Laguna Beach's Chase Shipp repeats as CIF diving champion
He placed second in CIF Southern Section Division 1 as a freshman and sophomore, winning the Division 2 title last year as a junior.
Make that back-to-back crowns for Shipp, who repeated as Division 2 boys' diving champion on Wednesday at the Marguerite Aquatics Complex in Mission Viejo.
He scored 565.80 points, edging out second-place Braeden Valenzuela of San Juan Hills (555.10).
'The meet was really well run and I had some tough but fun competition,' said Shipp, a Harvard commit who also competes for Crown Valley Divers, in an email. 'My friend and teammate Braeden set the bar really high and smoked every one of his dives. I can't wait to see him take the top spot next year.'
Newport Harbor also had some female divers who were up to the task at the Division 1 finals Thursday. Junior Corinna Ruffini finished in second place, followed by teammates Violet Carone in fifth and Nikka Asgarian in eighth.
Ruffini, a University of Houston commit who was fifth in Division 1 last year, scored 526.40, just behind El Segundo freshman Reilly Stebbins (528.05). She also competes for Coast Divers.
Edison sophomore Allison McNichols finished seventh in Division 1 on the girls' side, while Chargers senior Ian Dieh placed third on the boys' side.
Each of the aforementioned local divers has qualified for the boys and girls state qualifier Tuesday at Mt. San Antonio College at 2 p.m. The top six at that meet will qualify for the CIF State Championship meet on May 17 at Clovis West High.
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Boston Globe
28-07-2025
- Boston Globe
Baseball's split from its past feels more severe than previous shifts, and more observations from Cooperstown
All that said, the current version of this universal push-pull is truly different. In the summer of 2025, baseball is largely unrecognizable to old-time greats and, even worse, today's Hall of Famers increasingly feel estranged from the people who run the game. Analytics and new methods of teaching have removed the endearing layer of tutelage that's always connected the sport. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Through the decades, young players sought help from the all-timers. Twenty-year-old Ted Williams thought he could learn from Cobb and Rogers Hornsby. Yaz thought he could learn from Ted. Jim Rice thought he could learn from Yaz. Advertisement In 2025, few players are encouraged to learn from those who came before. 'We're all Mr. Irrelevent now,' said Related : Baseball owners and front offices have Advertisement There were But in casual chats with dozens over the weekend, I kept hearing about new distance they feel from the game they mastered. Without even asking. When I came upon 79-year-old Rod Carew in the lobby of the Otesaga, he had one question for myself and two other veteran scribes. 'What do you think of the baseball that is being played today?' We delivered our answers to the man who hit .388 in 1977. (Bet his exit velocity was pathetic.) Too many strikeouts, too many pitchers trying to throw 100, pitchers throwing instead of pitching, no bunting, difficulty advancing runners from second to third, few batters changing their approach with two strikes, and few young players tapping into the minds of older stars who used to be pretty darned good. The conversation reminded me of Advertisement 'I was minding my own business, having a cup of coffee, and a young kid came out of the cage and asked about loading and his front foot,' Rice recalled Saturday as he stood under statues of Babe Ruth and Ted Williams in the plaque gallery. 'I didn't know him. He was a catcher. I talked to him about loading up and how to hit line drives and, while we were talking, one of the instructors came over and said 'That's not how we teach it.' I said, 'Did you play?' He said he played Division 1 college . . . OK. 'Here's the thing. These instructors want them to hit everything in the air. I tried to hit line drives. I think line drives are the way to go. The ball doesn't need to go 500 feet to get over the fence. If you hit a two-run homer and it goes 500 feet, you don't get extra runs for the extra 100 feet.' Eddie Murray hit 504 home runs over a 21-year career, and received MVP votes in eight straight seasons with the Orioles after he won Rookie of the Year in 1977. Seth Wenig/Associated Press While Rice and I were talking, Hall of Famers Eddie Murray and Barry Larkin, plus two-time All-Star Eric Davis joined the conversation. All great hitters, they echoed the sentiments and experiences. They said they are not encouraged by their old teams to work with young talent. 