Latest news with #Wooley
USA Today
29-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Texas A&M softball standout Koko Wooley wins Gold Glove Honors
Texas A&M softball standout Koko Wooley wins Gold Glove Honors It's award season for college softball! Despite Texas A&M's season ending prematurely, several Aggies secured post-regular season accolades. On Wednesday, Rawlings Softball revealed the nine winners of the prestigious Rawlings Gold Glove Award, presented by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) during the Women's College World Series press conference. Among the honored players was senior Koko Wooley, who earned the Gold Glove award for her exceptional performance at shortstop, making history as the first Aggie to receive this distinction. Wooley has established herself as one of the most electrifying softball players in the nation, excelling on both offense and defense. Her fielding percentage has consistently improved each year, rising from .898 to .931, while she also achieved her highest career batting average at .421. Wooley's remarkable athleticism contributed to numerous double plays, game-changing defensive plays, and disruptive base running. She will be remembered as a cornerstone of Texas A&M's softball program, having helped restore its national prominence and paved the way for future success. Join us in celebrating Koko Wooley on this incredible achievement! Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on X: @whosnextsports1.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Desperate Wichita restaurant owner trying to survive nightmare mouse problem, may relocate
In terms of nightmare scenarios for a restaurant, what happened last week at Bella Vita Bistro was pretty bad, says owner Lory Wooley. A table of diners was finishing up its meal when suddenly, a mouse jumped from the top of the booth onto the table. The customer screamed. The mouse scurried into the kitchen, where it met its end in a trap. But the damage was done — or so Wooley thought. Later that week, Wooley said, a customer posted a Google review of the restaurant that exaggerated the already bad situation, writing that a rat had run across a customer's foot and landed in a trap, where it was left squealing while customers tried to eat. Now, customers are staying away in droves, said Wooley, who is contemplating breaking her lease and moving from her Italian restaurant's home of 15 years at 120 N. West St. to a new spot. She's already been out looking at properties but hasn't found the right fit, she said. She'd like to stay — Bella Vita has been considered one of Wichita's best Italian restaurants since it opened in 2010. But she's been dealing for eight months with a mouse infestation that she's struggled to get under control, no matter how many solutions she's tried. And she's tried everything, she said. 'At this particular rate, the way it's going, I won't make it to the end of the month,' she said. When the problem developed into an issue in January, Wooley said, she thought it was best to keep her head down and spend her energy fighting the mouse problem in her building. But after the Google review went up this weekend, she said, she decided she had to speak out. On Monday, she published a long, impassioned post on the Bella Vita Bistro Facebook page detailing her plight and asking customers not to give up on her. Was it the right move? She thinks so. 'I had no choice but to address it,' she said. 'I thought that was the safest way.' It all started in October, Wooley said. It was a Sunday, and she decided to organize the little storage shed that sits just behind the restaurant. 'I moved something, and there was a nest of mice,' she said. 'Well, I closed the shed and said, 'goodbye, thank you very much. I'm going home now.'' After that, Wooley said, she could see mice running around outside the shed. She spent $1,200 installing a new back door with a tight seal and closed up any holes she could find in the restaurant's walls, just to make sure the mice didn't make it inside. But they still did, and Wooley hired professional exterminators to help her deal with the problem, she said. She bought snap traps, sticky traps, ultrasonic traps and electric traps. She couldn't put out poison, she said, because if the mice died in the walls, she'd have a much bigger, much smellier, much less solvable problem. In December, she said, a disgruntled employee she'd fired called the health department to report a mouse problem, which prompted a visit from the board of health. 'When he came in, his words to me were, 'You're obviously doing everything you can to get rid of them, but you do have your work cut out for you, because it's freezing outside.' This is in January, mind you.' The inspector turned in his report, which was published on the Department of Agriculture website and then published as part of The Wichita Eagle's restaurant inspection report, which comes out weekly and lists restaurants that failed inspections. The report, published online on Jan. 25, said that Bella Vita had 10 violations, including mouse droppings on clean pans and utensils, live and dead mice, and 'mouse droppings too numerous to count' throughout the restaurant. What those black-and-white reports don't tend to include, Wooley said, is the nuanced reality of what the inspector finds. The dead mice were in four traps that she hadn't yet had a chance to check that day. The live mouse was one caught in a trap who hadn't yet expired. 'But it doesn't say that,' she said. 'It makes it sound like I've got mice lying all over the freaking place.... His comments were, 'Your guys are doing a great job in the kitchen. All the food looks fine. It's all at the proper temperature. Your guys are doing a good job.' But that's not in the report. Instead, it's just the black-and-white 'live and dead mice everywhere.'' Someone who saw the report shared it on Google, encouraging people to avoid the restaurant. And they have. Wooley is even seeing fewer of her regulars. 