Sports
Volleyball Releases 2025 Schedule – Niagara University Athletics
NIAGARA UNIVERSITY, N.Y. – Niagara volleyball head coach Ren Cefra has unveiled the program’s 27-game slate for the 2025 season, including nine games inside the Gallagher Center.
The Purple Eagles will play a total of nine non-conference matches, all in tournament action.
Niagara opens the season with two games against Syracuse and Le Moyne (Aug. 29-30). The Purple and White then travel to Ypsilanti, MI for the Eastern Michigan Tournament to take on Valparaiso, Purdue Fort Wayne and host Eastern Michigan Sept. 5-6.
The Purple Eagles wrap up non-conference play at the UB Tournament facing off against Cornell, Northwestern and host Buffalo Sept. 12-13.
Niagara begins conference play at home against Manhattan (Sept. 26) and Iona (Sept. 27) before heading on the road for five straight MAAC contests against Canisius (Sept. 30), Merrimack (Oct. 3), Quinnipiac (Oct. 4), Iona (Oct. 10) and Manhattan (Oct. 11).
Following the five game road trip the Purple Eagles return home for five straight home contests against Saint Peter’s (Oct. 17), Rider (Oct. 18), Siena (Oct. 24), Marist (Oct. 25) and Canisius (Oct. 28).
The Purple and White head on the road for the final time in the regular season with four straight away contests against Rider (Oct. 31), Saint Peter’s (Nov. 1), Fairfield (Nov. 7) and Sacred Heart (Nov. 8).
Niagara wraps up their regular season schedule with two home contests against Quinnipiac (Nov. 14) and Merrimack (Nov. 15).
Stay connected with Niagara Volleyball on X, Instagram, and Facebook. Follow Niagara Athletics all year long on X, Instagram, Facebook, purpleeagles.com.
Sports
Dillard Claims MEAC Weekly Award
NORFOLK, Va. (December 10, 2025) – The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) uncovered its men’s track & field weekly awards where Howard University sophomore Drew Dillard (Silver Spring, Md.) claimed the league’s Field Athlete of the Week. The announcement came Wednesday afternoon.
At the HBCU & Ivy Challenge (Dec. 5), Dillard won the high jump with a MEAC-best mark of 2.07 meters, which currently ranks 21st nationally.
Senior sprinter Dylan Gaines (Houston) received honorable mention after winning the 200-meter dash a time of 21.52.
North Carolina Central sophomore Zion Amadi was named MEAC Track Athlete of the Week.
On Dec. 13, HU returns to the Northeast for the Seahawk Shootout, hosted by Wagner College.
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at www.HUBison.com or the MEAC website at www.MEACSports.com.
Sports
NCAA women’s volleyball regionals: Live updates, scores, schedule, highlights
Ahead of regionals, Michella Chester re-ranked the 16 teams still standing. Here are her top five before regional action tips off on Thursday:
1. Nebraska (No. 1 seed)
This one seems obvious. The Cornhuskers are the team to beat as the only undefeated squad in DI.
2. Kentucky (No. 1 seed)
With just two losses all season, it’d be hard to move the Wildcats any lower even though they were the only No. 1 seed to drop a set in the first two rounds.
3. Texas (No. 1 seed)
The Longhorns had one of the toughest second round matchups with No. 8 Penn State, but they posted an impressive sweep, holding the Nittany Lions to just nine points in the second set.
4. Pitt (No. 1 seed)
The Panthers swept Michigan in the second round, but maybe not as easily as they would’ve liked. Sets one and two were each just two-point wins, but with the reigning AVCA Player of the Year Olivia Babcock on their side, it’s hard to count out Pitt.
5. SMU (No. 2 seed)
The Mustangs are the first 2-seed to crack the re-rankings after setting an NCAA tournament record with a .618 hitting percentage in the first round. This team is hot right now heading into regionals.
👉 Click or tap here to find all 16 teams re-ranked
Sports
Philippart, Williams Win RMAC Honors For Debuts
COLORADO SPRINGS – Colorado School of Mines freshmen long jumpers Alejandro Philippart and Violet Williams have earned the RMAC’s Field Athlete of the Week awards to open the indoor track & field season.
