Briarcrest baseball defeats CBHS to win DII-AA West region title: Full highlights
After losing their first four games in 2024, Centennial ended up winning the 6A state championship. They enter 2025 with a new coach.
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Forbes
2 minutes ago
- Forbes
New York Yankees Add 3B Ryan McMahon To Address Pressing Need
Ryan McMahon can look forward to a pennant race after joining the New York Yankees on Friday. (AP ... More Photo/David Zalubowski) Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The New York Yankees stepped decisively into the trade deadline swap meet when they acquired two-way third baseman Ryan McMahon from the Colorado Rockies on Friday. The move addresses multiple needs for the Yankees, cementing the third base position on both sides of the ball while adding another left-handed bat to a Yankee Stadium that is built for left-handed hitters with its 314-foot porch down the right-field line. The Yankees also were able to keep the major league roster basically intact for the stretch run without raiding the top of their farm system, where Spencer Jones and George Lombard Jr. reside. They are sending pitching prospects Griffin Herring and Josh Grosz to the Rockies. New York, the 2024 American League champion, entered the weekend 4 1/2 games behind the Toronto Blue Jays in the AL East. They held a two-game lead over Seattle and a 2 1/2 game lead over Boston for the first wild card. While major league RBI leader Eugenio Suarez is the top third baseman on the market, the Arizona Diamondbacks' expectedly high asking price led the Yankees to McMahon, who was considered the No. 2 third baseman available because of the Rockies' desire to restructure after a disastrous 2025. McMahon has two years remaining on a six-year, $70 million contract extension he signed before the 2022 season that bought out the final two years of arbitration and three years of free agency. The Yankees, who have a $295 million payroll this season, will owe McMahon about $4.2 million of his prorated 2025 salary and $16 million in both 2026 and 2027. McMahon, 30, profiles as the Yankees' answer at third base for the length of his contract, anchoring a position that has been unstable since Miguel Andujar played 132 games there in 2018. The Yankees have tried five third basemen this season, with Oswald Peraza (33) Oswaldo Cabrera (30) and Jazz Chisholm (28) getting most of the work. As a group, they are hitting .214 with a .354 slugging percentage and a .645 OPS, the last two numbers the worst on the team. Chisholm was acquired in a deadline move last season to play third, but his best infield position is considered second, when he has spent most of the season. Chisholm returned to second when DJ LeMahieu was released before the All-Star break, leaving a gaping opening at third. The Yankees took short look at minor leaguer Jorbit Vivas after the break before deciding they had to make a change. McMahon has three home runs in six games after the All-Star and is on pace for his fifth straight 20-homer season, which would be he sixth of a career all spent with the Rockies. McMahon also has been among the premier defenders at third since taking over full-time in Colorado 2021, after Nolan Arenado was traded to St. Louis as the Rockies' looked to get from under another long-term contract. He was plus-12 in defensive runs saved among major league third baseman in 2024, according to FanGraphs, and is plus-four this season. He is plus-64 in his major league career. McMahon has one homer in a six-game sample size at Yankee Stadium. How do the Colorado Rockies benefit? Rockies co-owner Charlie Monfort told the Denver Post in late June that 'I think we need a new set of eyeballs' at the top levels of the organization as they play out what will be a third straight 100-loss season. Part of that includes freeing money, and McMahon was the second-highest player on the roster. Kris Bryant still has three years remaining on his six-year, $182 million free agent deal signed in 2022, but back issues have limited him to 11 games this season and threaten to end his career. The Rockies have never been afraid to spend, but their choices have not always worked out, often for health reasons. Starter German Marquez, in the final year of a two-year, $20 million extension, is on the disabled list again this season after spending much of 2024 out after Tommy John surgery. Starter Antonio Senzatela, in the third of year a five-year, $50 million extension, has a major league-high 13 losses. Shortstop Ezequiel Tovar signed a seven-year, $63.5 million extension this spring after a breakout 2024, but he played only 37 games because of a left hip and contusion and a left oblique strain. The Rockies, always in the market for controllable pitching because it is difficult to lure free agent starters to Coors Field, and newcomer Herring is having a good season at two Class A levels going 7-3 with a 1.71 ERA in 16 starts. Her was the Yankees' No. 8 prospect at the time of the deal, according to The Yankees signed him to a well-over-slot $797,500 bonus after picking him in the sixth round of the 2024 draft. Grosz was ranked as the Yankees' No. 21 prospect.