'I try to talk to young hitters about all the motion they have, loading up at the plate to swing for the fence,' said Murray. 'I think a lot of that exposes them because they have more trouble getting out of the way on the ball thrown up and in, but they don't want to listen.' Advertisement It was largely the same when I spoke with Cal Ripken Jr. and 'I used to get asked if I could have more walks than strikeouts. Nobody does that now,' said Griffey. 'I was at least able to get more hits than strikeouts. Now I see good teams where the top three or four guys in the lineup all have more strikeouts than hits.' Indeed. Of the nine players in Boston's starting lineup for 'And let's talk about those cards inside their hats that tell them where to play guys,' he added. 'We didn't need that. We watched the games. We knew where to play guys.' Ken Griffey Jr. was in Cooperstown over the weekend after he attended All-Star festivities in his new capacity as a photographer. Carson Ming/Getty 'I saw a team positioning players more to the pull side on 0-2 counts,' said Larkin. 'I said, 'Why would you do that? That's moving them in the wrong direction.' And I was told, 'No, we expect guys to try to pull even more with 0-2 counts.' It's just crazy what they're teaching.' 'I don't watch any baseball anymore,' said Kaat. 'Last night at the Phillies party, I was sitting with Larry Bowa, Mike Schmidt, and Ted Simmons, and everyone was saying the same thing. It's the same with my morning coffee buddy, George Brett. It's almost sickening. I have yet to find one former player who thinks the game is great today. There's such a divide. 'I was talking with Tony Oliva and he said that Twins hitters are looking at a [tablet] after every swing they take. It's the same with pitchers. I think we could teach them how to pitch and control their fastball, but nobody asks. I had a nice conversation with Advertisement 'It's over for us,' said Kaat. 'The old-school GMs who knew baseball are gone. The scouts are gone. Ownership has decided this is the way they want to go. We've all become ⋅ Cooperstown-area hotels have concerns that other hotels needn't prioritize in block letters. Dan Shaughnessy/Globe Staff ⋅ You know your hotel is in Cooperstown when the stenciling on the indoor pool door reads, 'No food, drinks, bats, or balls allowed in pool area.' ⋅ Sunday's induction was delayed for about an hour by rain. Dave Parker's son, who looks exactly like his dad (who 'They told me he was too expensive for a singles hitter and I said, 'Yes, but it's a lot of singles,' ' recalled Valentine. 'I told them he was one of the five best players in the world.' Related : I asked Valentine if he's the best athlete in the history of Stamford, Conn. 'No,' he said. 'That would be [former New York Football Giant] Andy Robustelli.' Advertisement Here's Valentine on ⋅ Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred stumbled briefly while giving a speech at Ichiro's Hall party on Saturday night. When the commish stated that Ichiro never played for Japan in the World Baseball Classic, Ichiro said, 'Yes, I did!' A chagrinned Manfred made things worse by blaming the mistake on Wikipedia. Related : ⋅ Albert Pujols, who should be enshrined in the summer of 2028, made his first trip to Cooperstown, ⋅ Ryne Sandberg, the great Cub second baseman, was unable to attend because of a relapse of prostate cancer. 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Receiving plaques on Sunday were, from left, Billy Wagner, Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia, Willa Allen (widow of late inductee Dick Allen), and Dave Parker II (son of late inductee Dave Parker). Seth Wenig/Associated Press Dan Shaughnessy is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at
USA Today
25-07-2025
- USA Today
UNC wide receiver talks team's 2025 offensive potential at ACC Kickoff
