GIRARD — The Titusville softball team beat Girard 7-2 in a non-region game on Saturday.

Mary Herman recorded two home runs, three RBIs and added five strikeouts on the mound. Nora Lesko, Kylie Crocker, Marissa Warner, Jordan Wynn and Josie Peden added runs for the Rockets.

Titusville (9-6) hosts Fort LeBoeuf today at 4 p.m. for a Region 6 game.

Conneaut falls to Girard

LINESVILLE — The Conneaut baseball team fell 14-2 in five innings to Girard in a Region 5 game on Saturday.

Owen Grafton and Alex Perrine recorded runs.

Conneaut (4-7 overall, 3-4 region) travels to Fairview today at 4 p.m. for a Region 5 game.

Blue Mountain and Williams Valley shined under the lights when they won Schuylkill League quarterfinal matchups at Pine Grove’s Walter Stump Stadium on Sunday evening.

The Eagles (17-4) scored five of their nine runs after the fourth inning for a 9-5 win over Schuylkill Haven (12-9). The Vikings shut down Pottsville’s (13-8) bats much of the night for a 6-3 win.

“It’s a big backyard rivalry so I was pleased with the way we hung in there and did a good job,” Blue Mountain coach Jarrod Kramer said. “As the game progressed we got better as a team and it’s high school baseball so anything can happen on any given day.”

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Schuylkill Haven’s Alan Evans (28) pitches during the quarterfinal round game against Blue Mountain of the Schuylkill League Baseball Playoffs at Pine Grove’s Walter Stump Stadium at Veterans Memorial Field Sunday May 10, 2026. Submitted Photo

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Schuylkill Haven’s Alan Evans (28) rounds second heading for third during the quarterfinal round game against Blue Mountain of the Schuylkill League Baseball Playoffs at Pine Grove’s Walter Stump Stadium at Veterans Memorial Field Sunday May 10, 2026. Submitted Photo

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Blue Mountain’s Evan Setlock (6) pitches during the quarterfinal round game against Schuylkill Haven, of the Schuylkill League Baseball Playoffs at Pine Grove’s Walter Stump Stadium at Veterans Memorial Field Sunday May 10, 2026. Submitted Photo

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Blue Mountain’s Riley Sebastian (1) runs to third base during the quarterfinal round game against Schuylkill Haven, of the Schuylkill League Baseball Playoffs at Pine Grove’s Walter Stump Stadium at Veterans Memorial Field Sunday May 10, 2026. Submitted Photo

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At first base Blue Mountain’s Brady Strause (9) beats the tag by Schuylkill Haven’s Landon Trostle (8) during the Schuylkill League quarterfinal round game at Pine Grove’s Walter Stump Stadium at Veterans Memorial Field Sunday May 10, 2026. Submitted Photo

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Schuylkill Haven’s Alan Evans (28) pitches during the quarterfinal round game against Blue Mountain of the Schuylkill League Baseball Playoffs at Pine Grove’s Walter Stump Stadium at Veterans Memorial Field Sunday May 10, 2026. Submitted Photo

Blue Mountain will take on Marian Catholic (16-3) in the league semifinals on Monday while Williams Valley goes up against Tri-Valley (16-4) in the other semifinal matchup.

Blue Mountain 9, Schuylkill Haven 5

Blue Mountain came out with the bats when they scored four runs in the fifth inning on the way to a four-run win to advance to the semifinals.

Evan Setlock threw six innings on the mound for the Eagles, allowing five runs on five hits while striking out six. Setlock got through the first two innings in just 17 pitches and sat down Schuylkill Haven 1-2-3- in the top of the second on just seven pitches.

“The conditions aren’t great so I was first worrying about the mound and then I got to throwing strikes,” Setlock said. “It was an intense game and they’re a good team so we have to stick to what we’ve been practicing and play our game.”

Aiden Finn led the Eagles lineup with four hits while Josh Hoover had three hits and Cohen Kirby, Brady Strause, Sonny Amato and Setlock each had two hits. Kirby and Strause each had two RBI’s.

Riley Sebastian and Kirby each walked to start the bottom of the first for the Eagles before Strause came through with a two-run single to center field for the 2-0 lead.

“The bottom of our order came through and a lot of guys had good at bats,” Kramer said. “It was situational hitting that came through in the clutch and that was a big difference.”

Setlock sat down the Hurricanes 1-2-3 in the top of the second before Blue Mountain scored another run in the bottom of the second. Aiden Finn singled on a line drive to left field to score Josh Hoover for the 3-0 lead.

Chase Yoder cut into the Schuylkill Haven deficit in the top of the third inning with a two-run single into right center field for the 3-2 deficit.

Setlock shot an RBI groundball single to center field to score Amato for the 4-2 lead in the bottom of the third.

“In order to beat a good team you need guys to step up at the right times and the defense was good too,” Setlock said. “We’re putting the ball in play as much as possible and it’s transitioning to runs.”

Evans stroked a three-run triple to right center field to score Chase Maley, Landon Houck and Landon Trostle for the 5-4 lead in the top of the fourth.

After the Hurricanes took a one run lead to start the fourth, Blue Mountain scored four runs in the fourth and fifth innings to run away for the win.

Amato began the scoring rampage for the Eagles as he singled to right center field to score Strause to knot the score at 5-5.

Setlock sat down Schuylkill Haven 1-2-3 in the top of the fifth before the Eagles scored four runs in the bottom of the fifth, beginning with a Hoover RBI double to right field to score Setlock for the 6-5 lead.

“It’s fun to play when we’re hitting this well and we tried to get Alan (Evans) off the mound once his pitch count got up and we got to the bullpen,” Setlock said.

Andrew Blehm flew out to center field to score Hoover for the 7-5 lead before Kirby stepped up with a two-run double to left field to score Finn for the 9-5 final score.

Schuylkill Haven 5 — Evans P 4 1 3 3 , Trostle 1 1 0 0, Gerber CF 3 1 0 0, Yoder SS 4 0 2 2, Hanniskitz 3B 4 0 0 0, Maley 2B 2 1 0 0, Terefencko RF 3 0 0 0, Houck DH 2 1 0 0, Diehl C 3 0 0 0. 26 5 5 5.

Blue Mountain 9 — Sebastian C 2 2 0 0, Finn LF 4 2 4 1, Kirby 3 0 2 2, Strause 2B 4 1 2 2, Amato RF 4 1 2 1, Clemas P 0 0 0 0, Russo 3B 4 0 0 0, Setlock P 3 1 2 1, Hoover CF 4 2 3 1, Blehm DH 3 0 0 0. 31 9 15 9.

SH (12-9);0;0;2;3;0;0;0;—5

BM (17-4);2;1;1;1;4;0;X;—9

LOB — Schuylkill Haven 5, Blue Mountain 8; 2B — Evans, Yoder 2, Hoover, Amato, Kirby, Setlock; SB — Finn, Strause, Amato, Setlock

Schuylkill Haven

IP H R ER BB K

Evans 4.2 13 8 8 3 1

Yoder 1.1 2 1 1 1 0

Blue Mountain

Setlock 6 5 5 5 5 6

Clemas 1 0 0 0 0 1

Pottsville 6, Williams Valley 3

Williams Valley scored six runs across the first three innings and Cadyn Witmer struck out seven and allowed just three runs to Pottsville’s lineup in 5.1 innings on the mound.

Fletcher Thompson drove in two of the Vikings first three runs in the first two innings before Camden Berger unloaded for a three-run double into right center field for the 6-1 lead in the third.

“In any game it’s important to get on top quick, especially tonight,” Williams Valley coach Steve Barner said. “Cadyn’s been our go-to guy all year long and it showed tonight because he’s one of the best.”

Berger drove in a team-high three runs for Williams Valley while Thompson brought home another two runs. John Rautzahn, Berger and Witmer each doubled for the Vikings extra-base hits.

Thompson came through early in the bottom of the first when he reached on a groundball error to shortstop to score Cole Hubler for the 1-0 lead. Witmer then doubled into center field to score Thompson for the 2-0 lead.

“This group is full of gamers so they’ll go out and compete with anyone for seven innings,” Barner said. “Hopefully we can come out tomorrow and compete with Tri-Valley.”

Witmer sat down Pottsville 1-2-3 in the top of the second on two strikeouts and a groundout and then the Vikings got more run support from Thompson in the bottom of the second.

Thompson singled on a groundball into right field to score Hubler for the 3-0 lead.

Pottsville opened their scoring in the top of the third when Dominic Rynard flew out to center field to score Christian Alvarez for the 3-1 lead.

Rynard walked three straight Williams Valley batters in the bottom of the third before Berger doubled on a fly ball to center field to score three runs for the 6-1 lead.

Mason Bowser shut down Pottsville through the final 1.2 frames, allowing just one hit and striking out two in the fifth inning. a

Pottsville 3 — Trout RF 4 0 2 0, Eroh CF 2 0 0 0, Rynard P 2 0 0 0 1, Clews 3B 4 1 1 0, Hess 2B 1 1 0 0, Ciavarella LF 3 0 0 0, Allen SS 3 0 1 2, Rynard DH 3 0 0 0, Alvarez 1B 3 1 1 0. 25 3 5 3.

Williams Valley 6 — Hubler CF 1 2 0 0, Thompson C 4 1 1 2, Witmer P 2 0 1 1, Rautzahn 2B 4 0 1 0, Deiter LF 3 0 0 0, Trawitz 1B 2 1 0 0, Green 3B 2 1 1 0, Bowser RF 1 1 0 0, Schaeffer RF 1 0 0 0, Berger SS 3 0 1 3. 23 6 5 6.

P (13-8);0;0;1;0;0;2;0;—3

WV (14-7);2;1;3;0;0;0;X;—6

LOB — Pottsville 7, Williams Valley 8; 2B — Trout, Allen, Berger, Rautzahn, Witmer; SB — Deiter, Thompson 2, Hubler 2, Schaeffer

Pottsville

IP H R ER BB K

Rynard 2.1 2 6 5 7 3

Hess 3.2 3 0 0 2 4

Williams Valley

Witmer 5.1 4 3 2 4 7

Bowser 1.2 1 0 0 2 2

The Hawaii baseball team lost a game and a three-game series but not any ground in its quest for a berth in the Big West Tournament.

UC Davis shortstop Elijah McNeal doubled home a run to break a 1-all tie in the sixth inning and catcher Ryan Lee added an RBI single for insurance in the Aggies’ 3-1 victory at the Dobbins Stadium on the UCD campus.

The Aggies won the final two games of the series to remain alive in the chase for a berth in the five-team league tournament. It also was the Aggies’ final home baseball game as a Big West member. The UCD and UH baseball programs move to the Mountain West on July 1.

UH and Cal State Fullerton entered Sunday tied for fourth in the Big West. After the Titans fell to Cal Poly on Sunday, both teams held that spot at 14-13. Both teams are two games ahead of 12-15 UC Irvine, which lost to UC Riverside on Sunday. The Rainbow Warriors need to win one of three games against Cal State Northridge in this week’s final series of the regular season to clinch a tournament berth. The ’Bows hold the tiebreaker over Fullerton and Irvine.

Tate Shimao singled home Noah Rodriguez to stake the ’Bows to a 1-0 lead in the third inning. But they could not take advantage of several scoring opportunities. They hit into double plays in the sixth and seventh innings. In the fifth, a pitch bounced off Lee’s catcher’s mitt. Lee retrieved the ball, and fired to pitcher Braydon Wooldridge, who tagged out Rodriguez at the plate.

In the NFL, “cut-down day” has long been an established part of the league calendar.

Each August, each of the 32 NFL franchises are tasked with cutting its roster size from 90 to 53 players ahead of the season. More than 1,100 players — long shots, aging veterans and agonizingly close calls — lose their jobs on a day coaches, front office personnel and players have long referred to as the worst of the year.

This summer, college teams face something similar — albeit at a smaller scale.

By opting into the House v. NCAA settlement last year, FBS programs are now subject to a 105-player roster limit. Unlike previous rules allowing for only 85 full scholarships — on rosters that could swell to 120 — all 105 players can be put on full or partial scholarship.

The 105 is, however, a hard cap. Teams didn’t have to worry about meeting that number last summer due to protections afforded to players who might have lost a roster spot after the settlement went into effect.

This summer? There will almost assuredly be cuts as teams — New Mexico among them — work to meet that cap.

How, then, are the Lobos managing it?

UNM carried 101 players into spring practice, including seven designated student-athletes (DSAs). DSAs are players “whose roster spots would have been impacted by immediate implementation of the roster limits” last summer, per an NCAA governance update, and do not count towards the 105-player limit.

Likely starting defensive end Darren Agu and running back Cameron Mathews are among UNM’s seven DSAs. The Lobos are also bringing in 20 incoming freshmen, putting the Lobos at 121 rostered players on paper when they likely need to be at 112 by the first game.

In April, coach Jason Eck said UNM would use a two-pronged approach split across the spring and late summer to meet that number. That approach is already underway. Friday, Eck said he and his staff met with some players this week to let them know “where they stood” as that number looms.

“Some of them, we’re not going to be able to bring back,” he said. “Some of them, (it’s) kind of, ‘Hey, you’re back, but you’re still at risk. You’re one of the guys who’s kind of in a pool that needs to improve.’”

Depending on the timeline, players have some options. Those that won’t be coming back for training camp can go try and play at another non-NCAA program, like a junior college or an NAIA team. Those programs are not subject to the NCAA’s rules against “ghost transfers,” players who leave one NCAA program and enroll at another without formally entering the transfer portal.

For players coming back for training camp but might not make it to the season, Eck said he’s told some he would bring them back for spring practice if they stay enrolled at UNM.

“The guys who are leaving right now, if we can’t bring them back for camp (this summer), we’re trying to help those guys figure out what they want to do,” Eck said. “If they wanna stay here in school and try to get their degree from the University of New Mexico, if they wanna play — you know, one of the guys is a graduate, so he wants to move on as a grad transfer (and try) to find some place where he can play and go to grad school.

“Everyone’s a little different (with) different scenarios.”

But it might not be as simple as making it to 112, which might work to UNM’s advantage. Last year, Eck said players who suffered a season-ending injury before games started were not subject to the roster limit, which could give UNM some wiggle room beyond 112.

Regardless, Eck says he sees UNM coming to camp with “no more than” 115 on the roster.

“It is a little tricker that way,” he said. “But it’s also, you gotta play by the rules. If guys are frustrated, you just gotta tell them, ‘Hey, we gotta make tough decisions.’

“And these are tough decisions.”

Sean Reider covers college football and other sports for the Journal. You can reach him at sreider@abqjournal.com or via X at @lenaweereider.

May 10—With temperatures in the mid-70s for Mother's Day on Sunday and absolutely no breeze for most of the game, Avista Stadium lived up to its reputation as something of a home run haven.

And it was the home team that benefited the most.

Kevin Fitzer hit home runs in his first two plate appearances — including a grand slam — and the Spokane Indians beat the Tri-City Dust Devils 8-3 in the finale of a six-game High-A Northwest League series at Avista Stadium on Sunday.

The Indians (13-20) took four of six from the Dust Devils (18-15) — the team's first series win since the season-opening three-game set against Everett. The teams hit three home runs each — all in the first 31/2 innings.

"It was definitely a good series win for us and good momentum heading into next week at Hillsboro," Fitzer said. The Indians start a six-game road series against the Hops on Tuesday at 6:35 p.m.

Fitzer, who finished 2-for-4 with a walk and five RBIs, entered play with just seven hits in his previous 52 at-bats (.134) over his last 14 games. A two-homer day — his first as a professional — was just what the doctor ordered.

"It's been getting a lot of work in in the cages, stuff like that, making some adjustments, and it felt good today to have it actually show up on the field," Fitzer said.

He had a chance in the eighth inning to make it a three-homer game, but right fielder Randy De Jesus tracked down the long fly ball on the warning track.

"It was close," Fitzer said. "But the wind picked up a little bit and I didn't hit it as well. But yeah, I thought it had a chance at first."

Lost in all the offensive fireworks was the Indians' solid pitching . Starter Yuma Herrera allowed three runs — all solo homers — over four innings, while reliever Fisher Jameson (3-1) turned in his finest performance of the season, tossing four shutout innings on five hits and no walks.

Fitzer got things started for the Indians in the bottom of the first with a solo homer to dead center, his fifth of the season.

Tri-City's Matt Coutney and Anthony Scull launched solo shots in the second to put the Dust Devils up 2-1.

