
Bri Copeland and Taylor Minnick Selected to Softball America Preseason Top 100 Indiana seniors Brianna Copeland and Taylor Minnick were both named to Softball America’s Preseason Top 100 list on Monday morning. Copeland was listed at No. 51 and Minnick at No. 56 in the preseason slate. Copeland was the ace in the circle and hit at the top of the lineup for the Hoosiers in 2024. In the circle, Copeland had a 2.88 ERA, 174 strikeouts and recorded 20 wins. She hit eight home runs and 10 doubles, charted 36 RBI and 18 stolen bases. Copeland was an NFCA Second Team All-Region selection. Minnick hit third in the Indiana order and has been a four-year contributor in the outfield for the team. The Bloomington, Ind. native hit .357 from the plate with 24 extra-base hits, including 10 home runs, 54 RBI and drew 33 walks. She was named NFCA First Team All-Region and All-Big Ten Second Team in 2024.
Bloomington South Girls Wrestler Abigail Goodwin makes history Winning Sectional Title Friday was a historic day around the State of Indiana as 249 schools competed at 16 sites in the inaugural IHSAA Girls Wrestling State Tournament as 16 teams can claim they won the first ever Sectional Title and along with Individual Sectional Champions in each weight class. Bloomington South, Bloomington North and Edgewood competed at the West Washington Sectional as Whiteland won the Sectional Title with 230 points followed by Columbus East with 218 points and Franklin third place with 209.5.
Bloomington South finished fourth with 156.5 points and Abigail Goodwin on became the first ever IHSAA Individual Sectional Champion from Monroe County as she won the 135-pound weight class when she won by pin at the 4:49 mark after trailing 9-3. The top four in each weight class advance to the Regional as Goodwin will be joined by Mariah Pope-100, Lila Pierce-115, Faith Hand-125, Abigail Goodwin-135, Lexi Parker-170 and Jaclyn Hillenburg-195. Pope finished second, Hand and Hillenburg finished third as Pierce and Parker finished fourth.
Edgewood finished 6th with 78 points as Katelyn Holmes finished second in the 105-weight class and, Laylaa McCormick-140, Helen Bower-170 and Ayrica DeHart-235 all finished in third place to advance to the Regional. Bloomington North finished 8th with 43 points as Alexzandra Burns finished third in the 130-weight class and Moxie Juers finished 4th in the 135-weight class. 12 Wrestlers from Monroe County will compete this coming Friday in the Regional at Mooresville HS at 11 AM. The top four wrestlers will advance to the State Finals on January 17, at Corteva Coliseum at the Indiana State Fairgrounds.
Monroe County Girls and Boys Basketball Teams return to action after the Holidays As the calendar has turned to 2025 High School Basketball continues as the Monroe County Girls and Boys Basketball teams returned to action after the holidays. In Girls Basketball Bloomington South beat New Albany 51-36 Saturday afternoon at Bloomington South as the Panthers improve to 15-1 on have won 10 straight. Bloomington South has most wins in a season since they went 21-4 in the 2018-19 season and won the sectional. Bloomington South will host Columbus North Saturday afternoon at 2:30 pm.
Springs Valley beat Edgewood 48-36 Saturday afternoon in Ellettsville as Edgewood shooting woes continue. Ally Bland scored 9 points and Macey Crider added 8 points. Maci Eckerty led Springs Valley with 21 points and Jordyn Land added 17 for the Blackhawks. Edgewood is 10-5 on the season and will host Brown County Friday night at 6 pm.
Columbus Christian beat Lighthouse Christian 40-20 Friday Night at Lighthouse Christian. The Lady Lions will look for their first win of the season when they host Irvington Prep this Saturday at 2 pm. Bloomington North is 8-7 on the season and will return to action on Thursday when they travel to New Palestine at 7:30 pm and host Terre Haute North at 1pm on Saturday afternoon.
In Boys Basketball Bloomington South beat Indianapolis Chatard 83-56 and lost to Brownsburg 51-38 in the Bloomington South Tournament Friday. Jesiah Sloss led Brownsburg with 17 points and Michael Addison added 11 for the Bulldogs. Vincent Moutardier led the Panthers with 9 points and Jack Clark added 6 points for the Panthers. Bloomington South is 6-6 on the season and will host city rival Bloomington North Friday Night at 7:30 pm.
Bloomington North beat South Dearborn 63-53 Friday in the seventh-place game of the Fishers Tournament on Friday. The Cougars lost to Fort Wayne Wayne 73-61 and Lawrence Central 75-58 on Thursday. Bloomington North is 2-7 and will travel crosstown Friday Night for the city showdown with Bloomington South at 7:30 pm.
Lighthouse Christian beat Columbus Christian 77-34 on Friday Night at Home. Brock Banks led the Lions with 29 points and Jared McAdams added 15 points. On Saturday Shoals beat Lighthouse Christian 60-46 as Brock Banks led the Lions with 21 points as they fall to 3-6 on the season. Edgewood Is 5-4 on the season and will return to action on Friday when they host Brown County at 7:30 pm and South Putnam on Saturday at 7:30 pm.
