Indiana University Women’s Tennis names McNeese State’s Gabby Moore as Head Coach
IU Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Scott Dolson announced Monday that former McNeese State Head Coach Gabby Moore has been named the new head women’s tennis coach at Indiana University. During her two seasons at McNeese State, Moore was the architect of one of the sport’s most impressive turnarounds. After inheriting a team that had won a combined six matches in the three seasons prior to her arrival, Moore’s Cowgirls’ teams went a combined 35-10 during her two seasons at the Lakes Charles, La., school. That included the recently-completed 2023-24 season, when she guided McNeese State to a school record 20 wins, a 20-4 overall record, and an appearance in the Southland Conference Tournament championship match. Moore had five players earn postseason All-Southern Conference honors, including Anastasija Adeikyte (Freshman of the Year) and Arina Gamretkaia (Newcomer of the Year).
“We are pleased to welcome Gabby to our Hoosier family and excited about the future of our women’s tennis program,” said Dolson. “We had an outstanding pool of candidates during our coaching search, and Gabby’s track record of success at McNeese and Jackson State immediately jumped out on paper. Then when we had the opportunity to sit down and talk with her in person, we knew we had the right person to lead our program. She has a vision for returning IU Women’s Tennis to a level of Big Ten and national success that it has previously enjoyed, and her commitment to the well-being and growth of her student-athletes is second to none. This is a great day for IU Women’s Tennis.”
Prior to her arrival at McNeese State, Moore spent six seasons at Jackson State, including the final five (2017-22) as the men’s and women’s head coach. With the women’s program, her teams went a combined 49-52, including 26-11 overall and 15-1 in the Southwestern Athletic Conference in her final two seasons. Those 2021 and 2022 teams both won SWAC regular season championships, while the 2022 squad also captured the postseason SWAC title and an automatic berth in the NCAA Championships. She was named SWAC Women’s Tennis Coach of the Year in 2022. On the men’s side, her final Jackson State team went 8-8 overall and advanced to the SWAC Tournament Championship match.
Moore’s coaching career began at Lake Forest College, where she spent one season (2015-16) before joining the Jackson State program in the fall of 2016 as an assistant coach for both the men’s and women’s programs. She was promoted to head coach at Jackson State the following season. A 2015 graduate of Southern University in Biology, Moore was a standout player during her four seasons at the SWAC school from 2012-15. She earned All-Conference honors in each of her four seasons while helping the Jaguars to four straight conference titles and NCAA Tournament appearances in both 2012 and 2013.
Indiana University announces a new student section for the 2024 Football Season
Indiana University students can look forward to being surrounded by fellow classmates in an enhanced and relocated IU football student section at Memorial Stadium in 2024. The entire IU football student section is being moved to the north end of the stadium between sections 13 and 24. This change will enable all IU students to sit together, and this contiguous student section will also enable more IU students to be seated closer to the Memorial Stadium field. All seats in the student section will remain general admission, allowing IU students to get the best seats on a first-come, first-served basis. Students can purchase season tickets for the 2024 season and charge them to their Bursar account HERE.
“The level of support that we have received from IU students in recent years has been tremendous, which is why we are able to make this exciting change,” said IU Vice President and Director of Athletics Scott Dolson. “This new student section promises to create an electric atmosphere on gamedays, particularly when visiting teams have the ball on that end of the field. In addition, by relocating our students to the north end, they’ll be the first to welcome our team onto the field moments before kickoff. “We enjoyed record attendance numbers in recent years for IU football, and a big reason for the surge has been the turnout of our students. I think this change will make IU football gamedays that much better for those same students who are now excited for the coach Curt Cignetti era to get underway.” IU football opens the 2024 season at home on Saturday, Aug. 31, against FIU. The Hoosiers will play eight home games in 2024, including marquee matchups against Nebraska (Oct. 19), Washington (Oct. 26), Michigan (Nov. 9), and Purdue (Nov. 30).
