his college volleyball at Fontbonne and was a team captain on the 2019 squad that went 26-3.
Vorva, who is from the Chicago area, was originally a basketball player before taking up volleyball in high school.
Pingel said the decision to hire Vorva was easy.
“If you ever spent 5-10 minutes with him, you know there’s something special about this young man,” Pingel said. “He’s locked in.”
Erbs, who graduated from CBC in 2014, stepped down after seven seasons as head coach. He led the Cadets to winning records in three of his seven seasons playing in the rugged MCC.
Vorva is excited to be reunited with Erbs.
“I think he’s going to be a fountain of knowledge for me,” Vorva said. “But at the same time, I think it gives, you know, the boys a new perspective as well. I’ll be kind of a brand new face coming in, and it’s kind of a little bit of a fresh start for everybody, especially in terms of, like, tryouts and, you know, positional things I’m going to come in with.”
Vorva said every player will come in with a blank slate and a fresh chance to prove their skills.
“I’m very excited about what TJ can bring for our program and really take it to the next level,” Pingel said. “Alex did a great job of trying to get it right, and he felt like he left it a good spot. So, I’m ready for TJ to take to the next level.”
Welcome guys, gals, and gender non-binary pals, to Ask 411 . . . the last surviving weekly column on 411 Wrestling. I am your party host, Ryan Byers, and I am here to answer some of your burning inquiries about professional wrestling. If you have one of those queries searing a hole in your brain, […]
Welcome guys, gals, and gender non-binary pals, to Ask 411 . . . the last surviving weekly column on 411 Wrestling.
I am your party host, Ryan Byers, and I am here to answer some of your burning inquiries about professional wrestling. If you have one of those queries searing a hole in your brain, feel free to send it along to me at [email protected]. Don’t be shy about shooting those over – the more, the merrier.
Hey, ya wanna banner?
Night Wolf the Wise is renewing old rivalries:
I read that the Rock and Stone Cold wrestled against each other 10 times. Stone Cold has 7 victories over the Rock. Rock only has 1 win over Stone Cold. The other 2 are no contest. Has any other wrestler in wrestling history won only 1 match in that rivalry? Keep in mind when I say rivalry, I mean they wrestled multiple times like Rock and Austin did. Also tag team matches, fatal 4 ways, etc don’t count. Only one on ones.
With those numbers and with the Rock only beating Austin once, that tells me you’re only counting televised matches, because if you add in house shows and dark matches, the Rock has more victories over Steve Austin than just the one.
If we are only accounting for TV bouts, then I was able to locate one definite example of a feud in which a wrestler only won one of the matches.
Bret Hart versus Owen Hart.
If you look at the televised record between the brothers, Owen’s victory at Wrestlemania X is the only one that he ever picked up the win, though he did also have a non-televised victory in the quarterfinals of the 1996 Kuwaiti Cup tournament.
I am sure that if you reviewed every feud in the modern history of wrestling you could find several more examples, but that is one that came to me offhand.
We’ve given Tyler from Winnipeg the book:
Three part question. Did you read Hardcore Holly’s book? Becky’s? Your top 3 wrestling books?
No.
No.
Mick Foley’s first two books and Chris Jericho’s first book.
Those aren’t exactly unique answers, but sometimes the consensus picks are the best picks.
Big Al has a new body:
While watching Wrestlemania the other day, one of my in-laws mentioned how John Cena definitely took steroids. However I don’t ever remember hearing about him getting involved in those. That got me thinking, while it’s impossible to know with 100% certainty, who are the most successful wrestlers that we can say most likely did NOT use PED’s? When I say successful, I am thinking multiple time world champions or a years-long push. Just WWF(E) and WCW to narrow it down.
Lance Storm. Given the prevalence of PEDs in wrestling for decades, Storm is about the only person who ever operated in the WWF or WCW that I am 99% confident never did anything. That’s not to say there haven’t been others who were clean, but I just don’t know who they are, and my default assumption is that a wrestler from the 1980s on has at least dabbled in something at some point unless there’s strong evidence to the contrary.
