The562’s coverage of high school volleyball in 2025 is brought to you by the MLP’s Bay Area Breakers
Three Moore League teams put the Long Beach in beach volleyball on Thursday afternoon, as Wilson, Millikan and Long Beach Poly all won their CIF Southern Section semifinal matches to punch their tickets to Saturday’s CIF-SS championships.
The championships, fittingly, will be held at the Moore League’s home courts at Long Beach City College, a state of the art facility that has also hosted NCAA events for Long Beach State. The city is guaranteed a CIF-SS beach volleyball championship as Wilson will face Millikan at 11:30am in the Division 2 championship; after Poly opens things against Canyon at 10am in the Division 3 championship.
Wilson defeated Capo Valley Christian 3-2 on Thursday in the semis, while Millikan took down South Torrance 4-1. Poly went on the road and beat Linfield Christian 3-2, upsetting the No. 2 seed. Poly has won their last three matches 3-2.
We’ll have live updates and full coverage of the championship matches.
LINCOLN, Neb — Nebraska’s track and field team made a powerful start to their season at the Husker Holiday Open, securing event titles in 18 of 29 events and setting two new school records. Axelina Johansson highlighted the meet by breaking both the school and Swedish records in the shot put with a mark of 19.72m (64-8 1/2). Dyson Wicker also set a new school record in the men’s pole vault, clearing 5.62m (18-5 1/4).
Cade Moran claimed the men’s shot put title, achieving a mark of 20.07m (65-10 1/4), which ranks fifth in school history. Donna Douglas made an impressive debut, winning the women’s weight throw with a mark of 19.33m (63-5). Aspen Fears took the women’s pole vault title, clearing 3.96m (12-11 3/4).
Seth Schnakenberg set a personal best in the men’s weight throw with a mark of 20.87m (68-5 3/4), while Abrielle Artley won the women’s 300m with a time of 39.00. Elo Blessing Okpah and Ashriel Dixion excelled in the 60m races, with Okpah taking first in the women’s event and Dixion securing second in the men’s.
Brayden Bergkamp and Kate Campos both won their respective 60m hurdles events, with Bergkamp setting a personal best of 8.18. Alea Hardie and Gabe Nash claimed the mile titles, with Hardie achieving a personal best of 4:56.18.
In the men’s 600m, William McDavid emerged victorious with a time of 1:20.05. Ela Velepec claimed the women’s high jump title with a personal best of 1.83m (6-0). The Huskers also dominated the 4×400 relays, with both the men’s and women’s teams taking first place.
Desire Tonye-Nyemeck won the men’s high jump, clearing 2.14m (7-0 1/4). Nebraska will next host the Graduate Classic on Jan. 16-17 at the Devaney Sports Center Indoor Track.
PITTSBURGH — The No. 12/3-seeded Purdue Boilermakers are headed to the Regional Finals for the first time since 2021 with a 3-1 win vs. No. 7/ 2-seeded SMU Mustangs on Thursday night, 16-25, 25-19, 25-19, 25-22, 29-27. With the win, Dave Shondell ties Purdue men’s basketball legend Gene Keady as the all-time winningest head coach in Purdue Athletics history with 512 wins.
The victory moves Purdue to 27-6 (15-5 Big Ten) record, while SMU ends the year 27-6 (17-3 ACC). Two of SMU’s six losses were to Purdue.
With the win, the Boilermakers will take on host and No. 1 seed/No. 4 nationally-ranked Pittsburgh on Saturday. Time and TV is TBA. The matchup will be the first between the two teams since meeting in the Regional Finals, also in Pittsburgh, in 2021.
Boiler Notes
The win marked Purdue’s 10th win vs. a ranked team this season, setting a program record.
It will be the fifth Regional Finals appearance for Purdue under Dave Shondell, including the third in the last six seasons.
The Boilers had four match points in Set 4 at 24-23, 25-24, 26-25, 27-26, with Kenna Wollard and Akasha Anderson responsible for the last seven points (beginning with 23-23). Wollard posted the go-ahead point at 24-23, 26-23, 27-26 before Anderson put away the final two kills to clinch the match.
Taylor Anderson dished out 49 assists, five digs, three blocks and a trio of kills. She set the team to a .282 hitting clip in the match, improving as the match went on, ending it with a .409 clip in Set 4.
It was the second win of the season vs. SMU, with the win in September giving Purdue its 11th straight year with a top-10 win. The win tonight was Purdue’s second of the season.
Tied 17-17 in Set 3, Bianka Lulic entered the match, going on to post three block assists in the next five Purdue points, helping swing momentum to Purdue’s side as the Boilers went on to win the set, 25-22.