'I've lost more business and more business and more business,' she said. Since the weather has warmed up, the mice have become less of a problem, Wooley said. But they're still coming in, sometimes chewing through the drywall to get access. Wooley is still catching them in traps, too — and then there's the one who escaped capture and made his Tuesday-night adventure across the customer's table. (That customer gamely moved to the other side of the table and ordered dessert, Wooley said.) Her explanatory post on Monday included strong words for her landlord, who Wooley accused of not taking her problem seriously. But this week, the landlord has stepped up and has provided a special mouse-discouraging disinfectant to all the tenants in the strip center and has also installed other mice-deterring devices and contraptions. Wooley said she can understand how customers might be leery. But she wants people to know that she continues to do everything she can to get rid of the unwelcome visitors. The inspector visited Bella Vita again in February, according to the Department of Agriculture's database, and turned in a report saying that the restaurant was in compliance with health standards. 'I need some people to come back,' she said. 'And hopefully, after people see my post, and I assure them that this is not just something that I'm ignoring and that it's not that they're running wild . . . maybe they'll come back and help support me so that I can stay in business.' People in the post's comment section have overall been kind and supportive, she said. Most are suggesting places she could move, including the old Le Monde building (already taken), the old Sticky Bird building (she'd be willing to take a look), and the spot Panera moved out of at NewMarket Square (she doubts she could afford the rent there.) Earlier this week, she looked at the stacked shipping container space at Revolutsia that Prost will be leaving when it moves downtown next month, she said. But she's not sure it's the right fit for Bella Vita. She needs a spot, she said, that has already operated as a restaurant. She can't afford to install a hood and start over in the kitchen. If she could find the right place, she'd take it. But she doesn't want to move. She'd rather solve the mice problem and stay where she is. 'It's a nightmare,' she said. 'I haven't slept for two days. I'm so upset. I don't want to lose my restaurant.' Wooley said she'd provide updates on her battle with the mice — and on her search for a new space.
USA Today
19-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
What is obstruction in college softball? Texas A&M wins challenge in NCAA regional vs Liberty
What is obstruction in college softball? Texas A&M wins challenge in NCAA regional vs Liberty Show Caption Hide Caption How the SEC's softball dominance could carry it through to the Women's College World Series he Oklahoman's Jenni Carlson shares the top storylines she's following through the NCAA softball tournament, starting with the SEC's biggest strengths. Texas A&M is one win away from advancing in the NCAA softball tournament, and holding off from being on the wrong side of history. But as the top-seeded Aggies currently work against Liberty in the Bryan-College Station Regional championship, one of college softball's judgment calls came into play: obstruction. The call came in the bottom of the third inning after Texas A&M coach Trisha Ford called for her second challenge of the game on a play at third that involved her shortstop, Koko Wooley, and Liberty third baseman Rachel Craine. REQUIRED READING: Texas A&M vs Liberty softball live updates: Aggies lead winner-take-all regional final Wooley was originally called out at home plate on the play by the home plate umpire, as she was well out of the basepath during a rundown. The Aggies' center fielder attempted to turn a first-to-third play on a Mac Barbara single into a first-to-home play as the ball got away from two Liberty fielders at third. However, that was overturned by the Aggies' successful challenge, which placed her back at third base. She'd score on the very next play thanks to a single through the right side by first baseman Amari Harper. A win against Liberty on Sunday would advance Texas A&M to the Super Regional of the NCAA softball tournament, where it would play the winner of No. 16 Oregon-Stanford from the Eugene Regional. The Aggies defeated the Flames earlier Sunday in Game 6 of the Bryan-College Station Regional to force Sunday night's Game 7. Here's what you need to know on what is obstruction in college softball as it was called in the Texas A&M-Liberty game: What is obstruction? Explaining college softball rule As noted Rule 9.5 of the NCAA softball rulebook, obstruction is when a defensive player inserts themselves into the path of a runner and blocks that player away from attempting to reach that base safely. More from Rule 9.5.1.1 of the NCAA rulebook: "Obstruction occurs when a defensive player, neither in possession of the ball nor in the act of fielding a batted ball, impedes a batter's attempt to make contact with a pitch or impedes the progress of any runner who is legally running bases on a live ball. It can be intentional or unintentional." Obstruction can also be called when a defensive player does not have possession of the ball when said fielder: A. Blocks any part of the leading edge of first, second or third base or home plate (as defined); or B. Otherwise blocks the runner from advancing or returning to a base. All told, by rule, since Craine did not have possession of the ball at the time Wooley was beginning to reach third base and made contact with Wooley, there was obstruction called, though the call remains mired in controversy.
