Tag: USA Today HSS

Watch: Duke commit, 5-star forward Cooper Flagg puts a defender on the floor with this crossover

Cooper Flagg is just so smooth.

Cooper Flagg is pretty decent at basketball.

On Friday night, Flagg’s Montverde Academy (from Montverde, Florida and No. 1 in the USA TODAY HSS Super 25) played Long Island Lutheran from Brookville, New York (No. 7 in the USA TODAY rankings)

The game, at Hofstra University was a showcase event for two of the top programs in the nation. And Flagg didn’t disappoint, at least not early on.

The nation’s top player, Flagg is a five-star forward and a Duke basketball commit. In recent weeks, there has been some buzz that he might lose the No. 1 overall recruit status to Ace Bailey, a Rutgers basketball commit.

The argument is that Bailey’s athleticism potentially could give him a higher ceiling than Flagg. Flagg, however, is not disappointing against Long Island Lutheran.

Playing on national television on Friday night, Flagg has eight points, four rebounds and five assists at halftime. Oh, and one opponent he put on the floor.

Check out this move:

 

Ice water in his veins.

 

No. 3 Mater Dei dominates in CIF championship game over No. 17 Serra

Mater Dei put together an impressive win on Saturday.

Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) put forward a convincing performance to be the top team in the nation, following a comprehensive win on Saturday night in the CIF State Open Division championship game.

In last week’s USA TODAY HSS Super 25, Mater Dei was ranked third in the nation. Their opponent on Saturday was No. 17 Serra (San Mateo, Calif.).

And Mater Dei simply rolled over Serra with a 35-0 win. Quarterback Elijah Brown, a Stanford football commit, threw for four touchdowns.

It was the most impressive win of the weekend for any of the nationally ranked teams. But the argument could certainly be made that Mater Dei’s win, considering the quality of the opponent, might be the most thorough and complete win in any championship game in the country this fall.

Could Mater Dei be the top team in the nation when it is all said and done? That would be a difficult mountain to climb. Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) hasn’t faltered all season and Chaminade-Madonna (Hollywood, Florida) seemed to get better every week.

Mater Dei, at 13-1, has an interesting argument to make now following Saturday’s win. Few thought they would be as dominant as they were against a team as good as Serra.

A top finish in the Super 25 would break a tie for most all-time, which the Monarchs currently share with perennial power De La Salle (Concord, Calif.)

Rundown between third base and home went very wrong during softball game

Watch.

Catching a runner between bases can be one of the most exciting parts of baseball for any team. It can also lead to a devastating blunder, though.

Such was the case for this high school softball team – which had a runner pinned between third base and home but couldn’t close the deal, leading to an easy run. Watch.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CtHcsqvMOVl/?hl=en

More softball stories

Watch: Outfielder saves a home run, takes a shot from fence

USA TODAY Sports Super 25 power rankings: Week 14

Catch of the Year? Softball outfielder saves a home run, takes a shot from fence

Whoever said softball was a non-contact sport never had this happen to them.

Whoever said softball was a non-contact sport never had this happen to them.

Watch Berwick (Pa.) center fielder Katie Starr hustle back and make an awesome play on the ball, robbing the batter of what would have been a home run by reaching over the fence for the catch.

In the process, she takes a hit to the chest and gets the wind knocked out of her, but hangs on to the ball.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CtRTdNpNRh3/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA%3D%3D

The two baserunners managed to tag up and score on the play, taking advantage of what might be the catch of the year by Super Sophomore Katie Starr.

(And in the world of fans being in the right spot at the right time, kudos to the camera work!)

More softball stories

USA TODAY Sports Super 25 softball rankings: Week 14

Oregon HS team wins their state title game without a hit

HSS rewind: This high school hooper learned not to hang on the rim the hard way

Yikes: High school hooper learns not to hang on the rim the hard way after falling on his neck.

Everyone loves a good slam dunk, but at this level sometimes it’s difficult to know what you can and can’t do as an athlete.

This high school hooper learned the hard way not to hang on the rim. Watch.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Ck3yf12LeRX/

Yikes.