Latest news with #Wildcats'
Chicago Tribune
4 days ago
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Carson Holmes, whose older brother played for Libertyville, is ‘a big part of it now.' And he has a big swing.
For as long as anyone can remember, when Libertyville's Carson Holmes has held a baseball bat, good things have happened. That hasn't changed in Holmes' first full varsity season. He has settled into the cleanup spot in the Wildcats' lineup and has launched a home run in each of Libertyville's two playoff wins. 'I like fielding,' Holmes said. 'But more importantly, I just like to hit. That's why I play baseball.' Holmes, a junior who has been a dependable outfielder but was the designated hitter on Saturday, blasted a two-run homer as second-seeded Libertyville beat seventh-seeded Highland Park 5-2 in the Class 4A Hoffman Estates Regional championship game. Holmes' fifth home run of the season came with two outs in the bottom of the fifth and gave the Wildcats (32-4), who will play sixth-seeded Prospect in the Stevenson Sectional semifinals at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, a 5-0 lead. It scored senior first baseman Joshua Holst, an Air Force recruit who had singled right before Holmes and hit a solo shot two innings earlier. Holmes' long ball provided two important insurance runs for junior pitcher Chase Lockwood, who went the distance. The Giants (24-11-1) scored two unearned runs in the top of the seventh. 'The previous at-bat, I swung and whiffed at a curveball, so I just sat curveball the next time up,' Holmes said. 'He threw me one, and I took it deep. The one before was a really bad swing, so I made the adjustment.' Holmes takes a measured approach at the plate. 'The thing with Carson is that he takes a nice, smooth swing,' Libertyville coach Matt Thompson said. 'He's never trying to jack the ball. He just gets the barrel to the ball really well, and obviously you see the results. 'He's always been confident in himself as a hitter, and he's built on it this year.' Holmes, who went 2-for-2 and was hit by a pitch on Saturday, is hitting .426 with a .543 on-base percentage, a 1.330 OPS and 21 RBIs. 'I've been seeing him swing the bat since we were 8, and he's always been hitting bombs,' Libertyville junior second baseman Trevor Wallace said. 'He has a great swing. The whole year, he's been pretty hot. It's been fun to see.' Holmes' older brother Dylan, a 2022 Libertyville graduate, plays for NJCAA Division III World Series qualifier Oakton Community College. The two spend ample time analyzing Holmes' swing, making adjustments when things go awry and having a devoted plan day in and day out. 'He's been a big influence on how I play this game, especially hitting the ball,' Holmes said. 'I'll send him videos, and he'll help me with my swing to this day. So he deserves credit for that.' Holmes pointed to one change in particular this season. 'We made some adjustments in my swing, and ever since, I've been hitting the ball really well,' Holmes said. 'I was upper-cutting it too much, and I need to stay more downhill to the ball, having a shorter path — be short to it, not long.' Holmes, who got a taste of varsity baseball as a late-season call-up in 2024, has longed for this opportunity, having watched Libertyville teams of the past. 'It's been a lot different but a lot of fun actually being a big part of it now,' he said. 'It's kind of my job to hit, and I pride myself on doing that, and this is a really good team to be a part of. We all connect, and this is our year to do some damage.'
The Advertiser
27-05-2025
- Sport
- The Advertiser
'Rushed' Cotton blames Wildcats' demand for Perth exit
Bryce Cotton has blamed Perth management for his exit from the Wildcats, claiming the NBL club gave him too short a time frame to decide his playing future. But the Wildcats' owner has defended the club for making a "horrible" but apparently unavoidable decision to cut ties with one of the league's greatest ever players. Five-time NBL MVP Cotton raised eyebrows signing with the Adelaide 36ers last week, having knocked back the Wildcats' contract extension after nine years in Perth. But on Tuesday, the 32-year-old said the Wildcats were responsible for his decision to sign elsewhere by insisting he make a decision on his future before he had a proper chance to explore his options. "As much as people feel or say, 'Why did I leave the Wildcats?', I didn't technically leave," Cotton told the EasyDay podcast. "The Wildcats parted ways with me because I wasn't willing to give an answer back in March." Cotton had been open with the Wildcats about his desire to test his value on the open market after the 2024/25 season, which finished as the greatest yet of his already illustrious NBL career. The American had been linked with Japanese club Chiba Jets, coached by former Wildcats boss Trevor Gleeson, and played a handful of NBA games before arriving at the Wildcats. But Cotton claims the Wildcats were pushing him for an answer only days after he'd touched down in Puerto Rico for a brief off-season stint at Mets de Guaynabo. "At that point, I'm pretty sure the (NBL) grand final was still going on, Melbourne playing Illawarra," Cotton said. "I had my agent tell them, 'Look, honestly, giving y'all within the next two or three days after I'd gotten to Puerto Rico, that s***'s not enough time for me to make a decision. "Like not being no cocky or no arrogant s***, but I just had one of the greatest seasons in NBL history and I'm a free agent for the first