The Indians loaded the bases with one down in the bottom half on two walks and an error. Tevin Tucker struck out but Fitzer delivered again, going the opposite way to right for a line drive grand slam, his second homer of the game and sixth of the season.

"I've had a lot of situations like that this week, and I'm just trying to help the team score runs," Fitzer said. "I just got a good pitch to hit and I put a good swing on it."

The home run parade continued in the third. Indians infielder Kelvin Hidalgo singled with two down and Jacob Hinderleider followed with a long hone run to right field, his third of the season.

Scull hit his second of the game with two down in the fourth to get Tri-City within 7-3.

Spokane got that run back in the fifth. Jacob Humphrey led off with a single, stole second, went to third on a fielder's choice and scored on a wild pitch that barely left the dirt cut-out around home plate.

Humphrey finished 3-for-5, raising his league-leading batting average to .342.

Better late than never for James Rodriguez.

The Colombian superstar will leave Minnesota United at the end of next week to prepare for the FIFA World Cup and won’t return to Minnesota for the second half of the season, but the central attacking midfielder left a mark in his penultimate game for the Loons.

James provided two assists in Minnesota’s 2-2 draw with Austin FC on Sunday at Allianz Field.

Down 1-0, James subbed into the game in the 63rd minute and provided his first MLS goal contribution in the 69th. His floated cross was headed into the net by Anthony Markanich to tie the game. Then Rodriguez assisted on Joaquin Pereyra’s go-ahead goal in the 77th minute.

But former Minnesota forward Christian Ramirez equalized in the 80th minute to make it 2-2. He stuck it to his former team for a second time; he also scored for L.A. Galaxy in St. Paul in March 2025.

MNUFC (6-3-2, 21 points) had to settle for a draw, while Austin (3-4-5, 14 points) remained winless in six road games.

Rodriguez’s last game with Minnesota is Wednesday against Colorado. Then after the World Cup, the former Bayern Munich and Real Madrid player will reportedly retire at age of 34.

The Loons trailed 1-0 at the half after Myrto Uzuni converted a penalty kick in the 14th minute. Nectar Triantis was whistled for a handball in the box to set up the PK.

MNUFC had two chances to equalize from the spot less than 10 minutes later. But Loons striker Kelvin Yeboah failed to convert on both.

The first attempt — earned when former Loon Joseph Rosales bear hugged Anthony Markanich in the box — was waved off after a VAR check. Yeboah’s stutter-step didn’t freeze Brad Stuver, but it did take the Austin goalkeeper off his line. The Loons scored on the rebound, but Anthony Markanich was ruled to have encroached in the box.

With a mulligan, Yeboah’s second attempt was pounded off the crossbar as Austin kept the 1-0 lead.

The Loons players and fans grew more and more frustrated with referee Chris Penso as the first half played out. Three Minnesota players — Joaquín Pereyra, Tomás Chancalay, Nectar Triantis and Jefferson Diaz — were issued yellow cards for dissent.

Apple TV said coach Cameron Knowles stressed discipline to his players at halftime. What they really needed was James to play.

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Mount Carmel and Lemont move up a spot, while Homewood-Flossmoor enters the rankings.

Top 10

With records through Sunday and previous rankings in parentheses.

1. St. Laurence 28-1 (1): Behind the hot hitting of Kentucky recruit Tristan Steger, the Vikings sweep St. Rita and Providence and extend their winning streak to 25 games.

2. Lincoln-Way East 24-3 (2):Nathan Kaminski gets his moment to shine, ripping a pinch-hit grand slam to highlight the Griffins’ 12-2 win over Stagg.

3. Lockport 20-7 (3):Austin Winge strikes out 12 in complete-game effort as the Porters stay perfect in SouthWest Suburban Conference play with a 4-2 win over Lincoln-Way West.

4. Brother Rice 21-8 (4): Texas A&M recruit Brady Cunningham helps the Crusaders sweep Providence before a Catholic League Blue-deciding series this week with St. Laurence.

5. Mount Carmel 20-10 (6): Miami commit Ian Tosi continues strong comeback from 2025’s season-ending injury, allowing just one run over five innings in 10-1 win over DePaul Prep.

6. Lemont 22-3 (7):Cannon Madej shuts down Lincoln-Way West, with all runs unearned in 10-3 victory, extending Lemont’s winning streak to 13 games.

7. Lincoln-Way West 18-6 (5):Michael Petit and the Warriors look to bounce back and stay in the SouthWest Suburban Conference race with Lockport, Lincoln-Way Central up next.

8. Sandburg 16-8 (8): Senior right-hander Noah Highfill throws four strong innings, striking out six and allowing just one hit in the Eagles’ 7-1 win over Plainfield East.

9. St. Rita 19-8 (9): Plenty of ups and downs for the Mustangs, who go 3-3 in a busy week, highlighted by complete-game shutout from Danny Corona in 8-0 win over Rich Township.

10. Homewood-Flossmoor 15-10 (NR): Senior catcher Kamari Dawkins delivers walk-off double in 8-7 victory over Lincoln-Way Central, the first of four wins in four days for the Vikings.

Player of the Week

Freshman catcher/infielder Terrell Hampton-Hall goes 9-for-12 with five runs, four doubles, a triple, a home run and 10 RBIs for De La Salle over four games, all wins.

In what’s become a Mother’s Day tradition, Harford Community College defended its reign over junior college men’s lacrosse.

HCC won its fourth consecutive National Junior College Athletic Association national championship Sunday with an 18-17 comeback victory over Onondaga, of New York, extending a dominant run that’s made the Harford County school the most successful in the recent history of the sport.

“This is where it all kind of builds up to,” HCC coach Aaron Verardi said. “The standards are really high. They know what the expectations are here.”

HCC led by one after the first quarter and by four at halftime before Onondaga outscored the Owls in the third quarter to cut the No. 1 seed’s deficit entering the fourth. And after Onondaga scored four goals in the first two minutes of the final frame, HCC trailed for the first time and needed a rally to maintain its streak.

The Owls scored five goals in the game’s final 10 minutes while holding the opponent to three scores in that span to mount that come-from-behind effort in a one-goal victory.

Cody MacNeil, Hugo Peel and George Shonfield all had three goals. Four other Owls added two apiece.

“We’ve worked so hard this year, ups and downs the whole season, but just to be able to say that we’re national champions, it’s just a surreal feeling,” said MacNeil, a Canadian who ironically discovered HCC through a cousin who played for Onondaga years ago.

Onondaga took this year’s regular-season meeting, 17-12, in March, the start of an unusual road for the Owls this season. They lost more games this year (two) than they did over the previous three seasons combined (one). Then, HCC lost in the NJCAA Region 20 tournament to Howard Community College, which the Owls thrashed in the regular season.

That made HCC the No. 5 seed and road team through the rest of the postseason. The Owls bounced back to beat CCBC Essex in the national quarterfinals, avenged the loss to Howard in the semifinals on Saturday, and ended the weekend with a fourth consecutive trophy on their home turf. HCC and the NJCAA agreed two years ago to host the national championship weekend through 2028.

“Every team has its own story. I really think this team needed that,” Verardi said. “We had a lot of adversity. We battled through it all year, and I think we were able to put it all together at the most critical time.”

Sunday was HCC’s fifth title game appearance in the past six years. It beat Nassau (New York) in the championship in 2023 and 2025 and CCBC Essex two years ago. Verardi said this Onondaga team gave his group their toughest test on this stage of all their past opponents.

Most players on this year’s team weren’t around for those victories. Turnover is expected at the junior college level, and HCC has become known for producing future NCAA players. Verardi estimates 90% of his players find homes at four-year schools after their two years with him.

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This run has brought national, perhaps even global, notoriety to HCC. Six of the team’s players are from Canada, and three starters come from England. Others came to Harford County from California, New Mexico and Florida.

“We get to bring some of our Canadian ball down here to teach that to the Brits, to the Americans,” MacNeil said. “We learn the American ball. We learn the Brit ball. Our whole offense just meshes together, and it’s a perfect fit.”

Lacrosse players around the world want a chance at contributing to, and continuing, this historic stretch.

Have a news tip? Contact Taylor Lyons at tlyons@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/TaylorJLyons.

The Gophers football program nabbed a commitment from four-star Iowa City linebacker Tate Wallace on Sunday.

The 6-foot-2, 226-pound player from Regina Catholic High School picked Minnesota over five other programs he named as finalists, including Wisconsin, Notre Dame, Nebraska, Arizona State and Arizona. The participant in the Navy All-American Bowl had an offer from Iowa State but not nearby Iowa.

Wallace is ranked the third-best recruit among Minnesota’s 13 pledges in the 2027 class behind Kindred, N.D. tight end Brooks Bakko and Wayzata defensive lineman Eli Diane.

In Iowa, Wallace is considered the second-best prospect in the state. Minnesota also has a commitment from Cedar Rapids offensive lineman Will Clausen.

Wallace also plays basketball, baseball and participates in track and field. In football, he also played on tight end for a 12-1 team that reached the Class 1A state championship game in November. He had a 36-yard touchdown catch in that big game.

As a junior, he was credited with 50 tackles and 9 sacks and three forced fumbles. On the other side, he had 40 receptions for 611 yards and 10 touchdowns.

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Josyah Napoleon-Umeda and his Honokaa teammates came for the Monarchs, and they didn’t miss.

Napoleon-Umeda struck out nine batters and didn’t allow a run to beat Damien 3-0 for the Wally Yonamine Foundation Division II state baseball championship on Saturday at Les Murakami Stadium.

The Dragons were undefeated in 17 contests this season but still went into the game overlooked because the team in the other dugout is state royalty in Division II baseball. Honokaa had won only one game on the biggest stage, and that came way back in 2009. The Monarchs, on the other hand, had ruled for two years and sported an 18-2 record in the state tournament, with their only losses coming in championship games. Their state winning percentage of 86% remains the highest in state tournament history, ahead of Maryknoll (83%) and Punahou (82%).

That made the victory all that much sweeter for the scrappy lads from the Big Island and their little lefty.

“We wanted to play the best and beat the best,” Honokaa coach Waylon Salazar said. “It’s just a blessing, good stuff for the kids. We are just super blessed with a super blessed team.”

Napoleon-Umeda allowed only three hits and three walks and never let a Monarch pass second base. His 104th pitch was a weak ground ball to first baseman Rory Crabbe, who ended the Damien dynasty by himself before the Dragons converged on him for the celebration.

“All I had to do is throw strikes and these boys made the plays for me and I am grateful for them,” Napoleon-Umeda said. “I knew that we had it from the very beginning, I just wanted my boys to know that we had it.”

Damien starter Max Detrinis struck out the first batter he faced, but the Dragons punched back immediately. Jayden Salazar laced a single to center and Crabbe bounced a ball over the first baseman for another single. A fielder’s choice ground ball to short scored Salazar and Chrys Coelho placed a long fly ball between the left and center fielders for a double to send Isaac DeRego home with a two-run lead.

The Dragons loaded the bases with one out in the fifth but came away empty on a ground ball back to Detrinis followed by an emphatic strikeout of Hauoli McGurn on a 3-2 pitch. The Dragons, who left 11 runners on base in the game, delivered in the following inning when Napoleon-Umeda walked, stole second and went to third on a wild pitch before Salazar knocked him in with a clean single to left. They threatened but didn’t score again, with Kekona Begonia taking over for beleaguered Detrinis after his 109th pitch and shutting the Dragons down 1-2-3 in the seventh.

Damien had been blanked before, but Napoleon-Umeda befuddled them as much as any pitcher has even though the Monarchs play in the rugged ILH. Napoleon-Umeda’s gem was the first championship game shutout since Bryce Ueno and Damien blanked Radford over five innings in 2018.

“They are a great team, Josyah kept us off balance all day,” Damien coach Skylar Tengan said. “Our hitters had a hard time, and if you can’t hit the ball you can’t win. That was pretty much the bottom line for us. (Detrinis) battled and kept us in the game and that’s all we ask but you can’t win with zero runs.”

Hawaii Prep World

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The author of the greatest moment in Mililani baseball history will have to wait for the television replay to fully appreciate it.

Koa Marzo bounced Colten Amai-Nakagawa’s 103rd pitch over the third baseman’s head and into left field for a walkoff single in a 1-0 win over Pac-Five in the Division I championship of the Wally Yonamine Foundation/HHSAA State Baseball Championships at Les Murakami Stadium on Saturday for Mililani’s first title.

“To be honest, I didn’t even know I walked it off until I saw all of my boys rushing toward me,” Marzo said. “I was just trying to get there. It felt great, I mean that’s what we came here for and worked so hard for.”

Mililani and Pac-Five were locked in a scoreless duel until the Wolfpack’s defense finally cracked. Ian Murasaki started the telling inning by pulling a grounder to third but was safe when the first baseman came off the bag to receive the throw. A perfect bunt by Taye Marxen put him on first when the Wolfpack didn’t come up with the ball and Kameron Pongasi loaded the bases with no outs when Pac-Five’s first baseman tried to nab the runner at third but was late. That set up Marzo’s heroics.

“Sometimes you need a little bit of luck to win this tournament,” Mililani coach Mark Hirayama said. “You just have to keep coming out and battling. These guys love each other and like playing for each other. They are close, they are tight. That is the big difference with this group.”

Both pitchers, Mililani’s Ezra Ugale and Amai-Nakagawa of Pac-Five, were superb. Ugale struck out four and allowed only four hits on his 93 pitches and Amai-Nakagawa scattered seven hits on 104 pitches three days after throwing 85 in a first-round win over Kaiser.

“All of our pitchers are dogs,” Marzo said. “Nobody should ever doubt them. They are all good every day. (Pac-Five) did great on their side, too. They have a good pitcher on the mound and we just tried to attack him as soon as possible and do some damage.”

The tension didn’t begin building until the top of the second, when the Wolfpack loaded the bases on a walk, a single and a hit-by-pitch. Ugale snuffed the rally, though, getting Titan Dixon to pop to right and Alika Ahu to ground out to second.

Pac-Five’s Amai-Nakagawa kept the momentum, striking the Trojans out in order in the bottom of the frame.

Mililani had the next scoring chance, even if it didn’t come until the fifth inning. Ugale walked and stole second and third bases and took off in a sprint for home on a 3-2 pitch with two outs, but Marzo took a healthy cut at the ball and drove it to deep center field. Jaxon Cadiz got turned around on his way to the warning track and somehow made a stumbling catch, displaying the ball in his glove from flat on his back.

The zero on the scoreboard was Pac-Five’s 19th straight in this state tournament, passing a slew of teams — 2008 Saint Louis, 1963 Farrington and 1960 Baldwin — for third longest scoreless streak in state history. Only ‘Iolani in 1979 (25 scoreless) and 1972 Saint Louis (22) can claim longer streaks than Pac-Five’s.

The streak reached 20 when Amai-Nakagawa, a Hawaii commit, struck out Xavier Sawa looking to strand two runners in the sixth, but ended in the most painful way in the bottom of the seventh inning to lose the game.

“(Amai-Nakagawa) is great on the mound, good command, change of speeds and a little bit of velocity there,” Hirayama said. “UH has got a good one.”

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The Hawaii baseball team had too much unfinished business in Saturday’s 4-2 road loss to UC Davis at Dobbins Stadium on the UCD campus.

A crowd of 547 saw the Rainbow Warriors strand five runners in scoring position, hit into two momentum-deflating double plays and yield a two-run homer that proved to be the margin.

“Two-out hits are golden,” said Hill, whose ’Bows were 1-for-7 with two outs. “We got one with Benny (Zeigler-Namoa) at the end, which was great. I think we left a lot of guys on base. It was tough to score runs. The team that deserved to win the game won the game, in my opinion.”

The outcome evened this three-game series at a win apiece, and dropped the Rainbow Warriors to 25-20 overall and 14-12 in the Big West. The ’Bows remain in a fourth-place tie with Cal State Fullerton, two games ahead of sixth-place UC Irvine, with four games remaining in the regular season. The top five teams qualify for the Big West Tournament.

The Aggies took a 1-0 lead in part because of two debatable calls in the third inning. Joey Wright was ruled to have been struck by a pitch with one out in the third. Wright scooted to third on Zach Story’s double to left. There were no “official” replays, but ESPN+ appeared to show that Wright avoided being hit by the pitch, and UH left fielder Draven Nushida threw out Story at second on the double. Tyler Howard’s RBI grounder produced the game’s first run.

