“THE SCOREBOARD” INDIANA HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL SCORES https://www.maxpreps.com/in/baseball/scores/?date=4/1/2026 ========================================================== INDIANA HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL SCORES https://www.maxpreps.com/in/softball/scores/?date=4/1/2026 ========================================================== NCAA TOURNAMENT MEN’S SCHEDULE/SCORES SATURDAY, APRIL 4 (FINAL FOUR) (2) UCONN VS. (3) ILLINOIS, 6:09 P.M. | TBS/TNT/TRUTV (1) MICHIGAN VS. (1) ARIZONA, 8:49 P.M. | TBS/TNT/TRUTV ==== MONDAY, APRIL 6 (NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP) UCONN / ILLINOIS VS. MICHIGAN / ARIZONA, 8:50 P.M. | TBS/TNT/TRUTV =========================================================== MEN’S NIT SCORES THURSDAY APRIL 2 NEW MEXICO VS. TULSA 7:00 ILLINOIS STATE VS. AUBURN 9:30 ========================================================== NCAA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT FRIDAY APRIL 3 SOUTH CAROLINA VS. UCONN 7:00 TEXAS VS. UCLA 9:30 ========================================================== WOMEN’S NIT MARSHALL 69 ARKANSAS STATE 62 ILLINOIS STATE 67 SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 60 ========================================================== COLLEGE BASEBALL SCORES NO GAMES SCHEDULED ========================================================== COLLEGE SOFTBALL SCORES #7 FLORIDA 8 STETSON 2 EVANSVILLE 5 BELLARMINE 3 ========================================================== MEN’S COLLEGE HOCKEY SCORES FROZEN FOUR THURSDAY, APRIL 9 WISCONSIN VS. NORTH DAKOTA DENVER VS. MICHIGAN ========================================================== MEN’S COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL SCORES NO GAMES SCHEDULED ========================================================== DIVISION 1 MEN’S LAX SCORES NO GAMES SCHEDULED ========================================================== DIVISION 1 WOMEN’S LAX SCORES #24 VILLANOVA 10 UCONN 8 #22 GEORGETOWN 17 DREXEL 8 XAVIER 14 BUTLER 9 #14 STONY BROOK 10 #21 PRINCETON 8 #15 LOYOLA MD 16 LAFAYETTE 7 ========================================================== NBA SCORES PHILADELPHIA 153 WASHINGTON 131 ATLANTA 130 ORLANDO 101 BOSTON 147 MIAMI 129 NEW YORK 130 MEMPHIS 119 INDIANA 145 CHICAGO 126 HOUSTON 119 MILWAUKEE 113 SACRAMENTO 123 TORONTO 115 DENVER 130 UTAH 117 SAN ANTONIO 127 GOLDEN STATE 113 ========================================================== NBA G-LEAGUE SCORES OCEOLA 119 LONG ISLAND 117 CAPITAL CITY 126 CLEVELAND 123 STOCKTON 116 IOWA 104 SOUTH BAY 122 SAN DIEGO 119 RIP CITY 113 MEXICO CITY 108 ========================================================== NHL SCORES VANCOUVER 8 COLORADO 6 LOS ANGELES 2 ST. LOUIS 1 OT SAN JOSE 4 ANAHEIM 3 ========================================================== MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL ATLANTA 5 LAS VEGAS 1 BALTIMORE 8 TEXAS 3 PITTSBURGH 8 CINCINNATI 3 PHILADELPHIA 6 WASHINGTON 5 (10) COLORADO 2 TORONTO 1 (10) MIAMI 10 CHICAGO WHITE SOX 0 ST. LOUIS 2 NY METS 1 (11) MILWAUKEE 8 TAMPA BAY 2 HOUSTON 6 BOSTON 4 CHICAGO CUBS 6 LA ANGELS 2 ARIZONA 1 DETROIT 0 NY YANKEES 5 SEATTLE 3 SAN DIEGO 7 SAN FRANCISCO 1 KANSAS CITY 13 MINNESOTA 9 CLEVELAND 4 LA DODGERS 1 ========================================================== MINOR LEAGUE BASEBALL COLUMBUS 6 INDIANAPOLIS 1 ========================================================== WOMEN’S PRO VOLLEYBALL SCORES NO GAMES SCHEDULED ========================================================== UFL SCORES NO GAMES SCHEDULED ========================================================== MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER NO GAMES SCHEDULED ========================================================== NATIONAL SPORTS NEWS RELEASES MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL UCONN WON ITS LAST NATTY WITH HELP FROM 2 POWER LEAGUE TRANSFERS; REED, DEMARY ARE HOPING FOR SAME STORRS, Conn. (AP) — In the days and weeks after Silas Demary Jr. arrived on the next stage of his basketball career, he sought out the one UConn men’s player who was navigating a similar path coming from another power conference school. The year before Demary left Georgia to try to help the Huskies win their third national title in a four-year span, Tarris Reed Jr. made a jump from Michigan to UConn. Demary received support and assurances that they both made the right decision and great things were ahead. “He was somebody I leaned on a lot when I first got here asking him how were your first couple of weeks here, was it always this tough?” Demary said. “I was leaning on him a lot through the whole season.” Reed only started one game during the 2024-25 season at UConn as he played behind Samson Johnson, who was part of two national championship teams. Demary had no such grace period. He started from the first game of the season, teaming with Dayton transfer Malachi Smith to handle the point guard duties. “You are expected to do all these great things from the jump,” Reed said. “It is tough, they set the bar so high that you can’t reach it some days. Credit to Silas for hanging in. Talking to him that all you are going through right now is what I went through last year.” Reed seems to be figuring things out at the perfect time. Since the start of the Big East Tournament, he is averaging 18.1 points and 11.7 rebounds per game. He opened the NCAA Tournament with a 31-point and 27-rebound game against Furman. He joined Elgin Baylor, Elvin Hayes and Zach Edey as the only players to enter the Final Four with at least 80 points and 50 rebounds. “This is it,” Reed said. “I am going to go for it. The St. John’s game, I learned that we have to go out with honor – win, lose or draw, I am going down swinging. Every game that is my approach and our approach as a team.” The last time UConn won the national championship the team also had two players (Cam Spencer and Hassan Diarra) who had transferred in from the power conferences UConn coach Dan Hurley saw different situations with his latest power conference arrivals. Demary’s father, a former Arena League Football player, told Hurley that he expected his son to be coached hard by Hurley and his staff. If that was not the case, they would be talking again. It was a different vibe when Reed landed at UConn. “He needed UConn with how hard we fight, the fire that I coach with, the fire that this program plays with,” Hurley said. “The intensity that we go about basketball here, he needed that injected into his veins. That was probably the knock on him, that he was incredibly talented but a little bit of an enigma in terms of what he was able to do in his first two years at Michigan.” The 6-foot-4 Demary was looking for a program that could make a deep March Madness run and a coach that would help him realize his dream of playing in the NBA. With the Huskies looking to address the perimeter defensive issues that cost them multiple games during the 2024-25 season as well as a bigger guard, it seemed like the perfect match. Hurley has said on multiple occasions that the arrival of Demary changed the UConn defense. It was Demary who deflected Cayden Boozer’s pass late in the Elite Eight game that resulted in freshman Braylon Mullins hitting a ldeep 3-pointer that capped a 19-point comebackt and sent the Huskies to the Final Four. “Going to a program where I knew that winning was a big part of it,” Demary said. “Making it to the tournament, being able to go deep into the tournament and somebody who is going to coach me hard and prepare me for the next level, UConn had everything I wanted and then some. The plan they had for me was perfect.” Demary’s 220 assists are more than he had 70 games at Georgia. He is also posting career-high marks in field goal, 3-point and free throw shooting percentage. The Huskies face Illinois in the first semifinal on Saturday. Demary had a quiet game in UConn’s 74-61 win over the Fighting Illini in Madison Square Garden during the regular season. With the rematch taking place on an even bigger stage, Demary can’t wait to realize one of his basketball dreams. “It will be crazy,” Demary said. “Getting there I will be a little emotional being a kid, always dreaming about playing in the Final Four, being in March Madness. I think definitely it will be emotional, but just being happy and excited to be with this group of guys going in.” UCONN CARRIES AN 18-GAME WINNING STREAK IN SWEET 16 OR LATER INTO A STACKED FINAL FOUR When UConn makes it past the opening weekend of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament, the Huskies are almost impossible to stop. UConn won its 18th straight game played in the Sweet 16 or later when it mounted a most improbable comeback to rally from 19 points down to beat Duke 73-72 Sunday on Braylon Mullins’ last-second 3-pointer. The Huskies haven’t lost a tournament game played past the opening weekend since 2009, when they fell in the national semifinals to Michigan State in the Final Four played in Detroit. Since then, it’s been feast or famine for UConn. 0:00 / 35 AP AUDIO: UConn carries an 18-game winning streak in Sweet 16 or later into a stacked Final Four This year’s men’s NCAA Tournament is down to its last four participants. Correspondent Gethin Coolbaugh reports. The Huskies have gone to the tournament 10 times since then, failing to get a bid in six other seasons. There was no tournament in 2020 because of the pandemic but UConn wasn’t projected to make it that season. Of those nine previous tournament trips in this span, the Huskies won it all four times, winning it under coach Jim Calhoun in 2011, Kevin Ollie in 2014 and back-to-back titles under Dan Hurley in 2023-24. In the other five seasons, they didn’t make it to the Sweet 16, losing three times in the round of 64 and twice in the round of 32. The 18 straight wins in the Sweet 16 or later are the longest streak since the Sweet 16 started in 1975 when the tournament expanded to 32 teams. Before that expansion, several teams started the tournament in the regional semifinal. UCLA won a record 38 straight games in the regional semifinals or later during the dynasty under John Wooden — a mark UConn can get halfway to reaching with a win on Saturday against Illinois. The Bruins won it all in 1964 and ’65, missed the tournament the next year, then won seven straight titles before the streak ended with a loss in the national semifinals to David Thompson and N.C. State in 1974. Only one player remains on the Huskies from those back-to-back title teams, with Alex Karaban trying to become the 10th player ever to appear in three NCAA championship game wins. The other nine were all part of the UCLA dynasty, including Lew Alcindor, who later became known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Karaban has started in 17 tournament wins, third most ever, trailing only Duke’s Bobby Hurley with 18 and Christian Laettner with 21. Powerhouse Final Four In a tournament lacking a Cinderella, the Final Four is packed with powerhouses. The four teams remaining entered the tournament all ranked in the top 13 in the country, with all four spending time ranked in the top five. The teams combined for 132 wins headed into the Final Four, with Arizona leading the way with 36, followed by Michigan’s 35, UConn’s 33 and Illinois’ 28. The 132 combined wins for the four teams are the fourth most ever headed into a Final Four, trailing only the two seasons when all four No. 1 seeds reached this level — 143 wins in 2008 and 135 wins last season — and the 133 from the 2015 season. While UConn got to this stage with a nail-biter, the other three teams haven’t really been tested yet in the tournament. Arizona, Michigan and Illinois have won all four games by double digits, marking the first time since 1988 that at least two teams reached the Final Four after winning the first four games by at least 10 points. Oklahoma and Arizona did it that season before the Sooners beat the Wildcats in the semifinals. The Arizona-Michigan game will be just the second time since the tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985 that teams met in the Final Four having won all their previous games by double digits. The Wolverines became the first team ever to win four games in a single tournament by at least 10 points, while scoring at least 90 points in every game. The 381 points scored so far by the Wolverines are the third-most ever for a team that made the Final Four, trailing only the 1988 Sooners with 387 and Kentucky with 388 in 1993. Michigan’s 33-point win over Tennessee was the largest in the Elite Eight since the Wolverines beat Virginia 102-65 on the way to their first title in 1989. Blue bloods blow leads The tournament hasn’t been kind to Duke coach Jon Scheyer when it comes to protecting leads. A year after blowing a 14-point lead in the second half to Houston in the national semifinals, the Blue Devils lost to UConn after leading by 15 points at halftime and as many as 17 points in the second half. That was the largest halftime lead ever blown by a No. 1 seed in the tournament, topping the 14 points for Virginia in a loss to Syracuse in the 2016 regional final. Before Sunday, No. 1 seeds had been 134-0 when leading by at least 15 points at halftime since seeding began in 1979. Scheyer’s Duke team also lost the regional final in 2024 to 11th-seeded N.C. State after leading by six points at halftime, becoming the second team ever to get eliminated from three straight tournaments after leading by at least six points at the half in each game. Auburn did it from 2023-25 under coach Bruce Pearl. The Blue Devils have some company when it comes to blue bloods blowing big leads in this year’s tournament. Duke rival North Carolina squandered a 19-point lead in the second half to lose a first-round game against Virginia Commonwealth. The Blue Devils and Tar Heels have some shared history when it comes to big blown leads, with UNC also doing it in the 2022 title game against Kansas. Duke and North Carolina are the only teams to lose twice in the tournament since 2015 after leading by at least 14 points in the second half, according to Sportradar. Tarris Reed dominates UConn center Tarris Reed opened March Madness by becoming the first player since Elvin Hayes in 1968 to have at least 30 points and 25 rebounds in the tournament. After a lackluster game in the second round against UCLA, Reed stepped up again this past weekend with 46 points in wins over Michigan State and Duke. That gives Reed 87 points and 54 rebounds in the first four games, making him the fourth player ever to enter the Final Four with at least 80 points and 50 rebounds. Zach Edey did it for Purdue in 2024, Hayes in 1968 and Elgin Baylor in 1958. Reed isn’t the only player remaining who has joined impressive company. Arizona’s Koa Peat had 21 points in the Sweet 16 and 20 more in the regional final against Purdue, becoming the sixth freshman since the start of the Sweet 16 in 1975 with 20-point games in wins in the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight. Kon Knueppel did it for Duke last year, along with Derrick Rose (Memphis, 2008), Joseph Forte (North Carolina, 2000), Jalen Rose (Michigan, 1992) and Kenny Anderson (Georgia Tech, 1990). MICHIGAN STARTING G ELLIOT CADEAU HIT WITH MEDICAL SITUATION Michigan starting point guard Elliot Cadeau did not travel with his teammates to Indianapolis Wednesday for the Final Four due to an allergic reaction to something he ate, according to team officials. Cadeau is expected to meet the team later Wednesday evening as they prepare to face Arizona in the second national semifinal contest on Saturday. “Before the team departed the Player Development Center today, Elliot alerted the medical staff that he may have had an allergic reaction to something that he ate,” Michigan spokesperson Tom Wywrot said in the statement. “The doctors evaluated Elliot and he is fine. Out of an abundance of caution, he is receiving medical supervision and will be traveling to Indianapolis later today.” The North Carolina transfer started all 38 games for the Wolverines in his debut season in Ann Arbor. He is averaging a career-best 10.2 points per game and leads the team with 5.8 assists per outing. The junior is one of three players with 60-plus 3-pointers