HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL, SOFTBALL SCORES
Wednesday’s Results

BASEBALL

CITY SECTION
Bell 4, San Pedro 0
Carson 7, Granada Hills 5
Chatsworth 1, Sylmar 0
East Valley 15, Panorama 4
Hollywood 12, RFK Community 4
LA Wilson 26, Contreras 0
Locke 22, Animo Venice 2
Monroe 3, Eagle Rock 1
Rancho Cucamonga 5, Huntington Park 0
San Fernando 9, Cleveland 5
SOCES 12, Northridge Academy 2
South Gate 22, Marquez 0

SOUTHERN SECTION
Alemany 6, Crespi 0
Arlington 5, Liberty 0
Arroyo 4, Rio Hondo Prep 0
Beckman 8, Tustin 0
Bellflower 12, Paramount 1
Beverly Hills 6, Shalhevet 0
Bonita 8, Santa Fe 0
Burbank Providence 14, Santa Monica Pacifica Christian 1
Campbell Hall 21, Grant 1
Cantwell-Sacred Heart 8, Bishop Montgomery 6
Carpinteria 5, Nordhoff 4
Castaic 10, Saugus 9
Century 4, Laguna Hills 3
Chino Hills 16, Riverside Prep 7
Claremont 7, Charter Oak 4
Coachella Valley 6, Banning 5
Dana Hills 8, Great Oak 6
Desert Hot Springs 7, Desert Christian Academy 3
Eastvale Roosevelt 14, Patriot 0
El Rancho 4, Whittier 0
El Segundo 3, Wiseburn-Da Vinci 1
Elsinore 3, Maranatha Christian 2
Etiwanda 4, Rancho Cucamonga 1
Fullerton 19, Segerstrom 2
Glendora 4, Downey 1
Grace 10, Oak Park 0
Hart 15, Canyon Country Canyon 2
Harvard-Westlake 6, Sierra Canyon 0
Hemet 3, Canyon Springs 2
Highland 7, Palmdale 1
Hueneme 8, Fillmore 0
Huntington Beach 13, Edison 3
Irvine University 13, St. Margaret’s 0
Knight 10, Eastside 7
Lakeside 3, Orange Vista 2
Lakewood 14, Westminster 1
Lancaster 13, Antelope Valley 0
La Serna 12, California 2
La Sierra 11, San Gorgonio 0
Linfield Christian 5, Murrieta Valley 2
Long Beach Cabrillo 6, Bosco Tech 4
Long Beach Poly 7, Cerritos 6
Los Alamitos 9, Fountain Valley 5
Loyola 8, Chaminade 0
Miller 13, Norte Vista 4
Mira Costa 6, Torrance 4
Moreno Valley 14, Heritage 2
Murrieta Mesa 8, Fallbrook 4
Newport Beach 11, Marina 2
Nogales 5, Baldwin Park 4
Norco 3, Gahr 0
North Torrance 12, New Roads 3
Northwood 5, Irvine 3
Paloma Valley 7, Riverside Poly 6
Pioneer 14, El Monte 1
Quart Hill 17, Littlerock 0
Rancho Alamitos 20, Garden Grove Santiago 15
Rancho Christian 13, Hillcrest 0
Rancho Mirage 2, Beaumont 1
Rancho Verde 7, Riverside Notre Dame 2
Redlands Adventist 13, Desert Chapel 3
Riverside King 10, Riverside North 3
San Clemente 7, Vista Murrieta 3
Santa Monica 3, Newbury Park 1
Santa Paula 12, Malibu 1
Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 6, St. Francis 2
South Torrance 5, Peninsula 4
St. John Bosco 11, Damien 0
Sunny Hills 5, Orange 1
Thousand Oaks 11, Camarillo 1
Upland 5, Santa Ana Calvary Chapel 1
Valley View 7, Citrus Hill 1
Vista del Lago 13, Perris 9
West Covina 15, Rosemead 5
West Ranch 15, Golden Valley 1
Woodbridge 3, Laguna Beach 2
Woodcrest Christian 11, Rialto 2

INTERSECTIONAL
Campbell Hall 21, Grant 1
United Christian Academy 14, Public Safety Academy
West Torrance 7, Venice 1