After retiring 10 in a row, Hekili Robello surrendered a one-out triple to Ethan Felix in the seventh inning. Jaxon Murphy followed with an opposite-field single to left to bring home Felix for a 2-0 lead.

One out later, two-way player Braydon Wooldridge showed his rare power with a two-run homer to right for a 4-0 lead.

Hill and pitching coach Keith Zuniga debated intentionally walking the left-swinging Wooldridge or bringing in left-handed reliever Grant Garman. A walk would have brought up the right-handed Wright with runners at first and second.

“Wright scares me,” Hill said.

Hill also noted Wooldridge entered hitting .326 against lefties, .260 against righties. Hill decided to stick with the right-handed Robello, whose pitch count was only at 82.

“I thought (Robello) was in great shape,” Hill said. “His velocity was holding. He was still at 90 mph. He didn’t walk anybody. They had to earn it, and they did.”

Hill added: “We thought we could jam (Wooldridge). He just got the head (of the bat) out a little bit. Got to give him credit.”

The ’Bows cut their deficit in half on Zeigler-Namoa’s two-run double in the eighth. But the ’Bows would get no closer against closer Rowen Barnes, who earned the four-out save, his 11th of the season. Barnes lowered his ERA to 0.85.

UH squandered scoring chances after the leadoff batter reached base in the fourth through seventh innings. In the fourth, Kamana Nahaku was picked off and Zeigler-Namoa was caught stealing. The ’Bows also hit into double plays in the fifth and seventh innings. The ’Bows could not cash in with runners on second and third with one out in the sixth.

Brody Martin-Grudzielanek starts for UH in today’s series finale. UCD might bring back Grayson Bonanno, who pitched a one-inning start on Friday.

Punahou’s Eighla Fujitani denied Pearl City’s Chloe Obuhanych a career slam, while Moanalua’s Taegan Escaba became a three-time state champion at the HHSAA Judo State Championships on Saturday at Neal Blaisdell Arena.

Pearl City won the boys team title, while Moanalua claimed the girls crown.

Fujitani prevented Obuhanych from becoming the seventh girls judoka to win four state titles with a semifinal victory at 109 pounds.

Fujitani said she had the wind knocked out of her when Obuhanych threw her early in the match, but she recovered and won via ippon (20-second press) in the first round.

“I was really scared going into the match because I knew how good she was and her reputation is incredible,” Fujitani said. “I just went in knowing whatever happens, I just tried my best.”

Escaba, the champ from Moanalua, won state titles as a freshman and sophomore and finished runner-up to Pearl City’s Serah Yogi last season, competing at 98 all four years.

Escaba took a 3-0 lead with 53 seconds remaining against Mid-Pacific’s Emi Matsumoto, then scored an ippon with eight seconds to go.

“I’m really proud of myself because last year I had a rough loss and it really devastated me,” Escaba said.

Fujitani went on to win the 109 final against Waiakea’s Layla Taasan.

Fujitani didn’t place in the state tournament as a freshman and sophomore, and finished sixth at 109 last season.

“This past summer I went to Japan where I got the chance to compete in a Japan high school tournament and practice with Japan high schools and I definitely think that helped me level up,” said Fujitani, who said she got “obliterated but learned a lot.”

Two boys finals pitted previous state champions and good friends against each other.

Pearl City’s Brayden Nakamura beat Moanalua’s Ronson Murillo by wazari at 114. Nakamura won the weight class last season, while Murillo triumphed at 108 in 2024.

“Me and Ronson battled all through high school and through elementary school,” Nakamura said. “Nothing but love for the guy. It feels good. Last match of my life. Leave it all on the mat.”

He added that he has beaten Murillo twice out of “like 20 or 30” times over 12 years.

Saint Louis’ Eli Suan defeated Moanalua’s Draezyn Tanaka in the 132 final. Suan won at 121 last season and Tanaka claimed the 114 title in 2024.

“My plan originally at the beginning of the season was to go down to 121, because me and Draezyn are best friends,” Suan said. “We’ve been best friends since we were 6. It was hard playing your best friend in the finals.”

Pearl City’s Eli Oshiro at 121 (won at 108 in 2025) and Ku Miner at 285 also repeated as boys champions.

Pearl City’s Logyn Lynn at 139 (won at 122 last season) and Moanalua’s Bella Kukonu at 172 were repeat champions in the girls competition.

The Pearl City boys won four individual titles and finished with 92 points. Moanalua finished second with 75 and Saint Louis placed third with 51.

The Moanalua girls claimed three individual championships and finished with 113 points. Pearl City was second with 96, and Campbell and Mid-Pacific tied for third with 32.

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The Mililani girls track and field team successfully defended its Oahu Interscholastic Association championship Saturday — sort of.

The Trojans have to share this year’s title with Kahuku, as the Red Raiders ran a blistering 4 minutes, 2.66 seconds to take the 10 points for first in the meet- closing 4×400 meter relay. Mililani went into the finale with a two-point lead, but finished tied with Kahuku with 92 points as the Trojans got eight points for finishing second in 4:06.47.

Zen Kaopua led off for Kahuku on that relay. She was here, there and everywhere throughout the meet at Mililani’s John D. Kauinana Stadium.

Early on, about five minutes after Kaopua won the 100 meters in 12.51 she was back at the long jump pit, where she won with a leap of 18 feet, 1⁄2 inch.

The sophomore also won the 200 meters in 25.40, and led off for the winning 4×100 relay.

During spring break Kaopua was away from the islands.

“I was on the mainland snowboarding with my mom and dad,” she said.

Did that bother her coaches?

“They told me I should have made up a better lie,” she said with a laugh.

Kaopua got plenty of help, including Faith Mataele sweeping the hurdles.

Mililani’s girls picked up points here and there but won just one event. It was the first of the day on the track. Jenna Hasegawa, Hailey Taira, Riana Steward and Sophia Timoshchik held off Kalaheo in the 4×800 relay by .87 of a second, running 9:53.08. Timoshchik brought in eight points for being second to Moanalua’s Sadie Krueger in the 800. Krueger, the state cross country champion, also won the 1,500.

As expected, Moanalua’s state champion boys eased to their second consecutive OIA title, as James Millare continues to put together one of the greatest distance running careers in Hawaii high school history in just two years.

Millare won the 800 in 1:57.01 and the 3,000 in 9:00.08, but it was not a one-man show.

Jaydon Grevious and Tristen Cole got Na Menehune off to a good start, first and third in the long jump on Thursday for 16 points, and Grevious got 20 more for winning the 100 and 200 on Saturday. Cole also won the triple jump, and Hayden Ramiscal the pole vault as Moanalua piled up 125 points. Mililani was second with 117.

Millare — a triple winner in the track distance events at OIA and states last year — looked like he’s ready to do it again.

Millare ran a slow pace for the first 31⁄2 laps of the 1,500, but no one dared try to pass him. Then, on the last turn he accelerated, pulling away from Radford’s Stephen Kozuma to win in 4:02.53.

“He’s very focused on the 800, but he’s even more focused on the 1,500 (for states),” said Moanalua boys distance coach Pono Gandeza, who is also the cross country coach for Na Menehune, where Millare is two-time state champion.

The HHSAA state track and field championships are Friday and Saturday at Kamehameha.

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LOS ANGELES — As the Hawaii men’s volleyball team stormed the court after match point against Long Beach State, the shakas started forming, pointing up to the sky.

Two weeks after Long Beach State freshman Wojciech Gajek angered a team, and an entire fan base, when he flashed the double shaka and then pointed to the ground in the Beach’s five-set win in the Big West tournament final, the Rainbow Warriors got their revenge on the sport’s biggest stage.

Kristian Titriyski put down a match-high 14th kill for the final point and No. 2 seed Hawaii advanced to its seventh national final in school history with a 25-15, 18-25, 25-21, 25-22 win over the Beach in the semifinals of the National Collegiate Men’s Volleyball Championships on Saturday at Pauley Pavilion.

Louis Sakanoko added 12 kills and Adrien Roure finished with 10 to give UH three players in double figures in kills. Justin Todd, who missed the previous match against Long Beach State with an injury, added a career-high 10 blocks and Hawaii (29-5) finished the season 3-1 against the Beach (25-5), who lost only two other matches.

After it was over, the ’Bows celebrated on the court near the net with a lot of the team, and even coaches, flashing the shaka sign toward both the Beach and the crowd.

SHAKAS UP IN PAULEY. advances to the national championship with a 25-15, 18-25, 25-21, 25-22 win over Long Beach State.

— Billy Hull (@billyhull)

“I think everyone took it a little personally,” Sakanoko admitted after the match. “That was a little way to send it back in a classy way.”

Hawaii improved to 7-3 in the semifinal round of the NCAA Tournament and will face UC Irvine for the national championship on Monday at 1 p.m.

The match was similar to the one played two weeks ago when UH won sets one and three and Long Beach State took set two.

Hawaii, which couldn’t convert five match points in the fourth set in the previous meeting, trailed 18-14 on Saturday before closing on an 11-4 run with Sakanoko, Kainoa Wade and Roure all delivering serving turns of at least two points.

“One of the mantras that we have is good turns late,” Hawaii coach Charlie Wade said. “Guys going back to the service line when there is a lot on the line and guys like Kainoa come in and have a really good turn for us, Adrien came back there late and guys just kind of embraced this moment in being able to deliver when it counts.”

Gajek, who hit .071 with 11 kills and nine errors, had one of Long Beach State’s 18 service errors after the Beach led 18-14.

Sakanoko, who had six service errors and no aces, served his first one in that led to a Roure kill and a Beach timeout. They couldn’t freeze Sakanoko, who put another one in that led to a Trevell Jordan kill to get within one point.

“I was playing so bad from the service line that I couldn’t do worse,” Sakanoko said. “My team needed me at that moment and I had to (serve) in a good way. Get my ideas together and I know how to serve. Just tried to lock in a little more.”

The match was tied for the final time at 21-all when Titriyski pumped a kill off the block.

Todd, whose absence in the Big West final was certainly felt, teamed with Titriyski on a block of Gajek, and then Roure put one down from the back row for the first of UH’s two match points.

Long Beach State senior All-American Skyler Varga got to serve down 24-22 and forced Hawaii setter Tread Rosenthal to make a two-handed bump set back over his head as he tumbled near the courtside tables that was put in the perfect position for Titiryski to hammer off a double block to end it.

“I wanted to show what I can do against Long Beach and our team does an amazing job, but I wanted to contribute,” Todd said. “For the blocking part, I give a lot of credit to my teammates because at the net, whenever we are blocking, everybody is communicating to each other what we have to do and it just makes it a lot easier for me and my teammates.”

Rosenthal, who finished with 36 assists, five blocks, five digs and two aces, fell to the ground midway through the third set on a non-contact play and had to be looked at by the trainer.

He finished the match but was struggling to move around on the court.

“I know they are evaluating him now, but he was playing on one leg at the end pretty much, so, our team doctor is here with us and they are taking a look at him and we’ll get a little more info,” Wade said.

Varga finished the match with a team-high 13 kills to lead the Beach, who lost the first set by double digits after combining for 13 hitting and serving errors.

The Beach seized control of the second set on a challenge of a UH touch that wasn’t called on an out ball. The call was overturned to put the Beach ahead 21-18 instead of 20-19 and Gajek served out the set.

Hawaii used a 7-1 run, spurred by aces from Kainoa Wade and Titriyski, to take control of the third set leading 22-16.

Long Beach State served out to fall behind two sets to one.

LBSU finished the night hitting .200. Hawaii had 14.5 blocks to Long Beach State’s six.

“In order to win a national championship, which all of these guys have done, it’s one of the most special experiences out there,” Long Beach State coach Nick MacRae said. “When you’ve done it, then it’s like oh I want nothing more than to keep going after it, and you have to be in this very special moment in the Final Four to have a shot. You have to execute at a really high level, there is a little bit of lady luck that goes into it, and everything has to really be rocking. That’s what makes it so special.”

The Beach are the first team not to repeat as national champion since Ohio State won in 2011. UC Irvine (2012-13), Loyola Chicago (2014-15), Ohio State (2016-17), Long Beach State (2018-19), Hawaii (2021-22) and UCLA (2023-24) all won in consecutive years.

Hawaii is 3-3 all-time in the national final. One of those wins was later vacated (2002).

With Colorado goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood pulled for an extra attacker late Saturday at Grand Casino Arena, Colorado center Nazem Kadri, alone at the bottom of the right circle, threw one final puck on net for the Avalanche.

There were nine seconds remaining, and zero chance of the Avs scoring three goals to send the game to overtime. Yet, when Kadri’s shot left his stick, Brock Faber stepped in front of it.

Why let Colorado leave the ice with even a sliver of momentum they could take into Game 4 Monday in St. Paul?

Matt Boldy pounced on the loose puck and scored an empty-netter with four seconds left to seal the Wild’s 5-1 victory, their first since closing out a first-round series win in Game 6 against Dallas on April 30.

Faber set up the first goal, scored the fourth, and set up the empty-netter when he blocked Kadri’s shot. In nine postseason games, he has four goals and nine points. So does blue line partner Quinn Hughes, who has unlocked something in Faber since joining the Wild via trade on Dec. 13.

Together, they have been the engine that makes the Wild go. The Wild are a forechecking team, and they’re the guys that keep the puck in the zone. The Avalanche had no answer for them on Saturday.

The Wild were a little stunned by how sideways Games 1 and 2 went for them in Denver. Now, the Avalanche were talking about what they have to do to contain the Wild forecheck — which was the key to everything for Minnesota on Saturday.

“Mobile D men out there,” veteran center Brock Nelson said. “Quinn and Brock can circle the zone, support one another, create a little bit of space. … We have to be sharp, be quick to close on the D men, try to prevent them from rolling a bit more and then just be quick to support.”

The Wild’s relentless siege on Colorado’s zone put the Central Division leaders, and President’s Trophy winners, on their heels. Avalanche penalties led to Kirill Kaprizov’s four-on-four goal, and to Hughes’ four-on-three score.

Ryan Hartman scored a power-play early in the second period, and the Wild scored on a delayed penalty when Faber started a rush, passed to Vladimir Tarasenko and crash the net, where the rebound off Tarasenko’s shot bounced off Faber’s leg and over the goal line for a 4-1 lead.

“One of those guys,” Wild coach John Hynes said. “He has the ‘it factor.’ ”

With a promising season on the line in a must-win game, Hynes rode his top blue liners hard — 29 minutes, 30 seconds from Faber, 28:30 from Hughes. He had to; it was that kind of game. None of the other defensemen played more than Jared Spurgeon’s 17:38.

The Wild didn’t just get up off the mat on Saturday, keep the bell from ringing at least once so they can look themselves in the mirror. They used a three-day break — their first real rest since sealing their first-round series with Game 6 against Dallas on April 30 — to get better.

The Avs didn’t lose that game Saturday — their first in seven postseason contests — Minnesota won it. The Wild reminded everyone that they’re an awfully good team. Their stars — Kaprizov, Boldly, Hughes, Faber and rookie goaltender Jesper Wallstedt among them — were the game’s best players. Their checking lines were relentless. The D made smart decisions. Passes were crisp.

“Tonight was a lot better. Tonight was the way we play,” Faber said.

For all the fireworks and special teams play, the Wild really sealed their win by keeping the Avalanche pinned in their own end for much of the third period. Until they pulled Blackwood — a courtesy replacement for Wedgewood in the second period — the Avs just didn’t have enough zone time late to forge a rally.

“They got a couple bounces … but they earned their bounces,” Colorado coach Jared Bednar said. “They were going to the net hard. They looked like they were quicker, more physical and more determined. So, now it’s up to us to respond.”

The forecheck came in waves, mostly with Hughes and Faber at the point. Maybe we were so enamored with Hughes that we slept on Faber a little. He’s been so good since he was a Calder Trophy finalist as a rookie — general manager Bill Guerin followed with an eight-year contract extension worth $68 million — that it’s difficult to call this postseason a revelation.

And yet it has been.

Sometimes good players stay good players; sometimes they become great players. We’re watching Faber, just 23 and in his third NHL season, become a great one.

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CHICAGO — DJ Harris’ welcome-to-the-NFL moment came on the final play of Chicago Bears rookie minicamp Friday morning.

Scotty Miller, an eight-year veteran with a Super Bowl ring from his time running routes for Tom Brady with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, ran a go route. Harris grabbed hold of Miller and tried to keep up as quarterback Maverick McIvor — a tryout player from Western Kentucky by way of Abilene Christian and originally Texas Tech — lofted a ball down the right sideline inside the Walter Payton Center.