made and is converting 37.7 from beyond the arc. KANSAS COACH BILL SELF RETURNING FOR 2026-27 SEASON After discussing his coaching future with family, Bill Self announced Wednesday that he will return as Kansas coach for the 2026-27 season. Self, 63, indicated he still has the desire to coach the Jayhawks to the highest level possible. “Jayhawk Nation, with renewed clarity and the ongoing support from our administration, I remain focused and committed to Kansas Basketball competing for a National Championship,” Self said in a statement posted by the school on social media. “I look forward to seeing and hearing the best fans in college basketball next season at Allen Fieldhouse.” Self has won two national titles during 23 seasons at Kansas since arriving in 2003 but he has battled health-related issues in recent seasons. Esports news In 2023, he missed the Big 12 and NCAA Tournaments due to a significant heart issue. He had two stents inserted to clear blocked arteries. He had another two stents inserted in July 2025. In mid-January of the just-concluded season, Self was taken to Lawrence Memorial Hospital after he felt unwell and ultimately received IV fluids and did not travel with the team for a game at Colorado. After Kansas (24-11) lost to St. John’s in the second round of this season’s NCAA Tournament, Self said he would discuss the situation with his family before making a decision. The Jayhawks won national titles in 2008 and 2022 under Self. But since the second championship, Kansas has gone 68-35 with three straight double-digit loss campaigns, the first time that has occurred since the late 1980s. NCAA baseball content With the Jayhawks, Self owns a 648-167 record and has made the NCAA Tournament field each season. Self has an 855-272 career record with his other stints coming at Oral Roberts (1993-97), Tulsa (1997-2000) and Illinois (2000-2003). He was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2017. ================================================================== WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL MARCH MADNESS: AFTER SO MANY BLOWOUTS, FANS SHOULD BE TREATED TO TIGHTER GAMES IN WOMEN’S FINAL FOUR The formalities are over. The women’s NCAA Tournament is about to get real. A tournament marked by blowouts is down to the Final Four, and the teams in Phoenix are the ones everybody expected to be there. UConn (38-0) has been the No. 1 team in The Associated Press Top 25 since it won the national championship last year. South Carolina (35-3), UCLA (35-1) and Texas (35-3) each have held the Nos. 2, 3 and 4 spots. This year marks the first time since 1996 that the Final Four is made up of the same teams as the previous year, and it’s the first time since 2018 that all four No. 1 seeds made it this far. The first national semifinal Friday pits South Carolina against UConn in a 2025 championship game rematch. Texas meets UCLA in the second semifinal. The championship game is Sunday. Bevy of blowouts The average margin of victory through the first 64 games of the tournament is 20.8 points, with 26 games decided by at least 20 points and 17 by less than 10. The four teams still standing are among the top five in scoring margin for the season and in the tournament. UConn’s season average of 37.8 points per game is on track to rank third all-time behind its record 40.6 in 2015 and 39.7 in 2016. South Carolina has an average margin of 29.6 for the season and 40.3 in the tournament. Texas’ averages are 29.1 for the season and 35.5 in the tournament. UCLA’s are 28 and 27, respectively. Been there, done that Since 2009, only five schools other than UConn or South Carolina have won championships. UConn has 12 titles and will be making its 25th Final Four appearance, both NCAA records. South Carolina has three titles and will be in its eighth Final Four and sixth in a row, the second-longest streak behind UConn’s 14 straight from 2008-22. Texas’ only title came in 1986, and its fifth Final Four is tied for sixth most. UCLA’s only Final Fours have been last season and this season, and the Bruins are looking for their first title. Best of the best Top candidates for national player of the year include UConn’s Sarah Strong and Azzi Fudd, UCLA’s Lauren Betts and Texas star Madison Booker. All four are on the Associated Press All-America first team: — Strong, the Big East player of the year, leads the Huskies in scoring (18.6), rebounds (7.6), blocks (1.6) and steals (3.4) and has scored in double figures in 51 straight games. The sophomore also is Big East defensive player of the year for a team that allows a nation-low 50 points per game. — Fudd, a senior, averages 17.5 points per game and is fifth in 3-point accuracy (45.5%) and first in made 3s (115). — Betts, the Big Ten player and defensive player of the year, has averaged 24 points and is shooting 70% from the field in the tournament,. The senior blocked five shots in each of her last two games and holds the school career record with 239 in 101 games. — Booker set Texas’ NCAA Tournament scoring record with 40 against Oregon in the second round, and the junior averaging 22.5 per game in the tournament and 19.3 for the season. Edwards keeps rolling South Carolina’s Joyce Edwards was national high school player of the year in 2024 and followed up with a freshman season that ended with her on the 2025 Final Four all-tournament team. She is one of the top players in the country in her second season. Her season scoring average of 19.7 points per game is best among Final Four players and she is scoring 20.5 per game in the tournament. With 24 points against TCU on Monday, Edwards tied the program record for 20-point games in a season (22). Fabulous freshmen Keep an eye on two freshmen who come off the bench, Blanca Quinonez of UConn and Agot Makeer of South Carolina. Quinonez, a forward from Milagro, Ecuador, was Big East freshman of the year and sixth woman of the year and made the all-region team in Fort Worth. Her average of 17.3 points per game in four tournament games is nearly double her average of 9.9 through the Big East Tournament. She’s 8 of 13 from 3-point range over her last three games. Makeer, a guard from Thunder Bay, Ontario, who prepped at Montverde Academy in Florida, has scored in double figures for four straight games, including a career-high 18 against TCU on Monday. ================================================================= NBA REPORT: NBA EUROPE DRAWS HOSTS OF BIDS, INCLUDING $1B OFFERS Multiple bidders have proposed investments of at least $1 billion in the startup NBA Europe league, The Athletic reported Wednesday. Per multiple reports, there was interest from more than 120 investors ranging in price prior to Tuesday’s midnight deadline for non-binding proposals. “We have received significant interest from a range of prospective teams and investors for permanent franchise spots in a new league in Europe,” NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum said in a statement to The Athletic. “The level of engagement and the scale of the bids reflect the marketplace’s belief in our proposed model and the enormous, untapped potential for European basketball. We will now review the bids in more detail and shortlist the partners who share our vision and commitment to accelerating the growth of the game across the continent.” NBA game highlights The NBA reportedly is seeking between $500 million and $1 billion for a permanent entry into the league. The reported targeted cities for 12 permanent franchises are London, Manchester, Paris, Lyon, Rome, Milan, Barcelona, Madrid, Berlin, Munich, Athens and Istanbul. Those 12 “licensed” teams would be joined in competitive play every year by four teams that earn their way into the top league via performance at smaller leagues throughout Europe. Talk has increased recently about the potential for a partnereship between the NBA and the EuroLeague. The potential also is there for the sides to clash over the planned NBA Europe. “I think for the betterment of European basketball, the best outcome would be if we came together with the EuroLeague here and that we came up with a systematic approach to growing the game throughout Europe,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said last week. Silver’s target remains an October 2027 launch for the NBA Europe league. NBA ROUNDUP: VICTOR WEMBANYAMA NETS 41 TO LEAD SPURS TO 10TH STRAIGHT WIN Victor Wembanyama matched his season-high with 41 points and had a game-high 18 rebounds in a record-setting performance, propelling the San Antonio Spurs to a 127-113 romp over the short-handed Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night in San Francisco. Stephon Castle and Julian Champagnie chipped in with 15 points apiece for the Spurs (58-18), who used a 10th consecutive win to move within two games of the Oklahoma City Thunder atop the Western Conference standings. Wembanyama’s 41 points came in just 29 minutes to match his season-best total from San Antonio’s previous game at home against the Chicago Bulls on Monday. Having totaled 16 rebounds in the Chicago game, Wembanyama became the first Spur to record consecutive 40-point double-doubles. Nate Williams had 18 points, one off his career high, to lead seven players in double figures for the Warriors (36-40), who dropped 2 1/2 games behind the Portland Trail Blazers in their duel for ninth place in the West. Celtics 147, Heat 129 Jaylen Brown tossed in a game-high 43 points and Jayson Tatum had a triple-double of 25 points, 18 rebounds and 11 assists as visiting Boston beat Miami. Sam Hauser made 5 of 7 3-point attempts and added 23 points for the Celtics, who made 21 of 44 3-point attempts (47.7%) and shot 58.3% from the floor. Bam Adebayo led the Heat with 29 points and 10 rebounds, and Davion Mitchell added 21 points. Miami has lost eight of its last 10 and given up at least 121 points in each of the eight defeats. 76ers 153, Wizards 131 Paul George set a career high in a Sixers uniform with 39 points and visiting Philadelphia, playing without Joel Embiid, had an offensive outburst in a win over Washington. George was 15 of 22 from the floor and made six 3-pointers while playing 30 minutes. Tyrese Maxey had 28 points and rookie VJ Edgecombe added 23 as the Sixers shot a season-high 61.6% from the floor, including 48.6% (17 of 35) from beyond the arc. Anthony Gill had a team-high 21 points off the bench for the Wizards, including three treys. Will Riley scored 18 and Tristan Vukcevic added 17 as Washington shot 52.1% from the floor and 40% from deep. Knicks 130, Grizzlies 119 New York shot a blistering 70.7% from the floor in the first half — including 81% in the opening quarter — to post a wire-to-wire victory over host Memphis and snap a three-game losing streak. OG Anunoby scored 17 of his game-high 25 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Knicks, Mikal Bridges added 24 points and Karl-Anthony Towns posted a triple-double of 20 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists. Jalen Brunson sat out with a right ankle injury. Memphis got 20 points from GG Jackson, 17 from Olivier-Maxence Prosper and 15 from Cedric Coward. The Grizzlies lost for the seventh time in their last eight games with an injury-depleted roster that had four players on 10-day contracts. Memphis was outrebounded 49-20. Hawks 130, Magic 101 Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 32 points and Jalen Johnson flirted with a triple-double as Atlanta crushed host Orlando. Alexander-Walker hit 11 of 16 from the floor and 5 of 9 from 3-point range as Atlanta won its third straight and 18th of 21 since the All-Star break to consolidate fifth place in the Eastern Conference. Johnson compiled 18 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists. Atlanta’s Onyeka Okongwu added 16 points, and Dyson Daniels paired 15 points with 13 boards. Jamal Cain scored 17 points off the bench for the Magic, who were outscored 105-73 after the first quarter while losing for the eighth time in 10 games. Desmond Bane and Wendell Carter Jr. added 14 points each. Franz Wagner contributed 12 points in his return following a 22-game absence caused by a high ankle sprain. Nuggets 130, Jazz 117 Jamal Murray matched his career high of 10 3-pointers and scored 37 points in Salt Lake City as Denver defeated Utah for the 10th straight time. Cameron Johnson had 19 points, nine rebounds and six assists and Christian Braun scored 18 points for the Nuggets, who won their seventh consecutive contest. Denver star Nikola Jokic recorded 15 points, 17 rebounds and 12 assists for his 196th career triple-double. Brice Sensabaugh made six 3-pointers and scored 28 points and Kyle Filipowski added 25 points and 12 rebounds for the Jazz, who lost their seventh straight game and 19th in the past 22. Pacers 145, Bulls 126 Pascal Siakam scored 25 points and rookie Ethan Thompson chipped in a career-high 24 to lead six Indiana players in double figures as the visiting Pacers rolled past slumping Chicago. Indiana, which posted a season-high point total, swept the four-game season series against the Bulls while winning consecutive road games for just the second time this season. The Bulls trailed by as many as 28 en route to losing their fifth straight. Guerschon Yabusele scored 20 points for Chicago, and Matas Buzelis collected 17 points, nine rebounds and six assists. Rockets 119, Bucks 113 Reed Sheppard scored 27 points, Alperen Sengun added 25 and host Houston fended off injury-depleted Milwaukee to extend its winning streak to four games. Games Sheppard hit a career-high nine 3-pointers while Sengun shot 9-for-13 from the floor and grabbed nine rebounds. The Rockets led by 20 in the third but didn’t seal the victory until Kevin Durant (19 points, nine assists) sank two free throws with 6.3 seconds left to complete the scoring. The Bucks were missing their top six scorers but didn’t relent. Ousmane Dieng (36 points), Cormac Ryan (25) and Pete Nance (23) all tallied career highs while Jericho Sims pulled down a career-best 20 rebounds. Dieng also posted seven rebounds and a career-high 10 assists. Kings 123, Raptors 115 DeMar DeRozan and Precious Achiuwa each scored 28 points as Sacramento stunned the pair’s former team, host Toronto. DeRozan scored 26 of his points in the second half to give him 26,688. That vaulted him past Dominique Wilkins into 17th on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. Achiuwa finished with 19 rebounds as the Kings snapped a four-game skid. RJ Barrett and Collin Murray-Boyles each scored 20 points for the Raptors, who have lost two straight. Jakob Poeltl scored 18 points and Scottie Barnes logged 14 points and 10 assists ================================================================ MLB MLB ROUNDUP: MARLINS’ SANDY ALCANTARA SHUTS OUT WHITE SOX ON 93 PITCHES Sandy Alcantara pitched a three-hit shutout and Liam Hicks drove in four runs, leading the host Miami Marlins to a 10-0 win over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday afternoon. Alcantara (2-0) did not walk a batter and struck out seven, throwing just 93 pitches. It was his fifth career shutout and the second time he pitched a “Maddux” — a complete-game shutout in fewer than 100 pitches. Hicks went 3-for-4 with his third homer of the season as the Marlins improved to 5-1 while the White Sox fell to 1-5. Chicago starter Shane Smith (0-2) allowed eight runs, seven earned, on eight hits in three innings. Braves 5, Athletics 1 Sports news updates Drake Baldwin drove in four runs to support the stellar pitching effort of Chris Sale and help Atlanta defeat the visiting Athletics in the rubber game of a three-game series. Sale (2-0) worked six innings and allowed one run on one hit. He retired 18 of the 19 batters he faced. Sale now has 2,858 strikeouts, leaving him 19 away from catching former Atlanta great Tom Glavine for 29th on the all-time list. Shea Langeliers got the Athletics on the board in the fourth by hitting his majors-leading fifth homer. Langeliers went 2-for-4 and raised his average to .375. Orioles 8, Rangers 2 Leody Taveras, Taylor Ward and Jeremiah Jackson drove in two runs each and Baltimore turned strong offensive production into a victory over visiting Texas to salvage the finale of a three-game series. Dylan Beavers