THE INDIANA SRN “SPORTSPAGE” THURSDAY NOVEMBER 6, 2025

“THE SCOREBOARD”

++++++++++INDIANA HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL SCHEDULE++++++++++

CLASS 6A

SECTIONAL 1

CROWN POINT (10-0) AT PENN (10-0)

SECTIONAL 2

FORT WAYNE NORTHROP (8-2) AT CARROLL (FORT WAYNE) (7-3)

SECTIONAL 3

WESTFIELD (8-2) AT CARMEL (9-1)

SECTIONAL 4

HAMILTON SOUTHEASTERN (6-4) AT FISHERS (7-3)

SECTIONAL 5

AVON (6-4) AT BROWNSBURG (10-0)

SECTIONAL 6

DECATUR CENTRAL (8-2) AT LAWRENCE CENTRAL (5-5)

SECTIONAL 7

SOUTHPORT (2-8) AT WARREN CENTRAL (6-4)

SECTIONAL 8

CENTER GROVE (9-1) AT FRANKLIN CENTRAL (5-5)

______________________________________________________

CLASS 5A

SECTIONAL 9

MUNSTER (4-6) AT MERRILLVILLE (8-2)

SECTIONAL 10

MICHIGAN CITY (7-3) AT LAPORTE (4-6)

SECTIONAL 11

CONCORD (9-1) AT FORT WAYNE NORTH (6-4)

SECTIONAL 12

LAFAYETTE JEFF (9-1) AT KOKOMO (4-6)

SECTIONAL 13

INDIANAPOLIS CATHEDRAL (7-3) AT NEW PALESTINE (10-0)

SECTIONAL 14

EAST CENTRAL (8-2) AT WHITELAND (9-2)

SECTIONAL 15

BLOOMINGTON NORTH (7-3) AT BLOOMINGTON SOUTH (9-1)

SECTIONAL 16

EVANSVILLE NORTH (8-2) AT FLOYD CENTRAL (9-1)

_____________________________________________________

CLASS 4A

SECTIONAL 17

LOWELL (9-2) AT HOBART (9-2)

SECTIONAL 18

SOUTH BEND ST. JOSEPH (10-1) AT MISHAWAKA (10-1)

SECTIONAL 19

EAST NOBLE (11-0) AT FORT WAYNE DWENGER (9-2)

SECTIONAL 20

LEBANON (9-2) AT LOGANSPORT (8-3)

SECTIONAL 21

YORKTOWN (8-2) AT PENDLETON HEIGHTS (10-1)

SECTIONAL 22

INDIANAPOLIS RONCALLI (8-3) AT INDIANAPOLIS CHATARD (9-2)

SECTIONAL 23

BEDFORD NORTH LAWRENCE (8-3) AT MARTINSVILLE (5-6)

SECTIONAL 24

HERITAGE HILLS (10-1) AT JASPER (9-2)

________________________________________________________

CLASS 3A

SECTIONAL 25

MISHAWAKA MARIAN (4-7) AT KNOX (11-0)

SECTIONAL 26

GARRETT (6-5) AT ANGOLA (6-5)

SECTIONAL 27

TWIN LAKES (9-2) AT WESTERN (8-3)

SECTIONAL 28

FORT WAYNE LUERS (6-5) AT MISSISSINEWA (10-1)

SECTIONAL 29

GUERIN CATHOLIC (7-4) AT CASCADE (11-0)

SECTIONAL 30

LAWRENCEBURG (9-1) AT GREENSBURG (4-7)

SECTIONAL 31

SCOTTSBURG (9-2) AT INDIAN CREEK (7-3)

SECTIONAL 32

GIBSON SOUTHERN (10-1) AT EVANSVILLE MATER DEI (6-5)

_____________________________________________________

CLASS 2A

SECTIONAL 33

ANDREAN (9-1) AT RENSSELAER CENTRAL (9-2)

SECTIONAL 34

SOUTHMONT (10-1) AT LEWIS CASS (8-3)

SECTIONAL 35

EASTSIDE (9-2) AT ADAMS CENTRAL (11-0)

SECTIONAL 36

EASTERN (GREENTOWN) (10-1) AT EASTBROOK (11-0)

SECTIONAL 37

INDIANAPOLIS LUTHERAN (10-1) AT HERITAGE CHRISTIAN (7-4)

SECTIONAL 38

TRITON CENTRAL (10-1) AT LAPEL (11-0)

SECTIONAL 39

SULLIVAN (8-3) AT LINTON (8-3)

SECTIONAL 40

SWITZERLAND COUNTY (8-2) AT BROWNSTOWN CENTRAL (11-0)

________________________________________________________

CLASS 1A

SECTIONAL 41

WEST CENTRAL (10-1) AT LAVILLE (7-4)

SECTIONAL 42

PIONEER (10-1) AT CARROLL (FLORA) (7-3)

SECTIONAL 43

FREMONT (8-3) AT NORTH MIAMI (8-3)

SECTIONAL 44

HAGERSTOWN (5-6) AT SOUTH ADAMS (8-3)

SECTIONAL 45

SOUTH PUTNAM (9-2) AT RIVERTON PARKE (11-0)

SECTIONAL 46

CLOVERDALE (7-4) AT SHERIDAN (7-2)

SECTIONAL 47

NORTH DECATUR (8-2) AT MILAN (5-4)

SECTIONAL 48

PROVIDENCE (8-2) AT NORTH DAVIESS (10-1)

____________________________________________________________________

+++++++++INDIANA HIGH SCHOOL VOLLEYBALL STATE++++++++++

11 AM ET | CLASS 1A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP 
FAITH CHRISTIAN (31-4) VS. TRINITY LUTHERAN (22-11)

1:30 PM ET | CLASS 2A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP 
BENTON CENTRAL (27-5) VS. BARR-REEVE (32-5)  

4:30 PM ET | CLASS 3A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP 
FORT WAYNE BISHOP DWENGER (20-8) VS. RONCALLI (32-5) 

7 PM ET | CLASS 4A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP 
CARROLL (FORT WAYNE) (36-0) VS. PLAINFIELD (29-5)  

_____________________________________________________________

+++++++++++INDIANA GIRLS BASKETBALL SCORES+++++++++++

WEDNESDAY

EAST CENTRAL            86          SOUTH DEARBORN  7           

EDINBURGH  43          INDIANAPOLIS RITTER          39         

ELWOOD         52          EASTERN (GREENTOWN)     34         

INDIANAPOLIS ATTUCKS     57          INDIANAPOLIS ARSENAL TECH      14         

MACONAQUAH          76          MARION           39         

MANCHESTER             54          WAWASEE       24         

PARK TUDOR 38          COVENANT CHRISTIAN        24         

PERU   58          CULVER ACADEMY   54          OT

PLAINFIELD   58          MCCUTCHEON           56         

PORTAGE         48          BOWMAN ACADEMY              8           

RANDOLPH SOUTHERN       52          MUNCIE BURRIS        15         

SOUTH CENTRAL (ELIZABETH)        74          NORTH HARRISON   63         

UNION CITY   48          UNION (MODOC)       25         

WABASH          60          TAYLOR             25         

WASHINGTON TWP. 45          HANOVER CENTRAL               38         

WOODLAN     49          GARRETT         36         

_________________________________________________________________

++++++++++INDIANA GIRLS BASKETBALL SCHEDULE++++++++++

ALL TIMES EASTERN

ANDREAN        AT          MERRILLVILLE                            8:00 PM            

ARGOS              AT          JIMTOWN                       7:30 PM            

BEDFORD NORTH LAWRENCE        AT          SULLIVAN                       7:30 PM            

BETHANY CHRISTIAN            AT          WEST NOBLE                7:30 PM            

BETHESDA CHRISTIAN         AT          SHERIDAN                     6:00 PM            

BLOOMINGTON NORTH       AT          NORTHVIEW                 7:30 PM            

BLUE RIVER VALLEY AT          TRI                       7:30 PM            

BREBEUF JESUIT        AT          NEW PALESTINE                        7:30 PM            

BROWN COUNTY      AT          EASTERN GREENE                    7:30 PM            

CARMEL           AT          LAWRENCE CENTRAL                           7:30 PM            

CASTLE             AT          NORTH POSEY                           8:00 PM            

CASTON           AT          WEST CENTRAL                         7:30 PM            

CHESTERTON              AT          HIGHLAND                    8:00 PM            

CLINTON CENTRAL  AT          FRONTIER                      6:30 PM            

CLINTON PRAIRIE     AT          FOUNTAIN CENTRAL                             6:30 PM            

COWAN            AT          SOUTHERN WELLS                  7:30 PM            

DELTA AT          MUNCIE CENTRAL                   7:30 PM            

EDGEWOOD  AT          SOUTH PUTNAM                       7:30 PM            

FORT WAYNE CANTERBURY             AT          FREMONT                       6:30 PM            

FORT WAYNE CONCORDIA               AT          EASTSIDE                       7:00 PM            

FRANKLIN CENTRAL               AT          CENTER GROVE                         7:30 PM            

GEO NEXT GENERATION      AT          HAGERSTOWN                          6:00 PM            

GIBSON SOUTHERN               AT          EVANSVILLE CENTRAL                         8:00 PM              

HAMILTON      AT          WESTVIEW                    6:00 PM            

HAMILTON SOUTHEASTERN             AT          LAWRENCE NORTH                7:30 PM              

HENRYVILLE  AT          SOUTHWESTERN (HANOVER)                        6:00 PM            

HERITAGE       AT          LEO                     7:30 PM            

HERITAGE HILLS        AT          CRAWFORD COUNTY                           8:00 PM            

INDIANA MATH & SCIENCE               AT          EMINENCE                     7:30 PM            

INDIANAPOLIS CHATARD   AT          MOORESVILLE                           7:30 PM            

INDIANAPOLUS LUTHERAN              AT          SOUTHWESTERN (SHELBYVILLE)                 7:30 PM            

KNOX  AT          OREGON-DAVIS                        6:30 PM            

LAKEWOOD PARK     AT          CHURUBUSCO                          7:30 PM            

LANESVILLE   AT          ROCK CREEK ACADEMY                     6:30 PM            

LAPEL AT          UNIVERSITY                  7:00 PM            

LAPORTE         AT          HOBART                          8:00 PM            

LAVILLE            AT          PLYMOUTH                   7:30 PM            

LAWRENCEBURG      AT          OLDENBURG ACADEMY                      7:30 PM            

MARQUETTE CATHOLIC       AT          SOUTH BEND ADAMS                           7:30 PM              

MARTINSVILLE            AT          GREENFIELD-CENTRAL                        7:30 PM            

MICHIGAN CITY         AT          HEBRON                         7:00 PM            

MISSISSINEWA           AT          NORTHFIELD                7:30 PM            

MOUNT VERNON (FORTVILLE)        AT          FRANKLIN                      7:30 PM            

MTI KNOWLEDGE      AT          INDIANAPOLIS TINDLEY                     6:00 PM            

NORTH CENTRAL (FARMERSBURG)            AT          CLAY CITY                      7:30 PM              

NORTH DAVIESS        AT          SHOALS                          6:00 PM            

NORTH JUDSON         AT          ROCHESTER                 8:00 PM            

NORTHEASTERN        AT          ADAMS CENTRAL                     7:30 PM            

NORTHWESTERN      AT          TIPPECANOE VALLEY                            7:00 PM            

PAOLI  AT          NORTHEAST DUBOIS                            7:30 PM            

PARKE HERITAGE      AT          NORTH PUTNAM                       7:30 PM            

PERRY MERIDIAN      AT          DANVILLE                       7:30 PM            

PHALEN ACADEMY   AT          PURDUE ENGLEWOOD                        7:30 PM            

PIKE     AT          AVON                 7:30 PM            

SALEM               AT          MITCHELL                      7:00 PM            

SEEGER            AT          CRAWFORDSVILLE                 7:30 PM            

SHAKAMAK    AT          WEST VIGO                   7:30 PM            

SHAWE MEMORIAL  AT          CHRISTIAN ACADEMY                          6:30 PM            

SHENANDOAH            AT          ALEXANDRIA                7:00 PM            

SOUTH BEND WASHINGTON           AT          GOSHEN                         7:30 PM            

SOUTH CENTRAL (UNION MILLS)  AT          CULVER                           8:00 PM            

SPEEDWAY     AT          WESTERN BOONE                    7:30 PM            

TRI-CENTRAL               AT          FRANKTON                    7:30 PM            

TWIN LAKES  AT          TRI-TOWNSHIP                          7:00 PM            

WES-DEL         AT          ANDERSON PREP                     6:30 PM            

WESTVILLE     AT          NEW PRAIRIE                              8:00 PM            

WOOD MEMORIAL    AT          PERRY CENTRAL                       8:30 PM            

FRIDAY

ALL TIMES EASTERN

AUSTIN             AT          SOUTH RIPLEY                           7:30 PM            

BEECH GROVE            AT          INDIANAPOLIS ARSENAL TECH                     7:30 PM              

BLUFFTON      AT          NORWELL                      7:30 PM            

CLARKSVILLE              AT          SOUTH CENTRAL (ELIZABETH)                       6:00 PM              

CROTHERSVILLE        AT          LIGHTHOUSE CHRISTIAN                  6:00 PM            

EDINBURGH  AT          HAUSER                          7:30 PM            

EVANSVILLE HARRISON      AT          MOUNT VERNON (POSEY)                 8:00 PM              

FOREST PARK              AT          TELL CITY                       8:00 PM            

FOUNTAIN CENTRAL              AT          FRANKFORT                  7:30 PM            

GREENSBURG             AT          JAC-CEN-DEL                              7:30 PM            

GREENWOOD              AT          MONROVIA                    7:30 PM            

INDIANAPOLIS RIVERSIDE AT          GEO NEXT GENERATION                     6:00 PM              

KOKOMO         AT          ZIONSVILLE                  7:30 PM            

KOUTS              AT          WHEELER                       8:00 PM            

MUNCIE BURRIS        AT          DALEVILLE                     7:00 PM            

NEW CASTLE AT          RUSHVILLE                   7:30 PM            

NEW WASHINGTON AT          CHRISTIAN ACADEMY MADISON                 6:30 PM              

NORTH KNOX               AT          WASHINGTON                            7:30 PM            

NORTH NEWTON       AT          CALUMET                       7:00 PM            

OAK HILL         AT          PERU                  7:45 PM            

RISING SUN   AT          FRANKLIN COUNTY                7:30 PM            

SOUTH BEND ST. JOSEPH   AT          HAMMOND NOLL                     8:00 PM            

TRITON             AT          MANCHESTER                            7:30 PM            

WABASH          AT          CULVER ACADEMY                  7:30 PM            

WHITING         AT          MORGAN TWP.                           8:00 PM            

______________________________________________________________

+++++++++INDIANA GIRLS BASKETBALL PRE-SEASON POLLS+++++++++

4A

1.           HOMESTEAD (6)         1-0        87

2.           LAWRENCE CENTRAL (3)     0-0        81

3.           PIKE     0-0        69

4.           WARSAW         1-0        66

5.           BLOOMINGTON SOUTH       1-0        37

6.           FRANKLIN CENTRAL               0-0        35

               HAMILTON SOUTHEASTERN            0-0        35

8.           PLAINFIELD   0-0        26

9.           MCCUTCHEON           0-0        22

10.        VALPARAISO 0-0        9

3A

1.           WASHINGTON (1)      0-0        75

2.           SILVER CREEK (4)      0-0        71

3.           EVANSVILLE CENTRAL (1)   0-0        69

4.           GREENSBURG (2)      0-0        61

5.           INDIANAPOLIS RONCALLI  0-0        45

6.           INDIANAPOLIS CHATARD   0-0        30

7.           BELLMONT      0-0        26

8.           COLUMBIA CITY         0-0        18

9.           INDIANAPOLIS CATHEDRAL             0-0        16

10.        CHARLESTOWN         0-0        15

2A

1.           RENSSELAER CENTRAL (3) 0-0        73

2.           SOUTH KNOX (3)        0-0        60

3.           NORTH KNOX (2)       0-0        57

4.           WHITKO           0-0        53

5.           AUSTIN             0-0        36

6.           BROWNSTOWN CENTRAL   0-0        35

7.           EASTSIDE (1) 0-0        34

8.           NORTHEASTERN        0-0        27

9.           EASTERN HANCOCK              1-0        22

10.        BENTON CENTRAL    0-0        20

1A

1.           BORDEN (5)   0-0        76

2.           MARQUETTE CATHOLIC (3) 1-0        57

3.           WESTVILLE     0-1        48

4.           LAFAYETTE CENTRAL CATHOLIC   0-0        44

5.           ORLEANS        0-0        27

6.           TRI-COUNTY 0-0        24

7.           ELKHART CHRISTIAN             0-0        21

8.           VINCENNES RIVET   0-1        19

9.           OLDENBURG ACADEMY       0-0        18

10.        TRI        0-0        17

_____________________________________________________

+++++++++++COLLEGE FOOTBALL SCHEDULE+++++++++++

WEEK 11

WEDNESDAY, NOV. 5

TOLEDO 42 NORTHERN ILLINOIS 3

BALL STATE 17 KENT STATE 13

THURSDAY, NOV. 6

7:30 P.M. | GEORGIA SOUTHERN AT APPALACHIAN STATE | ESPN2

7:30 P.M. | UTSA AT SOUTH FLORIDA | ESPN

FRIDAY, NOV. 7

8 P.M. | HOUSTON AT UCF | FS1

9 P.M. | NORTHWESTERN AT NO. 20 SOUTHERN CAL | FOX

9 P.M. | TULANE AT NO. 22 MEMPHIS | ESPN

SATURDAY, NOV. 8

12 P.M. | NO. 5 GEORGIA AT MISSISSIPPI STATE | ESPN

12 P.M. | NO. 8 BYU AT NO. 9 TEXAS TECH | ABC

12 P.M. | NO. 2 INDIANA AT PENN STATE | FOX

12 P.M. | SMU AT BOSTON COLLEGE | ACC NETWORK

12 P.M. | COLORADO AT WEST VIRGINIA | TNT/TRUTV

12 P.M. | JAMES MADISON AT MARSHALL | ESPN2

12 P.M. | SOUTHERN MISS AT ARKANSAS STATE | ESPNU

12 P.M. | TEMPLE AT ARMY | CBSSN

1 P.M. | NO. 1 OHIO STATE AT PURDUE | BIG TEN NETWORK

1 P.M. | THE CITADEL AT NO. 7 OLE MISS | SECN+

1 P.M. | MISSOURI STATE AT LIBERTY | ESPN+

1 P.M. | BOWLING GREEN AT EASTERN MICHIGAN | ESPN+

2 P.M. | UAB AT RICE | ESPN+

2:30 P.M. | MARYLAND AT RUTGERS | FS1

3 P.M. | LOUISIANA TECH AT DELAWARE | ESPN+

3 P.M. | FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL AT MIDDLE TENNESSEE | ESPN+

3 P.M. | JACKSONVILLE STATE AT UTEP | ESPN+

3 P.M. | CHARLOTTE AT EAST CAROLINA | ESPN+

3 P.M. | TULSA AT FLORIDA ATLANTIC | ESPN+

3:30 P.M. | NO. 6 OREGON AT IOWA | CBS

3:30 P.M. | NO. 3 TEXAS A&M AT NO. 19 MISSOURI | ABC

3:30 P.M. | SYRACUSE AT  NO. 18 MIAMI (FLA.) | ESPN

3:30 P.M. | DUKE AT UCONN | CBSSN

3:30 P.M. | KANSAS AT ARIZONA | ESPN2

3:30 P.M. | IOWA STATE AT TCU | FOX

4 P.M. | AUBURN AT NO. 15 VANDERBILT | SEC NETWORK

4 P.M. | KENNESAW STATE AT NEW MEXICO STATE | ESPN+

4 P.M. | GEORGIA STATE AT COASTAL CAROLINA | ESPN+

4:30 P.M. | NO. 24 WASHINGTON AT WISCONSIN | BIG TEN NETWORK

4:30 P.M. | STANFORD AT NORTH CAROLINA | THE CW NETWORK

5 P.M. | TEXAS STATE AT LOUISIANA | ESPN+

6 P.M. | AIR FORCE AT SAN JOSE STATE | FS1

7 P.M. | WAKE FOREST AT NO. 12 VIRGINIA | ESPN

7 P.M. | CAL AT NO. 14 LOUISVILLE | ESPN2

7 P.M. | FLORIDA STATE AT CLEMSON | ACCN

7:30 P.M. | LSU AT NO. 4 ALABAMA | ABC

7:30 P.M. | NAVY AT NO. 10 NOTRE DAME | NBC/PEACOCK

7:30 P.M. | FLORIDA AT KENTUCKY | SEC NETWORK

7:30 P.M. | NEVADA AT UTAH STATE | CBSSN

9 P.M. | NEBRASKA AT UCLA | FOX

9:30 P.M. | UNLV AT COLORADO STATE | FS1

10 P.M. | SAM HOUSTON AT OREGON STATE | THE CW NETWORK

11 P.M. | SAN DIEGO STATE AT HAWAII | MOUNTAIN WEST NETWORK

______________________________________________________________

++++++++++++MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL+++++++++++

TOP 25

#23 CREIGHTON 92 SOUTH DAKOTA 76

ELSEWHERE:

RUTGERS 81 RIDER 53

BUTLER 88 SOUTHERN INDIANA 58

GEORGIA 94 MD-EASTERN SHORE 29

RICHMOND 84 SOUTHERN VIRGINIA 56

TEMPLE 83 DELAWARE STATE 65

INDIANA 98 ALABAMA A&M

LSU 96 TARLETON STATE 60

MISSISSIPPI STATE 86 N. ALABAMA 62

_______________________________________________________________

++++++++++ WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL++++++++++

TOP 25

#15 NOTRE DAME 98 FAIRLEIGH DICKINSON 52

#14 I WAS STATE 85 SOUTHERN 58

#22 OKLAHOMA STATE 97 E. TEXAS A&M 59

ELSEWHERE:

HAWAII 74 PORTLAND STATE 63

CHICAGO STATE 59 WINTHROP 54

UC IRVINE 72 SAN DIEGO 54

VCU 62 MARYLAND EASTERN SHORE 48

FAIRFIELD 75 VILLANOVA 63

WISCONSIN 79 OAKLAND 68

SAN FRANCISCO 64 UNC GREENSBORO 40

KANSAS 74 KANSAS CITY 64

WESTERN KENTUCKY 81 KENTUCKY STATE 33

TULSA 77 NEW ORLEANS 60

NORTHWESTERN 67 IU INDY 64

UTAH VALLEY 64 LOYOLA MARYMOUNT 60

TEXAS A&M 81 TEXAS A&M CORPUS CHRISTI 43

BYU 91 COASTAL CAROLINA 57

SEATTLE 86 NW. COLLEGE 56

UNLV 64 WASHINGTON STATE 51

________________________________________________________

+++++++++NFL SCHEDULE WEEK 10++++++++++

THURSDAY, NOV. 6

LAS VEGAS AT DENVER (PRIME VIDEO)

SUNDAY, NOV. 9

ATLANTA VS. INDIANAPOLIS AT BERLIN, 9:30 A.M. (NFLN)

JACKSONVILLE AT HOUSTON, 1 P.M. (CBS)

BUFFALO AT MIAMI, 1 P.M. (CBS)

NEW ENGLAND AT TAMPA BAY CLEVELAND AT NY JETS, 1 P.M. (CBS)

NY GIANTS AT CHICAGO, 1 P.M. (FOX)

NEW ORLEANS AT CAROLINA, 1 P.M. (FOX)

BALTIMORE AT MINNESOTA, 1 P.M. (FOX)

ARIZONA AT SEATTLE, 4:05 P.M. (CBS)

LA RAMS AT SAN FRANCISCO, 4:25 P.M. (FOX)

DETROIT AT WASHINGTON, 4:25 P.M. (FOX)

PITTSBURGH AT LA CHARGERS, 8:20 P.M. (NBC)

MONDAY, NOV. 10

PHILADELPHIA AT GREEN BAY, 8:15 P.M. (ESPN/ABC)

BYES: CINCINNATI, DALLAS, KANSAS CITY, TENNESSEE

_____________________________________________________

++++++++NBA SCOREBOARD++++++++

CLEVELAND 132 PHILADELPHIA 121

BROOKLYN 112 INDIANA 103

DETROIT 114 UTAH 103

BOSTON 136 WASHINGTON 107

NEW YORK 137 MINNESOTA 114

HOUSTON 124 MEMPHIS 109

NEW ORLEANS 101 DALLAS 99

DENVER 122 MIAMI 112

LA LAKERS 118 SAN ANTONIO 116

PORTLAND 121 OKLAHOMA CITY 119

SACRAMENTO 121 GOLDEN STATE 116

________________________________________________________

++++++++NHL SCOREBOARD++++++++

TORONTO 5 UTAH 3

WASHINGTON 6 ST. LOUIS 1

CALGARY 5 COLUMBUS 1

CHICAGO 5 VANCOUVER 2

SAN JOSE 6 SEATTLE 1

________________________________________________________

++++++++++MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER PLAYOFFS+++++++++++

NO GAMES SCHEDULED

___________________________________________________________

CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS

NOV. 22 – NOV. 23

EASTERN CONFERENCE: TBD

WESTERN CONFERENCE: TBD

CONFERENCE FINAL

NOV. 29 – NOV. 30

SEMIFINAL WINNERS, TBD

CHAMPIONSHIP

SATURDAY, DEC. 6: CONFERENCE FINAL WINNERS, 2:30 P.M.

______________________________________________________________

+++++++++TOP NATIONAL HEADLINES/NEWS RELEASES+++++++++

++++++++++NFL NEWS+++++++++

WEEK 10 PREVIEW

As the 2025 season crosses the halfway point in Week 10, six of the eight divisions have a team in first place or tied for first that did not win its division last season. Denver (7-2), Indianapolis (7-2), and New England (7-2) are tied for the best record in the NFL while seven teams – Buffalo, the Los Angeles Chargers, the Los Angeles Rams, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle and Tampa Bay – have six wins through Week 9.

