Brownsburg HS Class of 2027 in-state receiver Branden Sharpe announcing decision this evening with IU and Purdue in the Mix In-state class of 2027 3-star wide receiver Branden Sharpe is set to announce his college decision on tonight. The Brownsburg, Ind. (Brownsburg H.S.) product will announce his decision at his high school at 6 p.m. ET and live on the Rivals YouTube Channel. Sharpe is down to four schools — Indiana, Purdue, Vanderbilt and Cincinnati. He’s making the announcement before his IU official visit set for May 29-31 and planned visits to the other three schools in June. Sharpe currently has one national prediction to end up at IU — Steve Wiltfong of Rivals. After putting two wide receivers in the 2026 NFL Draft, with four more signed to free agent deals over the last two years, IU has become an attractive landing spot for wide receivers. The Hoosiers also have two receivers (Nick Marsh, Charlie Becker) projected as early round draft picks in 2027.
Based on the average of the national rankings, Sharpe is a 3-star, the No. 585 overall player in the 2027 class, and the No. 83 wide receiver. As a junior at Brownsburg, the 5-foot-10 Sharpe helped lead his team to a second-straight state title while compiling 1,386 all-purpose yards including 1,143 receiving. He scored 15 touchdowns. He had more than 1,000 yards receiving in back-to-back seasons. Sharpe also had Power 4 offers from West Virginia, Northwestern, Iowa State, Boston College and Houston.
Indiana University Football a gets commitment from Class of 2027 cornerback Rico Jackson Indiana has landed a commitment from class of 2027 cornerback Rico Jackson. “I’m beyond blessed. Thank you for everyone who gave me an opportunity and believed in me,” Jackson wrote on X. “Hoosier nation let’s work!” The 5-foot-11 and 170-pound Jackson is a 3-star cornerback from Maryland. He is on an official visit in Bloomington this weekend. Jackson is ranked No. 117 among class of 2027 cornerbacks. In addition to IU, Jackson had offers from Maryland, Virginia Tech, Pitt, Wisconsin, Penn State, Cal, Vanderbilt, Syracuse, West Virginia, North Carolina, Wake Forest and others. Jackson is Indiana’s fifth commit in the 2027 class.
Bedford Native Cal Gates’ Grand Slam Secures Season Finale for Indiana University Baseball With his freshman campaign coming to a close, outfielder Cal Gates provided the biggest hit of his debut season. He hit a back side grand slam into the IU bullpen in left field for his first career home run. That shot put the Indiana Baseball team (23-31, 9-21 B1G) up 5-0 and helped the home team to a commanding 11-2 win over Illinois (28-25, 14-16 B1G) on Saturday afternoon. It’s the second-straight season that IU has ended the year on a winning note. Three multi-run innings were the catalyst for an impressive offensive day for head coach Jeff Mercer’s team. Sophomore first baseman Jake Hanley hit his 14th home run of the year, a two-run blast in the sixth inning. Sophomore third baseman Hogan Denny recorded his third multi-hit game in as many days, capped off by a two-run single in the eighth inning.
Sophomore southpaw Brayton Thomas battled his way into the fifth inning while allowing just two runs to score. Redshirt senior right-handed pitcher Pete Haas (W, 1-0) made his final collegiate appearance and grabbed his first win of the year. He stranded both inherited runners in the fifth inning and went on to deal four shutout innings in relief. Freshman right-handed pitcher Kellen English got the final two outs of the contest. The win over Illinois was the third series victory against a Big Ten team at Bart Kaufman Field this year. In Mercer’s tenure in Bloomington, the Hoosiers are 25-6 in conference weekends on their home field. He also improves to 15-11 in Big Ten rubber matches as the IU skipper.