Harris was all over Miller, and had there been officials at practice, a yellow flag surely would have been tossed. The crafty veteran hauled in the pass as the offensive players erupted in cheers.

It’s no knock on Harris, a tryout player who spent the last two years at Youngstown State after starting his college career with three seasons at Division II Tiffin. He competed throughout the play. There will be more reps Saturday.

Miller knows the ins and outs of the league, and he has a chance to latch on with his local team as the Bears probably could use a little more depth at wide receiver on their 90-man roster.

The two-day minicamp is a crash course for the seven-man draft class — and other newcomers — on how the team operates on the field and in the weight room. The rookies will be mixed in with the veterans beginning Monday during Phase 2 of the voluntary offseason program.

“It’s more about just introducing them to our way of life,” coach Ben Johnson said before practice. “That’s really the objective here. Good start already (Thursday) night. I know a lot of information was digested and we’ll see it come to life here.”

First-round pick Dillon Thieneman got his first taste of things. The Bears ran through circuit drills for the first 20 minutes of practice, and then he took reps at strong safety in 7-on-7 drills. There won’t be any highlight videos of him breaking up passes. The ball never made it his way.

Ultimately, Thieneman will be tasked with learning both safety positions. On special teams he lined up as the personal protector during some simulated punts. If he’s a starter on defense, as expected, his special teams role probably will be minimal, but you have to learn your way around, especially as a rookie.

“Been waiting for this moment for a while, so to get out there, it’s cool,” Thieneman said.

lt certainly was a little different to see center Logan Jones, a second-round pick from Iowa, wearing No. 54. The number hadn’t been issued since Hall of Fame linebacker Brian Urlacher last wore it in 2012.

Chairman George McCaskey was adamant after Mike Ditka’s No. 89 was retired in 2013 that the Bears were done retiring numbers, a situation they were sort of forced into by being too liberal with retirements decades ago.

And it was different seeing a Kreutz wear No. 57 again as Illinois center Josh Kreutz participated on a tryout basis, more than 15 years after his father, six-time Pro Bowl selection Olin Kreutz, last manned the position for the Bears. If he sticks around, hopefully the team picks a different number for Josh. No pressure, kid.

The newcomers ought to get up to speed pretty quickly with the veterans as organized team activities approach later this month, and then mandatory veteran minicamp comes in June. The Bears had a very productive rookie class a year ago when you consider the statistical output by tight end Colston Loveland, wide receiver Luther Burden III and running back Kyle Monangai. Ozzy Trapilo made six regular-season starts at left tackle, and defensive end Shemar Turner was starting to pitch in before a torn ACL.

They say it takes a couple of years, sometimes as many as three, to fully evaluate a draft class. Loveland is certainly the real deal. Can Burden ascend to become a No. 1 receiver at some point? Is Monangai’s future as a complementary back or more? Time will tell.

The current crop of draft picks will have different timelines. Thieneman might be the only one projected to start right away. That’s not to say Jones and cornerback Malik Muhammad, a fourth-round pick from Texas, won’t have opportunities to push for action.

Johnson reiterated what he has said previously: Once you’re on the roster, he doesn’t care how you arrived, meaning draft status and contract size don’t matter to him as he’s going through evaluations.

“How can they provide value for this football team?” Johnson said. “Is it special teams? Is it competing for playing time on offense or defense? That’s really up to them.”

Cornerback is a position to keep an eye on. After waiving Zah Frazier on Thursday, the Bears have 11 on the roster if you include free-agent pickup Cam Lewis as a reserve nickel corner and not a safety. That’s probably one light of where the team will be by training camp.

There’s plenty to prove at cornerback. Veteran Jaylon Johnson hasn’t been involved yet in the offseason program, a source said. That’s consistent with how he has operated previously, and the program is voluntary. Johnson surely is fully aware of the stakes on the table for him this season with no guaranteed money remaining in his contract in 2027.

There are opportunities for reps, and the starting job opposite Johnson will have to be won. Tyrique Stevenson, entering a contract year, must prove he can be the consistent performer the Bears have longed for since picking him in the second round in 2023, or else he’ll face a real challenge from someone.

Nahshon Wright, an unknown this time a year ago, emerged to become a starter, and Nick McCloud found meaningful playing time. They were a couple of veterans who forced their way on to the roster, but both are gone now.

Rookie minicamps usually don’t deliver many revelations. There can be some “ooh” and “aah” moments if there’s a highly touted quarterback. The Bears want to get everyone up to speed so they can evaluate their full roster.

Maybe they’ll add a wide receiver or two to the mix, and Miller did have the play of the day. Surely they’re on the lookout for a cornerback. There will be more reps for Harris after a tough one at the end Friday.

____

Aside from Las Cruces’ pitching dominance, there wasn’t much about the opening weekend of the Class 5A baseball playoffs that moved the needle.

The 12th-seeded Bulldawgs shut out No. 5 Centennial for the second consecutive day, and a 2-0 victory Saturday propelled Las Cruces into next week’s quarterfinals in Albuquerque.

The other seven top seeds join the Bulldawgs in the quarters.

The Thursday quarterfinals look like this: No. 1 Rio Rancho versus No. 8 Mayfield at 4 p.m., and No. 2 Cleveland against No. 7 Eldorado at 7 p.m., both at Santa Ana Star Field.

The other two quarters Thursday are at the Riordan Complex on the West Side, with No. 3 La Cueva facing No. 6 Carlsbad at 4 p.m., followed by the Bulldawgs and No. 6 Piedra Vista at 7 p.m.

Armando Gonzalez twirled a three-hitter for Las Cruces in its win over the Hawks. The Bulldawgs scored both their runs in the fifth.

The top-seeded Rams (23-5) spotted Atrisco Heritage the first two runs but won comfortably, 12-2 in five innings. Wyatt Tinker homered and drove in three runs for Rio Rancho.

Down the road at Cleveland, the Storm (25-3) ousted Sandia with an 8-1 victory. Cleveland put up four runs in the top of the first, which was more than enough run support for Treven Polanco who tossed five solid innings. Peyton Noel doubled twice and drove in a pair of runs for the Storm.

No. 3 La Cueva outscored Hobbs 30-2 in two games; the Bears (25-3) romped 13-1 in Game 2 of this series on Saturday morning.

Dylan Blomker drove in four runs for La Cueva, including a bases-clearing, three-RBI double in the first inning, and Everett Burdett struck out 11 in five innings of work. Mikey McMullan had three RBIs for the Bears.

Piedra Vista (24-4) had 20 hits in an 18-8 rout of Clovis. Kyle Murphy went 4-for-4 with five runs to lead the Panther offense, which put the Wildcats away with seven runs in the first.

No. 6 Carlsbad (18-10) is into Week 2 after a tight, come-from-behind 4-3 win over Organ Mountain. In the fourth inning, EZ Lopez and Ricardo Herrera each drove in a run in the fourth to put the Cavemen ahead for good.

Eldorado (24-4) pounded Rio Grande 16-2 to get to Week 2. Sully Wilson belted a pair of home runs for the Eagles, who finished with 20 hits and jumped on Rio Grande early with a six-run first inning.

Eldorado belted four home runs. Sebastian Mestes went deep and had four RBIs, and Maddox Gonzales hit a homer and drove in three.

In Las Cruces, Mayfield (20-7-1) shut out Los Lunas 10-0 as Brad Springer surrendered just one hit and struck out seven in a complete game. Aden Garcia doubled and had four RBIs for the Trojans.

From Class 4A, ninth-seeded St. Pius (15-12) authored another fantastic finish and ousted No. 8 Grants on Saturday, winning Game 2 of their series 7-3. Diego Trujillo’s two-RBI triple was the key blow in the seventh for the Sartans who next play No. 1 Artesia.

No. 5 Albuquerque Academy and No. 6 Hope Christian both won Game 2’s on Saturday and are into the 4A quarterfinals.

The Chargers (20-7) overcame an early 3-0 deficit, and put up four spots in both the second and third innings for a commanding 9-3 lead. Academy eventually eliminated Los Alamos with a 13-6 win.

Joseph Rounds went 4-for-4 for Academy, and Langston Leigh drove in four runs on three hits.

At Santa Ana Star Field, the Huskies (22-6) looked strong in an 11-6 victory over Belen.

Caleb Pena and Hunter Solwick each recorded three RBIs for Hope, which turned a close game (a 4-2 Huskies lead in the fifth) into something larger with seven runs in that inning.

As with 5A, not a single best-of-3 series required a third game. Artesia, Deming and No. 10 Bloomfield joined the other five in the quarterfinals.

Valley, the 14 seed, lost a pair of one-run decisions to No. 3 Santa Teresa. The Desert Warriors won 2-1 on Friday and 7-6 on Saturday. Bernalillo was swept by No. 2-seeded Goddard.

Thursday’s quarterfinals at the Riordan Complex are as follows: Bloomfield-Goddard at 10 a.m., Santa Teresa-Hope at 1 p.m., Academy-Deming at 3:30 p.m. and Artesia-St. Pius at 6:30 p.m.

In 3A, Sandia Prep advanced, blanking Hot Springs 7-0. The Sundevils (18-8) won by shutout in Game on 1 on Friday, as well.

Logan Lemons was magnificent on the bump for Sandia Prep, firing a 1-hitter while striking out 17 batters. He also had three hits.

James Yodice covers prep sports for the Journal. You can reach him at jyodice@abqjournal.com or via X at @JamesDYodice.

MINFORD — With the top four teams in the SOC III separated by just three games in all, one can guarantee that every game in the league is, indeed, a gauntlet.

That was no different on Friday evening.

Ultimately, the team who proved to limit their mistakes more than any other in the league was able to claim its official stake at the top of the SOC III in 2026.

The Minford Falcons' baseball program ripped off four runs between two RBI-producing doubles by Ty Borland and Carter Frazie to begin the game, then staved off a rally from South Webster by working out of a pivotal bases-loaded, no-out jam in the top of the sixth inning en route to claiming a 6-4 triumph at the Red Monster in Minford.

Friday's win clinched no worse of a share of the SOC III Championship for the Falcons, who improved to 17-2 overall and 8-2 in the league.

And from the getgo, Minford head coach Eli Daniels could see how much the game meant to his team.

"The SOC III is just a gauntlet," Daniels said. "Credit to the boys here — they pulled out a gutsy one (on Friday). They came in locked in from the getgo, and they showed it on the field. Great win. Great day."

South Webster, who rallied back from the 4-0 deficit to close within 6-4 behind a strong relief outing from Jeep senior Benaiah Andrews and good situational hitting at different points, never relented but weren't able to string enough timely hits together in key situations in the setback.

"They're a great team," McClintic said. "Hat's off to Minford. We faced their No. 1 and No. 2, and those guys are tough. They're going to be a tough out in the tournament. You just can't make the mistakes that we made in the field and also not capitalize offensively with runners in scoring position and less than two outs and expect to beat a team like this. We battled back and made it interesting, but you've got to be able to do those little things early. We gave them momentum and that made it hard. They just don't beat themselves."

Getting a big effort on the mound from Borland, who worked out of an early jam after allowing Hunter Barnard and Brycin McClintic to reach scoring position via a single, a sacrifice bunt, a walk and a wild pitch but not allowing either to come across by collecting a strikeout and inducing a pop up to end the inning, Minford wasted no time capitalizing to begin the game.

In fact, each of the first four batters reached for Minford, and after a hit batter and a walk, Borland's RBI double to the left center field gap from the three-hole was followed by a two-RBI double on the very next pitch to cleanup hitter Carter Frazie who banged his hit off of the right field wall, resulting in three runs right off the rip without an out recorded in the bottom half.

The Falcons added in a fourth run on a one-out error, ultimately sending 10 batters to the plate in taking its early lead.

"They were great ABs," Daniels said of Borland's and Frazie's at-bats. "They got their pitch and they made it count. They put the ball in play hard. They were both gap shots to the wall, and it started from there. The boys just kept on rolling from that point forward and we did enough damage early."

Unfazed, South Webster's Benaiah Andrews came in for South Webster starting pitcher Jacob McGraw and worked the second through sixth innings as if the four-run first-inning eruption never happened.

Andrews, a multi-year starter and All-Ohio honoree, allowed just three hits and two earned runs the rest of the way, with both earned runs coming off of Max Lauder's RBI double over the South Webster defense in the bottom of the third inning of work.

No. 15 seemed to get stronger as the game wore on as well, as Andrews retired the last nine Minford batters in order, finishing his five innings of relief with three straight strikeouts in the sixth.

"Jacob's been great for us all year," McClintic said. "Guys are just not going to have their best stuff every night, and some unfortunate events led to Jacob coming out of the game there early. It was good to have Benaiah available (on Friday). He's still working himself back into form, and he looked like the All-Ohio pitcher of last year as of late — he's dealt with some injuries. Benaiah comes in, and we know that in any situation, we can trust Benaiah. He's a senior that's been in a lot of games, and whether that's starting or as a reliever, he's done it all. He did a great job to put up a lot of quick innings and zeros for us on the scoreboard, and gave us the confidence to really keep battling back. That was a tough spot for him to come into, and he did an awesome job."

After adding in a run to initially cut Minford's lead to a 4-1 tally in the bottom of the third inning on an Easton Large sac fly RBI, South Webster — trailing 6-1 after the two-RBI double by Lauder — did additional damage in the fourth.

Following a leadoff single to right field by catcher Sam Murphy, Brayden Barnard walked to put runners on first and second with nobody out. Then, with two gone, McClintic came through with a two-RBI single to center field, scoring Brayden Barnard and courtesy runner Jaheim Froe to cut the Minford lead to 6-3 after four complete.

Keeping the pressure on, the Jeeps attempted to turn up the dial further in the top of the sixth. Murphy again got things going after being hit by a pitch, while Brayden Barnard singled back up the middle of the diamond and Hunter Barnard was also hit by a ball, loading the bases with nobody out.

But as they have done throughout the vast majority of the 2026 season, Minford made the plays it needed to.

On a 1-1 count, a groundball to third led to a 5-2 forceout at home plate. This was then followed by the biggest play of the game, where a hard hit baseball by McClintic was fielded on one hop by Lauder at shortstop.

Recognizing the situation and understanding McClintic's speed down the line, Lauder, instead of making the slower flip to second baseman Colt Donahoe, took it upon himself to sprint to the second base bag, then fired to Frazie at first base for the inning-ending double play.

"Max making the double play with the bases loaded was huge," Daniels said. "That was really a big confidence-booster for us. Big credit to Ty Borland and (Minford reliever) Mason Bradley for coming in and shutting them down. They made the pitches when they needed to make them, and we had the fielding behind them that made the plays when they needed to make them as well."

"This is the best lineup we've had one-through-nine," McClintic said. "It never gets to a spot in the order where we feel like we can't get something going, even with two outs and nobody on. We just got productive at-bats all up and down the lineup. We just didn't capitalize on a couple of things early in the game. We had guys on second and third with one out in the inning and couldn't get anybody in. We had bases loaded one time and favorable counts where we had one out. We did a great job working their pitchers. We just weren't able to cash in on those opportunities that we had. We're going to play South Webster baseball, and we're going to do the little things, and if we do the little things, then we're going to win most of the time. We just left a couple of those on the field (on Friday) early on."

Still trailing 6-3 and down to its final out, South Webster attempted to get a two-out rally going as a two-out walk by Jacob McGraw and a passed ball allowed Pierce Kreischer to drive in McGraw with his RBI single to left, cutting the Minford lead to a 6-4 margin. But the offensive production was simply too late as Bradley was able to induce an innocent three-unassisted groundout to end the game following Kreischer's base knock.

"It seems like it's a dogfight every year with South Webster," Daniels said. "You've got to play seven innings against those guys. They're a well-coached team. (Ryan) McClintic's got them playing good baseball year-in and year-out, so it's always a good win when you can beat Webster."

With the victory and at least a share of the SOC III Championship in hand, Minford now turns its focus onto preparing for postseason play. The Falcons will take on Chillicothe Southeastern Monday in Minford, the first of a four-game nonconference stretch with three of those affairs being played at the Red Monster.

"It's great to grab at least a share of the conference title," Daniels said. "That's something we don't take lightly. However, we're out to win every game. The bigger picture is going into the postseason and making a deep tournament run."