Here’s a look at a few interesting storylines entering Week 10:

• Berlin bound: As part of the league’s commitment to playing regular-season games in Germany, the NFL will continue its international slate of games with the first-ever regular season game in Berlin in Week 10 as the Atlanta Falcons (3-5) meet the Indianapolis Colts (7-2) (Sunday, 9:30 a.m. ET, NFL Network) at the Olympic Stadium Berlin.
  • Indianapolis running back Jonathan Taylor ranks second in the NFL with 1,113 scrimmage yards this season while Atlanta running back Bijan Robinson ranks third with 1,058 scrimmage yards. It will mark the first game since Week 10, 2002 (Pro Football Hall of Famers Marshall Faulk and LaDainian Tomlinson) to feature opposing players each with at least 1,000 scrimmage yards in Week 10 or earlier.
• Primetime in Week 10: Five of the six teams appearing in primetime this week (7 p.m. ET or later) have at least five wins, including four teams that currently sit in first place in their division.
  • Las Vegas (2-6) at Denver (7-2) (Thursday night, 8:15 p.m. ET, Prime Video): The Broncos have won six consecutive games since Week 4 and since Week 8 last season, have won nine consecutive home games. Denver leads the NFL with 40 sacks, becoming the 10th team ever with at least 40 sacks in its first nine games of a season and first since the 2000 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (41 sacks).
    • The Broncos +31-sack differential (40 sacks, nine sacks allowed) is the largest through a team’s first nine games of a season in NFL history, surpassing the 1990 Miami Dolphins (+29).
    • Denver quarterback Bo Nix, with at least two touchdown passes on Thursday night, can become the fourth quarterback ever with at least two touchdown passes in 10 home games within his first two career seasons, joining Justin Herbert (11 home games with multiple touchdown passes), Pro Football Hall of Famer Dan Marino (10) and Kyler Murray (10).
    • Las Vegas tight end Brock Bowers last week became the sixth tight end all-time with at least 10 receptions, 125 receiving yards and three touchdowns in a game, joining Pro Football Hall of Famers Kellen Winslow Sr. (twice), Antonio Gates and Shannon Sharpe as well as Todd Christensen and Keith Jackson.
    • Bowers, who has 143 receptions in 22 career games, can become the fastest tight end and second fastest player to reach 150 career receptions in NFL history, surpassing Michael Thomas (24 games). Only Odell Beckham Jr. (21 games) reached the mark faster.
  • Pittsburgh (5-3) at the Los Angeles Chargers (6-3) (Sunday night, 8:20 p.m. ET, NBC): The Steelers are set to appear in their third primetime game in four weeks while the Chargers look to improve to 4-0 in primetime games this season.
    • Pittsburgh quarterback Aaron Rodgers is tied for third in the NFL with 17 touchdown passes this season and is one of four quarterbacks with a passer rating of 95-or-higher in at least seven games. Rodgers has 166 career touchdown passes in primetime, the most all-time.
    • Rodgers, with two touchdown passes, can surpass Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning (165 games) for the third-most games with multiple touchdown passes in NFL history. Only Tom Brady (204 games) and Drew Brees (173) have more.
    • Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert ranks second in the NFL in both passing yards (2,390) and touchdown passes (18). Last week, he recorded his 50th career game with multiple touchdown passes, one of five quarterbacks all-time with 50 such games in their first six career seasons.
  • Philadelphia (6-2) at Green Bay (5-2-1) (Monday night, 8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN/ABC): Last season, Philadelphia defeated Green Bay, 34-29, in São Paulo in Week 1 and 22-10, in Philadelphia in the 2024 NFC Wild Card round.
    • Prior to the team’s Week 9 bye, Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts had three touchdown passes with a 158.3 passer rating – the highest attainable mark – in Week 7 and four touchdown passes, including his 100th regular-season touchdown pass, with a 141.5 passer rating in Week 8. Only Aaron Rodgers (2011) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Kurt Warner (1999) have recorded three-or-more touchdown passes and a passer rating of 140-or-higher in three consecutive games.
    • Since entering the NFL in 2019, Green Bay running back Josh Jacobs has 71 career rushing touchdowns in 98 career games, second-most in the NFL during that span. He has at least one rushing touchdown in 49 career games and with a rushing touchdown in his next two games, can become the sixth player since 2000 with a rushing touchdown in 50 of his first 100 career games, joining Pro Football Hall of Famer LaDainian Tomlinson (64 games), Adrian Peterson (60), Shaun Alexander (58), Ezekiel Elliott (52) and Derrick Henry (50).
• Matchups of five-plus win teams: There are four matchups in Week 10 – New England at Tampa Bay on Sunday, the Los Angeles Rams at San Francisco on Sunday, Pittsburgh at the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday night and Philadelphia at Green Bay on Monday night – between teams each with at least five wins this season. It marks the first time since Week 9, 2020 that there were four such games in Week 10 or earlier of a season.
  • New England (7-2) at Tampa Bay (6-2) (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, CBS): The Patriots, tied with the Broncos and Colts for the best record in the AFC, and the Buccaneers, tied with the Eagles and Seahawks for the best record in the NFC, will mark the first time since Week 16, 2023 (Baltimore vs. San Francisco) that the teams with the best record or tied for the best record in each conference will meet.
    • New England quarterback Drake Maye became the first player under the age of 24 and fourth player in NFL history to record at least 200 passing yards and a passer rating of 100-or-higher in eight consecutive games, joining Aaron Rodgers (12 consecutive games in 2011 and eight in 2020), Tom Brady (eight in 2007) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning (eight in 2004).
    • In Week 8, Tampa Bay safety Antoine Winfield Jr. recorded his first two takeaways (one interception, one fumble recovery) of the season and since entering the NFL in 2020, is one of two, along with Pittsburgh linebacker T.J. Watt, with 10 fumble recoveries.
  • Los Angeles Rams (6-2) at San Francisco (6-3) (Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET, FOX): On Thursday Night Football in Week 5, the 49ers defeated the Rams, 26-23, in overtime as running back Christian McCaffrey recorded eight receptions, 139 scrimmage yards (82 receiving, 57 rushing) and a touchdown reception in the win.
    • McCaffrey leads the NFL with 1,222 scrimmage yards (626 receiving, 596 rushing) in 2025, including a league-leading eight games with at least 100 scrimmage yards. Last week, he recorded his 33rd career touchdown reception, second-most among running backs in the Super Bowl era and had his 16th career game with both a rushing touchdown and receiving touchdown, surpassing Pro Football Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk (15 games) for the most such games in NFL history.
    • Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford leads the NFL with 21 touchdown passes this season, including nine in his past two games, and became the fourth quarterback ever with at least 20 touchdown passes and two-or-fewer interceptions (two) in his first eight games of a season, joining Tom Brady (2007 and 2015), Patrick Mahomes (2020) and Aaron Rodgers (2020).
    • Stafford enters Week 10 with 398 career regular-season touchdown passes and can become the ninth quarterback all-time with 400 career regular-season touchdown passes.
    • Rams wide receiver Davante Adams leads the NFL with eight touchdown receptions this season, including five in his past two games, and became the fifth wide receiver in the Super Bowl era with at least eight touchdown receptions in six consecutive seasons, joining Pro Football Hall of Famers Jerry Rice (11 from 1986-96), Marvin Harrison (eight from 1999-2006) and Cris Carter (six from 1995-2000) as well as Antonio Brown (six from 2013-18).
    • Adams enters Week 10 with 111 career regular-season touchdown receptions, tied with Pro Football Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez (111) for the eighth-most regular-season touchdown receptions in NFL history.
• Six wins in the NFC West: Three teams – the Los Angeles Rams (6-2), San Francisco (6-3) and Seattle (6-2) – each have six wins this season, marking the sixth time since 2002 that a division has had three teams with at least six wins through the first nine weeks of a season. The previous occurrences: 2024 NFC North, 2022 AFC East and NFC East, 2016 AFC West and 2011 AFC North.
  • Arizona (3-5) at Seattle (6-2) (Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ET, CBS): In Week 4 on Thursday Night Football, Seattle defeated Arizona, 23-20, as kicker Jason Myers kicked a game-winning 52-yard field goal as time expired. The Seahawks are one of two NFC teams, along with the Rams, to allow fewer than 20 points per game this season (18.8) and are one of two teams in the NFL, along with Houston, to allow 20-or-fewer points in seven games in 2025.
    • Seattle wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba leads the NFL with 948 receiving yards and surpassed Pro Football Hall of Famer Isaac Bruce (938 receiving yards in 1995) for the most receiving yards by a player under the age of 25 in his team’s first eight games of a season in NFL history.
    • Smith-Njigba leads the NFL with six games of 100-or-more receiving yards, including each of his past four, and can become the fifth player all-time with at least eight receptions and 100 receiving yards in five consecutive games, joining Pro Football Hall of Famers Isaac Bruce (six consecutive games in 1995) and Calvin Johnson (five in 2012) as well as Anquan Boldin (five in 2005) and Michael Thomas (five in 2019).
    • Arizona tight end Trey McBride has at least five receptions in 10 consecutive games and became the third tight end in NFL history with at least five receptions in 10 consecutive games, joining Travis Kelce (15 consecutive games in 2018 and 11 from 2020-21) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez (13 from 2008-09).
    • Cardinals defensive lineman Calais Campbell had two sacks in Week 9 and has five sacks this season, joining Pro Football Hall of Famers Bruce Smith (18 seasons), Julius Peppers (16) and Reggie White (15) as the only players since 1982, when the individual sack became an official statistic, with at least five sacks in 15-or-more career seasons.
• Buffalo (6-2) at Miami (2-7) (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, CBS): In Week 3 on Thursday Night Football, Buffalo defeated Miami, 31-21, as quarterback Josh Allen had three touchdown passes, including the go-ahead touchdown pass with 7:17 remaining in the fourth quarter. Allen is 13-2 in 15 career starts against the Dolphins, with 45 touchdowns (40 passing, five rushing) and a 110.3 passer rating.
  • Allen has 79 career rushing touchdowns, including the postseason, and with his two rushing touchdowns last week, surpassed Cam Newton (77 rushing touchdowns) for the most rushing touchdowns by a quarterback, including the playoffs, in NFL history.
  • Allen, who has seven rushing touchdowns this season, became the first quarterback and sixth player ever with at least six rushing touchdowns in eight consecutive seasons, joining Pro Football Hall of Famers Marshall Faulk (10 consecutive seasons from 1994-2004), LaDainian Tomlinson (10 from 2001-10), Jim Brown (nine from 1957-65) and Thurman Thomas (eight from 1989-96) as well as Derrick Henry (eight from 2018-25).
  • Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott has 99 wins (92 regular season, seven postseason) since he was hired in 2017 and with his next victory, can become the sixth head coach ever with at least 100 wins in his first nine seasons, joining George Seifert (116 wins), Pro Football Hall of Famers Paul Brown (104), John Madden (103) and Joe Gibbs (102) as well as Mike McCarthy (101).

THURSDAY NIGHT CAPSULE: LAS VEGAS RAIDERS (2-6) AT DENVER BRONCOS (7-2)

Empower Field at Mile High | Referee: Bill Vinovich

All-Time Series History

Regular Season: LV leads series,72-55-2 (DEN wom past 2)

Postseason: Series tied, 1-1 (home team won past 2

The Last Time…

Regular Season: 11/24/24: DEN 29 at LV 19

Postseason: AFC-WC 1/9/94: DEN 24 at OAK 42

RAIDERS NOTES:

QB GENO SMITH passed for 284 yards & season-high 4 TDs vs. INT for 117.9 rating last week, his 2nd-career game with 4 TD passes. Has 90+ rating in 2 of his past 3 Thursday starts. Had 2 TDs (1 pass, 1 rush) in his last start vs. Den. (9/8/24 w/ Sea.). • RB ASHTON JEANTY had 5 catches, 89 scrimmage yards (career-high 47 rec., 42 rush) & rec. TD last week & became 1st rookie since 1982 (HOFer Marcus Allen) with 3+ rush TDs (3) & 3+ rec. TDs (3) in 1st 8 career games. Leads rookies in scrimmage yards (620) & rush yards (487) & ranks tied-2nd in scrimmage TDs (6) this season. • TE BROCK BOWERS had 12 catches for 127 yards & career-high 3 rec. TDs last week, 4th TE in SB era & 1st in past 30 seasons (HOFer Shannon Sharpe) with 12+ catches, 100+ rec. yards & 3+ rec. TDs in single game. Had 8 catches for 97 yards & rec. TD in last road meeting (10/6/24). Has 143 catches in 22 games & can become 2nd-fastest player ever to 150 career receptions (Odell Beckham Jr. – 21 games). • WR TRE TUCKER has 5+ catches in 2 of his past 3. Has 50+ rec. yards in 3 of 4 road games in 2025. Had 7 catches for 82 yards in last meeting (11/24/24). • DE MAXX CROSBY had 3 TFL & 5th sack of season last week & is 1 of 3 (Myles Garrett & T.J. Watt) with 10+ games (11) with 3+ TFL since 2019. Leads NFL with 118 TFL since 2019 & is 1 of 2 (Myles Garrett) with 10+ TFL in each of past 7 seasons. Has 15.5 sacks & 22 TFL in 12 career games vs. Den., incl. 2+ TFL in 6 of his past 7 vs. Den. Aims for his 7th in row at Den. with sack. • LB DEVIN WHITE had 16 tackles last week & is 1st player since 2022 (Jordyn Brooks) with 16+ tackles in consecutive games within single season. • CB DARIEN PORTER (rookie) had career-high 10 tackles last week. • S ISAIAH POLA-MAO had career-high 2nd INT of season last week. Aims for his 3rd in row with 9+ tackles.

BRONCOS NOTES:

BRONCOS have won 7 straight games (tied-longest active win streak in NFL) & had won each of past 9 at home. Have +31 sack differential in 2025, largest by team in 1st 9 games of season in NFL history. • QB BO NIX had 2 TD passes last week, his 15th-career game with 2+ TD passes. Has 2+ TD passes in 5 of his past 6 at home & can become 4th player ever with 2+ TD passes in 10 home games within 1st 2 seasons. Aims for his 3rd in row vs. LV with 2+ TD passes & 0 INTs. • RB J.K. DOBBINS rushed for 61 yards last week & is 1 of 2 (Jonathan Taylor) with 60+ rush yards in 8 games in 2025. Has 100+ rush yards in 2 of his past 3 at home. Had 198 rush yards (99 per game) & rush TD in 2 games vs. LV in 2024 (w/ LAC). • RB RJ HARVEY set career highs with 5 catches & 51 yards & had 4th rec. TD of season last week & 1st rookie RB with TD catch in 3 straight games in the SB era. Has 50+ scrimmage yards in 3 of his 4 home games this season. • WR COURTLAND SUTTON has 60+ rec. yards in 8 of his past 9 at home. Had 8 catches for 97 yards & 2 rec. TDs in last meeting. Aims for his 4th in row in primetime with 5+ catches & 50+ rec. yards. • WR TROY FRANKLIN aims for his 3rd in row at home with TD catch. • LB NIK BONITTO ranks 4th in NFL with 8 sacks in 2025. Has sack in 3 of his past 4 in primetime. Aims for his 4th in row vs. LV with sack. • LB JONATHON COOPER ranks tied-6th in NFL with 7 sacks in 2025. Has 0.5+ sacks in 4 of his past 5 at home. • LB ALEX SINGLETON aims for his 3rd in row with 10+ tackles. Has 5+ tackles in 27 straight games, 2nd-longest active streak in NFL. • LB DRE GREENLAW had 1st sack of season last week. • DL ZACH ALLEN aims for his 3rd in row with sack. • CB RILEY MOSS has career-high 10 PD in 2025. • S TALANOA HUFANGA has 6 PD in his past 5.

NFL MIDSEASON TRENDS: WHY SCORING IS UP, OFFENSES ARE BIGGER, AND FINISHES ARE DRAMATIC

As the NFL passes the midpoint of the season, there are a few trends that have started to develop.

Scoring is up thanks in part to some special teams rule changes and increased aggressiveness on fourth downs, offenses are getting bigger with more plays than ever with an extra lineman or tight end, and no great teams have emerged.

For just the fourth time since the merger, every team in the NFL has at least two losses after nine weeks of the season as no team has risen above the competition. The only other years with no teams with one or fewer losses headed into Week 10 were 1979, 1981 and 2010.

The change is perhaps most evident with the Kansas City Chiefs, who remain the Super Bowl favorites according to BetMGM. despite a 5-4 record that currently would leave them on the outside of the playoff picture. The Chiefs were undefeated at this point last season as they were trying for their unprecedented third straight Super Bowl title.

The top three teams in the league by record — Indianapolis, Denver and New England — have combined for no playoff wins in the past six seasons. The other division leader in the AFC, Pittsburgh, hasn’t won a playoff game since 2016.

The AFC could have four new division winners after going back-to-back years with Buffalo, Baltimore, Houston and Kansas City finishing first.

The NFC has a bit more stability with the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles currently holding the top seed and have a more than three-game lead in the division with the chance to become the first repeat champion in the NFC East since they did it from 2001-04.

There have also been more dramatic finishes this season with the 35 games decided by a score in the final two minutes of regulation or in overtime tied with 2021 for the most ever through nine weeks.

Offenses getting bigger

One big trend so far this season is offenses getting bigger by using extra offensive linemen and more tight ends at an increasingly high pace.

Teams have run 457 plays with at least one extra offensive lineman, nearly double the number in the first nine weeks from 2023. Adding in plays with at least one extra tight end and the league has had the most plays through nine weeks with an extra lineman or tight end as far as records at Sportradar go back to 2006.

The big bodies aren’t just for more running with teams passing on more than 25% of plays with an extra lineman or tight end and posting a 101.2 passer rating that is more than 10 points higher than plays with at least three receivers on the field.

New kickoff rule has big impact

The first year of the so-called “dynamic kickoff” didn’t produce the results the NFL initially wanted with only a slight increase in returns from a record-low 21.8% in 2023 to 32.8% last season.

Moving the touchback spot from the 30 to the 35 this season has led to a major change with the return rate reaching 79% so far this season for the highest rate in 17 years.

There have only been two kickoff returns for touchdowns but there have been 42 returns of at least 40 yards — the most through nine weeks since there were 53 at this point in 2012.

The changes have also had a positive impact on scoring with the average starting field position following kickoffs being the 30.2 yard line for the best for offenses since at least 2000. Scoring is up more than two points per game than at this point last season.

K-balls lead to long distance kicks

The kickoff changes aren’t the only new rules that have had a major impact so far this season. The league also made changes to how teams can prepare balls used for kicking, allowing preparation before game day for the first time since the 1990s.

The more broken-in balls are traveling further with many kickers estimating they have a few extra yards on their kicks. That has led to a new record for longest field goal when Jacksonville’s Cam Little hit a record-setting 68-yarder on Sunday against Las Vegas, breaking the previous mark of 66 held by Justin Tucker.

There have already been an NFL record seven made field goals from at least 60 yards, including two by Dallas’ Brandon Aubrey, who missed his own attempt from 68 yards wide left on Monday night against Arizona.

The 39 makes from at least 55 yards are already the fourth most for any entire season and one more than there was for a 13-year span from 1994-2006.

While long kicks are on a record-setting pace, short ones are becoming more rare thanks in part to the improved field position from ensuing kickoffs. The 250 field goal attempts from less than 40 yards are the fewest through nine weeks since 1998.

Fourth-down revolution

The improved average starting field position and more coaches willing to be aggressive has the league off to a record-setting pace when it comes to fourth-down attempts.

Even traditionally more conservative coaches like Kansas City’s Andy Reid and San Francisco’s Kyle Shanahan have gotten into the act with the Chiefs going for it 11 times in the first half for the most in Reid’s 13 seasons. The 49ers went for it on their opening drive Sunday against the New York Giants, marking the first time Shanahan had ever attempted a fourth-down try in the first quarter in his own territory.

The 419 fourth-down tries are the most ever through nine weeks with 210 coming in the first three quarters before desperation kicks in.

The success rate is also at a record-setting pace with teams converting 59.7% of tries for the highest rate since at least 2000, including 72.6% on fourth and 1.

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+++++++++NBA NEWS+++++++++

NBA ROUNDUP: NETS BEAT PACERS FOR FIRST WIN OF SEASON

Michael Porter Jr. collected 32 points and 11 rebounds to propel the Brooklyn Nets to their first win of the season, a 112-103 decision over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday in Indianapolis.

Porter made four 3-pointers in his return from a one-game absence due to personal reasons.

Nic Claxton recorded 18 points and 10 rebounds and Noah Clowney added 17 points for Brooklyn, which outscored Indiana by a 32-20 margin in the fourth quarter. Tyrese Martin sank four 3-pointers to highlight his 16-point performance off the bench for the Nets.

All was not rosy for Brooklyn, however, as Cam Thomas exited midway into the first quarter due to left hamstring tightness and did not return to the contest. He entered the game averaging a team-best 24.4 points per contest.

Celtics 136, Wizards 107

Jaylen Brown scored a game-high 35 points to help Boston end a two-game skid with another win over visiting Washington.

Brown shot 13 of 21 from the floor and made 7 of 9 free-throw attempts while Josh Minott added a career-best 21 points for the Celtics, who have won their past nine games against the Wizards.

Washington turned the ball over 19 times, and the Celtics had a 30-3 edge in points off giveaways. Alex Sarr led the Wizards in points (31), rebounds (eight) and blocked shots (three). The Wizards have lost six in a row and have surrendered at least 119 points in seven of their eight games.

Cavaliers 132, 76ers 121

Donovan Mitchell scored a season-high 46 points and Jarrett Allen collected 24 points and 10 rebounds, powering Cleveland to a win over visiting Philadelphia.

Evan Mobley had 23 points and Darius Garland scored eight in 26 minutes in his season debut for Cleveland, which never trailed and built a 116-90 advantage early in the fourth quarter. The Cavaliers won their second straight.

Tyrese Maxey scored 14 of his 27 points in the second quarter and dished nine assists, while Quentin Grimes also had 27 points for Philadelphia. Andre Drummond added 13 points and 13 rebounds as the 76ers dropped their second in a row after opening the season 5-1.

Knicks 137, Timberwolves 114

Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns each posted double-doubles for New York, which remained perfect at home this season by pulling away from Minnesota.

Brunson (23 points, 10 assists, seven rebounds) flirted with his first career triple-double. Towns finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds in his seventh double-double in eight games this season for the Knicks, who have are 5-0 at home. OG Anunoby scored a team-high 25 points and added eight rebounds.

Julius Randle scored 32 points for the Timberwolves, whose two-game winning streak ended. Donte DiVincenzo had 21 points while going 5 of 11 from 3-point land. Anthony Edwards, who returned after missing four games with a strained right hamstring, scored 15 points.

Nuggets 122, Heat 112

Nikola Jokic produced 33 points, 16 assists and 15 rebounds, Aaron Gordon scored 24 points, and Denver remained unbeaten at home with a win over Miami.

Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 18 points off the bench for the Nuggets, who have won 11 straight regular-season games against the Heat.

Miami, which has lost three of its past four games, played most of the night without Bam Adebayo. He left late in the first quarter with a left foot injury and didn’t return. Norman Powell led the Heat with 23 points.

Pistons 114, Jazz 103

Cade Cunningham scored 28 of his 31 points in the second half and added 10 assists as host Detroit pulled away from Utah.

Jalen Duren powered in 22 points and 22 rebounds in Detroit’s fourth consecutive win. Ausar Thompson contributed 18 points, seven rebounds and four assists, while Isaiah Stewart had 10 points, six rebounds and three blocks. Caris LeVert chipped in 10 points.

Svi Mykhailiuk led the Jazz with 28 points, while Lauri Markkanen tossed in 25. Keyonte George added 19 points, and Jusuf Nurkic grabbed 17 rebounds. Utah shot just 38.4 percent from the field.

Rockets 124, Grizzlies 109

Amen Thompson scored a season-high 28 points with 10 rebounds and Alperen Sengun added 20 points and 16 boards to lead Houston over Memphis for its fifth straight win.

Thompson also added seven assists while shooting 13 of 26 from the field. The Rockets have defeated their past five opponents by an average of 19.2 points.

Cam Spencer and Santi Aldama paced the Grizzlies’ bench with 19 and 16 points, respectively, while Ja Morant led the starters with 17 points and eight assists. Memphis got 60 points from its reserves but only shot 38.2% from the field.

Pelicans 101, Mavericks 99

Saddiq Bey scored a season-high 22 points against Dallas to help visiting New Orleans win its second straight game after going 0-6 to open the year.

Jeremiah Fears and Jose Alvarado scored 13 points apiece for the Pelicans, who announced on Tuesday that star forward Zion Williamson would miss at least seven to 10 days due to a strained left hamstring.

Cooper Flagg led Dallas with 20 points. P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford each scored 15 points, Max Christie added 12, Klay Thompson had 11 and Brandon Williams chipped in 10. Washington had 11 rebounds for the Mavericks, who have lost three straight.

REPORT: JAZZ C WALKER KESSLER (TORN LABRUM) OUT FOR SEASON

Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler will miss the rest of the season due to a torn labrum in his left shoulder and will have surgery, ESPN reported on Wednesday afternoon.

Kessler, 24, has not played since a 118-96 loss at Phoenix on Friday. He is averaging career highs of 14.4 points, 3.0 assists, 1.4 steals and 30.8 minutes along with team highs of 10.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks in five games (all starts).

He ranked eighth in the league through Tuesday in rebound average and seventh in blocks for Utah, which started the season 3-4.

Memphis selected Kessler with the 22nd overall pick of the 2022 NBA Draft out of Auburn. The Grizzlies traded him the next day to the Minnesota Timberwolves, who dealt him on July 6, 2022, to the Jazz as part of a package of players and picks for Rudy Gobert.

For his career, Kessler averages 9.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 2.4 blocks, 0.5 steals and 25.3 minutes in 201 games (125 starts).

___________________________________________________________________________

++++++++++MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL+++++++++

NO. 23 CREIGHTON TOPS SOUTH DAKOTA FOR 32ND STRAIGHT HOME-OPENING WIN

Owen Freeman scored 19 points off the bench and Nik Graves added 15, lifting No. 23 Creighton to a 92-76 season-opening victory over South Dakota on Wednesday in Omaha, Neb.

Freeman made 9 of 11 shots from the floor and showed no ill effects as he works his way back from a knee injury since he transferred from Iowa.

Jackson McAndrew collected 13 points and seven rebounds for the Bluejays (1-0), who won their 32nd consecutive home opener and handed Greg McDermott his 500th career win as a Division I head coach.

The Bluejays shot a sizzling 50.0% from the floor, held a 20-7 advantage in assists and enjoyed a 44-37 edge in rebounds.

Summitt League Preseason First-Team selection Isaac Bruns scored 16 points and Jordan Crawford added 14 for South Dakota.

Vince Buzelis had 12 points off the bench for the Coyotes (0-2), who opened their season with an 81-79 overtime decision to Utah Tech on Monday.

Graves made several pump fakes before draining a 3-pointer, capping his team’s 7-0 run to give Creighton a 26-21 lead with 9:08 remaining in the first half.

Shey Eberwein trimmed the deficit to three points following a layup before the Bluejays scored 18 of the final 26 points of the half to take a 48-35 lead into intermission. Austin Swartz started the late uprising with a 3-pointer and Freeman made three baskets from in close during that stretch.

Freeman continued to exploit the interior to start the second half, making two dunks and two layups as Creighton scored 14 of the first 20 points to seize a 62-41 lead.

The Bluejays’ lead ballooned to 20 points with 4:45 remaining in the second half. Liam McChesney, who had open heart surgery in 2023, checked into his first game since March 2, 2023 while playing for Illinois State. He had one rebound and one block while missing two shots from the floor on Wednesday.

____________________________________________________________________________

++++++++++WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL++++++++

WOMEN’S TOP 25 ROUNDUP: HANNAH HIDALGO, NO. 15 IRISH ROUT FDU

All-American Hannah Hidalgo poured in 27 points as No. 15 Notre Dame cruised to a 98-52 season-opening win over Fairleigh Dickinson on Wednesday in South Bend, Ind.

Hidalgo sank half of her 22 field-goal attempts but went just 1-for-7 from 3-point range. She added six rebounds.

Notre Dame also got 22 points from Vanessa de Jesus, 15 from Cassandre Prosper, 14 from Gisela Sanchez and 13 from KK Bransford. Sanchez pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds for the Fighting Irish, who led 50-20 at halftime.

Ava Renninger paced the Knights (0-2) with 15 points, and Joi Johnson added 10. Those two combined to hit 12 of 23 field-goal attempts, while the rest of the team went 11 of 39 (28.2%).

No. 14 Iowa State 85, Southern 58

Audi Crooks produced 29 points and 14 rebounds as the Cyclones thrashed the Jaguars in Ames, Iowa.

Jada Williams was the only other double-figure scorer for Iowa State (2-0), logging 17 points. The Cyclones spread the scoring among 11 players and shot 56.9% from the floor.

Zaria Hurston led Southern (0-2) with 14 points and six rebounds. Jocelyn Tate and Anaja Hall each scored 11.

No. 22 Oklahoma State 97, East Texas A&M 59

Haleigh Timmer made 7 of 8 field-goal attempts, including 6 of 7 from 3-point range, while scoring 22 points in the Cowgirls’ victory over the Lions at Stillwater, Okla.

Stailee Heard contributed 15 points for Oklahoma State (2-0), and teammates Achol Akot, Amari Whiting and Micah Gray each posted 13. The Cowgirls took advantage of a major free-throw disparity, shooting 23 of 34 from the line compared to East Texas A&M’s 7 of 11.

Rezo Po’s 19 points and Cora Horvath’s 11 points paced the Lions (0-2), who trailed 45-24 at halftime.

________________________________________________________________

++++++++++NHL NEWS+++++++++

NHL ROUNDUP: ALEX OVECHKIN SCORES 900TH CAREER GOAL IN CAPS’ WIN

Alex Ovechkin scored his 900th career goal as the Washington Capitals defeated the visiting St. Louis Blues 6-1 on Wednesday.

Anthony Beauvillier and Tom Wilson each scored two goals and Jakob Chychrun recorded three assists as the Capitals snapped a four-game winless streak.

Alexey Toropchenko scored for the slumping Blues, who are 1-6-2 in their last nine games. Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington allowed four goals on 15 shots before giving way to Joel Hofer midway through the game.

Ovechkin set up his league-record 900th goal by knocking down an outlet attempt by Binnington early in the second period. When Chychrun’s ensuing shot caromed to him off the end boards, Ovechkin scored on a spinning backhand from a bad angle before Binnington could get to the post.

Sharks 6, Kraken 1

Macklin Celebrini logged a goal and two assists as San Jose handed Seattle its first regulation loss at home this season.

Will Smith, Tyler Toffoli and John Klingberg each added a goal for the Sharks, who improved to 4-1-1 over their past six games. Goaltender Yaroslav Askarov made 28 saves.

Ryan Winterton scored his first NHL goal for the Kraken, who entered the game with a 4-0-2 home record. Joey Daccord stopped 15 of 20 shots before being pulled at 3:24 of the third period. Matt Murray saved 2 of 3 attempts the rest of the way.

Flames 5, Blue Jackets 1

Nazem Kadri scored in his 1,000th game and Calgary got off to a lightning start and claimed a victory over visiting Columbus.

Morgan Frost and Blake Coleman gave Calgary a 2-0 lead after 92 seconds. Adam Klapka and Mikael Backlund also scored for the Flames, who have won two consecutive games for the first time this season.

Calgary goaltender Dustin Wolf sparkled, making 42 saves, 22 of them in the third period alone while the Blue Jackets attempted a comeback that fell well short.
Kirill Marchenko scored for Columbus, which has dropped two games in a row.