SOFTBALL

CITY SECTION
Birmingham 25, SOCES 0
Eagle Rock 9, Cleveland 5
Fairfax 22, Contreras 21
Franklin 8, Orthopaedic 4
LA Wilson 18, Narbonne 10
Marquez 5, Port of LA 4
Middle College 33, Discovery 15
Newbury Park 17, Van Nuys 0
Sun Valley Poly 9, Taft 3
West Adams 17, RFK Community 2

SOUTHERN SECTION
Agoura 3, Oak Park 0
Arroyo 15, Rowland 12
Azusa 14, Garey 3
Baldwin Park 20, Nogales 8
Buena 30, Hueneme 1
Buena Park 14, Loara 4
Chaparral 19, Woodrest Christian 6
Claremont 7, Chino 3
Colony 23, Fontana 0
Colton 12, University Prep 0
Corona Santiago 17, San Dimas 16
CSDR 18, Indian Springs 17
Desert Hot Springs 18, Desert Christian Academy 8
Eastvale Roosevelt 8, Arlington 1
Flintridge Sacred Heart 7, Flintridge Prep 5
Glendora 10, Muir 2
Huntington Park 7, Gahr 3
Lakeside 29, California Military Institute 2
Lakewood 6, Hemet 3
Lawndale 33, Hoover 10
Los Osos 8, Northview 1
Lynwood 17, Animo Leadership 5
Maranatha 8, Culver City 6
Monrovia 15, West Covina 5
Ocean View 12, Westminster La Quinta 2
Orange 22, Godinez Fundamental 5
Pacific 14, Norte Vista 10
Paloma Valley 8, San Jacinto 0
Patriot 8, Canyon Springs 1
Peninsula 27, Beverly Hills 2
Rancho Cucamonga 30, Miller 1
Redondo Union 25, Long Beach Jordan 0
Riverside Poly 13, Orange Vista 3
RSCSM 28, Noli Indian 3
San Bernardino 12, Visa del Lago 2
San Juan Hills 3, Capistrano Valley 2
Sierra Vista 12, Duarte 6
Southlands Christian 9, El Monte 7
Temescal Canyon 10, Murrieta Valley 9
Tesoro 5, Northwood 4
Vasquez 15, Westridge 4
Western Christian 16, Summit 5
Yucaipa 14, Liberty 9

INTERSECTIONAL
Animo Watts 13, Locke 3
El Camino Real 7, La Canada 3
Newbury Park 17, Van Nuys 0
Palos Verdes 8, San Pedro 0
Pasadena Marshall 18, Fulton 1
Santa Monica 2, Carson 1
South Torrance 8, Venice 2
United Christian Academy 22, Public Safety Academy 0
West Torrance 9, Wilmington Banning 2
Wilmington Banning 10, Wiseburn-Da Vinci 0

Left-wing social media users launched a volley of insults at 23-year-old Brooke Slusser in recent days.

In response, dozens of high-profile women’s rights activists have come to the former San Jose State University volleyball player’s defense.

Slusser has addressed the critics herself in a statement to Fox News Digital. 

“I would just say people that don’t know my life or my trauma don’t have room to say how good or bad my time at SJSU was. I hope they never have to understand going through something as awful as that,” she said.

She has also acknowledged the responses in a series of TikTok posts, as she has become more active on the platform this week to speak about her alleged experience at SJSU. 

The online hate campaign started after Slusser shared details about living arrangements in the same apartment with transgender volleyball teammate Blaire Fleming while at San Jose State university, in an interview with Fox News Digital. 

During the interview, she said, “You find out you’re just chilling in a bed with a man that you have no idea about… I [was] unknowingly sharing a bed at that time with a man,” and alleged SJSU volleyball coach Todd Kress encouraged her to live in the same apartment as the trans teammate when another group of players were also looking for a final tenant. 

The fallout of the interview has prompted high-profile activists, lawmakers and even an actor to speak out, taking a side behind or against Slusser.

Many critics echoed the sentiment that “nothing bad” happened to Slusser, despite the fact that the anxiety from the situation ultimately led to her developing an eating disorder and not being able to complete her college degree. 

Former “Glee” actor Kevin McHale even appeared to mock Slusser’s appearance. 

A coalition of “save women’s sports” activists rushed to Slusser’s defense, with OutKick host Riley Gaines, XX-XY Athletics founder Jennifer Sey, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., women’s tennis legend Martina Navratilova and former ESPN star Sage Steele leading the charge to defend Slusser from the pro-trans detractors. 

