BOULDER — Head coach Ann Elliott Whidden and her Colorado lacrosse team returned to the field inside the Ford Practice Facility on Thursday, officially marking the start of the 2026 season.

The Buffaloes enter their 13th season in 2026, all under the direction of Whidden, who has compiled a 130-75 record.

“It is great to be back with this team,” Whidden expressed. “This group is highly focused and motivated to get to work and we have had a great start to our spring practices. The intensity and competitiveness they bring everyday has been great to see.”

Colorado played seven fall warm-up games, including a pair against the team’s season-opening opponent, Northwestern. The Buffs also played exhibition games against Canada’s U20 National Team, Marquette, Denver, and Stanford before their annual scrimmage against CU alums.

The 2025 Buffs finished 8-8 overall and 4-1 in Big 12 play, earning the No. 2 seed in the inaugural Big 12 Tournament. Returning defender Jess Peluso scored Nike Lacrosse Media All-America honorable mention honors last season and was the Big 12’s Defensive Player of the Year.

Sophomore goaltender Elena Oh won four Big 12 Goalkeeper of the Week awards last year and was selected to the Big 12 All-Newcomer Team. She led the Big 12 and ranked 18th in the NCAA with a 9.81 goals-against average in her freshman season. Oh was also third in the conference with a .399 save% and made 5.93 saves per game (5th Big 12).

Also returning in 2026 are All-Conference selections Maddie Shoup and Lily Assini. The offensive duo finished second and third on the team in points last season, respectively. Shoup totaled career-highs in goals (30) and assists (13) for 43 total points. Assini totaled 16 goals and a career-high 23 assists for a career-best 39 points.

Colorado scored 178 total goals in 2025 and returns 57% of its scoring from a year ago.

“We are so excited for the spring and the challenges we have on our schedule,” Whidden added. “We are looking forward to taking the next few weeks to lock in on ourselves and just focus on getting better everyday so we are prepared for those opportunities. This is a great group and I’m just really looking forwarding to seeing what we can do this season!”

Nine true freshmen will look to compete for some key roles this spring. Whidden added newcomers Rowan Edson, Georgia Rios and Sophia Yeskulsky to the attack, Charlotte Yeskulsky, Alison Stevens, Julia Etu and Parker Lemm to the middles and Hailie Abrams and Ryann McLeod to the defensive corps. Jillian Kane joins the goalie depth chart, having played her first two seasons at Colby College.

The season gets underway with a trip to Evanston, Ill., to play national runner-up Northwestern on Feb. 9. The Buffs’ first home game is set for Feb. 15 against Cornell.

For more information on Colorado Lacrosse, please visit cubuffs.com/wlax. Fans of the Buffs can follow @cubuffswlax on Instagram, X, TikTok, and Facebook.

CHARLOTTE – Charlotte Volleyball Head Coach Benavia Jenkins has announced the signing of NC State transfer outside hitter Sara Marinkovic.

A native of Belgrade, Serbia, Marinkovic joins the 49ers from NC State where she spent her freshman season, appearing in one match and tallying one kill.  Before college, she attended Gimnazija “Branko Radičević” Stara Pazova where she earned first team All-Region honors. Academically, she earned a diploma for excellent achievement. The outside hitter finished first in all pioneer, cadet and junior competitions while playing club.

“I really loved the energy I felt watching the games,” said Marinkovic. “I’ve heard great things about how kind and supportive the coaches, staff, and players are, and how hard everyone works. It also means a lot to me to have my former teammate, Jovana, going through this process with me.”

During the 2020-21 club season, she placed third in the Serbian Prva Liga with OK Omladinac and went on to finish first the following year. At the 2024-25 Servia SuperCup, she placed second with Jedinstvo Stara Pazova.

 

HOUSTON – The University of Houston Track & Field program opens its 2026 indoor season with the Leonard Hilton Memorial Invitational on Saturday at the LLH Healthcare Indoor Track inside Yeoman Fieldhouse. Field events begin at 10 a.m., with running events starting at 1:30 p.m.
 
New seating options are available for fans this season. Basic general admission tickets are $17 after fees while premium general admission tickets, located near the finish line with chairbacks included, are $28 after fees.
 