Blackhawks 5, Canucks 2

Tyler Bertuzzi recorded a hat trick and Spencer Knight made 43 saves in Chicago’s road win over Vancouver.

The victory ended both Chicago’s three-game winless streak (0-2-1), and a longstanding drought against Vancouver. The Blackhawks were 0-10-1 in their previous 11 games with the Canucks, dating back to the 2021-22 season.

Vancouver outshot Chicago by a 45-28 margin and held a 35-19 shots edge through two periods. Aatu Raty and Evander Kane scored late in the third period to spoil Knight’s shutout bid

Maple Leafs 5, Mammoth 3

John Tavares scored in the third period to snap a 2-2 tie and Toronto went on to defeat visiting Utah.

Tavares, William Nylander, Matias Maccelli and Matthew Knies all had a goal and an assist and Auston Matthews also scored for the Maple Leafs, who have won three in a row. Jake McCabe added two assists and Anthony Stolarz made 21 saves.

Michael Carcone, Mikhail Sergachev and Dylan Guenther scored for the Mammoth, who split the first two matchups of a four-game road trip that started Tuesday with a 2-1 overtime win over the Buffalo Sabres. Vitek Vanecek stopped 14 shots.

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+++++++++MLB NEWS+++++++++

WORLD SERIES GAME 7 MOST-WATCHED MLB GAME GLOBALLY IN 34 YEARS

Game 7 of the World Series averaged 51 million viewers combined across the United States, Canada and Japan, making it the most-watched MLB game globally in 34 years, the league announced Wednesday.

Spanning back nearly three-and-a-half decades was Game 7 of the 1991 World Series, which pitted the Minnesota Twins against the Atlanta Braves. The Twins secured a 1-0 win in 10 innings.

Back to last Saturday, the Los Angeles Dodgers recorded their second straight World Series title by posting a 5-4 victory in 11 innings over the host Toronto Blue Jays.

The Dodgers feature Japanese stars Shohei Ohtani and World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto, while the Canadian-based Blue Jays were making their first World Series appearance since 1993.

The breakdown of the viewership is as follows:

–The United States drew an average of 16.1 million viewers over the entire seven-game series across Fox, Fox Deportes, Univision, the Fox Sports App and Fox One.

–Canada averaged 8.1 million viewers for the entire series and 11.6 million for Game 7 through Sportsnet and TVA Sports.

–Japan drew an average of 9.7 million viewers for the entire series and 12.0 million on NHK-BS for Game 7, despite having a 9 a.m. local start time.

The 34 million viewers combined in three countries helped make the 2025 World Series the most-watched Fall Classic globally since 1992, when the Blue Jays beat the Braves in six games.

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+++++++++INDIANA SPORTS NEWS AND RELEASES+++++++++

+++++++++INDIANA PACERS+++++++++

GAME REWIND: PACERS 103, NETS 112

The Indiana Pacers closed their homestand by hosting the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday. Both teams were desperate for a win – Indiana entered the game with a 1-6 record and Brooklyn was winless through seven contests. A 112-103 victory for the Nets secured their first win, and the Pacers 1-7 record marks their worst start since 1988 when the team opened the season 0-8.

The Blue and Gold found themselves in a hole quickly as Brooklyn opened the contest with a 15-6 run behind eight points from Michael Porter Jr. That shot inspired a timeout from coach Rick Carlisle, and Indiana came out of the stoppage with renewed energy.

The Pacers cut the lead to two points following an offensive rebound from Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, who promptly dumped the ball off to a cutting Jarace Walker for the slam. Indiana forced Brooklyn into seven missed shots on the way to a 10-2 run, trailing by just a point with under five minutes to play.

The Nets went on to win the first period, 25-18, despite losing leading scorer Cam Thomas due to hamstring tightness. Thomas was ruled out for the remainder of the contest.

Indiana’s urgency improved in the second quarter as the Pacers opened the frame with an 8-0 run to tie the game at 26. Jay Huff’s 3-point bomb gave the Pacers the lead after two minutes of back-and-forth scoring between the clubs, 37-36. Robinson-Earl built on that lead with a long-range make of his own, and Indiana was up four points with seven minutes to go in the half.

Robinson-Earl was a spark for the Pacers – he set a career quarter high with seven rebounds in the first period, and continued to make an impact throughout the second.

The Pacers surged down the stretch of the second quarter, putting together a 9-0 scoring run behind critical baskets from Ben Sheppard, Aaron Nesmith, and Pascal Siakam.

That same trio was productive on offense for Indiana throughout the half – Sheppard finished with 12 points, and Siakam trailed him with 10. Nesmith recorded eight points, four rebounds, and three assists.

Porter Jr. continued to be the go-to guy for Brooklyn, and notched 20 points in the first half to go along with his eight rebounds.

Though they started slow, the Pacers made 46 percent of their shots through the first half. Brooklyn made just 42 percent of its first half looks.

The competition heated up in the third quarter after Carlisle was assessed two technical fouls and ejected from the game. Noah Clowney threw down a dunk for the Nets to give them a one-point edge, but Nesmith responded with a vicious slam of his own. A tough fading jumper from Siakam gave Indiana a five-point cushion, 65-60, to open the second half.

Turnovers stunted Indiana’s groove, and soon the Pacers were down three with under three minutes to play in the third. Huff faked his defender into the air, drove past him, and threw down a reverse jam to inject energy back into Gainbridge Fieldhouse. The next trip down the floor Huff drained a 3-pointer, giving him 13 points on the night and putting the Pacers back up two points, 79-77, with 2:03 left in the third quarter.

Indiana led by three points after the third period, 83-80, and entered the fourth quarter with a lead for the first time this season.

Brooklyn stepped up in the fourth, and created an 11-0 run that landed the Pacers in a seven-point hole with just under eight minutes to play. Robinson-Earl converted a 3-point play after he was fouled shooting a layup to end the drought.

Another push from the Nets had the Pacers down eight points at the 4:43 mark of the fourth quarter, and Indiana needed a run of its own. Sheppard hit another 3-pointer and the Pacers looked to have some life, but several empty trips down the floor in crunch time resulted in another eight-point deficit in the final two minutes.

The Pacers fell to the Nets, 112-103.

Siakam led Indiana with 23 points, but had a tough shooting night as he was 10-for-21 from the floor. He added six rebounds and six assists to his statline. Sheppard notched 18 points, and Robinson-Earl was just one rebound shy of tying his career high with 15 rebounds.

Porter Jr. led Brooklyn with 32 points and 11 rebounds, and was one of five Nets to score in double figures.

Neither team shot the ball particularly well – both teams made just 41 percent of their looks from the floor. Indiana shot 36 percent from 3-point range, but committed 18 turnovers.

The Pacers lost the fourth quarter for just the second time this season, 20-32, and fell to 1-7 overall. They’ll head out on a 4-game road trip in search of their first win as they travel to Denver for a matchup with the Nuggets on Saturday, Nov. 8 at 9:00 PM ET.

Inside the Numbers

Indiana recorded four double digit scorers – Siakam (23), Nesmith (15), Sheppard (18), and Huff (16).

The Pacers committed 18 turnovers leading to 23 Brooklyn points.

Indiana won the battle on the boards, 56-45.

The Pacers outscored the Nets 41-29 in the second quarter.

The Pacers shot 13 free throws to Brooklyn’s 35.

You Can Quote Me on That

“When that play happened I did not see any indication of whose ball it was…the whole thing didn’t look right, and so I was trying to get an answer as to what happened, and it was bang bang and then that was it.” – coach Rick Carlisle on his ejection in the third quarter

“Times right now are difficult, challenging. A lot of guys have a lot of extra responsibility that they’ve never had before, and so we’ve just got to absorb it and do better.” – Carlisle on challenges due to injuries

“I thought Shepherd played a great game. Played the best game he’s played since he’s been here. And he’s playing out of position, and so that was great to see. He was fearless, and he attacked the game. That’s what we’ve got to do. That’s how we’ve got to be from top to bottom.” – Carlisle on Ben Sheppard’s night

“There’s a lot of moving parts right now, a lot of getting to know each other’s strengths. And I think that will come in time, but right now it’s just important that we control what each player can control, which is effort, and just doing the right thing, making the right play.” – Ben Sheppard on the team’s focus through rough stretch

“I’ve been trying to get in extra work…just getting in a rhythm tonight. There’s no rhyme or reason to it necessarily, but it’s nice to see a few shots go in.” – Jay Huff on his shooting

“It’s a tough situation we’re in. A lot of guys that are here haven’t played this many minutes before. We’re missing a lot of the key pieces. That’s life, but it’s always next man up, and we’ve got a lot of guys playing really well. Jeremiah played his butt off tonight, rebounded like crazy. And you know, all things considered, I think we’re in a pretty good spot. Obviously, the record is not showing it, but we have guys playing really hard. A few points here and there, and our record looks very different.” – Huff on navigating injuries and adversity

Stat of the Night

Jeremiah Robinson-Earl recorded eight points and 15 rebounds — just one rebound shy of tying his career high.

Noteworthy

Wednesday’s contest was Aaron Nesmith’s 100th career game as a Pacer at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

The Pacers are 115-85 against the Nets all-time.

The last time the Pacers were 1-4 through their first five home games was 1996.

Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez spent time at the 2024 Paris Olympics with Andrew Nembhard as the head coach for Team Canada men’s basketball.

Up Next

The Pacers take on Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets as they open a four-game road trip in Denver on Saturday, Nov. 8 at 9:00 PM ET.

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++++++++++INDY FUEL+++++++++

FUEL FALL TO BISON 4-2 ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT

FISHERS – The Fuel hosted the Bloomington Bison on Wednesday night, in the first matchup of three in a row against their division opponent. After a close battle, the Bison took a 4-2 win over the Indy Fuel.

1ST PERIOD

Jadon Joseph took the game’s first penalty at 13:18, putting the Bison on a power play. Fuel player, Tyler Paquette, scored a shorthanded goal at 14:06 to make the score 1-0. The breakaway goal was unassisted.

The Fuel killed off the penalty soon after, but at 15:25, Brandon Yeamans tied it up for Bloomington. 

Shane Ott gave the Bison a 2-1 lead after scoring at 19:28. 

After one period, the Bison were outshooting Indy 15-5 while leading 2-1. 

2ND PERIOD

At 3:01, Indy’s Tyson Feist and Bloomington’s Mikael Robidoux took offsetting five minute major penalties after dropping the gloves in the corner. Robidoux headed to the locker room after the fight but later returned.

About three minutes later, Lou-Félix Denis earned a penalty shot after being tripped on a breakaway. He scored on Owen Flores to make it 3-1 in favor of Bloomington. 

With 5:15 to go in the second period, Kevin Lombardi scored with the help of Matt Patgrave and Christian Berger to make it 3-2. This was the Fuel’s third shot of the period. 

Time expired soon after with the Bison outshooting the Fuel, 21-12 after 40 minutes. 

3RD PERIOD

At 2:32, Bloomington’s Sullivan Mack took a hooking penalty to put the Fuel on the power play but they killed it off. 

Things stayed chippy between both teams, through the rest of the period.

Indy pulled Flores from goal with about two minutes left in favor of the extra skater and put pressure on late in the period but could not score. 

Ott scored his second goal of the game on the empty net at 19:48 to make it 4-2, which is how the game ended. Bloomington outshot Indy 27-19 in the 4-2 win. 

FUEL LOOK TO BOUNCE BACK AGAINST BLOOMINGTON

FISHERS– The Fuel will host the Bloomington Bison for the second time this week for True Crime Night. After falling 4-2 to the Bison on Wednesday, the Fuel will look to bounce back before heading to Bloomington for the third game of the set.

LAST TIME OUT

The last time these two teams met was Wednesday night at the Fishers Event Center where the Bison took a 4-2 win including a two-goal game from Shane Ott and a successful penalty shot from Lou-Félix Denis. Tyler Paquette scored his first goal of the season, shorthanded for the Fuel while Kevin Lombardi scored the other. 

REMATCH RIVALRY

Tensions were high in the matchup on Wednesday with Tyson Feist and Mikael Robidoux dropping the gloves and things staying chippy during faceoffs and along the boards. Seeing each other again will certainly ignite more of that division rivalry. 

LONG ROAD AHEAD

This game will be the fourth game of the month for Indy, who has fourteen total games in the month of November, which is the most they have in any one month all season. Endurance, staying healthy, and consistency will be key to earning a lot of points for the Fuel in this hectic month. They also play the Bison the most out of any team this season. Taking an early season series lead will be beneficial.

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+++++++++INDIANA MEN’S BASKETBALL++++++++

BLOOMINGTON. Ind. — Rims aren’t safe when Sam Alexis is around.

Sometimes, neither is the 3-point line.

The 6-foot-9 senior forward, a transfer from Florida, was part of an Indiana debut to remember as the Darian DeVries coaching era began with Wednesday night’s 98-51 victory over Alabama A&M at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.

The Hoosiers (1-0) attacked relentlessly, swarmed ferociously, and shot consistently. They were 10-for-24 on 3-pointers and 16-for-16 from the line. Their 23 assists against 11 turnovers reflected crisp passing and ball movement.

Alabama A&M (1-1) had no chance.

“Coach DeVries is big on just moving the ball, being unselfish,” guard Lamar Wilkerson said. “I think it was one practice like two weeks ago we had 31 assists to two turnovers.

“The ball is always moving. We feel like we’re better playing when the ball is moving, moving off ball again, getting us open shots.”

Added Darian DeVries: “This is what we’ve been talking about, what they’ve been doing in practice. I’m excited to see it carry to the game.

“This group has good IQ and feel. The play well off each other. They haven’t played together a lot. They were out there just playing. That allows them to play fast and trust their instincts.”

Few trusted it more than Alexis, a highlight show with 17 points, eight rebounds, and 6-for-7 shooting, including three dunks and a 3-pointer.

“Sam is awesome,” forward Reed Bailey said. “He can change the game with the way he can play under the rim, play strong and attack the basket as well as space the floor. You saw him knock down that three. We have full faith in him to be able to do that.

“He’s one of the live ones in the locker room. He keeps the good vibes up and keeps the energy high. I’m excited to see what he does this year.”

Alexis wasn’t the only highlight as five Hoosiers scored in double figures. Bailey led with 21 points. Wilkerson added 19. Guard Tayton Conerway had 14 points.

Forward Tucker DeVries joined the 2,000-career point club (2,004) with a do-it-all performance of 18 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists.

“I’m happy for him,” Darian DeVries said. “It’s a credit for all the hard work he’s put in.”

The coach paused, thinking of his own playing career.

“He doubled me up in points,” he said with a smile.

“When you get the individual accomplishments, it’s a credit to having good teammates and the work you put in. He’s worked hard for all of that. It’s great to see it showcased on the floor.”

This was why Darian DeVries came to Indiana, a chance to do something special at a tradition-rich program.

“Tonight was special,” DeVries said. “I was worried the guys would be too excited. They were so ready and pumped.

“I was excited-nervous. I didn’t get much sleep last night. You worry about are we ready for this, are we ready for that? I was just anxious to just play. We had great preparation.

“This is a special place. There’s not much like it in college ball. It’s a privilege to be out there. It was a fun night, a special night. I hope it’s the first of (many).”

IU dominated with a ruthless early combination of 4-for-6 3-point shooting and stifling defense during a 14-0 run that produced an 18-point lead in the first eight minutes and control the Hoosiers never lost.

At one point IU was shooting 73 percent from the field, was 9-for-9 on free throws, and had limited Alabama A&M to less than 20 percent shooting.

It wasn’t flawless, especially in the second half. A couple of Alabama A&M 3-pointers sandwiched around a Hoosier turnover caused Coach DeVries to call a timeout to restore Hoosier focus and intensity.

The result — multiple passes to set up an Alexis layup, and then a Tucker DeVries 3-pointer and then a Bailey dunk.

“We had them uncomfortable and got them pushed out,” Coach DeVries said. “In the second half, we were not quite in tune.

“It was mentioned a couple of times in the second half. It’s challenging. You get a big lead and human nature kicks in. It will be great to have something to talk about tomorrow.”

IU’s first points of the season came on a Wilkerson 3-pointer one minute into the game. The Hoosiers followed by forcing an Alabama A&M shot-clock violation and then made a steal to push ahead 9-3.

A Tucker DeVries 3-pointer and an Alexis dunk made it 16-5. Consecutive Wilkerson 3-pointers, plus a free throw to complete a four-point play, made it 23-5.

By halftime, eight Hoosiers had played, six had scored and IU led 58-22. Alexis and Wilkerson each had 15 points.

IU won the second half 40-29. A closing three-minute scoreless drought with all reserves playing cost the Hoosiers 100 points.

Next up is a Sunday trip to Chicago’s United Center and a game against Marquette.

“We understand Sunday will be different than tonight,” Darian DeVries said. “We’re all eager to get better and just want to win.”

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++++++++++PURDUE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL+++++++++

BOILERS TAKE ON EASTERN ILLINOIS THURSDAY NIGHT IN MACKEY

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – After a season opening win over FDU on Monday, the Purdue women’s basketball team takes on Eastern Illinois at 7 p.m. Thursday night at Mackey Arena.

The game will be streamed on B1G+ with Gavin Connelly, Kayla Helman and Ashlyn Boersma on the call. Tim Newton and Jane Schott will bring you the action for the Purdue Global Radio Network on 95.3 BOB FM.

The Boilermakers are 1-0 on the year following a  67-48 win over FDU on Monday night. Four Boilermakers finished in double figures, led by Kiki Smith’s 19 points off the bench. The Boilermakers connected on five three points with three coming from Smith and two from Madison Layden-Zay. Defensively, Purdue held the Knights to the lowest points and field goal percentage (27.4%) of the Katie Gearlds era.

PROMOTIONS

• Hoops & Heroes – Purdue will honor active, retired and former military members, as well as first responders.

• Boilermaker Kids Club Game 1 – Kids are encouraged to dress up in their best superhero costume

GAME NOTES

• Purdue leads the all-time series with Eastern Illinois 6-3.

• Purdue will meet Eastern Illinois for the first time since 2001 and just the second time since the 1988-89 campaign.

• Current associate head coach Kelly Komara had 14 points, four assists and five steals the last time the two clubs met in 2001.

• The two sides met six times in the first six years of Purdue Basketball.

• Hila Karsh became the ninth Purdue freshman in the last 25 years to record at least 10 points (finishing with 12), five rebounds, one assist (2), one block and one steal, a list that includes Kendall Puryear (2024-25), Lindsay Wisdom-Hylton (2005-06) and Katie Gearlds. Karsh also finished with a team-high plus-minus of 30 against FDU.

• Kiki Smith gave the Boilermakers a spark off the bench against FDU with 19 points, including a trio of 3-pointers, all of which came in the second quarter when she tallied 12 points.

• Monday marked the Purdue debut for seven Boilermakers. Nya Smith, Taylor Feldman, Hila Karsh, Saige Stahl, Kiki Smith, Tara Daye and Avery Gordon all got their first official action at Mackey Arena.

• Lana McCarthy and Tara Daye posted matching lines of 10 points and seven rebounds in the win.

• Purdue has held an opponent to 50 or fewer points five times since the start of the 2021-22 season. The Boilermakers are 33-4 when keeping teams to 60 points or less in the same span.

• Madison Layden-Zay moved up to 34th on Purdue’s all-time scoring list on Monday with 1,030 points, passing Bridget Perry. She is poised to climb spots on the career 3-point, assists and steals lists in the near future.

• Layden-Zay is on the cusp of making Big Ten history as the sixth player in league history to amass 1,000 points, 200 3-pointers, 500 rebounds (needs 76), 300 assists (12), and 50 blocks. She would join Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, Michigan State’s Tori Jankoska, Indiana’s Amanda Cahill, Ohio State’s Jaz Shelley and current Purdue head coach Katie Gearlds.

• The Boilermakers have won their last 20 regular season non-conference home games against non-power conference opponents, a run that started with a 70-60 win over Marshall on Nov. 22, 2021.

• With the win on Monday night, head coach katie Gearlds moved within 10 of reaching the 300-win plateau for her career that has included three postseason appearances at Purdue and two NAIA national titles during her eight years leading Marian in Indianapolis.

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++++++++++PURDUE MEN’S BASKETBALL+++++++++

PURDUE AND TENNESSEE AGREE TO HOME-AND-HOME SERIES

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Purdue and Tennessee men’s basketball programs have agreed to a home-and-home series beginning in the 2026-27 season.

The Boilermakers and Volunteers will start the series in West Lafayette on Dec. 12, 2026, in Mackey Arena, with a return trip to Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville on Dec. 11, 2027.

Purdue is currently ranked No. 1 in the AP poll, while Tennessee is ranked No. 18. The Volunteers own the second-longest streak of being ranked in the AP Top 25 poll at 81 weeks. Purdue is third at 60 weeks. Since the start of the 2021-22 season, Purdue has been ranked in the AP Top 10 in 62 weeks (2nd most), while Tennessee is at 50 weeks (5th most).

Purdue leads the all-time series with Tennessee by a 5-2 margin, having won three straight games with the Volunteers, including an Elite Eight matchup in 2024. Two of Purdue’s last three wins against Tennessee have come in the NCAA Tournament (Sweet 16 in 2019; Elite Eight in 2024), and in four of the last five meetings (dating to Nov. 2009), the two teams were ranked in the top 13 at the time of the contest.

The other piece of the Purdue schedule that has been announced is a return game at Iowa State during the 2026-27 season.

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++++++++++PURDUE FOOTBALL+++++++++

GAME 10 PREP: PURDUE HOSTS NATION’S #1 TEAM FOR 1ST TIME SINCE 1989

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – After dropping a hard-fought battle at No. 21 Michigan, 21-16, Purdue Football returns home to host the No. 1 team in the country. The Boilermakers face Ohio State, kicking off from Ross-Ade Stadium at 1 p.m. on BTN.

QUICK HITS

Purdue is playing the nation’s No. 1 team for the first time since 1990. The game marks the first time the Boilermakers face the top team in the College Football Playoff rankings.

The Boilermakers have defeated a ranked OSU team eight times throughout history, including four times when the Buckeyes were ranked in the Top 5.

Twenty-five years ago, Purdue defeated No. 12 Ohio State 31-27 on the way to a Big Ten Championship and a trip to the Rose Bowl. The game featured one of the most famous plays in program history (“Holy Toledo”), with Drew Brees finding Seth Morales on a 64-yard touchdown pass late in the fourth quarter.

Purdue’s November features opponents with a combined record of 30-4. That includes facing the top two teams in the country and back-to-back weeks against the last two national champions.

On this date 22 years ago (Nov. 8, 2003), No. 16 Purdue beat No. 10 Iowa 27-14 at Ross-Ade Stadium. Also on this date, the No. 8 Boilermakers and No. 16 Buckeyes played to a 14-14 tie (Nov. 8, 1958).

Donald Winston, a starting wide receiver on the 2000 Big Ten Championship team, will serve as Purdue’s honorary captain.

The Top 3 tacklers are Boilermakers. Charles Correa, Mani Powell and Tahj Ra-El lead the conference with 81 tackles apiece.

Correa, Powell and Ra-El all three average 9.0 tackles per game, ranking 18th nationally.

The Boilermakers are one of only two teams in the country (Buffalo) to have three different 15-tackle performances this season. (Mani Powell – 20 at Northwestern, Charles Correa – 15 vs. Illinois, Tahj Ra-El – 15 vs. Rutgers).

Michael Jackson III leads the Big Ten in receptions in league games with 39 catches for 315 yards. His 14-catch output at No. 22 Illinois is the most catches by any player in a B1G game this season.

Against No. 21 Michigan, Purdue was without Devin Mockobee for the first time since the 2022 season opener, snapping a streak of 37 straight games played by the starting running back. Mockobee is currently ranked in the program Top 10 in several career categories: 100-yard rushing games (4th), rushing yards (4th), all-purpose yards (7th) and rushing touchdowns (9th).

Spencer Porath is 11-for-12 on field goals this season, ranking third in the Big Ten and 10th nationally in field goal percentage (91.7%). Porath hit a career-long 50-yard field goal at Michigan last week.

Purdue leads the Big Ten and ranks 17th nationally in net punting with a 42.5 average.

The Boilermakers also rank 12th nationally in punt return defense, allowing only 2.7 yards per return.

FACING NO.1 

The Boilermakers are playing the No. 1 team in the country for the first time since 1990, a 37-11 loss at Notre Dame (Sept. 29, 1990).

Purdue is hosting the nation’s top ranked team for the first time since 1989, also the Fighting Irish.

Throughout the history of Purdue Football, the Boilermakers have beaten the nation’s No. 1 team seven times. Purdue is 7-11 against AP No. 1 teams and 7-11 against Coaches No. 1 teams.

BIG WINS OVER BUCKEYES

Purdue is no stranger to upsetting Ohio State. The Boilermakers have defeated a ranked OSU team eight times throughout history, including four times when the Buckeyes were ranked in the Top 5.

The last time the Boilermakers beat a Top 5 Buckeyes team, it was a night Purdue fans will never forget. Inspired by Purdue superfan Tyler Trent’s fight against cancer, the Boilermakers blew out No. 2 Ohio State 49-20 (Oct. 20, 2018).

One of the most iconic plays in Purdue Football history occurred against Ohio State. Seth Morales caught the game-winning 64-yard touchdown pass from Drew Brees, prompting a “Holy Toledo” from TV announcer Brent Musberger as the Boilermakers beat Ohio State (Oct. 28, 2000). Brees’ big throw to Morales helped the Boilermakers win the Big Ten and secure a trip to the Rose Bowl.

SUCCESS VS. RANKED OPPONENTS

Purdue has beaten seven ranked teams over the past seven seasons despite being the underdog in each one of those games.

Three of those wins were against Top 3 teams, while Purdue handed five of those ranked teams their first loss of the season.

The victories during the 2021 campaign (No. 2 Iowa, No. 3 Michigan State) gave Purdue multiple wins over Top 5 teams in one season for the first time since 1960 (No. 3 Ohio State, No. 1 Minnesota).

Five of the seven wins have been by double digits, the biggest being a 29-point victory over No. 2 Ohio State in 2018.

LAST WEEK VS. MICHIGAN

In a hard-fought battle, Purdue fell to No. 21 Michigan 21-16 at Michigan Stadium to kick off the month of November. The Wolverines entered the contest winning all four of their previous home games by at least 14 points.

The Boilermaker defense forced a pair of red zone turnovers, an interception by Hudauri Hines and a forced fumble by CJ Nunnally at the goal line that went out of the back of the end zone.

Purdue produced a 16-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that nine minutes and thirty seconds off the clock, the team’s longest drive in terms of time duration this season. It was the longest drive in plays for the Boilermakers since 2022 when they scored a touchdown on a 19-play drive against Illinois.

Tahj Ra-El finished with double-digit tackles for the third straight game, leading the team with 13 stops on the night.

Spencer Porath connected on a career-long 50-yard field goal early in the third quarter,the longest by a Boilermaker kicker since JD Dellinger hit a 53-yarder against TCU in 2019.

Winston Berglund got his hand on a punt in the third quarter, the first blocked punt by the Boilermakers since the season opener in 2024 by Leland Smith.

MISSING MOCKOBEE

Last week against No. 21 Michigan, Purdue was without one of the best running backs in program history.

Devin Mockobee missed the matchup due to injury, snapping a streak of 37 straight games played by the starting running back going all the way back to the 2022 season opener.

Mockobee appeared in five games before earning the starting position midway through the 2022 campaign and never looking back.

The Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year semifinalist is currently ranked in the program Top 10 in several career categories: 100-yard rushing games (4th – 9), rushing yards (4th – 2,987), all-purpose yards (7th – 3,864) and rushing touchdowns (9th – 23).

This season, Mockobee leads the team in rushing yards (521) and rushing touchdowns (4). He has also thrown a touchdown and caught a touchdown this year.

BIG PLAY CJ

Joining Purdue after two years as a First Team All-MAC defensive lineman at Akron, CJ Nunnally IV has proven to be a major transfer pickup for Barry Odom’s Boilermakers.

The Douglasville, Georgia, native leads Purdue in sacks (5.0), forced fumbles (2) and QB hurries (7), while ranking second in tackles-for-loss (7.5). He also has a fumble recovery to his credit.

Last week against No. 21 Michigan, Nunnally forced a fumble at the goal line, punching the ball out of the back of the end zone to give the ball back to the Boilermakers.

SWARM THE BALL

Charles Correa (81), Mani Powell (81) and Tahj Ra-El (81) have combined for 243 tackles this season, more than any other trio of teammates in the country.

The Top 3 tacklers are Boilermakers. Charles Correa, Mani Powell and Tahj Ra-El lead the conference with 81 tackles apiece. Those numbers are even better in conference play. Powell’s 10.8 tackles per conference contest lead the Big Ten, while Correa and Ra-El are tied for second with 9.7.