time in forever. It couldn't have been a better time." It left Cotton feeling there was only one option, to leave the Wildcats, telling the club: "I want to test free agency. So if you guys feel like you want to move on, I understand, but that (two or thee days) is not enough time for me to make a decision." Wildcats owner Mark Arena has subsequently defended the Wildcats, telling NBL Now that the club did "everything we possibly could to sign (Cotton) with the time frame we had". But the Wildcats had eight other players hitting free agency, including key men Keanu Pinder and Dylan Windler, so felt they needed an answer on their talisman's future. "We didn't want to end up in a position where we were waiting and waiting and waiting (for an answer from Cotton) and we were at a point where other players perhaps started looking elsewhere," Arena said. "It's a massive decision, a horrible decision we had to make, which was wait longer and risk the whole squad and our success, or make the hard call and move on and build a roster with plenty of time to do that that can win a championship." Cotton insisted he remained close with the Wildcats playing roster and his final coach, John Rillie. "I'm happy there's not beef between me and JR, it's all love. We spoke after the decision with Adelaide was made as well. It's all good," Cotton said. Bryce Cotton has blamed Perth management for his exit from the Wildcats, claiming the NBL club gave him too short a time frame to decide his playing future. But the Wildcats' owner has defended the club for making a "horrible" but apparently unavoidable decision to cut ties with one of the league's greatest ever players. Five-time NBL MVP Cotton raised eyebrows signing with the Adelaide 36ers last week, having knocked back the Wildcats' contract extension after nine years in Perth. But on Tuesday, the 32-year-old said the Wildcats were responsible for his decision to sign elsewhere by insisting he make a decision on his future before he had a proper chance to explore his options. "As much as people feel or say, 'Why did I leave the Wildcats?', I didn't technically leave," Cotton told the EasyDay podcast. "The Wildcats parted ways with me because I wasn't willing to give an answer back in March." Cotton had been open with the Wildcats about his desire to test his value on the open market after the 2024/25 season, which finished as the greatest yet of his already illustrious NBL career. The American had been linked with Japanese club Chiba Jets, coached by former Wildcats boss Trevor Gleeson, and played a handful of NBA games before arriving at the Wildcats. But Cotton claims the Wildcats were pushing him for an answer only days after he'd touched down in Puerto Rico for a brief off-season stint at Mets de Guaynabo. "At that point, I'm pretty sure the (NBL) grand final was still going on, Melbourne playing Illawarra," Cotton said. "I had my agent tell them, 'Look, honestly, giving y'all within the next two or three days after I'd gotten to Puerto Rico, that s***'s not enough time for me to make a decision. "Like not being no cocky or no arrogant s***, but I just had one of the greatest seasons in NBL history and I'm a free agent for the first time in forever. It couldn't have been a better time." It left Cotton feeling there was only one option, to leave the Wildcats, telling the club: "I want to test free agency. So if you guys feel like you want to move on, I understand, but that (two or thee days) is not enough time for me to make a decision." Wildcats owner Mark Arena has subsequently defended the Wildcats, telling NBL Now that the club did "everything we possibly could to sign (Cotton) with the time frame we had". But the Wildcats had eight other players hitting free agency, including key men Keanu Pinder and Dylan Windler, so felt they needed an answer on their talisman's future. "We didn't want to end up in a position where we were waiting and waiting and waiting (for an answer from Cotton) and we were at a point where other players perhaps started looking elsewhere," Arena said. "It's a massive decision, a horrible decision we had to make, which was wait longer and risk the whole squad and our success, or make the hard call and move on and build a roster with plenty of time to do that that can win a championship." Cotton insisted he remained close with the Wildcats playing roster and his final coach, John Rillie. "I'm happy there's not beef between me and JR, it's all love. We spoke after the decision with Adelaide was made as well. It's all good," Cotton said. Bryce Cotton has blamed Perth management for his exit from the Wildcats, claiming the NBL club gave him too short a time frame to decide his playing future. But the Wildcats' owner has defended the club for making a "horrible" but apparently unavoidable decision to cut ties with one of the league's greatest ever players. Five-time NBL MVP Cotton raised eyebrows signing with the Adelaide 36ers last week, having knocked back the Wildcats' contract extension after nine years in Perth. But on Tuesday, the 32-year-old said the Wildcats were responsible for his decision to sign elsewhere by insisting he make a decision on his future before he had a proper chance to explore his options. "As much as people feel or say, 'Why did I leave the Wildcats?', I didn't technically leave," Cotton told the EasyDay podcast. "The Wildcats parted ways with me because I wasn't willing to give an answer back in March." Cotton had been open with the Wildcats about his desire to test his value on the