MONTEREY – Fulfillment came with the experiences and celebrations Ella Myers was able to share with teammates.

The accolades of earning a podium finish at the state wrestling championships, or coming within a homer of tying the county record for home runs were magical.

Yet, while the multi-sport standout left a legacy at Monterey High, as well as a part of her heart on campus, Myers always felt there was more to achieve.

“I will never be content,” said Myers, who will pitch next year at UC Santa Barbara. “Even though I wanted more. I did what I could. I will always be a part of Monterey.”

Becoming the first female wrestler at Monterey to podium at the state championships, and the all-time leader in homers and wins in softball for the school, Myers was named The Herald’s Female Athlete of the Year.

A two-time Female Athlete of the Year, Myers also put together a solid water polo season for the Toreadores, who came within two wins of a school record.

“It (multiple sports) wasn’t just to fill time,” Monterey softball coach Travis Elder said. “It was the need to compete and push herself. I don’t think Ella could be complacent if she wanted to.”

Myers became the second highest state wrestling finisher in county history after placing sixth at 140 pounds, while hitting .552 and posting a 0.89 earned run average in the circle for the Pacific Coast Athletic League Gabilan Division champion Toreadores.

With a softball scholarship locked up during her junior season, it never crossed Myers’ mind to turn her attention solely to just one sport.

Instead, she evolved into a key component on the Toreadores water polo team, while becoming one of the top wrestlers in the state — where she won over 100 matches in four years.

“A lot of the mechanics in softball translate in water polo,” Elder said. “The core strength, let alone the arm strength, while not standing on the ground. We encouraged our baseball kids to play polo. It transformed their bodies.”

Water polo might have been the most challenging sport for Myers, who is pitching next weekend for the Philippine National softball team. By her own admission, she’s not a great swimmer.

“I just tried not to drown,” Myers said. “There were girls better and faster than me. But I think I helped lay a foundation and created a positive environment.”

Myers became a defensive demon with 32 steals, at times resorting to her wrestling skills in the water to hold down an opponent and limit their scoring opportunities.

Blessed with a powerful right arm, the 18-year-old evolved into an offensive weapon with 35 goals, converting 51 percent of her attempts.

“I made a lot of friends in water polo,” Myers said. “I’m a seasonal player. These girls embraced me as part of the team. It’s a bulldog program. The team bonding is what sticks out for me.”

Had softball not been a part of Myers’ life from the time she was old enough to pick up a ball, wrestling might have been her sport of choice.

A four-time Gabilan Division champion on the wrestling mats, Myers won a Central Coast Section title and reached the state meet three times.

“I could tell from my first year that I could be really good at this,” Myers said. “You can’t be successful in wrestling if you don’t have that drive. My competitiveness helped with that.”

Because wrestling is also a seasonal sport for Myers, meeting the challenge of facing opponents who will likely compete in college tested her mental fortitude.

Myers has never had the time to work on her craft in the off-season. Yet, it didn’t change her vision in chasing a podium finish at the state wrestling championships this past winter.

“I would have looked at this season as a failure if I didn’t podium,” Myers said. “Oy my gosh, girls at state are scary. They will try and kill you. It’s not their hobby. But I wanted to be on the big stage.”

So much so that Myers actually took time off from her normal off-season routine in softball to put her full attention into wrestling for the stretch drive.

“I probably took more time off than I should have for wrestling,” Myers said. “But there is no next year for me in wrestling. I wouldn’t call it a distraction. It helped me more than it hurt me.”

With the understanding that each match could be her final after suffering a loss in the third round, Myers staged off elimination with three straight wins at the state finals.

“It was a lot more adrenaline and a little less strategy,” Myers said. “I felt the urgency. I don’t have an offseason. I was so done after my last match. But I wanted that medal.”

Emotionally drained and physically spent, Myers placed sixth at 140 pounds to become the first female at Monterey to place at state.

“It’s probably the last time I will wrestle competitively in my life,” Myers said. “I didn’t want to have any regrets. I’m going to miss it so much. None of this happens without the support of my coaches and family.”

Myers was part of a program that also brought home the school’s first Central Coast Section team title – just the second in county history.

“I’m proud of that accomplishment,” Myers said. “I feel like we’ve set the foundation for the other girls coming up. The bar has been raised in a sport that is growing.”

Of course, with wrestling extending into the spring, Myers had to shake off the rust when stepping back into the circle for softball.

While she homered in her second game a week after her last wrestling match, she needed to polish up her mechanics in the circle.

“Throwing a bullpen session and throwing in a game are so different,” Myers said. “Pitching an inning here or there, it doesn’t work for me. I knew from past years not to ease into it.”

