Simmons: 'If there's a chance, I go for it'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
13 minutes ago
- New York Post
New Jersey native Jen Pawol to become first woman to umpire an MLB game
New Jersey native Jen Pawol will make history this weekend as the first woman to umpire a game in Major League Baseball. She will be on the bases during a doubleheader on Saturday between the Braves and Marlins at Truist Park in Atlanta and behind the plate for the series finale on Sunday. Pawol, 48, was born and raised in West Milford, N.J., before playing softball and soccer at Hofstra University on Long Island. Advertisement Umpire Jen Pawol takes her position during the first inning of a spring training baseball game between the St. Louis Cardinals and Washington Nationals Monday, March 4, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. AP After playing catcher in college and umpiring for more than a decade at the amateur level, Pawol made her umpiring debut in the minors in the Gulf Coast League in 2016. In 2023, she worked at the Triple-A level, becoming the first woman to umpire at Triple-A in 34 years. Advertisement Last year, Pawol became the first female to umpire a spring training game since 2007 before being placed on MLB's Umpire Call-Up list. Home plate umpire Jen Pawol calls a strike during the third inning of a spring training baseball game between the Miami Marlins and Houston Astros, Sunday, March 10, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. AP 'I love being on the field the whole time. It's in my DNA,' Pawol told before her spring training debut in 2024. 'Catching and playing multiple sports throughout my career, catching a little bit on the side and things like that, all of that has culminated to help me be ready to be an umpire. This is my 18th year — 10 in amateur and eight now in pro. It's just sort of all coming together and once I started umpiring, I said, 'This is for me.' I can't explain it.' Advertisement MLB is the third of the four major American sports leagues to have a female game official, following the NBA 28 years ago and the NFL 10 years ago. 'This is a viable career becoming a professional umpire – men and women, girls and boys,' Pawol said last year. 'I didn't know that the first several years when I got into umpiring in amateur ball for 10 years.'
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Denver Summit hire former Man City, NYC FC manager Nick Cushing as head coach
Nick Cushing, the former Manchester City women and NYC FC manager, has been appointed as the first head coach of the expansion National Women's Soccer League team Denver Summit FC, who will play their inaugural NWSL season in 2026. Cushing, who won the 2016 English top-flight title during his first spell in charge of Manchester City, will begin work with Denver immediately, as they prepare for NWSL life after it was announced last December that they had been awarded a franchise spot as part of the division's expansion to 16 clubs for 2026. Boston Legacy FC are also joining the NWSL as a new outfit. Related: Flopped launch and new squad building: Boston and Denver's journey to the NWSL | Moving the Goalposts The Colorado club announced its new name and unveiled its crest and kit colour in July. They have been backed by high-profile investors, including the American skiing icon Mikaela Shiffrin, who is from Colorado, and they have plans to move to a new 14,500-seat purpose-built stadium in 2028. Cushing won six major trophies, including two Women's FA Cups, three League Cups, and Manchester City's sole women's league title to date during his six-year spell at the helm of the English club. He left in 2020 to take up an assistant role at MLS side New York City FC, where he was elevated to head coach in 2022. He returned to Man City as the Women's Super League side's interim head coach in March 2025, overseeing a fourth-placed finish after the sacking of Gareth Taylor. It is understood the chance to return to life and work in the United States with his family was something the 40-year-old particularly wanted, preferring this unique proposition from Denver over interest from other English clubs. Cushing said: 'Denver Summit FC's commitment to building a world-class soccer organisation really inspired me. We have a passionate, committed fanbase and we have to put a team on the field that replicates that. Our team will play an attacking form of the game that excites our stadium and makes things difficult for our opponents. We want to create a winning team as well as a great experience for all of Colorado.' Prior to Cushing's appointment, the new club named Curt Johnson as their general manager. The former North Carolina Courage GM added: 'In order to be successful right away, you need people that have experienced environments like this, have built organisations, and have had success. Nick brings world-class experience, a passion for player development, and a tactical vision that will excite Summit supporters. He's won major trophies and is the right leader to guide us into our first season and beyond.'
Miami Herald
2 hours ago
- Miami Herald
Missing American journalist found alive in Norwegian park
Aug. 6 (UPI) -- An American climate journalist has been found alive and in good health after going missing in a Norwegian park last week. Alec Luhn, a reporter who has worked for the New York Times and the Atlantic and was a Russia correspondent for the Guardian from 2013 to 2017, was reported missing on Monday after he failed to catch a flight from Bergen to the U.K. Luhn was found near Folgefonna National Park by a helicopter and has been taken for medical treatment, the Norwegian Red Cross wrote on X Wednesday. "We are very, very happy! Many thanks to everyone in Norway who has helped to find him," Luhn's wife Veronika Silchenko told local news outlet VG by phone after he was found. The search operation for Luhn began on Monday and was expanded by Tuesday. Ingeborg Thorsland, a spokesperson for the Norwegian Red Cross, earlier told CNN that the operation spanned a large area and that heavy rainfall had made navigation difficult. Luhn had been on vacation with his sister in Norway, then began a four-day hike alone from the outdoor center of Ullensvang, on the northern edge of the park, a 212-square-mile wilderness in western Norway that's home to one of the country's biggest glaciers. Drew Gaddis, Luhn's sister, confirmed in a social media post that he had been found "in overall good health" and was being taken to Bergen by helicopter. Norwegian media reported that he had injured his leg. She thanked the Norwegian police, the staff and volunteers and the thousands of people who had helped share news of the search. "We can breathe again!" she said. Luhn is fit and equipped for the treacherous hike. Folgefonna, the third largest icecap in Norway, is on a peninsula famed for its fjords, mountains, rivers, lakes and icefalls. Parts are desolate and can be dangerous in bad weather. Copyright 2025 UPI News Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