and Samuel Basallo hit solo home runs. Beavers finished with three hits and three runs. The Orioles received another strong start from Trevor Rogers (2-0), who worked six innings and allowed two runs on six hits. Corey Seager homered for the Rangers, who had a four-game winning streak snapped. Josh Jung delivered his first hits of the season, after an 0-for-18 start, and finished with a pair of singles. Nathan Eovaldi (0-2) was charged with six runs on eight hits in four innings. Pirates 8, Reds 3 Oneil Cruz homered for the second straight day and Paul Skenes bounced back from a rough season opener to lead Pittsburgh to a win over host Cincinnati. With two runners on in the first, Cruz crushed an 81 mph curveball from Reds starter Andrew Abbott (0-1) 407 feet over the right field fence to stake the Pirates to a 3-0 lead. Skenes (1-1) backed it up by tossing five innings and allowing one run on three hits. Abbott gave up four runs on five hits in 5 2/3 innings. Eugenio Suarez hit a two-run homer for the Reds. Rockies 2, Blue Jays 1 (10 innings) Pinch hitter Tyler Freeman singled home the go-ahead run in the 10th inning as visiting Colorado earned a victory over Toronto. Freeman, activated before the game, singled against Brendon Little (0-1) to score Brenton Doyle from second base as the Rockies won the decisive game of a three-game set. Jimmy Herget pitched a perfect 10th to earn his first save after Brennan Bernardino (1-0) tossed a perfect ninth. Toronto wasted a strong start from Kevin Gausman, who went six scoreless innings while allowing two hits with no walks and 10 strikeouts. The Blue Jays took a 1-0 lead in the third inning on a Davis Schneider single against Kyle Freeland but left the bases loaded. Cardinals 2, Mets 1 (11 innings) Masyn Winn delivered a walk-off bloop RBI single in the 11th inning for St. Louis, which edged New York in the rubber game of a three-game series. Gordon Graceffo (1-0) earned the win by getting the final two outs of the 11th. Graceffo got Brett Baty to hit into a grounder that forced Jared Young at home before he retired Marcus Semien on a flyout. Nolan Gorman had an RBI single in the sixth for the Cardinals, who have won their first two series. Juan Soto homered in the sixth for the Mets, who were 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position as they fell to 1-2 this year in extra innings. Cubs 6, Angels 2 Nico Hoerner went 3-for-5 with two doubles, a stolen base, a run and an RBI and Matt Shaw had two hits and two RBIs to lead Chicago to a victory over visiting Los Angeles in the decisive game of a three-game series. Matthew Boyd (1-1) bounced back from an Opening Day loss to pick up the win. Boyd allowed two runs (one earned) on two hits over 5 2/3 innings while striking out 10 and walking two. Michael Busch had two hits and a run for the Cubs. Zach Neto had two hits and a run for the Angels, who finished 3-4 on a season-opening road trip. Los Angeles managed just four hits on a windy 39-degree day,. Yusei Kikuchi (0-1) permitted five runs on six hits in 5 1/3 innings. Royals 13, Twins 9 Jonathan India belted his fifth career grand slam and Kyle Isbel also went deep among his four hits, lifting host Kansas City to a victory over Minnesota. Maikel Garcia drove in three runs as the Royals benefited from their Nos. 6-9 hitters — India, Jac Caglianone, Isaac Collins and Isbel — combining to go 10-for-16 with eight RBIs and nine runs. Noah Cameron (1-0) won his season debut after allowing one run on four hits in five innings. Minnesota scored eight runs over its final three innings — highlighted by Josh Bell’s three-run homer in the ninth — before Lucas Erceg retired the two batters he faced to secure his second save. Astros 6, Red Sox 4 Carlos Correa’s two-out, three-run home run in the fifth inning changed the game, helping Houston complete a three-game sweep of visiting Boston. Correa and Christian Vazquez both went deep while Yordan Alvarez finished 2-for-3 with a double and two runs for the Astros, who have won five straight since an 0-2 start. Mike Burrows (1-1) pitched five innings of two-run ball. Wilyer Abreu and Roman Anthony homered in the eighth and ninth, respectively, as the Red Sox staged a failed comeback bid. Garrett Crochet (1-1) allowed five runs (four earned) in five innings. Phillies 6, Nationals 5 (10 innings) Edmundo Sosa had a game-tying two-run single in the ninth inning and Justin Crawford provided a game-ending single in the 10th as Philadelphia rallied for a victory over visiting Washington. Playing in just his fifth major league game, Crawford slammed the first pitch he saw from Cole Henry (0-1) past a drawn-in infield for the victory to send his teammates storming out of the dugout. Philadelphia trailed 5-1 through seven innings but rallied to win back-to-back games for the first time this season. CJ Abrams hit a three-run homer for Washington, while Joey Wiemer continued his hot start to the season with two hits, a walk and two runs. Brewers 8, Rays 2 Christian Yelich chopped a tiebreaking two-run single in a six-run eighth inning, and host Milwaukee rallied to a win against Tampa Bay. Yelich and Garrett Mitchell each went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a run. Brice Turang clubbed a two-run shot as the Brewers won for the fifth time in six games to open the season. In six innings, Jacob Misiorowski yielded two runs on four hits. Aaron Ashby (2-0) pitched a scoreless eighth. The Rays’ Yandy Diaz swatted a two-run homer, and Chandler Simpson went 2-for-3 with a walk. Starter Drew Rasmussen tossed five innings and allowed two runs (one earned) on two hits. He fanned eight, all swinging, and walked one. Diamondbacks 1, Tigers 0 Corbin Carroll became the sixth left-handed hitter to homer off Tarik Skubal, and Zac Gallen and three Arizona relievers made that stand up for a victory over Detroit in Phoenix. Carroll drove a 97 mph fastball over the fence in left-center for his second homer of the season as the second batter in the last of the first inning. The blast enabled the Diamondbacks to complete a three-game sweep. Two-time defending Cy Young Award winner Skubal (1-1) yielded six hits in seven innings. Gallen (1-1) allowed four hits in six scoreless innings. Guardians 4, Dodgers 1 Gavin Williams struck out 10 in seven shutout innings, Gabriel Arias and Jose Ramirez homered and Cleveland won the decisive game of a three-game series at Los Angeles. Williams (1-1) gave up two hits and walked three as the Guardians capped a 4-3, season-opening road trip. Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto (1-1) allowed two runs on four hits over six innings. Freddie Freeman hit a home run with two outs in the ninth inning, spoiling the Guardians’ shutout bid. Yankees 5, Mariners 3 Cam Schlittler pitched 6 1/3 scoreless innings as New York defeated host Seattle. The Yankees won five of six games on their season-opening trip to San Francisco and Seattle, outscoring their opponents 24-6. Paul Goldschmidt hit a three-run homer and Ben Rice added a solo shot for New York, which won the final two games of the series after dropping the opener. Schlittler (2-0) allowed just two hits, didn’t walk a batter and struck out seven. David Bednar pitched the final 1 1/3 innings for his third save of the season. For Seattle, Cal Raleigh hit a two-run single and George Kirby (1-1) gave up four runs on five hits over six innings. Padres 7, Giants 1 Ramon Laureano blasted a two-run homer and Nick Pivetta yielded only one hit in five shutout innings as San Diego avoided a series sweep by visiting San Francisco. Pivetta (1-1) fanned eight and walked two. Mason Miller worked the final 1 1/3 innings for his second save. Laureano, Manny Machado and Gavin Sheets each had two hits for the Padres. Giants starter Adrian Houser (0-1) yielded three runs, one earned, over 5 1/3 innings in his season debut. Luis Arraez collected three of San Francisco’s four hits. NICO HOERNER’S $141 MILLION, 6-YEAR CUBS CONTRACT INCLUDES DEFERRED MONEY PAYABLE THROUGH 2047 Nico Hoerner’s $141 million, six-year contract with the Chicago Cubs includes $10 million in deferred money payable from 2040-47. Hoerner has a $12 million salary in 2026, the final season of a $35 million, three-year contract agreed to in March 2023. His new deal, announced Sunday, includes a $5 million signing bonus payable in equal installments on June 1 this year and in 2027, according to contract details obtained by The Associated Press. Hoerner gets salaries of $23 million each in 2027 and ’28, and $22.5 million annually from 2029-32. Chicago will defer $2.5 million a year from 2029-32, payable in $1.25 million installments each Dec. 31 from 2040-47. He also gets a full no-trade provision and a hotel suite on road trips. A 28-year-old second baseman, Hoerner would have been eligible for free agency after this year’s World Series. He has a .282 average with 36 homers, 280 RBIs and 134 stolen bases in eight seasons with the Cubs. Hoerner’s long-term deal was announced three days after All-Star center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong finalized a $115 million, six-year contract. ================================================================ COLLEGE FOOTBALL FORMER WISCONSIN TIGHT END JACK PUGH DIES AT 24 Jack Pugh, a former tight end on Wisconsin’s football team who stepped away from football three years ago citing mental health concerns, has died, the university announced. He was 24. Wisconsin issued a post Tuesday night on its football program’s X account saying that Pugh had died. Details including cause of death were not given. “The Wisconsin Athletics family is deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Jack Pugh,” the post said. “Jack was a positive light and brought a genuine spirit to our football program. More than that, he cared about people and was loved by his teammates and staff. Jack proudly earned his degree from UW-Madison in 2025 and will forever be remembered and loved.” Pugh, who was from Columbus, Ohio, redshirted in 2021 before appearing in one game and earning academic All-Big Ten honors in 2022. He announced in an Instagram post in December 2023 that he had decided before that season to medically retire. “My physical health was not near perfect, but my mental health was the reason I decided to hang it up,” Pugh said in that Instagram post. “Over years of prolonged depression and substance abuse, I decided I deserved a better life and to finally find happiness. In no way was football the root of these problems, but everything in my life had distracted me for so long to the point I never had prioritized my mental health all along, digging a deeper darker hole.” “I want to thank the amazing Coaches, Teammates, Friends and Family @badgerfootball has provided me with over the years for helping me find a life I’m happy and proud of, and to finally create a relationship with God. I’ll never forget the memories. Love y’all.” =============================================================== NFL REPORTS: TITANS SIGN QB HENDON HOOKER AMONG FOUR ADDITIONS The Tennessee Titans are signing quarterback Hendon Hooker, running back Michael Carter and wide receivers K.J. Osborn and Lance McCutcheon, multiple outlets reported Wednesday. Financial terms were not disclosed on any of the deals, with the players expected to add depth during training camp and into the preseason. Hooker, 28, returns to the state where he starred with the Tennessee Volunteers for two seasons and finished fifth in the 2022 Heisman Trophy voting. He earned SEC Offensive Player of the Year honors with 3,135 passing yards, 27 touchdowns and only two interceptions. A third-round pick by Detroit in 2023, Hooker appeared in three games for the Lions in 2024 and completed 6 of 9 passes for 62 yards. He has spent time with the Carolina Panthers and New York Jets without seeing any action. Osborn, 28, spent time on the Atlanta Falcons’ practice squad but did not play in any NFL games last season. He has 165 receptions for 1,902 yards and 16 touchdowns in 67 career games (34 starts) with the Minnesota Vikings (2020-23), New England Patriots (2024) and Washington Commanders (2024). The Vikings drafted him in the fifth round out of Miami in 2020. Carter, 26, was last with the Arizona Cardinals and has five years of NFL experience, including time with the Jets from 2021-23 under new Titans head coach Robert Saleh. He has 1,692 career rushing yards with nine touchdowns and 145 receptions for 1,038 yards. McCutcheon, 27, last played in the NFL in 2022 when he appeared in 10 games with the Los Angeles Rams. He also spent time with the Houston Texans, Jets, Pittsburgh Steelers and Titans but did not appear in a game. He was on the Titans’ practice squad last season and announced his retirement in March before reconsidering. JAGUARS TO PLAY 2027 HOME SLATE IN ORLANDO WHILE STADIUM UNDER CONSTRUCTION The Jacksonville Jaguars will play their home games in Orlando in 2027. Games NFL owners gave unanimous approval on Tuesday to the plan to relocate to Camping World Stadium for that one season. Orlando is about 140 miles south of Jacksonville. The Jaguars’ current home, EverBank Stadium, will be unavailable because of a $1.4 billion project to transform it into what the team has named the Stadium of the Future. Work already has started. Improvements include upgrades to technology as well as a transparent canopy designed to reduce the heat retention at the venue by 70% or more. A remake of the concourses also is scheduled, and shared spaces such as bars and food areas, will be reimagined. New lookout spaces will allow fans a view of Jacksonville. The construction will limit capacity at EverBank Stadium in the 2026 season, but the Jaguars will play there. Some stadium areas will be closed to seating. The project is scheduled to be completed before the 2028 season. “Following the comprehensive evaluation of our 2027 season playing options, we are pleased that the NFL and NFL owners unanimously agree that Orlando is the location that best meets the needs of the Jaguars, our 2027 opponents, and the National Football League,” said Mark Lamping, the team president. “This temporary relocation is a necessary and important step to facilitate the 2028 completion of Jacksonville’s Stadium of the Future. We are deeply grateful to our fanbase for their continued support, patience, and enthusiasm during this interim period.” The team has said the renovations will put Jacksonville in line to host events such as the Super Bowl, the Final Four and the college football playoffs. Jacksonville hosted Super Bowl XXXIX on Feb. 6, 2005, when the New England Patriots defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 24-21. The stadium opened in 1995 when the Jaguars joined the NFL. It occupies the site of the old Gator Bowl, built in 1927. ================================================================== NHL NHL ROUNDUP: LEAGUE-WORST CANUCKS BLOW BIG LEAD, STILL SHOCK AVS Brock Boeser produced his seventh career regular-season hat trick and added an assist as the Vancouver Canucks recovered from blowing a four-goal lead to beat the Colorado Avalanche 8-6 in Denver on Wednesday night. Teddy Blueger scored twice for the Canucks (22-44-8, 52 points), who set a season high for goals while ending a six-game skid. Vancouver’s Marcus Pettersson had a goal and two assists, Max Sasson contributed a goal and an assist, Jake DeBrusk also scored, and Drew O’Connor and Marco Rossi had two assists apiece. Kevin Lankinen turned away 24 shots for Vancouver, which owns the lowest point total in the NHL. Colorado has the highest point total in the league. The Avalanche (49-15-10, 108 points) rallied from a 6-2 deficit to tie it on Sam Malinski’s second goal of the night at 13:58 of the third period. Pettersson answered 23 seconds later, and Boeser scored an empty-net goal at 18:31. Nathan MacKinnon scored his league-leading 50th goal of the season, Malinski also had an assist, Brent Burns recorded a goal and an assist and Gabriel Landeskog and Parker Kelly also scored for the Avalanche. Kings 2, Blues 1 (OT) Trevor Moore scored 1:56 into overtime as Los Angeles edged visiting St. Louis. Adrian Kempe scored in regulation and Anton Forsberg made 23 saves as the Kings leapfrogged