“Brooke has every right to feel violated. This is a violation of her personal space and boundaries. She was lied to. She would not have agreed to room with or play with a man,” Sey wrote in response to one critic. 

Navratilova wrote in response to that same critic, “Brooke has every right to be mad. Try again with the punishment wish…”

Slusser finds herself at the center of a sports culture war flashpoint at a time when the conflict over her school’s handling of her transgender former teammate has reached a political impasse. 

‘HORRIBLE’ MOMENTS EXPOSED FOR UNR VOLLEYBALL PLAYERS WHEN THEY WERE ROPED INTO THE SJSU TITLE IX SCANDAL

After the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) announced at the end of January that an investigation into the university for its handling of a trans athlete and other players concluded that the school violated Title IX, SJSU and the California State University system declined to resolve the violation. 

Instead, SJSU President Cynthia Teniente-Matson announced Friday that the school and the California State University (CSU) system are suing the federal government to challenge the investigation. 

“Because we believe OCR’s findings aren’t grounded in the facts or the law, SJSU and the CSU filed a lawsuit today against the federal government to challenge those findings and prevent the federal government from taking punitive action against the university, including the potential withholding of critical federal funding,” Teniente-Matson said Friday.

“This is not a step we take lightly. However, we have a responsibility to defend the integrity of our institution and the rule of law, while ensuring that every member of our community is treated fairly and in accordance with the law. Our position is simple: We have followed the law and cannot be punished for doing so.”

The school is also requesting that OCR rescind its findings and close its investigation. 

Teniente-Matson affirmed the university’s commitment to defending the LGBTQ community in the announcement.

“Our support for the LGBTQ members of our community, who have experienced threats and harms over the last several years, remains unwavering. We know the attention the university has received around this issue and the investigative process that followed have been unsettling for many in our community,” the university president said.

Among ED’s findings, it determined that a female athlete discovered that the trans student allegedly conspired to have a member of an opposing team spike her in the face during a match. The department claims “SJSU did not investigate the conspiracy, but later subjected the female athlete to a Title IX complaint for ‘misgendering’ the male athlete in online videos and interviews.”

Slusser alleged in a November 2024 lawsuit against the Mountain West that she and former assistant coach Melissa Batie-Smoose were made aware of a meeting between Fleming and Colorado State women’s volleyball player Malaya Jones on Oct. 2, 2024, during which Fleming discussed a plan with Jones to have Slusser spiked in the face during a match the following night.

Slusser’s own lawsuit partially survived motions to dismiss last week as well. 

Colorado District Judge Kato Crews dismissed all the plaintiffs’ charges against the Mountain West Conference but did not dismiss charges of Title IX violations against the CSU system. 

Crews deferred his ruling on whether to dismiss those charges until after a decision in the ongoing B.P.J. v. West Virginia Supreme Court case, which is expected in June.

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The CSU provided a statement to Fox News Digital in response to Crews’ ruling. 

“CSU is pleased with the court’s ruling. SJSU has complied with Title IX and all applicable law, and it will continue to do so,” the statement said.

The outcomes of the lawsuits by and against SJSU on this issue could ultimately set a consequential precedent for the future of women’s sports in America. 

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

INDIAN WELLS — Jessica Pegula never needed tennis.

She simply kept showing up for it anyway, through the long and often anonymous slog of the professional tour.

Now 32 and the oldest player in the top 10, Pegula is having her best season start yet.

The fifth-ranked American reached the Australian Open semifinals for the first time in January, falling to eventual champion Elena Rybakina. She followed that by capturing the Dubai 1000-level tournament, just a rung below the majors.

She is 15-2 so far in 2026, tied with Victoria Mboko in match wins and second only to Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina (17-3), who she defeated 6-2, 6-4 in the Dubai final.

Pegula is guaranteed to emerge from this week’s BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells as the top-ranked American, overtaking No. 4 Coco Gauff, if she reaches the final.

First, she will have to get past No. 12-seed Belinda Bencic of Switzerland, her fourth-round opponent on Wednesday. Bencic has not dropped a set in four previous meetings with Pegula.

“That will be a challenge for me,” said the characteristically even-keeled Pegula after defeating former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko in the third round on Monday.

A late bloomer, Pegula has taken the long road.

She failed to qualify for Grand Slam main draws in 12 of 14 attempts from 2011 to 2018, and didn’t reach the third round at a major until the 2020 U.S. Open at age 26. All three of her Grand Slam semifinal runs — along with her 2024 U.S. Open final — have come after she turned 30.