Three Boilers reached double-digit kills in the match: Wollard, A. Anderson and Heaney
With the win, Dave Shondell ties Purdue men’s basketball legend Gene Keady as the all-time winningest head coach in Purdue Athletics history with 512 wins.
Kenna Wollard produced 23 kills on an extremely efficient .457 clip with just two errors in 46 attacks. Not only was it the most kills in a match since her 26 at Michigan State, it is the most in a four-set match for the junior. Meanwhile, she added a career-high tying five blocks and 10 digs for her 10th double-double this season.
Ryan McAleer led the back row with 23 digs, two shy of tying a program record for digs in an NCAA tournament match.
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Eighteen Austin Peay State University student-athletes participated in the Winter 2025 Commencement Ceremonies, which took place in the Winfield Dunn Center, Friday.
The following were master’s degree candidates for the December 2025 Commencement:
The following student-athletes were bachelor’s degree candidates for the December 2025 Commencement:
Ashley Doyle, Women’s Cross Country / Track & Field
Carson Smith, Football
Harrison Wilkes, Football
DJ Carter, Football
Kendrick Clark, Football
Davion Hood, Football
Marcus Howard, Football
Nate Lewis, Football
Lucas Bales, Men’s Cross Country
Christian Pastrana, Men’s Cross Country
Bailey Lasater, Beach Volleyball
Emma Loiars, Beach Volleyball
Ashlyn Dulaney, Softball
Sammie Shelander, Softball
These student-athletes were not just names on a roster or numbers on a field. They also represent…
18 Dean’s List selections
18 Athletic Director’s Honors Roll recipients
One United Athletic Conference Specialist of the Year
Two First Team All-UAC selections
One Second Team All-UAC selection
One College Sports Communicators All-District Team
One NFF Hampshire Honor Society selection
One Second Team All-ASUN selection
One NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete
Three members of the 2022 ASUN Football Championship Team
Three members of the 2023 UAC Football Championship Team
And so much more! Thank you to these student-athletes for always giving their all for Austin Peay. We wish you well in all your future endeavors and as always… LET’S GO PEAY!
POUGHKEEPSIE, New York – Marist Director of Athletics Tim Murray has announced a leadership change in the volleyball program. Sean Byron will not return as head coach after seven seasons.
Byron had an overall record of 78-103 and a mark of 62-50 in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play. The Red Foxes qualified for the MAAC Championship four times in his tenure, and they reached the semifinal round in 2019.
The Red Foxes had six First Team All-MAAC selections in Byron’s seven seasons, led by MAAC Player of the Year Sasha van der Merwe in 2023. The program also continued its strong work academically, as it won the Athletic Director’s award for highest cumulative grade-point average each of the last four years.
A national search for Byron’s replacement will begin immediately.
Bryan Poerner ’00, of Lacey Township, discovered his passion for running in fourth grade when he
placed third in the mile run during field day. He didn’t realize it then, but running
would become a way of life inspiring creativity, steering career choices, instilling
discipline and introducing him to lifelong friends.
His dedication to running led him to become president and CEO of Diadora US, an Italian
performance footwear and sportswear company.
Bryan Poerner
Back on Track
When his college got rid of their cross-country team, he felt a huge void. One of
his best friends from Lacey Township High School, Jayson Resch, who is now head coach
for Stockton’s men’s track and field and cross-country teams, encouraged him to transfer
to Stockton.
He made the move and became a Business Studies major and competitive runner on the
men’s track and field and cross-country teams. He helped lead the cross-country team
to their best finish ever at the NJAC championships with a second-place finish overall
as a team, and he placed second as an individual.
He set the school record for the steeplechase (9:31.0) in 1999.
“I still talk to a bunch of the people from the team today. Athletics was my reason
for being, and I looked at the athletic side of what I took out of Stockton as important
as the academic side,” he said.
He values his college running experience for teaching him how to set goals and work
to reach them.
“Running is really interesting because it’s black and white. If you want to run 15:30
in the 5K that’s a goal, and you could try to run 15:20. Other sports are more arbitrary,
but running is you versus time,” he said.
Running to His Own Beat
When he was in high school, he started his own record label, Track Star Records. He
continued to operate his business from his dorm room at Stockton.
“I would press 1,000 records and then distribute them. I’d go to the post office once
a week and send out orders,” he explained.
He was also in bands and traveled twice a week to a recording studio in New Brunswick.
He sang in Hours of the Star and Yah Mos Def and played the bass in other bands.
His college years were busy with studying business, training as a competitive runner,
making his own music, and discovering and helping other musicians by getting their
work into the world through his record label company.