As for South Webster (11-7, 4-5 SOC III), its five-game winning streak may have come to an end, but its progression and the high-level situations the Jeeps faced on Friday most certainly did not. South Webster has a chance to get a new streak started Monday when the Jeeps play Logan Elm.

"We've been doing the little things as of late," McClintic said. "This conference is terrific and we enjoy the competition we get from it. I would much rather play a competitive game every night of the week than not play a strong schedule. We look at playing in this league as a blessing. There's a lot of good teams. Pretty much everybody has a chance at making a long tournament run. I love playing games like these. Like I've said before, I wish we could play three or four games against every team in the league, because it's just good baseball."

May 9—Moscow's Jasmine Carr crossed the finish line after anchoring the victorious 1,600-meter relay and immediately collapsed on the turf next to the field. She proceeded to be surrounded by her teammates, cheering loudly and stretching her out, nearly piling on top of her.

With the win in the final race of the meet, the Bears stamped their girls team title at the District 1-2 5A Championships track and field meet at the end of Day 2 on Friday at Lewiston High School.

That 1,600 relay team of Addie Lassen, Izzabel Fender, Ashlyn Fakhouri and Carr set the Moscow school record with a time of 4 minutes, 1.52 seconds in the process.

Carr also set three other school records on the day — one with the 400 relay in 48.08, another in the 100 in 12.03, and the final in the 200 in 24.84.

The junior said she felt great about the 200 the most because she has been trying to break the 25-second mark for more than a year and finally accomplished it.

But to be with this specific team and to do well with this Bears group is special to her.

"I just love being here with my friends," Carr said. "We have such a good group and I really love them all. So it was just really great. And it's sad because most of them are seniors, so this is our last year together. So it was really just special."

The Moscow girls repeated as the district champions with a total of 97.5 points. The Lewiston girls came in fourth with 51.5 points.

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On the boys side, Moscow came in second at 80.67 points and Lewiston came in third with 68.33 points.

Carr, Nuhn and the Moscow girls shine

Carr was a part of four school records on Friday. During the 1,600 relay, she said she pushed herself to go faster than she had before.

"I remember I passed Lakeland and Lewiston, and that felt good, and (Moscow coach Phil Helbling) was telling me the last 100 is my hardest part," Carr said. "He's always telling me to turn over (and) act like I'm running a 100, and I think that just helped. ... I ran a split of 57 (seconds), so that was really cool. I've never done that before."

Also on Day 2, Moscow's Mattea Nuhn set a school record in the 300 hurdles with a time of 44.02. Nuhn won the 300 hurdles by more than two seconds. She also won the 100 hurdles with a time of 14.14.

On Day 1, she set the long jump record with a distance of 19 feet, 1/2 inches.

"I loved long jump. Me and my long jump coach are like best friends, and she's the best. So finally, hitting that 19 feet is super exciting, and something I'll remember for a long time," Nuhn said. "And also just getting one final district (title). We have a lot of girls seniors on the team, so getting one final up north meet with them is just very special."

She also tied the school record in the high jump with a height of 5-6 on Day 1, matching her own personal record she shared with Moscow legends Andrea Lloyd (1982) and Heather Owen (1992).

On racing in the hurdles, Nuhn said she is focused on trying to beat herself rather than on her opponents.

"I'm not focused on (winning), or it's not like a conscious moment," Nuhn said. "I'm worried about racing the clock because, like, no matter who's around you, it can always be competitive. You're racing yourself. ... Just continuing to PR throughout the season and just know that trusting my coaches and their practice plan is going really well, and then being able to trust myself that no matter who's running next to me, I can still impress myself."

In addition, Cora Crawford of Moscow won the 3,200 by nearly 10 seconds with a time of 12:14.45 and won the 1,600 meters on Day 1 in 5:17.02.

Moscow's Saskia Hohenlohe took gold and set the school record in the triple jump on Day 1 with a distance of 36-8, surpassing Jami Patten's 35-11 1/4 leap from the 2003 4A State Meet.

Boys standouts

Moscow's Caleb Heywood holds the best state mark in the 200 in 21.43 seconds.

During the championships, he took second in the 100 with a time of 10.72 and placed first in the 200 with a time of 21.56.

He said he "felt a little off today" and mentioned that due to the longer wait of the schedule he felt like he was "pretty cool" by the time he ran the 100.

However, Heywood made State for both events and said that's not where he wants to stop.

"It feels good," Heywood said. "I mean, this is my third time doing it. I like to be humble, but it's just like, it's kind of a thing now. Like, I'm more prepared for it than I was. I don't want to just get complacent with just making it, I want to go and place at State, I want to go win."

Moscow's Connor Horne won the 400 in 49.79.

The Bears' boys 800 relay team of Owen Lassen, Horne, George Stott, and Heywood won in 1:27.31, and the 1,600 relay team of Horne, Trenton Stypa, John Dyer and Heywood won with a time of 3:20.70.

Lewiston's 1,600 relay team of Renin Jackson, Bryce Sifers, Hunter Edelen and D.J. Wilkerson set a school record and came in second with a time of 3:22.84.

Sifers won the 300 hurdles with a personal record time of 40.50.

Sifers said that right after the first hurdle he felt like he had a good lead, and used his peripheral vision to see if anyone had caught up in the inside or outside lanes, and saw nobody and felt like he was in good position.

"It boosts my confidence a lot, and it makes me proud of myself, because my family's really proud of me and all my family has done track," Sifers said. "My brother was a state champion, and just seeing myself as a district champ, it just makes me motivated for State."

Trip Eckert of Lewiston won the 110 hurdles in 15.20.

On Day 1, the Bengals' Gabe Kessinger took gold in the discus with a throw of 153-9.

Also on Day 1, Moscow's Cameron Fairbanks won the pole vault at 13-6 and Lewiston's Reid Krahn won the long jump with a distance of 21-9 1/2.

Looking forward to State

The top-two finishers from each event go to State, while there are three at-large bids for each event.

Helbling mentioned he was "soaking in" the elite competition at this meet.

"I mean, what an experience," the Moscow coach said. "Quite honestly, as we're sitting here on Day 2, I can't help myself to think about just how competitive these two days have been, and how strong the north is, especially the 5A. I mean, we saw a ton of state-caliber talent, top-end state-caliber talent right here in this meet."

Helbling said that he is "extremely proud" of his team, but is an ultra-focused coach who is all about business and pushing his athletes to be successful. He said he will always be supportive and positive, but is ready to push his athletes to become state champions.

"But obviously I am already thinking ahead," Helbling said. "I'm thinking about what we need to do to get ourselves that much better, refining the little details. So I'm extremely proud, but the work's not done. And that's, that's what's important. We've got bigger things on our mind."

BOYS

Team scores — 1. Sandpoint 101; 2. Moscow 80.67; 3. Lewiston 68.33; 4. Lakeland 38.

100 — 1. Maverick Gomez, Sand, 10.69; 2. Caleb Heywood, Mos, 10.72; 3. Trey Blumenberg, Sand, 10.98.

200 — 1. Heywood, Mos, 21.56; 2. Gomez, Sand, 21.60; 3. Connor Horne, Mos, 22.27.

400 — 1. Horne, Mos, 49.79; 2. Knox Williams, Sand, 49.95; 3. Jaron Yager, Lak, 50.89.

800 — 1. Jack Lovin, Sand, 1:58.63; 2. John Dyer, Mos, 1:58.91; 3. Trenton Stypa, Mos, 1:59.11.

1,600 — 1. Paul Kent, Sand, 4:27.11; 2. Kai Budensiek, San, 4:27.36; 3. Orion McClory, Mos, 4:29.80.

3,200 — 1. Kent, Sand, 9:40.07; 2. Budensiek, Sand, 9:41.95; 3. McClory, Mos, 9:43.59.

110 hurdles — 1. Trip Eckert, Lew, 15.20; 2. Kelton Vasile, Sand, 16.44; 3. Mark Perryman, Mos, 17.17.

300 hurdles — 1. Bryce Sifers, Lew, 40.50; 2. Renin Jackson, Lew, 41.33; 3. Levi Abbott, Lak, 43.38.

400 relay — 1. Sandpoint (Blumenberg, Gomez, Kamren Ziarnick, Isaac Schmit), 41.82; 2. Lewiston, 42.66; 3. Lakeland 42.97.

800 relay — 1. Moscow (Owen Lassen, Connor Horne, George Stott, Caleb Heywood), 1:27.31; 2. Sandpoint, 1:27.35; 3. Lewiston, 1:28.62.

1,600 relay — 1. Moscow (Horne, Trenton Stypa, John Dyer, Heywood), 3:20.70; 2. Lewiston, 3:22.84; 3. Lakeland, 3:27.09.

SMR 1,600 — 1. Lakeland (Sean Burke, Kayden Karle, Jaron Yager, Ryan Engelbrecht), 3:36.05; 2. Moscow, 3:39.32; 3. Sandpoint, 3:56.46.

Shot put — 1. Brayden Carrel, Lak., 52-10; 2. Parker Bagley, Lew, 50-8; 3. Riley Bontrager, Mos., 47-10.

Discus — Gabriel Kessinger, Lew, 153-9; 2. Bagley, Lew, 144-1; 3. Porter, Sand, 143-1.

Javelin — 1. Hayden Peterson, Sand, 150-2; 2. Peyton Hillman, Lak, 144-4; 3. Cairn Rookey, Sand, 137-10.

High jump — 1. Caleb Thomlinson, Sand, 5-10; 2. Reid Krahn, Lew, 5-10; 3. Curtis Carr, Mos, 5-8.

Pole vault — 1. Cameron Fairbanks, Mos, 13-6; 2. Wyatt Neal, Sand, 13-6; 3. Noah Hoger, Mos, 11-0.

Long jump — 1. Krahn, Lew, 21-9 1/2; 2. Carr, Mos, 21-4 1/2; 3. Dawson Bernatz, Lew, 20-10.

Triple jump — 1. Clayton Ernst, Sand, 43-1/2; 2. Levi Abbott, Lak, 41-8 1/2; 3. Bryant Scruggs, Mos, 41-6.

GIRLS

Team scores — 1. Moscow 97.5; 2. Lakeland 85; 3. Sandpoint 54; 4. Lewiston 51.5.

100 — 1. Jasmine Carr, Mos, 12.03; 2. Elia Howard, Sand, 12.29; 3. Ashlyn Karle, Lak, 12.36.

200 — 1. Carr, Mos, 24.84; 2. Howard, Sand, 25.92; 3. Sapphire Ruelle, Lak, 25.96.

400 — 1. Tessa Lovell, Lak, 1:00.10; 2. Mia Mellinger, Lew, 1:00.48; 3. Trinity Bonebrake, Lew, 1:00.86.

800 — 1. Elizabeth Storms, Sand, 2:18.13; 2. Addisyn Storm, Lew, 2:20.44; 3. Ruthie Laughridge, Sand, 2:23.47.

1,600 — 1. Cora Crawford, Mos, 5:17.02; 2 Elizabeth Storms, Sand, 5:23.15; 3. Ruthie Laughridge, Sand, 5:23.48.

3,200 — 1. Crawford, Mos, 12:14.45; 2. Delaney Barron, Sand, 12:24.82; 3. Oliva Meredith, Lak, 12:31.43.

100 hurdles — 1. Mattea Nuhn, Mos, 14.14; 2. Elia Howard, Sand, 14.88; 3. Jessa Skinner, Mos, 15.34.

300 hurdles — 1. Nuhn, Mos, 44.02; 2. Karstyn Kiefer, Lak, 46.96; 3. Ani Vick, Sand, 48.36.

400 relay — 1. Lakeland (Ashlyn Karle, Casey Foster, Kiefer, Ruelle), 48.02; 2. Moscow, 48.08; 3. Lewiston, 52.33.

800 relay — 1. Lakeland (Ashlyn Karle, Casey Foster, Ruby Kindy, Tessa Lovell), 1:44.13; 2. Moscow, 1:44.94; 3. Lewiston, 1:47.75.

1,600 relay — 1. Moscow (Addie Lassen, Izzabel Fender, Ashlyn Fakhouri, Carr), 4:01.52; 2. Lakeland, 4:02.69; 3. Lewiston, 4:05.24.

SMR 800 — 1. Lakeland (Ashlyn Karle, Casey Foster, Tessa Lovell, Karstyn Kiefer), 1:49.05; 2. Moscow, 1:51.97; 3. Lewiston, 1:54.03.

Shot put — 1. Jackie Robbins, Lak, 40-8; 2. Emmy Roberts, Lew, 37-9; 3. Suzie Huff, Lew, 32-2.

Discus — 1. Robbins, Lak, 128-4; 2. Roberts, Lew, 114-9; 3. Rylee Crocker, Lak, 113-7.

Javelin — 1. Anabella Palaniuk, Lak, 104-6; 2. Jordyn Tomco, Sand, 98-9; 3. Kessinger, Lew, 89-4.

High jump — 1. Mattea Nuhn, Mos, 5-6; 2. Jasmin Laing, Sand, 5-2; 3. Aliah Winterbottom, Lew, 5-0.

Pole vault — 1. Alyssa Hinkle, Lak, 10-0; 2. Izzy Davidson, Sand, 10-0; 3. Reesa Saxe, Lak, 9-6.

Long jump — 1. Nuhn, Mos, 19-1/2; 2. Skinner, Mos, 16-11 1/2; 3. Winterbottom, Lew, 16-2 1/2.

Triple jump — 1. Saskia Hohenlohe, Mos, 36-8; 2. Ella Julye, Mos, 35-7; 3. Skinner, Mos, 34-6 1/4

Junt can be reached at 208-848-2258, tjunt@lmtribune.com or on X @TrevorJunt.

Minnesota United vs. Austin FC

When: 6 p.m. Sunday
Where: Allianz Field
Stream: Apple TV
Radio: KSTP-AM, 1500
Weather: 60 degrees, sunny, 12 mph south wind

Form: MNUFC (6-3-2, 20 points) ended a two-game winless lull with a 3-2 win at Columbus last Saturday. After a seven-match skid without a victory, Austin (3-4-4, 13 points) has won two straight by identical 2-0 score lines over Houston and St. Louis in the last two weeks.

Fact: The Loons trailed the Crew 2-0 on the road after 56 minutes but staked the club’s first multi-goal comeback since joining MLS in 2017.

Recent matchup: Minnesota also came back to draw Austin 2-2 in the season opener on Feb. 22. The teams traded set-piece goals from Brandon Hines-Ike and Morris Duggan in the first half and crosses-to-back-post finishes in the second stanza. Kelvin Yeboah’s header in the 90th minute tied it up.

Check-in: Former Loons striker Christian Ramirez had a goal and assist in the victory over St. Louis last weekend. Now on his sixth MLS team, “Superman” has four goal contributions in 459 minutes played in 2026.

Storyline: Loons left wingback Anthony Markanich scored his third goal of the season last week, adding to the nine he tallied in MLS last season. Meanwhile, his twin brother Nick Markanich joined Houston Dynamo from Castellon in La Liga 2 in Spain and has yet to score in MLS.

Anthony said he doesn’t like to talk about himself. “I’d rather have other people talk about me,” he said. But Ant will bring up his goals to his sibling.

“We always talk,” Anthony told reporters this week. “He says he gets jealous because I’m scoring and he’s not. He’ll get there.”

Nick scored 28 goals for Charleston in the USL Championship in 2024 before a move abroad. He has played only 38 minutes for Dynamo this season.

Absences: Bongi Hlongwane (personal issue), Peter Stroud (quad), Carlos Harvey (lower body) and Julian Gressel (toe) are out.

View: James Rodriguez’ short stint in Minnesota has been perpetually peculiar. In my 10 years covering the club, only Emanuel Reynoso has had more drama.

While Reynoso was getting in trouble, being insubordinate and dealing with suspensions, Rodriguez’s tenure has been entirely more benign. But both are enigmas.

The latest with Rodriguez is how he is expected to leave the team next week to join the Colombian national team for its training camp for the FIFA World Cup. His exit comes despite MNUFC having two more games before the entire MLS breaks for the World Cup.

The 34-year-old superstar is coming off a procedure that sidelined him for the Crew game, but coach Cameron Knowles said he trained fully on Saturday and is available for selection.

Yet, given all the twists and turns since he joined MNUFC in February, it would not be surprising if he didn’t play again for the Loons. Little can be ruled out at this point.