Fox News
2 minutes ago
- Fox News
More than 100 NFL players and coaches scalped tickets to Super Bowl LIX
The NFL's secondary ticket market is a very profitable business, but when folks are simply scalping tickets, well, the NFL and its teams don't love that. And they definitely don't love it when players and club employees do it for a Super Bowl. But that is apparently what happened at Super Bowl LIX, played on Feb. 9 at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans. And the league, which frowns on this, caught the scalpers. The NFL can track the tickets to its games and has the digital capability to confirm if the people who purchased a Super Bowl ticket actually used it. So the NFL is fining approximately 100 players – 100! – and two dozen club employees for violating league policy of selling Super Bowl LIX tickets above face value, a league source told OutKick on Friday. The story was first reported by the Associated Press. The NFL isn't done. There is an ongoing investigation into the matter. The actual amount of the fines will vary. Players who resold their tickets will have to pay 150 percent of the face value of the ticket they originally bought. Those players will also forfeit their privilege of buying tickets to future Super Bowls unless they're actually playing in the game. Club employees who were caught scalping will be fined 200 percent of the face value of the tickets they purchased. No names of the players or other employees already caught are known. What is known is that coaches were involved as well as players. The players and coaches apparently sold their tickets to so-called "bundlers" who were working on behalf of a ticket reseller, who then marked up the price of the tickets a second time. This isn't the first time this has happened, although the scale this year is quite something. Former Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Tice admitted to scalping part of his allotment of Super Bowl tickets in 2005. Tice was eventually fined $100,000 by the NFL. Super Bowl LIX tickets were averaging around $4,708 on the secondary market the week of the game, according to various reports. The cheapest tickets started around $2,668 on TickPick, while the most expensive seats, particularly those close to the field and sidelines, exceeded $10,000. Some seating for the game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles climbed to prices as high as $50,000.
Forbes
2 minutes ago
- Forbes
Coach X WNBA: A Stylish Play In The Brand's Ongoing Reinvention
Kiki Iriafen Ben Rosser/ Coach has had a strong run in recent years, from their brand revival caused by their Tabby bag to the launch of its sustainable Gen Z-inspired line, Coachtopia. Now, they've aligned themself with a new venture, bringing in a whole new audience, as they lead on their partnership with the WNBA. On April 14, 2025, Coach and the WNBA announced their multi-year partnership in New York, NY, at the WNBA draft. With the intention of "champion[ing] courageous self expression" through basketball — verbiage used both in the press release of the WNBA and on Coach's site— the WNBA and Coach joined forces with emphasis on the 2025 rookie class. Coach joined Glossier, Pinterest, and other brands as an official league partner, but not as a fashion partner. Instead, they came on as the WNBA's official handbag partner, a choice that came 'naturally.' "I think our biggest category within the business is handbags. We're a handbag brand—and our Tabby bag, in particular—she's our icon. So it made a lot of sense that we would focus on being the handbag of the league," says Kimberly Wallengreen, Vice President of Marketing at Coach. "Everything my marketing team and the brand does is about focusing on our icon and making sure we put that icon in front of the consumer. We didn't really look at anything else. It was clear, this is how we could genuinely and authentically be part of the league." Bre Johnson/ That kind of clarity and intention is becoming increasingly common among brands looking to align with the WNBA. Since 2020, women-owned companies, and brands with women as their core demographic, have been racing to claim a piece of the WNBA pie. Beauty and fashion brands in particular have moved fast, drawn to the league's direct connection to a powerful and culturally resonant audience. With the WNBA experiencing a meteoric rise in merchandise sales, viewership, and in-person attendance—its most-watched regular season averaged 1.19 million viewers, a 170% increase from the 2023 season—brands are now paying close attention. For Coach, a 12-month exploratory process led them through 'all types of sports,' as well as entertainment and music, 'so many different avenues into Gen Z culture, and sport was one of them." From there, they explored every possible entry point: 'leagues, teams, players, everything. It wasn't just about looking at women's sports, it was about seeing sport as a cultural center. And we just kept