Indiana University Softball Ends Season with a Second Loss to Virginia in the NCAA Knoxville Regional Much like their first meeting at the NCAA Knoxville Regional, it was a punch/counterpunch showdown between Indiana softball and Virginia in an elimination game on Saturday night at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium. The fifth game of the NCAA Knoxville Regional ended as the Hoosiers came up short, 9-7. No. 24 Virginia (40-14) opened the scoring with a three-run first inning, before Indiana (43-16) answered with three of its own in the bottom half. The Cavaliers scored four in the third, before a three-run third and one in the fourth for IU knotted the game at 7-7. Virginia scored twice in the fifth to account for the final margin. The Hoosiers produced the eighth 40-win season with the 43 wins sitting No. 7 all-time in a single season. The offense produced program records for runs scored (470), hits (523), home runs (87), RBIs (429) and walks (235). At the plate, IU also finished No. 2 on the single-season charts in doubles (105), triples (26), stolen bases (136), hit-by-pitch (77) and batting average (.346).
Virginia opened the scoring with an RBI double from Bella Cabral in the first inning. Reagan Hickey added to the lead with a two-run home run in the next at bat to make it 3-0 in favor of the Cavaliers. Indiana responded immediately with three runs of its own in the bottom of the first. Aly VanBrandt was hit-by-pitch to start the frame and came around to score on an Avery Parker fielder’s choice and UVA error. Josie Bird then hit her 15th home run of the season to center field. Two hits and a walk loaded the bases with no outs in the third inning for Virginia. Alex Call then sent the first pitch of her at bat out of the park for a grand slam.
The counterpunch from IU came in the form of an RBI base hit from Ellie Goins with one out. Bird singled to start the inning and Madalyn Strader walked in front of Goins RBI base hit. Hannah Haberstroh capped the inning with a two-RBI double to right-center field. IU tied the game in the fourth inning, 7-7, when Cassidy Kettleman singled on a bunt to lead off the inning. After two outs and a wild pitch, Parker reached on a fielding error and Kettleman scored.
Jaiden Griffith started UVA’s fifth inning with a base hit and Madison Greene followed with a two-run home run to cap the scoring.
IU is now 18-25 all-time in the NCAA Tournament with a 5-12 mark since the Regional/Super Regional format started in 2005 (six appearances). The 2026 edition ended the season record for runs scored (463), hits (516), walks (233), home runs (86) and RBIs (424). The Hoosiers produced the eighth 40-win season with the 43 wins sitting No. 7 all-time in a single season. The offense produced program records for runs scored (470), hits (523), home runs (87), RBIs (429) and walks (235). At the plate, IU also finished No. 2 on the single-season charts in doubles (105), triples (26), stolen bases (136), hit-by-pitch (77) and batting average (.346). Aly VanBrandt reached base twice with a single and hit-by-pitch. The base hit moved her season total to 78, which are No. 2 on IU’s single-season list and the most since Karleen Moore’s program-record 84 in 1985. With 68 runs scored, VanBrandt tied the program single-season record.
Josie Bird homered for the second-straight game to move her season total to 15 and push her final RBI total to 66. The home run total ranks No. 6 on the IU single season list and the RBIs rank No. 4 on the single season charts. Bird produced her team-leading 23rd multi-hit game. With the home run, Bird joined Avery Parker (20) and VanBrandt (16) with 15-plus home runs on the season to mark the first time in program history three Hoosiers reached the mark in the same season. That trio is also the first to all reach the 60-RBI mark in the same season in program history: Parker (67), Bird (66) and VanBrandt (62).
Hannah Haberstroh logged her seventh multi-RBI game of the season with two on the game. Her double was one of two extra base hits for the Hoosiers.
Meet Record and Podium Finishes Highlight Day Two from the Big Ten Championships for Indiana University Track and Field The Indiana University track and field team saw plenty of success after the second day of the Big Ten Outdoor Championship on Saturday. The Hoosiers saw three podium finishes and two more advancements to tomorrow’s track finals. Chayla Rankin and Max Grangier closed the multis events, each finishing eighth on the podium to earn the first points of the weekend. Over the two days, Chayla saw personal bests in the 100-meter hurdles (14.61), the high jump (1.74m; 5th), the shot put (9.30m), the javelin throw (30.44m), and her overall score (5,061) to make the podium as a freshman. Max also saw multiple PRs, including the long jump (7.02m), the shot put (12.37m), and the pole vault (4.30m), finishing the decathlon with a second-place finish in the 1,500-meter.
