Latest news with #FemaleAthleteoftheYear
Chicago Tribune
6 days ago
- Lifestyle
- Chicago Tribune
On super night, North Central College recruit Kara Waishwell works wonders for Lincoln-Way East. ‘Can't say enough.'
BLOOMINGTON — Lincoln-Way East's Kara Waishwell made sure her last game lived up to its billing. The senior midfielder, a two-sport standout, was named the school's Female Athlete of the Year last week in a vote conducted by the Griffins' coaches. And she was superb Tuesday night. For the North Central College recruit, it goes beyond the numbers. 'I feel like I'm very inspirational out there,' Waishwell said afterward. 'I try to help keep everyone's head held high even if we're down. I'm a team player and I pass the ball to everybody.' Showing that unselfish manner, Waishwell created some of the strongest scoring threats for the upset-minded Griffins in a 3-0 loss to O'Fallon in a Class 3A Bloomington Supersectional. Waishwell, a four-year regular, ended her celebrated career with six goals and 15 assists this spring for Lincoln-Way East (18-4-1), which aimed for a second trip to state in the last three years. Two years ago as a sophomore, Waishwell produced four goals and six assists as the Griffins took fourth place. She was excited about a return to playing at NCC, where she's signed for soccer. Along with Northwestern football recruit Caden O'Rourke, the school's Male Athlete of the Year, Waishwell displayed the respect that she commands as both a captain and a leader. 'That tells you something about the kind of player she is,' Lincoln-Way East coach Mike Murphy said of Waishwell, who capped her career for the Griffins finishing third all-time program history for assists. 'She was a very big reason we got to state two years ago. 'She has this infectious quality and natural leadership, and everybody loves playing with her.' Senior forward Ellie Feigl has been a primary beneficiary of Waishwell's shot creation. 'Athletically, I can't say enough about her,' Feigl said. 'She has great vision, quickness and the ability to see the whole field. Off the field, she's one of the best people you'll ever meet. 'She is always smiling and she is always there for you.' Despite the loss, Waishwell didn't walk off the field fuming after the supersectional. She felt the Griffins were closer than the the final score indicates. 'We had some opportunities, some corner kicks,' Waishwell said of the Griffins' attack. 'I thought we did a good job of holding them defensively. We didn't get fourth like two years ago. 'But we ended up fighting and battling all the way through.' Waishwell, the youngest of three soccer players in her family, grew up being coached by her father, Brian. Her mother, Lesa, played softball and ran track. Her older siblings, sister Anna and brother Dylan, were a driving force guiding her to soccer. 'Watching my sister as I grew up, she was a big role model who inspired me and led to be the player that I am,' said Kara, who was stunned about being named the school's top female athlete. 'I was shocked when I heard about the award. I called my family right away. I'm honored to get that because we have so many great athletes at our school.' Running three miles while competing in cross country also helped Waishwell. 'I love being outside,' she said. 'I feel like it's a very mentally challenging sport that has helped with soccer. It has taught me about not giving up because the training is really challenging. 'The endurance has really helped with my soccer.' Turning the page, though, Waishwell graduates as part of the long line of Lincoln-Way East girls soccer teams that have made a mark against the best in the state. 'I'm going to take away how far we came and I'm going to use that to motivate me in college,' she said. 'I never would have thought my sophomore year we'd make it to state. 'We worked hard these past four years and created an incredible foundation.'
Calgary Herald
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Calgary Herald
Calgary Dinos basketball star Nate Petrone named Canada West Male Athlete of the Year
Article content Following one of the greatest seasons in Calgary Dinos men's basketball history, Nate Petrone added another accolade on Thursday as he was named the 2025 Canada West Male Athlete of the Year. Article content Article content Petrone's award marks the 18th time a University of Calgary student-athlete has been named the top athlete in Canada West, and the first since 2022. Calgary's 18 nominees marks the second-most from a single university in U SPORTS, second only to McGill (23). Article content Article content All 17 Canada West member institutions vote to select the conference's athletes of the year, with nominees being the respective schools' athletes of the year. Fellow basketball standout Gage Grassick of Saskatchewan was named the Canada West Female Athlete of the Year. Article content Article content Petrone and Grassick will now move forward as the Canada West nominees for the prestigious Louis and Doug Mitchell U SPORTS Athletes of the Year Awards, which honour the nation's top male and female student-athletes. U SPORTS will announce this year's winners June 2. Article content There was no more dominant offensive force in U SPORTS men's basketball this season than Petrone, who delivered a year for the ages while leading the Dinos to their eighth Canada West championship. The hometown star led U SPORTS in total points and topped Canada West with 24.2 points per game, all while shooting a remarkable 56.8 percent from the field — an exceptional feat for a guard. Article content Petrone elevated his play even further in the playoffs. In the Canada West semifinals, he posted 23 points and nine rebounds to help the Dinos take down three-time defending champion Victoria. He followed that with a historic 38-point outburst on 15-of-21 shooting in the conference final against UBC, propelling Calgary to the title. Article content Article content His accolades reflect his standout season. Petrone was named Canada West Player of the Year and earned the U SPORTS Mike Moser Memorial Trophy as the nation's top men's basketball player.