Update: While James is set to leave the Loons early, Michael Boxall (New Zealand) is expected to remain with the club until after their final match — May 23 vs. Salt Lake. Then he will join his national team for a camp in Miami. Harvey (Panama) is also expected to partake in the World Cup.

Scouting report: When it comes to set pieces, Knowles called Austin “probably one of the best in the league at this moment.” Of Verde’s 16 goals this season, eight have come on set plays.

Stats: Austin has a minus-3 goal differential but the second-worst expected-goals difference in the league at minus-11.7, meaning they are outperforming the analytic. Minnesota has a minus-2 goal differential, with a 0.5 xG difference.

Prediction: Austin has dug itself out of its long slump, but they are one of only two MLS sides still winless on the road. Minnesota keeps them 0-fer with a 2-1 victory.

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May 9—ROCHESTER — The Lourdes baseball team started a new tradition this year, going out to eat breakfast together at the Canadian Honker on Saturday mornings before games.

It was senior outfielder/pitcher Easton Gasner's idea and his teammates were on board immediately.

"It was really nice the first time we did it," said senior centerfielder Nolan Rolih, who will play Division I college baseball at the University of Minnesota in 2027. "We had a really cold game later that day, but the game just didn't feel as cold after having an hour or two with your boys at breakfast. It just felt nice. So we kept doing."

Gasner, one of Lourdes' captains, has been an asset to the Eagles on and off the field for a few years. He continues to reach higher after making the 2025 Post Bulletin All-Area Baseball Team as a junior for what Lourdes head coach Dave Jenson described as his "breakout" season.

He is batting .333 through 14 games with two doubles, 10 RBIs, seven runs scored and is 3-for-3 on stolen-base attempts. On the mound, Gasner holds a 3-2 record and a 2.26 ERA across 31 innings pitched. He has limited opponents to 16 runs — 10 earned — and just three walks, with 28 strikeouts.

Gasner's journey on the diamond began with T-ball when he was 4 years old. He eventually transitioned to the Rochester Youth Baseball Association, competing there until his freshman year, when he earned a spot on the varsity roster.

He's grown a lot since that first varsity season at age 14.

"I think I've learned to hit the ball a little better," Gasner said. "Credit to the coaching staff for that one."

Gasner won't play baseball in college, but plans to attend Creighton University to study neuroscience on a pre-med track. It's a career path he's been interested in for a while, growing up with a nurse for a mom. Even though he won't be continuing his playing career at the next level, Gasner said if a spot opens up to be a manager for the baseball team, he would be interested.

He keeps in touch with 2025 Lourdes graduate and PB Baseball All-Area Player of the Year Nick Bowron, who is a freshman catcher for the Bluejays. Gasner said Bowron is among some of his biggest baseball influences.

"I think past seniors, especially Nick and then Isaac Wenszell, who graduated two years ago," Gasner said. "I really look up to those guys to keep working hard and being my best every day."

It's safe to say baseball has been a true passion for Gasner for nearly 15 years. As he finishes up his senior season, he reflected on his favorite part of the sport.

"Being around the guys, for sure," Gasner said. "I won't remember all the wins and losses, but everything we do together will stick with me."

Rolih grew up playing with some of his teammates, including Gasner.

"We've been playing the guy since we were eight," Rolih said. "So it's pretty special to watch these guys grow up and continue to excel in the sport. And it's sad (to be graduating), but it's also a happy ending. We all get to play the game we love together for one last time. And it's a little bit sad at the same time, knowing that I'll never get to play with some of these guys again."

Jenson said this year's group of seniors is the team's strength as the Eagles hold an 8-6 overall record (5-3 Hiawatha Valley League), sitting just behind Cannon Falls and Kasson-Mantorville in HVL standings.

"They work hard together, they have fun being together, they have fun at practice," Jenson said. "We call ourselves brothers because we want to make sure that we hold each other accountable and that we're enjoying each other's successes and then also helping each other if there's something that we need to learn from.

"Or in those situations where things get hard, whether it's in baseball or in life somewhere else. I want to help them know that there's someone there pulling for them, and so I'm really proud of the culture that these seniors have helped develop and promulgate as we move forward."

With Section 1, Class 2A playoffs set to begin Wednesday, May 20, the Eagles are powering through the home stretch of the regular season, which has included playing five games in six days from May 4-9.

"Last year ... we only had four seniors, and so a lot of games, there were three seniors in the lineup last year, so there were a lot of opportunities for guys this year to grow and improve," Jenson said. "All of our six seniors this year had starting roles last year as well. So they've contributed a lot to the success of the program, winning multiple playoff games sophomore year, junior year and we'll see senior year how it goes."

Timberwolves coach Chris Finch wanted to call a timeout with five minutes to play Friday and the Wolves trailing Game 3 against San Atnonio by two.

Finch felt official Tony Brothers waited three ticks too long to grant the request and, per his account, told Brothers “I want my three seconds back.”

“Because he clearly heard me. He looked my way, ignored me, went on with the play, and then gave me it. It almost cost us the turnover,” Finch said. “And then he lost it.”

“Lost it” is a subjective term, but Finch then claims he went to ask Brothers where the ball would be inbounded from after the timeout, at which point Brothers turned and took a couple steps toward Finch before shouting in his direction.

“So, completely unprofessional behavior by him,” Finch said.

It is rare for an NBA official to get into a shouting match with a player or coach. But Finch’s account is only one side of the story. And the Timberwolves’ coach is possibly the biggest complainer — both during the game and after — re: officials.

Nearly every time the refs make a trip down the floor, Finch has something to say in their ear. That likely can be grating. Still, does that give the refs justification to bark back? Or should they merely “take” the verbal scolding from players and coaches with little to no reaction?

Certainly, refs never want to become a major storyline in the game. The 61-year-old Brothers crossed that threshold Friday. Whether any discip

“It’s competition at the highest level. We want to win, Finchy want to win. Tony Brothers is Tony Brothers,” Wolves guard Anthony Edwards said. “We all love him, so it’s all good.

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ARLINGTON, Texas — It was an ordinary day in an extraordinary run for the Chicago Cubs.

Another 10-game winning streak was in the books Friday after a 7-1 win over the Texas Rangers before 32,394 at Globe Life Field, the second such run of the season for a Cubs team that continues to defy baseball norms.

Ben Brown threw four hitless innings in his first start for the injured Matthew Boyd, and Javier Assad notched the win with 3 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing one hit. Pete Crow-Armstrong made the Rangers’ “Elvis Cam” after catching a sinking liner in center and waved to Ian Happ as he lay on the grass.

3 numbers that stand out in the Chicago Cubs’ 9-game winning streak: ‘It’s pretty special’

And Nico Hoerner did another “Nico thing,” winding up on second when the Rangers middle infielders collided on a grounder up the middle and failed to notice he hadn’t stopped running.

Don’t try to understand it. Just let the wave wash over you and enjoy.

It’s crazy to think this was the first Cubs team since 1935 with a pair of 10-game winning streaks, right?

“Not necessarily,” said Seiya Suzuki, whose two-run home run in the fourth inning sparked the offense early. “We’re just playing our brand of baseball and just weighting the wins. Hopefully we just keep stacking them up.”

The Cubs are celebrating their 150th birthday this season, and according to MLB stats czar Sarah Langs, they’ve had six other seasons with multiple 10-plus-game winning streaks: 1880, 1885, 1886, 1906, 1901 and, as mentioned, 1935. In 1906, they had four double-digit winning streaks in a 116-win season but wound up losing to the White Sox team known as the “Hitless Wonders” in the only all-Chicago World Series.

“Obviously incredible,” Hoerner said of the streak. “It’s crazy. Baseball is a game full of a ridiculous amount of stats and things to look up. Any time you have to go that far back, it’s obviously a good sign, especially on a positive like that.

“Just going to keep it rolling.”

The Cubs already were the first major-league team with multiple nine-plus-game winning streaks since the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers, who were on their way to their first World Series title.

Oh, and there are still three more weeks in May.

“It gives you goosebumps,” Brown said. “It’s special to be part of. It’s special to witness, special to watch.”

The Cubs have won 20 of their last 23 games, improving to an MLB-best 27-12.

They led 4-1 in the seventh Friday when Hoerner led off with a grounder that shortstop Corey Seager botched while running into Justin Foscue, who was charged with the error. The ball trickled behind second, and Hoerner kept going, hustling his way to second.

“That’s Nico,” manager Craig Counsell said. “If there is a play maybe that they show about Nico’s career, they should show that play, because that’s just who he is. That was a great play.”

Hoerner said it was mostly a matter of instinct and something the Cubs are always looking to do at any moment.

“There was not really any thinking or communication on things like that (while) baserunning,” he said. “Always looking to take extra bases and capitalize on opportunities. Our team plays the game pretty hard and always looks for extra bases. … There are always opportunities to seize.”

Seizing the opportunity has been a recurring theme of this year’s Cubs. The pitching staff has been folded, spindled and mutilated but keeps on trucking. Brown started Friday on a bullpen day, knowing he wouldn’t last long but treasuring the opportunity.

Brown said he was able to go out and “play free” and with “nothing to lose.” He lowered his ERA to 1.82 with his first scoreless start since a six-inning stint on May 2, 2025, in Milwaukee. His value as a late-inning leverage guy had to be sacrificed due to the Cubs’ need for a starter after Boyd underwent left meniscus surgery that will sideline him for about six weeks.

“We couldn’t have asked for anything more,” Counsell said of Brown.

Counsell wouldn’t guarantee Brown a start in Atlanta next week but said he’d “be involved in it somehow.” Hard to believe he wouldn’t give him another shot.

Last year the Cubs went into September without losing more than three straight games until a five-game skid from Sept. 19-24. This year they won 10 straight, suffered a three-game losing streak on April 25-27 in Los Angeles and San Diego and now have whipped off 10 straight wins again.

“Look, I think this is a group that’s collectively playing at a high level,” Counsell said. “From a position-player standpoint I think we’re very well-rounded, and that leads to consistency. It doesn’t lead to winning streaks, but it leads to (the fact) you don’t go in long ruts because we have the ability to beat you in a number of different ways offensively, so it’s not just the home run, it’s not just the speed or something like that.

“And we’ve pitched well. If you go back to the starters, we’re not well everywhere pitching, but the starters getting us outs at the start of the game has been a really big part of this thing. All the bullpen chaos and the name-switching and injuries and only one off day really in this whole stretch … the starters getting deep into games is what really sets that up to be possible to happen, in my eyes. And the defense helps the starters so much in that regard too.”

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The Cubs on Friday activated Ethan Roberts, who suffered a freak injury to his right middle finger while working out in mid-April, and sent Gavin Hollowell down to Triple-A Iowa. Roberts pitched a scoreless ninth.

Lefty Caleb Thielbar threw a bullpen Friday and is closer to returning from his left hamstring strain, though he’ll probably go on a minor-league rehab stint in a week. Hunter Harvey had a setback while rehabbing a right triceps injury and will be shut down for another month.

The bullpen chaos has only added to the wild ride, with many different players playing a role.

“People stepping up in roles they maybe weren’t expected to,” Hoerner said, adding, “you’d think there would be two or three stars” carrying the group in two streaks like this.

“We’re fortunate to have a group that has star talent,” he said. “But every part of the roster has been huge for us in big moments in parts of these streaks. And that’s what it takes for a whole season and beyond.”

Photos from the Chicago White Sox’s 12-8 loss to the Seattle Mariners on May 8, 2026, at Rate Field.

NEW YORK — The Connecticut Sun hoped this season would be different from its dismal record in 2025, but the team’s performance in its 2026 opener against the New York Liberty felt painfully familiar.

The Sun never had a chance after an 8-0 run by New York forced Sun coach Rachid Meziane to burn a timeout barely two minutes into the game, and the brief reset did nothing to slow the Liberty’s momentum fueled by the electric energy of a packed crowd at Barclays Center. Connecticut was down 20 points before the end of the first quarter, and New York never looked back in its 106-75 blowout win.

UConn legend Breanna Stewart defended her home court in dominant fashion, leading the Liberty with 31 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks in the blowout victory. French guard Marine Johannes was equally unstoppable, knocking down five 3-pointers to finish with 17 points on top of five rebounds, three assists and three steals.

Forward Diamond Miller was one of the few bright spots for the Sun, leading the team with 16 points, shooting 6-for-16 from the field. Superstar center Brittney Griner struggled to get going against the Liberty’s loaded frontcourt, finishing with 13 points and six rebounds in her Connecticut debut.

The Sun’s inexperience was at the root of its disastrous first-quarter showing, its young players visibly out of sorts against a New York roster loaded with perennial All-Stars and WNBA champions. Connecticut gave up 10 points off of five turnovers in the opening quarter, and they were a step behind the Liberty at every turn getting outscored 12-0 on fast-break opportunities.

Meziane threw his trio of rookies into the deep end against New York, running a lineup with all three players on the court for extended stretches in the first quarter. Guards Charlisse Leger-Walker and Gianna Kneepkens both experienced their ‘Welcome to the league’ moments before halftime.

Leger-Walker’s came in the first quarter when she went up for a layup that never had a chance of making it to the rim before 6-foot-6 former MVP Jonquel Jones blocked it from behind. Kneepkens struggled with the Liberty’s pace on the defensive end and wound up seated on the court after a crossover move by All-Star Betnijah Laney-Hamilton.

Kneepkens had a resilient response on the offensive end, bringing down an offensive rebound and getting the ball out to point guard Hailey Van Lith, who fed it back to her in the corner for her first official points as a WNBA player on a 3-pointer. It was the first outside shot the Sun made in the game after beginning 0-for-5.

Van Lith, picked up by the Sun barely 48 hours ago after getting waived during training camp by the Chicago Sky, had a solid showing in her first appearance. The second-year guard was the first player to hit multiple field goals when she knocked down a 3-pointer in the second quarter, and she ended with nine points shooting 4-for-7 plus four assists and a steal.

The Sun managed to keep pace with New York in the second quarter, only getting outscored by six points after trailing by 23 at the end of the first. But a brutal shooting performance kept them from making a dent in the Liberty lead, especially as they struggled to get stops on the defensive end. Connecticut hit just 38% from the field in the first half to New York’s 56%, and it was 2-for-9 from beyond the arc.

The Sun came into the third quarter with a burst of energy sparked by back-to-back buckets from Miller. Connecticut was leading New York 13-4 through the first four minutes of the quarter, but Stewart killed the momentum with a vicious block from behind as Miller went up for a fast-break layup off of a steal. Johannes then drilled a transition 3-pointer that got the home crowd fired up, though the Sun still managed to outscore the Liberty 23-21 in the third.

Meziane once again went to rookie-heavy lineups for most of the fourth with most of New York’s starters off the court. Kneepkens finished with seven points and five boards to lead the team’s first-year players.

Former UConn standout Aubrey Griffin also made her WNBA debut hours after signing a hardship contract with the Liberty on Friday morning. The Ossining, N.Y., native played five minutes and scored her first points as a professional on a driving layup in the final 30 seconds of the game.

That’s how you start off the WNBA’s 30th season.

The Liberty, one of the league’s original franchises, kicked off the 2026 campaign with a 106-75 win over the Connecticut Sun at Barclays Center on Friday night.

The blowout victory officially began the Chris DeMarco era in Brooklyn — and it showcased everything you could ask for.

The game started with a historic first quarter in which the home team scored 36 points, which marked the franchise’s highest-scoring first quarter since 2023, per the team.

The highly-touted new offense was on full display — albeit against a rebuilding Sun team — with guards running pick-and-rolls that led to paint touches and open looks around the perimeter.

And Betnijah Laney-Hamilton welcomed Sun rookie Gianna Kneepkens to the WNBA with a crossover that floored the first-round pick. Laney-Hamilton, of course, drained the jumper with Kneepkens picking herself up off the hardwood.

Breanna Stewart led all scores with 31 points while recording 10 rebounds, two assists and three blocks. She became the second-fastest player (293 games) to reach 6,000 points after the performance.

Each Liberty starter — except Pauline Astier — scored in double figures Friday.

The performance was so dominant that Julie Vanloo, who inked a hardship contract and arrived in New York shortly after midnight, was on triple-double watch by halftime hours after meeting her new teammates.

She later finished with 12 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds.

The game was over after two periods with the Liberty up, 66-37.

The lone bright spots for Connecticut were jumbotron tributes for two ex-Liberty members: Kennedy Burke and head athletic trainer Terri Acosta. Burked logged four points, three rebounds and three assists in her Barclays Center return.

