COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Old Dominion linebacker Koa Naotala has been named a semifinalist for the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Award.
The award honors a player who exhibits exceptional courage, integrity and sportsmanship both on and off the field.
Naotala is a two-time captain after beginning his career as a walk-on. He led the Monarchs in tackles with 88 last season.
Report: VT’s Ellis to hit portal
Virginia Tech defensive back Christian Ellis will enter the transfer portal, according to CBS Sports.
The senior safety from Jacksonville, Florida, has seven tackles and three pass breakups in four games this season, including the game-clinching pass breakup in the win at NC State.
He collected a career-best 99 tackles along with an interception and fumble recovery at New Mexico last season.
Ellis becomes the fifth transfer portal entry since Brent Pry’s firing.
WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
UVA’s Johnson named All-ACC
Virginia junior guard Kymora Johnson has been named to the preseason All-ACC Team.
The Cavaliers were picked seventh in the league’s preseason poll, while Virginia Tech was 10th. Duke was No. 1, followed by NC State and North Carolina.
Johnson led UVA with 17.9 points per game last season and recorded the first triple-double of her career. She surpassed 1,000 points for her career and also led the ACC in assists (6.5) and free-throw percentage (.914).
Notre Dame guard Hannah Hidalgo was the Preseason Player of the Year.
Richmond ranked for first time
Richmond has made the Associated Press Preseason Top 25 poll, marking the first time the Spiders have appeared in the poll in program history.
The Spiders check in at No. 24 and are the only mid-major program in the rankings.
Richmond has won back-to-back Atlantic 10 regular-season titles and made consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. Reigning Atlantic 10 Player of the Year Maggie Doogan and all-conference first-team selection Rachel Ullstrom are among the returning players from a team that went 28-7 last season.
HOCKEY
Admirals get 2 players in trade
The Norfolk Admirals announced Tuesday they have acquired defensemen David Drake and Dustin Geregach from the Greenville Swamp Rabbits in exchange for the playing rights to forward Hank Crone.
Drake, 30, a seventh-round pick of the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2013 NHL draft, has spent the past three seasons with the Wheeling Nailers. He’s posted 60 points with a +37 rating in 242 games. The Illinois native has played in seven ECHL seasons.
Geregach, 23, is heading into his first full season as a professional. The McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania, native finished his four-year collegiate career last season at Mercyhurst, posting a career-high 21 points (7 goals, 14 assists). He signed with Greenville last year and collected 13 points in 18 games.
Crone played 18 games for the Admirals last season, finishing with 18 points (5 goals, 13 assists). He played most of last season with the ECHL’s Idaho Steelheads, where he collected 54 points (15 goals, 39 assists).
SOFTBALL
VT coach to enter D.C. Hall
Virginia Tech softball coach Pete D’Amour will be inducted into the Greater Washington Fastpitch Softball Hall of Fame.
The ceremony will be held between Virginia Tech’s fall games against George Mason on Saturday at Woodgrove High School in Purcellville. The first game is set to begin at noon.
D’Amour will be honored for his play in multiple national and world tournaments as well as his successful coaching career.
“My introduction to softball happened in and around the Metro DC area as a 4-year-old kid,” D’Amour said.
D’Amour has coached the Hokies since 2019 and has guided them to six straight NCAA regionals appearances and two Super Regionals (2021-22). He owns a 273-87-1 record and is a two-time ACC Coach of the Year (2019, 2022).
Briefly
Virginia Wesleyan’s Ester Zar has been named the ODAC Women’s Runner of the Week after placing second overall in the VSU Cross Country Challenge.
