Girls High School Basketball Holiday Tournaments take Center Stage The Holiday Season Means that High School Girls Basketball Teams will travel all-around the State of Indiana to participate in Holiday Tournaments beginning today and go through Wednesday. Some teams will stay close to home and others will travel a couple hours to face teams from other parts that they would not see otherwise during the regular season.
Bloomington North is 4-5 on the season and will make the two-hour trip North to the Lafayette Jeff Christmas Shootout. The Cougars will face Evansville North at 6 PM this evening and face Lafayette Jeff tomorrow at 11 AM and Highland at 6 PM as part of the 6-team tournament with Mooresville and Crawfordsville the other two teams taking part. Bloomington South is 10-0 and will take on Lawrence North in the second game of the Plainfield Winter Classic Tomorrow at 11:30 AM. Zionsville and Plainfield Battle at 10 AM with the third-place game at 5:30 PM and the Championship Game at 7 PM as all four teams will play two games in one day. The Panthers will host Warren Central on Tuesday Night at 7:30 PM.
Edgewood is 7-2 on the season and will make the trip South to the Orleans Tournament to face North Harrison in the second game at 12:30 PM tomorrow. Eastern Greene and Orleans will start at 11 AM. The Third Place Game will start at 6 PM and the Championship Game is 7:30 PM. Lighthouse Christian is 5-4 on the season and will not return to the court until January 2 when they travel to Columbus Christian. The Lady Lions played last Saturday at Christian Academy of Madison and won 48-31.
Boys High School Basketball Holiday Tournaments take Center Stage The Holiday Season Means that High School Boys Basketball Teams will travel all-around the State of Indiana to participate in Holiday Tournaments beginning today and go through Wednesday. Some teams will stay close to home and others will travel a couple hours to face teams from other parts that they would not see otherwise during the regular season.
Edgewood is 4-1 on the season and will take on Linton at 11:30 AM in the First Round of the First Financial Bank Wabash Valley Classic at Terre Haute South. The Loser of this game will face the loser of Shakamak and Martinsville tomorrow at 10 AM and the Winner will face the winner of Shakamak and Martinsville at 1 PM tomorrow. The 16-team tournament will continue Monday and Tuesday and features Bloomfield, Terre Haute North, Cloverdale, Parke Heritage, Greencastle, South Vermilion, West Vigo, Northview, Terre Haute South, Sullivan along with Casey-Westfield and Marshall from Illinois. The Championship Game is Tuesday Night at 8 PM. Bloomington South is 3-2 on the season and will host Muncie Central tomorrow at 10 AM in the Community Ford Holiday Tournament. Perry Meridian and Avon will battle at 11:45 AM with the third-place game at 5:30 PM and the Championship Game at 7:15 PM
Lighthouse Christian is 2-3 on the season and face Riverton Parke tomorrow morning at 10 AM at the Law Construction Christmas at Tank Holiday Tournament at Eminence HS in Morgan County. The Lions will face Mooresville Christian at 2 PM to close out pool B. Seven Oaks, Eminence and Attica are in Pool A and each team will get a third game with the Championship Game scheduled for Monday at 6 PM. Bloomington North is 5-1 on the season and took a two-game road trip to Northwest Indiana Monday and Tuesday and returning to Bloomington with a pair of wins of East Chicago Central 68-41 and Chesterton 63-55. The Cougars will have some time off before returning the court on January 6, at Mooresville.
Several Indiana University Freshman Took Redshirt season in 2025 College football players who participate in four or less games in a season can utilize a redshirt year for that season provided they have not already taken a redshirt year in a previous season. Games played in the postseason do not count towards the total of four. So the determination of which IU players can utilize 2025 as a redshirt year is final. There is a movement afoot to eliminate the redshirt rule and simply allow all players to play five seasons irrespective of the number of games played. If that were to somehow take effect in 2026, several stars on the 2025 IU team would become eligible to return. It does not appear any players who are sophomore or older earned an extra year by playing less than four games in 2025. But three veteran players should have clear cases for medical hardship waivers to earn an extra year of eligibility after suffering season-ending injuries in 2025: Tyler Morris (WR), Bryson Bonds (S), and Lee Beebe (RB).