Yahoo
11-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Calgary Wild bring in Forest Lawn students for club's first home game on Sunday
Students at a Forest Lawn school will get some of the best seats in the house when pro women's soccer arrives in Calgary this weekend. Calgary Wild FC goalkeeper Sarah Keilty-Dilling visited Ian Bazalgette School in the city's southeast this week to launch the Keepers Corner campaign. Now a goalkeeper herself for Alberta's first pro women's soccer team, a founding club in the Northern Super League, Keilty-Dilling previously taught physical education at Ian Bazalgette. Keepers Corner is an initiative through which Wild goalies will donate 20 tickets to the school for each of the club's 13 games at McMahon Stadium, where the club will make its home debut on Sunday against Ottawa Rapid FC. WATCH | Former teacher returns to school as pro goalkeeper "The kids at the school and the kids in this area are historically underprivileged and undervalued, and I see so much potential and value in these kids," said Keilty-Dilling, who visited the school alongside Wild midfielder Sonia O'Neill and goalkeeper Stephanie Bukovec. The initiative will seat students from the program in a Keepers Corner section of the stadium by the home team's net. Following the game, students will get to meet the goalies. Bazalgette principal Steven Pike considers Keilty-Dilling, who has committed to regularly visiting the school, an inspiration to students. "I think professional sports is a good platform to give people an idea that there are opportunities in life," he said. "Especially in Canada, as long as you work hard and you pursue things, you can gain a lot of those opportunities." After Keilty-Dilling, 31, got her start with the Calgary South West United and Chinook FC youth clubs, she joined the NCAA Division I soccer team at the University of Texas at El Paso Miners. Her final season in 2014 netted her MVP and Female Athlete of the Year awards, while her 82 games started and 41 wins in her college career made her the program's all-time leader in both categories. After one year on the Women's Premier Soccer League's FC Tuscon in Arizona, she returned to Calgary and played with Calgary Foothills in the professional-amateur Women's United Soccer league, where she served as team captain and was named the Goalkeeper of the Year in 2022. Now, she's playing a pivotal role for the Wild in the Northern Super League's first year. "It's a dream come true," Keilty-Dilling said. "It's unreal, and to be able to do it in my hometown as well, it's really special." WATCH | Calgarians lace up for Wild The Wild made their debut on April 16 at B.C. Place against the Vancouver Rise, where they fell 1-0. They rebounded at their next game, hosted by the Halifax Tides on April 26, with a commanding 4-1 win. Calgary fell short in their third contest, losing 2-1 to AFC Toronto, but they hope to climb back to .500 during their home opener on Sunday. Knowing they've got those students cheering them on could be the boost they need. "I'd hope that they could be inspired by just a little bit of my journey and just the message of not giving up, not quitting and chasing your dreams," said Keilty-Dilling.
Malaysiakini
03-05-2025
- Sport
- Malaysiakini
Can a young girl in Malaysia pursue sports properly?
COMMENT | My eldest daughter Athena Azlee is very interested in sports and athletics, and I am very proud. When she was 11 years old, she did a gold medal clean sweep of all the sprint events (100m, 200m, 4x100m, etc) during her school sports day and won the Future Female Athlete of the Year. She also played cricket for the school team and was district runner-up. When she turned 12, she also did a clean sweep of all the sprint events and was awarded the Female Athlete of the Year. She also continued to play cricket and her team became state runner-up. Athena represented her school in other sports too like handball and gymnastics, and she was always telling us how...
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Indiana Fever Coach Shares Major Concern About Upcoming Game
On Sunday the Indiana Fever will face Brazil at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in what will be the first WNBA preseason game nationally televised on ESPN. In a media session on Thursday, Fever head coach Stephanie White offered a candid preview of Caitlin Clark's upcoming return to Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Advertisement Clark finished her collegiate career at Iowa with 3,951 points, the most in NCAA Division I history for men or women. White said, "I anticipate it being a little crazy. I think it's gonna be exciting… I didn't know there's no air conditioning. So yeah, we're gonna have to work through that and make sure we stay hydrated. But what an experience for those fans." At Iowa, Clark shattered single-season and career marks for 3-pointers and assists, earning two National Player of the Year awards and leading the Hawkeyes to back-to-back national championship games in 2023 and 2024. Selected No. 1 overall by the Fever in 2024, Clark seamlessly transitioned to the pros, averaging 19.2 points and a WNBA-best 8.4 assists per game. Advertisement She also led the league with 122 made 3-pointers and recorded the first triple-double by a rookie in WNBA history. Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White.© Mykal McEldowney/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images Clark was a near-unanimous choice for WNBA Rookie of the Year and was named both Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year and Time's 2024 Athlete of the Year. She also became the first rookie since Candace Parker in 2008 to make the All-WNBA First Team. All 15,000 tickets for Clark's homecoming on Sunday sold out in under 45 minutes. Related: Former Iowa Star Gabbie Marshall Upset About New Caitlin Clark Announcement Related: Paige Bueckers' Interaction With Former UConn Teammate Sparks Dating Rumors