Elder, who was in his first season as the team’s softball coach after two decades as a baseball coach, didn’t want to lean on Myers too much as a pitcher.

“One of the hardest things is balance,” Elder said. “Ella is a little different. In order to build her up to strength, she needed to be used. The usage is the detriment.”

Elder leaned on his wife and assistant coach Katherine to gauge Myer’s stamina earlier in the season.

“For me, I learned to ask the right questions and not just trust ‘I’m good to go,’ but ‘why?’” Elder said. “My wife was the only one on staff that played softball. She had a better feel. A lot of teenagers don’t have the answers. Ella had the answer.”

As her mechanics improved, Myers became nearly unhittable, posting a 12-2 record with an 0.89 earned run average, striking out 142 hitters in just 93 innings.

“I was in the best shape of my life coming out of wrestling,” Myers said. “But that’s cardio and mindset. After the first game, my back was so sore. It’s about mechanics and timing. I told Travis I need innings.”

A four-time member of the all-county team, Myers tore up pitching, hitting .552 with a .629 on-base percentage, helping the Toreadores to a share of the Gabilan Division title.

Myers, who hopes to hit and pitch at Santa Barbara, ripped nine homers in 21 games, drove in 28 runs, scored 39 runs and stole eight bases.

“I’ve talked to the coaches at Santa Barbara,” said Myers, who pitched Monterey to two CCS titles and a NorCal crown during her four years. “It’s not a given that I’ll be in the lineup. But I’ll get a fair shot. It’s the same for being a position player.”

In an effort to get her bat in the lineup on her travel team, Myers has played first base, second base, and left and right field during the summer.

“I still consider myself a pitcher first,” Myers said. “That’s my main focus. Hitting comes a very close second. If I want to be in the lineup, it helps that I can play a position on the field.’’

Having hit 65 mph on the radar gun, Myers paints corners and finds her spots with a riser, curve, screwball, fastball and change-up.

“It just feels right when the ball is in my hands,” Myers said. “That is what I’ve been meant to do. I believe I can do what I want if I set my mind to it. I have no fear of messing up. I like being in control. It’s the best feeling in the world.”

While there are few regrets, failing to tie or break the county home run record is something that Myers thinks about.

“It’s actually something I think about a lot,” said Myers, who came up one homer short of tying the county record of 36. “I’m not going to lie. But I think DaNae (Lee) will break it next year anyway.”

For as driven and competitive as Myers is with anything she attempts, she emphasized the importance of creating a culture on campus that made high school sports fun.

“Sports is just one of the vehicles in her life,” Elder said. “She was always working to better herself in some capacity. But she enjoyed the moment. I don’t think the competitive juices will ever stop flowing, no matter what she does in life. She’ll probably be the first one in line to pick up her kids someday.”

Originally Published: June 26, 2025 at 12:45 PM PDT

Powered by its incredible men’s and women’s cross-country teams, BYU is once again among the nation’s premier athletic programs.

The Cougars finished No. 25 in the Learfield Directors’ Cup standings for the recently completed 2024-25 school year, improving upon last year’s No. 36 finish. The Cougars racked up 813.75 points, after notching 637.5 points in 2023-24.

It is the second time since 2021 and eighth time in the past 22 years that BYU has finished in the top 25.

The higher the national finish, the higher the point total awarded to the institution. For instance, BYU garnered the maximum 100 points per team last November when it swept the NCAA cross-country championships, the first school since Colorado in 2004 to win both titles on the same day.

The Directors’ Cup, directed by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA), recognizes schools for all-around success in NCAA-sponsored sports.

Texas won the overall title again with 1,255.25 points, edging out USC by 1.5 points. BYU was the highest ranked Big 12 school in the Directors’ Cup final standings.

This is the second-straight year that BYU can claim instate supremacy, after Utah broke through in 2022-23 to dethrone the Cougars for the first time since the Directors’ Cup program began in 1993.

Fueled by the ski team’s national championship, the Utes picked up 423.5 points this school year, placing 60th.

Among the other Utah schools, Utah State of the Mountain West checked in at 104th place with 180 points, followed by Utah Valley (143rd), Southern Utah (221st) and Weber State (254th).

The Wildcats got all 37.5 of their points when their softball team made the NCAA Tournament.

BYU does not have some of the spring sports, such as lacrosse, rowing, water polo and beach volleyball, but still garnered 90.75 points in that period because its men’s golf team placed 13th (62.25 points) and its women’s golf team placed 43rd (28.5 points) at their respective national events in the spring.

As has generally been the case, BYU started strong due to the success of its football, cross-country and women’s soccer and volleyball teams, then faded a bit as the school year wore on. The Cougars were in fourth place, with 311.5 points, at the conclusion of the fall seasons, trailing only Stanford, North Carolina and Penn State.