The three Boilermakers crack the nation’s Top 25 in tackle average, ranking 18th with 9.0 tackles per game.

With Ra El’s career-high 15-tackle performance against Rutgers, Purdue became the second team nationwide to record at least three individual 15-tackle games this season (Buffalo).

Correa and Powell led the attack against No. 22 Illinois, recording 15 and 14 tackles, respectively. They became the first pair of Purdue teammates to have at least 14 tackles in the same game since the Boilermakers’ 2021 Music City Bowl win over Tennessee (Chris Jefferson, Jaylan Alexander and Kieren Douglas).

FROM GEORGIA TO PURDUE

In the offseason, the Purdue wide receiver room welcomed a pair of Georgia transfers who have become an important part of the Boilermaker offense.

After making the move north, Michael Jackson III and Nitro Tuggle have combined for 74 catches for 804 yards and five touchdowns this season.

Jackson leads the Boilermakers in receptions (50) and receiving yards (456), while Tuggle ranks second in both categories, 24 and 348, respectively, and his four receiving touchdowns are a team best.

With 39 catches in conference games, Jackson leads the Big Ten. He hauled in a career-high 14 receptions against No. 22 Illinois, the only Big Ten player to reach that mark this season. It was also the most catches by a Boilermaker since Rondale Moore (Minnesota Vikings) caught 15 passes against Minnesota (Nov. 20, 2020).

Scoring a touchdown against Notre Dame, Tuggle became the first Purdue wide receiver to find the end zone in three straight games since Charlie Jones (Cincinnati Bengals) accomplished the feat during his 2022 All-American season.

MANI’S THE MAN

A team captain and finding a spot on the Butkus Award Watch List, linebacker Mani Powell is Purdue’s leading tackler through the first nine games of the season.

Powell leads the Big Ten in total tackles (81) and ranks 18th nationally with 9.0 tackles per game. He has been even better in conference play, as his 10.8 tackles per game in B1G games lead the league.

He also paces Purdue with 8.5 tackles-for-loss and ranks second on the team with a trio of sacks.

Against Northwestern, the Columbus, Ohio, native produced one of the best performances this century by a Purdue defender. He made a career-high 20 tackles, the most by a Big Ten player in a conference game since 2018.

Powell’s game marked the first time a Boilermaker recorded 20 tackles in a game since Willie Fells accomplished the feat against Iowa 28 years ago (Nov. 1, 1997).

SPECIAL SPENCER

Nine games into his sophomore year, Spencer Porath has already made more field goals as he did all of last season. He went 7-for-11 as a freshman, and he is 11-of-12 to start the 2025 campaign.

Against Michigan this season, Porath connected on a career-long 50-yard field goal. It was Purdue’s first kick of 50 or more yards since J.D. Dellinger made a 53-yard boot against TCU in 2019.

Porath is one of 12 kickers this season to have made 10 or more field goals at a 90% clip with a long of 50 yards or better. He and USC’s Ryon Sayeri are the lone representatives from the Big Ten.

Porath’s perfection through the his first nine kicks of the season matched the best start by a Purdue kicker since Mitchell Fineran in 2021.

In just 17 career games, Porath has moved into 14th on the Purdue career charts with 18 made kicks.

His 78.3% career field goal clip is currently second in Purdue history.

He made a career-high three field goals at No. 21 Notre Dame. That included a career-long 48-yard field goal in the second quarter.

Against Southern Illinois, he scored 10 points thanks to a pair of field goals and splitting the uprights on four PATs. For his performance, Porath became Purdue’s first Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week since Dellinger six seasons ago (Nov. 11, 2019).

TACKLING MACHINE

Making the move with head coach Barry Odom from Las Vegas to West Lafayette, sophomore linebacker Charles Correa has made an immediate impact for the Boilermaker defense.

Correa has made 81 tackles on the season, leading the Big Ten and averaging 9.0 tackles per game to rank 18th nationally.

He was the first Boilermaker underclassmen with at least 49 tackles through five games since Ja’Whaun Bentley in 2015.

Correa was the first Boilermaker since at least 1995 to record 10 or more tackles in four of the first five games and just the 14th Big Ten player to do so in that span.

Only eight other players throughout the country have recorded four 10-plus tackle games this year.

With four double-digit tackle games, Correa is tied for seventh-most in a season at Purdue since 1995.

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++++++++++NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL+++++++++

NO. 10 NOTRE DAME LOOKING FOR A SOLUTION TO GIVE ITS KICKING WOES THE BOOT IN NAVY MATCHUP

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman has watched missed extra points and errant field goals for two seasons.

He knows it’s time to give that problem the boot.

The 10th-ranked Irish saw it happen again in last weekend’s 25-10 victory over Boston College as three different kickers missed attempts, and Freeman knows it must change if they hope to stay in the playoff picture.

“There’s a technique to kicking a football,” Freeman said. “But there’s a human element when all of a sudden, you’re out there on Saturday that can mess with your mind, mess with your head and get you to revert back to a technique that isn’t producing consistent results. So we have to really have a plan of attack for the human element that happens.”

The next chance comes Saturday when Notre Dame (6-2, No. 10 CFP) hosts rival Navy (7-1).

But this is hardly a new issue for the Irish.

Last season, Mitch Jeter struggled with injuries all year — and it showed as the Irish went just 15 of 27 on field goals including two that were blocked in a stunning 16-14 loss to Northern Illinois. Still, Jeter delivered when it mattered most — making the decisive kick in the waning seconds against Penn State to give Notre Dame a 27-24 victory and a trip to the national championship game.

Could it happen again? Perhaps.

Injuries again have taken a toll on the Irish.

Noah Burnette, a transfer from North Carolina, sat out two games with a hip injury and then missed an extra point against Boston College. Things went from bad to worse when Freeman started using his other options. Erik Schmidt missed a 35-yard field goal attempt and Marcello Diomede missed an extra point.

At least all those misses didn’t cost them a victory, like the botched extra point after Notre Dame scored the go-ahead touchdown with 2:53 left against then-No. 16 Texas A&M. The Aggies took advantage by rallying for a 41-40 victory.

“We owe it to the team to be able to make extra points,” Freeman said.

Notre Dame already has missed four extra points this season, compared with one in 16 games last year, and is 5 of 8 on field goals with a season long of 48. The misses came from 31, 31 and 35 yards.

Finding an in-season solution won’t be easy.

Burnette, Diomede and Schmidt are the only kickers listed on the roster and, given the circumstances, it seems unlikely they would give punter James Rendell a shot. Unlike a couple of years ago, adding a soccer player or holding an open tryout wouldn’t work either.

“It’s an NCAA rule that before the season, you set your rosters at 105,” Freeman said. “There are guys that you can declare grandfathered in that were previously on your roster, but once your rosters are set, you can’t add anybody to your roster, so that’s why we can’t do anything about that right now.‌”

Freeman doesn’t want to rotate his kickers even though the resumes are spotty.

Burnette is 20 of 22 on extra points and 5 of 6 on field goals. Schmidt, a freshman, is 12 of 13 on extra points and missed both of his field-goal attempts. Diomede, a junior, is 2 of 3 on extra points but has not yet attempted a field goal.

Freeman said they’ve looked good in practice. He just needs them to execute in games.

“It’s starting to trend more toward the mental side,” Freeman said. “There’s added pressure, and it’s easy to say, ‘Don’t feel the pressure. Don’t worry about the pressure.’ It’s easy to say, but that’s really hard to do. And we have to continue to equip them with tools that help them in that moment.”

He added: “We can try to simulate (the pressure) in practice. I can yell and scream. That’s one way to simulate pressure, but that has nothing — that’s not even close to the pressure they feel when they have to make a field goal, especially after you’ve missed some. It’s a challenge, but we’ve got to fix it.”

NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL ANNOUNCES SERIES WITH AUBURN

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The University of Notre Dame football team has announced that Notre Dame and Auburn will play Sept. 25, 2027, at Notre Dame Stadium, and Oct. 28, 2028, in Auburn, Alabama in a home-and-home series. It will be the first meetings between the Irish and Tigers. Auburn will be the 13th member of the Southeastern Conference that Notre Dame will face in more than 130 years of football.

Both programs have a tradition of excellence on the gridiron. Notre Dame first competed in football in 1887 while Auburn first fielded a football team in 1892. Both sides boast multiple national championships and Heisman Trophy winners along with more than 800 all-time wins apiece. Notre Dame holds the edge in all three categories with 11 national championships, seven Heisman Trophy winners and more than 900 wins.

The series will mark the first trip for Notre Dame to the state of Alabama since facing Alabama in 1986 and will be just the third trip to the state overall. Additionally, it will mark the first time Auburn will play in the state of Indiana.

Notre Dame is 51-27-0 against current SEC teams all-time. With the announcement, the Irish will have faced or are slated to play 91 of the 134 Football Bowl Subdivision teams at least once in program history.

The Irish are 17-8 against first-time opponents since 2000, including wins over 2025 over first-time foes Arkansas and Boise State. Notre Dame is 4-3 when facing first-time opponents from Power conferences since 2000.

CARR NAMED SEMIFINALIST FOR SHAUN ALEXANDER FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR AWARD

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Freshman quarterback CJ Carr has been named a semifinalist for the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award, presented to the outstanding freshman player of the year in college football.

Carr is also a member of the Davey O’Brien Quarterback Class of 2025 and the Manning Award Watch List, both awards recognizing the top quarterback in college football.

Through eight games this season, Carr has completed 139 passes for 2,057 yards and 16 touchdowns. He has also rushed for two touchdowns. He leads the nation’s freshman in passing efficiency (170.6), passing yards per completion (14.80) and yards per pass attempt (9.84), and ranks fourth among all FBS players in those categories.

Notre Dame’s offense has consistently shown ability to make explosive plays and put together productive drives. Nationally, Notre Dame ranks third in the nation in turnover margin (1.25), fifth in team passing efficiency (170.56), seventh in passing yards per completion (14.81), 14th in scoring offense (37.4), 17th in total offense (461.6), 24th in sacks allowed (1.25) and 25th in passing offense (274.0).

His standout performance of the season thus far came in Notre Dame’s 56-13 win over Arkansas, in which Carr completed 22 passes for 354 yards and four touchdowns. In that game, he posted most first-half passing yards (294) by an Irish quarterback since 2008, and his four touchdowns tied for the second-most ever by a freshman quarterback at Notre Dame.

Carr was recognized nationally in several instances for his Arkansas performance, not only as the Shaun Alexander Award Freshman of the Week, but as a Manning Award Star of the Week and Manning Award Quarterback of the Week, and a member of the Davey O’Brien Great 8.

___________________________________________________________________

+++++++++NOTRE DAME WOMEN’S SOCCER++++++++

ENGLE NAMED ACC OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Notre Dame Fighting Irish finished with five women’s soccer players on the 2025 All-ACC Women’s Soccer Team announced by the league office on Wednesday afternoon.

Sophomore standout Izzy Engle was named the ACC Offensive Player of the Year and First Team All-ACC. Engle became the first Notre Dame striker to win ACC Offensive Player of the Year and just the fifth player in conference history to earn Freshman of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year in consecutive seasons.

Sophomore Annabelle Chukwu and senior Leah Klenke were also recognized with First Team All-ACC honors, followed by sophomore Grace Restovich with Third Team All-ACC honors and freshman Tessa Knapp with All-Freshman Team honors.

For Doug & Lisa Jones Head Coach Nate Norman, this marked his fourth straight year mentoring a Fighting Irish to a ‘of the Year’ award. The Irish are now the only ACC school to win such an award for four consecutive seasons: Korbin Albert (2022 ACC Midfielder of the Year), Eva Gaetino (2022, 2023 ACC Defender of the Year), Izzy Engle (2024 ACC Freshman of the Year), and now Izzy Engle takes home 2025 ACC Offensive Player of the Year.

Izzy Engle was an absolute offensive force for the Irish this season. She’s scored 40 points across 15 matches, which is the best in the nation in points per game (2.67). She has now scored 17 goals this season, the most of any player in the ACC so far this season and is third nationally. She was also recognized as the ACC Offensive Player of the Week twice this season.

In conference play, Engle scored 11 goals and was one of only two players to record double-figure goals in ACC matches this season. She was the only player to register a hat trick in league play, scoring three times in Notre Dame’s 5-0 win at Virginia Tech on October 23.

Engle has now scored an impressive 36 career goals in just 37 matches played.

PREVIEW: IRISH SET TO TAKE ON DUKE BLUE DEVILS IN ACC TOURNAMENT SEMIFINALS

NOTRE DAME vs. DUKE – Thursday, November 6 at 5:30 PM 
Location: First Horizon Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park | Cary, N.C.
LIVE STATS | SOCIAL MEDIA UPDATES | WATCH ON ACC NETWORK
Game Notes (PDF)

The Irish are set to take on Duke for the second time this season on Thursday, Nov. 6 in the ACC Tournament Semifinals. This will be Notre Dame’s third semifinal appearance in the last four years. Of the four teams remaining, the Irish have never played Duke, Virginia, or Stanford in an ACC Tournament match.

Notre Dame and Duke’s last meeting was a top-10 matchup at Alumni Stadium on Thursday, Sept. 18, as the No. 6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (7-0-1, 2-0) defeated the No. 3 Duke Blue Devils (6-2-1, 1-2) in a 3-2 ACC victory. Izzy Engle,  Annabelle Chukwu, and Laney Matriano each scored a goal for the Irish.

The Irish defense held the Blue Devils to nine shots with just three shots on goal. The last top-five win in the regular season for the Irish was Oct. 9 2022 as Notre Dame defeated No. 3 Florida State in a 4-0 shutout at home.

BY THE NUMBERS – NCAA TOURNAMENT

For the 30th time over the last 32 years, the Notre Dame women’s soccer program qualified for the NCAA Tournament in the 2024 season.

Notre Dame improved its all-time postseason record to 77-26-4. Their 77 victories passed UCLA (75) for the third most and rank only behind Florida State and UNC.

With a dominant 5-1 victory over Milwaukee in the First Round, the Irish improved to 52-4-1 at home in the NCAA Tournament

They have recorded 50 all-time clean sheets in the NCAA Tournament.

Notre Dame was a seeded team for the fourth consecutive year, earning the four-seed in the bottom-right quadrant.

The past four seasons under Doug & Lisa Jones Head Coach Nate Norman: Sweet 16 in 2021, Elite Eight in 2022, 2nd Round in 2023 and an Elite Eight in 2024. Thus, two quarterfinal appearances over the last three years.

The Irish made their 17th all-time appearance in the NCAA Quarterfinals. They are now 12-5 all-time in that round.

They’ve qualified for 12 College Cups with their last being in 2010. They are 8-4 in the Semifinal round.

The Irish boast three NCAA championships, which is tied for second most – 1995, 2004, 2010 – and five runner-up finishes (1994, 1996, 1999, 2006, 2008).

IZZY ENGLE = GOALS

Sophomore forward Izzy Engle was an absolute offensive force for the Irish this season. She’s scored 40 points across 15 matches, which is the best in the nation in points per game (2.67).

She has now scored 17 goals this season, the most of any player in the ACC so far this year as she is fourth nationally.

In conference play, Engle scored 11 goals and was one of only two players to record double-figure goals in ACC matches this season.

She was the only player to register a hat trick in league play, scoring three times in Notre Dame’s 5-0 win at Virginia Tech on October 23.

She’s also been recognized as the ACC Offensive Player of the Week twice this season.

The All-American sophomore has scored 36 career goals in just 37 matches played.

Irish Draw 1-1 at Wake Forest

The No. 1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (13-0-2, 8-0-1) recorded their first draw of ACC play as they drew 1-1 at Wake Forest (10-3-4, 4-2-3) on Sunday afternoon.

Izzy Engle recorded Notre Dame’s sole goal, which was her 17th goal of the season as she leads all ACC players in goals scored this season.

Engle’s Hat Trick Powers #1 Irish Past Virginia Tech, 5-0

The No. 1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (13-0-1, 8-0) defeated the Virginia Tech Hokies (4-10-3, 0-8-1) in a 5-0 shutout road win on Thursday evening.

Sophomore forward Izzy Engle led the way with her first hat trick of the season, her second hat trick of her career. Engle also recorded an assist for an impressive 7 points on the night.

She leads the ACC with 16 goals and is averaging 1.14 goals per game this season.

Sophomore Annabelle Chukwu also continued her incredible form, scoring her 11th goal of the season. Junior Morgan Roy also got on the score sheet with her third goal of the 2025 campaign.

The Notre Dame defense recorded its sixth clean sheet of the season, as Sonoma Kasica and Jackie Holloman combined for five saves in the victory.

Irish Advance to 7-0 in ACC After Defeating SMU 3-0

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish (12-0-1, 7-0-0) kept their unbeaten streak alive as they defeated SMU (8-5-2, 2-3-2) on Sunday afternoon in a 3-0 victory. Notre Dame’s 11-match win streak is the longest win streak in the country this season.

Annabelle Chukwu recorded her 10th goal of the season for Notre Dame’s first goal of the day and Abby Mills followed shortly after with her second goal of the season.

Morgan Roy finished the day with three points, as she recorded an assist and a goal, while Grace Restovich recorded two assists for the Irish in the win, tying her season-best.

A Dominant Second Half Leads #2 Irish Past #5 Florida State

The No. 2 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (11-0-1, 6-0) handed the No. 5 Florida State Seminoles (8-1-2, 4-1-1) their first loss of the season in an incredible comeback at Alumni Stadium. Down 2-0, the Irish would score four unanswered goals for an impressive 4-2 win over the Seminoles. Notre Dame’s 10-match win streak is now the longest win streak in the country this season.

Florida State has been known for their defense, conceding just two goals all season long in their previous 10 games. Tonight, the Irish doubled that with four goals in the victory. This is the first time since 2010 that the Seminoles have fallen in a match when they led at the half.

The Irish got contributions from many different players in the attack. Paige Buchner, Izzy Engle, Ellie Hodsden, and Annabelle Chukwu each netted a goal for the Irish, while Laney Matriano, Ally Pinto, Hodsden, and Engle each dished out an assist in the win.

Engle is second in the country with 31 points this season. She also leads the ACC and is third nationally with an impressive 13 goals across 12 games this year.

Sophomore goalkeeper Sonoma Kasica recorded a season-high seven saves in the win.

#2 Irish Advance to 5-0 in ACC Play After Defeating #23 Louisville

The No. 2 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (10-0-1, 5-0) remain undefeated after defeating the No. 23 Louisville Cardinals (10-3, 3-2) in a 3-1 victory at Alumni Stadium on Friday night.

Annabelle Chukwu, Ally Pinto, and Izzy Engle each scored a goal in the win. Morgan Roy, Abby Mills, and Engle each recorded an assist as well.

#2 Irish Lead ACC After Defeating Clemson 5-1

The No. 2 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (9-0-1, 4-0) lead the ACC and remain undefeated on the season after taking down the Clemson Tigers (3-4-5, 0-3-2) on the road in a 5-1 victory on Sunday evening.

Izzy Engle recorded her ninth multi-goal match of her career as she finished with a brace in the fourth conference win of the season.

Ellie Hodsden, Grace Restovich, and Paige Buchner each scored a goal a piece in the win, contributing to the most goals Clemson has conceded this season.

The Irish dished out five assists tonight as Leah Klenke, Carolyn Calzada, Annabelle Chukwu, Charlie Codd, and Izzy Engle each finished with an assist.

Engle’s brace and assist gave her an impressive five points on the night.

#2 Irish Take Down #22 Tar Heels

The No. 2 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (8-0-1, 3-0) remain undefeated as they took down the No. 22 North Carolina Tar Heels (7-4, 1-2) at Alumni Stadium in a 4-3 victory on Wednesday evening.

Since UNC has competed in the NCAA (since 1982) the Tar Heels have now allowed four or more goals in a match just four times, with ND achieving the feat twice.

Sophomores Izzy Engle, Ally Pinto, and Elle Hodsden, along with freshman Tessa Knapp, each netted a goal for the Irish in the 4-3 win. Pinto recorded her first career goal in the win.

Sophomore goalkeeper Sonoma Kasica tied her season-high with five saves tonight.

#6 Irish Take Down #3 Duke In 3-2 Battle At Alumni

It was a top-10 matchup at Alumni Stadium on Thursday evening as the No. 6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (7-0-1, 2-0) defeated the No. 3 Duke Blue Devils (6-2-1, 1-2) in a 3-2 ACC victory.

Sophomore Izzy Engle, sophomore Annabelle Chukwu, and senior Laney Matriano each netted a goal for the Irish. Engle is tied for a conference-best eight goals so far on the year with Chukwu right behind her at seven goals.

The Irish defense held the Blue Devils to nine shots with just three shots on goal.

The last top-five win in the regular season for the Irish was Oct. 9 2022 as Notre Dame defeated No. 3 Florida State in a 4-0 shutout at home.

IRISH OPEN UP ACC PLAY WITH 2-1 WIN AT NC STATE

The No. 6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (6-0-1) finished with a 2-1 win on the road against the NC State Wolfpack (1-6-2) to open up ACC play.

It was a battle all night as the Wolfpack defense was relentless in their efforts. The Irish found a way to get the job done on the road as the sophomore duo of Izzy Engle and Annabelle Chukwu each scored a goal a piece for Notre Dame to clinch the road win.

In the 86th minute, Roy sent a perfect delivery into the box, connecting with Chukwu on the cross. Chukwu’s clinical finish found the back of the net, securing all three points for the Irish in the 2-1 win over the Wolfpack in the league opener.

Sophomore goalkeeper Sonoma Kasica was great defensively down the stretch as she had four big-time saves in the second half for a season-best five saves on the night.

CHUKWU CLINIC AT MICHIGAN STATE

Sophomore Annabelle Chukwu has been named the ACC Co-Offensive Player of the Week and was also named to the Top Drawer Soccer Women’s Team of the Week.

She recorded her first career hat trick as she scored one goal in the first half and two goals in the second in the 3-0 win at Michigan State

Shooting a perfect 3-for-3 on night, she finished with a career-high six points.

This is also Chukwu’s first multi-goal game in her Irish career. With the three goals in the win, she has now recorded a total of eight career goals, six games through her sophomore season.

Chukwu’s header in the 26th minute put the Irish on the board and scored again in the 48th minute, burying it from the top of the box into the upper 90 to make it 2-0.

Just two minutes later, In the 50th minute, Morgan Roy fired the perfect corner kick to the near post as another Chukwu header found the back of the net to cap off the hat trick.

Matriano Has Herself A Week

Laney Matriano has been named the ACC Co-Offensive Player of the Week and was also named to the Top Drawer Soccer Women’s Team of the Week.

Matriano helped guide the Irish to a 3-0 win over Michigan and an 8-0 win over Oakland, finishing the week with an impressive two goals, three assists, and seven points.

She recorded a career-high three assists in the win over the Wolverines on Thursday, assisting on every goal scored that game and becoming the first ACC player to record three assists in a match against a Power Four conference team since Pitt’s Landy Mertz on November 11, 2023.

She then recorded a brace in the win over Oakland on Sunday, another career-best.

A Career night in the 8-0 win over oakland

The No.6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish advanced to 4-0-1 on the season as they defeated the Oakland Golden Grizzlies (1-4-1) in a 8-0 victory on Sunday evening.

The Irish had seven players in the scoring column, but senior Laney Matriano led the way with a brace, recording a career-high two goals in the dominant win.

Junior Morgan Roy and sophomore Grace Restovich recorded their first goals of the season, The sophomore duo of Annabelle Chukwu and Izzy Engle chipped in one goal a piece for their second and sixth goals on the season, respectively.

It was a night of career-firsts and career-highs for Notre Dame. Freshman Tessa Knapp and sophomore Randie Foor each recorded their first career goals, with junior Jackie Hollomon grabbing her first save in goal.

Sophomore Lily Joseph tied her career-high two assists and Senior Kiki Turner recorded her first career assist.

IRISH REMAIN UNDEFEATED: TAKE DOWN WOLVERINES

The No. 6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (3-0-1) remain undefeated on the season as they defeated the Michigan Wolverines (2-3-0) in a 3-0 win at Alumni Stadium on Thursday evening.

The Irish scored on three headers in the win, with goals coming from the sophomore trio of Izzy Engle, Abby Mills, and Ellie Hodsden.

Notre Dame finished with a season-best five assists as senior Laney Matriano led the way with a team-best and career-high three assists. Senior Leah Klenke and graduate Carolyn Calzada each recorded an assist for the Irish in the win.

The Irish outshot the Wolverines 16-5 as sophomore Sonoma Kasica finished with three saves and recorded her ninth career clean sheet.

IRISH TAKE DOWN BEARcATS

It was a great offensive night for the Irish with three players netting goals in the 4-0 win at Alumni on Thursday, Aug. 21.

Sophomore Izzy Engle recorded her second brace of the season, with sophomore Annabelle Chukwu and sophomore Ellie Hodsden each adding one goal apiece in the second half.

Sophomore Grace Restovich led the way with two assists, with senior Laney Matriano and junior Morgan Roy each recorded an assist as well.

The Irish defense suffocated the Bearcat attack, allowing only one shot on goal. Sophomore Sonoma Kasica finished with a clean sheet for the Irish, her eighth clean sheet in her career.

Irish Draw At #2 Arkansas

The No. 2 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (1-0-1) earned a hardfought draw on the road against No. 6 Arkansas Razorbacks (0-1-1) on in a heated top-10 battle.

The Irish offense was led by Charlie Codd and Ellie Hodsden, who each recorded their first goals of the season in the 2-2 draw.

While Codd netted the first goal of the game to tie it up at1-all, just over 35 minutes later, Ellie Hodsden had the play of the game. The sophomore received a pass in her own half and took it coast-to-coast before firing in a great shot from just inside the box.

Sonoma Kasica recorded four saves in the stalemate, totaling eight saves in the opening week of the season.

ENGLE WAS EVERYTHING NEEDED IN HOME OPENER

Sophomore Izzy Engle recorded a brace in the 2-1 win in the season opening win against the defending MAC Champions Western Michigan at Alumni Stadium on Thursday evening.

The reigning ACC Freshman of the Year and All-American picked up right where she left off in the 2024 campaign, recording her seventh career multi-goal game.

The Irish improved to an impressive 29-5-3 record in season openers.

Junior Chase Ying recorded her first career point off an assist on the opening goal.

Sophomore goalkeeper Sonoma Kasica recorded four saves to pick up the win.

PRESEASON PRAISE

Coming off of NCAA Quarterfinal run last season, the Irish were selected as the no. 2 team in the country in this year’s United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll. This is the highest preseason ranking since the 2011 season after the Irish won the National Championship in 2010.

The Irish were also selected as the no. 2 team in the 2025 Preseason ACC poll.

Goalkeeper Sonoma Kasica and forward Izzy Engle have been named to the United Soccer Coaches 2025 NCAA Players to Watch list this preseason.

Engle was also selected as a Preseason All-ACC honoree, alongside senior Leah Klenky. Both were All-ACC standouts last season, earning All-Region status as well.

Engle and Klenke are were each named to the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List as well this preseason.

NOTRE DAME’S 2024 RESUME

In the final United Soccer Coaches Poll, the Irish landed in the No. 6 position. There were six ACC teams in the top-10.

Irish finished with a RPI rank of No. 8. They achieved a 4-4-1 record against the RPI 1-25.

Notre Dame competed in the No. 1 RPI league, the ACC, and went 5-2-4.

The Fighting Irish recorded a 5-4-1 mark against ranked opposition this season. They defeated No. 2 Miss State, No. 6 Stanford, No. 13 TCU and No. 14 Virginia, No. 25 Cal, while tying at No. 1 Duke.

All 4 of ND’s losses were to ranked teams.

HOME SWEET HOME

It is not easy for opposing teams to earn a victory inside Alumni

Stadium. Since its creation in 2009, Notre Dame has gone 134-32-

11.

Over the last four seasons in particular – an impressive 36-6-6 (.813) record inside Alumni.

The last 5 seasons – 47-9-7 (.802)

A COLLEGE CUP CORE

The  expectations every year for this program is to qualify for a College Cup and compete for a national championship. The Irish fell a little short in 2024 but the pieces are there to make a run in 2025. We’ve talked already about how dynamic of a freshman class it was. Then there’s the returning vets: Morgan Roy, Charlie Codd, Laney Matriano, Leah Klenke and Clare Logan all started in at least 15 games this season.

Key losses include graduate forward/midfielder Ellie Ospeck (who recorded 33 points over her Irish career), captain Sophia Fisher (68 games played, 19 starts, 19 points) and KJ Ronan (58 games played, 5 starts).

All-in-all, the Irish return 141 of its 161 points aka 87.6 percent.