Indianapolis Colts close out the Regular Season with an Overtime Win over the Jacksonville Jaguars at Lucas Oil Stadium Jonathan Taylor ran for 177 yards, including 33 yards on six consecutive carries in overtime to set up Matt Gay’s game-ending 38-yard field goal, and the Indianapolis Colts beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 26-23 on Sunday. Taylor closed the season by matching a career-best streak with four straight 100-yard games. He also rushed for a touchdown Sunday to reach six scores during that span. Joe Flacco was 23 of 40 for 263 yards, including a 40-yard TD pass to Alec Pierce, in his 105th career victory perhaps the last of the 39-year-old former Super Bowl MVP’s 17-year career. Indy (8-9) won its final two home games to finish 5-3 at Lucas Oil Stadium, although the Colts missed the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year.
The Jags (4-13) lost three of their final four, eight of 10 and finished 1-8 on the road as they head into an offseason that may include changes at general manager and coach. Mac Jones was 19 of 35 for 205 yards with one TD and an interception for Jacksonville. Brian Thomas Jr. caught six passes for 83 yards. For a game that was all about draft position, it certainly felt like more was at stake. Flacco threw his TD pass on the third offensive play of the game. Jacksonville answered with Tank Bigsby’s 1-yard TD plunge midway through the first quarter, and the Jags opened the second quarter with a 53-yard field goal by Cam Little to take a 10-7 lead. Taylor’s 6-yard TD run put the Colts back in front. Indy added two field goals by Gay sandwiched around another kick by Little as Indy took a 20-13 halftime lead. Jacksonville tied the score at 20 with 7:50 to go when Parker Washington caught a 9-yard TD pass from Jones after losing the ball and snatching it back before crossing the goal line. Gay broke the tie with a 45-yard field goal with 3:52 to go, only to watch Little make a tying 53-yarder with 1:44 left. The Jaguars got the ball first in overtime, but the Colts stopped them on fourth down.
Both teams were short-handed. Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson and Jags defensive end Josh Hines-Allen were both inactive. Richardson missed his second straight game with back spasms. Injuries forced him to miss four games this season, and he sat out two more when he was benched. Hines-Allen did not travel with the team because of a personal matter as he was closing in on Tony Brackens’ franchise record for sacks (55). Jaguars Safety Andre Cisco left early in the first quarter with an injured groin and was ruled out early in the second half. Colts Second-year CB JuJu Brents, who was activated off injured reserve Saturday, suffered a groin injury in the first half. RT Matt Goncalves left in the second half after entering the concussion protocol. Rookie DE Laiatu Latu injured a shoulder. Colts head athletic trainer Dave Hammer, assistant video director John “Fuzzy” Starliper and chain crew member Bob Klein all worked their final games. Hammer and Klein each worked with the franchise for 41 seasons, while Starliper’s tenure lasted 42 seasons.
Colorado Offensive Lineman Kahlil Benson is Transferring Back to Indiana University Football for the 2025 Season Offensive lineman Kahlil Benson is transferring back to Indiana after one season at Colorado. Benson started the first four games of the 2024 season at right guard for the Buffs and then missed two games due to injury. When he returned, Benson didn’t start but was part of a rotation at guard. A versatile offensive lineman, he also played some at right tackle. The Mississippi native missed the last two games, including the Valero Alamo Bowl, with an injury. Overall, he played 405 snaps in nine games this season according to PFF, but only 139 of those snaps came after September. The majority of his snaps came at right guard.
Benson earned significantly better pass blocking grades (68.8) from PFF while at Colorado compared to his time at IU. He allowed 12 pressures in 266 opportunities. His run blocking grade in 2024 (66.4) was directionally the same as Indiana in 2023. The 6-foot-6 and 310-pound Benson appeared in 24 career games for Indiana, all in 2022 and 2023, with 17 starts. He played a total of 1,423 offensive snaps – 774 in 2023 and 649 in 2022 – with the Hoosiers. Benson joined the IU program in 2020. He did not see any game action in 2021. He suffered an ACL injury during fall camp ahead of the 2020 campaign and redshirted his initial collegiate season. Benson should have one year of eligibility remaining. Indiana has now picked up two offensive line commitments as Benson joins Ohio State transfer tackle Zen Michalski.
Michigan Wide Receiver Tyler Morris to Transfer to Indiana University Football for the 2025 Season Indiana picked up a commitment from Michigan transfer wide receiver Tyler Morris on Saturday. The 5-foot-11 and 185-pound Morris has appeared in 34 career games at wide receiver with 12 starts for the Wolverines. In 2024 Morris played in 11 games and caught 23 passes for 248 yards and two scores. He was the top wide receiver for the Wolverines in receiving yards as part of inept passing attack. Morris played about half of his snaps lined up in the slot and half out wide. He had two drops.
In 2023 Morris appeared in all 15 games with four starts at wide receiver and caught 13 passes for 197 yards with one touchdown and returned nine punts for 88 yards. He caught a 38-yard touchdown in the CFP semifinal against Alabama at the Rose Bowl. In his 2022 freshman season he caught three passes for 25 yards in eight games. In his career, Morris had 470 receiving yards on 39 catches, with three touchdowns. He rushed once for nine yards. Morris will likely also compete for IU’s punt returner role in 2025. He has 14 career punt returns for 126 yards. As a recruit out of Bolingbrook, Illinois, Morris was the No. 115 player in the 2022 247Sports Composite, and the No. 15 wide receiver in his class. Morris has one season of eligibility remaining.