open market after the 2024/25 season, which finished as the greatest yet of his already illustrious NBL career. The American had been linked with Japanese club Chiba Jets, coached by former Wildcats boss Trevor Gleeson, and played a handful of NBA games before arriving at the Wildcats. But Cotton claims the Wildcats were pushing him for an answer only days after he'd touched down in Puerto Rico for a brief off-season stint at Mets de Guaynabo. "At that point, I'm pretty sure the (NBL) grand final was still going on, Melbourne playing Illawarra," Cotton said. "I had my agent tell them, 'Look, honestly, giving y'all within the next two or three days after I'd gotten to Puerto Rico, that s***'s not enough time for me to make a decision. "Like not being no cocky or no arrogant s***, but I just had one of the greatest seasons in NBL history and I'm a free agent for the first time in forever. It couldn't have been a better time." It left Cotton feeling there was only one option, to leave the Wildcats, telling the club: "I want to test free agency. So if you guys feel like you want to move on, I understand, but that (two or thee days) is not enough time for me to make a decision." Wildcats owner Mark Arena has subsequently defended the Wildcats, telling NBL Now that the club did "everything we possibly could to sign (Cotton) with the time frame we had". But the Wildcats had eight other players hitting free agency, including key men Keanu Pinder and Dylan Windler, so felt they needed an answer on their talisman's future. "We didn't want to end up in a position where we were waiting and waiting and waiting (for an answer from Cotton) and we were at a point where other players perhaps started looking elsewhere," Arena said. "It's a massive decision, a horrible decision we had to make, which was wait longer and risk the whole squad and our success, or make the hard call and move on and build a roster with plenty of time to do that that can win a championship." Cotton insisted he remained close with the Wildcats playing roster and his final coach, John Rillie. "I'm happy there's not beef between me and JR, it's all love. We spoke after the decision with Adelaide was made as well. It's all good," Cotton said.
West Australian
27-05-2025
- Sport
- West Australian
'Rushed' Cotton blames Wildcats' demand for Perth exit
Bryce Cotton has blamed Perth management for his exit from the Wildcats, claiming the NBL club gave him too short a time frame to decide his playing future. But the Wildcats' owner has defended the club for making a "horrible" but apparently unavoidable decision to cut ties with one of the league's greatest ever players. Five-time NBL MVP Cotton raised eyebrows signing with the Adelaide 36ers last week, having knocked back the Wildcats' contract extension after nine years in Perth. But on Tuesday, the 32-year-old said the Wildcats were responsible for his decision to sign elsewhere by insisting he make a decision on his future before he had a proper chance to explore his options. "As much as people feel or say, 'Why did I leave the Wildcats?', I didn't technically leave," Cotton told the EasyDay podcast. "The Wildcats parted ways with me because I wasn't willing to give an answer back in March." Cotton had been open with the Wildcats about his desire to test his value on the open market after the 2024/25 season, which finished as the greatest yet of his already illustrious NBL career. The American had been linked with Japanese club Chiba Jets, coached by former Wildcats boss Trevor Gleeson, and played a handful of NBA games before arriving at the Wildcats. But Cotton claims the Wildcats were pushing him for an answer only days after he'd touched down in Puerto Rico for a brief off-season stint at Mets de Guaynabo. "At that point, I'm pretty sure the (NBL) grand final was still going on, Melbourne playing Illawarra," Cotton said. "I had my agent tell them, 'Look, honestly, giving y'all within the next two or three days after I'd gotten to Puerto Rico, that s***'s not enough time for me to make a decision. "Like not being no cocky or no arrogant s***, but I just had one of the greatest seasons in NBL history and I'm a free agent for the first time in forever. It couldn't have been a better time." It left Cotton feeling there was only one option, to leave the Wildcats, telling the club: "I want to test free agency. So if you guys feel like you want to move on, I understand, but that (two or thee days) is not enough time for me to make a decision." Wildcats owner Mark Arena has subsequently defended the Wildcats, telling NBL Now that the club did "everything we possibly could to sign (Cotton) with the time frame we had". But the Wildcats had eight other players hitting free agency, including key men Keanu Pinder and Dylan Windler, so felt they needed an answer on their talisman's future. "We didn't want to end up in a position where we were waiting and waiting and waiting (for an answer from Cotton) and we were at a point where other players perhaps started looking elsewhere," Arena said. "It's a massive decision, a horrible decision we had to make, which was wait longer and risk the whole squad and our success, or make the hard call and move on and build a roster with plenty of time to do that that can win a championship." Cotton insisted he remained close with the Wildcats playing roster and his final coach, John Rillie. "I'm happy there's not beef between me and JR, it's all love. We spoke after the decision with Adelaide was made as well. It's all good," Cotton said.
