Three Indiana University Baseball players named Summer League All-Stars
After helping the Indiana baseball program to the NCAA Lexington Regional championship game, rising juniors Carter Mathison and Brock Tibbits and rising sophomore Devin Taylor were selected as All-Stars in their respective summer baseball leagues. Mathison and Tibbitts (Brewster) each earned All-Star nods in the Cape Cod Baseball League, with Mathison will represent Cotuit on the West squad, while Tibbitts will be a part of the East team for Brewster. Taylor will be one of four Keene Swampbats on the West Division All-Star squad in the New England Collegiate Baseball League.
Mathison is among the league’s top 10 in batting average (.345; No. 7) and walks (18; No. 2), to go along with 20 hits, seven RBIs and 13 runs scored over 18 games played. He has a .500 on-base percentage and has reached base in 16 straight games. Tibbitts is hitting .289 with 10 runs scored and 10 RBIs over 21 games played. His 12 walks and 22 hits bolster a .387 on-base percentage, and he has two doubles. Taylor ranks No. 2 in the NECBL in home runs (6) and is No. 12 overall in RBIs (17) at the break. He owns 25 hits – eight for extra bases – and has a .291 batting average to go along with a .347 on-base percentage. His active six-game hitting streak is his longest of the season and he carried a streak of five straight games with an RBI from July 3-July 8.
Jalen Hood-Schifino signs endorsement deal with Adidas
Former IU guard Jalen Hood-Schifino has agreed to join the adidas basketball family, according to a tweet published Monday morning. The 20-year-old Hood-Schifino was the No. 17 pick in June’s NBA draft by the Los Angeles Lakers. Nick DePaula, who covers the footwear industry, reported the deal is a “multi-year footwear & apparel endorsement deal.” Last winter, Hood-Schifino was one of five athletes to sign a name, image and likeness deal with adidas along with Trayce Jackson-Davis, Gradey Dick, Hailey Van-Lith and Hansel Enmanuel.
Hood-Schifino wrapped up play in the Las Vegas Summer League Sunday Night as he did not play in the LA Lakers 104-103 win over the LA Clippers. The Lakers finished 3-2 for the tournament. Hood-Schifino started and played 27 minutes in the Lakers 100-69 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies Friday Night. Hood-Schifino scored 8 points on 3-17 from the field, 2-9 from 3-point range, pulled down 5 rebounds, dished out an assist, 2 steals and committed a turnover.
Dick Meacham Inducted into the Bloomington City Golf Hall of Fame
Dick Meacham, a carpenter by trade, also built quite a legacy in the Bloomington golf scene. So, the City Golf Tournament’s Hall of fame committee decided to add another nail to the project, selecting him as their latest inductee. Meacham was honored during the post-tourney awards ceremony at Cascades Golf Course on Sunday afternoon. Meacham was born in South Bend in 1955 and learned golf early as an 8-year-old by caddying for his father who was a well-known television personality. Meacham played golf and graduated from Penn High School and then came to IU. He graduated in 1977 and as a carpenter, has worked on many construction projects around Bloomington over the years. He has two daughters, Ireland and Erin.
Meacham started playing a lot of golf in his late 20s and as he perfected his skills, he started entering tournaments including the Bloomington City Tourney. He has played in every tournament since the late 80’s. In 1996, Meacham was the Men’s Championship runner-up to fellow Hall of Famer Andy Bowers, a former player for Vanderbilt. In 2000, Meacham lost another tough final to Troy Gillespie. Meacham was 6-under and was still outshot by Gillespie who shot 7-under on the front side on the final day for a 9 and 7 win.
Meacham won the 1999 Martinsville Fall Festival Tourney at Martinsville Country Club, placed eighth in the Indiana State Amateur at the Country Club of Indianapolis in 2000, finishing six shots off the top. In 2014, Meacham broke through in the City Tourney, winning the Senior Division with a narrow 3 and 2 win over Rory Brown. Meacham also won the tough Medalist Tourney in 2006. He has played in 10 state Opens and eight state Amateur tourneys.
Former Indiana University Diver Jessica Parratto wins a Bronze Medal at the World Championships
Former Indiana University Diver Jessica Parratto and USA Diving teammate Delaney Schnell earned bronze for the United States on Sunday in the women’s synchronized 10-meter diving event at the Fukuoka 2023 World Aquatics Championships in Japan. The pair, who won silver in the event at the Tokyo Olympic Games two years ago, totaled 294.42 points through five dives to place third and secure another medal on the world stage. With the finish, Team USA earned an Olympic quota spot for the event in the 2024 Paris Olympics. Parratto and Schnell entered the final round in fifth place but nailed their final dive, a 5253B, for 74.52 points to leap onto the podium.