the Nashville Predators and moved into the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference. Los Angeles is just 2-2-3 in the past seven games. Robert Thomas tallied for the Blues, who have dropped back-to-back games following a four-game winning streak. Jordan Binnington stopped 24 shots. Sharks 4, Ducks 3 Macklin Celebrini and Alexander Wennberg scored in the final two minutes to give San Jose a come-from-behind win against visiting Anaheim. The Sharks pulled goalie Yaroslav Askarov for the extra skater, and Celebrini scored with a wrist shot from just above the left circle to tie it 3-3 with 1:39 left. The goal gave the second-year star his first 40-goal campaign. Wennberg then scored from the high slot off a feed from Celebrini with 31 seconds remaining. Celebrini finished with two goals and two assists, Will Smith had a goal and two assists and Askarov made 28 saves for the Sharks, who are one point back of the West’s second wild-card spot. Ryan Poehling, Alex Killorn and Troy Terry scored, Drew Helleson had two assists and Lukas Dostal stopped 17 shots for the Ducks, who lead the Pacific Division. =================================================================== INDIANA SPORTS TEAM RELEASES INDIANA PACERS GAME REWIND: PACERS 145, BULLS 126 The Pacers weren’t fooling around in their April 1 matchup with the Chicago Bulls. The Blue and Gold recorded a slew of season highs in the 145-126 victory over the Bulls on Wednesday despite missing several key players. Chicago played without Josh Giddey, who was sidelined due to hamstring tightness, but Indiana was without Andrew Nembhard (back), Aaron Nesmith (neck), and T.J. McConnell (hamstring). Indiana set new season-high marks in points scored in a single half (83), points scored in a single game (145), assists recorded in a half (30), assists recorded in a single game (49), and opponent turnovers (20). The Pacers opened the contest with a 16-7 lead over the Bulls as they sought a season sweep in the fourth and final meeting between the two teams this season. Indiana missed just two of its first nine shots as it built that advantage into a 10-point lead by the midpoint of the first quarter. Ben Sheppard had a strong first frame – he had multiple highlight-reel finishes, including an over-the-shoulder pass to Pascal Siakam that resulted in a dunk. Siakam led Indiana in the first quarter as he notched a game-high 13 points, and Sheppard followed with nine points of his own. The Pacers led the Bulls after the first, 39-33. Jay Huff struck from deep to begin the second period, and hit two more 3-pointers before he missed one. Huff had nine points in the second quarter before the seven-minute mark, and the Pacers led by 14 points, 60-46. Ethan Thompson knocked down a triple through contact shortly after Taelon Peter took a pivotal charge from Matas Buzelis, and Indiana’s momentum was rolling as the halftime break approached. The Blue and Gold led, 73-58, with just under three minutes remaining in the first half. Buzelis started to hit a stride for the Bulls down the stretch of the second quarter, and led Chicago into halftime with his 14 points and seven rebounds. Siakam notched a game-high 23 points for the Pacers, and Huff’s 4-for-5 shooting from deep resulted in a 14-point half for him. Indiana’s 83 points in the first half marked a new season-high for points scored in a single half, surpassing its 80-point first half performance against Atlanta on January 31. Indiana also notched 30 assists in the first half – just eight assists shy of tying its season-high of 38 in a single game. The Pacers led by 17 at halftime, 83-66. Indiana hit the century mark with nearly eight minutes left in the third quarter. Kobe Brown put back a rebound to give the Pacers a 24-point lead, 100-76. The Pacers maintained their sizable lead into the fourth quarter, and led 117-92 after the third. Micah Potter took over for the Blue and Gold in the fourth as he recorded eight points in the period to close out the Bulls in Chicago, 145-126. Indiana forced 20 Chicago turnovers – that number marks the most turnovers committed by a Pacers opponent this season. The Blue and Gold converted those 20 turnovers into 32 points as the Pacers defeated the Bulls by a convincing 19 points. Siakam led Indiana in scoring with 25 points, but Thompson recorded a new career-high 24 points in Wednesday’s win. Guerschon Yabusele led the Bulls with 20 points and six rebounds. The win marks Indiana’s second straight victory, and earns a 4-0 season sweep of the Chicago Bulls. The Pacers are back in action on Friday, April 3, as they take on the Charlotte Hornets in the second game of a three-game road trip. Inside the Numbers The Pacers’ 30 assists in the first half mark their most in any half since 1996-97. Their 49 total assists ties for the most in any NBA game this season, and is just one assist shy of tying the franchise record of 50 set in 2024-25. The Pacers recorded 49 assists on 58 made field goals. Indiana shot 57 percent from the floor, including 42 percent from 3-point range. The Bulls shot 49 percent from the floor, and 33 percent from deep. The Pacers lost the rebounding battle, 46-41. ================================================================= INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS GRIFFIN EXTENDS HITTING STREAK AS INDIANS DROP FIFTH STRAIGHT COLUMBUS, Ohio – Konnor Griffin extended his hitting streak to five games and Esmerlyn Valdez recorded his second extra-base hit in as many games as the Indianapolis Indians fell 6-1 to the Columbus Clippers on Wednesday night at Huntington Park. The Indians (0-5) have now lost each of their first five games on the 2026 campaign, marking the team’s longest losing streak to begin a season in the Victory Field era. The team previously lost its first four games of the season in 2023 (March 31-April 4) and 2011 (April 7-10). After jumping out on top thanks to a run-scoring groundout by Endy Rodríguez to score Griffin as the leadoff man, Columbus (4-1) knotted the game and took the lead with solo home runs by Kahlil Watson and Stuart Fairchild in the first and second innings, respectively. The two then capped the scoring with a two-run eighth inning, with Fairchild’s second home run preceding a Watson two-out RBI single. Wilber Dotel (L, 0-1) surrendered the first three Columbus runs through 4.1 innings in his Triple-A debut. Trenton Denholm (W, 1-0), making just his second Triple-A start, fanned eight through 6.0 one-run innings and held Indianapolis to two of its three total hits. The Indians will look for their first win of the season tomorrow night in the third of six games vs. Columbus at 6:15 PM. RHP Noah Davis (0-1, 7.20) will make his second start for Indy against RHP Pedro Avila (0-0, -.–). ==================================================================== INDY FUEL FUEL EARN POINT IN OVERTIME DUEL WITH WALLEYE FISHERS- The Indy Fuel hosted the Toledo Walleye on Wednesday night. Originally slated for December 28, this Central divisional make-up game ended in thrilling fashion as they forced overtime. Ultimately, the Walleye won 5-4 in OT. 1ST PERIOD Cam Hausinger opened the scoring at 10:33 against his former Fuel teammate Mitchell Weeks in net. Less than three minutes later, Indy answered back with a goal from Cody Laskosky to tie it up. Jordan Martin had the lone assist on that goal. The Fuel kept the pressure on but could not score again in the first period that saw no penalties. Shots were tied 9-9 at the end of the first frame, with a score of 1-1. 2ND PERIOD Mitch Lewandowski scored for the Walleye at 4:11 to make it 2-1 after putting up six unanswered shots to open the frame. At 10:33, the Fuel earned the first power play of the game after Dylan Moulton was called for slashing. Fuel newcomer Marcus Joughin capitalized on the power play with a goal at 11:35 to make it 2-2. Tyler Weiss and Cody Laskosky had the assists on that goal. Less than twenty seconds later, Jordan Martin scored to give Indy a 3-2 lead. Fuel captain Chris Cameron and Dustin Manz claimed the assists. At 12:45, Toledo’s Brendon Michaelian scored to tie the game once more, at 3-3. Chris Cameron headed to the penalty box at 14:15, to take Indy’s first penalty of the game. He sat for holding but the Fuel killed it off. At the end of the second period, Toledo was outshooting Indy, 26-18 but the score remained tied 3-3. 3RD PERIOD Laskosky opened the scoring in the third period with a backhanded goal right in front of the net, at 2:53. Owen Robinson and Christian Berger had the assists. This was Laskosky’s second goal of the night. It was Laskosky who headed to the penalty box next for hooking at 6:13. This put the Fuel on the penalty kill and they were successful. Toledo’s Dylan Moulton tied the game up once more with a goal at 8:54. That was the last thing added to the game sheet in regulation, as neither team scored, forcing a 3-on-3 overtime period. In regulation, Toledo outshot Indy, 46-23. OVERTIME On the second shot in overtime, Tanner Dickinson scored the game winner for Toledo at 2:04. ================================================================== INDIANA BASEBALL INDIANA, NORTHWESTERN TO MEET AT WRIGLEY FIELD BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The Indiana Baseball team will get the chance to play at one of the sport’s most iconic venues when the final month of the regular season begins. Head coach Jeff Mercer and his squad will play the opening game (Friday, May 1) of their series against Northwestern at Wrigley Field – the home of the Chicago Cubs. It’s the fourth straight year that the Wildcats have hosted a game at the Friendly Confines. IU’s game against Northwestern will be the first contest the program plays at an MLB stadium since a March tournament at T-Mobile Park (Mariners) in 2019. The Hoosiers also played at Target Field (Twins) for the 2013 Big Ten Tournament. The final two games of the weekend series will take place at Northwestern’s home stadium. First pitch will come at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT on Big Ten Plus. Tickets for the game are available at www.cubs.com/northwesternbaseball. Wrigley Field gates will open approximately two hours after the conclusion of the Cubs and Diamondbacks game that afternoon. ======================================================================= NOTRE DAME SOFTBALL IRISH HEAD TO NO. 6/10 FLORIDA STATE FOR THREE-GAME SERIES SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Winners of three of its past four games, the University of Notre Dame softball team heads to the state of Florida for the third time this season when the Irish take on the No. 6/10 Florida State Seminoles for a three-game series starting Thursday, April 2nd and concluding on Saturday, April 4th, moved up a day due to the Easter holiday on Sunday, April 5th. Game one and two will both take place at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday and Friday, being streamed on ACC Network Extra. The series finale Saturday at 2:00 p.m. will be broadcast nationally on ACC Network. Notre Dame is coming off an 11-3 midweek win in five innings last night against Western Michigan. The 11 runs scored last night were tied for a season-high. Senior Mickey Winchell and freshman Ava Zachary are two of the hottest hitters in the nation heading into Tallahassee. Winchell has 12 hits in the past four games, hitting .750 from the leadoff spot in those contests. Zachary stuffed the stat sheet last night, posting a pair of hits, a walk, a double, an RBI and three runs scored. The Mishawaka, Indiana product leads the team with a .410 batting average and 20 RBI this season. In conference play, Zachary is hitting .474 in 12 conference games while scoring 12 and stealing four bases against ACC opponents. HEADED BACK TO FLORIDA For the third time this season, Notre Dame heads to the state of Florida (NFCA Leadoff Classic – Clearwater; SpaceU Classic – Orlando) The Irish last faced off against Florida State on May 9, 2024 at the ACC Championships. The last time they were in Tallahassee was April 12-14, 2024 Notre Dame is 7-30 all-time against Florida State and 3-15 in road matchups The last Irish win against Florida State was a 7-4 win on the road back on March 16, 2019 Notre Dame has played 11 games in Florida this year, posting a 3-8 record, including a 5-1 win over #23 Liberty FRESHMAN PHENOMS Ava Zachary has been one of the best newcomers in the conference this season, leading the team with a .410 batting average and 20 RBI. In conference play, Zachary is hitting a blistering .474 with a team-high 18 hits, finding a home in the three-spot of the lineup. Hayden Kyne has been a valuable bat for Notre Dame in her first collegiate season. The catcher/designated player has burst out in conference play, hitting .371 with a team-high 13 RBI against ACC foes. Both of Kyne’s home runs this season have come against conference teams. In the last five games, Kyne has driven in 10 Lily Hagan has provided value in different offensive roles. She’s hitting .333 on the season including one home run and seven RBI. Molly Conner has been used as the primary pinch runner this season, scoring eight runs while providing two stolen bases on the basepaths ============================================================ NOTRE DAME BASEBALL QUATRANI NAMED TO BUSTER POSEY AWARD MIDSEASON WATCHLIST WICHITA, Kan. – Notre Dame junior catcher Mark Quatrani was named to the 2026 Buster Posey National Collegiate Catcher of the Year Award Midseason Watchlist. Quatrani is one of 50 catchers to be named to the midseason list by the Wichita Sports Commission. The Philadelphia, Pennsylvania native has consistently been among the national leaders in hits (37), batting average (.389), home runs (9), runs batted in (33) and slugging percentage (.726) during the 2026 season. He has 13 multi-hit games and nine multi-RBI efforts for the Irish through 24 games played. On the defensive side, Quatrani has caught six runners attempting to steal while allowing just three passed balls on the year. The semifinalist list for the award will be released in May. =================================================================== NOTRE DAME WOMEN’S BASKETBALL HIDALGO WINS NAISMITH DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR ATLANTA — After one of the greatest defensive seasons in NCAA history, Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo has been named the Naismith Women’s Defensive Player of the Year on Wednesday evening as announced by the Atlanta Tipoff Club. Hidalgo became the first player in program history to earn the award. The standout has already been named the ACC Player of the Year and ACC Defensive Player of the Year along with Naismith All-America, USBWA All-America and USA Today All-America First Teams. Hidalgo set multiple NCAA steals records over the course of the season, including the single-season record with 202 during the 2025-26 campaign. She became the first women’s or men’s player to reach the 200-steal milestone in a season since steals became an official stat in 1988. The Merchantville, New Jersey, native also set the record for most steals in a single NCAA Tournament with 29 over the course of four games. Hidalgo had back-to-back eight steal performances in wins over Fairfield and Ohio State before setting the program record for steals in an NCAA Tournament game with 10 in the win over Vanderbilt in the Sweet Sixteen. Hidalgo then added three more against UConn in the Elite Eight. The junior also broke the single-game NCAA and program record for steals, recording 16 in the win over Akron to go along with her program-record 44 points in the win. In just three seasons, Hidalgo has already claimed the program record for career steals with 481. ================================================================ BUTLER SOFTBALL PREVIEW: BULLDOGS HOST CREIGHTON FOR BIG EAST SERIES DATE: Thursday-Saturday, April 2-4 LOCATION: Indianapolis, Ind. / Butler Softball Field LIVE STATS: butlersports.com (statbroadcast) LIVE VIDEO: N/A The Butler softball team hosts Creighton this week for a three-game BIG EAST series. The Bulldogs (16-10, 8-1 BIG EAST) took last weekend’s series at St. John’s, 2-1, after defeating Ball State on the road, 7-6. The BlueJays (18-18*, 