ACC PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH

1. North Carolina (10), 246

2. Notre Dame (2), 229

3. Florida State (4), 225

4. Duke, 208

5. Stanford, 201

6. Wake Forest, 172

7. Virginia (1), 169

8. Virginia Tech, 162

9. Clemson, 132

10. California, 124

11. Pitt, 111

12. SMU, 83

13. Boston College, 81

14. Louisville, 67

15. Miami, 44

16. NC State, 40

17. Syracuse, 18

ALL-AMERICAN – IZZY ENGLE Is BACK FOR YEAR 2

Izzy Engle immediately took the collegiate landscape by storm by putting together an All-American campaign in her freshman season. The United Soccer Coaches named her a Second Team All-American. Head Coach Nate Norman has now produced four different All-Americans over the past three years (Korbin Albert, Eva Gaetino, Olivia Wingate).

Engle scored 19 goals on the year, plus one assist, finishing with 39 total points.  Her 19 goals were the sixth most all-time by a freshman at Notre Dame.

Her 19 goals were the 2nd most scored in the country in 2024. Kate Faasse from North Carolina scored 20. Engle’s 0.86 goals per match ranked second nationally as well.

The Minnesota native scored nine goals over the last nine games and scored in three of the four NCAA Tournament games, including the game-winner against Mississippi State.

Engle’s 39 points ranked sixth nationally and second amongst ACC players.

Engle’s brace at No. 1 Duke marked the first time in program history in which an Irish freshman recorded multiple goals against the No. 1 team in the country.

Engle recorded the first freshman hat trick in program history since 2008 in Notre Dame’s win at Samford. She was the third quickest in program history to record a hat trick, doing so in just her second game. Kerri Hanks (2005) and Rosella Guerrero (1992) achieved hat tricks in their freshman debuts.

Freshmen clean up acc awards – 2024 accolades

Kudos to Coach Norman for the talent he’s been developing in South Bend. For it was the third straight year in which the program took an ACC ‘of the year’ award. And get this, it’s been three different players as well. Korbin Albert in 2022 (ACC Midfielder of the Year), Eva Gaetino in 2023 (ACC Defender of the Year) and now Izzy Engle in 2024 (ACC Freshman of the Year).

Engle’s awards didn’t stop there. The Minnesota native was also named First Team All-ACC alongside junior defender Leah Klenke. Third-Team All-ACC honors went to freshmen Annabelle Chukwu and Lily Joseph.

Klenke, who missed a portion of the early season because she was busy winning a bronze medal with Team USA at the U20 World Cup. Klenke came back and solidified the back-three while also securing a goal and an assist. This marked the second straight year for Klenke taking home an All-ACC award, improving upon her Second-Team status in 2023.

The Irish dominated the ACC All-Freshman Team list with four of the 11 spots, the most of any school. Izzy Engle, Lily Jospeh, Ellie Hodsden and Annabelle Chukwu were all named to the All-Freshman Team. The foursome ranked first, second, fourth and sixth, respectively, on the team in total points.

NOTRE DAME’s OFFENSIVE IMPROVEMENT

Notre Dame’s scoring offense of 2.50 ranked eighth in the country and third in the league. It marked Notre Dame’s highest scoring offense since 2008 (3.07).

In addition, Notre Dame had a whopping 16 different goal scorers on the year, which marked the most since 2008 as well.

The Irish ranked seventh in the nation in shots per game (19.6) and 12th in SOG/game (8.7).

Their 55 goals ranked seventh nationally.

44 of the team’s 55 goals were scored by freshmen.

The top-4 point getters on the team were freshmen: Izzy Engle (39 points), Lily Joseph (22 points), Grace Restovich (21 points) and Ellie Hodsden (18 points).

Irish were 14-0 when scoring first this season. They were 13-0-1 when leading at the half.

AN EMBARRASSMENT OF FRESHMEN RICHES

This year’s sophomore class was a gamechanger for Coach Norman in the 2024 as the class is loaded with top-talent. We’ve already talked about Izzy Engle but there were so many more rookie contributors.

Both Lily Joseph and Ellie Hodsden finished with the second most goals, contributing eight each. Joseph also dished out six assists to finish with the second most points with 22.

Joseph brought the flashy play, especially down the stretch. Her dribbling in open space was must see. At the Starkville Regional she recorded a brace against 5-seed Kentucky in the second round, then had the game-winning assist to Izzy Engle in the win over Miss State.

Hodsden played the role of super-sub. Despite missing the first six games due to injury, she still recorded 18 points (fourth most on the team). In fact, Hodsden averaged a goal every 60.0. minutes. Hodsden earned ACC Offensive Player of the Week after an amazing four-goal week in wins over No. 25 Cal and No. 6 Stanford. Hodsden started with her first career hat trick against Cal – scoring by three different means: chest, head and foot. She then followed that up with a second half goal against Stanford. Hodsden also played hero at Boston College, recording a brace to rally the Irish down 2-0 for the 2-2 tie. Her game-tying goal came via header in the 88th minute.

Next, there’s Grace Restovich, who led the Irish in assists with 11 – which ranked 11th in the country. Restovich also punched in five goals which made her the third and final Irish player/freshman with 20+ points. The St. Louis native scored two of her five goals in the NCAA Tournament, including a rocket of a goal in the 2-0 victory over 1-seed Miss State.

Freshman forward Annabelle Chukwu made 11 starts and recorded three goals and two assists. She missed the first portion of the season due to the U20 World Cup. More on that next.

Defensively speaking, Abby Mills took over the starting centerback position from an all-time great, Eva Gaetino. Mills even netted one goal and one assist.

Then right behind her in the GK position was Sonoma Kasica who won the starting role halfway through the season. Kasica posted a 10-4-3 record with a 1.12 GAA, a .750 save percentage, plus seven shutouts.

U20 WORLD CUP EXPERIENCE

Three Notre Dame starters got valuable youth national team experience during the early portion of the season. Leah Klenke (USA), Annabelle Chukwu (Canada) and Clare Logan (Canada) all participated in the U20 World Cup. Klenke returned to South Bend with a Bronze Medal.  

During the U20 World Cup, Chukwu broke Canada’s all-time youth scoring record, surpassing Canadian great Christina Sinclair.

Their U-20 experience continued into the 2025 summer as Chukwu competed in the 2025 Concacaf Women’s U20 Qualifier and earned herself a spot on the Canada Women’s National Team.

Sonoma Kasica, Abby Mills, Grace Restovich, and Izzy Engle were all named to 2025 CONCACAF U.S. Women’s U-20 Championship Roster.

Abby Mills, Grace Restovich, Izzy Engle, and Lily Joseph competed in the L’Albir U19 International tournament in Spain. Mills, Restovich, and Engle got the call up to the U19 U.S. Women’s National Team.

Morgan Roy and Sonoma Kasica were each called up to the U.S. U20 Women’s National Team.  goals, contributing eight each. Joseph also dished out six assists to finish with the second most points with 22.

Joseph brought the flashy play, especially down the stretch. Her dribbling in open space was must see. At the Starkville Regional she recorded a brace against 5-seed Kentucky in the second round, then had the game-winning assist to Izzy Engle in the win over Miss State.

Hodsden played the role of super-sub. Despite missing the first six games due to injury, she still recorded 18 points (fourth most on the team). In fact, Hodsden averaged a goal every 60.0. minutes. Hodsden earned ACC Offensive Player of the Week after an amazing four-goal week in wins over No. 25 Cal and No. 6 Stanford. Hodsden started with her first career hat trick against Cal – scoring by three different means: chest, head and foot. She then followed that up with a second half goal against Stanford. Hodsden also played hero at Boston College, recording a brace to rally the Irish down 2-0 for the 2-2 tie. Her game-tying goal came via header in the 88th minute.

Next, there’s Grace Restovich, who led the Irish in assists with 11 – which ranked 11th in the country. Restovich also punched in five goals which made her the third and final Irish player/freshman with 20+ points. The St. Louis native scored two of her five goals in the NCAA Tournament, including a rocket of a goal in the 2-0 victory over 1-seed Miss State.

Freshman forward Annabelle Chukwu made 11 starts and recorded three goals and two assists. She missed the first portion of the season due to the U20 World Cup. More on that next.

Defensively speaking, Abby Mills took over the starting centerback position from an all-time great, Eva Gaetino. Mills even netted one goal and one assist.

Then right behind her in the GK position was Sonoma Kasica who won the starting role halfway through the season. Kasica posted a 10-4-3 record with a 1.12 GAA, a .750 save percentage, plus seven shutouts.

__________________________________________________________

+++++++++NOTRE DAME MEN’S SOCCER+++++++++

IRISH FALL TO UNC IN ACC TOURNAMENT

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Notre Dame fell in the first round of the ACC Tournament, dropping a 3-1 loss to UNC on Wednesday evening at Alumni Stadium.

The Irish now await their fate when the NCAA Tournament field is announced on Monday, Nov. 17.

Senior center back Mitch Ferguson scored the Fighting Irish goal, marking his fifth of the season, which puts him into a tie for the team lead with Wyatt Borso.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Irish created the first attempt of the night, as KK Baffour got a shot off in the box but it was blocked away by a Tar Heel defender to keep the match scoreless.

The visitors managed to score the opener in the 21st minute off a strike from Nacho Abeal to give UNC a 1-0 advantage.

Notre Dame nearly leveled the match 13 minutes later, as Baffour took a touch to create space on his right foot and fired a shot on frame but right at the North Carolina keeper who made a diving save.

The Tar Heels doubled their lead in the 36th minute off a goal from Charlie Antonelius to put them on top 2-0 heading into the halftime break.

The Irish tried to push forward in the second half but couldn’t find the final ball to break down the Tar Heel defense.

In the 70th minute North Carolina added a third goal off a header from Dan Klink to push the lead to three goals.

Notre Dame was able to pull a goal back in the 84th minute off a set piece, as Sebastian Green’s free kick was headed home by Ferguson at the back post to trim the lead to 3-1.

The Irish threw numbers forward in the final minutes of play, trying to cut further into the lead but were unable to get any closer, falling by a final score of 3-1.

McFARLAND FAMILY MEN’S HEAD SOCCER COACH CHAD RILEY’S TAKE

On the match…

“It was one where so much of the game I thought we were good. Credit to UNC, we knew it would be a good game. In the first half we had a couple of turnovers that they transitioned really well on and put their two shots into the net. I think we had some good looks and quality attacks but we couldn’t get the breakthrough in the first half.

“Then in the second half we were pushing but not creating a ton to start but we were getting our way into it. But then I think the dagger was the well-executed set-piece goal by UNC, which made it a tough hole to climb out of.

“Credit to the team, I love this group and I love these guys, they kept going and it was nice to get one back. I’m so proud of the way they battled tonight and it shows their character and how committed they are to the team and to Notre Dame.”

UP NEXT

The Irish now await their fate when the NCAA Tournament field is announced on Monday, Nov. 17.

____________________________________________________________________

+++++++++NOTRE DAME WOMEN’S BASKETBALL+++++++++

HIDALGO NAMED TO WADE WATCH LIST

ATLANTA – Fighting Irish junior Hannah Hidalgo is one of 15 players selected to the Wade Watch List on Tuesday. The Wade Trophy is presented to the best player in college women’s basketball and is selected by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association.

The guard is coming off of another record-breaking campaign last year. She averaged 23.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 3.7 steals per game. She was the only player on the men’s or women’s side to average at least 20.0 points per game, 5.0 rebounds per game and 3.0 steals per game while shooting at least .400 from three-point range and .850 from the free throw line since 2000.

The Wade Watch list of candidates for the Wade Trophy is composed of players selected by the WBCA NCAA Division I Awards Committee. The committee will review the list midseason to determine if additional players will be added based on their play during the first half of the 2025-26 season. The winner of the award will be announced in April during the 2025 WBCA Convention in Phoenix — site of the 2026 NCAA Women’s Final Four.

Hidalgo and the Fighting Irish open the 2025-26 season on Wednesday evening inside Purcell Pavilion against FDU at 7 p.m. ET. The game will be streamed on ACCNX.

HIDALGO, DE JESUS SHINE AS NO. 15 NOTRE DAME DOWNS FDU, 98-52

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — No. 15 Notre Dame (1-0) women’s basketball started off the season strong on Wednesday, downing FDU (0-1), 98-52. Hannah Hidalgo led the way with 27 points, while Vanessa de Jesus followed with a career-high 22. Gisela Sanchez also had her first career double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds.

As a team, the Irish were hot from beyond the arc. Notre Dame went 9-17 (52.9 percent), including a 4-6 showing from de Jesus. The Irish also played lock down defense for the most part, finishing with 11 steals and four blocks and turning over the Knights 19 times. Cassandre Prosper led the way in the block category (4) and also finished with a team-leading five assists.

“I think they’re doing a great job of playing off of each other,” Karen and Kevin Keyes Family Head Coach Niele Ivey said of her defense. “I think that will continue to grow, but that’s something we are hanging our hat on. They work so hard and are so competitive defensively, and it’s something that they love to do, which is great.”

HOW IT HAPPENED

Notre Dame got off to a hot start with a 9-0 run — a pair of buckets from KK Bransford, a lay up from Prosper and a triple from Hidalgo. FDU racked up a few points of its own from there, scoring 11 of the next 21, but Notre Dame responded. The Irish led 27-13 after the first quarter, a frame that included 13 points from Hidalgo.

The second quarter started similar to the first, as Notre Dame scored the first 12 points. Sanchez started the scoring with a jumper — she hit her first three shots of the game — before Bransford had back-to-back layups, Hidalgo hit a jumper and a free throw, and de Jesus scored from beyond the arc.

FDU did not score in the second quarter until 3:16 left in the half, a bucket that was quickly followed by a triple from local product and Loyola Maryland transfer Kelly Ratigan.

Notre Dame went to the locker room up 50-20. Hidalgo led the way with 20 points, and Sanchez had seven boards. The Irish shot 58 percent from the floor and went 4-8 from deep. They scored 20 points off the Knights’ 11 turnovers.

Neither team shot particularly well coming out of the break. Notre Dame was 4-11 midway through the third quarter, while FDU was 4-10. Prosper had the first two made shots of the frame. The Irish heated up once again, going on an 11-0 run over a 90-second period midway through the frame. The exclamation point of the run was a Hidalgo backcourt steal sandwiched between two layups from the All-American. The Irish continued to pour it on, wrapping up a 27-15 quarter with a Sanchez high-post jumper just before the buzzer.

To close it out, the Irish hit three more triples in the fourth quarter, including a bucket from Luci Jensen.

UP NEXT

Notre Dame will return to Purcell Pavilion on Sunday, as the Irish host Chicago State (1-1) at 3 p.m. The Irish are 3-0 all-time against the Cougars, and the teams last met in 2023 in South Bend.

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+++++++++NOTRE DAME HOCKEY+++++++++

HOCKEY PREPARES FOR ROAD BATTLE AGAINST MINNESOTA

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – The University of Notre Dame Hockey team will take on Minnesota in their first conference road series of the season this Friday and Saturday (Nov. 7-8). Both games are set for 7pm CT start times.

The weekend series will mark the two programs’ 84th overall time meeting all-time. The Irish enter the matchup with 30 program wins over the Golden Gophers, including 19 victories on the road, three of which came at 3M Arena at Mariucci just last season.

The teams last clashed in a memorable 2025 Big Ten Quarterfinal series, where the Irish stunned top-seeded Minnesota in three games to advance to the Big Ten Playoff Semifinals. Notre Dame opened the series with a 3-2 victory before dominating in the thrilling Game 3, walking away with the 4-1 victory, to put down the top contender of the 2024-25 season. In the win, Brennan Ali delivered the series clinching goal, while Jayden Davis ignited the offense early in the finale with his first goal of the season.

A year ago, the Irish found key contributions up and down the lineup in their first meeting with the Gophers earlier in the regular season. Jack Larrigan and Jimmy Jurcev each netted their first career goals against Minnesota, with Jurcev’s coming in front of a sold out Mariucci crowd on the road in January.

Ten current Irish skaters recorded multiple points against the Gophers last season. Leading the way was defenseman Axel Kumlin, whose team best seven points included a career high three point performance in the series opener tallying a goal and two assists that displayed Kumlin’s two way impact.

As Notre Dame returns to Minneapolis, the Irish look to build on last season’s success in hostile territory and continue adding to their young season. With both programs hoping to make another postseason run, this weekend’s series looks to add momentum to the months ahead.

SERIES OVERVIEW

Opponent: Minnesota Golden Gophers (Nov. 7-8)

Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota | 3M Arena at Mariucci

Schedule: Fri. 8pm ET | Sat. 8pm ET

TV: Fox9+ (Local) | B1G+ (National)

______________________________________________________________

++++++++++BUTLER WOMEN’S SOCCER+++++++++

SOMMER EARNS MIDFIELDER OF THE YEAR HONOR AS FOUR BULLDOGS RECEIVE POSTSEASON RECOGNITION FROM BIG EAST

NEW YORK – Four Bulldogs earned All-BIG EAST honors for the 2025 women’s soccer season, as chosen by the BIG EAST coaches and announced by the conference office Wednesday, Nov. 5. Talia Sommer was selected as Co-Midfielder of the Year and landed on the First Team, while Lucia Englund landed on the Second Team. Both Chloe Brecht and Léa Larouche earned Third Team recognition.

Butler posted a 5-4-8 overall record this season with a 2-3-5 record in conference play.

Sommer, a senior from Tel Aviv, Israel, was fifth in the BIG EAST with seven assists and was seventh with 19 total points. She ranked fourth in shots per game (3.76) and shots on goal per game (1.53). Sommer led the Bulldogs with six goals in addition to assists and total points. She is now a three-time first team selection, after previous nods in 2024 and 2023, and she earned second team recognition as a freshman.

Englund, a junior from Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, was an attacking outside defensive back for the Bulldogs. She tallied one goal and a pair of assists this season. Englund was a third team selection in 2024.

Brecht, a sophomore from Powell, Ohio, played both defender and midfield for the Bulldogs. She notched a pair of goals and dished out four assists.

Larouche, a sophomore from Quebec, Canada, was an outside midfielder who scored one goal and was second on the team with five assists.

2025 BIG EAST Women’s Soccer Annual Awards

Offensive Player of the Year: Maja Lardner, Georgetown, Gr., F

Co-Midfielders of the Year: Talia Sommer, Butler, Sr. / Samantha Erbach, Xavier, So.

Defensive Player of the Year: Natalie Bain, Xavier, Sr., D

Goalkeeper of the Year: Cara Martin, Georgetown, Sr., GK

Freshman of the Year: Avrie Nelsen, Villanova, Fr., F

Coaching Staff of the Year: Georgetown

All-BIG EAST First Team

Ariana Mondiri, Creighton, Gr., F

Chioma Okafor, UConn, Sr., F

Maja Lardner, Georgetown, Gr., F

Elin Hansson, Xavier, Sr., F

Talia Sommer, Butler, Sr., M

Anaya Johnson, UConn, Jr., M

Natalie Means, Georgetown, Sr., M

Samantha Erbach, Xavier, So., M

Ella McBride, Providence, Sr., D/M

Natalie Bain, Xavier, Sr., D

Cara Martin, Georgetown, Sr., GK

All-BIG EAST Second Team *

Henley Tippins, Georgetown, Sr., F

Jocelyn Leigh, Marquette, So., F

Tori Gillis, Creighton, Sr., M

Shay Montgomery, Georgetown, Sr., M

Lizzie Heller, Georgetown, So., M

Thea Mouratidis, Providence, R-Jr., M

Gabby Koluch, Villanova, Jr., M

Regan Dancer, Xavier, Sr., M

Emma Flick, Xavier, Sr., M

Lucia Englund, Butler, Jr., D

Anna Carson, UConn, 6th, D

Kaya Hanson, Georgetown, Jr., D

Hannah Dickinson, Villanova, Fr., GK

All-BIG EAST Third Team *

Se-Hanna Mars, UConn, R-Fr., F

Sienna Gonzales, DePaul, Gr., F

Courtnee Pickles, Providence, Fr., F

Léa Larouche, Butler, So., M/F

Taylor Jenkins, UConn, So., M

Peyton Kohls, Xavier, R-So., M

Reese Slater, Xavier, Jr., M

Chloe Brecht, Butler, So., D/M

Esme Brayshaw, Georgetown, Sr., D

Stephanie Schoeley, Providence, So., D

Meredith Palmer, Villanova, So., D

Brooklyn Miltenberger, Xavier, Jr., D

Maria Galley, Xavier, Sr., GK

* Due to a tie, there are 13 players each on the second and third teams

________________________________________________________________

+++++++++BUTLER MEN’S BASKETBALL++++++++

AJAYI AND KAISER LEAD BULLDOGS TO 88-58 WIN OVER SOUTHERN INDIANA

Butler scored the first 17 points of the game and never looked back in an 88-58 win over the University of Southern Indiana at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

Both Michael Ajayi and Jamie Kaiser Jr. posted double-doubles in their respective Butler regular season debuts.

Wednesday’s tip marked the 2025-26 season-opener for both programs.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

Butler opened the game making eight of their first 11 attempts from the field, building that 17-0 advantage.

USI’s first point of the game at the 13:27 mark of the first half.

Butler’s lead was trimmed to seven on two occasions later in the first half before a 15-2 run gave the Bulldogs their first 20-point lead of the game (42-22 with 2:46 remaining in the first half).

Butler led, 52-26, at the half and the advantage never dipped below 19 in the second half.

TIP-INS:

Ajayi finished with 24 points, 12 rebounds and five assists. He went 11-for-14 from the free throw line. It marked his 20th double-double of his career. Ajayi scored nine of Butler’s first 15 points and had 18 points and nine rebounds in the first half.

Kaiser posted the first double-double of his career with 12 points and a career-high 10 rebounds. His previous career-best rebounding total was six during his time at Maryland; he had five rebounds in the first four minutes of this game.

Ajayi and Kaiser are the first Butler duo to post double-doubles in the same game since Aaron Thompson and Bryce Nze accomplished the feat Feb. 9, 2021 against St. John’s (Thompson’s double-double included assists).

Yohan Traore scored 15 points to go along with six rebounds in 15 minutes of action in his Butler debut.

Butler held a commanding 56-35 rebounding edge.

The Bulldogs limited USI to 29-percent shooting.

Butler converted 12 USI turnovers into 20 points.

Butler had 44 points in the paint and 22 fast-break points.

Jalen Jackson scored 11 points and handed out six assists, one shy of his career-high.

USI had four players in double figures, led by Kaden Brown’s 13 points.

The teams last played in 1984; Butler now leads the all-time series, 4-0.

The Bulldogs have now won their home opener in 27 consecutive seasons; that dates back to 1998 when Missouri State (then referred to as Southwest Missouri State) won a 72-57 decision at Hinkle Fieldhouse.

Butler is 83-5 in their last 88 home games against non-conference teams.

Thad Matta is 25-4 at Hinkle Fieldhouse against non-conference opponents as Butler’s head coach (which includes the 2000-01 season and since his return in 2022).

UP NEXT: The Bulldogs continue their season-opening home stand Saturday, hosting IU Indianapolis at 5 p.m. Tickets are still available for the contest, which will also air on ESPN+.

_______________________________________________________________________

++++++++++IU INDY MEN’S BASKETBALL+++++++++++

MEN’S BASKETBALL TO HOST NEC PRESEASON FAVORITE LIU ON THURSDAY

INDIANAPOLIS – The IU Indianapolis men’s basketball team will play host to the top team in the Northeast Conference (NEC) on Thursday night (Nov. 6) when the Jaguars welcome LIU to the Jungle for a 6:30 p.m. tip. LIU was the unanimous pick to win the NEC according to the league’s preseason polls.

IU Indy (0-1) is coming off a raucous 118-102 loss at Ohio State in the season opener on Monday and will look to rebound on their home floor. Monday’s game marked the start of the Ben Howlett-era of IU Indy basketball and ‘The System’ immediately showed dividends as the Jaguars put five players in double-digits and shot 50 percent from the floor while forcing 17 Ohio State turnovers. Sophomore Kameron Tinsley scored a team-high 22 points in 23 minutes and junior Kyler D’Augustino finished with 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting. Jaxon Edwards (13 points), JP Dragas (11) and Matt Compas (10) also finished in double-figures while senior Finley Woodward closed with four points, six rebounds and eight assists.

Thursday’s game will be aired on ESPN+ as Rick Johnston (pxp) and Hall of Famer Bob Lovell (analyst) are on the call and can be heard on 1430 Indy’s Sports Ticket as Jimmy Cook (pxp) and Chaz Hinds (analyst) describe the action. IU Indy fans are encouraged to wear black for a season-opening blackout inside the Jungle and can purchase tickets by clicking here.

Thursday’s game will be the first-ever meeting between IU Indy and LIU on the hardwood and begins a home-and-home series between the two programs. The Jaguars will return the trip out east next season.

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++++++++++IU INDY WOMEN’S BASKETBALL+++++++++

JAGUARS NEARLY PULL OFF UPSET AT NORTHWESTERN

EVANSTON, Ill. – The IU Indy women’s basketball team had an impressive showing against Big Ten opponent Northwestern, narrowly falling 67–64 Wednesday night at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Despite a strong second-half surge, the Jaguars came up just short in their bid for an early-season upset.

IU Indy came out with poise on the road, trading baskets early and holding their own defensively. Hailey Smith and Sydney Bolden found early success attacking the rim, helping the Jaguars keep pace with the Wildcats. Northwestern led 14–11 after the opening frame as both teams struggled to find rhythm offensively.

The Jaguars’ defense continued to shine, forcing eight Northwestern turnovers in the second quarter. E’Zaria Adams provided a spark off the bench with key free throws and a late layup, while Nevaeh Foster’s steal and fast-break bucket before halftime trimmed the deficit to just three. IU Indy trailed 26–23 at the break.

IU Indy found its offensive groove coming out of the locker room, posting 19 points in the third quarter. Adams and Destini Craig hit from deep to give the Jaguars their first lead since the opening minutes, while Olivia Smith’s steady play kept the pressure on Northwestern. After a buzzer beater layup from Olivia Smith, the Wildcats clung to a slim 46–42 advantage heading to the fourth.

The Jaguars refused to go away, erupting for 22 points in a back-and-forth final frame. With the ball late in the game, Craig sunk the layup to give the Jags a one point lead at 63-62 with 19 seconds. The Wildcats’ Xamiya Walton gave Northwestern the lead back after sinking a three. The Jags attempted to steal the lead back with one last play but Northwestern held on at the free-throw line to escape with the 67–64 win.

Adams and Craig led the Jaguars with 13 points apiece, while Bolden added 11 and Olivia Smith and Hailey Smith each added 10. IU Indy forced 19 turnovers and collected 13 steals in a gritty team effort that showcased its depth and defensive intensity to start the season.

IU Indy will now return to Indianapolis to host the Ball State Cardinals in the Jungle on Sunday, Nov. 9 at 1:00 PM.

______________________________________________________________

++++++++++BALL STATE FOOTBALL++++++++++

KELLY-TO-ANTHONY AERIALS KEY COMEBACK WIN FOR CARDINALS

MUNCIE, Ind. – Kameron Anthony caught a 29-yard pass from Kiael Kelly with 1:53 remaining Wednesday night to give Ball State a 17-13, come-from-behind Mid-American Conference victory over visiting Kent State.

Anthony, a redshirt freshman with just two catches for 15 yards in his career, made a 10-yard grab on 3rd-and-12 from the Golden Flashes’ 39-yard line. On 4th-and-2, Kelly found a wide-open Anthony in the left flat and he waltzed untouched into the end zone for the clinching score.

Ball State (4-5, 3-2 MAC) ran its home record at Scheumann Stadium to 4-0 for the first time since 2013, beating Kent State on the Cardinals’ home turf for a sixth straight time. Ball State got past Kent State for the fourth straight season overall.

While the Cardinals alternated wins and losses for an eighth consecutive week, the Golden Flashes (3-6, 2-3 MAC) alternated wins and losses for a fifth straight week and dropped to 0-5 on the road.

Ball State’s midweek #MAC-tion victory was its lowest-scoring MAC win at Scheumann Stadium since a 17-7 win over Western Michigan in 2002.

The win was in serious jeopardy though, when Kent State scored 13 unanswered points to assume a slim advantage with 11:07 to play, on a 28-yard field goal by Will Hryszko. Hryszko’s 39-yarder made it 10-3 before halftime and the Flashes added a 4-yard TD run by Donovan Delaney Jr., in the third.

After Hryszko’s go-ahead field goal to begin the fourth, the Cardinals punted after a 3-and-out on their ensuing possession and missed a 50-yard field goal attempt with 4:30 on the clock. Kent State turned the ball over on downs with 3:45 to play though, handing the Cardinals new life on a new possession that set up Ball State’s go-ahead score.

Kent State moved just 23 yards on eight plays in its final possession, ending with a fourth-down incompletion with 14 ticks left on the clock.

The Cardinals led 10-0 after DC Pippin’s 25-yard field goal in the first period and TJ Horton’s 1-yard shovel-pass score from Kelly, early in the second period. Kelly led the Cardinals with 53 rushing yards to move past Riley Neal into second place on Ball State’s career rushing ladder by quarterbacks. The senior from Tampa finished 17-of-29 passing for 173 yards and Ball State’s two decisive TD passes.