LEONARD HILTON MEMORIAL INVITATIONAL
Date | Time	Saturday, Jan. 10 | Field Events: 10 a.m. | Running Events: 1:30 p.m.
Teams	Houston (Host), Huston-Tillotson, Jacksonville College, Lamar, Prairie View A&M, Rice (Men), Sam Houston, St. Thomas (TX), Texas, Texas A&M Corpus Christi, Texas A&M Kingsville, Texas Southern, UTRGV
Location	LLH Healthcare Indoor Track inside Yeoman Fieldhouse | Houston, Texas
Live Stats	Results
Watch	YouTube
Meet Information	Meet Information and Links
Social Media	X: @uhcougartf | Instagram: @uhcougartf | Facebook: H-Town Speed City Track and Field | #GoCoogs | #HTownSpeedCity

 
STARTING LINE NOTES

• The Cougars begin their indoor season by hosting the Leonard Hilton Memorial Invitational at LLH Healthcare Indoor Track inside Yeoman Fieldhouse.
• LLH Healthcare was named the official naming rights partner of the indoor track facility on Dec. 11, 2025.
• Renovations to the indoor track will take place following the indoor season.
• Houston returns 26 men and 22 women, including eight All-Americans in junior Michaela Mouton, graduate Trey East III, sophomore Damarien Jacobs, graduate Grant Levesque, graduate Jamar Marshall Jr., junior Antrea Mita, senior Ryan Mulholland and sophomore King Taylor.
• Jamar Marshall Jr. will compete during the indoor season but has no remaining outdoor eligibility.
• Houston welcomes nine transfers, including NCAA DII All-American senior Dakari Charlton and NJCAA All-American’s junior Ruth Agadama, junior Kevin Brooks, and junior Mouhameth Fall.
• Houston also adds a total of 23 freshmen to the squad, with 14 on the women’s side and nine on the men’s side. 
• At the 2025 Big 12 Indoor Championship, Houston claimed four conference titles with two champions returning to the squad this season. The men’s squad placed fifth overall and the women finished 14^th.
• Grant Levesque secured his second consecutive Big 12 Heptathlon title and Antrea Mita was crowned the men’s high jump champion.
• At the 2025 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships, Antrea Mita earned First Team All-America honors with an eighth-place finish in the high jump. Jamar Marshall Jr. secured Second Team All-America honors with a 16th-place finish in the men’s 60-meter hurdles.

SUPPORT YOUR COOGS
Fans can make a direct impact on the success of Houston Track and Field by providing NIL opportunities, purchasing tickets and joining the Podium Club, which provides support directly to Houston Track and Field for needs beyond its operating budget.

STAY CONNECTED

Fans can receive updates on #HTownSpeedCity by following @UHCougarTF on X and catch up with the latest news and notes on the team by clicking LIKE on the team’s Facebook page at UHCougarTF or on the team’s Instagram page at @uhcougartf.

 

– UHCougars.com –

GRETNA, Neb. (WOWT) – Jordan Larson shared a big announcement in a news conference for LOVB Nebraska Volleyball, formerly known as LOVB Omaha, on Friday morning.

Larson, a four-time Olympic Medalist and LOVB Nebraska founding athlete, shared that she will be stepping away from pro volleyball after the 2026 season.

Although she will not be playing beyond the current campaign, Larson said that she will continue leading a new ownership group for the team.

The announcement was also shared on social media Friday.

“From Nebraska gyms to the biggest stages in the world…Thank you for carrying home with you, everywhere you went. We can’t wait to honor you and your legacy all season long,” the post reads.

The event started at 9 a.m. Friday at the team’s new indoor training facility in Gretna — opened just last November. Jordan started off the news conference with a message for her fans.

LOVB Nebraska will hold its home opener against LOVB Houston at 3 p.m. Sunday at Baxter Arena in Omaha. The 2026 season will be its second ever in existence.

You can watch Larson play right here on WOWT from 7-9 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 16 as Nebraska takes on Madison.

LOVB Nebraska lost 3-2 in its season opener against LOVB Austin on Wednesday.

Last August, the group rebranded from LOVB Omaha to LOVB Nebraska “to capture the unique place that Nebraska occupies in the world of volleyball and its community’s tremendous passion for the sport statewide,” a release states.

Also as part of the rebrand, Larson was named to her new ownership role and former Creighton Volleyball coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth was named as president of business operations.

“Unfortunately my career is closer to the end than it is the beginning. So thinking post-volley, what does that look like and how do I see my impact in the sport?” Larson told First Alert 6 last August. “While there will be a learning curve, I’m excited to see will see what this position will look like moving forward.”