Have you heard the one about Craig?
Has there ever been a main event on a weekly live TV show in which one of the competitors gets seriously injured and unable to finish the match? I remember Triple H got injured at the end of a tag match but let’s say there is a singles match in which a wrestlers are given 15 minutes to wrestle and one wrestler gets injured a few minutes into it and unable to continue. How would the show fill in the rest of the time slot with no wrestling?
I’m not aware of that situation having ever occurred, but the answer to the second half of the question is that there are any number of ways that you could fill out the remaining TV time, depending on the context – perhaps most importantly how much time is remaining.
The first thing you can do, which works if the remaining television time is relatively short, is just pad it out with replays of the injury and footage of the injured wrestler being removed from the ring, and perhaps an interview with the other wrestler who was in the match about what exactly happened.
The second thing to do, which would be an option if you have more time left in the show, would be to just have somebody else on the card cut an impromptu promo or have a couple of other guys on the card wrestle an impromptu match. Wrestling doesn’t have to be planned all that much in advance. True pros can get in there and improvise a promo or call a match in the ring. Granted, those skills may be falling by the wayside given how new wrestlers are getting trained these days, but grapplers with sufficient seasoning should still be able to do it.
GRT is menacingly stroking his briefcase:
Has any title reign started by a Money in the Bank cash in ever been ended by a Money in the Bank cash in? Or is Tiffany Stratton the only current time this could occur?
No, this has never happened before.
If MNMNB‘s friends jumped off a cliff, so would he:
Just learned there was someone named Roger “Nature Boy” Kirby.
How many wrestlers can you find that used the Nature Boy name?
Well, let’s count them:
1. Buddy Rogers: This is the original Nature Boy. I think I’ve told this story in the column before, but the name originates with a popular song that Nat King Cole first recorded in 1948. It has been covered many times since then.
2. Al Oeming: This fellow is an interesting yet sometimes forgotten footnote in wrestling history. He served in the Canadian Navy in World War II and, when he came home from the war, he was broken into wrestling by his childhood friend Stu Hart. This means he would have adopted the nickname “The Nature Boy” around the same time Buddy Rogers did, though it’s not clear to me who used it first. Eventually, Al got into promoting and co-founded Stampede Wrestling with Hart. He also became a noted zoologist and conservationist, wit the CBC making a docuseries about that part of his life in 1980.
3. Tommy Phelps: Phelps was another contemporary of Rogers, wrestling at the same time he did, though Rogers definitely had the gimmick first. After wrestling, Phelps became an evangelist and released a spoken word record about his conversion from grappler to man of god.
4. Chief Lone Eagle: Not to be confused with the little person wrestler who was also called Chief Lone Eagle, this guy wrestled for promoter Jack Pfeffer in Chicago and Ohio in the 1950s and 1960s. Though Lone Eagle was his most commonly used ring name, for some of his bouts he was dubbed the “Indian Nature Boy.”
5. Roger Kirby: The man who inspired this question. Kirby began wrestling in the 1960s and was dubbed “The Nature Boy” due to his physical resemblance to Buddy Rogers, who he was actually friendly with. Kirby wrestled for almost every major promotion during the territorial era of wrestling, and when his career was winding down in the 1980s, he had matches for the WWF, the AWA, and All Japan Pro Wrestling.
6. Ric Flair: When you talk to 90% of people who recognize the “Nature Boy” name these days, they’ll no doubt tie it first and foremost to Ric Flair.
7. JJ Dillon: It didn’t last long, but when the future manager of Ric Flair was wrestling In and around Hallifax, Nova Scotia between 1973 and 1975, he was known as Nature Boy Dillon.
8. Adrian Street: American fans will remember Street using the nickname “Exotic,” but when he started wrestling in his native England, he used the “Nature Boy” moniker in large part because he had been a fan of Buddy Rogers, who his flamboyant character was based upon.