With the additions of Vanloo and New York native Aubrey Griffin, DeMarco had only nine players available.

He deployed a starting lineup of Astier, Marine Johannes, Jonquel Jones, Stewart and Laney-Hamilton. The combination dominated on both sides of the floor. They met not much resistance on offense with the French duo on ballhandling duties.

Johannes and Astier combined for 22 points and  seven assists on the night.

The Liberty players let off the gas pedal a bit after winning the first half 66-37. They got the slight edge in the last two periods,40-38.

But, it was all cosmetic at that point.

DeMarco and his team look to go 2-0 when they face the Washington Mystics on the road Sunday.

CHICAGO — Tony Medlin first mentioned it to new Chicago Bears center Logan Jones.

Medlin, the team’s director of equipment, is one of the first people who players meet in the locker room when the team acquires them. Medlin has been with the Bears since 1987 and he has been the head equipment manager since 1997.

When they started talking about jersey numbers, Medlin mentioned No. 54 as a potential option for Jones, the team’s second-round draft pick last month.

“I came in and Tony, the equipment guy, he was kind of joking about it with me and whatnot,” Jones said. “He’s been here such a long time. He’s like, ‘I think it would be really cool.’ ”

That number, of course, belonged to Hall of Fame linebacker Brian Urlacher from 2000-12. Nobody has worn No. 54 for the Bears since Urlacher retired after the 2012 season.

Jones is about to change that. The 57th selection in the draft, Jones is excited to carry on Urlacher’s legacy.

“To be able to do that, and to be able to honor his number and who he is — when you think of the Chicago Bears, that’s kind of who you think of,” Jones said. “To see that number out in practice and stuff, it just lets everybody think, ‘Oh, that’s Brian Urlacher’s number.’ ”

Urlacher’s No. 54 jersey remains one of the most popular jerseys in the stands for home games at Soldier Field. The five-time All-Pro and eight-time Pro Bowl linebacker became a first-ballot Hall of Famer in 2018, but his jersey number is not retired.

The Bears already have a league-record 14 numbers retired. The franchise hasn’t retired a number since Mike Ditka’s No. 89 during a halftime ceremony in 2013.

At the time, team Chairman George McCaskey said the Bears intended for Ditka’s number to be the team’s final jersey retirement.

With 14 numbers prohibited for current players, the Bears already struggle to find enough numbers when training camp begins with a 90-man roster. A few players each year have to share a number during camp. It’s less of a problem during the regular season, but 14 retired numbers still limits the options quite a bit.

So Urlacher’s 54 remains available, although nobody has worn it since his final season. The Bears did communicate with Urlacher before offering No. 54 as an option for Jones. Urlacher was on board with the rookie center using his old number. Jones and Urlacher have not met, but Jones said he hopes to meet him one day.

“It’s kind of supporting his memory and letting everybody see the legacy he left,” Jones said Friday during rookie minicamp. “So to be able to wear that number is really cool, and hopefully I get the chance to meet him one day too.”

Jones will be certain to see plenty of No. 54 jerseys in the stands when he plays his first game at Soldier Field later this year.

The Bears hope Jones can be a fixture of their offensive line for years to come. The franchise has been trying to find a consistent presence at the center position since longtime center Olin Kreutz last played for the team in 2010.

The Bears thought they had an answer when they signed veteran free agent Drew Dalman last year. But Dalman, a Pro Bowl selection in 2025, elected to step away from football and retire with two years remaining on his contract.

Thus, the Bears found themselves looking for a new center yet again. In a two-pronged approach, the team traded for veteran Garrett Bradbury in March and drafted Jones a month later.

The plan is for Bradbury to begin as the starter, but the expectation is that the job eventually will belong to Jones. It’s just a matter of when. The center position has a lot of responsibilities in coach Ben Johnson’s offense, and learning all of the protections will be a challenge for a rookie center.

On top of that, he’ll need to build a rapport with quarterback Caleb Williams, to whom he will be snapping the football.

“Time will tell,” Johnson said when asked when Jones will be ready. “The ball is in his court as far as I’m concerned. He understands that, just like with everyone else, we’re looking to create competition and consistency day after day and building trust, not only with Caleb and the other quarterbacks, but within that offensive line room and then obviously with the coaching staff. It’s just a matter of time to build trust.”

Added Jones: “It’s very challenging. You’ve got to go out and earn everything.”

If all goes to plan, Jones will be snapping to Williams for many years — and Jones will be doing it in the iconic No. 54 jersey.

May 8—A year ago, Valley baseball went 7-11 and missed the WPIAL playoffs.

That was last year.

This year, the Vikings (14-5) bounced back to have one of the most accomplished regular seasons in Class 4A.

Now, the Section 3 co-champion with Indiana (8-2) is ready to begin what it hopes is a deep postseason run.

Valley will have to wait until May 18 to begin that journey. The WPIAL baseball playoff committee Friday awarded the Vikings the No. 3 seed and a first-round bye. They await the winner of Monday's matchup between No. 7 West Mifflin and No. 10 Ambridge

"I don't think you can measure the excitement level of the guys right now," said coach Jaron Minford, who saw his Vikings hand Class 3A No. 4 Freeport its first loss of the season by a 4-2 score Thursday afternoon.

"They are through the roof with so much energy to get the playoffs started. After last year when they didn't make it, they had something to prove. They set out to prove they belonged, and it is basically the same team as last year, so you can see the hard work they put in to get better paid off. They had goals in mind, and the playoffs were one of them. They are excited to be there, but now the work begins to achieve more of their goals. It won't be easy, as there are so many great teams wanting the same thing as we do. But the guys will be ready."

Indiana (15-4) and Elizabeth Forward (14-5) are the top two seeds in the Class 4A bracket.

Knoch (12-8) is the No. 8 seed and will face No. 9 Blackhawk (11-7) at 6:30 p.m. Monday at Pullman Park in Butler. The Knights, the third-place place team in Section 3 behind Indiana and Valley, will attempt to get back in the win column after a challenging slate of games against Pine-Richland, Montour and Ellwood City to close out the regular season.

There again is depth in the Class 5A field with several teams hoping to make a run.

Plum is squarely in the mix after a 17-3 regular season and a tie for second in Section 1 with Latrobe at 9-3.

The Mustangs are the No. 5 seed and will play close to home at 4 p.m. Tuesday. They will face No. 12 Upper St. Clair (9-8) at Gateway.

"To be honest, seeding doesn't really matter," Plum coach Carl Vollmer said. "We learned that last year. We were the No. 2 seed and lost (1-0) to (No. 15) Mars. It really comes down to who has good starting pitching. It's a matter of who is good that day, who executes and who makes the fewest mistakes.

"I feel we had another really good season. (Class) 5A is extremely difficult. There are many teams who could win this. It is tough to say if any one team is a heavy favorite."

Despite a sweep at the hands of Section 3 runner-up West Allegheny earlier this week, Fox Chapel (12-8) locked up fourth in the standings and will enter the Class 5A playoffs as the No. 15 seed. It takes on Section 1 champ Penn-Trafford (15-5) at 4 p.m. Tuesday at Plum.

In Class 3A, the four section champions are the top four seeds. Avonworth, Seton-LaSalle and Ellwood City are seeded No. 1 through No. 3.

Freeport, the Section 3 champion, is the No. 4 seed and will open the playoffs at 4 p.m. Tuesday close to home against No. 13 Quaker Valley (9-10) at Deer Lakes.

"We set a goal to be in the top four for the playoffs, and we are able to check off that box," Yellowjackets coach Ed Carr said. "Our previous goals were a section title and a spot in the playoffs. Every team, when you get into the playoffs, is good. Whether you have the perfect path is irrelevant. You have to win the games at hand and beat the best if you want to win it all."

Freeport and QV have some familiarity having scrimmaged each other in March.

The Yellowjackets averaged nine runs a game in the regular season and were undefeated through 17 games before their loss to Valley.

"I felt it was a necessary game for us to play. We saw their No. 1," Carr said. "It was just a really good baseball game. It was a coin-flip game right to the very end, and we had some good chances."

Burrell, third in Section 3 behind Freeport and Mt. Pleasant, is the 11th seed and will face No. 6 Mohawk (13-5) at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Pullman Park in Butler.

Some of the Bucs' players know all about making a run as a double-digit seed. Burrell, the No. 14 seed in 2024, advanced to the semifinals and earned a spot in the PIAA playoffs.

Riverview came from the No. 6 seed last year to claim a spot in the PIAA Class 2A playoffs.

The Raiders hope for a similar run over the next few weeks to get past the semifinals and into the title game. They will get that chance starting as the No. 4 seed with a first-round matchup against No. 13 Frazier (9-9) at 6:30 p.m. Monday at West Mifflin.

The Raiders tied OLSH for second in Section 3 at 9-3 behind South Side. The teams split their section-finale series earlier this week.

Apollo-Ridge (11-8), fourth in Section 3, two games behind Riverview and OLSH, owns the No. 7 seed and will face No. 10 Shenango (11-8) at 7 p.m. Monday at Seneca Valley. The Vikings split a series with South Side in late March.

Leechburg (9-7) was yet another A-K Valley team to play winning baseball in the regular season, and the Blue Devils, runners-up to Western Beaver in Section 2-A, will enter the Class A playoffs as the No. 5 seed.

Leechburg, which lost a pair of close games to Burrell and Apollo-Ridge to cap the regular season, will face No. 12 Bishop Canevin (6-10) in the first round at 4 p.m. Monday at West Mifflin.

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

May 8—SALEM, S.D. — McCook Central/Montrose is on the rise in the Class B softball standings.

It's been a steady climb for the Fighting Cougars, who are now in their third year as a program and own the best win percentage of any Class B squad with an 11-2 start to the season.

MCM's progress was tested Thursday with a road game at Hanson, another top team in Class B. Though the Fighting Cougars fell behind 10-5 entering the sixth inning, a massive rally catapulted them to a 17-10 victory.

It was the first time in the program's brief history that MCM beat Hanson, having lost each of the first two seasons by a combined score of 27-8. The result also vaulted MCM into the No. 2 slot in the Class B seed-point standings, behind only perennial power Castlewood.

"This is an amazing win for us, and it gives us a lot of confidence going forward," said senior infielder Ashtyn DeKnikker. "This whole season so far has been very rewarding."

"Winning that game was huge for us, especially coming from behind," added coach Nick Morrison. "We're moving up (the standings), and that's a good thing. We've been trying to make the leap, so hopefully we can take this and go forward. It's a confidence builder, 100%."

MCM didn't field a team in 2022-23, the first year the South Dakota High School Activities Association offered softball under its purview. A year behind many of their peer programs to start, the Fighting Cougars went 6-9 during their first season in 2023-24, then improved to 13-10 last year.

Clearly making another huge stride, their only setbacks so far this season came by one run each, first against Baltic in the season opener and more recently against a Sioux Valley squad that is 13-3 and No. 4 in Class A.

"Coming from where we started two years ago to now is crazy," said senior pitcher/outfielder Zaidee Huls. "It just feels great."

Key to the program's rapid growth has been a high degree of roster continuity. MCM had four seniors during its first season as a program, but last year the Fighting Cougars didn't have a single one. All but one player from the 2025 varsity roster is back in the fold for 2026, including six upperclassmen. Those circumstances have created a strong bond between the Fighting Cougars, one that they feel shows up on game days.

"We're always having fun, but then when it's time to get ready and play, we're serious about it," Huls said. "We just need to keep with what we're doing right now, staying consistent and always being there for each other, even when we're down."

Leaning on their experience, the Fighting Cougars are solid in all phases. Offensively, they score 12.6 runs per game, the second-most in Class B. On Thursday against the Beavers, MCM racked up 16 hits during its 17-run outburst. Meanwhile, MCM limits opponents to a class-low 3.4 runs per game. Six times this season, the Fighting Cougars have allowed two or fewer runs.

"We just want to go out and play, have some fun and focus on helping each other out," Morrison said.

MCM's primary aim is to qualify for the Class B state tournament for the first time. Last season, they were the No. 12 seed and fell 4-1 to Florence/Henry in the SoDak 16. In line for a top seed this time around, the Fighting Cougars feel this team is the one poised to make that breakthrough.

"Our No. 1 goal is to go to state, and winning games one at a time is all it's about," DeKnikker said. "We know we can do it because of games like (Hanson). We know how to pick each other up and stay confident when we get down and face those tough situations."

With the regular season officially in the books, local baseball teams will turn their attention to the Schuylkill League Playoffs, which begin Sunday afternoon at Pine Grove’s Stump Stadium at Veterans Memorial Field.

Tri-Valley went 10-2 in league play to claim the Schuylkill League Division I regular season crown, and Marian Catholic posted a 12-2 league record to finish atop the Division II standings.

Sunday’s quarterfinal matchups are now set after some shuffling in the standings over the final days of the regular season.

Blue Mountain (16-4, 9-3) and Schuylkill Haven (12-8, 10-4) will go head-to-head at 4:30 p.m., followed by Williams Valley (13-7, 11-3) against Pottsville (13-6, 8-4) at 7 p.m.

Stump Stadium will host both the semifinals on Monday and the championship game on Wednesday.

Ticket prices for all playoff games are $6 for adults and senior citizens, and $3 for students.

Blue Mountain vs. Schuylkill Haven – Sunday, 4:30 p.m.

The Eagles won four of their final five games to secure second place in the Division I standings.

Schuylkill Haven won four of its last six games for a third-place finish in Division II.

Blue Mountain was led by a solid core of pitchers, which allowed just 42 runs all season and posted six shutout wins.

Evan Setlock is at the front of that pitching staff, while Riley Sebastian and Ryan Clemas have also eaten solid innings.

Schuylkill Haven, on the other hand, showed off its prowess at the plate this season, scoring nine or more runs in eight games. Alan Evans, Lane Yoder and Landon Trostle have all beefed up the middle of the Hurricanes lineup.

The Eagles defeated Pine Grove 4-3 to close out the regular season. Aiden Finn led the offense with two hits, while Brady Strause, Sonny Amato, Evan Setlock and Josh Hoover all had one hit. Sebastian got the win, working 4.2 innings, allowing two runs and striking out eight.

Schuylkill Haven fell to Shenandoah Valley 3-2 in the regular season finale. The Blue Devils scored two runs in the fifth inning for the comeback win.

Williams Valley vs. Pottsville – Sunday, 7 p.m.

Williams Valley finished the regular season on a three-game winning streak to place second in the Division II standings. Pottsville won three of its final four games to place third in Division I.

Pottsville is locked in on bringing out the bats this postseason as four Crimson Tide batters are batting over .300 with over 45 at bats.

Dominic Rynard leads the lineup with a .391 batting average and 27 hits, Landon Trout has a .324 batting average and has scored a team-high 18 runs, while Max Clews is hitting .321 and Brody Hess is currently batting .311

Williams Valley also trots out a lethal lineup, led by sophomore Fletcher Thompson who is currently batting .433 with 26 hits. He is joined by Cadyn Witmer, who is hitting .353 and John Rautzahn who is batting .290 with 18 hits.

Pottsville fell to Tri-Valley, 1-0, in extra innings in the regular season finale. Clews shut down the Bulldogs for 4.2 innings, allowing just two hits and striking out three.

The Vikings defeated Nativity 4-3 in the regular season finale. Thompson led the way with three hits.

Tri-Valley and Marian Catholic – No. 1 seeds, first round byes

Tri-Valley is on an eight-game winning streak heading into the postseason, locking up the top seed with the win over Pottsville.

Marian Catholic ended the regular season winning 10 consecutive games, including an 8-7 win against Minersville in the regular season finale.

The top-seeded teams received a bye to the semifinals on Monday.

Tri-Valley will take on the winner of the quarterfinal matchup between Williams Valley and Pottsville, and Marian Catholic will face Blue Mountain or Schuylkill Haven.

PLATTSBURGH — Diego Rios, Lucas Kowalowski or Cooper Holland, it doesn’t matter who’s on the mound for Plattsburgh High these days.

Holland became the latest Hornet to toss a gem when he recorded a no-hitter Thursday in a 13-1 win over Beekmantown in CVAC play.

Holland allowed no earned runs, walked five and struck out 13 in the win.

“Congratulations to Cooper on his achievement, very well deserved,” PHS coach Joe Tolosky said. “He seems to be really enjoying himself out there, and that’s what it’s all about.”

Holland and Diego Rios led the Hornets’ offense with two hits each while Ryan Colburn doubled.