7-2 BIG EAST) swept Seattle last weekend and lost to Nebraska on Tuesday evening. Butler currently sits atop the conference standings while Creighton and Providence are one game behind in second place. Bulldog Bits (as of 3/30/26) As a team, Butler leads the BIG EAST and (ranks nationally) with 6.69 RBIs/game (26th), 7.15 runs/game (30th), 15 double plays (36th), and a .319 batting average (61st). Makena Alexander leads the BIG EAST and is (ranked nationally) in several categories: .616 on base% (5th), .520 avg. (6th), 1.080 Slug% (8th), and 44 RBI (24th), and 11 home runs (63rd). Hailey Conger ranks in the BIG EAST and is (ranked nationally) in several categories: 1st (10th) with 1.42 runs/game, 2nd (95th) with .430 avg., 2nd (61st) with 1.19 RBIs/game, and 3rd (59th) with .533 on base%. Cate Lehner leads the BIG EAST (16th nationally) with 21 stolen bases, and she is also 1st (13th) with 48.0 at bats per strikeout. last week, at Ball State (W, 7-6) and at St. John’s (W, 3-2 | L, 4-1 | W, 9-8) Makena Alexander (.455 avg, 5-for-11, 4R, 2HR, 4RBI, 1.000 SLG%, 3BB, 3K, .571 OB%) Alexander hit two solo home runs in the win at Ball State In the Bulldogs’ 3-2 game-one win over St. John’s, she had a two-RBI single in the fifth that gave Butler its second and third runs. Katie Petran (3.68 ERA, 2-0, 3APP, 3GS, 1CG) Petran pitched a complete-game victory in Butler’s 3-2 game-one win over St. John’s. In game three, she started and pitched into the fifth inning and then returned to the rubber in the seventh. With the bases loaded and no outs, Petran produced a strikeout and then forced a line out to first base and a popup to shortstop, preserving the one-run lead and ending the game. Kayla Preiss (.385 avg, 5-for-13, 2B, 3B, 5RBI) Preiss had a career-high four RBIs in the 9-8 win in game three at St. John’s. Her first-inning double plated one, then, in the second inning, her bases-loaded triple brought home three more. The Bulldogs’ 8-1 start in BIG EAST competition (Villanova, Seton Hall, St. John’s) matches their 8-1 start in 2023 (DePaul, Providence, Creighton). Series History Creighton leads: 19-13 The Bluejays swept Butler in the 2025 series and won the 2024 series, 2-1. Creighton defeated Butler in BE Tournament games in 2025 and 2024. Creighton has won the last seven contests. Butler won one game in the 2024 series, two in the 2023 series, and swept the 2022 series. SCOUTING CREIGHTON (18-19, 7-2 BIG EAST) BIG EAST series: 3-0 vs. Villanova | 1-2 vs. Providence | 3-0 at Seton Hall Additional wins for Creighton include Kansas City (2), Drake, Seattle, and South Dakota. Additional losses for the Bluejays include #17 Arizona, Omaha, Iowa State, Wichita St., and Colorado St. Creighton went 1-2 vs. Northern Colorado and split with UT Arlington. 2026 CREIGHTON stats compared to (Butler) Avg. .307, (.317), Runs 234 (185), Hits 296 (214), RBI 214 (173), SB 80 (48), ERA 5.32 (5.60) ============================================================= BUTLER BASEBALL BULLDOGS OPEN BIG EAST PLAY AT VILLANOVA INDIANAPOLIS – Butler will open BIG EAST play on the road this week at Villanova. The three-game series between the two sides will take place Thursday, April 2, through Saturday, April 4. Butler is coming off a 3-1 week, picking up wins over Toledo and Milwaukee. GAMEDAY INFORMATION DATES: April 2-4 GAME TIMES: Thursday – 3PM, Friday – 2PM, Saturday – 1PM LOCATION: Plymouth Meeting, Pa. LIVE STATS: Butlersports.com ABOUT THE BULLDOGS Butler (8-20) is coming off a 2-1 series victory over Milwaukee. Butler secured a 6-2 win and an 8-7 win in game three as BU took its first series of the season against the Panthers. Gunnar Duncan was named the BIG EAST player of the week on Monday. The sophomore hit .600, including one home run and nine RBIs. Against Milwaukee on Sunday, Duncan went 3-for-4 with a career-high five RBIs. Brock Buckley is coming off his best outing of the season, throwing a seven-inning complete game in which he allowed just two runs on eight hits. His performance earned him a spot on the BIG EAST weekly honor roll. Grayson Bradberry earned a spot on the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll after tossing 6.0 innings, allowing only four hits and no runs while fanning five en route to his second win of the season on the mound. The freshman also pitched an inning of relief against Milwaukee, allowing no hits and no runs while picking up a strikeout. Matthew Rhoades ranks second nationally in home runs (16), 12th nationally in total bases (86) and is 20th nationally in slugging percentage (.796). The junior leads the team in RBIs (29) and runs (28). David Ayers is putting together a strong season at the plate, slashing 305/.371/.619. He leads Butler with 10 steals and ranks second on the team with 27 RBIs. Max Winders leads Butler on the mound, in eight appearances (three starts), Winders has posted a 4.88 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP. The sophomore leads Butler with 35 strikeouts and has issued only two walks. Logan Crock was named to the Brooks Wallace Award Watchlist earlier this season. The award honors the nation’s top shortstop and will be presented by the College Baseball Foundation later this year. The top 100 shortstops in the country made the list, which featured Butler shortstop Crock. The sophomore has had a solid start to 2026, slashing .260/.397/.753 in 23 games for the Dawgs. Crock has 19 hits, four doubles, two homers and 14 RBIs to his credit. Butler returns 17 letterwinners from a year ago and welcomes 21 new faces to the squad for 2026. Butler welcomed Ty Neal to the coaching staff this offseason as the program’s pitching coach. Neal was an assistant coach at Michigan in 2025, helping the Wolverines post a 33-23 overall record. They went 16-14 in the Big Ten standings and held a 4.92 team ERA. Neal has made stops at Michigan, Arizona State, Cincinnati, Indiana, Miami Ohio, and Southern Illinois. He brings nearly 20 years of coaching experience to the program and has assisted in the recruiting and development of over 50 MLB draft picks. Bradberry was named the BIG EAST Preseason Freshman of the Year by D1Baseball and Perfect Game prior to the start of the season. Bradberry hails from Columbia City, Indiana and earned All-Conference honors (3x), Pre-Season All-State honors, team MVP (2x), NE8 Conference Player of the Year and was chosen as a two-time team captain. In 2025, Butler saw Jack Moroknek get drafted in the 11th round by the Washington Nationals. Moroknek led the team in hits (81), batting average (.372), total bases (153), RBIs (57), home runs (18), runs scored (57), slugging percentage (.702) and OPS (1.145) while posting one of the best individual seasons in Butler history. Moroknek was the first Bulldog drafted since Ryan Pepiot was taken in the third round of the 2019 MLB Draft. Head Coach Blake Beemer enters his fourth season at the helm of the Bulldogs. Beemer helped coach back-to-back BIG EAST Freshman of the Year winners Joey Urban (2023) and Kade Lewis (2024) in his first two seasons with the Bulldogs. Beemer played a pivotal role in developing Jack Moroknek who earned All-BIG EAST second team honors a season ago before being selected by the Washington Nationals in the 2025 MLB Draft. SCOUTING VILLANOVA Villanova (10-14) is coming off an 11-1 midweek setback against Lafayette. Brayden Leonard leads Villanova at the dish, slashing .318/.420/.820 on the season. Leonard leads the Wildcats with 28 hits, seven doubles, one triple and is second on the team in RBIs with 14. Jack Kelley leads Villanova on the mound with a 2-3 record and a 6.03 ERA. Kelley has tossed 31.1 innings and has allowed 21 earned runs while striking out 28. UP NEXT The Bulldogs will return to action next week as the Dawgs host Southern Indiana on Tuesday, April 7 at Bulldog Park. First pitch between the two sides is scheduled for 3 p.m. More information will be made available on Butlersports.com. ============================================================== BUTLER WOMEN’S LAX BULLDOGS FALL TO XAVIER WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON Cincinnati, Ohio- The Butler women’s lacrosse team fell to Xavier 14-9 on Wednesday afternoon. Elise Latham would get the Dawgs on the board first taking the 1-0 lead. The game would go into a two hour weather delay before returning to action. After returning to play, Latham would get on the board again to give a 2-0 lead to the Dawgs. Xavier would respond with a goal, but the Bulldogs would add four goals from Grace Churchwell, Riley Ryan, Kerrin McGovern, and Maggie Lewis. Xavier would add two more, but the Dawgs would take the lead 6-3 after one. Xavier would come out firing, adding four goals in the quarter, while keeping the Dawgs scoreless. The Musketeers would take the 7-6 lead into the half. Xavier would continue to stay hot after the half and recorded six goals in the quarter. Latham and Churchwell each would score a goal for the Dawgs in the quarter. Xavier would hold the lead 13-8 into the fourth. Latham would get on the board again as the lone goal for the Bulldogs in the fourth. Xavier would add one to take the game 14-9. Notable Stats: Latham recorded four goals on the day. Genna Sulek and Olivia DiCarlo each had four draw controls. DiCarlo led the team with three ground balls. Samantha Wilson recorded 10 saves. Up Next The Bulldogs will travel to Connecticut on Saturday, April 4 at 12 p.m. ============================================================== BALL STATE MEN’S VOLLEYBALL MVB DEFENDS WORTHEN VERSUS NORTHERN KENTUCKY THURSDAY This Week in Ball State Men’s Volleyball: With the end of the 2026 regular season on the horizon, the seventh-ranked Ball State men’s volleyball program looks maintain its grip at the top of the MIVA as it welcomes conference foe Northern Kentucky to Worthen Arena April 2. First serve is slated for 7 p.m. ET. The theme of Thursday evening’s match is Red Out. Fans are encouraged to pack Worthen Arena wearing red as they cheer on the Cardinals. Teddy Bear Toss for Isaiah 117 House: During the first media time out of the opening set Thursday evening, fans are encouraged to take part in the teddy bear toss for Isaiah 117 House. Teddy bears of all sizes will be allowed through the doors of Worthen Arena, and those in attendance are asked to wait for the announcement to commence. Isaiah 117 House provides physical and emotional support in a safe and loving home for children awaiting placement. Last Serve: The Cardinals opened its road swing last week with a straight-set win over No. 11 Lindenwood (25-20, 25-18, 26-24). The Cardinals hit .406 and held Lindenwood to .167 behind 24 assists from Lucas Machado, while Ryan Louis led the offense with nine kills and Patrick Rogers added eight. Ball State’s defense set the tone with a 9.5-4 blocking advantage, led by Will Patterson’s six blocks, and the Cardinals closed out a tight third set with a Savitski-Lynde kill and a match-ending triple block. Two nights later, Ball State completed another sweep over No. 12 McKendree (28-26, 25-22, 25-19), snapping the Bearcats’ nine-match winning streak. Rogers led the way with a dominant double-double, posting 17 kills on .625 hitting and a career-high-tying 15 digs. Machado directed a .378 attack with 40 assists. The Cardinals’ defense totaled 41 digs, highlighted strong back-row efforts from Rogers, Wil Basilio, and Victor Scherer, and key late plays, including clutch kills from Rogers in a tightly contested opening set and late service aces from Marty Canavan. 20-3 in the Iandolo Era: After taking the reigns of the program this past summer, head coach Mike Iandolo has marched the Cardinals to a 20-3 record to begin his first year in the position — the team’s best winning percentage since Iandolo’s first year as an assistant coach in 2022, ending 23-4. The dominant campaign led to a conference regular season and tournament championship, as well a No.2 national ranking and national semifinal appearance. Unbeaten at Worthen: At 12-straight wins inside Worthen Arena in 2026, Ball State is three wins away from completing the regular season with an unblemished record at home for the first time since the 2002 team went 13-0. That year’s team ended the season 16-0 inside Worthen, taking three wins to claim what was the program’s 14th MIVA tournament championship. The 2002 season was in the middle of a 26-match home streak that stretched from March 16, 2001 to Jan. 31, 2003. Including last year’s 3-1 Senior Day win over McKendree (March 29), Ball State currently holds a 13-match streak on its home court which sits as the 10th-longest in program history. Rogers Named MIVA OPOTW: After his aid in Ball State’s sweeps over conference foes Lindenwood and McKendree, senior outside Patrick Rogers was named the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Offensive Player of the Week by the league Tuesday morning. Rogers becomes an honoree of the award for the second time in 2026, earning the co-honor with the Bearcats’ Sam Hoskin a few months back (Jan. 27). Rogers totals four offensive player of the week awards in his career. The attacking standout averaged 4.12 kills per set while hitting a .512 clip between the two contests. Machado Climbs the Record Book: Junior setter Lucas Machado has tallied 773 assists so far in 2026, raising his career total to 2,256 and placing him ninth in the program’s record book for career assists. As the primary general of the floor Machado has guided Ball State to a .377 hitting percentage, and if maintained, it would serve as the best team clip in program history. The current all-time percentage is .373, averaged in 1997. Rogers AVCA POTY Watchlist: Senior outside hitter Patrick Rogers has been named as one of 15 members honored in the first ever watchlist for the American Volleyball Coaches Association Player of the Year award. The inaugural watch list was compiled by the AVCA National Collegiate Men’s Volleyball Awards committee. Semifinalists for the award are to be announced in early April, and the final four will be named prior to the 2026 National Collegiate Championship May 9-11. The 2026 AVCA Player of the Year is to be revealed during the championship banquet. Welcome Back Palilonis: NKU head coach Jim Palilonis is no stranger to Ball State, as he played a key role as an assistant with the Cardinals where he helped guide the program to 15 winning seasons, five 20-win campaigns, and a 2002 NCAA Final Four appearance while overseeing setters, offensive strategy, and recruiting. During his tenure, the 1996 BSU graduate also contributed to the women’s program’s 2010 MAC title and 2011 NCAA Tournament berth. Match History – NKU: These two teams will conclude its first season series on Thursday. Earlier in the campaign (Feb. 21), BSU visited the Norse at its home Regents Hall, handing NKU a straight-set loss (25-21, 25-18, 25-22). Scouting NKU: Competing in its inaugural season in 2026, the Norse picked up its first pair of conference wins last week as they bested Queens on back-to-back nights (March 26 and 27). With five wins on the year, NKU has seen victories over Thomas More (Jan. 23), Maryland Eastern Shore (Feb. 12) and Central State (Feb. 13). On the road, the Norse is 1-4. NKU has been on the other side of the net against nine ranked opponents this year, coming up short in each contest. Ball State matches the highest-ranked foe the Norse has seen this season, as the program fell to then No. 7 Loyola Chicago on March 21. Statistically, NKU is placed last in hitting (.208), assists (9.54/set), kills (10.51/set), aces (1.05/set) and opponent hitting (.304). The unit is also seventh in blocks (1.69/set) and sixth in digs (7.90/set). Griffin Wheatley leads the attack effort for the Norse, averaging 2.80 kills per set (14th MIVA) on .223 hitting (24th MIVA). Setter Nick Whitely controls the pace of NKU’s offense, averaging 6.31 assists per set (8th in MIVA). On defense, Adam Blair sits at 14th in the conference in blocks, averaging 0.71 per set. Ryan Peterson follows in 20th with 0.63 blocks per set. Libero Trace Klausing leads the team in digs, averaging 1.38 per set (24th MIVA). Klausing captured the program’s first conference weekly award, being named the MIVA Defensive Player of the Week Tuesday morning (March 