In its first year in existence last year, League One Volleyball completed its postseason on April 13. Omaha ended its first season as league runner-up, after entering the playoffs as the last-place team.

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Vanderbilt track and field’s Janie Ford and Falon Spearman broke a pair of program records on Friday at the Rod McCravy Memorial Track & Field Meet.

Commodores tallied a total of 13 marks ranking in the program’s all-time top 10 and 10 personal bests.

Mackenzie Dagrosa got things started for the Dores with a third-place performance in the high jump. The sophomore cleared 1.75 meters, a mark that is tied for fifth in Vanderbilt history. In the same event, Rowan Houston came within a centimeter of her personal best, registering a 1.70-meter mark. She finished the event tied for fourth place.

Ford broke the school record in the long jump, registering a 6.18-meter mark to place first among freshmen and fourth overall.

Vanderbilt’s pole vaulting duo of Olivia Kosanovich and Jacqueline Rose cleared the 3.75-meter bar. It is a collegiate best for both student-athletes and the eighth-best mark in program history.

On the track, London Jackson-Bray and Alima Kassim qualified for the 60 meters semifinals with respective times of 7.42 and 7.57 seconds, both marks ranking top 10 in program history. Kylah Woods also added her name to the Vanderbilt record books, clocking 7.60 seconds in her collegiate debut. The time is No. 7 in school history. Jackson-Bray moved onto the event final with a semifinals time of 7.43 seconds.

Ford, Taylor McKinnon, Devyn Parham, F. Spearman and Santana Spearman, qualified for the 60-meter hurdles semifinals, where every Dore improved her time. F. Spearman’s 8.17-second mark, which is a personal best and school record, earned her a spot in Saturday’s final. Ford clocked 8.50 seconds, the No. 8-ranked time in Vandy history.

Madyson Wilson recorded a personal-best in the 600 meters for the second consecutive meet. Her time of 1:30.32 is ranked No. 2 all-time at Vanderbilt. In her first meet as a Commodore, Jayden Hill registered the third-best mark in school history, crossing the finish line in 1:31.17. In the same event, Kenyah Conner matched her personal best with a time of 1:31.72.

To end Day 1, Betsy Jepkemei led Vandy runners in the 1,000 meters, turning in a time of 2:46.55, good for third place and No. 2 all-time at Vanderbilt. Kelty Oaster and Mackenzie Culpepper followed in fourth and sixth place, respectively. Oaster’s time of 2:47.50 is fourth in school history, and Culpepper’s 2:51.53 mark is ranked No. 10 in program history.

Action in Louisville continues Saturday at 9:30 a.m. CT with the shot put. Live results are available online.

FOREST, Va. — The University of Lynchburg was selected fifth in the ODAC preseason poll for the 2026 campaign, as announced by the league office on Friday afternoon, Jan. 9.

Randolph-Macon earned all possible first-place votes to claim the top spot in the preseason poll. The reigning conference champions were followed by Roanoke, which finished nine points behind first place with 53 total points. Randolph College and Eastern Mennonite rounded out the top four with 42 and 38 points, respectively.

Lynchburg sits in the middle of the poll with 38 points, four behind Eastern Mennonite and three ahead of Virginia Wesleyan in sixth. Shenandoah, Bridgewater, and Averett complete the preseason rankings with 21, 15, and 10 points, respectively. Shenandoah and Bridgewater will each compete in their inaugural men’s volleyball season as the conference continues to expand.

The Hornets enter their second season of competition under first-year head coach Joshua Knapp. Lynchburg looks to build on a 9-15 (2-10 ODAC) record from a year ago. Knapp and his staff return 13 student-athletes, along with the addition of one freshman and two transfers.

The returning group is highlighted by two All-ODAC performers, opposite Nick Redding and middle Bryce Jackson. Redding earned ODAC Rookie of the Year honors and was named to the All-ODAC Second Team, while Jackson secured a spot on the All-ODAC Third Team.

 

MEN’S VOLLEYBALL PRESEASON POLL

1. Randolph-Macon College (8)    64 pts.

2. Roanoke College (1)    53 pts.

3. Randolph College    46 pts.

4. Eastern Mennonite University    42 pts.

5. University of Lynchburg    38 pts.

6. Virginia Wesleyan University    35 pts.

7. Shenandoah University    21 pts.

8. Bridgewater College    15 pts.

       9. Averett University    10 pts.
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–LYN–