Plattsburgh took charge immediately with eight runs in the top of the first inning.

“I was much happier with our approach at the plate today,” Tolosky said. “We seemed to be aggressive and had good plate discipline in the early going.”

The Hornets were the away team even though the contest was played in Plattsburgh because of field unavailability.

—

PHS 13, BCS 1

PHS 801 022 0 — 13 9 0

BCS 000 010 0 — 1 0 4

Holland and Colburn. Loughan, Hart (2), Adams (5), Kelley (6) and Porter. WP- Holland. LP- Loughan. 2B- Colburn (PHS).

PERU 19

NORTHEASTERN CLINTON 1

PERU — The Nighthawks continued to tear the cover off the ball with 20 hits in all.

Kayden Smith led Peru with four singles while Gabe Moore added a single, double and home run; Kalib Smith two singles and a triple; Jake Frechette three singles; Drew Engstrom three singles; Deacon Whitmarsh two singles; and Trenten Taylor two singles.

“We were able to come out and get the bat on the ball tonight against a good pitcher (Jacob Perkins),” Peru coach Brian Marino said. “I thought we worked the count and got ourselves into some favorable hitting situations.”

Winning pitcher Kayden Smith allowed three hits, struck out 12 and carried a no-hitter into the fifth inning.

“Kayden pitched very well tonight and mixed his pitches to keep their hitters from getting a solid barrel on the ball,” Marino said. “We played good defense behind him.”

—

PCS 19, NCCS 1

NCCS 100 000 0 — 1 3 1

PCS 320 248 x — 19 20 1

Perkins, Schad (5), Dragoon (6) and G. Lafountain. Kayden Smith and Moore. WP- Kayden Smith. LP-. J. Perkins. 2B- Moore (PCS). 3B- Kalib Smith (PCS), HR- Moore (PCS).

TICONDEROGA 8

MORIAH 1

PORT HENRY — Trevor Blanchard accounted for a single, double and triple for the Sentinels.

Jackson Dorsett added a single, double and three RBIs.

Winning pitcher Rowen Bechtold and reliever Owen teRiele combined on a two-hitter, with Bechtold striking out five and teRiele four.

Billy Orr, who pitched six innings in taking the loss, and Jason Larmore had the lone hits for the Vikings.

—

TCS 8, MCS 1

TCS 001 104 2 — 8 8 1

MCS 000 100 0 — 1 2 3

Bechtold, teRiele (5) and Frasier. Orr, Bobbie (7) and Kazlo. WP- Bechtold. LP- Orr. 2B- Blanchard (TCS). 3B- Blanchard (TCS), Dorsett (TCS).

MVAC

BOLTON 11

INDIAN LAKE/LONG LAKE 2

BOLTON — Jace Hubert finished with a single, two doubles and a triple in the Eagles’ win.

Jaxon Egloff added two singles and a double; Will Hens a single, double and triple; and Jacob French a single and triple for Bolton, which scored runs in every inning but the third.

Ryan Roemer was credited with the pitching win.

—

BCS 11, IL/LL 2

IL/LL 100 010 0 — 2 7 5

BCS 210 323 x — 11 17 0

Pecheco, Boya (5). R. Roemer, Figueroa (3), Corey (5). WP- R. Roemer. LP- Pacheco. 2B- Hubert (BCS) 2, Hens (BCS), Egloff (BCS), J. Roemer (BCS). Corey (BCS). 3B- Hubert (BCS), Hens (BCS), French (BCS).

Henry Kusiak was the best hitter on his team for five games with the Long Island Ducks to start his 2026 campaign. But when he got a call at 10 p.m. from his manager, Lew Ford, his first thought wasn’t necessarily optimistic.

“I thought he was going to tell me he traded me,” Kusiak said.

When asked about Kusiak’s thought, Ford laughed and said: “They’re not expecting a call from their manager, usually, on their off day and at night. But I had good news for him, and I knew he was going to be excited.”

That thought had entered the former MSSU star’s mind because the Ducks were loaded with middle infielders. In fact, Kusiak had played outfield to start the season. His position for his career with the Lions at Missouri Southern State University was shortstop.

He was thinking maybe Ford had to make a trade to go get a pitcher or something and clear out some of the second basemen/shortstops on the team.

“He didn’t know how else to tell me other than ‘you’ve been picked up by the (Minnesota) Twins,’” Kusiak said. “I think he was involved in some way, so, I’m thankful to him.”

Ford spoke about having a connection with the Minnesota Twins.

“The Twins have signed a couple of our guys. I do know their contact there, and they ask about guys here, including Henry,” he said. “It’s nice to have familiarity, but he’s the one who did what it took to get signed. I think our team and this league is good exposure for our guys.”

The Ducks are a part of the Atlantic League.

The 25-year-old now has joined the Twins’ Single-A ballclub in Fort Myers, Florida. That team is the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels. He played in his first game with them on Wednesday. The Mussels lost 4-3 and Kusiak went 0 for 5 at the plate. He played shortstop in the field.

The first day on the new job is not indicative of what Ford saw in a week’s time.

“He hit well. His bat is a big reason that the Twins had signed him. ... He did make some good defensive plays here for us in the short time. Ultimately, he was ripping the cover off the ball,” Ford said.

Kusiak mentioned he’d piqued the interest of some teams the season prior when he played for the Chicago Dogs. He was optimistic he might get a phone call this season if he got off to a good start. But when asked if he expected it after five games, he said, “Not at all.”

His first call after getting the news was to his girlfriend, Maggie Finnegan, and then his mom and dad, Kathy and Kevin Kusiak.

He said he thought his parents would be OK with coming in second to Finnegan, saying, “They know we’re close.”

“It was emotional,” Kusiak said of calling each of them. “I couldn’t hold it back. I put in a lot of hard work. I haven’t done anything yet, but it’s nice to hit a goal and it’s nice to share that with them.”

He is “grateful” for sacrifices made by his parents and for things such as them letting him live at home with them at the beginning of his pro career and the travel.

“It’s huge. Not making much money and living at home. Having them support me through the grind and having people that believe in you when maybe you don’t,” Kusiak said.

That support is a key factor, he says. He played a year of ball with the Windy City Thunderbolts right after graduating from MSSU in 2024 and then went to the Chicago Dogs.

Continuing his pro journey, he decided he wanted to keep moving around from league to league to try to get his name out there and to be known in various leagues.

But he says that journey isn’t easy.

“It’s hard to take the route through indy (independent league) ball. You wonder if you’re good enough or if you belong here. It’s tough. But I was able to learn from big leaguers,” Kusiak said.

He also gave a call to his former head coach at Southern, Bryce Darnell, and he said Darnell felt the same as his family — proud of him.

As Kusiak continues, he is putting an emphasis on being who he is. He doesn’t want to change anything or strive to be something different. He even wants to take the focus off of “proving” himself.

He says he understands he’ll have to prove himself in order to keep climbing the pro ranks, but he just wants to continue to be himself and just learn.

“It’s a foot in the door. It’s just one more of those. I want to continue to learn and get better,” Kusiak said.

He says he dreamed of playing playoff baseball in the MLB and experiencing that atmosphere. But looking forward, he doesn’t want to worry about chasing a dream because he may never know how far or close that dream is.

Class 2 District 6 began its postseason tournament on Thursday night at Sarcoxie High School.

The first game of the night saw No. 4 seed Miller escape No. 5 Lamar in walk-off fashion. Miller used a run-scoring hit in the bottom of the seventh to seal a 9-8 win.

The second of the twin bill saw third-seeded Diamond get all it could handle from sixth-seeded Pierce City. The Wildcats also won via walkoff as Talyn Daniels hit a solo home run to help her team claim a 7-6 victory.

DIAMOND-PIERCE CITY

Trailing 4-1 in the top of the fifth, Pierce City started a rally. Savanna Haselwood singled, Willow Hammond matched her, and then Andi Himes launched a three-run homer to tie the game.

The Eagles went on to take the lead on a base hit by Dezzeraye Puckett. And they went up 6-4 on an RBI hit by Peyton Copeland.

In the bottom half of the inning, Haselwood surrendered a run on a sacrifice fly from Daniels.

Pierce City was held in check in the sixth.

Diamond added another run as Anna Roszell doubled in a run to tie the score back up at 6-all.

Again, the Eagles didn't get any offense in the seventh.

With two outs in the bottom of the inning and Daniels down to her last strike facing a 2-2 count, she delivered the game-winning hit over the fence.

EMPORIA, Kan. — Three Lions logged home runs as the top-seeded Missouri Southern State University Lions softball team (47-7) earned a spot in the MIAA championship finals with a 6-1 win over the host team fourth-seeded Emporia State University Hornets (29-18) on Friday at Emporia’s Trusler Sports Complex.

Southern senior Katie Gray sparked the Lions offense in the bottom of the third inning with a two-run homer just inside the foul pole in left field. That homer plated Bailey Dillon and broke Gray’s single-season MSSU home run record with her 16th home run of the year. Emily Perry gave the Lions a 3-0 lead when she doubled to right center and drove in Carsen Tinkler.

The Hornets put a run across in the top of the fifth when Taryn Burkhard plated Kinsey Perine with a single up the middle.

MSSU answered with a trio of runs, all via the long ball, in the bottom of the frame. Maddie Rolfs scored Micah Snider after she busted one over left center field that sent Emporia State’s center fielder Burkhardt crashing into the fence.

Freshman Avery Sue Davis went back-to-back with Rolfs, sending one over the left field fence for a solo shot that made it a 6-1 Lions lead.

That score held as the Lions secured their spot in the finals, set for noon Saturday.

Three Lions logged multiple hits in the game. Tinkler was 2 for 3 with a run, Rolfs went 2 for 3 with two RBIs and a run, and Davis finished 2 for 3 with one RBI and one run.

Starter Kiki Pickens (20-3) earned her 20th win of the season. She gave up one run on five hits, while striking out four and walking two in four innings of work. Freshman Emily Davis earned the save after giving up no runs on two hits in three innings of relief. Davis fanned five and walked none.

“Kiki early on helping keep us composed was really big for us,” MSSU head coach Halie Blackney said. “I feel that paid off early in the game, and then we kind of settled in and were ourselves. Pitching and defense is what we hang our hat on. Kiki did her thing, and then Emily Davis came in and did her thing too.”

Burkhardt led Emporia State after going 2 for 4 with one RBI.

Hornets starter Hannah Butterbaugh was tagged with the loss after surrendering three runs on six hits. She struck out none and walked none in 2 2/3 innings.

Blackney shared her thoughts on the win.

“We knew playing the Hornets here in Emporia, there was going to be a lot of energy,” Blackney said. “They are an energetic bunch, and we knew we would have to weather the storm. I felt like the maturity and experience of our upperclassmen really carried us through that. It was a team win. I love our team, just because of how we pay, which is together always.”

The MIAA regular season champions Lions will look to win the MIAA Tournament title as well when they face Rogers State University on Saturday. Rogers State beat the University of Central Oklahoma by a score of 7-5 in the second semifinal Friday.

Tinkler talked abut what it would be like to capture both the regular-season and the tourney titles — something that hasn’t happened since 2001.

“We couldn’t end any better,” Tinkler said. “That’s the goal and that would be awesome.”

Tinkler shared what she believes it will take to win the MIAA tourney.

“I think we just stay who we are, stay consistent, and it will take care of itself,” Tinkler said.

CHICAGO — Injuries? No excuses.

Memorable comeback victories? Plenty.

The Chicago Cubs’ torrid stretch has them tied for the best record (26-12) in Major League Baseball coming off a four-game sweep of the Cincinnati Reds. They’ve won 19 of 22 games — a 10-game winning streak followed by a brief three-game skid on the West Coast and now nine consecutive wins heading into a road stretch against the Texas Rangers, Atlanta Braves and Chicago White Sox.

“We’ve played really well,” president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said at the beginning of the homestand. “Now, the reality is that we’ve had a ton of bullpen injuries and pitching injuries and we have to overcome those. But, yes, all things considered, you look at where our record is and how we’ve gotten there, I think we’ve played well.

“But we have five more months to go and we’ve got to keep doing it.”

As the Cubs put together their latest impressive run, three numbers stand out.

1. 15 consecutive wins at Wrigley Field

The Cubs are loving the home environment, regardless of the sometimes finicky elements.

Who says a home-field advantage can’t provide a tangible boost? The Cubs certainly have been playing like it can. The 15 consecutive wins at Wrigley Field is their longest home winning streak since tallying 18 straight from Sept. 4-22, 1935. It also represents the longest such streak in the majors since 2023, when the New York Yankees won 15 consecutive at home.

“I’m not the type of person to believe something you can’t physically see,” pitcher Shota Imanaga told reporters through interpreter Edwin Stanberry after Thursday’s win. “But I feel like at Wrigley, there’s this power that you can’t see, but you can kind of feel where it’s like with the fans and the cheering, where the other team feels the pressure if you’re on the mound or if you’re up to bat.

“And then on the other side, when we’re up to bat or if we’re pitching, you feel that extra push and support of this power you can’t see. I think there is something there.”

The Cubs just completed their second 7-0 homestand this year — the first time they’ve accomplished that feat in a single season since 1880, according to team historian Ed Hartig.

A pair of four-game sweeps against the Philadelphia Phillies and Reds, both coming at Wrigley, marks the first time the Cubs have recorded multiple four-game sweeps in a season since 2018, when they did it three times against the Milwaukee Brewers, New York Mets and Reds. The last time the Cubs had at least two four-game sweeps within their first 38 games was 1920.

“It’s pretty special,” left fielder Ian Happ said Thursday. “Four-game sweeps in the big leagues is really hard. Any sweep’s tough, but four games is pretty impressive. Our ability to do it in a bunch of different ways (has) been the most impressive part and (with) contributions from all over the place.”

2. 2.83 rotation ERA

The injury blows haven’t stopped for the Cubs.

The rotation already had been tested with Cade Horton out for the season after elbow surgery and Justin Steele’s return from April 2025 elbow surgery, initial targeted for late May/early June, getting delayed until potentially after the All-Star break because of a flexor strain. Then Matthew Boyd needed surgery on the meniscus in his left knee this week, sustaining the injury while playing at home with his kids.

The Cubs rotation keeps stepping up, though. Its collective 2.83 ERA during the nine-game winning streak is second-best in the majors in that span. Left-hander Imanaga has been everything the Cubs have needed to set the tone. He has allowed just one run, on a homer, in 13 innings over his last two starts while striking out 15 and walking four. Imanaga has lowered his season ERA to 2.28 in eight starts, giving up one run or fewer in six of those games.

It hasn’t fallen solely on Imanaga’s shoulders to keep the staff rolling. Cubs starters’ 54 innings pitched over the last 10 days are the second-most by a big-league rotation. They’ve been able to put together strong innings in part by shutting down opponents’ chances when they do get on base — an MLB-leading 92.2% left-on-base percentage during this stretch — aided by an elite defense.

The Cubs will need continued consistency from Edward Cabrera, Jameson Taillon and Colin Rea to get through this stretch without Boyd and Steele.

3. 52 runs scored

As one of the best offenses in baseball, the Cubs can beat teams in a variety of ways.

The offensive versatility has been on display, especially their ability to win close games. Five of the wins during the nine-game streak were decided by one run, including three straight walk-offs Monday through Wednesday.

The three walk-off wins against the Reds was just the fourth time in franchise history the Cubs recorded three walk-off victories versus the same opponent, according to Elias Sports Bureau. It previously occurred in 1943 and 1932 against the New York Giants and 1932 against the Boston Braves.

Led by hot stretches from Happ (193 weighted runs created plus), first baseman Michael Busch (202 wRC+), center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong (171 wRC+) and right fielder Seiya Suzuki (120 wRC+), the Cubs’ 52 runs scored over their last nine games trail only the Yankees (59), and they own the third-highest on-base percentage (.358) and wRC+ (124).

Crow-Armstrong has slugged more home runs (three) during this nine-game winning streak than he hit in his first 29 games (one).

“I just expect he and Michael to get hot here at some point soon,” Hoyer said at the start of the homestand of Crow-Armstrong and Busch. “That’s the thing I like about our offense the most is Nico (Hoerner has) carried us early. He’s not going to keep up that pace, but you know that when he comes down a little bit, we have other guys who sort of haven’t hit their stride yet.

“I look at Pete and Michael in that vein. It’s a matter of time until those guys break out, and when they do, both those guys have a chance to get hot and carry us for a while with their talent.”