9. Nature Boy: This is a true oddity. In David McLane’s all women’s promotion GLOW, one of the wrestlers who only had a handful of matches was called Jungle Woman, doing a Tarzan-esque gimmick. She had a male valet who wore a loincloth and was lead to the ring on a leash. He was called “Nature Boy,” with no other name given. In reality, Nature Boy was portrayed by Tony Cimber, and this is an example of somebody behind the scenes being given an on camera role. Tony Cimber is listed as an associate director in GLOW’s credits, and his brother Matt Cimber is listed as a director and a producer. In more trivia, the Cimber brothers are children of Hollywood legend Jayne Mansfield, which makes them half-brothers of Law and Order star Mariska Hargitay. So, David McLane is one degree of separation away from Mariska Hargitay.
10. Ricky Fuji: This one is also going to be a bit of a story. Fuji is a long-time Japanese indy wrestler, starting in 1990 and continuing through today. His most notworthy run was with FMW in the mid-to-late 1990s. He was a huge Rock n’ Roll Express fan and patterned a lot of his style on them. Another Japanese indy wrestler, Men’s Teioh (who had a cup of tea in the WWF as part of Kaientai), was known early in his career as Terry Boy because of his extreme Terry Funk fandom. For a couple of tag matches in 2011, Teioh reverted to his Terry Boy persona, while wrestler Great Kojika joined him as Dory Boy (based on Dory Funk), and Fuji rounded out the trio as Nature Boy (based on Ric Flair). It wasn’t his full-time gimmick or anything, but he did use the name.
11. Lance Idol: This journeyman wrestler debuted in 1978 and his career ended when he died of a heart attack in 1991. He had a ton of ring names during his career. He never used “Nature Boy” with the name Lance Idol to my knowledge, but he wrestled as Nature Boy Austin for a time. Interestingly, he was also Steve Austin for a time – before he would’ve known about the wrestler who ultimately became Stone Cold – so he has shared names with two of wrestling’s greatest.
12. Buddy Landel: Probably the third most notable Nature Boy on this list behind Rogers and Flair, most fans reading this will know that he overlapped with Slick Ric in the gimmick and feuded with him over the rights to the name for a time – including while he was managed by JJ Dillon, another Nature Boy from this list.
13. Tito Senza: Another 1970s and 1980s journeyman. I’ve listed him as Tito Senza because that was his most widely known ring name – including the name he did some WWF enhancement work under – but he was never “Nature Boy” Tito Senza. Instead, his alternate ring name was Nature Boy Nelson, which he used from the mid-70s through the early 80s in Nova Scotia.
14. Verne Siebert: This is another example of a journeyman wrestler having many names. Siebert is his most recognizable one, but he was also Nature Boy Sweetan when he wrestled in the late 80s in . . . Nova Scotia? Why was this gimmick so popular in eastern Canada? (Yeah, yeah, I’m the guy that answers the questions . . . I shouldn’t be asking them . . .)
15. Paul Lee: In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Paul Lee did what was essentially a Ric Flair tribute act on southern independents, and he was respected enough that he was brought in as an enhancement wrestler on shows for Jim Crockett Promotions, WCW, and, later on, Smoky Mountain Wrestling. He’s also had several matches in the 2020s, including one in 2023 against Joey Janela.
16. Charles Robinson: Robinson, the referee who refuses to age, was involved in an angle in late 1990s WCW in which he was a Ric Flair fanboy and was dubbed “The Little Nature Boy” or “Little Naitch” for short. Though he’s a referee and not a wrestler, the Little Naitch run did see him have a couple of matches, including an infamous bout in which Randy Savage caved his chest in with a flying elbow.
17. Rik Ratchet: A New Jersey indy fixture from 1994 through 2022, Ratchet didn’t do much of interest that I could find, but his final match was a singles bout against Jerry Lawler, which is a great note to go out on.
18. Kevin White: Trained by Bill Dundee, Mr. White was referred to as the “New Nature Boy” and made numerous appearances on the Tennessee independents from the early 2000s through 2015.