Finding a balance between his ventures was a challenge at times, but it also taught
him to refocus his priorities when needed.
“He was very competitive and a tough runner, but he balanced that with his other interests
and commitment to music. His sense of entrepreneurship and his passion for art and
expression is what makes him special,” said Resch, who started running with Poerner
in seventh grade and later became his college teammate and roommate.
A Career Fit for an Athlete
He laces up his running shoes before the sun comes up to feel the change of seasons
or smell the fresh cut grass.
His miles are both personal and professional.
He loves running. He told Dominic Schlueter, host of the Running Effect podcast, that
he wants to break 16 minutes in the 5K when he turns 50. But he also noted that the
goal has no meaning in the course of his life. “I like the discipline,” he explained.
He’s also doing product research with every mile.
At Diadora, he found something he believes in.
As a runner, he wants to run in a shoe he can trust. As a professional, he wants to
lead a team that can design a shoe that top athletes will choose.
“Normalize high mileage” is one of Diadora’s campaigns. And Poerner believes wholeheartedly
in the message.
Last summer, he spent time in Flagstaff, Arizona for Diadora’s High Mileage Summer
event that brought a pop-up shop to town and united the community for group runs,
guest speakers and parties.
In describing his role as a CEO, he emphasized the importance of strategy and aligning
all the teams to the company’s vision.
Forbes described Diadora as “running into the future” while “nodding to the past.”
He doesn’t subscribe to some of the traditional marketing views. “I really believe
more in the actual thing, but I also believe that thing could have beauty and context,
so if I’m making running shoes, I want to show them in the most aspirational way possible,”
he explained.
His goal is to put his creative instinct ahead of thinking strictly about sales.
Resch, who wears Diadora, sees Poerner’s impact in the shoes.
“Bryan has brought the arts to running and everything about the product is awesome.
I love running in the shoes because they feel great and they look amazing. It is funny,
because when I see a new design, I can see Bryan’s input on the product and his style
being put on display,” he said.
For the Love of Running
When asked why he loves running, he admits the question is hard to answer.
“I appreciate the quest even more than competing. I like the process, the training,
the repetitiveness and being outside. For me it’s running, but I’m sure everybody
has that thing,” he said.
Running gives him time to think and time away from everything else going on. He likened
it to a meditation with an added physical component.
He doesn’t look at running as something hard. In his eyes, anything that’s worthwhile
is going to be hard.
Defining Success
When asked about success, he said he measures it in how much care goes into the work.
He also challenges how society measures success.
“I think a big problem we have as we celebrate success in our culture is that we don’t
celebrate the journey. I’m making this up, but if you’re a lawyer with a $100,000
car and a $1 million house down the shore, you’re looked at a certain way, but if
you live a life where you pay your bills and you volunteer at the animal shelter and
you create beautiful work and you add beauty that’s not appreciated by our culture,”
he explained.
At his son’s cross-country meet, he spotted Diadoras running around the course.
“The numbers and stuff like how much you grow in percentages and dollar value—that’s
semantics—but actually the visceral feeling of seeing somebody running around in your
pair of shoes, racing in your spikes is amazing,” he said.
In giving advice, he thinks about his own two sons. “Get involved as much as you can
and be open to different ideas,” he said.
He’s not proud of one thing, but rather “the sum of a lot of little things.”
“I never thought about money when I was doing my record label or when I got sponsored
by Puma out of college. I ran professionally for a couple years, and I wound up in
this profession through just doing what I wanted to do at the time,” he explained.
His path to success was guided by staying true to himself. “Follow your passion,”
he said.
“If we have more people thinking about life creatively and passionately, I think we
will all be better off,” he added.
LEWISTON, ID – The 2025-26 LC State Track and Field season opens on Saturday when the Warriors travel to Spokane for the Spokane Invitational. LC State returns a great deal of talent, but even more impressive might be the depth the program has added in the last year. The Warrior roster features 30 new faces, as well as some of the program’s top returners. Fifth-year senior Madigan Kelly returns to the track after a year off as part of a talented senior class.
Twenty two of the Warrior newcomers are on the men’s side, including NCAA Division I transfer Arthur Thomas. LC State also added local products Cole Arlint, Noah Carpenter, Milo Kunnap, Luke Siler and Malachi Walsh. LC State added eight women to their roster including Clarkston’s Claire Dooley and cross country standouts Kailee Lerew and Eva Lundren.
Mike Collins, who enters his 25th season at the helm of LC State Track and Field, made recruiting a priority heading into the year.