Continuing in the field, Alex Smith saw an improvement on his personal best in the long jump. His new PR of 7.61m/24-11.75 placed fourth in the event, scoring five team points for the Hoosiers. His mark also ranks 15th in school history. On the track, the Hoosiers saw two athletes advance for finals in the men’s and women’s 800. Veronica Hargrave ran the fastest qualifying time to set her position for Sunday. Her prelim time of 2:01.12 set a Big Ten Outdoor championship meet record, previously held by Hayley Kitching of Penn State (2:02.54; 2024). She will look to be the first Hoosier to win the event since 2010 (Molly Beckwith). Assistant coach Andrew Poore said that “this is the first time Veronica has gone into a Big Ten meet in a prelim where she is the favorite. She had to go out to the front, push the pace for the first time and handled it really well. She ended up setting a meet record, so it was a really special evening for her.” Camden Marshall also had a strong preliminary performance in the men’s 800-meter. His time of 1:45.81 was best in his heat and second overall.
Indiana University Softball Hoosiers Homer Past the Northern Kentucky Norse at the NCAA Regional in Knoxville It was a home run that opened the scoring for the Indiana softball program and a home run that closed out an 8-0 run-rule victory over Northern Kentucky in an elimination game of the NCAA Knoxville Regional on Saturday at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium. Indiana (43-15) scored in four of the five innings and Ella Trout retired Northern Kentucky (26-25) in order in three of her five innings of work to tie for the largest margin of victory in an NCAA Tournament game in program history (Jacksonville State, 1996; Notre Dame, 1994).
The scoring got started with two outs in the bottom of the first for Indiana when Josie Bird homered to left-center field. Alex Cooper walked with one out before Bird hit her 14th home run of the season. A pair of RBI singles scored the first two runs of the third inning. Avery Parker started things with a double and pinch runner Peyton Drummond came around to score on Madalyn Strader’s RBI single. Ellie Goins then walked and came in to score on a Brooke Mannon base hit. Hannah Haberstroh walked to put two runners on base and Cassidy Kettleman – who made a pair of diving catches in the top of the third inning – singled to plate a pair of runs in the bottom half and make it 6-0 after three. Northern Kentucky loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the fourth before Ella Trout got a flyout to end the threat. Goins drove in an RBI in the fourth inning after Parker and Bird singled to start the frame. Her RBI double to center field accounted for the seventh run IU of the game. Aly VanBrandt provided the decisive run in the run-rule victory on a solo home run to right field in the fifth.
The win gives Shonda Stanton at least one victory in the NCAA Tournament in three of the last four seasons. IU is now 18-24 all-time in the NCAA Tournament with a 5-11 mark since the Regional/Super Regional format started in 2005. All nine starters reached base in the game, with eight collecting hits. The 11 hits in the game pushed the season total to 516 – a program record. The hit total moved past the 509 hits from 2025 and is just the second 500-hit season in program history. Indiana now owns the season record for runs scored (463), hits (516), walks (233), home runs (86) and RBIs (424). With two home runs, Indiana extended its program-record to 86 home runs on the season. The previous mark was 81 home runs in 2023. Josie Bird hit a two-run home run to start the scoring in the first inning and posted her 18th multi-RBI game of the season. Aly VanBrandt hit her 16th home run of the season in the fifth inning to provide the final run of the run-rule win. Alex Cooper moved her reached base streak to 20 games to tie VanBrandt for the longest on the team in 2026. Ella Trout (13-6) tossed all five innings to collect the win. She retired the side in order in the second, third and fifth innings and sat down 10 of the first 11 hitters she faced. She scattered three hits, hit one batter and struck out one.