31). The freshman played in all eight sets against Queens, posting a total of 20 digs between the two matches. AVCA Top 20 Poll: Ball State entered the 2026 season ranked #16 in the AVCA National Collegiate Men’s Volleyball Preseason Poll with a total of 144 points. Heading into this week’s action, the Cardinals are the highest ranked MIVA team, sitting at No. 7 with 335 votes. ================================================================== INDIANA STATE BASEBALL SYCAMORES CONTINUE MVC PLAY THIS WEEKEND WITH SERIES AGAINST UIC TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State continues Missouri Valley play at home this weekend as the Sycamores host UIC in a three-game series at Bob Warn Field scheduled for April 2-4 in Terre Haute. All three games are scheduled to be carried live on 105.5 The Legend and ESPN+. With expected inclement weather in the Wabash Valley region this weekend, stay up-to-date on the latest for the weekend series by following the Indiana State Baseball social media accounts on X (@IndStBaseball) or on Facebook (SycamoreBaseball). The increased chance of inclement weather in the area has also adjusted the timing of the Blackwell Bullpen dedication ceremony originally scheduled for Friday, April 3. The ceremony has been postponed to a later, to-be-determined, date. Weekend Promotions at The Bob April 3 vs. UIC – Baseball Card Giveaway (Set 2) April 4 vs. UIC – Easter Egg hunt following the game, Forest t-shirt giveaway Recapping The Four-Game Stretch against Valparaiso and Purdue Indiana State heads into the weekend coming off a stretch of four games in four days as the Sycamores took on both Valparaiso and Purdue from March 28-31. The Sycamores went 3-1 in the games taking the first and third games in the Valpo series, while claiming the 12-4 win over Purdue on Tuesday night at Bob Warn Field. The pair of wins over the Beacons put the Sycamores at 4-2 in Missouri Valley play, while the midweek win over Purdue improved Indiana State’s record to 5-1 against the Big Ten Conference in 2026. The Indiana State bats were on fire over the four-game stretch as the team hit .347 from the plate with 50 hits, 13 doubles, a triple, and eight home runs, while scoring 41 runs. The Sycamore pitching staff matched the batters’ efforts at the plate with a 4.64 ERA over 33.0 innings, posting a 39:19 strikeout-to-walk ratio while allowing opponents to hit just .200 from the plate. Carter Beck continued his torrid stretch at the plate over the week as the junior outfielder continued a 10-game hitting streak with multiple hits in all 10 contests. Beck hit .529 from the plate with a team-high nine hits, while adding two doubles, a triple, and a home run. Mason Roell (.500) was also among the week’s standouts at the plate hitting three home runs over the weekend against Valparaiso, while driving in seven RBIs and scoring six runs. Colin Sander (.400) also finished among the team’s batting leaders with two home runs and a double among his six hits, while driving in six RBIs. Nick Sutherlin (.412) added seven hits and seven RBIs, while Caden Miller also drove in seven RBIs over the last four games. From the pitching standpoint, six Indiana State pitchers recorded 0.00 ERAs including starters Ty Brooks (1-0, 6.0 IP) and Ryan Karst (1-0, 5.1 IP), while Breyllin Suriel, Trevor Fenters, Hunter Small, and Jaxon Sparks also kept the opposition scoreless. Colby Morse (S, 1) added a 3.2-inning save on Monday afternoon against Valparaiso, while Carson Seeman (1-0) picked up the Tuesday win against Purdue. Season Spotlight Mason Roell (.396) has continued to power the Indiana State offensive production since joining the Sycamore lineup. The sophomore third baseman is tied for second on the team with five home runs, while adding a team-high .774 slugging percentage and .549 on-base percentage. Carter Beck (.357) continues to rake in Missouri Valley play with his batting average jumping nearly 70 points since the start of conference competition. Beck leads the Sycamores with 15 multi-hit games and is on his second double-digit on-base streak of the 2026 season after reaching safely in the last 12 games. Colin Sander (.324) has produced since entering the lineup over the last 10 games and has recorded a 1.001 OPS on the season with a .676 slugging percentage, including three home runs and 12 RBIs. Six of his 12 hits have gone for extra bases. Andrew Ortiz (.306) and Nick Sutherlin (.305) are also hitting above the .300 mark on the year with Ortiz producing a trio of three hit games, while Sutherlin has 13 extra-base hits with five home runs and 29 RBIs over heart of the lineup. Caden Miller (.293) and Emil Estrella (.271) have also been key bats in the heart of the Indiana State lineup combining for 10 home runs and 60 RBIs, while contributing 28 total extra-base hits. Indiana State’s offensive lineup continued to produce at the plate with the Sycamores sitting 12th in the NCAA in total doubles (67) and 15th in doubles per game (2.39). The pitching staff continues to be headlined by sophomore right-hander Ty Brooks as the Milford, Ind. native leads the team with a 5-0 record, 2.00 ERA, and a 33:11 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 45.0 innings. Brooks has gone at least 5.0 innings in seven of his eight starts on the mound. Ryan Karst (1-1) has been rounding into form over his last two starts on the mound and is coming off a 5.1-inning, 7-strikeout game in picking up the Monday win over Valparaiso. Karst has a 4.26 ERA over 19.0 innings while allowing opponents to hit .217 from the plate. Jack Armstrong (5.47 ERA) has also held down one of the weekend rotation positions since late February and sits second on the team with 25 strikeouts over 24.2 innings, while posting an opponent batting average of .206. Colby Morse, Carson Seeman, Hunter Small, and Aaron Moss have also recorded wins on the mound this year, while five different Sycamores have posted saves in 2026. The Indiana State pitching staff has combined to post a 6.37 ERA over 245.2 innings while allowing opponents to hit .266 from the plate. Sycamores in Valley Play Indiana State has turned it up offensively in Missouri Valley competition with the Sycamores hitting .371 from the plate with 30 extra-base hits, including 12 home runs over their six conference games. Nick Sutherlin (.542), Carter Beck (.520), and Mason Roell (.500) are all hitting at or above .500 from the pate in conference play with all three posting at least three multi-hit games over the stretch. Sutherlin and Beck are tied with 13 hits apiece, while Sutherlin, Beck, and Andrew Ortiz have all scored a team-high nine runs in conference play. Colin Sander and Mason Roell have both homered three times in Valley competition with Sander (11) and Emil Estrella (12) both recording double-digit RBIs. Overall, six different Sycamores are hitting .333 or better from the plate in conference competition, while eight different players have recorded at least one extra-base hit. Ty Brooks (2-0, 0.69 ERA) has been dominant on the mound in conference play posting an 11:4 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 13.0 innings pitched. He’s posted a .156 opponent batting average against both Bradley and Valparaiso. Ryan Karst (1-0, 1.08 ERA) has made two starts allowing just three hits over 8.1 innings while striking out 11 batters. Colby Morse (0-0, 1.50 ERA) has added a save over two multi-inning relief appearances on the mound. The Sycamore pitching staff has posted a 5.12 ERA in conference competition over 51.0 innings while allowing opponents to hit .246 from the plate. Sycamores Against UIC Indiana State holds the 10-3 all-time edge against UIC dating back to the series opener on April 3, 2012, when the Sycamores took the inaugural game against the Flames, 8-7, in Chicago, Ill. The Sycamores won nine consecutive games over the series spanning 2023-2025, before UIC claimed the win in last season’s series finale in Chicago on March 29, 2025, with the 4-2 victory at Curtis Granderson Field. The Sycamores have topped UIC twice in the postseason over the series history, defeating the Flames at both the 2023 and 2024 MVC Championships. Indiana State swept all three games against the Flames in their previous MVC series at Bob Warn Field over March 29-31, 2024. The Sycamores are 4-1 all-time against UIC in Terre Haute. The Sycamores’ lone loss to UIC in Terre Haute came back on March 27, 2013, when UIC topped the Sycamores 6-2 in nonconference play. About the UIC UIC was listed third among the five teams announced in the Missouri Valley Baseball preseason poll. The Flames received 59 total points and one first-place vote as selected by the league’s head coaches. Brandon Bak (P), Mason Buss (P), Jared Lessman (P), Thomas Curry (Util.), and Will Smoot (Util.) were all listed on the MVC’s Players to Watch list prior to the start of the season. UIC enters the weekend series with an 8-17-1 overall record on the year, including a 3-3 mark in Missouri Valley play. The Flames are 5-13-1 away from Curtis Granderson Field on the year. Key wins for UIC in 2026 include Incarnate Word, Sam Houston (two), Tennessee Tech, and Milwaukee. The Flames claimed the 2-1 series edge over Southern Illinois, while falling two of their three games this past weekend at Belmont. Thomas Curry leads the team’s batting efforts on the year with a .319 batting average over 25 starts. The Flames’ catcher has a team-high eight doubles among his 30 hits, while scoring 18 runs. Jake Busson has been the team’s power leader with a team-high 10 home runs and 26 RBIs, while Ashton Kampa has added four homers and 13 RBIs at the plate. UIC is hitting .259 overall from the plate for the 2026 season. The UIC pitching staff has combined to post a 6.63 ERA over 213.0 innings, while recording a 190:95 strikeout-to-walk ratio. The Flames are allowing opponents to hit .293 from the plate on the season. Mason Lei (2-3, 4.35 ERA) and Brandon Bak (1-3, 6.39 ERA) have been among the weekend mainstays on the mound, while Mason Buss, Kendall Lyons, and Jared Lessman all have multiple starts on the mound. Indiana State Baseball Season Tickets on Sale Now Season tickets for the 2026 Indiana State baseball season are now on sale as the Sycamores head into their second season under Head Coach Tracy Archuleta. The Sycamores will play 21 home games inside Bob Warn Field this season, starting on March 4 against Lindenwood. Reserved chairback season tickets can be purchased for $110. General admission season tickets will go on sale as well with adult ($75), seniors ($55), and youth ($40) tickets also being available for purchase. There will be a $5 surcharge added to those wanting tickets printed. The Sycamores have teamed up with Pacesetter Sports and the Spirit Shop for the third consecutive season for a season ticket deal. Fans will receive a $50 Pacesetter gift card for each $110 reserved chairback season ticket, $35 gift card for each $75 general admission season ticket, $25 gift card for each $55 senior general admission ticket, and $20 gift card for each $40 youth season ticket sold. ==================================================================== PURDUE FT. WAYNE MEN’S VOLLEYBALL NO. 20 ‘DONS FACE OFF AGAINST QUEENS FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Purdue Fort Wayne men’s volleyball team will take the final regular season road trip this week, traveling to Charlotte, N.C. for a pair of matches against Queens (April 2 & 3).Game Day InformationWho: QueensWhen: Thursday, April 2 | 6 PMWhere: Charlotte, N.C.| Levine CenterWatch:LinkLive Stats:LinkGame Notes:MIVA | Purdue Fort WayneGame Day InformationWho: QueensWhen: Friday, April 3 | 6 PMWhere: Charlotte, N.C.| Levine CenterLive Stats:LinkGame Notes:MIVA | Purdue Fort Wayne Know Your Foe Queens is 6-17 on the season, 1-13 in MIVA play to sit last in the standings. The Royals’ lone association victory came in a five-set win over No. 11 Ohio State. Queens is second in the MIVA during association play in digs per set, averaging 9.10 a frame. Series History The Mastodons own a 5-2 series history lead over Queens. The ‘Dons and Royals split last season, with Logan Muir hitting over 20 kills in each contest. ‘Dons This Season No. 20 Purdue Fort Wayne is 9-10 on the season, 4-8 in MIVA play for seventh in the standings.The Mastodons own wins over (RV) NJIT, No. 20 Charleston, No. 12 McKendree and No. 8 Loyola Chicago, while suffering nine of their 10 losses to ranked opponents. Preseason All-MIVA selection Logan Muir leads the association in points per set (4.72) and kills per set (3.82), also sitting second in service aces per set with 0.61. The ‘Dons rank third in MIVA play in opponent kills per set (11.41) and opponent assists per set (10.61). Last Time Out The Purdue Fort Wayne men’s volleyball team fell in straight sets (25-20, 25-19, 29-27) at No. 12 McKendree on Thursday night (March 26). Link to recap. The Purdue Fort Wayne men’s volleyball team fell in five sets (25-22, 20-25, 25-18, 25-27, 21-19) at No. 11 Lindenwood on Saturday afternoon (March 28). Muir led the match with 21 kills, along with five digs and four aces. Andrew Mayer dug out a career-high 14 digs. Hunter Hopkins finished with 47 assists in the match. Link to recap. Blocked By Fozzy! Kaden Fosdick was selected as the MIVA’s Defensive Player of the Week on Tuesday (Feb.10). The junior aided the Mastodons to a 2-0 weekend and into a four match win streak. Fosdick rejected a total of 12 attacks against Northern Kentucky (Feb. 6) and Daemen (Feb. 8) for an average of 2.00 blocks per set, best in the MIVA for the week. The Wisconsin native had seven blocks and a dig during Purdue Fort Wayne’s first MIVA victory over the Norse. Fosdick had another five blocks in the victory over the Wildcats. Link to release. Preseason All-MIVA Logan Muir was selected for the Preseason All-MIVA Team on December 15. Muir was named to the 2025 All-MIVA Second Team following last season. The Junior led the Mastodons in points (464.5), kills (391) and service aces (41) last year. He was second in the MIVA in kills per set (4.39), aces per set (0.41) and points per set (5.19) during conference play. Muir’s 5.09 points per set ranked fifth in the nation. The California native also was 10th in the MIVA in hitting percentage with .299. Muir recorded double-digit kills in 19 of the ‘Dons’ 26 matches. He hit a career-high 23 kills in three sets at McKendree, the third most in the program’s rally scoring era. Link to release. Coming Up The ‘Dons finish out regular season MIVA play by hosting No. 9 Loyola Chicago (April 9) and No. 16 Lewis (April 11) at the Gates Sports Center. =================================================================== SOUTHERN INDIANA BASKETBALL SCREAMING EAGLES RETURN HOME TO FACE MOREHEAD STATE EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Softball returns to USI Softball Field when the Screaming Eagles take on Morehead State University for a three-game series in Ohio Valley Conference play on Thursday and Friday. The series starts with a Noon doubleheader on Thursday and concludes on Friday at Noon. The series was originally scheduled for Friday and Saturday, but was moved up a day due to inclement weather forecast for later in the week. USI Softball (10-19, 7-5 OVC) looks to get back on track following a road series loss at Lindenwood University last weekend. Morehead State (2-24, 1-11 OVC) enters the series on a five-game losing streak. USI leads the all-time series against Morehead State, 8-6. Last season, Morehead State took two of three against USI in Morehead, Kentucky. The Screaming Eagles swept the series in Morehead State’s last visit to USI in 2024. Entering this week’s series, USI is tied for fourth in the OVC standings alongside Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. The Screaming Eagles are five games back of first-place Eastern Illinois University. USI suffered its first series loss in OVC play last weekend at Lindenwood. Junior catcher Alyssa Mumaw led the Screaming Eagles at the plate in the series, batting .571 with a pair of RBIs. Junior outfielder Kate Satkoski also swung the bat well, hitting .556 with a couple of doubles and an RBI. Freshman infielder Jadyn Tinsley hit .333 and also tallied a pair of