Women's Sports

2021 All-MIAA Women’s Tennis Teams, Postseason Awards Announced

April 28, 2021 by Tara S

By: MIAA Communications

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The league office announced today the 2020-21 MIAA Women’s Tennis Postseason Awards and All-MIAA Teams. Coach of the Year honors went to Central Oklahoma’s Jaron Maestas, Player of the Year accolades went to Central Oklahoma’s Adel-Byanu Abidullina and Freshman of the Year was awarded to Central Oklahoma’s Mae Canete. The Sportsmanship Award went to Nebraska Kearney’s Claire Neil.

The awards were nominated and voted on by all nine league head coaches sponsoring women’s tennis.

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Retiring Premiership Skipper Gets Fairytale Finish

April 19, 2021 by Tara S

RETIRING Brisbane captain Emma Zielke knew before last week’s preliminary final win over Collingwood that a premiership on Saturday would signal the end of her AFLW career.

The 32-year-old told coach Craig Starcevich she would retire on 41 games if the Lions made it into Saturday’s NAB AFLW Grand Final – but only if they won it.

“I said, ‘If we win, I’m out’,” Zielke said, after their 18-point win over Adelaide.

“It was a fairytale ending. The decision was made for me.”https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.452.0_debug_en.html#goog_1851872480Play Video

AFLW GF Highlights: Adelaide v Brisbane

06:37APR 17. 2021. 4:10 PM

The Crows and Lions clash in the 2021 NAB AFLW Grand Final

Zielke admitted she didn’t know what she would have done if the Lions had lost their third Grand Final and was glad she wasn’t in a position where she had to find out.

Instead, she gets to leave the game on the greatest high possible; a premiership captain after three attempts.

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All Eyes are on Krysten Anderson as She Inherits Grave Digger in Monster Jam

April 9, 2021 by Tara S

By: Victoria Weaver | NBC Sports

The 2021 Monster Jam season looks different than years past, in part because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic that has affected every part of racers, teams, and fans’ daily lives, but also because Krysten Anderson has inherited the famous Grave Digger monster truck. And with that, the most famous ride in the sport has its first full-time, female driver.

When a driver levels up and takes on a new challenge, there is always a heightened level of scrutiny. Now add a family legacy, an iconic truck, gender politics, as well as a shortened 2020 season that limited her seat time and you’ll start to understand the pressure of Anderson’s Stadium Series debut.

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Softball Players and Alumni Connect Through Jerseys

April 6, 2021 by Tara S

When head coach Hannah Quintana of the Ithaca Bombers softball team was a player on the South Hill in 2006 and 2007, the softball program adopted a tradition that was unlike any other. Every freshman class the program receives is given their jersey numbers based on personality of the player, and what they bring to the team. The tradition has stood in the program since head coach Quintana played in 2006 and 2007.

As the freshmen settle into their roles on the team and get familiar with their teammates and coaches, both the upperclassmen and the coaches evaluate which jersey is best for each player and meet to discuss to decide which freshman receives which jersey. Quintana said that being a part of the program previously and knowing more stories makes the process even more special for her.

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Everlast pledges to boost British boxing

April 2, 2021 by Tara S

Published On Thursday, March 25, 2021By British Boxing NewsRelated Tags: Chantelle Cameron, Natasha Jonas, Everlast, Chris Zoller, Sandy Ryan

Everlast Announces Historic Pledge: 52 Athletes Signed In 2021, To Empower and Enable British Boxing Talent

The brand of choice for champions throughout history, Everlast now looks to empower and inspire the next generation of athletes

Bold commitment will span male and female, grassroots and elite level boxers, underpinned by a mission to drive diversity and equality in sport and they brand kicks off pledge with female-first stake in the ground, signing a trio of trailblazing women: World Champion Chantelle Cameron, the UK’s first female boxing Olympian Natasha Jonas and Sandy Ryan, who join current stable of inspiring athletes including Ramla Ali, Conor Benn and Joshua Buatsi.

Everlast Worldwide, the brand of choice for generations of world champion professional athletes, today announced a historic commitment to British boxing by committing to sign 52 athlete partnership deals in 2021. The game-changing pledge seeks to empower and inspire the next generation of male and female fighters, from grassroots to elite amateur and professional levels, driven by a long-term goal to support diversity and equality in sport.Chantelle Cameron WBC super-lightweight world title defence postponed Tasha Jonas scoops up two awards in Ring Magazine’s Women’s Boxing Awards Chantelle Cameron makes first defence of her WBC super-lightweight title

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AGSA February Athlete of the Month Wins 2021 High School National Girls Folkstyle Nationals Tournament

March 31, 2021 by Tara S

This past February, Samantha Spielbauer was chosen to be the American Gold Sports Alliance’s Athlete of the Month. Sam plays varsity basketball, while also competing as a wrestler at Clayton Ridge High School in Guttenberg, Iowa. Even though this is her first year of wrestling, Spielbauer surprised everyone by winning her first-ever state wrestling championship during the third annual Iowa Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association’s girls state tournament. Building upon her successes, Sam competed 2021 High School National Recruiting Showcase and Girls Folkstyle Nationals Tournament on March 27th and 28th.