Here is a summary of the freshmen: FRESHMEN WHO WILL BE SOPHOMORES IN 2026: Jaylen Bell, DB – 11 games played, Lebron Bond, WR – 11, Garrett Reese, DB – 7, Davion Chandler, WR – 6 and Byron Baldwin, Jr., DB – 6.
FRESHMEN WHO WILL BE REDSHIRT FRESHMEN IN 2026- Baylor Wilkin, OL – 4, Matt Marek, OL – 3, PJ Nelson, LB – 2, Sean Cuono, RB – 1, Tyrone Burrus, Jr., DL – 1, Andrew Barker, TE – 1, Kyler Garcia, DL – 1, Triston Abram, DL – 0, Blake Thiry, TE – 0 , Myles Kendrick, WR – 0, Evan Parker, OL – 0, Jhrevious Hall, DL – 0, Amari Kamara, LB – 0, Bryce Taylor, K – 0 ,Keishaun Calhoun, DL – 0 ,Zacharey Smith, DB – 0 , Jacob Bell, QB – 0 and Seaonta Stewart, DB – 0
Taylor University Softball Set to Host a Pair of January Camps The Taylor softball program is set to host a pair of camps in beginning with a prospect camp on Saturday, January 17th followed by a pitching and catching clinic on Sunday, January 25th. The prospect camp will have participants complete a full slate of combine testing including 20-yard sprint, 5-10-5 agility, overhand velocity, exit velocity, standing vertical, and broad jump. The prospects will then complete hitting drills with live at-bat opportunities, and a defensive positional showcase for infielders, outfielders, pitchers, and catchers. The prospect camp is for girls in grades 8-12 and will run from 9:00 am until 12:00 pm, with a cost of $135.
Pitchers and catchers will work through targeted drills to sharpen mechanics, improve spin and command, receiving skills, and develop a stronger understanding of their position. The clinic will conclude with live bullpens, giving athletes valuable feedback and a true game-like experience. The pitching and catching clinic is for girls in grades 7-12 and will run from 3:00 pm until 5:00 pm and cost $86. For additional information on the camps, please contact Grace at 765-998-4748, or via email at grace_glidewell@taylor.edu.
Indy Fuel Hockey Games could be a Risk After ECHL Authorizes Players Strike The Indy Fuel’s hockey season maybe be coming to a holiday halt. ECHL players say they are set to go on strike starting Friday, when the league returns from holiday break. According to the Associated Press, the Professional Hockey Players Association said they would strike after the holiday break due to an impasse in contract negations with the league. “Our members have made it very clear that they’ve had enough,” Brian Ramsay, executive director of the PHPA, said on a video call with reporters. “Unfortunately, this is a league that would rather bully us than bargain.”
The sides appeared no closer to a resolution Tuesday based on an update from Ramsay, even after he said the PHPA offered the option of reaching a settlement through mediation. “The ECHL responded within minutes, rejecting any interest in this solution and demanding ‘significant movement’ and concessions from the players,” Ramsay said in a released statement. “This approach continues to align with the increased threats our membership has faced over the past 18 hours.” Contract talks began in January and their collective bargaining agreement expired in June. The PHPA is accusing the league of unfair bargaining practices, including most recently contacting players directly with proposals, a move that was reported to the National Labor Relations Board. The players are looking for higher pay and basic standard around health, safety and working conditions. The union accuses teams of not providing properly fitting helmets and supplying some players with used equipment. They are also asking for more days off after long travel days.
“This is a league that has taken almost a year to concede that we should be entitled to choose helmets that properly fit us and are safe,” Ramsay said in a statement posted Monday. “This is the league that still supplies our members with used equipment. This is a league that shows no concern for players’ travels and in fact has said the nine-hour bus trip home should be considered your day off. We have had members this year spend 28 hours-plus on a bus to play back-to-back games on a Friday and Saturday night, only to be paid less than the referees who work those very same games.”