RBIs. The Screaming Eagles’ junior class has been leading USI’s offense in the last two series. Mumaw has been a spark at the plate, hitting .429 with two runs, two doubles, and five RBIs in the last six games. Satkoski is hitting .421 with three runs, two doubles, and an RBI, while junior infielder Sydney Long is batting .412 with a run, three doubles, and four RBIs. Looking deeper into the whole OVC season so far, Mumaw has hit .444 with seven RBIs, Satkoski has batted .382 with three RBIs, and Long has hit .314 with eight RBIs. The three juniors have combined for 10 doubles during the conference season. Overall, senior outfielder Caroline Stapleton tops the squad with a .321 batting average and 23 runs. Freshman outfielder Katelyn Marx is second on the team with a .319 batting average and 12 RBIs. Long has a team-best 15 RBIs while hitting right at .300. On the pitching side, freshman Anna Kemp leads the club with a 4.38 ERA and 42 strikeouts, while sophomore Kylie Witthaus has thrown a team-high 68.1 innings with 36 strikeouts. Freshman Elly Robbins leads the team with five wins. Morehead State heads into this week’s three-game set against USI after getting swept at home last weekend by Tennessee Tech University, falling 15-10 in the series opener, 10-3 in the middle game, and 7-3 in the finale. The Eagles’ only OVC win came in the weekend before on the road at Western Illinois University. Morehead State is hitting .274 as a team this season, with senior outfielder Maddy Christopher pacing the team with a .380 batting average and 23 runs. Junior utility Noemye Letendre is batting .322 with a team-best 18 RBIs. Morehead State has five players hitting .300 or better and four players with 15 or more RBIs. The pitching staff has a collective ERA over seven, with freshman hurler Allicen Harris having a team-low 5.10 ERA. Junior pitcher Ainsley Stubbs has both of Morehead State’s wins this season and tops the squad with 53 strikeouts. Coverage and live stat links for this week’s series are available on the USI Softball schedule page on usiscreamingeagles.com. ================================================================= VALPO SOFTBALL SOFTBALL FACES ROAD TWINBILL AT ILLINOIS STATE FRIDAY Valpo (14-19, 3-8 MVC) April 3 – at Illinois State (19-11, 8-4 MVC) – 2 p.m. DH Next Up in Valpo Softball: It’s a light week for the Valpo softball program this week, as the Beacons face just a Friday doubleheader at Illinois State at 2 p.m. Previously: Valpo led a Purdue team receiving votes in national top-25 polls after its first at-bat and was still tied at 2-2 through four innings before the Boilermakers pulled away in midweek action. The Beacons then hosted Indiana State in MVC play, winning the opener before having seventh-inning comebacks come up one run shy in each of the final two games of the series. Looking Ahead: Valpo is slated to face Notre Dame next Wednesday in midweek action before returning home to the Valpo Softball Complex for a series against MVC-leading Belmont. Following Valpo Softball: Both games at Illinois State are slated for broadcast on ESPN+ and will have live stats available via ValpoAthletics.com. Most home games and most MVC road games will be broadcast on ESPN+, while select nonconference games will have video streams depending on the host. Head Coach Mike Armitage (34-49 [.410] at Valpo, 2nd season; 103-116 [.470] overall, 5th season): Mike Armitage is in his second season as head coach of the Valpo softball program after being hired as head coach on June 6, 2024. In his first year at Valpo, Armitage guided the Beacons to 20 wins – the program’s winningest season since 2018 and an 11-win improvement over the previous season. Valpo posted a six-win improvement within MVC play, finishing with its highest total of Valley wins, its most MVC series wins and its best Valley regular season finish since 2018 as well. Prior to Valpo, Armitage spent three seasons as head coach at Minnesota State Moorhead, posting the first back-to-back 30-win seasons in MSUM program history in 2023 and 2024 after inheriting a Dragons program which had not finished above .500 since 2007. Series Records: Valpo owns just a 2-22 record all-time against the Redbirds, with all but two meetings occurring since Valpo joined the MVC prior to the 2018 season. Both of Valpo’s wins in the all-time series came within that 2018 series in Normal. Last season, the Redbirds earned a series sweep by scores of 2-1, 6-2 and 5-1 at the Valpo Softball Complex. Scouting the Opposition: Illinois State comes into the Friday doubleheader with a 19-11 overall record and is 8-4 in MVC play. The Redbirds earned a win at Illinois in midweek action after dropping two of three last weekend in a high-scoring series at UNI. The Valley Slate: For the first time since 2022, the MVC schedule is set up where every team is scheduled to play each of the other teams in the conference. However, with 10 opponents, each team has two opponents against which they are scheduled to play just a doubleheader as opposed to a three-game series. That means that this season is the first time since Valpo joined the MVC in 2018 that it will not face Illinois State three times. Thanks to weather and scheduling, UNI and Bradley are now the only opponents Valpo has faced three times in every season since joining the Valley. Results Déjà vu: Each of the Beacons’ last three weekends has played out the exact same way results-wise: a win in the series opener, followed by defeats in the final two games of the series. This sequence of results had occurred just twice since Valpo joined the MVC in 2018 before this recent stretch. More BBs Than Ks: As we’ve moved past the halfway mark of the season, it’s time to start looking at season-long trends, and one thing which jumps out immediately is this year’s team has more walks (133) than strikeouts (119). Five regulars in the starting lineup have struck out seven or fewer times, while five players have walked at least ten times. No team in program history has ever finished a season with more walks than strikeouts – the 2012 team owns the best single-season ratio (191 BB/251 K; .761), while last year’s team was close behind (170 BB/224 K; .759). Nice Round Numbers: Only three players in program history have hit at least .400 in a season, only four have gotten on base at a .500 clip and only five have slugged at a .600 clip. But this year’s team has players threatening to add to those ranks. Entering this week, Madison Vrastil is hitting .391 – good for seventh in the MVC. Meanwhile, Mack Gallagher owns a .509 on-base percentage – fifth in the Valley – and a .619 slugging percentage. Peeking at the Record Book: While there’s still 20 scheduled games left in the regular season, the program’s single-season record book is already being impacted. Vrastil has swiped 20 bases this year, good for second in the MVC and already tied for eighth in a single season in program history – with 37 career steals, she ranks seventh in program history on that chart as well. She has also been errorless in the field, looking to join just three players in program history with a 1.000 season fielding percentage with at least 100 chances. Gallagher has drawn 29 walks this year, second-most in the MVC and already tied for seventh-most in a season in program history – with 65 career walks, she is also seventh in program history in that category. As a team, Valpo’s on-base percentage of .387 is on pace to break the single-season record in that category, currently held by the 2015 team at .381. Marked Improvement: Take a look at Valpo’s top six hitters, and you see notable year-over-year improvement from 2025 to 2026. All six – Madison Vrastil, Marissa Jackson, Kim Rodas, Mack Gallagher, Kayden Krug and Kaia Garnica – have seen their batting average go up, with all but one boasting batting averages at least 50 points higher than 2025. That translates to OPS as well, as the sextet has an average 181 point increase in their OPS from 2025 to 2026. V on Fire: While her 10-game hitting streak came to an end in the middle game of last weekend’s series versus Indiana State, Madison Vrastil has still been on a roll at the plate recently. She has tallied multiple hits in seven of Valpo’s last 12 games dating back to March 13, including her first career four-hit game at IU Indy. Over that stretch, Vrastil raised her season batting average 43 points to its current .391 mark. Single-Game Records: Vrastil has impacted Valpo’s single-game record book on a pair of occasions this season. The sophomore stole four bases on the season’s opening day against Green Bay, establishing a new program single-game record, as the previous mark of three had been accomplished 14 times. More recently, Vrastil twice in a three-day span (March 13 nightcap at Murray State; March 15 opener at IU Indy) scored four runs in a single game, the 12th and 13th times in program history a player scored four runs in a game. Vrastil joins former Valpo greats Sara Strickland and Sam Stewart as the only players in program history to twice score four runs in a game. No Running: Purdue learned quickly last Wednesday not to run on Vrastil’s arm behind the plate. The Boilermakers’ first two hitters in the lineup both singled before being caught attempting to steal second – the pair had been a combined 30-for-33 on the basepaths this season before Vrastil cut them both down. Vrastil is the first Valpo catcher to catch two runners stealing in the same inning since April 28, 2010, when Lisa DeBruzzi accomplished the feat at Wright State. She now owns an MVC-high 10 runners caught stealing this year. Getting On Base: Senior Mack Gallagher has been a consistent presence on the basepaths for Valpo this season. She opened the season with a 27-game on-base streak and has reached safely at least once in 31 of 33 games this year. Last weekend, Gallagher went 2-for-5 with four walks over the three games against the Sycamores, including the key three-run homer in the series-opening win. Gallagher has now reached base multiple times in a game on 15 occasions this year – twice in seven games, three times in four games and four times in four games. Helping Hand From the Outfield: Outfield assists are not an everyday occurrence in softball – Valpo entered its series finale with UNI with seven outfield assists in its first 28 games this year. So when center fielder Marissa Jackson doubled up a baserunner in the fifth inning of the finale against the Panthers, and then Jackson and left fielder Kayden Krug were part of back-to-back putouts on the basepaths in the seventh inning, it was a rare sight indeed. It was the first time Valpo tallied three outfield assists in a single game since its Horizon League Tournament opener against Butler on May 10, 2012, while Jackson became the first Valpo outfielder with multiple assists in the same game since Taylor Lawson had a pair at Northern Illinois on April 14, 2015. Walk This Way: Valpo’s collective discerning eye at the plate has led to plenty of free bases. The Beacons have drawn five or more walks 10 times this season, highlighted by a 10-walk performance in the opening-weekend win over Oakland – tied for fifth-most in a single game in program history. With 133 walks on the season, Valpo is easily more than halfway to the program single-season record. Nonconference Success: Valpo hit MVC play with a winning record, as the Beacons sat at 9-8 through four weekends of play. This is the second straight season the Beacons have carried a winning record into Valley action, as they were 11-9 going into their MVC opener in 2025. Prior to last year, it had been since 2018 (12-8) that Valpo opened conference play with a winning record. A Perfect Start: Valpo swept its four games on opening weekend at the DePaul Dome Tournament, starting 4-0 for the fifth time in program history and just the second time against all D-I opponents. The 2017 squad started 5-0 for the best start by a Valpo team, while the 1986, 2000 and 2002 teams all faced at least two non D-I opponents en route to a 4-0 start. Power-ing Up the Schedule: Since head coach Mike Armitage’s arrival prior to last season, Valpo has had a marked increase in challenging higher-level opposition in midweek competition. This year’s slate features five scheduled midweek games against Power Four and Big East competition (although the DePaul game was rained out), while last year’s schedule had three such games. In the four years prior to Armitage taking over the program, Valpo had a combined two midweek games against such competition. =============================================================== 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 BASEBALL HISTORY 1931 Thought by some to be a belated April Fools’ Day hoax, Chattanooga Lookouts’ relief pitcher Jackie Mitchell, a 17-year-old girl, strikes out Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig in the first inning of an exhibition game. According to legend, Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis will void the teenager’s professional contract, declaring women are unfit to play baseball as the game is “too strenuous.” 1947 The Indians purchased 26-year-old outfielder George Metkovich from the Red Sox. According to legend, Oakland Oaks’ skipper Casey Stengel, who will manage the Californian next season in the PCL, coined the nickname ‘Catfish’ after the southpaw flycatcher injures himself attempting to extract a hook from the bottom-dweller. 1952 In Denver, Giants’ Monte Irvin breaks his ankle sliding into third base during an exhibition game against Cleveland. The future Hall of Fame outfielder will appear in 46 games this season, mainly as a pinch-hitter, batting .310. 1962 The Indians trade Gold Glove first baseman Vic Power and left-handed pitcher Dick Stigman to the Twins for 20-game loser Pedro Ramos, who will compile a 26-30 record during his 2+ seasons with the Tribe. Power will contribute 2+ solid seasons with Minnesota, batting .278, and their new southpaw will post a .702 winning percentage, the best in the American League this season, winning 12 of 17 decisions. 1969 After Donn Clendenon refuses to report to his new team when traded to the Astros, the Expos re-sign their reluctant first baseman. Montreal will send Jack Billingham, Skip Guinn, and $100,000 to the Astros to complete the deal that brings Rusty Staub north of the border. 1972 Mets manager Gil Hodges suffers a fatal heart attack after playing a round of golf in West Palm Beach with his coaches on Easter Sunday, two days shy of his 48th birthday. The club will name the current first-base coach and former Yankee skipper, Yogi Berra, to run the team when the strike-delayed season begins. 1972 Hank Aaron, Rico Carty, and Orlando Cepeda start in an exhibition game, marking the first time the trio of sluggers, sidelined with various injuries over the past two seasons, has appeared together in the Braves lineup since 1970. Atlanta will finish in fourth place, posting a disappointing 70-84 record in the NL West. 1976 In a blockbuster trade a week before the season starts, the Orioles deal Don Baylor, Paul Mitchell, and Mike Torrez to the A’s in exchange for Ken Holtzman, Reggie Jackson, and Bill Van Bommel. A month will pass before Jackson reports to his new team, accounting for Baltimore’s slow start in April. 1982 During an exhibition contest at Jack Murphy Stadium, Steve McCatty steps to home plate with a 15-inch toy bat as A’s manager Billy Martin instructed, furious that a DH isn’t being allowed because the meaningless game is taking place in an NL park. After plate umpire Jim Quick refuses to let the Oakland starter use the prop, the right-hander takes three called strikes with a real bat. 1984 For the first time in ten years, the Mets lose on Opening Day, bowing to the Reds, 8-1. The last time the team dropped a season opener was in 1974, when Mike Schmidt hit a two-run walk-off home run off Tug McGraw, giving the Phillies a 5-4 victory over New York at Veterans Stadium. 1992 The Phillies acquire right-hander Curt Schilling from Houston for Jason Grimsley, who will never throw a pitch in an Astros uniform. ‘Schil’ plays nine seasons in the City of Brotherly Love, compiling a 101-78 (.564) record and a 3.35 ERA during his 242 appearances. 