Notre Dame Men’s Lacrosse heads the Final Four after beating Johns Hopkins in the Quarterfinals For the third time in four years, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish are heading to Championship Weekend of the NCAA Tournament, defeating Johns Hopkins 15-9 in the quarterfinals at James M. Shuart Stadium at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York. Notre Dame will take No. 6 Syracuse in Charlottesville, Virginia, on Saturday, May 23 in the NCAA Championship semifinals. The game will air on ESPN2. The victory improves Notre Dame’s record to 12-2 on the season and the Irish have now won 11 of their last 12 games in NCAA Tournament play.
Josh Yago had his best game in an Irish uniform on Saturday, finishing with a season-high seven points off four goals and three assists. The seven-point game is tied for second in program history for points in an NCAA Tournament game. Matt Jeffery had a big performance, totaling five points off two goals and three assists, tying his career high for points in a game. The four other starting attacking players each registered at least two points in the win, as Brock Behrman and Luke Miller each recorded three off two goals and an assist while Will Maheras scored twice and Will Angrick notched a goal and an assist. Tyler Spano had a notable day at the dot, winning 13-of-21 faceoffs while collecting 10 ground balls.
The two defenses flexed their muscles early, as the game was scoreless over the first eight minutes of play. Hopkins was the first to strike, coming with just under 7 minutes left in the quarter. The Fighting Irish wasted no time in responding, scoring twice over the next three minutes to take their first lead of the day at 2-1. Both goals came in transition, as Christian Alacqua scored his first goal of the season followed by a score from Will Anrick. The Blue Jays responded with two goals of their own to close out the first frame and take a 3-2 advantage into the second quarter. Notre Dame began the second quarter with an extra-man opportunity and cashed in, as Brady Pokorny fired a low shot into the back of the net off the feed from Yago to level the score at 3-3.
Johns Hopkins retook the lead at 4-3 before back-to-back goals from Yago put the Irish back in front with the score 5-4. The two sides traded goals, and the game went into the half tied at 6-6. Notre Dame was dialed in coming out of the halftime break, scoring three straight in the opening 5 minutes to take a 10-7 lead. The Irish goals were scored by Yago, Behrman and Jeffery. The Blue Jays pulled one back before Behrman scored his second of the day followed by Maheras’ first of the afternoon to give Notre Dame its largest lead of the game at 11-7 heading into the final 15 minutes of regulation. Maheras tacked on another to start the scoring in the fourth quarter, coming in the opening 3 minutes to increase the Irish advantage to 12-7. The Irish cruised from there, scoring three of the final five goals, courtesy of two from Miller and one from Yago to punch their ticket to Charlottesville.
Each of Notre Dame’s last seven NCAA Tournament wins have been by at least five goals or more. The Irish have won by an average of 9.5 goals per game in the 2026 NCAA Tournament. Notre Dame improves to 32-26 in NCAA Championships history, including a record of 27-12 over the last 15 tournament appearances. The Irish have now won 11 of their last 12 NCAA Tournament games. The 2026 season marks the eighth time in program history that Notre Dame has reached the NCAA Championship semifinal round. The Irish leveled the all-time series against Johns Hopkins at 4-4 and have won each of the last three matchups, all coming in NCAA postseason play. The victory gives the Fighting Irish a record of 32-9 against ranked opponents since the beginning of the 2023 season.
The Irish have now won 56 straight games when holding their opponent to less than 10 goals in a game, a streak that dates back to the 2019 season. Notre Dame’s defense held the Blue Jays to just 26 shots in the contest. Yago notched his fifth hat trick of the season and tied his season high for goals in a game with four. Yago has recorded multiple points in 12 of 14 games this season. Jeffery has played his best lacrosse of the season in the NCAA Tournament, recording five-point outings in both tournament games. Spano has finished over 50 percent from the faceoff dot in six of his last seven games.