The ECHL posted details of its latest proposal on its website Monday, saying it calls to raise the salary cap 16.4% this season. The league said it has also offered mandatory off-days, a provision to let every team provide custom sticks and better-quality helmets, and a 325-mile limit for travel between back-to-back games. “Negotiations have been progressing but not as quickly as we would like,” the ECHL said. “We have reached a number of tentative agreements and remain focused on reaching a comprehensive new agreement that supports our players and the long-term health of every team in our league.”
The ECHL, formerly known as the East Coast Hockey League and now going just by the acronym, is a North American developmental league that is two levels below the NHL, with the American Hockey League in between. There are 30 teams, 29 of which are in the U.S. and one in Canada in Trois-Rivières, Quebec. In a statement posted to the NHL Players’ Association Instagram, the union “stands in solidarity with the PHPA during the negations with the ECHL…it is imperative that the ECHL abandon their current attempts to threaten players and return immediately to the bargaining table.” The Indy Fuel are scheduled to play tonight at the Fort Wayne’s Komets. The next scheduled home game is Sunday against the Toledo Walleye.
Indianapolis Colts still have a chance to Make the Playoffs but there is a lot that has to go right this weekend The Indianapolis Colts’ playoff heartbeat is faint and could flatline before they step on the field Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium against Jacksonville. Everything hinges on Houston’s Saturday Road test against the Los Angeles Chargers. A Texans’ win eliminates the Colts and extends their playoff drought to five seasons, the franchise’s longest in more than three decades. A loss keeps Indy’s playoff odds, currently at 1%, alive. “There is a chance,’’ Shane Steichen said Wednesday. “I know they’re slim, but we’ve got to go out and control what we can control, and that’s winning a football game on Sunday.’’ If the Chargers end the Texans’ seven-game winning streak, the onus would be on the Colts to not only end their five-game skid Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium but snap Jacksonville’s six-game win streak, its longest since 1999.
An Indy upset on Sunday – the Jaguars are 6½-point favorites – coupled with a Chargers win the previous day would set up a rematch with the Texans in Houston on the final weekend of the season that could have wild-card ramifications. Could have is the operative phrase. A Colts win at Houston in week 18 would leave both teams at 10-7 and launch a complicated tiebreaker process. The difference would be the fifth tiebreaker: strength of victory. And that remains TBD, although it might tip in the Colts’ favor. Philip Rivers did his best to lessen the impact of the Colts’ 1% chance of making the postseason, according to The Athletic’s playoff simulator. “Those percentages are done with computers, which we know that there’s real humans involved out there (on the field),’’ he said. “In any game, anything can happen across the league. “We need to just win a football game. I think keep it as simple as that. We get an opportunity. Opportunities are dwindling.’’
After opening the season 7-1, the Colts have sagged to 8-7 by losing five straight and six of their last seven. They’re trying to avoid being just the sixth team to fail to reach the postseason after a 7-1 start, the first since the 2012 Chicago Bears. Rivers reduced everything to a basic concept. Regardless of what’s on the line, there’s a game to play. In his previous 17 seasons and 15 as a starter for the Chargers and Colts, he led his team into the postseason seven times. That means a Rivers-led team fell short eight times and played a slew of games when a playoff spot wasn’t at stake.
Even if the Colts step on the field Sunday after being eliminated by Houston’s win the previous day, there’s still an opportunity to play. “It shouldn’t change obviously the effort and the desire to win,’’ Rivers said, “but it does shift a little bit knowing you’ve only got two left . . . knowing that the postseason is out of reach. “I would hope we all could be, ‘Hey, we get to play an NFL football game against another team and if we were in the backyard playing a pickup game, we would try to win.’’’ As much as his Saturday evening routine allows, Rivers will be tuned into the Texans-Chargers matchup. “I’ve never been one to say I don’t want to see,’’ he said. “It’s like being a fan, right? You feel like if you’re pulling for them . . . and that’ll be an easy one to pull for, right? Pulling for the Chargers would be an easy one to pull for.’’