Ball State’s defense had a hand in the victory, claiming the game’s only turnover on Joedrick Lewis’ fourth-quarter interception, and limiting the Flashes’ offense with four stops on fourth down. Kent State ventured inside the Cardinals’ 25-yard line on five occasions, but claimed only 13 points.

The Cardinals also took advantage of 10 Kent State penalties. The Flashes’ first came on an illegal formation that negated a 35-yard field goal. One play later, a 40-yard attempt went wide right.

Ball State’s Nathan Voorhis, second in the nation in sacks, added another to claim his 11th of the season, the most by a Cardinal since Anthony Winbush had 11.5 in 2017. With three regular season games remaining, Voorhis is closing in on Ball State’s program record of 13, set in 1981 by Craig Newburg and duplicated a year later by Kelly George.

The Cardinals are idle this weekend, prior to hosting Eastern Michigan on Saturday, Nov. 15, at noon.

Single-game tickets for all Ball State football games are available at BallStateSports.com or by calling 1-888-BSU-TICKET.

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++++++++++BALL STATE WOMEN’S TENNIS++++++++

WTN DOUBLES DUO OF SHAHBAZ & TANJUATCO COMPETE AT ITA CONFERENCE MASTERS CHAMPIONSHIP BEGINNING THURSDAY

MUNCIE, Ind. – The Ball State twosome of Sarah Shahbaz and Isabel Tanjuatco have been selected to play at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Masters Championship in San Diego, Calif. at the Barnes Tennis Center from Nov. 6-9.

“I am really excited for Izzy and Sarah to represent us at the ITA conference masters,” Ball State head women’s tennis coach Sachin Kirtaine said. “It is a very prestigious honor to be a part of this tournament. Only the winners of every conference in the country will be going to this tournament. They have had a great fall so far and we are really looking forward to watching them compete in San Diego.”

The twosome has won three fall titles this season including the Mid-American Conference Indoor Doubles Championship on Oct. 5, 2025, in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Shahbaz and Tajuatco were also crowned doubles champions at the prestigious Milwaukee Tennis Classic (Sept. 25-28) and the Xavier Invite (Sept. 20-21). The twosome owns an undefeated 11-0 record in fall action.

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+++++++++++BALL STATE VOLLEYBALL+++++++++

VOLLEYBALL TRAVELS TO EMU FOR THURSDAY AND FRIDAY #MACTION

THIS WEEK IN BALL STATE VOLLEYBALL: The Ball State women’s volleyball team closes the road portion of its 2025 regular season schedule with two matches at Eastern Michigan … The Cardinals and Eagles will battle at 6 p.m. Thursday and Friday at the Gervin GameAbove Center.

FOLLOW THE ACTION: Fans unable to attend this week’s matches in person have several ways to follow the #MACtion … Both contests will be broadcast live on ESPN+ … Live stats will be available courtesy of Eastern Michigan … Updates from the matches will also be provided on the team’s X feed and Instagram story: @BallStateWVB.

CURRENTLY IN THE MAC: With its 13-1 league mark, Ball State owns a three-match lead in the MAC standings, with Western Michigan currently second at 10-4 … The Cardinals can clinch at least a share of the MAC regular season title with one win, or one Broncos loss over the remaining four matches … Toledo and Ohio are tied for third at 9-5, with the Rockets holding the head-to-head tiebreaker … Akron, Bowling Green and Miami are in a three-way tie for the final two spots at 7-7 … The top six teams in the final league standings advance to the 2025 MAC Volleyball Championship held Nov. 21-23 at Bowling Green’s Stroh Center.

MAC PRESEASON PROGNOSTICATION: Ball State women’s volleyball team received 102 points in the league’s annual coaches’ poll, trailing only defending regular season champion Bowling Green (119) … With coaches unable to vote for their own teams, BGSU earned 10 of the 12 votes to win the MAC regular season title, with the Cardinals claiming the other two … The Falcons were also selected as the favorite to win the MAC Volleyball Championship with 10 votes, while Buffalo and Central Michigan each garnered one vote.

PRESEASON HONORS: In addition to the team rankings, the MAC announced its annual Preseason All-MAC Team … Representing Ball State are sophomore outside Carson Tyler and sophomore libero Sophie Ledbetter … Tyler was named the 2024 MAC and AVCA Midwest Region Freshman of the Year after ranking first on the team and seventh in the league with a 3.34 kills-per-set average last season … Ledbetter earned a nod on the 2024 MAC All-Freshman team after leading the squad and ranking 10th in the MAC with a 3.68 digs-per-set average.

BALL STATE ALL-TIME: Ball State enters Thursday’s match at Eastern Michigan with a 1051-667-2 (.612) all-time record in women’s volleyball … Ball State became the 44th program in NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball history to reach 1,000 wins with a sweep of Central Michigan on Sept. 22, 2023 … All-time, the Cardinals have captured 12 MAC West Division Championships, 10 MAC Regular Season Championships and eight MAC Volleyball Championship titles … Ball State has made 11 appearances in the NCAA Tournament, including three of the last six seasons … BSU has also earned two bids into the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC).

WHEN IN WORTHEN: The Cardinals boast a 330-104 (.760) all-time record inside Worthen Arena, including an 84-41 (.672) mark against non-conference foes and a 246-63 (.796) ledger versus league foes … Overall, no MAC opponent owns a winning record inside Worthen Arena, as the Cardinals have at least a .630 winning percentage against all league schools on its current home floor … Ball State closes out its 2025 home slate Nov. 13-14 with back-to-back matches versus Central Michigan which is 6-27 all-time in Worthen Arena.

BALL STATE IN THE MAC: With a 13-1 record in MAC play this season, Ball State maintains its status as the winningest program in league play with a 472-226 (.676) all-time MAC mark … Western Michigan is second on the list, five matches behind the Cardinals at 467-231 (.676), while this weekend’s opponent Eastern Michigan is eighth at 291-406 (.418).

ABOUT THE 10-0 START TO #MACtion: While it’s season-long 10-match winning streak came to an end vs. Ohio (Oct. 25), Ball State’s 10-0 start to MAC play tied as the third-best league start in program history … The Cardinals also won its first 10 conference matches of the 1997 campaign … Ball State has also gone undefeated in league play twice, boasting an 18-0 mark in 1993, followed by a 17-0 record in 1994.

SCOUTING BALL STATE:

• The Cardinals enter the week with a 17-9 overall record, including an 13-1 record in Mid-American Conference play … Ball State went 3-0 last week, with a Tuesday win over Miami and a two-match weekend sweep at Kent State.

• Ball State remains the top-ranked MAC squad in the latest NCAA RPI Rankings, coming in at 53 this week, three spots better than last week … The Cardinals were 77th in the initial RPI rankings on Oct. 5 and climbed to as high as 45th in the Oct. 19 release.

• Ball State enters the EMU series as one of the nation’s top terminating teams, ranking second nationally with 1,381 total kills … Only Towson (1,401) has more kills than the Cardinals … 430 of Ball State’s kills, which is fifth nationally, have come from the arm of sophomore outside Carson Tyler who also ranks first in the MAC and 40th nationally with a 4.17 kills-per-set average.

• In addition, the Cardinals lead the MAC and rank 38th nationally with a .258 team attack percentage … Junior middle Camryn Wise is first in the league and 35th nationally with a .390 rate of success, while junior setter Lindsey Green ranks 100th nationally with 746 total assists and owns a 7.31 assists-per-set average.

SCOUTING EASTERN MICHIGAN:

• The Eagles enter the week with an 12-15 overall record, including a 4-10 mark in MAC play … Last week, EMU swept Central Michigan at home Tuesday, before dropping a pair of weekend matches at Akron by scores of 3-2 and 3-0.

• Eastern Michigan ranks 11th in the MAC in the latest NCAA RPI Rankings at 245, holding steady at the spot for the second straight week … EMU was ranked as high as 201st in the Oct. 12 RPI rankings with its best win coming being a 3-1 victory over No. 120 Valparaiso on Sept. 5.

• Eastern Michigan boasts one of the nation’s top backcourts, ranking second in the MAC and 58th nationally with a 15.41 team digs-per-set average … EMU’s 1,587 total digs are 10th nationally, led by 372 from Surabhi Srinivasan and 262 from Ava Siefke.

• The Eagles have also been solid at the net, ranking third in the MAC and 107th nationally with a 2.27 blocks-per-set average … Hatteras Welker leads the squad, is second in the MAC and 67th nationally with her 1.23 average … In addition, Welker’s 124 total blocks are second among all MAC players and eighth nationally.

• The Cardinals currently hold a 66-28 lead in the all-time series versus Eastern Michigan, including eight straight wins … Ball State is 24-18 all-time in matches play in Ypsilanti, including four straight wins … EMU’s last victory in the series was a 3-2 (25-21, 25-23, 23-25, 19-25, 15-13) win on its home court on March 27, 2021, during the COVID19 spring season … In its last trip to the Gervin GameAbove Center, Ball State earned a pair of sweeps Sept. 29 – Sept. 30, 2023.

BALL STATE QUICK HITS:

• Sophomore outside Carson Tyler has been one of the nation’s top attackers so far this season, ranking fifth nationally with 430 kills for a MAC-best 4.17 kills-per-set average … She has reached double-digit kills in 24 matches so far this season, including a career-high 29 kills versus Toledo (Oct. 10), 28 kills versus Cincinnati (Sept. 18), 26 kills versus James Madison (Sept. 14) and 21 kills at UConn (Sept. 5) … Last season, Tyler averaged 3.34 kills per set to become the first player in program history to earn AVCA Midwest Region Freshman of the Year accolades.

• With double-digit kills in both matches at Kent State last weekend, Carson Tyler took over sole possession of 17th in program history with double-digit kills in 46 career matches … She has 24 such matches this season, while collecting 22 her freshman campaign … In addition, Tyler is one of just nine players in program history to register 20-or-more kills in at least 10 career matches, with her 24 kills at Bowling Green (Oct. 16) being her 12th which is tied for sixth all-time.

• A six-rotation player, Carson Tyler is currently second on the squad with 260 digs … She has recorded kill/dig double-doubles in 14 matches this season, with her latest coming last Friday at Kent State … Tyler registered a career-high 19 digs in the win at Marquette (Sept. 12) and collected 18 versus Cal Poly (Aug. 31) and James Madison (Sept. 14) … Tyler also leads Ball State’s primary passers with a .962 reception percentage, successfully passing 587 of the 610 serves she has faced … Tyler also led the Cardinals’ primary passers with a .963 reception percentage last season by successfully passing 650 of the team-high 675 serves she faced.

• Graduate outside Noelle VanOort has made quite an impact playing for the Cardinals, smashing 295 total kills, collecting 188 digs and hitting .218 (295-107-863) … A member of the Golden Gopher Invitational All-Tournament Team, VanOort has tallied double-digit kills in 18 of BSU’s 26 matches, including a season-high 20 kills twice … Throw in 97 matches with double-figure kills during her four-year career at Indiana Tech and VanOort has been credited with at least 10 kills in 115 collegiate matches … She has also raised her collegiate total to 11 matches with 20+ kills, including a 20/20 effort Nov. 5, 2022, with 23 kills and 25 digs versus Siena Heights.

• Noelle VanOort has been just as solid on defense this season, earning double-digit digs seven times, including a season-high 23 vs. Cincinnati (Sept. 18) … The effort has raised her career total to 97 matches with double-digit digs, including her 90 at Indiana Tech … It also helped her raise her collegiate kill/dig double-double total to 74, including six with Ball State and 68 with the Warriors.

• Noelle VanOort reached a career milestone in the Oct. 28 victory over Miami, smashing the 2,000th kill of her collegiate career … The moment came midway through the second set when her third blast of the match gave BSU a 12-6 edge … Prior to arriving at Ball State, VanOort finished her four-year playing career at Indiana Tech (2021-24) as a two-time NAIA Third Team All-American and ranked second in program history with 1,724 kills … Add 295 kills so far at Ball State and her career total stands at 2,019 … She has also collected 1,836 digs and served up 295 aces over her collegiate career.

• With 20 kills each in the Aug. 31 match versus Cal Poly, Noelle VanOort and Carson Tyler became the first Ball State duo to record 20-or-more kills in the same match since the 2007 season … Brittany May and Julie Breivogel were the last players to do so with 21 and 20 kills, respectively, in an Oct. 5, 2027 match versus Western Michigan.

• Sophomore libero Sophie Ledbetter paces the Ball State defense with 410 digs and a 3.98 digs-per-set average this season … Her total ranks second among all MAC defenders, while her average is third … Ledbetter has recorded double-digit digs in 23 of BSU’s 26 matches, upping her career total to 46 … The effort includes a career-high tying 27 digs versus Eastern Kentucky (Sept. 20) and 26 digs in the season-opener versus St. Thomas (Aug. 29).

• Sophie Ledbetter earned her first collegiate double-double versus Cal Poly (Aug. 31), handing out 10 assists to go along with her 14 digs.

• Junior Lindsey Green and freshman Reese Axness have combined to lead the Ball State offense to a .258 attack percentage this season which is first in the MAC and 38th nationally … The mark includes a .270 rate of success over the team’s 14 MAC matches … Green, who became the 17th player in program history to reach 1,000 career assists last Friday at Kent State, currently ranks ninth in the MAC with a 7.31 assists-per-set average … She also leads the squad with 37 service aces … Axness, meanwhile, enters the week with a 4.39 assists-per-set average and has served up 13 aces.

• Junior middle Gwen Crull has turned up the offensive heat over the last eight weeks, reaching double-digit kills for the first eight times in her collegiate career … Her best match came at Miami (Oct. 7), when she smashed a career-high 13 kills and hit .522 (13-1-23) … She has also collected 12 kills on two occasions; vs. Cincinnati (Sept. 18) and at Akron (Sept. 26) … Since the start of MAC play, Crull is second on the squad with a .402 (110-20-224) attack percentage, which ranks third in the MAC during the span … She also leads the squad with a 0.83 blocks-per-set average this season, including a team-high 13 solo blocks.

• Junior middle Camryn Wise enters the week leading the Mid-American Conference with a .390 attack percentage … She has hit .300-or-better in 20 of the team’s 26 matches, paced by a .579 (12-1-19) rate of success at Marquette (Sept. 12) … Looking at just league matches, Wise’s mark jumps up to .429 with just 14 errors on 210 swings, to go along with 104 kills … Wise has hit at least .385 in 11 MAC outings, starting with a .545 (6-0-11) effort at Buffalo (Sept. 25).

• Sophomore Tiffany Snook is starting to find her grove on the right side, tying for fourth on the squad in league play with 104 kills for a 2.04 kills-per-set average … The effort includes a career-high 17 kills and a .433 (17-4-30) attack percentage versus Toledo (Oct. 10) … She also secured 11 kills at Akron (Sept. 26) and has at least six kills in 10 of Ball State’s 14 league matches.

• Roster Update: Senior opposite Madison Buckley and redshirt junior outside attacker Aniya Kennedy will both miss the 2025 season as medical redshirts … Buckley was a 2024 First Team All-MAC selection after ranking second on the team in total blocks (90.0) and third in total kills (276) last season … Kennedy, the 2023 MAC Freshman of the Year and First Team All-MAC selection, ranked second on the squad with 279 kills last season and chipped in 43 total blocks.

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++++++++++INDIANA STATE MEN’S BASKETBALL+++++++++

SYCAMORES OPEN HOME SLATE AGAINST ILLINOIS TECH

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State men’s basketball opens the 2025-26 home slate on Thursday, November 6 against Illinois Tech.

Last Time Out

Indiana State opened their season at Charlotte, but fell 92-76. Former NAIA All-American Ian Scott led the way with a double-double of 24 points and 11 rebounds, going 9-for-10 from the floor and 2-for-2 from deep. Derek Vorst followed with 14 points, good for a new career high, and Camp Wagner with 12, while Truman State transfer Xavier Hall picked up nine assists.

The Sycamores shot 47.4% from the field, but the 49ers out-rebounded the Trees 45-24 with 18 offensive boards.

The Series

This will be the first meeting between the two teams.

A Note on Coach Graves

Indiana State men’s basketball head coach Matthew Graves will be taking a leave of absence, effective immediately, due to a medical procedure ahead of the start of the 2025-26 season. Associate Head Coach Mark Slessinger will serve as the Sycamores’ acting head coach in Graves’ absence.

Following Illinois Tech

Indiana State will travel to SIUE on Monday, November 10. The Cougars were picked to finish third this season in the Ohio Valley Conference.

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++++++++++INDIANA STATE SWIMMING++++++++

SYCAMORES RETURN TO ACTION TO HOST ILLINOIS, VANDERBILT AT VIGO COUNTY AQUATIC CENTER

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State swimming and diving returns to action this weekend as the Sycamores welcome both Illinois and Vanderbilt for a double dual meet inside the Vigo County Aquatic Center over November 7-8. Friday night’s events are set to begin at 7 p.m. ET, while Saturday’s schedule is set to start at 11 a.m. Results will be available on MeetMobile.

“We’re looking forward to our first official home meet of the season,” head coach Josh Christensen said. “Illinois and Vanderbilt will provide some excellent competition that will challenge us and require us to be at our best. We’ve had a couple great weeks of training since our last meet and the goal for this weekend will be to see some progression in how we are racing.”

Friday Event Schedule – 7 p.m.

400 Medley Relay, 500 Freestyle, 3M Diving, 200 Butterfly, 100 Breaststroke, 200 Backstroke, 100 Freestyle, 200 IM, 200 Freestyle Relay

Saturday Event Schedule

200 Medley Relay, 1000 Freestyle, 50 Freestyle, 1M Diving, 100 Backstroke, 200 Breaststroke, 200 Freestyle, 100 Butterfly, 400 IM, 400 Freestyle Relay

Indiana State heads back into action following after two weeks off following their double dual meet in Evansville, Ind. against both Evansville and Southern Indiana inside the Deaconess Aquatic Center. The Sycamores claimed nine of the 16 event wins over the event to top both UE (200-99) and USI (221-79) on their way to improving to 3-0 overall on the season.

The Sycamores’ wins over both the Purple Aces and the Screaming Eagles featured multiple swimming event wins from both Erin Cummins (200 & 500 Free) and Claire Parsons (1000 Free & 200 Back), while Jecza Lopez swept the 1M and 3M Springboard diving events for the second consecutive meet. Haley Halsall (200 Fly) and Ali Pearson (100 Breast) also picked up event wins at the Saturday afternoon meet.

Lopez has claimed MVC Diver of the Week honors twice already over the 2025 fall season after claiming the honors against both Missouri State, and the double dual meet against Evansville/USI. The junior has already clinched her spot at the 2026 NCAA Zone C Qualifiers, marking the first Sycamore to achieve the feat in both the 1M and 3M events for two consecutive seasons.

Indiana State has already seen several new marks on the all-time Top 10 Performance List through two meets on the year. Freshman Grace Cummings moved into the top 10 in the 1000 Freestyle with a 10:13.02 at the Blue-Gray Intrasquad, while Sara Keefe has made her mark in both the 50 Backstroke (27.12, Missouri State) and 100 Backstroke (56.82, Blue-Gray).

Divers Brenna Woodruff, Sophia Dansereau, and Bree Cleary have also jumped into the Indiana State Diving Top 15 all-time performance list following the Missouri State and Evansville/USI meets.

This weekend’s meet marks the second consecutive season Indiana State, Illinois, and Vanderbilt will compete against each other in the pool. The trio of teams battled last season at the House of Paign Invite hosted by Illinois at the Arc Pool over October 26-27.

The Sycamores claimed the 194-135 win over Vanderbilt at the meet, marking Indiana State’s first win over an SEC opponent in the inaugural meeting between the two programs. The Sycamores fell to Illinois (250.5-130.5) at the meet.

Highlighting the competition last season included the Sycamores winning the 400 Freestyle Relay, 400 Medley Relay, and the 200 Freestyle Relay. Alum Chloe Farro claimed the 100 Freestyle Super Final win to put points in the Indiana State scoring column.

Claire Parsons (500 & 1000 Free), Ali Pearson (50 & 100 Breast), Raine Boles (100 Fly), Kaleigh Kelley (50 & 100 Fly), Brenna Woodruff (3M Diving), Erin Cummins (200 Free), Sahara Visscher (50 Back), Sophia Diaz (200 Fly) all recorded top three finishes for the Sycamores across the two day meet to highlight the Indiana State returners to the pool.

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+++++++++EVANSVILLE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL+++++++++

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL SET TO OPEN REGULAR SEASON AT SEMO

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville women’s basketball team opens the 2025-26 season on Thursday morning, traveling to Cape Girardeau, Mo. to take on the SEMO Redhawks. Tip-off for the regular season opener is scheduled for 11 AM from the Show Me Center.

Season Opener

– Thursday begins the 57th season of Evansville women’s basketball

– In 56 previous season openers, the Aces hold a 32-24 record

– Under Head Coach Robyn Scherr, Evansville is 2-2 in season openers

– The last win in a season opener came in 2022 with an 89-81 win at Eastern Kentucky

Series History  

– Thursday marks the first time that Evansville has opened the season against SEMO

– SEMO leads the all-time series between the two teams 13-6, with Thursday being the 20th all-time meeting between the Aces and Redhawks

– The Purple Aces are seeking their first-ever win in Cape Girardeau, holding an 0-8 record all-time at SEMO

– Evansville and SEMO are meeting for the fourth consecutive season, with the Purple Aces taking two of the last three match-ups

– Last season, the Aces beat the Redhawks 70-55 in Evansville, with Camryn Runner leading all scorers with 20 points and Kylee Norkus adding 12

Returning Core

– 53% of UE’s points and 51% of minutes last season came from six returners to the 2025-26 roster, all of which are sophomores this season – Camryn Runner, Avery Kelley, Logan Luebbers Palmer, Kaiden Kreinhagen, Elle Snyder and Kylee Norkus

– Three of those returners – Runner, Luebbers Palmer, and Norkus – earned spots on the MVC Preaseason Players to Watch list

– Reigning MVC Freshman of the Year Camryn Runner finished last season 10th in the nation in scoring by a freshman with 15.5 PPG

– As Avery Kelley gained experience throughout her freshman season with the Aces, the Evansville native became a large piece of the team’s gameplan. After averaging 2.9 points in nine non-conference games, Kelley averaged just shy of 8 points per contest against Valley competition

Exhibition Recap

– In its preseason tune-up on October 28, the Aces defeated Roosevelt inside Meeks Family Fieldhouse

– Luebbers Palmer led all scorers with 23 points, going 10-of-19 from the field and 3-for-3 from three point range

– Avery Kelley and Camryn Runner also scored in double-figures for UE, scoring 14 and 12 points, respectively

– In her first time wearing an Evansville uniform, freshman Georgia Ferguson grabbed a team-best eight rebounds in 18 minutes of action

Scouting the Opponent

– SEMO enters the 2025-26 campaign after going 6-23 last season, including a 4-16 mark in OVC play

– The Redhawks opened their season on Tuesday at Illinois, dropping a 91-67 decision

– Lexi McCully finished last season as SEMO’s second-leading scorer at 11.2 points per game and led the Redhawks with 16 points against the Fighting Illini

Follow Along

Thursday’s game will be streamed live on ESPN+. Live stats are available at GoPurpleAces.com.

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+++++++++EVANSVILLE MEN’S SOCCER++++++++

ACES DROP REGULAR SEASON FINALE TO BELMONT, ENTER MVC TOURNAMENT WITH TOP SEED

NASHVILLE – In the final match of the regular season, the University of Evansville men’s soccer team suffered their first MVC loss of the campaign, falling to Belmont by a score of 2-1. Despite the loss, Evansville enters the MVC Tournament with the number one seed for the first time in program history and will host the winner of UIC and Belmont next Wednesday at Arad McCutchan Stadium.

Neither team was able to put a shot on goal in the opening stages of action, with the Aces tallying one shot and the Bruins putting up two.

In the 28th minute of action, star freshman Andres Escudero (San Sebastián de los Reyes, Spain/IES Joan Miro) created a scoring chance on his own, taking a thrown in near the midfield line and battling Belmont defenders to make a long run. Just outside the penalty area, Escudero took a left-footed shot that went past the Belmont keeper, off the crossbar and into the back of the net. The goal was Escudero’s ninth of the season, the most by a UE freshman since MVC Freshman of the Year Nacho Diaz Barragan scored nine in 2022, and gave the Aces a 1-0 lead.

Escudero nearly extended the lead in the 34th minute with another good scoring chance, but his shot was saved.

Belmont was able to find the equalizer before halftime, scoring in the 39th minute to make it a 1-1 game heading into halftime.

Escudero threatened to score once again in the 69th minute, hitting the post with a shot, but was left empty-handed. Less than a minute later, Belmont flipped the script, finding the back of the net to take their first lead of the night.

For the final 20 minutes, Evansville fought to find the equalizer, including Escudero nearly scoring once again with another shot off the post. However, the Aces were unable to find the tying goal as the Bruins earned a 2-1 win.

“I think we have put together a lot of games where we have managed moments well, and I think tonight when we went up 1-0, we didn’t do that quite as well,” said Head Coach Robbe Tarver. “I think we created a decent amount to try and equalize the game, we hit the post twice, but Belmont is a good team and they are really tough to beat at home.” 

“At the end of the day, we are pretty healthy going into the tournament, we have the number one seed, we have a bye to prepare, and we get to host. There are a lot of positives that we have from the work we have put in throughout the season.”

“I think it is a good lesson for us to learn that every moment of a game matters, and if you switch off, you are going to get punished. We’ll flush it, we will be ready for next Wednesday and ready to go.”

With the loss, Evansville moves to 6-4-8 overall with a 3-1-3 mark in MVC play. The Purple Aces earned a share of the MVC regular season title and will serve as the number one seed in the conference tournament, earning a bye to the semifinal round. Kick-off for Wednesday’s tournament match at Arad McCutchan Stadium is set for 6 PM.

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+++++++++EVANSVILLE WOMEN’S SOCCER+++++++++

FOUR ACES EARN ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS

ST. LOUIS – Following a season in which the program saw its highest win total since 2021, the University of Evansville women’s soccer team placed four student-athletes on MVC All-Conference teams, the league office announced on Wednesday afternoon.

Junior Taylor Johnson (Evansville, Ind./Reitz) earns all-conference honors for the second time in her career, landing on the All-MVC Second Team after being a Third Team selection in 2024. Johnson took her game to the next level in 2025, posting single season career-highs in games played (16), starts (16), assists (3), points (9), shots (18), shots on goal (13), and minutes played (1,034). Johnson scored three goals on the year, ranking second on the team.

Brielle LaBerge (Cumming, Ga./Forsyth Central) enjoyed a breakout campaign as a sophomore in 2025, starting all 16 matches while playing 1,422 of a possible 1,440 minutes. While serving as an anchor of the Evansville defense, LaBerge was also one of the top offensive threats in the conference, finishing the regular season second in the MVC with five assists and first in assists per game at 0.31. LaBerge also added a goal to finish the year with eight points, while placing eight shots on target.

Allie Lammers (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame) emerged as one of the top goalkeepers in the MVC this year to earn Third Team all-conference accolades. Serving as Evansville’s primary keeper, Lammers posted a 6-4-2 record with five shutouts in 13 matches. Lammers ranked inside the top 100 nationally in goals against average (1.00), the lowest mark by a UE primary starter since 2020. For the year, the sophomore made 46 saves for a .793 save percentage, including eight matches with four-plus saves. Over the course of the season, Lammers earned three MVC Goalkeeper of the Week awards, the most by a Valley keeper this season while marking the first time an Evansville keeper has been named MVC Goalkeeper three times in a single season since Simone Busby in 2014.

Lily Kytasaari (Platte City, Mo./Platte County) lands on the MVC All-Freshman Team following a stellar debut season with the Purple Aces. Playing in all 16 matches with one start, Kytasaari logged 498 minutes and scored two goals, becoming one of four Aces to score multiple goals on the season. With the nod, Kytasaari becomes Evansville’s first All-Freshman team selection since Hailey Autenrieb in 2021.

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++++++++++SOUTHERN INDIANA WOMEN’S SOCCER+++++++++

EAGLES TO TAKE ON TENNESSEE TECH IN OVC TOURNAMENT SEMIFINALS

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Women’s Soccer resumes Ohio Valley Conference Tournament play in the semifinals on Thursday at 4 p.m. when the fifth-seeded Screaming Eagles face top-seeded Tennessee Tech from Cookeville, Tennessee.

Thursday’s winner advances to face either No. 2 University of Arkansas at Little Rock or No. 3 Lindenwood University in the championship on Sunday at 4 p.m. from Cookeville, Tennessee.