BYU earned 61.5 points when its football team went 11-2 and was ranked No. 13 in the final Associated Press Top 25 poll.

The Cougars picked up 291 points in the winter sports, and were 10th overall at the conclusion of those events. The men’s basketball team’s Sweet 16 run (tied for ninth, essentially) garnered the Cougars 64 points.

BYU is the highest-placing Big 12 school in the standings, with Oklahoma State second at No. 29 and Arizona State third at No. 34.

The Wyoming Coaches Foundation All-Star games are scheduled for Saturday, July 26th, at Casper College. Practices begin on Wednesday, the 23rd, and these seniors will be playing in their final high school event. Here’s the list of participants for the volleyball, girls’ basketball, and boys’ basketball games.

South Volleyball Roster:

Jaylie Critchfield-Evanston

Brenly Shipp-Lingle-Fort Laramie

Gavrielle Dawson-Wheatland

Shaylah Frazier-Star Valley

Addison Hickey-Mountain View

Payton Anderson-Lyman

Landree Meeks-Douglas

Desirae Iacovetto-Wheatland

Gabrielle Rogers-Pinedale

Cambry Harmon-Cokeville

Olive Osmera-Torrington

Calie Dahl-Douglas

South Volleyball Coaches:

Sally Nichols-Wheatland

Jessica Vega-Cheyenne Central

Shaylee Mortimore-Torrington

North Volleyball Roster:

Madelynn Mills-Upton

Naomi Andersen-Sheridan

Emme Mullinax-Big Horn

Jordan Kroeger-Kelly Walsh

Rainey Powell-Cody

Kailee Holst-Sheridan

Sophia Radakovich-Cody

Ava Praus-Thunder Basin

Hanna Hill-Thermopolis

Breeley Materi-Upton

Grace Finkle-Buffalo

McKinlee Scammon-Tongue River

North Volleyball Coaches:

Kristen Masters-Tongue River

Virginia Starr-Cody

Shannon Hill-Thermopolis

South Girls Basketball Roster

Kyenna Jackson-Encampment

Jessica Hoffman-Pine Bluffs

Elyn Bowers-Pinedale

Karson Tempel-Cheyenne Central

McKinlee Covolo-Mountain View

Izzy Kelly-Cheyenne Central

Owen Hansen-Lyman

Teryn Stokes-Torrington

Emily Dana-Star Valley

Janae Skidmore-Kemmerer

South Basketball Coaches:

Zane Lindsey-Cheyenne Central

Kassidy Johnson-Douglas

North Girls Basketball Roster:

Breanne Walker-Burlington

Paxten Aksamit-Tongue River

Kaylie Neary-Campbell County

Lauren Kuhbacher-Campbell County

Kennedy Davila-Kelly Walsh

Camryn Costello-Natrona

Brynn Sybrant-Natrona

Saige Kidd-Powell

Briana Meza-Wright

North Girls Basketball Coaches:

Farrah Patterson-Buffalo

Coty Nikont-Big Horn

Kelley Nelson-Buffalo

South Boys Basketball Roster:

Brody Roberts-Lingle Fort Laramie

Shawn Shmidl-Pine Bluffs

Alex Gosar-Pinedale

Weston Dyer-Torrington

Gunner Henrie-Encampment

Camden Hessler-Cheyenne East

Jaden Smith-Laramie

Max Alexander-Laramie

Jordan Mendez-Evanston

Aden Neese-Farson Eden

South Boys Basketball Coaches:

Robert Watsabaugh-Evanston

Rick Mitchelson-Farson Eden

North Boys Basketball Roster:

Rhett Watt-Upton

Brody Potter-Thermopolis

Alex Jordan Powell

Lane Hladky-Campell County

Truman DeGrange-Campbell County

Jace Nicholls-Lovell

Jaxson Neely-Wright

Brady Engling-Buffalo

Nomar Gonzalez-Campbell County

Tanner Hagar-Natrona

North Boys Basketball Coaches:

Pat Neely-Wright

Bubba Hladky-Campbell County

Shane Durtsche-Lovell

BOCA RATON, Fla. – Florida Atlantic Women’s Soccer Head Coach Patrick Baker has announced his team’s 2025 schedule, highlighted by home matches versus in-state rivals Florida State and FGCU, along with a game versus Loyola on Thursday, August 14 at Flagler Credit Union Stadium to open the season.

The Owls’ annual game at Flagler Credit Union Stadium kicks off at 7 p.m., with tickets for that match on sale now at ticketmaster.com. The remaining nine of FAU’s home matches are set for FAU Soccer Stadium with free admission. A complete promotional schedule, TV and streaming schedule will be announced in August. 

