COLLEGE ROUNDUP: Avila, Swope named Henson mid-major All-Americans

Apr. 9—Amid uncertainties about what the 2024-25 Indiana State men's basketball season will bring, its players are still receiving honors for their 2023-24 efforts.

Sycamore sophomore Robbie Avila and junior Isaiah Swope were named Tuesday to the 2024 Lou Henson All-America Team for mid-major basketball.

Avila averaged 17.4 points per game, 6.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists. The 6-foot-10 center also hit 53.6% from the floor and 39.4% of his 3-pointers. Avila's 644 points this season marked the ninth-highest total in program history. The Oak Forest native became the 42nd Sycamore to eclipse the 1,000-point mark. He scored a career-high 35 points at Evansville as ISU clinched a share of the MVC regular-season title. He recorded six double-doubles and 14 games with 20-plus points.

Swope ranked among the nation's top 3-point shooters for most of the season, finishing fourth in the country with 113, placing him second in school history for the single-season 3-pointers behind Jordan Barnes' 117. Swope hit 43.3% from the field and 36.2% clip from 3-point range. Swope scored 587 points this season, raising his career total to 1,315 points. The Newburgh native recorded the first 30-point game of the season for the Sycamores at UIC, scoring 30 points.

Both were regulars for ISU as the Sycamores finished as the NIT runners-up with a 32-7 overall record, 17-3 in conference play, MVC regular season champions, and recorded the second-best season in program history behind the 33-win 1978-79 season.

Track

—Sycamores get season bests — At Knoxville on Saturday, Indiana State athletes set 12 personal records and added an additional 16 season-best performances at the Tennessee Invitational, propelling the Sycamores to a successful weekend against a strong field of competition at Tom Black Track at LaPorte Stadium.

Four of the season-best marks for the Sycamores came in the relays, where the men's and women's 4-by-100 meters and 4-by-400 teams had their best showings of the outdoor campaign and now own the top spot in the Missouri Valley Conference in both 4-by-100 relays. Every event group for the Sycamores had multiple season-best performances at Knoxville.

As a team, Indiana State earned 23 top-five finishes, with 14 coming on the men's side and nine coming on the women's side. Of those top-five finishes for the Sycamores, 17 were in the top three. The Sycamores also picked up event wins from the men's 4x100m relay team of Casey Hood Jr., Tahj Johnson, Isiah Thomas and Daunte Majors, Will Staggs in the pole vault, Shomari Rogers-Walton in the triple jump and Hannah Redlin in the shot put.

Indiana State competes in the Gary Weineke Memorial on Saturday at Champaign, Ill.

ISU event winners — Casey Hood Jr., Tahj Johnson, Isiah Thomas, Daunte Majors, 4x100 relay (39.99); Will Staggs, PV (17-0.75); Shomari Rogers-Walton, TJ (49-9.25); Hannah Redlin, SP (47-1).

ISU top-three finishers — Tahj Johnson, 400m (second, 47.42); Logan Pietrzak, 5000 (second, 14:32.53); Kevin Krutsch, HJ (second, 6-10.75); Grace Quinlan, HJ (second, 5-7); Brett Norton, SP (second, 59-4.75); Niesha Anderson, SP (second, 46-6.25); Elias Foor, D (second, 174-5); Hannah Redlin, D (second, 150-11); Rachel Mehringer, 100H (third, 13.6); Riley Tuerff, 400H (third, 1:02.81); Janiya Bowman, Michelle McDonald, Collette Wolfe, Angel Thomas, 4x100 relay (third, 45.88); Kyrsten Fehribach, HJ (third, 5-7); Jaden Smith, TJ (third, 48-3.25).

—Pomeroy top RSC athlete of week — Saint Mary-of-the-Woods' Javian Edwards has been named the River States Conference Male Field Athlete of the Week following his historic performance at the Wabash College Huntsman Family Invitational on Saturday.

Edwards won the men's triple jump with a mark of 48 feet. Just nine days after hitting the NAIA 'B' Standard at Marian — this mark hits the 'A' Standard and will advance to the NAIA Nationals in May.