coming back to the W'.' Wallengreen continues, "It didn't start with the WNBA as the end goal. It started with the question: where is Gen Z, and how can we participate in their culture? How do we bring the intersection of fashion and culture together in a new and meaningful way?" She adds, "From the beginning, we wanted to make sure we were not only participating in culture but also helping to drive it." From a consumer perspective, Coach aligned closely with the WNBA's values—and even their entry point into the market, centered around the rookie class, everything pointed back to the league. From there, the handbag brand began conversations about what a partnership could look like: what the strategy would be and how they would show up. "It became very clear that our values aligned. We wouldn't just be showing up, we'd be contributing in a real way, supporting not only the league, but also the players and the fans," says Wallengreen. At the Conrad Hotels' Café Grille in Indianapolis—where they had just hosted the WNBA All-Star Weekend—Kim Wallengreen and PR associate Brooke Hudson met for an interview over drinks. This city and All-Star game marked another venture Coach wanted to be part of. From their inception with the draft, Coach deepened the relationship by focusing on five rookies, a starting five of sorts: Paige Bueckers, Kiki Iriafen, Sonia Citron, Aneesah Morrow, and Hailey Van Lith. The partnership launched around these players, anchored by Coach's platform, "Courage to Be Real." Bre Johnson/ 'We realized this was a great opportunity to bring courageous self-expression to life. If we want to champion courageous self-expression, what's more courageous than a player who shows grit and grace, tough on the court and expressive through fashion in the tunnel? It's this beautiful composition of self-expression,' says Wallengreen. From there, Coach focused on storytelling. Working with five players, each with different experiences and styles, they aimed to align their values around the theme of "enabling confidence." "There's nothing more confident than a female athlete. They're groundbreaking, they break rules, break barriers. They're teammates, leaders, players and they carry all this confidence. That was a really important value for us," she says. Another important draw for Coach was the league's dedication to inclusivity, an alignment that reflects the WNBA's ongoing commitment to social justice. Initiatives like the Changemakers Collective and seasons dedicated to causes such as Black Lives Matter, Pride Nights, and Say Her Name highlight this movement. For Coach, they wanted to be the presenting partner with the WNBA's Pride initiative Coach's partnership with the WNBA is a three-year league-wide deal that took six months to negotiate. It also includes a three-team agreement with the Dallas Wings, Indiana Fever, and Chicago Sky, and centers Coach's commitment to five standout rookies. But the collaboration goes beyond dressing players. It encompasses a digital content deal and player appearances at Coach events, including the brand's "Dream It Real" day. As Wallengreen explains, they looked at 'the usual media metrics,' but they also have a strong framework for measuring 'brand love, brand attention, and brand sentiment—how we're improving with this demographic.' She continues, 'To our original point about Gen Z, our next generation: these are women and young girls looking to the league for inspiration.' She adds, 'They may not be basketball players, but they see these women as groundbreaking role models, future CEOs, CMOs, and business leaders.' This is exactly the diverse demographic Coach was aiming to reach. Wallengreen describes their pitching process: 'They [the WNBA] are great partners. We start by briefing our internal teams, who develop the most amazing experiences. Then we share those plans with the league and work closely to ensure everything aligns with their regulations. It's a collaborative process.' She adds, 'As much as they're vetting us for this process, we're vetting them.' For All-Star Weekend, one of those 'amazing experiences' was Coach's pop-up at WNBA Live, a two-day fan festival held during the annual AT&T WNBA All-Star Weekend. The pop-up featured customizable bags, products for purchase, and meet-and-greets with players Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen. Bre Johnson/ Surrounded by a line, or crowd, rather, of fans, Washington Mystics forward, Kiki Iriafen debuted her partnership with Coach on day one, having opted out of dressing with them for the draft in favor of a traditional Nigerian gown. For her, the partnership 'means everything.' Iriafen says, 'As a rookie, to have a well-known brand like Coach invested in me, making sure I look good and take care of me, makes me feel special as I start my professional career.' Beyond fashion, she adds, 'They're more than just a fashion brand, they want to build community.' The outfit, a full suede brown, '70s-inspired Coach top and skirt, was a collaborative effort. 