The duo had debuts to remember on Dec. 5 at the Mines Alumni Classic as each won their respective long jump competitions. Philippart turned in Mines’ best long jump mark in a decade – 7.38m (24-2.5) – to take the early RMAC lead and tie for third on the NCAA Division II national performance list. Meanwhile, Williams smashed the Mines record with her mark of 6.21m (20-4.5), the best in the RMAC since 2021 and second on the national list after the opening weekend. Williams also ran an impressive 7.70-second 60m dash on Saturday, becoming the #3 performer all-time at Mines in the sprint event.
The Orediggers return to action this weekend at the Colorado Running Company Pre-Holiday Invite at UCCS.
RMAC Indoor Track & Field Athletes of the Week, Dec. 10
Men’s Track Athlete of the Week: Kidus Begashaw, Adams State
Men’s Field Athlete of the Week: Alejandro Philippart, Colorado School of Mines
Women’s Track Athlete of the Week: Helen Braybrook, CSU Pueblo
Women’s Field Athlete of the Week: Violet Williams, Colorado School of Mines
Sports
Cal Poly Volleyball Enters NCAA Regional Semifinals Versus One-Seed Kentucky
Mustangs Riding High
Cal Poly boasts one of the nation’s most efficient offenses, ranking 18th in hitting percentage (.278) after 13 consecutive weeks in the top 25. A key contributor is AVCA All-Pacific Region Honorable Mention Chloe Leluge, who ranks second in the Big West and 36th nationally with a .383 hitting percentage.
Leluge’s .372 career hitting percentage would lead the program’s Division I era by 17 points, and her current season rate places her in the top 10 in program history. A true two-way middle blocker, she co-leads the team and the conference with 130 total blocks. After committing just one error on 57 attacks in the Big West Championship, she was named tournament MVP and later to Michella Chester’s NCAA Rotation of the Week.
Other essential contributors include Emme Bullis, Kendall Beshear, Emma Fredrick, Annabelle Thalken, Charlotte Kelly, and Elif Hurriyet.
The redshirt senior captain Bullis set a Big West Championship single-match record with 51 assists against Long Beach State. She recently moved to #2 on Cal Poly’s career assists list (over 4,000) and set a new personal single-season high against BYU. Her 1,184 assists this season rank 17th nationally.
The lethal hitter trio of Fredrick, Beshear, and Thalken has helped propel the Mustangs to 23rd nationally in team kills. Fredrick leads the team in total kills (411) and digs (339). Beshear follows in kills (369) and digs (281) and possesses one of the nation’s most formidable jump serves, tallying 49 aces (32nd in Division I). Thalken has quietly been the team’s most efficient on the outside, leading the trio for hitting percentage (.296)
True freshman middle Kelly stepped up after a preseason injury to 2024 All-Big West First Team selection Breklyn Pulling. Thriving alongside Leluge, Kelly co-leads the team and conference in blocks (130).
An athletic and intelligent defender at libero, Hurriyet leads the team in digs per set (3.35) and has expanded her role this season, providing 91 assists as a second-touch attacker.
Sports
Hall, McFadden Garner WAC Track Athlete of the Week Accolades
ARLINGTON, Texas – Abilene Christian swept the first Western Athletic Conference weekly track honors of the indoor season, the conference announced on Wednesday. Miguel Hall was named the University Credit Union Men’s Track Athlete of the Week, while Madelyn McFadden earned Jersey Mike’s A Sub Above Women’s Track Athlete of the Week accolades.
It’s the first conference recognition of both student-athletes’ careers after they competed at Texas A&M’s McFerrin 12 Degree Invitational last week. The Wildcats got their season started with two victories and eight top-three placements at the Fasken Indoor Track & Field in College Station, Texas.
Hall began his junior campaign with a third-place performance in the men’s 60-meter hurdles, clocking in with a time of 8.03 seconds, only a few fractions off his personal best. He completed the event just five hundredths of a second off of first place. Hall’s performance ranked 37th in the nation through the first week of action.