Will offense continue to be a bright spot for the UNC football team this fall? Despite 2024 ending in UNC's first losing football record since 2021, offense continued to be a bright spot in Chapel Hill, even with several quarterback changes. Omarion Hampton, who later became the Los Angeles Chargers' first-round NFL Draft Pick in April, cemented himself as one of the best backs in program history. Jacolby Criswell was much-needed at quarterback – without him, North Carolina doesn't get anywhere close to a bowl game. The Tar Heels' offense will look plenty different in 2025, but in a good way. At ACC Kickoff on Thursday afternoon in Charlotte, UNC sophomore wide receiver Jordan Shipp praised his team's offensive potential this fall, pointing to new offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens as a main reason. 'We're definitely going to be a unique offense," Shipp said. "Don't want to give too much out, but we're going to be unique. We're going to do a lot of different stuff and get a lot of first downs. We're going to score a lot of points. Coach Belichick kept him here for a reason, he obviously liked what he was doing. There's no reason not to trust him 100%. We're going to be unique, we're going to move the ball with different persons, different personnels and a lot of different people.' Shipp played well for a freshman with limited action in 2024, catching nine passes for 114 yards and a touchdown, making him one of nine UNC pass-catchers to reach the century mark in receiving yards. Kitchens, formerly North Carolina's tight ends coach and run game coordinator, will now be tasked leading an offense with several new starters at skill positions. Kitchens led the Tar Heels in their Fenway Bowl appearance, taking over for the then-recently-fired Mack Brown. 2024 starter Max Johnson, who spent most of last season rehabbing a broken leg suffered in the opener at Minnesota, will compete with South Alabama transfer Gio Lopez for the starting quarterback gig. Davion Gause returns much-needed production at running back, while Shipp and Kobe Paysour will lead a new-look receiving corps. Follow us @TarHeelsWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.
USA Today
22-07-2025
- USA Today
Fun facts about the new Eagles pass rusher, Ogbo Okoronkwo
There is more to Ogbo Okoronkwo than most people realize. We've signed DE Ogbonnia Okoronkwo and DT Jacob Sykes and waived DE KJ Henry and RB Lew Nichols. Summertime continues, but for the Philadelphia Eagles, it's time to go to work again. Rookies reported to training camp early. Veterans followed. Andrew Mukuba finally signed his rookie deal. A day before the first practice, the roster shuffle began. Two players were added, and two others exited the stage. Defensive end K.J. Henry and running back Lew Nichols were waived. To fill the vacated roster spaces, Philadelphia signed defensive tackle Jacob Sykes and defensive end Ogbonnia Okoronkwo. Sykes played at Harvard and UCLA and is a former undrafted free agent claimed by the Seattle Seahawks in 2023. He played the 2024 UFL season with the San Antonio Brahmas. Ogbonnia Okoronkwo, we know a little better. He is a former fifth-rounder who won a Super Bowl ring as part of the Los Angeles Rams roster. Since then, he has also spent time with the Houston Texans and the Cleveland Browns. He now hopes to make the Eagles roster as part of a pass rush already featuring Nolan Smith, Jalyx Hunt, Azeez Ojulari, and Josh Uche. He's also an interesting person when he isn't wearing the shoulder pads. Here are a few fun facts about the new guy. Okoronkwo could have been a great NFL writer. Ogbonnia Okoronkwo is of Nigerian descent, and he is often referred to as 'Ogbo' for short. He was born in Gainesville, Florida. He was raised in Houston, Texas, and believe it or not, he originally wanted to be a writer before discovering football. He still has a few sacks left in him, so a career in journalism can wait for a while, but once he hangs up the cleats, it's nice to know he has a job he can fall back on. Philadelphia may potentially land another community leader. The Philadelphia Eagles certainly aren't strangers to philanthropy. Harold Carmichael was once the 1980 NFL Man of the Year. Through the years, we've seen guys like Malcolm Jenkins, Chris Long, and Brian Dawkins heavily involved in the community. Okoronkwo will fit right in. Fans and locals in the Cleveland area often praised him for having an approachable personality. There are even stories of him inviting a family to the field at a Browns game. How about a hand for an imposing resume? Although the off-field aspects are interesting, Okoronkwo's spot on the roster will only be guaranteed by one thing. The biggest question that needs to be answered is whether or not he can play football. Forty-four tackles and five sacks for the Texans in 2022 are the career highs of a six-year career. His addition to the Eagles' roster won't guarantee him anything, but now, at least, he has a chance to do something significant and join the defending Super Bowl champions. Will he make the most of his opportunity? Only time will tell.