The Woods team travels to the Greenville Select Meet in Illinois, starting at 11:30 a.m.

Softball

—Pomeroys sweep; Krause hits walk-off — At Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Lyric Krause notched a walk off double in the bottom of the eighth inning as the host Pomeroys swept visiting Rio Grande (Ohio) by scores of 4-3 in eight innings and 6-4 in the nightcap on Saturday.

SMWC's record improved to 20-11, 13-4 in the River States Conference. Rio Grande falls to 20-12 and 12-8.

In game one, Krause came up with the big hit in the bottom of the eighth inning, a double, which scored Henderson for the 4-3 walk off victory. Krause was 2-of-4 at the plate with three RBI. Marin Jacobs earned the victory by tossing eight innings allowing seven hits and three runs while striking out two.

In the second game of the day, Jaleigh Crawford was 3-of-3 at the plate while Abbi Henderson posted a 2-for-3 tally with a run scored and a RBI. Jasmine Kinzer drove in a pair of runs.

Summer Rocha went 4.1 innings in the circle with five hits allowed and two strikeouts before Emily Fitzwater tossed the 2.2 innings allowing just two hits and recording a strikeout.

SMWC returns to action on Friday, hosting Midway (Ky.) for a 3 p.m. RSC doubleheader.

Saturday's sweep followed the Pomeroys' Friday acation against visiting West Virginia Tech. SMWC beat Tech Tech 9-4 in the chilly opening game of a doubleheader and then came back to lead 12-2 in the nightcap before the game was suspended in the bottom of the third inning.

The second game was then suspended after multiple ejections for West Virginia Tech, and a final ruling on the situation is pending from the NAIA National Office.

Baseball

—Engineers sweep Beavers — Rose-Hulman took a doubleheader from visiting Bluffton by scores of 14-3 and 6-0 on Saturday at Art Nehf Field, then capped a series sweep with a 14-11 victory over the Beaves on Sunday.

Rose improved to 14-10 overall and 6-4 in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference.

The Engineers took control of the first game early, putting up five runs in the bottom of the first inning. Peter Rogers doubled to bring in a run by Kade Kline, then a single by Connor O'Connell scored runs by Colter Couillard-Rodak and Rogers. Mark Serdinak finished the inning strong with a two-run homer to build a strong lead for the Engineers.

Rose-Hulman was able to seal the win after seven innings after putting up another five-run inning in the bottom of the fifth. Jonathan Oliger singled to bring in Serdinak, and Rogers connected with a grand slam scoring runs by Kline, Oliger, and Jackson Summers.

Peter Rogers went 4-for-5 at bat with seven RBI and three runs scored. His seven RBI ties him for the second most in a single game in Rose history. Michael Yager earned the win on the mound pitching five innings with four strikeouts.

In game two, a double by O'Connell scored two runs in the bottom of the first to give Rose the early lead. Ian Kline had a dominant performance on the mound earning the win pitching 8.0 innings with five strikeouts. Kline and Schuyler Wilcox combined for the shutout win.

In Sunday's Engineers victory, Rose broke a late-game 10-10 tie as O'Connell tripled in a run, and Dalton Busboom scored O'Connell with a sacrifice fly to make it 12-10, the decisive runs.

Volleyball

—Woods wins at Bethel — At Mishawaka, visiting Saint Mary-of-the-Woods fell in the first set but rebounded with three consecutive set wins to beat Bethel 3-1 in men's action on Saturday afternoon. Set scores were 25-27, 25-22, 25-17 and 25-23.

The Pomeroys improved to 15-15, 3-13 Wolverine Hoosier Athletic Conference while Bethel dropped to 9-13, 4-11 WHAC.

Manase Fetulimoeata and Marko Zolnjan led the way for the Pomeroys with 12 kills each while Joseph Szadorski chipped in with eight. Connor Orrock blasted five service aces while Szadorski had six total blocks and Bentley Meyer tallied five. Ethan Martins led the way with 38 assists with Zolnjan had 14 digs.

SMWC tallied 12 service aces in the match and posted 10 total blocks in the winning effort.