Iowa
Avery Neff suffers devastating injury in Utah’s win over Iowa State
The night was a mixture of triumph and tragedy for the Utah Red Rocks gymnastics team, as their victory over Iowa State was overshadowed by the devastating injury to freshman Avery Neff. While the team delivered a season-high score of 197.300 and showcased remarkable growth, the loss of Neff, the No. 1 recruit, left an emotional void.
The atmosphere in the Huntsman Center shifted dramatically when Neff’s final tumbling pass on floor ended in disaster. A routine that had already demonstrated her exceptional talent turned into heartbreak when her ankle gave out, and she fell face-first onto the mat. Her left leg bent awkwardly, and she immediately clutched her ankle in pain. Medical personnel and coaches rushed to her aid, and the usually electric crowd fell silent. Teammates cried openly on the sidelines, their emotions mirroring the collective concern of the Red Rocks family.
Neff had been a standout performer throughout the night, earning high scores on vault (9.900), bars (9.850), and beam (9.925). Her contributions exemplified why she had been ranked so highly coming into the season, and her injury was a significant blow to the team’s momentum. Head coach Carly Dockendorf expressed the team’s mixed emotions, emphasizing the difficulty of balancing a strong performance with the sadness of losing a key member.
“What an amazing three quarters of our meet there, and was just feeling so good about everything we had done,” Dockendorf said. “This is the tough part about sports anywhere on any team, and it’s just — it’s hard to watch. It definitely kind of changed the emotional feeling of the meet at the end, but this is why we’re a team.”
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Despite the emotional impact, the team showed incredible resilience, finishing the meet with poise. Veteran Jaylene Gilstrap, tasked with following Neff on floor, delivered a beautiful routine that earned a 9.90, helping the team maintain focus. Grace McCallum followed suit, closing out the floor rotation with another 9.90. Dockendorf praised her gymnasts for their ability to stay composed, acknowledging their determination to finish strong.
The meet itself was a testament to the Red Rocks’ improvement. They opened with a season-best 49.300 on vault, led by Neff’s 9.900 and Camie Winger’s 9.875. McCallum’s return to competition with a Yurchenko 1.5 vault marked a significant milestone, even though her landing was slightly off. On bars, McCallum dazzled with a 9.975, earning that score for the second consecutive meet. The beam rotation was equally impressive, with Neff contributing a near-perfect 9.925 and Winger adding a 9.900.
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While Utah dominated Iowa State, whose best apparatus score was a 49.000 on floor, the victory felt hollow. The Cyclones struggled throughout the meet, particularly on bars, where they were forced to count multiple low scores. Utah’s win showcased their depth and talent, but the team’s joy was tempered by Neff’s uncertain status.
As the night ended, the team gathered around their injured teammate, embodying the unity and support that define the Red Rocks program. Neff’s injury served as a stark reminder of the unpredictability of sports and the strength required to overcome adversity. For the Red Rocks, the final score may have been a victory on paper, but the real story was the resilience of a team rallying around one of their own in a moment of profound loss. At the end of the night, Neff took time to post on her Instagram story. Her caption was simple with “God’s Plan >>>”. Neff’s only words to keep Utah fans guessing about the status of the star freshman.
Five people were shot and injured at an Iowa City pedestrian mall near the University of Iowa campus overnight, police said Sunday. Students from the university were among the injured, according to school officials.
The Iowa City Police Department responded to a report of a large fight in the 100 Block of East College Street at 1:46 a.m. early Sunday, the department said in a news release. Arriving officers heard gunfire.
Multiple victims were hospitalized, police said. Police confirmed to CBS News that one person was in critical condition, while the other four victims are stable.
University of Iowa President Barb Wilson said in a statement that three students were among those shot. None of the victims has been publicly identified.
No arrests have been made, and the investigation is ongoing. Police said they are seeking information about five “persons of interest associated with this shooting.” The university also shared the request for information.
The pedestrian mall was closed for several hours and reopened Sunday afternoon.
Here are the candidates for High School on SI’s Iowa high school athlete of the week for April 13-18. Read through the nominees and cast your vote.
Voting closes at 11:59 p.m. PT on Sunday, April 26. The winner will be announced in the following week’s poll. Here are this week’s nominees:
Taylor Roose, Pella boys track and field
Roose competed in three events at the Norwalk Invitational, winning all three in the 100-meter dash, 200-meter dash and long jump.