Indiana University Rowing Finishes 15th at the NCAA Championships
Indiana Rowing captured a No. 15 national finish Sunday from the 2024 NCAA Rowing Championships at East Fork State Park in Bethel, Ohio. The Hoosiers scored 47 points on the weekend to capture the program’s best national finish since 2019. Indiana returned to the NCAA Championships for the second-straight season and improved on last year’s 17th-place performance. IU has appeared at the national regatta in eight of the last 10 full seasons. Indiana’s historic season concludes with another NCAA appearance after the Hoosiers earned a program-record finish at the Big Ten Championships, taking second-place at the conference regatta. Head coach Steve Peterson was honored by the conference for the second consecutive season as Big Ten Co-Coach of the Year and V8 rower Nico Daly was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year.
All three Hoosier crews competed in C finals Sunday, racing for national spots 13-18. Indiana’s Varsity Eight had the best result, finishing in second in a back-and-forth battle with Virginia. The Hoosiers led at the 500, 1,000 and 1,500-meter marks, though the crews traded the lead many times throughout the race. The Cavaliers pulled out in front just enough at the end with a time of 6:27.421, as IU took the No. 13 national finish in 6:28.693 in front of Rutgers (6:31.225) and three more boats in its final. The finish marks the boat’s best NCAA performance since taking 12th place in 2018. The V8 posted a 10-4 head-to-head record at the NCAA Championships to improve to 33-11 on a year in which it won silver at the Big Ten Championships in May. Indiana’s 2V4 finished fourth in its final with a time of 6:44.815 to capture 16th nationally. The Varsity Four finished 17th in the country with a fifth-place result Sunday.
The Indianapolis Colts to add Former Tight End Dallas Clark to the Ring of Honor
The Indianapolis Colts’ Ring of Honor is expanding. Welcome to the club, Dallas Clark. The team announced Monday it was adding the standout tight end to its Ring of Honor. He will be inducted during the upcoming season. Clark, a 2003 first-round draft pick, was viewed by then-general manager Bill Polian to the missing piece in the Colts’ high-powered offense. He joined completed quarterback Peyton Manning, wide receivers Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne and running back Edgerrin James.
Clark’s NFL career spanned 16 seasons, but he established himself as one of the NFL’s top tight ends during a nine-year stint in Indy. Along with being an instrumental part of the 2006 Super Bowl championship team, he started 111 of 115 games and finished with 427 receptions, 4,887 yards and 46 touchdowns. Among Colts’ tight ends, Clark holds team records for receptions and TDs and ranks second in yards. In 2009, Clark piled up 100 receptions for 1,106 yards and 10 TDs. He was first-team All-Pro and a Pro Bowl selection.
“The Colts have had a long and historic tradition of record-breaking tight ends and receivers, and Dallas Clark stands alongside all these greats who have worn the horseshoe,’’ owner Jim Irsay said in a news release. “In today’s game, tight ends have become so much more dynamic and important to the offensive side of the ball, and Dallas was one of the pioneers with his style of play. “He was electrifying, tough and dependable on the field and a great teammate and person off the field. And of course, he was a key piece in bringing Indianapolis its first world championship.’’
After his decorated nine-year career with the Colts, Clark spent time with Baltimore and Tampa Bay. Preceding Clark in the Ring of Honor: Robert Mathis, Dwight Freeney, Reggie Wayne, Peyton Manning, Edgerrin James, Marvin Harrison, Tarik Glenn, Jeff Saturday, Bill Polian, Eric Dickerson, Marshall Faulk, Tony Dungy, Jim Harbaugh, Chris Hinton, Ted Marchibroda, Bill Brooks, Robert Irsay, The 12th Man.
Indiana Girls and Boys Junior All-Star Basketball Teams sweep Kentucky in Scottsburg
Indiana came out on top in both Junior All-Star games in Scottsburg’s Meyer Gymnasium on Sunday afternoon. The week of All-Stars festivities in both states got going with the Hoosier side of the Kentuckiana border walking away victorious.