19. Barry Ace: Based out of Massachusetts, Barry Ace is a 20+ year indy veteran who also has quite a few small film roles to his credit. Though he currently calls himself “The Mill City Samurai,” at an earlier phase of his career he was the “New Age Nature Boy.” He’s still active, and you can see his website here.
20. Scoot Andrews: Scoot was a northeastern indy wrestler who competed from 1994 through 2022 with his greatest exposure coming in early Ring of Honor during its Feinstein era. He was actually known as the “Black Nature Boy” because, well, he was Black. It probably says something that we had to specify he was a “Black” Nature Boy when the entire origin of the Nature Boy gimmick was with a song recorded and popularized by a Black performer.
21. Gary Gold: This fellow is a Massachusetts-based independent wrestler who began wrestling in 1981 and continued through 2017. In an interesting side note, if you poke around on YouTube, you can find several episodes of a public access talk show about professional wrestling that he hosted during the 2020s.
22. Dylan Eaton: His career was pretty short in the grand scheme of things, lasting only three years in the 2000s, but Dylan Eaton came into the sport with quite the pedigree. He was the grandson of Bill Dundee and the son of Bobby Eaton, who was married to Dundee’s daughter. Interestingly, despite being related to two other wrestling legends, Dylan was a “Nature Boy” in tribute to Flair for a time as opposed to being a “Superstar” or “Beautiful.”
23. Ricky Landell: Trained by Steve Corino and debuting in the early 2000s, Rick Landell’s early career largely consisted of following Corino around wherever he was going and acting almost as a “young boy” in the Japanese tradition. When Ricky was allowed to start showing some personality of his own, he did take up the “Nature Boy” mantle for a time.
24. Chic Canyon: No, not Chris Kanyon. Active in the late 2000s through the early 2010s on the indy circuit in Kentucky and deep southern Illinois, Canyon referred to himself as the “Strong Style Nature Boy.”
25. Johnny Dynamo: Still wrestling in Michigan today after a career that has lasted over 20 years, Mr. Dynamo took up the mantle of the “New Nature Boy.”
26. Reid Flair: We all remember the tragic tale of Ric Flair’s younger son, who had a sold amateur career and seemed likely to follow in his father’s footsteps, even touring with All Japan Pro Wrestling in 2013. During his unfortunately brief career, he was called “The Third Nature Boy,” with the first two presumably being Rogers and his father . . . though many more were obviously disregarded.
27. Kyle Brooks: This Canadian independent wrestler is still active, mostly around Ontario, after having debuted in 2019. Though he used the Nature Boy for a period of time, more recently he has adopted the moniker “Brother Earth” and started doing an environmentalist gimmick. Go buy his t-shirt if you’re so inclined.
28 & 29. The Nature Boyz: This entry is a little bit different, as it’s a tag team. In 2022 and 2023, trainees Jonny Lyons and Dylan Fliehr were put together as a tag team called “The Nature Boyz” in Booker T’s Reality of Wrestling promotion.
And there you have it. I was able to count 29 Nature Boys.
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that there are also two “Nature Girls” that I became aware of in my research. One his Charlotte Flair, for obvious reasons, though it’s not a moniker that really stuck with her on the main roster of WWE.
The other is a more interesting case. Adela Antone was a lady wrestler in promoter Billy Wolfe’s troupe for less than a year between 1951 and 1952, where she used the nickname “Nature Girl.” That’s not the interesting part, though. The interesting part is that, according to a 1995 newspaper clipping unearthed by When It Was Cool, Antone was once asked to be involved in a murder plot. A man named Harry Washburn was accused of killing a woman named Helen Weaver with a car bomb. According to Antone, Washburn also once offered her $10,000.00 to kill Harry Weaver, the husband of Helen Weaver.
I don’t believe that had anything to do with her being a Nature Girl, though.
