Sports

Bahamians Gear Up For March Madness

U.S.A. – The results of Selection Sunday are in. Here’s where Bahamian players, coaches, and support staff are seeded in their respective brackets for both the Women’s and Men’s NCAA Tournaments.

Published

8 hours ago

March 17, 2025

10th Year Seniors

In the women’s tournament – Coach Yo leads Rhema Collins and the rest of Ole Miss back to the big dance for the fifth time in her tenure in oxford.

Seeded no.5 in Spokane – Region 1, they will face no.12 seed Ball State on Friday at the Ferrell Center in Waco, Texas.

On the men’s side, AJ Storr and his Kansas Jayhawks are seeded no.7 in the West Region and will take on no.10 seed, the Arkansas Razorbacks on march 20 at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, Rhode Island.

Also in the West Region and in the same arena, Valentino Simon and the Omaha Mavericks will make program history with their first tournament berth.

As the no.15 seed they face no.2 seed St. John’s Red Storm on march 20.

Over in the East Region, VJ Edgecombe and the Baylor Bears are seeded no.9.

They face the no.8 seed Mississippi State Bulldogs on march 21 at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina.

In the South Region, Frederick King and the Creighton Bluejays are also seeded no. 9 and will take on the no.8 seed Louisville Cardinals on Thursday at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky.

Also at Rupp Arena, Deyton Albury and the Utah State Aggies are seeded tenth in the Midwest Region and will open the tournament against the seventh seeded UCLA bruins on Thursday.

On the sidelines – Kentucky Assistant Coach Mikhail McLean and everyone’s favorite Wildcats are the third seed in the Midwest Region and will face no.14 seed Troy on Friday at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

And finally, Bryan Clarke, assistant strength coach, for the Houston Cougars will see his top seeded uh take on sixteenth seeded SIU Edwardsville on Thursday At Intrust Bank Arena in Wichita, Kansas.

Beach Soccer

A valiant effort for Team Bahamas at the 2025 CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championships concluded in a fourth place finish.

In their final match of the competition, The Bahamas lost 6-2 to the United States Sunday night at the Malcolm Beach Soccer Park facility and finished the tournament with a 2-2 win loss record.

Goalkeeper Michael Butler scored the first goal of the match before Nico Perea equalized for the USA just before the end the first period.

The USA went on to score five unanswered goals before Wood Julmis struck the final goal for the home side.

Julims finished tied for second among the tournament’s leading scorers with five goals, one behind the leader, Emerson Cerna of El Salvador with six.

Julmis was also given the “Best Young Player” Award.

The Bahamas also finished as the third highest scoring team of the field with 13 goals.

Swimming

The chase for seven in a row begins in earnest for Bahamas Aquatics for the upcoming CARIFTA Swimming Championships.

A 36-member team will be headed to Trinidad and Tobago over the Easter holiday weekend, April 19-23, as The Bahamas looks to continue its dominance in the region.

Action takes place in the pool over the first four days from the 19-22 at National Aquatics Centre in Couva, Trinidad and Tobago and the Open Water Championships conclude action on the 23rd.

The Bahamas is not only chasing its seventh straight title but it’s ninth in the past 10 CARIFTA meets.

The team will once again be led by Head Coach Travano McPhee, assisted by Camron Bruney and Jasmine Gibson. Allan Murray is the Open Water Head Coach.

In 2024 as hosts, The Bahamas scored 1,096.50 points at the Betty Kelly-Kenning Aquatic Center, ahead of the Cayman Islands, with 660.

Team Bahamas collected a total of 102 medals, including 34 gold, 39 silver and 29 bronze.

This year’s team includes a cross section of CARIFTA veterans, with newcomers looking to make their mark as they progress in age groups and look to keep the tradition going.

You can find a full listing of the team on the Our News social media pages.