Indiana’s girls thrashed Kentucky, 111-76. Indiana made 52.5% of its field goals as it controlled the game. HSE’s Maya Makalusky led Indiana in scoring with 25 points. The most exciting stretch of the game came when Makalusky drilled four 3-pointers in 2:14 to begin the fourth quarter. The IU commit had 11 points after three quarters, and she exceeded that mark just a few minutes into the fourth period. Before Makalusky’s avalanche, the tone was set by Lawrence Central’s Jaylah Lampley and Noblesville’s Meredith Tippner. Lampley and Tippner combined for 19 first-half points to give Indiana a 21-point halftime advantage. Lampley finished with 23, while Tippner had 18. Their play helped a group of girls who aren’t typically teammates pass the century mark on the scoreboard. Lampley — who won this year’s 4A state championship at LC — did a little bit of everything Sunday. She added five rebounds and four assists to the stat sheet while scoring effectively from all three levels of the floor. That scoring versatility is something she hopes to bring to her senior year.
Indiana won the boys game in similar fashion, a 130-103 takedown of Kentucky. New Palestine guard Julius Gizzi had the hot hand, scoring 27 points on 10-of-11 shooting. Gizzi drilled four 3s and consistently got to his spots inside the arc. Indiana won due to a well-rounded effort that saw six different players score double-digit points, with two others finishing with nine points. All 11 active players scored at least five points. Trent Sisley was the second-half star of the boy’s game. The 6-8 forward — who has offers from IU, Purdue and Notre Dame — scored 15 of his 20 points in the second half to extend Indiana’s lead. Both of Indiana’s Junior All-Stars teams won in dominating fashion over their Kentucky counterparts on Sunday. Now, they’ll have a shot to beat their in-state upperclassmen before diving fully into their last summer of high school which is on Wednesday at Memorial Gymnasium in Kokomo starting at 6pm.
Indiana Fever blown out by the New York Liberty in Brooklyn
The Indiana Fever (2-9) dropped its third meeting to the New York Liberty, 104-68, at Barclays Center on Sunday night. Indiana is now 1-1 in Commissioner’s Cup play this regular season. For the Fever, guard Kelsey Mitchell notched a season-high 21 points in 30 minutes of playing time. Fever forward NaLyssa Smith followed with 17 points, eight rebounds, one assist and one steal. This is the third game in a row Smith has scored 17 or more points and posted eight or more rebounds. Fever guard Erica Wheeler came off the bench and totaled seven points, four rebounds and two assists for Indiana, and she is now two points away from 2,500 career points. Fever guard Kristy Wallace notched six points, two rebounds, one assist and one steal. Former Indiana University Standout Grace Berger scored 6 points in 13 minutes. Berger went 2-7 from the field, 0-1 from three-point range and 2-3 from the free throw line. Berger pulled down 4 rebounds and 2 assists.
The Fever and Liberty both scored 24 points in the second quarter, yet Indiana was down 55-37 at the half. The Fever quickly went on an 8-2 run to open up the second half to bring the score up to 57-45. New York responded with a 17-2 run and upped its lead on the way to the win. Five New York Liberty (7-2) players scored in double figures on Sunday, beginning with guard Betnijah Laney-Hamilton’s 20-point performance. Laney-Hamilton also recorded five assists, two rebounds and two steals. Liberty forward Jonquel Jones notched a double-double with 18 points and a season-high 13 rebounds, as well as four assists and two steals. Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu posted 16 points, six rebounds and six assists, and forward Breanna Stewart ended with 13 points, six rebounds and five assists to cement New York’s win. Forward Kennedy Burke came off the bench and added 10 points for New York, along with three blocks and three steals. The Fever play at the Washington Mystics on Friday at 7:30pm Friday’s game will be broadcast on ION.
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