Thursday is the fifth all-time meeting between USI (9-7-4, 4-2-3 OVC) and Tennessee Tech 6-6-7, 6-0-3 OVC). Tennessee Tech leads the all-time series, 4-0. In the regular-season meeting on October 16, the Golden Eagles won at home, 2-0.

In the midst of its fourth consecutive OVC Tournament appearance, the Screaming Eagles are making their first appearance in the semifinals since moving to Division I and joining the Ohio Valley Conference in 2022.

The Screaming Eagles made program history in the first weekend of the OVC Tournament. USI defeated Southeast Missouri State University in the first round, 2-0, to claim the program’s first-ever OVC Tournament win. USI followed with its first quarterfinal win after defeating Eastern Illinois University, 3-0.

Last Sunday, USI got the best of fourth-seeded Eastern Illinois. Senior defender Charli Grafton put USI on the board in the first half with her second goal of the tournament. 26 seconds later, senior forward Peyton Murphy doubled USI’s lead. Murphy scored a second time early in the second half for USI’s third goal of the contest.

Grafton has scored in each game of the tournament so far for USI, doubling her career total to four goals. Murphy’s two-goal game against the Panthers was the third brace this season by a USI player. It pushed Murphy to five goals this season, matching a career high from her freshman season in 2022.

Murphy is climbing up the USI career record books with 14 goals, 12 assists, and 40 points. All three rank inside the top 15 in program history. However, all three marks for Murphy are first in USI’s Division I history.

USI Women’s Soccer pushed its season total to 27 goals this season after scoring a trio against the Panthers, adding to a program-best total in USI’s Division-I era. The win was USI’s ninth overall victory of the season, which also adds to a team best in the D-I era.

On the season, senior forward Emerson Grafton leads USI in scoring with 15 points on a team-high five goals, which is tied with Murphy, and five assists. Murphy is second in scoring with 14 points on the five goals and four assists. Redshirt junior midfielder Emma Thurston has a team-best and personal career-best six assists. Three of Thurston’s helpers have come in the OVC Tournament.

In goal, redshirt junior goalkeeper Anna Markland has 1.18 GAA with 54 saves and eight shutouts. Markland has two clean sheets in OVC Tournament play, and the eight shutouts this season are a career best.

Coming off a double-bye as the top seed and OVC regular-season champion, Tennessee Tech will play its first match since the end of the regular season on October 26. The Golden Eagles finished their undefeated conference season with three-straight shutout wins, including a 2-0 victory against Eastern Illinois last time out in the regular-season finale.

Sophomore forward Natalie Howard has led the Golden Eagles’ attack this season with 16 points off a team-high seven goals and a pair of assists. Graduate midfielder and OVC Midfielder of the Year Lucia Cuadra has 15 points off five goals and five assists. Senior forward Katie Toney, who leads the team with 35 shots, also has five goals this season. Senior goalkeeper Maggie Conrad has a 1.32 GAA with 75 saves and five shutouts in 19 starts.

All games of the 2025 Ohio Valley Conference Championship Tournament can be seen with a subscription to ESPN+. Additional coverage for USI can be found on usiscreamingeagles.com with full tournament coverage on the OVC website at ovcsports.com.

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++++++++++SOUTHERN INDIANA VOLLEYBALL+++++++++

USI FALLS TO TENNESSEE TECH IN A FOUR-SET BATTLE

EVANSVILLE, Ind.- University of Southern Indiana Volleyball lost to Tennessee Tech Wednesday night in a four-set Ohio Valley Conference battle.

The loss marks the end of USI’s undefeated home conference game streak, moving them to 8-4 in OVC games and 12-12 overall.

Set 1: USI 25, TTU 15

The Screaming Eagles took a dominant first set. Junior McKenzie Murphy led the offense with four kills, and freshman Carley Wright followed with three. As a team, USI made only two errors, hitting a .323 percent. Freshman Aysa Thomas dished out eight assists and led the back court with seven digs.

Set 2: TTU 25, USI 21

TTU maintained the lead for the entire set, as the Screaming Eagles struggled to put together an offensive response. Thomas marked her 17th consecutive double-double in the set, adding 12 assists and five more digs. Junior Ashby Willis led the team in kills, adding five in the set with just two errors.

Set 3: TTU 25, USI 22

USI held control of the lead for the first 10 points as TTU rallied to take it back with a six-point serving run. The Screaming Eagles struggled in service receive, TTU added three aces to double their count from the first two sets. As a team, USI tallied three blocks, led by Murphy, who added the only solo block.

Set 4: TTU 25, USI 23

As the set with the most lead changes with six, the two teams battled to take control of the game for the entire set. Three Eagles tallied three kills each, with juniors Willis and Leah Coleman, and senior Bianca Anderson trying to swing some momentum for the USI side.

For the game, Thomas finished with 34 assists and a team-high of 19 digs. Willis led the team with 10 kills, followed by three Eagles that tallied eight each, Wirght, Anderson, and Coleman. Murphy led the defensive effort at the net, adding five of the team’s nine blocks.

USI is back in action this Friday and Saturday as they hit the road for a series at the University of Tennessee at Martin. Fans can follow USI Athletics on Facebook, Instagram, and X for game coverage, as well as online at usiscreamingeagles.com.

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++++++++++SOUTHERN INDIANA MEN’S BASKETBALL++++++++

USI FALLS IN SEASON OPENER AT BUTLER

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball couldn’t get the offense running early in the season opener and lost at Butler University, 88-58, Wednesday evening at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Screaming Eagles start the year 0-1, while Butler begins 2025-26, 1-0.

USI started slowly on both ends of the court as Butler exploded on a 17-0 run to start the game. The Eagles got the offense out of neutral and tried to claw their way back into the game with a 20-10 surge to pull to within seven, 27-20, with 6:48 left in the first half. USI senior guards Trey Thomas and Cardell Bailey led the surge for USI with seven points and six points, respectively.

The Bulldogs, however, regained their footing and outscored the Eagles, 15-6, in the final minutes of the opening half to take a 52-26 lead into the locker room.

 The Eagles took the initiative to start the second half, using an 11-4 run, to cut the first half deficit to 56-37. Junior guard Kaden Brown led the run with six of the 11 points opening the final 20 minutes.

Butler stopped the USI surge for the final time by going on a 15-7 run to re-extend the margin to 27 points, 71-44. The Bulldogs would go on to lead by as many as 32 points before the horn sounded on the 88-58 final.

For USI individually, Brown led four Eagles in double-digits with 13 points. He was four-of-nine from the field, including three buckets from downtown, and two-of-four from the charity stripe.

Thomas and Bailey followed with 11 points each, while senior guard Ismail Habib rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10 points. 

Next Up For USI:

USI opens up the 2025-26 home schedule Friday when it hosts Virginia Military Institute for a 7:30 p.m. contest at Liberty Arena. The game will mark the first-ever meeting between USI and VMI in any sport.

The VMI Keydets started their season with a 122-58 win over Johnson & Wales University at home in Lexington, Virginia, Monday night.

The USI-VMI matchup is a part of a Screaming Eagles Men’s and Women’s Basketball doubleheader. USI Women’s Basketball tips off the doubleheader at 5 p.m.

To celebrate the beginning of the 2025-26 season, a First Friday Tailgate for the USI community and Screaming Eagles fans will be held from 3 to 5 p.m. Friday in Parking Lot P (behind the Screaming Eagles Complex). After the tailgate, USI Women’s and Men’s Basketball will tip off against Murray State and Virginia Military Institute, respectively.

The tailgate will feature food, music by DJ Brash, free giveaways, and activities including inflatables, putt-putt, games, and more. There will also be a beer garden for fans 21 years and older (ID required to enter; cash and card accepted).

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++++++++++VALPO WOMEN’S SOCCER+++++++++

DESIDERIO MVC FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR AS THREE BEACONS HONORED

After a prolific rookie campaign, Valpo soccer freshman Kiara Desiderio (St. John, Ind./Lake Central) was honored Wednesday as the Missouri Valley Conference Freshman of the Year as the Valley unveiled its postseason award winners. Desiderio was joined as a Second Team All-MVC honoree by senior Molly O’Rear (Naperville, Ill./Naperville Central), while fellow rookie Martha Goddard (London, England/Alleyns School) earned a spot alongside Desiderio on the MVC All-Freshman Team.

Desiderio earned the conference’s top honor for a freshman after stepping in immediately to lead the Valpo attack this season. She tallied a team-best seven goals, good for third-most among MVC players and tied for fifth-most among all D-I freshmen, and added an assist as well for 15 points, fourth-most in the Valley. Desiderio’s seven goals are tied for third-most by a Valpo freshman in program history and are the most by a rookie since 2009.

Desiderio is Valpo’s first Freshman of the Year honoree since the program joined the MVC. She is the fifth Freshman of the Year in program history, joining Lori Moore (1999) and Sarah Jewell (2006) in the Mid-Continent Conference days and Morgan Manzke (2013) and Vanesa Abad (2014) from its time in the Horizon League.

Previously an All-Freshman Team selection in 2022, O’Rear picks up Second Team All-MVC honors this season after tallying five goals and three assists — ranking eighth in the conference in both goals and points. Three of O’Rear’s five goals came within MVC play, just one off the conference best, including the match-winner in the Beacons’ win over Belmont. O’Rear’s season capped a four-year career where she made 73 appearances in the Brown and Gold, recording nine goals and seven assists.

Goddard joins Desiderio on the All-Freshman Team, pairing with her classmate up top in the attack. She finished the season with three goals and a team-best five assists, ranking third on the team with 11 points. Goddard tied Valpo’s record for assists by a freshman, matching Rachel Hoaglin’s 2009 rookie season. Overall, Goddard’s five assists are tied for fourth in a single season in program history and tied for second among MVC players this year. This marks the first time since the 2021 season that the Beacons have had multiple All-Freshman Team honorees.

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++++++++++VALPO MEN’S BASKETBALL++++++++

VALPO BASKETBALL FACES TOP-10 TEST AT KENTUCKY ON FRIDAY

alparaiso (1-0, 0-0 MVC)

at No. 9 Kentucky (1-0, 0-0 SEC)

Game No. 2 – Friday, Nov. 7, 6 p.m. CT

Rupp Arena (20,500) – Lexington, Ky.

Next Up in Valpo Basketball: The Valparaiso University men’s basketball team will hit the road for the first time in 2025-2026, battling Kentucky, a team ranked ninth nationally in the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches’ preseason polls. This will mark the team’s second game in the BBN United Tipoff Classic presented by Kentucky Tourism, a multi-team event that also includes Nicholls and Eastern Illinois.

Last Time Out: College basketball returned and so did all of the drama that comes with it on Tuesday night at the Athletics-Recreation Center. Freshman JT Pettigrew turned a traditional 3-point play with 10 seconds remaining, and the Beacons held on to beat visiting Eastern Illinois 66-63 to usher in the 2025-2026 campaign with help from Pettigrew’s 13 points. Isaiah Barnes started his Valpo career with a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds, while freshman Rakim Chaney hit two free throws in the closing seconds to seal the deal, capping a 12-point, five-steal game. The crowd buzzed after an alley-oop dunk by Pettigrew on a Mark Brown Jr. assist and Carter Hopoi also slammed home a flush.

Glancing Ahead: The third and final game of Valpo’s season-opening multi-team event will take place on Wednesday, Nov. 12 as the Beacons welcome Nicholls to the Athletics-Recreation Center for a 7 p.m. tip.

Following the Beacons: Streaming – SECN+ – Andrew Kappes (play-by-play) and Travis Ford (analyst)

Radio – WVUR 95.1 FM Valparaiso, TuneIn Radio App, ValpoAthletics.com – Todd Ickow (play-by-play) and Brandon Vickrey (analyst)

X updates – @ValpoBasketball

Links for video, audio and live stats will be available at ValpoAthletics.com.

Head Coach Roger Powell Jr.: Roger Powell Jr. (23-44) is in his third season as the head coach of the Valpo men’s basketball program. After helping guide Gonzaga to a 121-13 record during his four seasons as an assistant coach, Powell returned to Valpo, where he was part of head coach Bryce Drew’s staff from 2011-2016 and led the team to 124 wins in five seasons, including a program-record 30 victories and a National Invitation Tournament (NIT) title game appearance in 2015-16. He was part of head coach Mark Few’s Gonzaga staff as the Bulldogs reached the 2021 national championship game after winning their first 31 games of the season. During Powell’s first season on staff in 2019-20, Gonzaga was 31-2 at the time the NCAA college basketball season was halted due to COVID-19. The Bulldogs reached the Sweet Sixteen in each of his final three seasons on staff, including two Elite Eight appearances and the aforementioned trip to the 2021 national title game. Prior to his arrival at Gonzaga, Powell served as the associate head coach at Vanderbilt University under Bryce Drew from 2016-2019. During his stint as an assistant at Valpo, he was part of four Horizon League regular-season championships in a five-year period while also leading the 2012-13 and 2014-15 squads to Horizon League tournament titles and NCAA Tournament appearances. A product of Joliet West High School and a native of Joliet, Ill., Powell capped a prolific collegiate playing career at Illinois with a national title game appearance in 2005 before going on to a successful professional playing career. In the second season of the Powell Era in 2024-2025, Valpo over doubled its overall win total from the previous season and doubled its conference win output before earning a Missouri Valley Conference Tournament semifinal berth. The Beacons finished with 15 wins, the team’s highest total since 2019-20.

Series Notes: This will represent the third matchup between Valpo and Kentucky and the first since an 87-63 loss on Dec. 7, 2016 to the No. 6/7 Wildcats. These two teams also clashed in the first round of the 2002 NCAA Tournament in St. Louis, a game No. 16 Kentucky won 83-68.

Valpo vs. Ranked Opponents

This will mark Valpo’s first game against an AP Top-25 opponent since an 87-64 loss at No. 23 Illinois on Nov. 17, 2023. Valpo led that game 45-38 at halftime.

Valpo’s last win over a top-25 team was Feb. 7, 2021, a 74-57 victory over No. 25 Drake at the ARC.

Valpo enters Friday seeking its first ever true road win against a top-25 team. The program is 0-43 all-time on the road against nationally-ranked squads.

Valpo will seek its fifth all-time win over a top-25 team with three of the first four coming at home and one on a neutral floor – Feb. 7, 2021 vs. No. 25 Drake; Nov. 29, 2016 vs. No. 21 Rhode Island, March 13, 1998 vs. No. 13 Ole Miss (NCAA Tournament in Oklahoma City, Okla., Bryce Drew’s “The Shot”) and Dec. 17, 1988 vs. No. 19 Notre Dame (The Lutheran Miracle).

Valpo is 4-66 all-time against Top-25 foes.

This will mark Valpo’s first game against a Top-10 opponent since Dec. 7, 2016 at No. 6 Kentucky (L 87-63). The team is 0-35 all-time against Top-10 opponents.

Valpo vs. Power-Conference Competition

Valpo’s last win over a power-conference opponent was a 68-60 success story vs. Alabama at a multi-team event in Las Vegas on Nov. 21, 2016.

The win over the Crimson Tide marked Valpo’s third triumph over a power-conference opponent in a two-year span. During the 2015-16 campaign, the team went on the road and beat Oregon State and then took down Florida State at the ARC in the second round of the NIT.

Nine of Valpo’s last 12 victories over power-conference opponents have come on neutral floors, with the most recent true road win coming in the aforementioned game at Oregon State.

This will be Valpo’s first game against a member of the SEC since Dec. 10, 2022 at Ole Miss, a 98-61 loss.

Scouting the Wildcats 

Went to the Sweet 16 last season, finishing 24-12 overall and 10-8 in SEC play.

Picked up NCAA Tournament wins over Troy and Illinois before falling to Tennessee at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

Under the direction of Mark Pope, an alum who has amassed 211 wins in 10 seasons as a head coach including stints at BYU and Utah Valley before arriving at Kentucky.

Senior guard Otega Oweh was named to the preseason watch list for the 2026 NABC Division-I Player of the Year while also being named the SEC Preseason Player of the Year. He was also named to the Jerry West Award Watch List.

Sophomore forward Jayden Quaintance, an Arizona State transfer, was named to the preseason watch list for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award.

Jaland Lowe was named to the Bob Cousy Award Watch List, which is presented to the best point guard in college basketball.

Started the season with a 77-51 victory over Nicholls on Tuesday, also part of this multi-team event. Valpo will host Nicholls next week.

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++++++++++VALPO VOLLEYBALL++++++++

VOLLEYBALL HITS ROAD FOR FINAL TIME IN REGULAR SEASON

Valparaiso (19-6, 10-2 MVC)

Friday, Nov. 7 – at Belmont (14-9, 5-7 MVC) – 1 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 8 – at Murray State (4-17, 2-10 MVC) – 5 p.m.

Next Up For Valpo Volleyball: With just four matches left in the regular season and a spot in the top-four of the MVC standings already secured, the Valpo volleyball team looks to hit the 20-win milestone and to keep hold of second place in the Valley this weekend as the Beacons make their final road trip of the regular season, playing at Belmont Friday afternoon and at Murray State Saturday evening.

Previously: It was six sets and done for the Beacons last weekend, who made quick work of the in-state road trip by sweeping Indiana State on Friday and Evansville on Saturday.

Looking Ahead: Valpo closes the regular season next weekend as it hosts Illinois State and Bradley.

Following the Beacons: Both matches this week are scheduled to be streamed on ESPN+. Live stats are also available for both matches via ValpoAthletics.com.

Head Coach Carin Avery: In her 24th season as head coach at Valpo, Carin Avery is the all-time winningest head coach across all sports in the history of Valpo Athletics. She has won 526 matches (526-263, .667) at the helm of the program and has led Valpo to three league regular season and three league tournament titles. The program has made seven postseason appearances under Avery, including three NCAA Tournament appearances, and advanced to the championship match of the 2021 NIVC. Avery has coached 61 All-League recipients over her tenure at Valpo, which has spanned three different conferences. She is Valpo’s all-time leader in both victories and winning percentage, and owns a 581-287 (.669) record overall as a head coach.

Series History: Belmont – Valpo holds a 6-1 edge in the series over the Bruins, including a 5-1 record since Belmont joined the Valley. The last two meetings have been dramatic five-set victories for the Beacons – in last season’s lone matchup, Valpo trailed two sets to one and 23-17 in the fourth set before rallying for the win, while earlier this year, the Beacons defended their home court after dropping the first two sets, taking the final three frames to earn the win. Ava Helming led the way in this season’s first matchup with 16 kills.

Murray State – Valpo owns an 9-2 advantage in the all-time series over the Racers, including a 5-2 mark since Murray State joined the MVC. In the first meeting this season, the Beacons rebounded after dropping the first set to earn the 3-1 victory. Sam Warren had a monster night in that win, registering a career-best 22 kills on .576 hitting, while Helming tallied 16 kills on .343 hitting.

Scouting the Opposition: Belmont – The Bruins enter Friday’s match with a 14-9 overall record, but are just 5-7 in MVC play and have dropped five of their last six matches – including three five-set losses. Brooke Gilliland leads the MVC in service aces (0.52/set) and ranks seventh in kills (3.45/set), while Lilly Lutz sits fourth among MVC players in digs (4.38/set).

Murray State – The Racers enter the weekend at 4-17 overall and 2-10 in MVC play, with a matchup against Southern Illinois on tap Friday before the Beacons’ arrival in Murray. Ella Vogel ranks third in the Valley in kills (3.56/set), while Federica Nuccio sits in the same position in service aces (0.37/set).

Into the Tournament…: By virtue of its win at Evansville on Saturday, the Beacons secured their spot in the MVC Tournament – despite the field being cut from eight teams to six teams this season. Valpo has advanced to its conference tournament in each of Carin Avery’s 24 seasons at the helm of the program.

…and with a Home Match: Playing simultaneously with Belmont’s match at Drake, the Bruins’ loss meant that Valpo clinched a top-four seed for the MVC Tournament. With that comes the right to host at least either a semifinal (if the Beacons finish as the 2nd seed) or a first-round match (if the Beacons finish 3rd or 4th). Whichever it is, it will be the first volleyball conference tournament match at the ARC since Valpo’s win over Oral Roberts in the 2005 Mid-Continent Conference title match.

How to Secure the Second Seed: With four matches to play, Valpo is one game up on UIC in the loss column for second place and two games up on Drake. Obviously, the Beacons would secure at worst the second seed if they win out, but they also enjoy the benefit of having the head-to-head tiebreaker with both UIC (split the season series, Valpo 4-3 advantage in sets won) and Drake (Valpo won the lone regular season matchup). The result of a three-way tie with both UIC and Drake would hinge on the result of this Saturday’s matchup between the other two programs.

Winning Tradition Continues: The Beacons secured a winning 2025 season with its home win over Murray State in mid-October, the 22nd winning season in 24 years under Carin Avery. With 19 wins this year, Valpo is just one triumph away from the 20-win milestone – the program has won 20 or more matches in 18 of Avery’s first 23 seasons and has averaged 22 wins per season in Avery’s tenure.

MVC Success: Valpo has continued its run of success in conference play again this season, as the program has now finished in the top-half of the Valley standings in each of its nine years in the conference, the only MVC program to accomplish that feat. Going back further into the Horizon League and Mid-Continent Conference days, Valpo has posted top-half conference finishes in 23 of Avery’s 24 seasons and 32 of the last 33 years overall. Valpo’s 10-2 record in conference play entering this weekend is their best conference record since the 2005 squad closed the Mid-Con campaign with a 13-1 record.

Road Warriors: Last week’s pair of wins on the road kept the Beacons perfect in MVC road matches this season, as they have won all six of their conference contests away from home. Going back to the nonconference season, Valpo owns eight consecutive true road wins, as you have to go back to the Beacons’ five-set loss at Northwestern way back on Sept. 9 for their last true road loss. The eight straight true road wins matches a program record, previously accomplished by the 2013 team.

Three and Out: Valpo wasted little time last weekend earning the wins at Indiana State and at Evansville, sweeping both its in-state foes. After having just one 3-0 win in their first nine MVC matches this season, the Beacons have swept three straight conference matches – the first time since 2019 they have won three straight sweeps in Valley play. Valpo has yet to lose a three-set match this season, posting a 10-0 record in such contests.

Next Up, Top 20: Senior Emma Hickey, who is ranked fourth nationally this year with 5.29 digs/set, sits on the precipice  of cracking the top-20 in NCAA D-I history in career digs. Entering the week with 2,586 career digs, Hickey currently ranks 21st in D-I history, is just 12 digs away from the top-20, and looking further ahead, just 108 digs away from the top-15. She is also just 70 digs away from former UNI standout Ellie Blankenship for fourth in MVC history in the category. Hickey leads all active NCAA players (all divisions) in career digs and owns 663 more digs than any other active Division I player.

Another Week, Another Honor: Hickey has claimed half of the MVC Defensive Player of the Week awards this season, as she racked up her fifth of the year for her performances in the back row last week – four of which have come in the six weeks of conference action. Despite playing just three sets in both of last weekend’s matches, Hickey extended her streak of 20+ dig matches to five straight, as she tallied exactly 20 digs in both the sweep at Indiana State and the sweep at Evansville. Hickey’s defensive work, which also included 17 serve receptions without an error, contributed to the Beacons holding their opponent to just 11.67 kills/set on .141 hitting in the pair of wins. With nine career Defensive Player of the Week awards, Hickey is tied with Blankenship for third-most in conference history.

Go the Distance: Giving the fans their money’s worth seemed to be a theme of Valpo’s six-match winning streak earlier this month, as four of the wins in the streak (Illinois State, Bradley, Southern Illinois, Belmont) went the full five sets – including back-to-back wins (SIU, at Belmont) which featured rallying from an 0-2 deficit to win, the first time in Avery’s career at Valpo the team has done that in consecutive matches. It is the first time in program history the Beacons have won four five-set matches in a five-match stretch. After having not won 3-2 in back-to-back conference matches since 1992, Valpo has now done so twice this year – the Illinois State and Bradley matches came on back-to-back nights, the first time since 1988 Valpo has done so in conference play on consecutive days.

Digging It and Killing It: The Beacons rank among the nation’s best on both sides of the ball this season. Valpo currently leads the the MVC rankings with 17.00 digs/set, a mark which ranks 12th nationally, while it is second in the Valley and 12th nationally with 14.18 kills/set and second in the Valley and 12th nationally with 13.15 assists/set. Notably, that kills mark would be the program’s best kills/set average in a season since 2015.

The Brumitt Boom: Sophomore outside Kadence Brumitt enjoyed the best weekend of her Beacon career on the attack last weekend in the pair of sweeps. Brumitt opened by coming up just one kill shy of her career high, tallying a team-best 12 kills while hitting at a .320 clip in the win at Indiana State. She followed the next night at Evansville by setting a career best with a match-high 14 kills on .367 hitting, adding 10 digs as well for a double-double. It marked the first time this season that Brumitt has outright led Valpo in kills in back-to-back matches.

Warren Racks Them Up: Senior right side Sam Warren has been on an absolute tear over the past few weeks for the Beacons. Over the last 10 matches, Warren is averaging 3.53 kills/set and has led Valpo on four occasions, and in that stretch, she has tied or surpassed her previous career best in kills (17) three times – 17 at SIU, 22 versus Murray State and 19 versus UIC. The Murray State match was especially notable, as her career-best kill total – which was the highest kill total by a Valpo player since since Gretchen Kuckkan tallied 25 kills Sept. 3, 2022 against Northern Illinois – came on just 33 swings and she finished with a .576 hitting percentage.

The Right Stuff: Sophomore right side Ava Helming has been pacing the Beacons’ attack all season long. The MVC Player of the Week for Oct. 13, Helming has led Valpo in kills 13 times this season and ranks eighth in the Valley with 3.32 kills/set. She has been in double figures in kills in 10 of Valpo’s 12 MVC matches, including eight times with 15 or more kills.

Kois’ Helping Hands: Senior Addy Kois is moving into striking distance of the Beacons’ career top-10 in assists. Kois, who dished out 36 assists over last weekend’s pair of victories, now owns 2,564 career assists – just 23 shy of Jenny Rohren for 10th in Valpo history in the category.

Still Underclassmen: It’s easy to forget, given the number of returnees this year’s Beacon squad features, that a large number of those returnees are still just sophomores. 74.8% of the team’s kills and 75.9% of the team’s blocks have come courtesy of the underclassmen.

Players of the Week: Emma Hickey’s most recent accolade made it nine MVC weekly award winners for Valpo this season.

– Hickey picked up her fourth award of the year Oct. 27, as she averaged 7.14 digs/set, leading all players with 29 digs against UIC and 21 against Southern Illinois, and handled 21 serve receptions without an error. 13 of Hickey’s 21 digs versus SIU came in the third set alone, tying her career best for a single frame.

– Sophomore Ava Helming earned MVC Player of the Week honors for the second time in her career Oct. 13. She hit .520 with 15 kills in Valpo’s wins at UIC and at SIU, becoming the first Valpo player to hit at least .500 with 15 or more kills in consecutive matches since Allison Sears in October 2008.

– Hickey was named Defensive Player of the Week for the third time this year after the Illinois State/Bradley road weekend as she averaged 5.60 digs/set and 1.70 assists/set while not committing a serve reception error on 39 attempts.

– Jessica Pickett was named Player of the Week for the first time in her career and Hickey was tabbed Defensive Player of the Week after splitting the Drake/UNI opening weekend of conference play – Pickett hit .391 over the pair of matches with 2.88 kills/set and 1.50 blocks/set, while Hickey averaged 6.25 digs/set and committed just one serve reception error on 45 attempts.

– Hickey was recognized as Defensive Player of the Week for the first time this year following the opening weekend of the season, which saw her earn All-Tournament Team honors at the USI Invitational as she averaged 6.60 digs/set and committed just one serve reception error on 49 attempts.

– On Sept. 15, the Beacons boasted a pair of award winners: Lilly Merk was named Defensive Player of the Week for the first time in her career after averaging 1.50 blocks/set, highlighted by a 12-block effort in Valpo’s upset bid at Northwestern, while Keira Lucas was tabbed Freshman of the Week as she averaged 2.44 kills/set on .302 hitting and 2.00 digs/set while committing just one serve reception error on 49 attempts at the Lehigh Steel Classic.

Capturing Crowns: Valpo continued its penchant for winning in-season tournament titles under Carin Avery this season, claiming a share of the crown at the USI Invitational and sweeping its way to the Lehigh Steel Classic title. Valpo has won 36 in-season tournament titles in Avery’s time as head coach. The team has won at least one tournament in 18 of her seasons, and multiple tournaments 12 times. Those tournament titles have come in 14 different states.

All-Tournament Accolades: Over the course of Valpo’s four early-season tournaments, six players combined to earn a total of nine All-Tournament Team honors.