Two Hoosiers competed during the first day of action in Fukuoka. Junior and United States open water national team member Mariah Denigan swam the 10-kilometer race, where she finished eighth seven spots better than her performance at last year’s world championships. With the result, Denigan qualified for next year’s open water world championships, where she will have a chance to qualify for the Paris Olympics. At 19 years old, sophomore Maxwell Weinrich made his world championships debut in the mixed 10-meter synchronized diving event with fellow national champion Kaylee Bishop. The duo earned 256.02 points to finish 11th in the world.
Indiana Pacers fall in the Final Game of the Las Vegas Summer League to the Detroit Pistons
The Indiana Pacers wrapped up their time in Las Vegas on Sunday night, dropping their 2023 Summer League finale. Pistons rookie guard Marcus Sasser scored 40 points, 31 in the second half to lead Detroit (4-1) to a 100-85 win over Indiana (2-3). Rookie guard Isaiah Wong had a team-high 24 points for Indiana on Sunday. The 55th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft went 5-for-7 from 3-point range and 7-for-11 from the field. Fellow rookie Ben Sheppard the 26th overall pick in this year’s draft finished with 12 points, while Darius McGhee added 10 for Indiana. But it was Sasser who stole the show, going 16-for-25 from the field and 5-for-9 from 3-point range in his 40-point performance.
Rookie forward Jarace Walker Sasser’s teammate last season at the University of Houston did not dress for the Pacers in Sunday’s Summer League finale. The eighth overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, the 19-year-old Walker averaged 14.3 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.3 blocks, and 1.3 steals over his first four professional games. He joined returning veterans Bennedict Mathurin, Andrew Nembhard, and Isaiah Jackson who were all shut down after two games in cheering on from the bench at Sunday’s matinee. The Pistons jumped out to an early 6-0 lead and remained in front for the entire first quarter on Sunday, although Indiana kept it close. Detroit led 19-16 after the opening 10 minutes.
The Blue & Gold surged ahead shortly thereafter, as Ethan Thompson scored eight points during a 16-6 Indiana run to open the second quarter. The Pacers kept the lead all the way up until halftime and went into the intermission in style. Wong drained a pull-up three to give the Blue & Gold at 47-42 advantage at the break. Sheppard scored five early points in the third quarter to help Indiana maintain the lead, but the Pistons eventually surged back ahead with a 12-2 spurt midway through the frame that featured eight points from rookie guard Marcus Sasser. The Blue & Gold briefly tied the game on Eli Brooks’ jumper with 2:11 remaining in the quarter, but Detroit scored the final five points of the frame to take a 68-63 lead into the fourth.
Sasser stayed hot in the fourth quarter. The former All-American guard at Houston scored nine straight points for Detroit over the first 3:17 of the period. On the other end, two Mojave King free throws were all the Pacers could manage over that span, as the Pistons pushed their lead to 77-65. The Pacers mounted a charge over the final minutes. Wong knocked down two more threes as he scored 10 straight Indiana points over a 2:05 stretch. Sheppard then drained a trey to make it an 86-80 game with 3:02 remaining. But that would be the closest the Pacers would get, as Sasser and Pistons closed them out with a couple more timely shots. The rookie scored the final seven points for Detroit to get to 40, setting a new high for any player in a Summer League game this year.
Indiana University Football player Kahlil Benson selected to the Allstate AFCA good works team
Allstate and the American Football Coaches Association has announced the 2023 Good Works Team nominees and Indiana football’s Kahlil Benson is one of the 136 student-athletes selected for the prestigious team. He is one of 73 Division I student-athletes to be nominate for the honor. Benson Attended the B1G Life Series: Selma to Montgomery event sponsored by the Big Ten Conference, Benson also volunteers at the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel in his Memphis, Tennessee. In the Bloomington community, he, along with his fellow offensive linemen, have spent time helping feed the homeless and building houses for Habitat for Humanity. In 2023, Benson represented his fraternity, Omega Psi Phi, as a volunteer at the Special Olympics in Indianapolis.
Established in 1992, the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team is one of the most coveted community service awards in college football. From the 135 nominees, the final roster of 23 award recipients will bring together 11 players from the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision; 11 players from the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision, Divisions II, III and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA); and one honorary head coach. To be considered for a spot on the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, each player must be actively involved with a charitable organization or service group while maintaining strong academic standing. The final 22-member team and honorary coach are selected by a voting panel of former Allstate AFCA Good Works Team members, current and former head coaches and journalists. They look for exceptional leadership on and off the football field.
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