Daxon Kiesau, Urbandale boys track and field
Kiesau swept the throwing events at the Norwalk Invitational, taking first place in the shot put and the discus.
Alex Burger, Southeast Valley boys track and field
Competing at home, Burger dominated, earning four gold medals. He won the 400-meter hurdles and the long jump while running on the winning 4×200-meter relay and shuttle hurdle relay.
Kolby Hodnefield, Clear Lake boys track and field
Hodenfield, a defending state champion, broke the meet, venue and school record in the 200 and the 400 at the Clear Lake Invitational. He added victories as part of the 4×100 and 4×400 relays. Both relays also set meet records.
Easton Moon, North Polk boys tennis
Moon has started off his senior season on the courts unbeaten, winning all four matches while dropping just one game in 44 played.
Ava Lohrbach, Gilbert girls golf
One of the top golfers in the state, Lohrbach has had a hot start, firing a 35 in her nine-hole debut and a 72 for her 18-hole opener.
Nathan Manske, Algona boys golf
An elite quarterback and basketball player, Manske is showing his golfing skills this spring, coming out with a state-low 30 in a nine-hole event.
Ella Hein, Tipton girls track and field
Hein set school records in the 400-meter run and long jump at the Tiger/Tigerette Relays while also locking in the Blue Standard and qualifying for the Drake Relays. She won the long jump (18-6) and was second in the 400.
Maeve Bowen-Burt, Iowa City High girls track and field
The sophomore helped the Little Hawks land three Drake Relays events on the last night of qualifying, advancing in the 400 hurdles, along with the sprint medley and 4×400 relays.
About Our Athlete of the Week Voting
High School on SI voting polls are meant to be a fun, lighthearted way for fans to show support for their favorite athletes and teams. Our goal is to celebrate all of the players featured, regardless of the vote totals. Sometimes one athlete will receive a very large number of votes — even thousands — and that’s okay! The polls are open to everyone and are simply a way to build excitement and community around high school sports. Unless we specifically announce otherwise, there are no prizes or official awards for winning. The real purpose is to highlight the great performances of every athlete included in the poll.
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The late boxing great George Foreman lies buried in a cemetery in the northwestern corner of Iowa – a place he has no connection to outside of a lone visit to the region nearly 40 years ago.
Foreman died March 21, 2025, at the age of 76 in Houston and was buried in Logan Park Cemetery at Sioux City, Iowa, a month later, city officials confirmed. Foreman’s family returned Thursday to his burial site, holding a news conference with Sioux City Mayor Bob Scott to reveal Foreman’s burial place, marked by a large monument that bears an image of him as a teen following his Olympic gold medal boxing win.
The family explained in a statement released by Sioux City officials that he had visited the Iowa city in 1988, and often recalled the sense of peace he experienced there.
After traveling to the city on April 17 last year to bury Foreman, his family said they immediately understood the region’s appeal.
“Our father lived a life of purpose, faith and gratitude,” the family said in a statement released by Sioux City officials. “To see him laid to rest in a place that brought him peace means everything to us.”
Scott joined the family at Foreman’s monument that lies just a few miles north of the Missouri River in an upper Midwest city of nearly 87,000 people. The cemetery overlooks the scenic Loess Hills, created by windblown silt deposits that reach up to 200 feet high (about 61 meters) and line the river along the Iowa border for 200 miles (322 kilometers).
“Their story is a reminder of how one place can stay with someone for a lifetime,” Scott said.
A native Texan, Foreman rose to fame when he made the 1968 U.S. Olympic boxing team, winning gold in Mexico City. He became the heavyweight champion of the world in 1973 by defeating the great Joe Frazier, only to lose the title a year later to Muhammad Ali in the famous “Rumble in the Jungle.”
A full 20 years later in 1994, Foreman became the oldest man to win the heavyweight championship at 45, defeating Michael Moorer in an epic upset.
Foreman retired in 1997 with a 76-5 career record.
He then moved on to the next chapter in his life as a businessman, pitchman and occasional actor, becoming known to a new generation as the face of the George Foreman Grill. The simple cooking machine sold more than 100 million units and brought him more wealth than boxing.
A biographical movie based on Foreman’s life was released in 2023.
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