We’ll return in seven-ish days, and, as always, you can contribute your questions by emailing [email protected]. You can also leave questions in the comments below, but please note that I do not monitor the comments as closely as I do the email account, so emailing is the better way to get things answered.
Water Polo, Azzurra U16s graduate as Tuscan champions
Prato, June 16, 2025 – The Azzurra U16s have been crowned Tuscan water polo champions. This is the verdict issued by the final of the Tuscan championship of the category, which saw the Prato team prevail in the end: coach Bonechi’s boys can rejoice after the 10-6 imposed on their rivals Siena Pallanuoto. In the […]
Prato, June 16, 2025 – The Azzurra U16s have been crowned Tuscan water polo champions. This is the verdict issued by the final of the Tuscan championship of the category, which saw the Prato team prevail in the end: coach Bonechi’s boys can rejoice after the 10-6 imposed on their rivals Siena Pallanuoto. In the first two periods the match proved to be very balanced, with the Prato athletes who then raised the pace and consolidated the result. Thus closing a more than positive season in the best possible way. The year for the club chaired by Alessandro Bartolozzi is not over: Daniele Santini’s first team drew 9-9 against Jesina a few days ago in the first leg of the Serie C championship playoffs and next Saturday the Marche will play for the qualification to Serie B. Regardless of what the final outcome will be in any case, what is certain is that from the U16 and from the youth sector in general interesting results continue to arrive. And Santini can also take notes with confidence, in view of the future.
Life on the fringe with Orioles reliever Scott Blewett
SCROLL DOWN TO READ ARTICLE If you ask Scott Blewett to describe himself, he’ll eagerly offer that he’s “a journeyman.” The 29-year-old right-handed pitcher was the Kansas City Royals’ second-round pick in 2014, but it took him six years to finally make his major league debut. Since then, he’s logged a total of 60 major […]
If you ask Scott Blewett to describe himself, he’ll eagerly offer that he’s “a journeyman.” The 29-year-old right-handed pitcher was the Kansas City Royals’ second-round pick in 2014, but it took him six years to finally make his major league debut.
Since then, he’s logged a total of 60 major league innings, including the 2 2/3 in his second big league start on Sunday when he was the Orioles’ opener in an 11-2 victory over the Los Angeles Angels.
Blewett began the season with Minnesota and was with the Orioles for less than a week in April before he was sold to Atlanta. Ten days ago, the Orioles purchased his contract from the Braves.
Life for a fringe major league baseball player isn’t easy, something Blewett readily acknowledges.
This interview has been edited for brevity.
Question: What’s it like being a guy who doesn’t know where they’re going to be day-to-day?
Blewett: “You’ve got to take it one day at a time, right? I’m trying to get better at packing lighter. I’m learning with that. It’s been quite the journey to get to the big leagues, to stay in the big leagues. In the minor leagues, I fought so hard to get back to this level, to get to this level initially, to get back here. I’m fighting just as hard to stay here. You’ve got to prove yourself every single day. There’s thousands of guys that are fighting to take your job. I like that edge to go out and compete every single night.”
Q: You’re currently living in a hotel in Baltimore. When do you think you’ll be confident enough in your status to get an apartment?
Blewett: “I learned that lesson pretty quick this year. I thought I was going to stay in Minnesota. I thought I was going to spend most of the year in Triple-A [St. Paul]. Minnesota is pretty fortunate to have both cities pretty close to each other where if you’re in Triple-A or the big leagues, you can live in the same spot. I signed a seven-month lease there. I was in Minnesota all year last year, and I signed back with them. I had a few other offers this offseason. I really liked the program they had for me, so I got comfortable, and I learned real quick not to get too comfortable.”
Q: Don’t they pay to help you get out of your lease?
Blewett: “Some of it; you had to eat some of it.”
Q: Any tips for finding a place to live?
Blewett: “I’ve been in a lot of hotels. I found a cool app. When I was in Alanta, I was able to move into an apartment. I found an app that did short-term one-month leases. For the most part, I’m living out of a suitcase the entire year.”