– Leatherneck Classic: Emma Hickey, Lilly Merk

– Lehigh Steel Classic: Kadence Brumitt (MVP), Addy Kois

– EMU Tournament: Ava Helming, Merk

– USI Invitational: Helming, Hickey, Sam Warren

Looking Back at Last Year: Valpo is coming off an 18-win season in 2024, a campaign highlighted by the amount of production generated by the team’s youth. Jessica Pickett set program freshman records for hitting percentage and blocks, while Ava Helming had the third-most kills by a freshman in Avery’s tenure as both rookies earned spots on the MVC All-Freshman Team. On the more veteran side, Emma Hickey became the fastest player in program history and tied for the fastest in MVC history to reach 2,000 career digs.

Who’s Back: In a nutshell, everybody who could be. All 16 players who ended last season on the Beacons squad with remaining eligibility return for Valpo in 2025. That group accounted for 78.1% of the kills, 84.4% of the service aces, 78.0% of the digs and 93.9% of the blocks from the 2024 season.

Who’s Gone: Valpo graduated just two players from last year’s squad: Abby Boyle and Elise Swistek. Swistek’s production will be the big piece to replace, as she closed her time at Valpo as one of just 10 players in program history to surpass 1,000 kills (1,018; 19th) and 1,000 digs (1,479; 12th).

Who’s New: The Beacons welcome two freshmen to the large group of returnees this year. Keira Lucas is an outside hitter who was a three-time All-State honoree at Northview [Ind.] H.S., while Olivia Wagner is a setter who helped lead Lakeville South [Minn.] H.S. to the 2024 Minnesota Class AAAA state championship.

Young But Mighty: Legendary college basketball coach Al McGuire is credited for having said “The best thing about freshmen is that they become sophomores.” If that’s the case for last year’s class of Valpo volleyball freshmen, opponents are in for a rough time this season. Last year’s freshman class accounted for 59.1% of the team’s kills, 31.1% of the aces and 73.6% of the blocks in the 2024 campaign. That comes out to a total of 58.7% of the team’s points accounted for by freshmen last season, a mark which ranked third nationally among D-I programs, trailing only Mississippi Valley State and Le Moyne – two programs which combined for just eight wins, compared with the Beacons’ 18 victories. Prior to last season, none of Avery’s teams in her time at Valpo had freshmen account for even 30% of the team’s points.

Digging Deep: Valpo continued its long tradition of strong back row play last fall, finishing the 2024 campaign 19th nationally with an average of 17.20 digs/set. The program has ranked among the top-30 nationally in digs/set in every season since 2009, including 14 seasons among the top-20 and four seasons among the top-10 – highlighted by the 2017 campaign in which Valpo led the nation with 20.03 digs/set. Other top finishes include fourth nationally in the spring 2021 season (20.37/set), a fourth-place rank in 2010 and a sixth-place finish in 2015. Since the move to 25-point scoring, only seven teams have averaged more than 20 digs/set over the course of a season, and Valpo is the only program to have done it twice. 2018 saw Valpo lead the nation with 2,613 total digs – a mark which set a program single-season record and a Division I record in the 25-point era. Valpo also boasts two of the top-10 athletes in D-I history in career digs – Rylee Cookerly (2nd; 3,175) and Taylor Root (10th; 2,752).

Libero on Lockdown: Senior Emma Hickey has been quite simply one of the nation’s most prolific liberos since stepping on campus prior to the 2022 campaign. She’s ranked among the top-15 nationally in digs/set in each of her first three seasons, ending last season in third position with 5.72 digs/set. Her 715 total digs last year were sixth-most in a single season in program history.

The Pickett Fence: Sophomore Jessica Pickett made a big impact at the net in her first season of collegiate volleyball last year. An MVC All-Freshman Team honoree, Pickett ranked third in the Valley in blocks/set (1.14, 139 total) and fourth in hitting percentage (.331). She  set Valpo freshman records for both hitting percentage and total blocks – her hitting percentage ranked third overall and second in the 25-point era in Valpo’s single-season record book, while he block total ranked eighth overall and third in the 25-point era.

At the Helm(ing): Sophomore Ava Helming joined Pickett as an MVC All-Freshman Team honoree last season for her strong work on both sides of the net at the right pin as a rookie. Helming ranked second on the team with 293 kills and 78 blocks – her 293 kills is tied for third-most by a freshman under head coach Carin Avery, while 78 blocks ranks sixth by a freshman under Avery. The only other freshman to rank among the top-10 in both kills and blocks by a rookie in the Avery era was another right side in Morgan Beil, who developed into a three-time All-Horizon League performer.

Next Stop, 600: Head coach Carin Avery reached yet another milestone last October, winning her 500th match in charge of the Valpo program with the Beacons’ win at Murray State. Valpo’s all-time winningest coach in any sport, Avery’s 500th win came in her 752nd match in charge of the program. Avery is the second current MVC coach to win at least 500 matches at their current institution, joining UNI’s Bobbi Petersen.

_________________________________________________________________

+++++++++UINDY VOLLEYBALL++++++++

UINDY VOLLEYBALL APPEARS IN FIRST SET OF NCAA REGIONAL RANKINGS

INDIANAPOLIS — The first set of NCAA DII rankings of the 2025 season dropped on Wednesday, with the UIndy Volleyball team listed among those receiving consideration for postseason play. The Greyhounds are among four Great Lakes Valley Conference teams named in the poll, along with Missouri-St. Louis, Quincy and Rockhurst, who the Hounds will face in their upcoming match on Nov. 7.

The first regional rankings included teams in alphabetical order only, with actual rankings set to be included in next week’s release. Selection Monday comes on Nov. 24 when the 32-team NCAA DII Championship field—eight from each region—will be announced on NCAA.com.

The Greyhounds look to make their 11th NCAA Tournament appearance and the program’s first appearance since the 2019 season.

Super Region 3 Rankings
TEAM                   vs. DII            IN-REGION
Cedarville              15-5                   17-5
Ferris State           15-2                   19-5
Findlay                  18-3                   18-3
GVSU                    11-6                   15-7
UMSL                    18-2                   20-4
Ohio Dominican    19-4                    20-5 
Quincy                   14-3                   18-5
Rockhurst              17-4                   17-8
UIndy                     12-5                   17-8
Wayne State          15-4                   17-5

_______________________________________________________________

++++++++IU INDY MEN’S SOCCER++++++++

HOUNDS LAND AT #9 IN LATEST NCAA DII REGIONAL RANKINGS

INDIANAPOLIS – The UIndy men’s soccer team head into the GLVC Tournament at No. 9 in the in the latest regional poll, released Wednesday afternoon.

UIndy concluded its regular season with a 10-4-3 record, and three wins in the team’s final four games, including two wins to finish the season against Illinois-Springfield and Lewis. 

The Hounds return to action on Saturday night at Key Stadium for the GLVC Tournament quarterfinal against the No. 5 seeded Maryville Saints.

SR3 RANKINGS

RK.	SCHOOL	IN-REGION	OVERALL
1.	Fort Hays St.	13-0-3	14-0-3
2.	Lincoln (MO)	9-0-6	9-0-6
3.	Rogers St.	10-2-4	10-2-4
4.	Rockhurst	11-3-3	11-3-3
5.	Cedarville	10-0-7	10-0-7
6.	McKendree	8-4-5	8-4-5
7.	Northeastern St.	8-6-2	8-6-2
8.	Tiffin	11-2-3	11-2-3
9.	UIndy	9-4-3	10-4-3
10.	Saginaw Valley	10-2-3	10-2-4
11.	Maryville (MO)	9-6-2	9-6-2
12.	Missouri S&T	9-5-3	9-5-3

___________________________________________________________

++++++++++UINDY WRESTLING++++++++

GARCIA EARNS FIRST GLVC WRESTLING WEEKLY AWARD OF THE SEASON

INDIANAPOLIS – UIndy redshirt-junior Gavin Garcia has been named the Great Lakes Valley Conference/Athletic Solutions Wrestler of the Week in men’s wrestling, it was announced by the league office Wednesday.

MEN’S WRESTLER OF THE WEEK

Gavin Garcia, Indianapolis

R-Jr. | 149 | Brownsburg, Ind.

Major: Computer Science

Team Results: 3rd/15 Teams (121 points) at Pioneer Open (11/1)

Won 149-lb division at Pioneer Open after going 5-0

Defeated Glenville State’s Egidio Difazio (21-6) and Fairmont State’s Armon Nettey (19-6)  via tech fall in the first two rounds

Beat Frostburg State’s Gage Heilbrun (11-3) by major decision in the third round

Pinned Millersville’s Taylor Robinson (5:00) in the semifinals

Took down No. 2 Gabe Onorato of Glenville State (4-2) via decision to win the title

Earns first career Wrestler of the Week Award

Last Greyhounds’ Wrestler of the Week: Cale Gray (1/21/25)

_______________________________________________________________

+++++++++MARIAN WOMEN’S SOCCER++++++++

KNIGHTS ADVANCE IN SHUTOUT WIN OVER ST. FRANCIS (IND.)

Indianapolis, Ind.- The Marian women’s soccer team advances to the Crossroads League Semifinals after a 2-0 shutout win over St. Francis (Ind.). After the win, Marian moves to 17-0-1 overall on the season.

Marian controlled the first half in the win, recording nine shots over the Cougars. Olivia Parmer recorded two of the five, with her first being blocked and the second being a header high. In the half, Katie Koger recorded a pair with her first being blocked as well and her second being saved by the Cougars’ goalie. Cecelia Kostick, Taylor Wert, Sammie King, and Kylie Conrad all recorded one shot in the half. Each team came up short, going into halftime 0-0.

Allie Treadway opened up the second half with a shot that was saved by Saint Francis’s goalie. Liv Parmer was able to take advantage of the goalie being out of the goal to take the 1-0 lead with an unassisted goal. Treadway attempted a shot once more, but came up short against the Cougars’ defense and goal. She quickly recorded a goal of her own with the assist from Kylie Jones to increase the lead to two. King, Wert, and Savannah Spangler all attempted to increase the lead once more, but came up short. Saint Francis was able to record one shot in the half from Faith Lewis, but came up empty-handed against Lily Ames’ defense in goal, ending the quarterfinal matchup with a 2–0 shutout win over the Cougars.

Treadway and Parmer let the team in shots, with three each recording one goal. Sammie King, Katie Koger, and Taylor Wert were close behind, each recording two shots. While Marian Corro Celma, Cecelia Kostick, Kylie Conrad, and Savannah Spangler each recorded one shot. Kiley Jones recorded the single assist of the game. In the goal, Lily Ames earned the win, recording one shot in the game.

Marian will be back in action on Saturday, November 8, at 6 PM as they host Spring Arbor in the Crossroads League semifinals.

________________________________________________________________

++++++++MARIAN VOLLEYBALL++++++++

KNIGHTS CLOSE REGULAR SEASON WITH 3-1 WIN OVER GRACE

INDIANAPOLIS – Playing next-player-up in the final two sets, the Marian volleyball team overcame adversity Wednesday night in the regular season finale, ousting Grace College 3-1 in four sets. Marian’s win in the final home match of the season improves the overall record on the season to 17-10, while they finish sixth in the Crossroads League with a 9-9 record.

Marian came out flat in set one, forcing head coach Ryan Bowerman to take a quick timeout as his team trailed 7-4. The quick stoppage put a fire into Marian, as they would turn a 10-5 deficit into a lead thanks to a 7-0 run. Two Chloe Cook service aces sparked the scoring spree, while a Nicole Wilkinson block gave Marian the lead for good in the set. The Knights would later go on an 8-0 run with Khori Dryden scoring a pair of kills in the sprint, providing a commanding double-digit lead. A Grace service error would win the game for Marian, as the Knights took set one 25-15.

Grace fought back in set two, keeping the score tight throughout the set. Marian opened on a 6-3 run before the Lancers used a 4-0 run to take the lead, turning the set into a back-and-forth rally festival. The Knights gained a cushion late in the set as they won the race to 15 and used a 3-0 run to grab a 17-14 edge, but the lead wouldn’t stick as three unanswered Grace points gave the Lancers a 20-19 lead. Grace pushed the period of the match to set point with a 24-23 lead, but the Knights refused to go down, forcing extra points with a Sarah Bennett kill. Nicole Wilkinson spiked one to give Marian set point, putting the Knights on the right track to take the win. Two set points later, Dryden would land the set-clinching point, notching her ninth kill to give Marian a 28-26 victory.

The Knights would build a quick lead in set three as they pushed in front 10-6, but were unable to close out the game, as their lead slowly dwindled with Grace going on an extended 8-1 run. During the run, Sarah Bennett left the game due to injury, and put the Knights in a bind. A timeout collected Marian and Bennett’s replacement Evie Dart immediately landed a kill, helping bring the team back to life, tying the set 16-16. The momentum would not stay with Marian, as the surge from their 3-0 run would transfer to Grace, who finished the set on a 9-3 clip, winning 25-19.

Set four mirrored set two, as the Knights immediately jumped in front 6-2, getting an emphatic solo block from Dryden to cap the early surge. Marian would win the race to 10 points as Dryden landed another kill, eventually pushing Marian’s edge to six points; however, it would not last. Grace answered the Knights’ spark with a 3-0 run, turning the 13-7 to a three-point game. The Knights remained in front as they gradually pushed the lead to five, getting a kill from Chloe Cook to hold a 20-15 lead. No lead would be safe in the remainder of the match, as Grace charged back with a 5-1 sprint, inching within a point of Marian. Nicole Wilkinson and Evie Dart pushed the game to set point, however, the Lancers made one last charge, forcing extra points with a 3-0 run.

Now trailing 25-24 following the run, Mya Cunningham turned to Evie Dart, who tied the game at 25-25. Chloe Cook then finished the match with a Marian win, slamming consecutive kills to win the final set 27-25.

The Knights had several strong performances in the win, as Sami Luttel (22 assists, 11 digs), Khori Dryden (20 kills, 13 digs), and Chloe Cook (21 kills, 10 digs) each recorded a double-double. Cook’s 21 kills were a match-high.

Emma Lyons logged a team-best 29 digs in the win, and Mya Cunningham had a team-high 33 assists. Nicole Wilkinson had nine kills and three total blocks, and Evie Dart had four kills in her limited appearance.

Marian enters the Crossroads League Tournament as the six seed, tying for fifth in the final standings with Spring Arbor. Marian will travel to third-seeded Huntington on Saturday night in the CL Quarterfinal, taking on the Foresters at 7:00 p.m.

_______________________________________________________________

+++++++SMALL INDIANA COLLEGE SPORTS WEB SITES+++++++

UINDY ATHLETICS: https://athletics.uindy.edu/

MARIAN ATHLETICS: https://muknights.com/

INDIANA WESLEYAN ATHLETICS: https://iwuwildcats.com/

EARLHAM ATHLETICS: https://goearlham.com/

WABASH ATHLETICS: https://sports.wabash.edu/

FRANKLIN ATHLETICS: https://franklingrizzlies.com/

ROSE-HULMAN ATHLETICS: https://athletics.rose-hulman.edu/

ANDERSON ATHLETICS: https://athletics.anderson.edu/landing/index

TRINE ATHLETICS: https://trinethunder.com/landing/index

BETHEL ATHLETICS: https://bupilots.com/

DEPAUW ATHLETICS: https://depauwtigers.com/

HANOVER ATHLETICS: https://athletics.hanover.edu/

MANCHESTER ATHLETICS: https://muspartans.com/

HUNTINGTON ATHLETICS: https://www.huathletics.com/

OAKLAND CITY ATHLETICS: https://gomightyoaks.com/index.aspx

ST. FRANCIS ATHLETICS: https://www.saintfranciscougars.com/landing/index

IU KOKOMO ATHLETICS: https://iukcougars.com/

IU EAST ATHLETICS: https://www.iueredwolves.com/

IU SOUTH BEND ATHLETICS: https://iusbtitans.com/

PURDUE NORTHWEST ATHLETICS: https://pnwathletics.com/

INDIANA TECH ATHLETICS: https://indianatechwarriors.com/index.aspx

GRACE COLLEGE ATHLETICS: https://gclancers.com/

ST. MARY OF THE WOODS ATHLETICS: https://smwcathletics.com/

GOSHEN COLLEGE ATHLETICS: https://goleafs.net/

HOLY CROSS ATHLETICS: https://www.hcsaints.com/index.php

TAYLOR ATHLETICS: https://www.taylortrojans.com/

VINCENNES ATHLETICS: https://govutrailblazers.com/landing/index

_______________________________________________________________________

++++++++SPORTS EXTRA+++++++++

+++++++++TODAY IN SPORTS HISTORY++++++++++

Nov. 6

1869 — First U.S. college football game played, Rutgers 6, Princeton 4.

1934 — Joe Carter scores four touchdowns and Swede Hanson rushes for 190 yards as the Philadelphia Eagles crush the Cincinnati Reds 64-0.

1966 — Philadelphia’s Timmy Brown returns kickoffs 93 yards and 90 yards for touchdowns to lead the Eagles to a 24-23 victory over the Dallas Cowboys.

1981 — Larry Holmes knocks out Renaldo Snipes in the 11th round to retain the world heavyweight title in Pittsburgh.

1983 — James Wilder of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers rushes for 219 yards and a touchdown in a 17-12 victory over the Minnesota Vikings.

1988 — Britain’s Steve Jones win the New York City Marathon in 2:08:20, the fastest time in the world this year. His margin of victory, 3 minutes and 21 seconds over Salvatore Bettiol, is the largest in the history of the five-borough race. Grete Waitz wins an unprecedented ninth women’s title, finishing in 2:28:07 well ahead of Italy’s Laura Fogli (2:31:26).

1992 — Manon Rheaume of the Atlanta Knights becomes the first woman to suit up for a regular-season pro hockey game. The 20-year-old goalie doesn’t play in Atlanta’s 3-2 overtime loss to Cincinnati in the IHL game.

1993 — French-based Arcangues stages the biggest Breeders’ Cup upset, rallying to beat Bertrando by 2 lengths in the $3 million Classic at Santa Anita. Arcangues went off at 133-1 and returned $269.20 on a $2 bet.

1993 — Evander Holyfield regains the WBA and IBF heavyweight championships from Riddick Bowe in a fight disrupted by a parachutist. During the seventh round at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, the chutist tumbles into the ringside seats and stops the fight for 21 minutes. Holyfield becomes the fourth man to become a heavyweight champion at least twice.

1995 — Art Modell officially announces Cleveland Browns are moving to Baltimore, Maryland.

1999 — Charles Roberts rushes for 409 yards and five touchdowns to lead Sacramento State past Idaho State 41-20, setting a new NCAA record for a single-game rushing performance.

2005 — Annika Sorenstam becomes the first player in LPGA Tour history to win a tournament five straight times, shooting an 8-under 64 for a three-stroke victory in the Mizuno Classic.

2010 — Michigan wins the highest scoring game in its 131-year history by stopping a 2-point conversion attempt in the third overtime for a 67-65 victory over Illinois.

2010 — Zenyatta comes within a head of finishing a perfect career. Horse racing’s biggest star closes from dead last, but Blame holds off the 6-year-old mare and wins the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic under the lights Churchill Downs. Zenyatta entered the race hoping to improve to 20-0 on her career.

____________________________________________________________________________

+++++++++TV SPORTS+++++++++

(ALL TIMES EASTERN)
SCHEDULE SUBJECT TO CHANGE AND/OR BLACKOUTS

Thursday, Nov. 6

COLLEGE BASKETBALL (MEN’S)

8 p.m.

TNT — Saint Francis at TCU

TRUTV — Saint Francis at TCU

10 p.m.

BTN — Denver at Washington

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

7:30 p.m.

ESPN — UTSA at South Florida

ESPN2 — Georgia Southern at Appalachian St.

COLLEGE SOCCER (WOMEN’S)

4 p.m.

BTN — Big Ten Tournament: TBD, Semifinal, St. Louis

4:30 p.m.

SECN — Southeastern Tournament: TBD, Semifinal, Pensacola, Fla.

5:30 p.m.

ACCN — Atlantic Coast Tournament: TBD, Semifinal, Cary, N.C.

7 p.m.

BTN — Big Ten Tournament: TBD, Semifinal, St. Louis

SECN — Southeastern Tournament: TBD, Semifinal, Pensacola, Fla.

8 p.m.

ACCN — Atlantic Coast Tournament: TBD, Semifinal, Cary, N.C.

GOLF

8 a.m.

GOLF — PGA Tour: The World Wide Technlogy Championship, First Round, El Cardonal at Diamante, Los Cabos, Mexico

9 p.m.

GOLF — LPGA Tour: The TOTO Japan Classic, Second Round, Seta Golf Course, Otsu-shi, Shiga, Japan

2 a.m. (Friday)

GOLF — DP World Tour: The Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, Second Round, Yas Links GC, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

NBA BASKETBALL

9 p.m.

NBATV — L.A. Clippers at Phoenix

NFL FOOTBALL

8:15 p.m.

PRIME VIDEO — Las Vegas at Denver

_____

Friday, Nov. 7

AUTO RACING

9:25 a.m.

ESPNU — Formula 1: Practice, Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace, Sap Paulo

1:25 p.m.

ESPN2 — Formula 1: Sprint Qualifying, Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace, Sap Paulo

COLLEGE BASKETBALL (MEN’S)

6 p.m.

CBSSN — Tulsa at Rhode Island

FS1 — Georgetown at Maryland

PEACOCK — Boston U. at Northwestern

6:30 p.m.

BTN — Fort Wayne at Ohio St.

7 p.m.

ACCN — Gardner-Webb at Clemson

ESPN — Kansas at North Carolina

PEACOCK — Oakland at Purdue

7:30 p.m.

PEACOCK — Mass.-Lowell at UConn

8:30 p.m.

BTN — N. Illinois at Wisconsin

CBSSN — Yale at Navy

PEACOCK — FGCU at Illinois

9 p.m.

ACCN — UAB at NC State

TNT — Utah Tech at Arizona

TRUTV — Utah Tech at Arizona

10:30 p.m.

BTN — Pepperdine at UCLA

COLLEGE FIELD HOCKEY

1 p.m.

BTN — Big Ten Tournament: TBD, Semifinal, Bloomington, Ind.

3 p.m.

ACCN — Atlantic Coast Tournament: TBD, Championship, Louisville, Ky.

4 p.m.

BTN — Big Ten Tournament: TBD, Semifinal, Bloomington, Ind.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

7 p.m.

ESPNU — TBA

8 p.m.

FS1 — Houston at UCF

9 p.m.

ESPN — Tulane at Memphis

FOX — Northwestern at Southern Cal

COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL (WOMEN’S)

7 p.m.

SECN — Texas at Florida

GOLF

8 a.m.

GOLF — PGA Tour: The World Wide Technlogy Championship, Second Round, El Cardonal at Diamante, Los Cabos, Mexico

9:30 p.m.

GOLF — LPGA Tour: The TOTO Japan Classic, Third Round, Seta Golf Course, Otsu-shi, Shiga, Japan

2 a.m. (Saturday)

GOLF — DP World Tour: The Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, Third Round, Yas Links GC, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

NBA BASKETBALL

7:30 p.m.

PRIME VIDEO — Houston at San Antonio

10 p.m.

PRIME VIDEO — Golden State at Denver

NHL HOCKEY

7 p.m.

NHLN — N.Y. Rangers at Detroit

_____

Saturday, Nov. 8

AUTO RACING

8:25 a.m.

ESPN2 — Formula 1: Sprint Race, Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace, Sap Paulo

12:25 p.m.

ESPNEWS — Formula 1: Qualifying, Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace, Sap Paulo

COLLEGE BASKETBALL (MEN’S)

Noon

FS1 — Alabama at St. John’s

PEACOCK — Alcorn St. at Minnesota

1:30 p.m.

CW — Western Carolina at Duke

PEACOCK — South Florida at George Washington

4 p.m.

PEACOCK — Providence at Virginia Tech

7 p.m.

FOX — Arkansas at Michigan St.

10:30 p.m.

ESPN2 — Oklahoma at Gonzaga

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Noon

ABC — TBA

ACCN — SMU at Boston College

CBSSN — Temple at Army

ESPN — TBA

ESPN2 — TBA

ESPNU — TBA

SECN — Georgia at Mississippi St. (SkyCast)

TNT — Colorado at West Virginia

TRUTV — Colorado at West Virginia

1 p.m.

BTN — Ohio St. at Purdue

2:30 p.m.

FS1 — Maryland at Rutgers

3:30 p.m.

ABC — Texas A&M at Missouri

ACCN — Syracuse at Miami (Command Center)

CBS — TBA

CBSSN — Duke at UConn

ESPN — Syracuse at Miami

ESPN2 — Kansas at Arizona

FOX — Iowa St. at TCU

4 p.m.

ESPNU — S. Dakota St. at S. Dakota

SECN — Auburn at Vanderbilt

4:30 p.m.

BTN — TBA

CW — Stanford at North Carolina

6 p.m.

FS1 — Air Force at San Jose St.

7 p.m.

ACCN — TBA

ESPN — TBA

ESPN2 — TBA

7:30 p.m.

ABC — LSU at Alabama

CBSSN — Nevada at Utah St.

ESPNU — LSU at Alabama (SkyCast)

NBC — Navy at Notre Dame

PEACOCK — Navy at Notre Dame

SECN — Florida at Kentucky

9:30 p.m.

FS1 — UNLV at Colorado St.

10 p.m.

CW — Sam Houston St. at Oregon St.

GOLF

8 a.m.

GOLF — PGA Tour: The World Wide Technlogy Championship, Third Round, El Cardonal at Diamante, Los Cabos, Mexico

9 p.m.

GOLF — LPGA Tour: The TOTO Japan Classic, Final Round, Seta Golf Course, Otsu-shi, Shiga, Japan

1:30 a.m. (Sunday)

GOLF — DP World Tour: The Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, Final Round, Yas Links GC, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

NBA BASKETBALL

8 p.m.

NBATV — L.A. Lakers at Atlanta

10:40 p.m.

ESPN — Phoenix at L.A. Clippers

SOCCER (MEN’S)

10 a.m.

USA — English Premier League: Fulham at Everton

12:30 p.m.

NBC — English Premier League: Wolverhampton at Chelsea

SOCCER (WOMEN’S)

Noon

CBS — NWSL Playoff: TBD, Quarterfinal

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Sunday, Nov. 9

AUTO RACING

11:55 a.m.

ESPN2 — Formula 1: The MSC Cruises Sao Paulo Grand Prix, Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace, Sap Paulo

COLLEGE BASKETBALL (MEN’S)

1 p.m.

ESPN — Marquette at Indiana

2 p.m.

ESPN2 — Texas A&M at Oklahoma St.

4:30 p.m.

SECN — VMI at Missouri

6:30 p.m.

SECN — Southern Miss. at South Carolina

8:30 p.m.

ESPN — Washington at Baylor

COLLEGE BASKETBALL (WOMEN’S)

3 p.m.

ESPN — NC State at Southern Cal

4:30 p.m.

FS1 — Florida St. at UConn

COLLEGE FIELD HOCKEY

Noon

BTN — Big Ten Tournament: TBD, Championship, Bloomington, Ind.

COLLEGE SOCCER (WOMEN’S)

Noon

ESPNU — Atlantic Coast Tournament: TBD, Championship, Cary, N.C.

2 p.m.

BTN — Big Ten Tournament: TBD, Championship, St. Louis

ESPNU — American Athletic Tournament: TBD, Championship, Lakewood Ranch, Fla.

2:30 p.m.

SECN — Southeastern Tournament: TBD, Championship, Pensacola, Fla.

COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL (WOMEN’S)

Noon

ACCN — Virginia at Pittsburgh

4:30 p.m.

BTN — Penn St. at Illinois

ESPN2 — Utah at Baylor

5 p.m.

ESPN — Tennessee at Kentucky

FIGURE SKATING

2 p.m.

NBC — 2025 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating: The 2025 NHL Trophy, Osaka, Japan

GOLF

7:30 a.m.

GOLF — PGA Tour: The World Wide Technlogy Championship, Final Round, El Cardonal at Diamante, Los Cabos, Mexico

NFL FOOTBALL

9:30 a.m.

NFLN — Atlanta vs. Indianapolis, Berlin

1 p.m.

CBS — Regional Coverage: Buffalo at Miami, Cleveland at N.Y. Jets, New England at Tampa Bay, Jacksonville at Houston

FOX — Regional Coverage: N.Y. Giants at Chicago, Baltimore at Minnesota, New Orleans at Carolina

4:05 p.m.

CBS — Arizona at Seattle

4:25 p.m.

FOX — Regional Coverage: L.A. Rams at San Francisco OR Detroit at Washington

8:20 p.m.

NBC — Pittsburgh at L.A. Chargers

NHL HOCKEY

1 p.m.

NHLN — Chicago at Detroit

SOCCER (MEN’S)

9 a.m.

USA — English Premier League: AFC Bournemouth at Aston Villa

11:30 a.m.

USA — English Premier League: Liverpool at Manchester City

SOCCER (WOMEN’S)

12:30 p.m.

ABC — NWSL Playoff: TBD, Quarterfinal

3 p.m.

ABC — NWSL Playoff: TBD, Quarterfinal