McFadden, a freshman competing in her first collegiate meet, landed in the top three in both events she participated in. The Franklin, Texas product finished in second place amongst 12 student-athletes in the women’s 600-meter, recording a time of one minute and 35.12 seconds. McFadden was one of two Wildcats in the top three, as Jalyn Childers came in at 1:36.23.
McFadden later capped ACU’s 4×400 relay that placed second in 3:50.94. She completed her split in 58.24 while teaming up with Anna Vyn, Emma Santoro and Gracee Whiteaker. The relay’s time is the 40th-best in the country.
The Wildcats return to action in 2026 at the Corky Classic, hosted by Texas Tech in Lubbock, Texas on Jan. 16-17, 2026.
Sports
John Cook Arena renderings reveal game-changing amenities for Nebraska volleyball fans
LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – The Husker Athletic Fund released renderings and additional details Wednesday ahead of the planned expansion of the John Cook Arena in the Bob Devaney Sports Center.
The arena will undergo its first-ever full reseating and parking process in Nebraska Volleyball program history in 2026. It is timed to coincide with a renovation of the arena to increase overall capacity to 10,000.
According to the athletic fund, the renovation will enhance Nebraska’s home-court advantage, modernize amenities and provide new premium and general seating options. This includes adding:
- New and improved seats with cupholders in each seat.
- A new centralized student section.
- New and improved courtside seating with both end court and side court locations available. The Courtside Lounge offers access pre-game and during intermission and includes private restrooms, televisions, and all-inclusive gourmet food, beverage and alcohol.
- New Loge Box seating with hospitality lounge with access pre-game and during intermission, including access to private restrooms, televisions and all-inclusive gourmet food and beverage with a cash bar.
- Libero Club seating replaces the VIP seats. Located in the back row of the 100 level, seats include access to the Libero Club Lounge pre-game and during intermission complete with televisions and all-inclusive gourmet food and soft drinks with a cash bar.
- Additional ADA seating with new vantage points and easier access from around the concourse.
Reseating and parking process
The Husker Athletic Fund announced the first-ever reseating and parking process in October.
The selection position will be determined through donation and Nebraska Athletics’ five levels of giving.
2025 Nebraska volleyball season ticket holders, including those who are Husker Athletic Fund members, can upgrade their membership level up until the March 18, 2026, lock date.
Fans will be notified in April of their 2026 volleyball reseat selection date and time. During the selection process, fans will have a five-minute window to view a 3D map and choose their seats.
Nebraska Athletics noted some changes for certain membership levels, such as limiting the ticket maximum for the Nebraska Leadership Society to six tickets.
Nebraska Athletics believes the new process will bring an estimated $8 million in revenue, compared to a projected $4.5 million for the 2025 season.
For more information about the reseating process, click here.
Click here to subscribe to our 10/11 NOW daily digest and breaking news alerts delivered straight to your email inbox.
Copyright 2025 KOLN. All rights reserved.
-
Rec Sports2 weeks agoFirst Tee Winter Registration is open
-
Rec Sports2 weeks agoFargo girl, 13, dies after collapsing during school basketball game – Grand Forks Herald
-
Motorsports2 weeks agoCPG Brands Like Allegra Are Betting on F1 for the First Time
-
Motorsports2 weeks agoF1 Las Vegas: Verstappen win, Norris and Piastri DQ tighten 2025 title fight
-
Sports2 weeks agoTwo Pro Volleyball Leagues Serve Up Plans for Minnesota Teams
-
Sports2 weeks agoSycamores unveil 2026 track and field schedule
-
Sports2 weeks agoUtah State Announces 2025-26 Indoor Track & Field Schedule
-
Motorsports2 weeks agoRedemption Means First Pro Stock World Championship for Dallas Glenn
-
Sports2 weeks agoTexas volleyball vs Kentucky game score: Live SEC tournament updates
-
NIL1 week agoBowl Projections: ESPN predicts 12-team College Football Playoff bracket, full bowl slate after Week 14