Q: You don’t have children, so it’s just you, your wife, Rachel, who’s a speech language pathologist, and a dog. How much of the moving is on you and how much on her?
Blewett: “I like to take most of the responsibility. She’ll pack her stuff. I’ll pack mine. I’ve gotten really good at that, fit a lot of things into my car, get from city-to-city. If we have to fly, we’ll take what we need and leave the rest in the car, get the car later.”
Q: Fans think players have it easy. What’s it like when you’re not a star?
Blewett: “My motto is, ‘Live in the moment, live where my feet are. Don’t think about what happened yesterday. Don’t think about what’s going to happen tomorrow.’ I have the opportunity to be here today. I have the opportunity to be the best I can be.
“When I look back and think about it, it’s like every single day, fighting for my job. In the moment, I don’t think about it. As I end the season, I’ll reflect, ‘Wow, that was quite the year, and it flies by.’
“There is a lot of stress involved. There were some times last week where it was like, ‘What is my life right now?’ I drove from Atlanta to Charlotte, stayed in Charlotte for a night, drove here, got on a flight to Sacramento, went out there and was pitching the next day. The travel can definitely take a toll on you sometimes. I fought hard to get here. I’m fighting just as hard to stay here. I know I can lay my head on the pillow at night knowing I gave 100 percent every time out. Keep a positive attitude and work as hard as I can.”
Q: Earlier this season, you gave up 0 earned runs in 4 1/3 innings in two outings for the Orioles only to be designated for assignment when they needed a roster spot. Does that annoy you?
Blewett: “I understand the business, right? I’ve been around the game. This is my 12th year, so I understand how the business works. Being in the role that I’m in, I think it’s a role that’s overlooked sometimes.
“It’s not glamorous by any means, right? It’s necessary. Games are out of hand, one way or the other. Somebody’s got to eat those innings and it just happens to be me a lot of those times.
“I’ll do anything it takes to stay in the big leagues. I don’t mind doing that role. Big league innings are big league innings. It’s an amazing opportunity. It’s something I’ve dreamt of as a kid. I’ve just got to keep that attitude every single time out. I hope for the best. Whatever happens after that, if I get designated, and the next day I’m playing for another team, so be it. It’s out of my control. The only thing I can do is go out there and put up zeros.”
Q: Did it surprise you when you found out you were back with the Orioles six weeks after you left?
Blewett: “I always try and keep a good relationship, no matter where you go. Baseball’s such a small world. Attitude is everything. As long as you have a positive attitude, you never know.
“You go to Atlanta. You come back here. You go back to Atlanta. You come back here. Anything can happen. I learned a lot from Matt Bowman last year. I was with him in Minnesota. We’d talk about the whole process because we’re in a very similar situation. He’s been around the game a lot longer than I have. He’s a very smart guy.
“You don’t meet too many guys in our exact situation. You can relate to those guys and talk about it and laugh how crazy this life can be. It’s nice to be able to have somebody who can relate.”
Q: But you knocked Bowman out of a job. He was DFA’d when the Orioles reacquired you.
Blewett: “Unfortunately, but it can happen that he knocks me out of a job. We both understand that situation. It’s the unfortunate part of the business.”
Q: In 2023, you had seven starts for a team in Taiwan. What was that like?
Blewett: “It was great. I loved it. It was a pretty big culture shock when I got there at first. I had two great translators, some other foreign players. One guy was American, Canadian, a guy from Panama. They were all awesome. We all leaned on each other.
“It just gave me an appreciation for here and the Latin players that come over. You’re in a different country. You’re away from your family. You lean on each other. When I was there, I learned a splitter. Kind of completely changed my career around. Had a great time there, give them a lot of credit for where I am today.”
Call for questions: I answer Orioles questions most weekdays. Please send yours to: [email protected].