New York Times
03-04-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Dear Gamecocks: The pre-game letters that sustain South Carolina on its Final Four journey
On Sunday afternoon, Bree Hall returned to South Carolina's locker room after the first part of her warmup and saw a handwritten note taped to the back wall of her locker. The note accompanied a picture that was mostly a collage of puzzle pieces outlining the NCAA Tournament's championship trophy. One of the pieces not showing the trophy was of a 3-year-old South Carolina fan whose hair had been braided with beads that spelled out players' names. Another puzzle piece was blank. On the right side of the page were a few sentences hand-written in gold Sharpie to Hall. Advertisement The message was exactly what Hall said she needed to hear: 'That I am Bree Hall, and that I am that girl. And I have put in a lot of the work throughout the season to be in this place, and that I have to let things come to me.' It reminded her she was ready and prepared. Hall, a senior, wasn't alone in receiving a letter of encouragement ahead of top-seeded South Carolina's Elite Eight matchup with Duke. All of her teammates received one, too. In fact, since mid-January, every time South Carolina players return from warm-ups to the locker room with just under an hour until tipoff, they have found a letter at their locker. The author? South Carolina assistant Mary Wooley. 'I want them to feel seen, valued and cared about,' Wooley said. 'This is something to ground them.' Wooley began writing letters to each player before South Carolina's first meeting with Texas on Jan. 12. The teams will meet for a fourth time on Friday night in the Final Four. Capstone is GLOWING GARNET!@GamecockWBB is Final Four bound for the fifth-straight year AND @GamecockSoftbll takes the series against #3 LSU 🤙 IT'S GREAT TO BE A GAMECOCK! — Gamecock Athletics (@GamecocksOnline) March 30, 2025 The letters are a labor of love. Wooley, who returned to South Carolina before the 2022 season after a prior stint with the program from 2017 to 2020, tries to begin writing them the night before a game. She said it takes her around two hours. Sometimes, a player's note takes five to 10 minutes to write. Other times, she'll think about it for days, reflecting on how a player is processing what's happening in the Gamecocks' season, or in their life. 'My goal is to have something personal enough for them to know I'm paying attention to their needs,' she said. They do. 'She's very attentive to what we need, and it's a really great thing to have before the game,' reserve center Adhel Tac said. Tac is one of many Gamecocks who said they save every note, with the letter piles building in their locker or backpacks. Advertisement The tradition began in January after South Carolina's coaches received feedback from a pair of leadership coaches, Felicia and Johnny Hall Allen, that players wanted more inspiration and motivation from the Gamecocks' staff. Wooley, who has degrees in psychology, processed the suggestion and felt writing letters was a way to impact each player. While time-consuming, she recognized the power in something hand-written, especially amid the ebbs and flows of a season. Wooley admitted she isn't overly vocal, and notes are a common way she connects with people she cares about. She writes her 9-year-old son a letter every week. 'With my friends and family, it's the way that I express my heart,' Wooley said. 'I felt like I could do that for them and if it was something that they needed then I was willing to put extra effort into that.' She did something similar once as an assistant at Hawaii, where she worked from 2012 to 2016, but those notes were shorter. Plus, they focused on basketball. Her notes to South Carolina's players have nothing to do with a scouting report or a player's shooting form. Instead, they're personal. 'It's a really good reminder going into games. It's very heartfelt,' Hall said. 'It's just a confidence booster and a reminder of who you are and what you bring to the team.' Said Wooley: 'I just think about what the moment needs, and then I try and think about what each individual in that moment needs.' The letters speak to a season-long theme or specific game-day message. Wooley said she has amateur experience creating graphics for recruiting mailouts and her expertise comes in handy here, too. One batch of gameday letters involved digging up pictures of South Carolina players as kids. That not only made this year's group laugh, but tied back to that day's message: Play for that little girl watching, who's still inside of them. Advertisement 'It made me really realize that I am making my younger self proud,' Hall said. 