Prep talk: Sophomore Andrew Goldman steps forward for Loyola lacrosse
Loyola High's freshman class last season in lacrosse was judged one of its best, and now with a year of high school experience under their belt, the players are showing off their talent.
On Thursday, sophomore Andrew Goldman had a 66% average in faceoffs with 10 ground balls to earn MVP honors in Loyola's 14-11 win over San Francisco St. Ignatius, the No. 1 lacrosse team in the state.
Another sophomore, Matt Fine, had three goals and another sophomore, Tripp King, added two goals and one assist. …
The Boras Classic is set to begin on March 25, with No. 1-seeded Corona and No. 2-seeded Huntington Beach among the top baseball teams competing. Here's the link to the schedule.
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Rivals Camp Series: The five best LBs of the 2025 regionals
Jeff McCulloch/ The regional stops of the Rivals Camp Series are in the books with the Rivals Five-Star at the Indianapolis Colts' practice facility coming up later this month. Today, we continue our look at the best players at each position through the regional events with the linebackers. Advertisement BEST OF RCS: The five best QBs of the 2025 Rivals Camp Series regionals | Five best RBs | Five best WRs/TEs | Five best OL | Five best DL RIVALS CAMP SERIES: Rivals Five-Star heading back to Indy | Rivals Five-Star roster | Schedule/info CLASS OF 2026 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State CLASS OF 2027 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State TRANSFER PORTAL: Full coverage | Player ranking | Team ranking | Transfer search | Transfer Tracker Jeff McCulloch/ A Louisiana native who wrapped up his junior season without much recruiting traction, Darensburg made the trek to Los Angeles to make a considerable splash at the linebacker spot. The combination of sheer size and power impressed in tight quarters while he also showed he can operate in space while working coverage as well. Advertisement Following the MVP effort, more than a dozen scholarship offers would eventually come in for the late-bloomer. Darensburg eventually made a verbal commitment to South Alabama on June 9. The IMG Academy star worked out at both pass rusher and linebacker during the Atlanta stop of the tour, showcasing grit and overall competitiveness against a loaded field of players. While Forkpa held his own off the edge, he was ultra comfortable at the second level, too powerful for blockers in one setting yet swift and effective while working in coverage. One of the top testers nationally at the position, Forkpa proved it was plenty functional en route to MVP honors near his hometown. Advertisement Those elite traits have Florida, Florida State, Miami, Colorado and others positioning for a potential commitment. Jeff McCulloch/ An elite pass rusher who led the Orlando-area in sacks as a junior, Lafayette has showed more second-level ability as the offseason has rolled on as well. He is plenty capable working off the edge as a third-down specialist, but has shown overall athleticism and lateral ability from an off-ball position as well. The edge talent is so immense a coordinator may not ask for many coverage reps, but the linear speed and physicality Lafayette brings to the table has created a benefit-of-the-doubt with plenty of programs courting his commitment. Advertisement Miami, Oklahoma, Florida and several others are angling for more time from the rising-senior recruit. Jeff McCulloch/ The camp setting isn't the most friendly to the linebacker position, especially in coverage with so much space to operate for running backs on the other side of the ball. Still, Pettijohn pushed against that narrative successfully when it came to that portion of the event. He showcased hip fluidity and comfort in transitioning from one direction to the other, allowing the Texan to make plays against routes both intermediate and deep. Also built to contend in the running game, the balance led to MVP honors at the Dallas RCS stop. Advertisement Pettijohn is hearing from Syracuse and SMU, among others, while adding his most recent offer from Sam Houston State. Jeff McCulloch/ Amid official visits to bluebloods this month, Thomas' name has picked up pace nationally and our staff got that preview at the RCS Dallas stop more than a month ago. The big 'backer stands 6-foot-3 and was once considered more of a pass-rusher, but the camp effort and his subsequent recruitment confirmed a three-down projection. Auburn, Michigan and others have hosted him and Texas is on deck at the end of June.
USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
30 years ago today: Rockets complete historic journey to second NBA championship
30 years ago today: Rockets complete historic journey to second NBA championship It was June 14, 1995, when Hakeem Olajuwon's Rockets completed perhaps the most iconic run to a championship in NBA history. Now 30 years later, we're taking a look back. On this day 30 years ago, the 1994-95 Rockets finished off what could be the toughest path to a championship in NBA history. NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) Hakeem Olajuwon led Houston in Game 4 versus Orlando with 35 points and 15 rebounds, sending 'Clutch City' to a 113-101 home victory (box score) on June 14, 1995, and securing a series sweep. Mario Elie chipped in with 22 points on 9-of-11 shooting (81.8%) from the field, including 4-of-6 on 3-pointers (66.7%). All-Stars Shaquille O'Neal and Anfernee "Penny' Hardaway each scored 25 for the Magic. HoopsHype has more perspective on the historic journey by the sixth-seeded Rockets to a second consecutive NBA crown. According to research in which we looked at every team's path to their eventual championship wins, the 1994-95 Rockets had the toughest road ever to winning a title. The worst team they beat had a 57-25 record, and that was their Finals opponent, the Orlando Magic, who boasted a lineup featuring Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway, amongst many valuable role players. In all, the 1995 run can be summed up perfectly by the postgame quote that night from legendary head coach Rudy Tomjanovich. 'Don't ever underestimate the heart of a champion!' To this day, it remains the most recent NBA title for the Rockets. However, led by head coach Ime Udoka, the current Rockets would like to change that in the near future. More: Rockets, Mario Elie celebrate 30-year anniverary of iconic 'Kiss of Death' in NBA playoffs
San Francisco Chronicle
2 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Thunder embraced their moments of adversity this season. It paid off in Game 4 of the NBA Finals
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The book is called 'The Obstacle Is the Way.' It's a gift that Oklahoma City coach Mark Daigneault gave to Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein during a trying time this season, knowing the voracious reader would figure out the meaning. Message delivered. 'I read it and remembered that everything happens for a reason,' Hartenstein said. 'And after that, everything worked out great.' Such has been the story of the Thunder season. Such was the story of Game 4 of the NBA Finals. Faced with the biggest challenge of their season — a 10-point deficit in the second half, staring at a very real chance of the Indiana Pacers grabbing the almost-insurmountable 3-1 lead in the title round — the Thunder, once again, came away saying everything worked out great. Led by a dazzling and frantic finish from the reigning MVP and scoring champion Shai Gilgeous-Alexander — who had 15 of his 35 points in the final five minutes or so — the Thunder rallied in the fourth quarter to beat Indiana 111-104 on Friday night. The series is now tied 2-2, heading back to Oklahoma City for Game 5 on Monday night, and it's the Thunder who have home-court advantage again. 'That was an uphill game against a great team,' Daigneault said after Game 4 in Indianapolis, simultaneously lauding his team while also raving about the Pacers. 'This is one of the best teams in the league in the last couple months, since All-Star break. They're a hard team to beat here. They're a hard team to beat, period. I thought we gutted it out on a night when we didn't have a lot going, especially offensively.' It was a night when the Thunder made only three 3-pointers and were shooting 45% with about five minutes left before Gilgeous-Alexander got going. He took 11 shots in the final 4:40 — three field-goal attempts, one of them a 3-point try, and eight free throws — and made them all. A perfect finish, on a night when little had gone to plan. 'It's unbelievable," Daigneault said. 'He really didn't have it going a lot of the night. He was laboring. We had a hard time shaking him free. For him to be able to flip the switch like that and get the rhythm he got just speaks to how great of a player he is.' It might not have seemed so to the outside world — those who fixated on things like Oklahoma City's 68-14 franchise-best record, its 16-game lead over its nearest challenger in the Western Conference standings, a record number of double-digit wins and how all of it was led by the MVP and scoring champion in Gilgeous-Alexander. But the Thunder did, in fact, face some adversity this season. They played without Chet Holmgren and Hartenstein for a while during the year. There was some flux to the lineup at times. Everybody probably had some sort of mini-slump along the way. There was a Game 1 loss in the second round to Denver. And Daigneault embraced every bit of that pain, knowing that for the Thunder to get to where they want to go adversity was going to present itself. Like the being-down-10, late-third-quarter sort of adversity that came up in Game 4. Just like Hartenstein was led to believe by the book, everything worked out great. 'We haven't really had to show it a lot this year, with the success we had in the regular season,' guard Jalen Williams said shortly before the team left for the flight back to Oklahoma City, where a huge crowd showed up in the middle of the night to greet the team at the airport — as they often do. 'We've had a lot of ups and downs during the playoffs. We've just learned from those experiences. That is something Mark is really big on; every game you should be able to learn, then the next game you should be able to apply something and get better at it. That's what we're trying to do every time.' The series is far from over and the Thunder know it. Indiana already has won once at Oklahoma City in these finals; surely, the Pacers think they can do it again. And even though the teams finished 18 wins apart in the final standings — OKC won 68 times, Indiana won 50 — it doesn't seem like 18 wins worth of disparity between the clubs right now. Indiana stole Game 1 at the end. Oklahoma City stole Game 4 at the end, albeit not as dramatically as the Pacers took the opener. Game 2 was pretty much controlled by the Thunder throughout; the Pacers had the best of the play for the majority of Game 3. Add it up, and it looks exactly like what it is — a 2-2 series going into Game 5. 'I still feel like we have so much work to do,' Gilgeous-Alexander said. 'Halfway there, obviously, but still so far from the finish line.' ___