Manheim Central’s run to PIAA boys volleyball royalty coincided with District 3 counterpart [column] | Boys’ volleyball
UNIVERSITY PARK — What makes a championship-winning team? Pure talent? Cohesion amongst players and staff? Experience? Luck? There’s no correct answer. No evidence to fully comprehend what it takes to reach the summit. But over a given high school athletic season, programs align the pieces, check off the boxes and identify the values that make […]
UNIVERSITY PARK — What makes a championship-winning team?
Pure talent? Cohesion amongst players and staff? Experience? Luck?
There’s no correct answer. No evidence to fully comprehend what it takes to reach the summit. But over a given high school athletic season, programs align the pieces, check off the boxes and identify the values that make the engine hum.
In rare instances, the segments click into place. Blossom into a gold-medal outcome.
I had the privilege of covering both PIAA boys volleyball champions this spring. On Saturday, I assisted in the coverage of Manheim Central lifting its first Class 2A title in program history. At my previous employer, I thoroughly followed Cumberland Valley, the Class 3A victor.
The Barons imposed their payback at Penn State University’s Rec Hall, dispatching District 10 champion Meadville 3-1 — by scores of 21-25, 25-23, 25-16 and 27-25 — after settling for silver against the Bulldogs in 2024. The Eagles, completing an undefeated campaign, swept District Seven stronghold North Allegheny in 25-21, 25-21, 25-12 fashion.
“It’s probably the calmest I’ve been in a championship match,” Central coach Craig Dietrich said, “because they knew what they needed to do. Very few small adjustments we made today, but I trust them very greatly.”
Two teams. Two identities. The same result.
What Central thrived in, CV was shorthanded. What the Eagles succeeded in, the opposite for the Barons.
Don’t twist it, there was plenty of crossover to go around. Senior leadership, for example.
Central started five seniors. CV fielded six. Most logged significant minutes as underclassmen and juniors, the springboard to their fruitful ending.
“We said (to each other), ‘Stay focused. Stay in the moment. Stay present,’” Barons senior outside Reagan Miller said. “Because the state championship only happens once a year. So that was kind of the message throughout playoffs.”
COLUMN: Manheim Central will enjoy view from the top of PIAA Class 2A volleyball mountain
Speaking of the postseason, that’s where the Barons and Eagles’ one-way ticket to gold mapped separate routes. Manheim met its adversity in the Lancaster-Lebanon League final, suffering a 3-1 setback — its only loss of the season — to Cedar Crest. Cumberland Valley, which hadn’t dropped a set all spring, was momentarily derailed when Central York stole a game in the District Three title tilt.
Where did the eventual PIAA champs recenter? In each match following their respective delay.
The Barons used Crest’s clipping as scripture and won their ensuing 18 sets. The Eagles, albeit a set loss to Governor Mifflin in the state semifinals, ousted Unionville, Abington Heights and the Mustangs with game victories of 25-7, 25-9, 25-10 and 25-11 nature.
Central and CV were vulnerable to the knockdown. But they regained anchorage, raised the flags and set sail with little turbulence.
“We’ve all been in that situation before,” Barons senior setter Dylan Musser said. “… It’s just something we know that we can do, that we’re capable of. And we showed it.”
“Showing it” can come in all shapes and sizes. From the front row to the back corners of the court. The Barons and Eagles hugged the parallel line of talent.
Manheim landed six players on the District Three 2A all-star list, as did CV in the 3A contingent. For L-L Section Two, Miller and Musser shared MVP honors, and six Barons earned all-star admission. In the Mid-Penn Commonwealth, Eagles setter Isaiah Sibbitt was tabbed Player of the Year, leading six all-division selections.
It doesn’t get more linear. Covered from the front, back, middle and outside. No empty gaps, no holes to exploit.
“Our whole team knew what was at stake,” Musser said. “For us seniors, this was our last shot. We just gave it our all.”
Desire was the gulf between Central and CV. Not that the Eagles didn’t have the gold-medal itch. But the Barons’ itch, after two prior whiffs and a rematch with the Bulldogs, became a scratch and then a scar.