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Women’s History Month 2021

March 31, 2021 by Tara S

As we close out Women’s History Month, we wanted to take a moment to thank all of the powerful and influential women in the world. In case you missed any of our Women’s History Month Spotlights, we compiled them all here!

Iowa high school wrestling: Meet the 2021 All-Iowa Girls’ Wrestling Team

March 30, 2021 by Tara S

Cody GoodwinDes Moines Register

The continued growth of girls’ wrestling in Iowa reached new heights this season.

There were 683 girls that wrestled across the state, according to Trackwrestling. At the girls’ state tournament in January, sponsored for the third year by the Iowa Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association, 457 girls from more than 100 schools competed.

The numbers are continuing to pop and the overall talent level is rising, too, and both of those facts are represented here, in our 2021 All-Iowa Girls’ Wrestling Team.

In this, we selected Elite members for our girls’ wrestling team, the wrestlers we consider to be the best of the best at the 12 weights contested at the IWCOA girls’ state tournament. We also included 12 additional honorable mention picks.

This year’s Elite Team selections represent nine different schools. There are five seniors, three juniors, three sophomores, and one freshmen. The honorable mention picks include three seniors, two juniors, four sophomores and three freshmen.

As the sport continues to grow and evolve here in Iowa, we feel it is our obligation to grow and evolve with it. Elite team members will be invited to the virtual Des Moines Register’s All-Iowa Sports Awards in Des Moines this June.

The selections were made based on in-season results, Register staff observations, and consultations with high school, college and recruiting contacts. Records listed are from Trackwrestling.

All-Iowa Elite Girls’ Wrestlers

106 pounds: Ella Schmit, jr., Bettendorf

Two-time IWCOA girls’ state champ, three-time finalist. Went 23-7 overall this season, and 5-0 against girls, all pins. Qualified for the IHSAA state wrestling tournament, one of just four girls to ever do so.

113 pounds: Eva Diaz, jr., Waverly-Shell Rock

IWCOA girls’ state champ. Went 24-0 with 21 pins this season. Recorded four first-period pins and a technical fall at the IWCOA girls’ state tournament.

120 pounds: Kiki Connell, sr., Charles City

IWCOA girls’ state champ and a two-time girls’ state medalist. Finished 28-6 overall this season. Outscored her five opponents at the state tournament by a combined 43-8.

126 pounds: Lilly Luft, soph., Charles City

IWCOA girls’ state champ and now a two-time girls’ state medalist. Went 23-1 this season with 15 pins, including three at the state tournament, where she outscored her opponents 43-9 across five matches.

132 pounds: Annika Behrends, jr., Waverly-Shell Rock

IWCOA girls’ state champ, and now a two-time girls’ state champ and three-time finalist. Went 11-0 this season with seven pins. Rallied to win both her semifinals and finals match to win gold at this year’s state tournament.

138 pounds: Abby McIntyre, sr., Glenwood

IWCOA girls’ state champ and now a two-time girls’ state champ. Went 15-1 overall this year with 11 pins, including five at the state tournament, four of which occurred in the first period. Grand View signee.

145 pounds: Naomi Simon, fr., Decorah

IWCOA girls’ state champ. Went 26-1 this year with 23 pins, including 12 in the first period. Recorded five pins at the state tournament, where she also outscored her opponents by a combined 22-0.

152 pounds: Madison Diaz, sr., Waverly-Shell Rock

IWCOA girls’ state champ. Finished the season 21-0 with 16 pins. Recorded four pins and a technical fall en route to first at the girls’ state tournament. Grand View signee.

160 pounds: Samantha Spielbauer, soph., Clayton Ridge

IWCOA girls’ state champ. Finished 13-5 overall with 13 pins, including 11 in the first period and six in under a minute. Became Clayton Ridge’s first state wrestling champ, boy or girl.

170 pounds: Morgan Smith, sr., Denver

IWCOA girls’ state champ. Finished 14-10 with 14 pins, including four at the girls’ state tournament. Beat the fourth-, third-, and second-place finisher en route to a state title.

195 pounds: Rachel Eddy, soph., Independence

IWCOA girls’ state champ, and now a two-time girls’ state finalist. Went 14-0 this season with nine pins. Joins her uncle, Scott, as a state wrestling champ for Independence. (Scott Eddy won an IHSAA Class 2A state title in 1997.)

285 pounds: Millie Peach, sr., Iowa Valley

IWCOA girls’ state champ and finished her career as the first three-time girls’ state champ. Went 23-13 overall this year, but 5-0 with five pins against girls. Went a combined 9-0 at the three girls’ state tournaments with nine pins, including seven in the first period.

Honorable Mention