“I took it upon myself to hit recruiting hard for our track program,” coach Mike Collins said. “We really saw the effect of that on the men’s side. We will be looking to catch up this year with the women, but in the meantime, it is exciting to see what we might be able to do. It gives us the opportunity to allow athletes to focus on individual events rather than also putting energy into relays. More importantly, our training on a daily basis is better with them pushing each other to get better. Right now we just want to get to next year healthy then work towards conference and national qualifying marks. But I do have a little asterisk out there when it comes to conference championships. Could be interesting.”
Kelly, a former Lewiston Bengal, has her name etched throughout the LC State record book as the best hurdler to ever compete for the Warriors. She found herself on the podium at the 2024 outdoor national meet but was plagued with injuries last season and sat out the year. She is back to make more history in her final season in a Warrior uniform.
“You bet we are hopeful,” Collins said. “Sometimes you get silver linings when small storms seem to set you back. Last year seemed to be full of those for Madigan. Fortunately, because she is an education major, she had a fifth year to do her student teaching and an option to come back and compete. Her attitude is great and her work ethic is like no other. Plus, we really need her. Our depth on the women’s side is not great, so she brings in some quality talent and maturity to the program that is extremely helpful. And from a personal standpoint, her and Emily (Collins) are the best of friends, so I know it will be special for both to go out this senior year together.”
Another former Bengal that has made a large impact at LC State is Kelly’s childhood friend and daughter of head coach Mike Collins and athletic trainer Tracy Collins, senior Emily Collins. The 400m and 600m specialist holds multiple records at LC State and broke some of her mother’s at Lewiston High School. As a senior leader on the team and a student-athlete that progresses every year, Emily Collins has her sights set on a return to nationals.
“Hard not to be biased about Emily and where/how do you separate dad from coach, but I think we do a pretty good job of it,” Mike Collins said. “I know her goal is an All-American this year and my goal is to do everything possible to help her earn it. I have never seen her work harder. Her events are some of the most competitive and deepest in the country, so she has her work cut out for her, but if anyone can do it, she can.”
On the men’s side, sprinters Jedidiah Barnaby and Jordan Castillo, along with triple jumper Trenton Johnson, led the way for the Warriors. Barnaby is the fastest Warrior in school history with Castillo not far behind. Johnson is the best men’s triple jumper to ever wear and LC State singlet and just missed out on an All-American finish last season. All three have been integral parts of the program for four years.
“Jed and Jordan have been mainstays in the men’s sprint group and have truly set the standard and expectation level of what it means to be a sprinter here at LC,” Mike Collins added. “I know their goals are set very high and their energy levels are very contagious. The freshmen already follow them and are working hard to emulate them and with those two, among others, as examples, we can’t go wrong. Trent provides the same kind of mainstay in the jumps group, but with a very different personality skill set. Generally, he is so low keyed and laid back until it is time to compete and then there is no one more focused and intense. We have a very good group of young jumpers that will learn a lot from him this year.”
The Warriors also return sophomore Damaris Kibiwot who earned All-American honors in the indoor 3,000m last season before an All-American finish at cross country this year. Seniors Grace Tiegs, Camille Ussher and Kobe Wessels bring a lot of momentum into their final track and field seasons after stellar cross country seasons.
Mike Collins also expressed the growth among the throwers in the program. Along with the addition of Thomas, LC State has strong leadership in seniors Grace Osborne and Faith Wersland. Haylee Appleford had a breakout season in 2025, as did javelin throwers Perry Severijnse and Gianna Anderson.
“Arthur Thomas, a transfer from Idaho, should be in contention to qualify for nationals,” Mike Collins explained. “Our throwers have been progressing each year.”
The indoor season includes six meets before the 2026 NAIA Indoor Track and Field National Championships with three in Spokane, two in Moscow and one in La Grande. The national meet is set for Mar. 5-7 in Gainesville, Fla.
The outdoor season opens on Mar. 15 at the OU Preview in Eugene. The CCC Multi will take place Apr. 16-17 in Ashland and the full conference meet is set for May 8-9 in La Grande. The 2026 NAIA Outdoor Track and Field National Championships will be May 20-22 in Asheville, N.C.
“The standards keep getting tougher each year to qualify for nationals, but we have seen success each year, so right now we will focus on the processes of what it takes to be successful and then see what kind of product that produces,” Mike Collins said. “That has worked well for us in the past and there is no reason to change from what has already worked. Indoor is expected to be more competitive this year and we may make some adjustments as to who will compete as we work our way through the meet in order to make the most of competition and training, but the big goal will be both national competitions and the conference championships. Training is truly set for a big macrocycle with outdoors in mind, so any success indoors is a bonus, but as soon as we see opportunities, we make adjustments.”
Stay up to date with all things Warrior Athletics at lcwarriors.com and on social media @LCWarriors.