Central clotted the proverbial bleeding Saturday. All the aches, cramps and throbs of last year’s sting were bandaged. No more “what if?”
“We wanted this all year, getting back to the state ‘chip, and we knew we could,” Musser said. “Playing Meadville made it even better. You get that rematch, and then especially beating them. It feels amazing. We felt we were the better team last year, but it didn’t go our way. But this year, we just battled through it and got our revenge.”
CV didn’t have the dejection, the sorrow of a state-championship loss hanging over its head. The Eagles’ last final appearance — and only other — came in 2008 when they outlasted Central York in five sets. Manheim Central joined Hempfield — a 10-time PIAA champion — and Conestoga Valley (1983) in L-L boys volleyball royalty.
“It’s a very small group of teams that have done it,” Dietrich said. “It is pretty cool to bring it back, and I think the community really rallied around us and supported us.”
The question still stands: what makes a championship-winning team?
The Barons and Eagles don’t have the answer key, but they had the tools to solve the riddle. The means to reach the summit.
Two teams with two identities, authoring the same result.
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Launching a professional women’s hockey league didn’t begin as a passion project for Royce Cohen, a top executive at the Los Angeles Dodgers since 2014. When the team’s owners first explored the idea in 2022, it was simply a matter of determining whether and how such a league could be a viable business. “One thing […]
Launching a professional women’s hockey league didn’t begin as a passion project for Royce Cohen, a top executive at the Los Angeles Dodgers since 2014. When the team’s owners first explored the idea in 2022, it was simply a matter of determining whether and how such a league could be a viable business.
“One thing I heard a lot of when we first launched the PWHL was, ‘If you build it, they will come,’” Cohen recalled. “While I understand why people said that, and I don’t fault them for that, I think the more appropriate conclusion is, ‘If you build it right, you’ll find out if they will come.’”
Launching the PWHL consumed roughly 90% of Cohen’s time over the next two years. Cohen led the negotiation of a collective-bargaining agreement with the world’s top women’s hockey players and buyout of the Premier Hockey Federation. Once those deals were in place, he had fewer than six months to help create a league from scratch.
Cohen, a summa cum laude graduate of The Wharton School, feels the PWHL still has a lot to prove, but the early results have exceeded expectations. The six-team league welcomed its 1 millionth fan midway through its second season, an achievement driven by unprecedented crowds for professional women’s hockey in both teams’ home markets and in neutral markets throughout the U.S. and Canada. The PWHL also has received consistent corporate investment, with 40 sponsors on board in each of its first two seasons.
Next season, the league will welcome its first two expansion teams in Seattle and Vancouver, giving it a coast-to-coast presence for the first time. When 9-year-old hockey player Sydney Mildon made the Vancouver announcement official, it was clear Cohen’s investment in the league had evolved beyond just business.
“It’s hard not to choke up when you see that sort of stuff,” Cohen said. “We’re certainly in a different spot now than at the outset.”
Royce Cohen
Advisory Board Member
Professional Women’s Hockey League
Senior Vice President of Business Strategy
Los Angeles Dodgers
Age: 35
Born: Philadelphia
Education: University of Pennsylvania, The Wharton School, B.S., economics
Family: Spouse, Cole; children, Leighton (3) and Madison (1)
Charity supported: Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation.
Mobile app used most: Tableau.
Best career advice received: When taking a job, prioritize choosing your boss above title, salary, etc.
What led me to sports business as a career: Everyone else at Wharton went into investment banking, so it left sports business as a path less traveled.
How I deal with stress in the workplace: Shuffle poker chips.
The most pressing issue facing my generation: Complacency.
The sports industry needs to do a better job of … : Deploying customer-centric strategies.
![16 L-L League boys volleyball standouts earn District 3 all-star honors, including Class 2A Player of the Year [lists]](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/lancasteronline.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/00/600c46b7-60a3-4360-be22-3cb1620dcbe0/684481ab7de80.image.jpg)
Caitlin Clark