'I knew I wanted a skirt, so we tinkered, tailored, and played around with different accessories,' she says. 'I love how Coach allows me to have a voice in what I want to wear.' She adds, 'I think it's recognition, having such a well-established brand like Coach invest in the WNBA as it's on the rise, and invest in five rookies means everything. It shows that they know our worth, value us, and are doing more than accessorizing us. They're amplifying our voices and stories. It's more than a well-rounded partnership.' Bre Johnson/ Later that night, where New York Liberty's Natasha Cloud and Sabrina Ionescu won the Skills Challenge and 3-Point Contest, Coach hosted an after-party at Commission Row, just five minutes from Gainsfield Bridge, where the game was set to take place. The event, held inside a restaurant, featured Coach cocktails, hors d'oeuvres, and WNBA players floating throughout the party as New York DJ trio Las Flaquitas set the tone. Their set was taken over by the Stud Budz livestream—and yes, it was that party where they danced with Commissioner Cathy Engelbert on livestream and gave out free bags as attendees left. Amid the wholesome chaos as the party warmed up, guests anticipated Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers, who was confirmed to attend. Bueckers showed up in a full Coach outfit, styled by Brittany Hampton: a muted yellow blazer, red plaid flannel, polka dot tie, and light-washed jeans—an outfit that quickly made its rounds online, sparking both critique and praise. She joined me for an interview in the back of the restaurant amid the party. Sonia Citron Bre Johnson/ 'Collabing' with the Coach team, I've always loved a suit, so they put together this whole concept,' says Bueckers. On her masculine-meets-feminine style, echoed by Coach, she says, 'A mixing between the two, it's not putting yourself in one box. Whether it's baggy or streetwear, or a tighter crop-top look, it's being comfortable in both.' Unlike Iriafen, Bueckers wore a full Coach look to the draft, including a large Kisslock Frame Black bag. She has since featured a personalized Empire Carryall 48 organically in the tunnel. Tunnel walks, as Kimberly Wallengreen, Coach's VP of Marketing, notes, are a core styling element for the brand. For Bueckers, Coach has been a catalyst for evolving her style: 'The Coach bag is one of my favorites, but I've continued to evolve in fashion, mixing pieces, getting comfortable wearing masculine clothes, and not caring about stereotypes of what you're supposed to wear as a woman.' Her rookie styling identity: 'Keeping it classy but pretty chill, I also love being in the fashion world.' The Empire bag, which she speaks so highly of, came out of being teased from her teammates and using a trash bag or hotel laundry bag for her changed clothes until she got this Coach customized bag, "It became the perfect bag for me, I take it everywhere, I wear it in the tunnel walks, It carries everything I need for the basketball game." For Bueckers, who gives back through every partnership, mentions 'I want to give back with what I've been given, so setting aside allocation for donation, and Coach has the same values as me.' The next day, at the return of the pop-up at WNBA Live, Washington Mystics guard Sonia Citron arrived for a meet-and-greet wearing a dark tweed skirt-and-jacket set with loafers—she's 'not a big heels person,' as she put it. Paige Bueckers Ben Rosser/ Citron has a different relationship with fashion than Iriafen or Bueckers. At the draft, she admitted she's 'not one to put it on,' but through Coach, 'they've definitely helped me feel more comfortable and confident and have helped me explore my style. I'm definitely still working on it, but they've definitely helped.' Describing her go-to look as 'strictly sweatpants,' Citron admits the partnership has taken her out of her comfort zone, but in a good way. 'I always end up loving it,' she says. 'Just working with them over the past couple of months, we've built that relationship where I've gotten comfortable enough to say, 'this is not my favorite,' but they're always really receptive to it.' To her, Coach has long been about empowering women, but especially now, she says, it's about 'empowering athletes to express ourselves how we see fit. Especially this moment in time, within the WNBA, with the CBA, they've just empowered me. I've loved this partnership. I've felt seen. It's made me look good, feel good.' Later that night, the long-awaited All-Star game tipped off, ending with a Team Napheesa Collier win. But beyond the Glorilla performance and the game itself, one detail lingered. Every attendee walked in and out with a quiet souvenir, a silver entry wristband that read: Coach | WNBA All-Star Game. A small, glinting reminder that this moment in women's sports and culture at the intersection of fashion wasn't just witnessed, It was made.