'Sometimes I feel like we get stuck in the right now. My younger self would be absolutely blown away that I am where I am right now and doing so well.' Another note was a picture of each player from when they committed to the Gamecocks. A few letters had the word 'uncommon' at the top, a reference to the theme of this year's team. When the Gamecocks played UConn in February, Wooley placed a photo at the top of the page in which South Carolina players had linked hands. Overlaying the image was the phrase '13 as 1,' a reminder of the Gamecocks coming together. Throughout the NCAA Tournament, Wooley has utilized a puzzle motif. The defending champions are looking to complete the picture this weekend. THE GAMECOCKS ARE HEADED TO TAMPA!! — South Carolina Women's Basketball (@GamecockWBB) March 30, 2025 Like any writer (or coach), a setting can serve as inspiration. Wooley will compose on trains, planes and buses. South Carolina junior forward Ashlyn Watkins once saw Wooley writing a letter at a trampoline park in Columbia while her son was playing. 'These young ladies are growing and evolving,' Wooley said. 'Because what each moment requires, what each opponent requires, there's always new material.' Wooley owns practically every part of the process, with two exceptions. One of South Carolina's administrators helps her cut paper to the margins she wants. Team managers or a graduate assistant tape them to lockers. Wooley wants to remove herself from the moment when players read and process her messages. Players usually keep what she writes to themselves. Wooley doesn't begin the letters with 'dear' or sign them with her name. No pleasantries are needed. By her second batch of letters, players realized she was the author. 'I'm speaking directly to their hearts,' she said. Advertisement Sunday's message about Duke broadly reminded the Gamecocks that they have succeeded through countless tests this season. On Wednesday evening, Wooley provided a brief preview of what Friday's letters will say. There will again be puzzle pieces, and the script will be written in silver Sharpie. In addition to personal messages, Wooley will remind players that they know what they're capable of. To focus on what they know to be true. Like film study of the Longhorns, the notes are just part of her Final Four prep work. 'At the end of the day, it's really easy and important to tell people that you love them,' Wooley said. 'I appreciate knowing that at the end of the day, if just one of them at any given time has one token they can take with them, then I think I've done what I'm supposed to do.' (Photo of Bree Hall: Carmen Mandato / Getty Images)
USA Today
31-03-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Auburn among top transfer destinations for C-USA Freshman of the Year Adrian Wooley
Auburn among top transfer destinations for C-USA Freshman of the Year Adrian Wooley Former Kennesaw State guard Adrian Wooley averaged 19.6 points per game during his stellar freshman campaign. One of the top transfer portal prospects in college basketball narrowed his list of schools down to four on Saturday. According to a report by Joe Tipton of On3, Kennesaw State transfer guard Adrian Wooley has cut his list down to Alabama, Auburn, Louisville, and Kansas. He is coming off a freshman season where he averaged 18.8 points per game for Kennesaw State. Wooley played high school basketball in Cottondale, Alabama and was listed as a three-star prospect by 247Sports when he committed to Kennesaw State. He was recruited by teams from mid-major conferences and did not have any offers from any of the power four conferences. 247Sports rates Wooley as the top combo guard in the transfer portal and the third-best prospect overall. Kennesaw State finished fourth in Conference USA with a 10-8 record, and they were 19-4 overall. They were eliminated in the semifinals of the conference tournament by Liberty 81-79, and they did not get selected to participate in the NCAA Tournament. That loss to Liberty was the end of their season. Wooley led the team in points per game and shot 42% from the three-point line. He also led the Owls in assists (3.6) and steals (1.4). Wooley won Conference USA Freshman of the Year and averaged 19.6 points in conference games. He also scored double figures in all of his games except for three. He was also selected to the Conference USA All-Freshman team. He scored 20 or more points 15 times with his season high coming against Brewton-Parker. In the 112-77 win he scored 32 points with eight assists and rebounds. Wooley is one of the top prospects in the transfer portal and would be a great addition to the Tigers if that is where he transfers. Auburn will be looking to rebuild with much of their roster in their final year as seniors.