1995 With the first 23 days of this season canceled and 252 games from last season lost, the owners accept the players’ March 31 unconditional offer to play a 144-game schedule. The players return to work when a U.S. District judge issues an injunction restoring the expired agreement’s terms and conditions. 1996 Tiger first baseman Cecil Fielder steals the first base of his eleven-year career in his 1,097th major league game, establishing the longest duration a player has ever gone without recording a stolen base. The feat is so unexpected that the Metrodome crowd gives ‘Big Daddy’ a standing ovation, to which he responds with a good-natured tip of the helmet. 1996 In a Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference game against Robert Morris, the St. Francis Fighting Saints, a Division II team, sends 30 batters to the plate in the first inning, scoring an NCAA-record 26 runs before adding another 22 runs in the second inning, four in the third, and 19 in the fourth in the team’s 71-1 victory in Joliet (IL). Eagles’ coach Gerald McNamara, who asked for the contest to end after four frames, will watch his team finish the season with a 0-32 record. 1996 Joe Torre wins the first of his 1,173 victories as the Yankees manager with an Opening Day 7-1 victory over the Indians at Jacobs Field. The Bronx Bombers will reach the postseason each year, winning ten American League East Division titles, six American League pennants, and four World Championships during his 12-year tenure. 1996 On Opening Day, Derek Jeter hits a home run off Dennis Martinez in New York’s 7-1 victory over the Indians at Jacobs Field. The 22-year-old infielder becomes the first Yankee rookie to play shortstop at the start of the season since 1962, when Tom Tresh filled in for Tony Kubek, who reported to duty to his recently federalized National Guard unit. 1997 Gary Sheffield (.314, 42, 120) and the Marlins agree to a six-year, $61 million contract extension. The deal is the largest in total dollars in baseball history but has only the third-highest annual salary, behind Albert Belle’s (1996-2000 White Sox, $11 million) and Barry Bonds’ (1993-98 Giants, $11,131,157). 1997 For the first time in major league history, one player’s salary is more than a whole team’s payroll. The White Sox will pay Albert Belle $10 million for the season, $928,333 more than the entire Pirate payroll. 1998 With the help of Jeromy Burnitz’s grand slam in the top of the frame, the Brewers notch their first National League victory when they beat Atlanta in 11 innings, 8-6. The franchise, which started in Seattle in 1969 before moving to Milwaukee a year later, played in the American League for the first 29 years before switching circuits, a move necessitated by the restructuring of each league from two divisions to three. 2001 For the first time in major league history, a Japanese-born position player participates in a regular-season major league game. Hitless in his first three at-bats, Ichiro Suzuki singles in the seventh inning to ignite a two-run rally and bunts for a hit in the eighth in his Mariner debut at Safeco Field. 2001 On Opening Day, Yankee fireballer Roger Clemens becomes the all-time AL career strikeout leader, moving ahead of Walter Johnson when he whiffs Royals’ Joe Randa for his 3,509th Junior Circuit victim. Passing the ‘Big Train,’ the ‘Rocket’ now takes over the seventh spot in major league history. 2002 In his major league debut, right-hander Jon Rauch of the White Sox pitches a perfect 1.1 innings in a 7-4 loss to the Mariners at Safeco Field. The 6′ -11″ Louisville, Kentucky native, a member of the 2000 U.S. Olympic team, becomes the tallest pitcher to appear in a big-league game, surpassing by an inch six other hurlers, most notably Hall of Famer Randy Johnson. 2003 The Tigers become the first major league team to have four pitchers make their big league debut during the same game, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Twenty-year-old starter Jeremy Bonderman, who gives up six runs on nine hits in four innings, is followed by rookies Wilfredo Ledezma, Chris Spurling, and Matt Roney in the 8-1 loss to the Twins. 2003 Todd Zeile homers in his first at-bat as a Yankee, becoming the only major leaguer to hit a home run for ten different teams, surpassing Tommy Davis, who went deep for nine big-league clubs. In addition to homering with the Bronx Bombers, the infielder has also gone deep for the Cardinals, Cubs, Phillies, Orioles, Dodgers, Marlins, Rangers, Mets, and Rockies. 2003 Mike Bordick’s record streak for games and chances without an error by a shortstop ends when Yankee outfielder Bubba Trammell’s third-inning grounder tips off his glove. After converting a fielder’s choice in the first inning, the Blue Jay infielder misplays his second opportunity, establishing 544 chances and 110 consecutive games without an error, a new major league mark for shortstops. 2003 Alex Rodriguez, at 27 years and 249 days, becomes the youngest player in major league history to hit 300 home runs. The Rangers’ shortstop’s fifth-inning three-run blast off Anaheim’s Ramon Ortiz in the Rangers’ 11-5 loss at Edison Field surpasses the mark established in 1935 by Hall of Famer Jimmie Foxx, who had accomplished the feat when being 79 days older than A-Rod. 2007 For only the fourth time in major league history, a hurler under 21 wins an Opening Day assignment when 20-year-old Venezuelan right-hander Felix Hernandez pitches eight strong innings in the Mariners’ 4-0 victory over the A’s at Safeco Field. Fernando Valenzuela of the Dodgers was the last pitcher ‘not of age’ to accomplish the feat, beating the Astros, 2-0, in 1981. 2007 Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory’s ceremonial first pitch before the Reds’ home opener lands thirty feet up the first baseline from home plate, widely missing its intended target, a bewildered Eric Davis. The terrible toss will receive national media attention, including the politician receiving a second chance on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live, an opportunity in which His Honor will also widely miss the mark. 2007 Josh Hamilton, the Reds’ 25-year-old rookie, who has overcome a nearly career-ending history of substance abuse, receives a 22-second standing ovation from the fans at Great American Ball Park as he makes his major league debut. The former number one draft choice lines out, pinch-hitting for pitcher Kirk Saarloos in the eighth inning, and then plays left field for the remainder of the 5-1 Opening Day victory over Chicago. 2007 During the Royals’ Opening Day ESPN telecast, commentator Joe Morgan announces the team plans to honor the late Buck O’Neil by placing a fan who best exemplifies his spirit in a special seat during every home game at Kauffman Stadium. The first person to sit in the Buck O’Neil Legacy Seat, easily identified by its red color in a sea of blue behind home plate, is the Negro League legend’s younger brother, Warren. 2007 Mike Hampton, who signed the richest contract ever given to a pitcher, makes his Rockies debut, winning when the team blanks the Cardinals, 8-0. The $123.8-million southpaw gets off to a quick 9-2 start for Colorado but will finish his stay in the mountains 21-28, with an ERA of 5.75 over the next one and a half seasons before being dealt to the Braves. 2007 In his first big-league at-bat, rookie third baseman Alex Gordon, the Royals’ #1 pick and second overall in 2005, receives a standing ovation from the Kauffman Stadium crowd when he steps to the plate. The former Golden Spikes Award winner is the fourth player in franchise history to make his major league debut on Opening Day. 2007 Tony Pena Jr.’s two Opening Day triples help the Royals rip the Red Sox at Kauffman Stadium, 7-1. The rookie shortstop, the son of a Yankee coach, is the first major leaguer to hit a pair of three-baggers on Opening Day since Tommy Henrich did it for the Bronx Bombers in 1950. 2007 Elijah Dukes of the Devil Rays, in a 9-5 loss to New York, becomes the 99th major leaguer to homer in his first official at-bat. The 22-year-old rookie center fielder is the first to accomplish the feat at Yankee Stadium on Opening Day. 2008 Kevin Youkilis establishes the longest errorless streak by a first baseman, playing the field flawlessly for 194 games. The Red Sox infielder, who hasn’t committed an error at first base since July 4, 2006, breaks Steve Garvey’s mark set with the Padres from 1983 to 1985. 2008 In the sixth inning of the Dodgers’ 3-2 victory over the Giants, Ed Montague tosses Larry Bowa for not staying in the third-base coaching box after warning him to obey the new rule following the tragic death of Tulsa Drillers first-base coach Mike Coolbaugh. LA manager Joe Torre and bench coach Bob Schaefer need to restrain the former infielder and skipper for his “inappropriate and aggressive” behavior toward umpires, resulting in a three-game suspension. 2011 Ian Kinsler leads off the bottom of the first with a round-tripper off Red Sox’ Jon Lackey to become the first major leaguer to hit leadoff homers in each of his team’s first two games. On Opening Day, the Texas second baseman also took Boston’s Jon Lester deep as the Rangers’ first batter of the season. 2011 Elijah Dukes of the Devil Rays, in a 9-5 loss to New York, becomes the 99th major leaguer to homer in his first official at-bat. The 22-year-old rookie center fielder is the first to accomplish the feat at Yankee Stadium on Opening Day. 2011 David Ortiz breaks the major league record for RBIs by a designated hitter, established by Seattle’s Edgar Martinez. ‘Big Papi,’ who hit a two-run homer in the second to tie the mark, drives in Alex Gonzalez for his record-setting 1,004th career run batted in as a DH with a fourth-inning groundout to first base in the Red Sox’ 12-5 loss to Texas. 2012 Matt Cain, the longest-tenured Giant, signs a five-year extension with the team that keeps the 6’5″ Tennessean with San Francisco until 2017. The 27-year-old right-hander has been the staff’s workhorse, averaging 32 starts during the last six seasons. 2013 Marwin Gonzalez’s two-out, ninth-inning single, a grounder that goes through the box between the pitcher’s legs, spoils Yu Darvish’s bid for a perfect game. The 26-year-old Ranger starter is removed from the Minute Maid Park contest after giving up the hit and watches reliever Michael Kirkman close the Texas 7-0 victory over Houston. 2014 Rookie catcher Tony Sanchez, pinch-hitting in the bottom of the 16th inning, singles in the winning run to end the 5-hour and 55-minute marathon, now the longest game in Pittsburgh history by time. The 4-3 victory over Chicago took 6 minutes longer than the Bucs’ 8-7 win over the Astros in an 18-inning contest in 2006. 2014 With the score tied 3 to 3 in the bottom of the 13th inning and the bases loaded with no outs, the Cubs turned a 7-2-3 double play against the Pirates. Left fielder Junior Lake, playing in the infield near the third baseline, fields Clint Barmes’ grounder, throwing home for one out, with the catcher relaying the ball to first base to complete the unusual twin-killing in the Pirates’ eventual 4-3 walk-off victory three innings later at PNC Park. 2017 Madison Bumgarner, in the Diamondbacks’ 6-5 Opening Day walk-off victory over the Giants, becomes the first pitcher to hit two home runs in the season’s first game. The 27-year-old southpaw retires the first 16 batters he faces, striking out 11 with no walks in seven innings of work at Chase Field. 2019 The Braves and Ronald Acua Jr. agree on an eight-year, $100-million extension, keeping the 2018 Rookie of the Year under contract through the 2026 season. The 21-year-old All-Star outfielder becomes the youngest player in baseball history to sign a deal worth at least $100 million. 2021 In his second game and first in the starting lineup, White Sox DH Yermn Mercedes goes 5-for-5, collecting his first five career hits, in the team’s 12-8 victory at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. The 28-year-old catcher, who strokes four singles and a double, becomes the third major leaguer to get five hits in his first major league start, joining Cecil Travis (1933 Senators) and Fred Clarke (1894 Louisville Colonels). ========================================================= TV SPORTS TODAY Thursday, 4/2/26 MLB REGULAR SEASONTIME ETTVMinnesota Twins vs Kansas City Royals2:10pmMLBNTwins.TVRoyals.TVToronto Blue Jays vs Chicago White Sox4:10pmPeaockSNCHSNAtlanta Braves vs Arizona Diamondbacks9:40pmBraves.TVDiamondbacks.TVNew York Mets vs San Francisco Giants9:45pmSNYNBCS-BAYNBA REGULAR SEASONTIME ETTVPhoenix Suns vs Charlotte Hornets7:00pmAFSNFanDuel Sports CHAMinnesota Timberwolves vs Detroit Pistons7:00pmPrimeFanDuel Sports DETFanDuel Sports NorthLos Angeles Lakers vs Oklahoma City Thunder9:30pmPrimeFanDuel Sports OKCSpectrumNew Orleans Pelicans vs Portland Trail Blazers10:00pmGCSNRip CityCleveland Cavaliers vs Golden State Warriors10:00pmFanDuel Sports OhioNBCS-BAYSan Antonio Spurs vs Los Angeles Clippers10:30pmFanDuel Sports SWFanDuel Sports SoCalNHL REGULAR SEASONTIME ETTVBuffalo Sabres vs Ottawa Senators7:00pmMSG-BUFSNPittsburgh Penguins vs Tampa Bay Lightning7:00pmSN-PITFanDuel Sports SunBoston Bruins vs Florida Panthers7:00pmNESNScrippsMontreal Canadiens vs New York Rangers7:00pmSNMSGDetroit Red Wings vs Philadelphia Flyers7:00pmFanDuel Sports DETNBCS-PHIColumbus Blue Jackets vs Carolina Hurricanes7:00pmFanDuel Sports OhioFanDuel Sports SouthWashington Capitals vs New Jersey Devils7:30pmHuluESPN+Winnipeg Jets vs Dallas Stars8:00pmSNVictory+Vancouver Canucks vs Minnesota Wild8:00pmFanDuel Sports NorthSNChicago Blackhawks vs Edmonton Oilers9:00pmCHSNSNUtah Mammoth vs Seattle Kraken10:00pmHuluESPN+Calgary Flames vs Vegas Golden Knights10:00pmScrippsSNToronto Maple Leafs vs San Jose Sharks10:00pmSNNBCS-CANashville Predators vs Los Angeles Kings10:30pmFanDuel Sports SouthFanDuel Sports WestGOLFTIME ETTVPGA Tour: Valero Texas Open3:00pmGOLFLPGA Tour: Aramco Championship6:00pmGOLF Friday, 4/3/2026 MLB REGULAR SEASONTIME ETTVLos Angeles Dodgers vs Washington Nationals1:05pmNationals.TVSNLASt. Louis Cardinals vs Detroit Tigers1:10pmCardinals.TVSN-DETMiami Marlins vs New York Yankees1:35pmMLBNYESMarlins.TVSan Diego Padres vs Boston Red Sox2:10pmNESNPadres.TVCincinnati Reds vs Texas Rangers4:05pmMLBNReds.TVRSNTampa Bay Rays vs Minnesota Twins4:10pmTwins.TVRays.TVChicago Cubs vs Cleveland Guardians4:10pmMARQGuardians.TVPhiladelphia Phillies vs Colorado Rockies4:10pmRockies.TVNBCS-PHIBaltimore Orioles vs Pittsburgh Pirates4:12pmMASNSN-PITMilwaukee Brewers vs Kansas City Royals7:40pmApple TVSeattle Mariners vs Los Angeles Angels9:38pmMLBNROOTFanDuel Sports WestHouston Astros vs Athletics9:40pmNBCS-CASCHNAtlanta Braves vs Arizona Diamondbacks9:40pmApple TVNew York Mets vs San Francisco Giants10:15pmPeacokSNYNBCS-BAYNBA REGULAR SEASONTIME ETTVMinnesota Timberwolves vs Philadelphia 76ers7:00pmFanDuel Sports NorthNBCS-PHIIndiana Pacers vs Charlotte Hornets7:00pmFanDuel Sports CHAFanDuel Sports INDAtlanta Hawks vs Brooklyn Nets7:30pmFanDuel Sports ATLYESChicago Bulls vs New York Knicks7:30pmNBATVCHSNMSGBoston Celtics vs Milwaukee Bucks8:00pmFanDuel Sports MILNBCS-BOSToronto Raptors vs Memphis Grizzlies8:00pmSNFanDuel Sports MEMUtah Jazz vs Houston Rockets8:00pmKJZZSCHNOrlando Magic vs Dallas Mavericks8:30pmFanDuel Sports FLKFAANew Orleans Pelicans vs Sacramento Kings10:00pmGCSNNBCS-CANHL REGULAR SEASONTIME ETTVPhiladelphia Flyers vs New York Islanders7:00pmMSGSNNBCS-PHISt. Louis Blues vs Anaheim Ducks10:00pmVictory+FanDuel Sports MWCOLLEGE BASEBALLTIME ETTVLSU at Tennessee5:30pmSECNLouisville at Duke6:00pmACCNCOLLEGE SOFTBALLTIME ETTVTexas at Alabama8:30pmSECNLouisville at Duke6:00pmACCNUFLTIME ETTVDC Defenders vs Columbus Aviators8:00pmFOXMOTORSPORTSTIME ETTVNASCAR Truck: Black’s Tire 2004:30pmFS1GOLFTIME ETTVPGA Tour: Valero Texas Open4:00pmGOLFLPGA Tour: Aramco Championship7:00pmGOLFSOCCERTIME ETTVLigue 1: PSG vs Toulouse2:45pmFanatizbeIN SportsfuboTVLa Liga: Rayo Vallecano vs Elche3:00pmESPN+fuboTVLiga MX: Puebla vs Juárez9:00pmVIXLiga MX: Necaxa vs Mazatlán11:00pmVIX About The Author troyderengowski61@gmail.com See author's posts Post navigation THE INDIANA SRN “SCOREBOARD” APRIL 1 THE INDIANA SRN “SCOREBOARD” APRIL 2