Perth Now
27-05-2025
- Sport
- Perth Now
'Rushed' Cotton blames Wildcats' demand for Perth exit
Bryce Cotton has blamed Perth management for his exit from the Wildcats, claiming the NBL club gave him too short a time frame to decide his playing future. But the Wildcats' owner has defended the club for making a "horrible" but apparently unavoidable decision to cut ties with one of the league's greatest ever players. Five-time NBL MVP Cotton raised eyebrows signing with the Adelaide 36ers last week, having knocked back the Wildcats' contract extension after nine years in Perth. But on Tuesday, the 32-year-old said the Wildcats were responsible for his decision to sign elsewhere by insisting he make a decision on his future before he had a proper chance to explore his options. "As much as people feel or say, 'Why did I leave the Wildcats?', I didn't technically leave," Cotton told the EasyDay podcast. "The Wildcats parted ways with me because I wasn't willing to give an answer back in March." Cotton had been open with the Wildcats about his desire to test his value on the open market after the 2024/25 season, which finished as the greatest yet of his already illustrious NBL career. The American had been linked with Japanese club Chiba Jets, coached by former Wildcats boss Trevor Gleeson, and played a handful of NBA games before arriving at the Wildcats. But Cotton claims the Wildcats were pushing him for an answer only days after he'd touched down in Puerto Rico for a brief off-season stint at Mets de Guaynabo. "At that point, I'm pretty sure the (NBL) grand final was still going on, Melbourne playing Illawarra," Cotton said. "I had my agent tell them, 'Look, honestly, giving y'all within the next two or three days after I'd gotten to Puerto Rico, that s***'s not enough time for me to make a decision. "Like not being no cocky or no arrogant s***, but I just had one of the greatest seasons in NBL history and I'm a free agent for the first time in forever. It couldn't have been a better time." It left Cotton feeling there was only one option, to leave the Wildcats, telling the club: "I want to test free agency. So if you guys feel like you want to move on, I understand, but that (two or thee days) is not enough time for me to make a decision." Wildcats owner Mark Arena has subsequently defended the Wildcats, telling NBL Now that the club did "everything we possibly could to sign (Cotton) with the time frame we had". But the Wildcats had eight other players hitting free agency, including key men Keanu Pinder and Dylan Windler, so felt they needed an answer on their talisman's future. "We didn't want to end up in a position where we were waiting and waiting and waiting (for an answer from Cotton) and we were at a point where other players perhaps started looking elsewhere," Arena said. "It's a massive decision, a horrible decision we had to make, which was wait longer and risk the whole squad and our success, or make the hard call and move on and build a roster with plenty of time to do that that can win a championship." Cotton insisted he remained close with the Wildcats playing roster and his final coach, John Rillie. "I'm happy there's not beef between me and JR, it's all love. We spoke after the decision with Adelaide was made as well. It's all good," Cotton said.
25-05-2025
- Sport
Maddox Mihalakis delivers Big 12 Championship for Arizona in 2-1 win over TCU
ARLINGTON, Texas -- Maddox Mihalakis drove in the go-ahead run in the 10th inning, leading No. 4-seed Arizona a 2-1 victory over third-seeded TCU on Saturday night to win the Big 12 Championship and clinch the Wildcats' 40th trip to the NCAA Baseball Tournament. In the top of the 10th inning, Mason White was hit by a pitch with one out and took third on a single by Adonys Guzman. Mihalakis drove the first pitch into center field for the go-ahead run. Arizona (39-18) had only three hits and stranded nine runners on base through the first eight innings, before Andrew Cain's home run to right field tied the game 1-1 in the ninth. The Horned Frogs (39-18) took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning when Sawyer Strosnider scored on a groundout by Noah Franco. Strosnider had drawn a one-out walk and advanced to third on a double by Cole Cramer. No TCU player reached third base the rest of the game. Arizona had runners on second and third in the sixth and eighth innings but did not score. Freshman Smith Bailey started on the mound for Arizona and pitched 5 1/3 innings, allowing one run and four hits. He struck out five with no walks. Tony Pluta (2-0), the fourth pitcher for the Wildcats, pitched the last two innings and got the victory.