Following the opener versus the Greyhounds, the Owls will face five Sunshine State opponents over the next six games with road matches at UCF (Aug. 17), Miami (Aug. 21), FIU (Aug. 24) and Jacksonville (Sept. 4), and home matches versus FGCU (Aug. 31) and Florida State (Sept. 7).

The American Athletic Conference slate has the Owls at home versus UTSA, Tulsa, Temple, UAB and North Texas, with UTSA as the conference-opener on Sept. 11 in Paradise. The regular-season season finale comes at USF on Oct. 30 in Tampa.

The AAC Tournament begins on November 3 in Lakewood Ranch, Fla., with the semifinals set for November 6 and the championship on November 9.

One of the top 40 winningest active Division I women’s soccer head coaches, Baker enters his 13th season at the helm of the Owls in 2025 and 34th overall as a head coach.

Follow FAU on Social Media

To stay up to date on all things Florida Atlantic women’s soccer, follow FAU on social media @FAUWSoccer.

SEATTLE – Eight Washington student-athletes from five different programs have been named recipients of the Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar Awards, one of the most prestigious honors in college athletics. Amongst the eight honorees, Jamie Hsieh was named the sport winner for Women’s Golf, while Hsieh and Jami Schlueter of Track & Field were among the twenty semifinalists for Sports Scholar of the Year.
 
The Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholars were announced in the June 5 issue of Diverse: Issues in Higher Education. Inspired by tennis legend Arthur Ashe, Jr.’s commitment to education, the awards honor students of color who demonstrate a commitment to community service and student leadership in addition to their athletic ability.
 
The Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholars have maintained at least a 3.5 cumulative grade point average, are at least sophomores academically, and have been active on their campuses or in their communities. Nearly 700 student-athletes were nominated in 2024-25.
 
Thirty-three sports are represented in the awards, with Jamie Hsieh winning top honors for women’s golf. A senior from Taiwan, Hsieh has a 3.78 GPA majoring in Business Administration: Finance and has been one of UW’s top players through her career, leading the team at the 2022 Regional Championships and the 2024 Pac-12 Championships (tying for 11th).
 
Hsieh and Schlueter were two of twenty semifinalists across the entire NCAA for the Sports Scholar of the Year honor. From London, England, Schlueter just completed his senior season on the track squad, where he was runner-up in the decathlon at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships. He reached the 2025 NCAA Indoor Championships in the heptathlon and the 2024 NCAA Outdoor Championships in the decathlon, earning two All-America honors. He holds a 3.65 cumulative GPA double majoring in Psychology and Sociology.
 
Jing Gardner, a sophomore from Softball majoring in Business Administration, was named to the First Team with a 3.78 cumulative GPA.
 
Rhonda Newton from Track & Field, a junior, earned Second Team honors with a 3.84 cumulative GPA majoring in Law, Societies and Justice.
 
Dalayah Daniels, a senior from Women’s Basketball who went on to be drafted in the second round of the WNBA draft, was named Second Team with a 3.50 GPA earning her Masters in Information Management.
 
Jenny Chang from Women’s Golf, majoring in Psychology, earned First Team honors with a 3.78 GPA.
 
Senior Taylor Russon from Gymnastics picked up First Team status, earning a Masters in Information Management with a 3.97 cumulative GPA.
 
And Kristin Lin, a sophomore from Gymnastics, was named Second Team with a 3.79 GPA majoring in Public Health: Global Health.

University of Washington Arthur Ashe Award Recipients

Dalayah Daniels, Women’s Basketball, 3.50 GPA, Masters in Information Management, Second Team

Jenny Chang, Women’s Golf, 3.78 GPA, Psychology, First Team

Jamie Hsieh, Women’s Golf, 3.78 GPA, Business Administration: Finance, First Team

Kristin Lin, Gymnastics, 3.79 GPA, Public Health: Global Health, Second Team

Taylor Russon, Gymnastics, 3.97 GPA, Masters in Information Management, First Team

Jing Gardner, Softball, 3.78 GPA, Business Administration, First Team

Jami Schlueter, Men’s Track & Field, 3.65 GPA, Psychology and Sociology, First Team

Rhonda Newton, Women’s Track & Field, 3.84 GPA, Law, Societies and Justice, Second Team

Overall Sport Winner

Jamie Hsieh, Women’s Golf

National Semifinalists (Top-20 Individuals)

Jamie Hsieh

Jami Schlueter

A member of the ­current GBHS beach volleyball ­dynasty took third in a ­prestigious ­tournament in California ­recently, while a pair looking to keep GBHS at that level won a ­tournament in Gulf Shores. Estelle Reese, a key ­member of GBHS’ back-to-back state and national championship teams, as well as their state ­runner up ­finish in this past ­season’s ­indoor […]