Pegula said this week that her patience and persistence stem from “always being a little more mature for my age even when I was younger.”

“I think as I’ve gotten older, your perspective changes as well,” she added.

Pegula, whose parents are principal owners of the NFL’s Buffalo Bills and the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres, acknowledges that her wealthy family background can cut two ways.

Financial security offers freedom to push through the sport’s early years on tour, when results are uncertain and the grind is relentless. That same cushion might make it easier to walk away if the climb becomes too frustrating.

Jessica Pegula plays a backhand against Donna Vekic during their match at the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.

(Clive Brunskill / Getty Images)

Pegula says her motivation to pursue tennis came well before her family’s fortune grew.

“I’ve been wanting to be a professional tennis player and No. 1 in the world since I was like 7,” she said in a small interview room after beating Ostapenko this week.

“It’s a privilege, but at the same time I don’t want to do myself a disservice of not taking the opportunity as well,” she explained. “I’ve always looked at it that way.”

In the last few seasons, that maturity on the court has dovetailed with a growing leadership role off it.

Pegula has served for years on the WTA Player Council and was recently tapped to chair the tour’s new Tour Architecture Council, a working group tasked with examining the increasingly demanding schedule and structural pressures players say have intensified in recent seasons. The panel is expected to explore changes that could reshape the calendar and player workload in coming years.

Pegula said she hadn’t put up her hand to be involved but agreed after several players approached her to take the lead role — though she declined to say who they were.

“I think maybe as you mature … you realize how important it is to give back to the sport,” she said last week.

Life has also provided grounding and a wider lens.

Pegula’s mother, Kim, suffered a serious cardiac arrest in 2022, a situation she discussed in detail in a moving 2023 essay for “The Players’ Tribune.”

The Buffalo native and Florida resident also married businessman Taylor Gahagen in 2021. Gahagen helps “holds down the fort” at home with the couple’s dogs and travels with her when possible. He is with her in Indian Wells.

“I have an amazing support system,” Pegula says.

Despite winning 10 WTA singles titles, achieving a career singles high of No. 3 in 2022 and the No. 1 doubles ranking, Pegula’s low-key demeanor means she flies a bit under the radar.

She’s not one for fashion statements, outlandish antics or attention-seeking initiatives, her joint podcast with close friend Madison Keys notwithstanding.

Instead, Pegula tends to go about her business quietly, relying on a calm temperament and a methodical style that wears opponents down over time.

She gets the job done — the Tim Duncan of the women’s tour.

“She’s just all about lacing them up and competing between the lines, and then trying to be as big an asset as she can to her peers off the court,” says Mark Knowles, the former doubles standout who has shared coaching duties with Mark Merklein since early 2024.

“I think one of her great attributes is she’s very level-headed,” Knowles adds. “She doesn’t get too high, doesn’t get too low.”

Her tennis identity echoes her steadiness.

Instead of bludgeoning opponents with power, the 5-foot-7 Pegula beats them with savvy, steadiness and tactical variety. A careful student of the game, she studies matchups and patrols the court with a composed efficiency that incrementally drains big hitters and outmaneuvers most rivals long before the final score confirms it.

Keys calls that consistency her “superpower.”

“She doesn’t lose matches that she shouldn’t lose,” the 2025 Australian Open champion said this week.

Because of injuries in the early part of her career, Knowles says Pegula might have less wear-and-tear than other players her age. And he and her team have prioritized rest and recovery, which included the decision to skip the tournament in Doha last month following her tiring Australian Open run.

On brand, there was no panic in Pegula after dropping the first set in her two matches so far at Indian Wells. As she’s done all season, she steadied herself to earn three-set wins.

Bucket-list goals remain, however. Chiefly, capturing a Grand Slam title.

Jessica Pegula returns a shot to Jelena Ostapenko during the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells on Monday.

(Matthew Stockman / Getty Images)

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Pegula jokes that she briefly interrupted a run of American female success when she fell in the 2024 U.S. Open final to No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka. But seeing close friend and teenage phenom Keys capture her major in Melbourne last year — after many wondered if her window had passed — hit closer to home.

“I think Madison winning Australia just motivated me even more,” Pegula says.

Although Pegula believes she is among the best hardcourt players in women’s tennis, that confidence hasn’t translated into success in the California desert. She has reached the quarterfinals just once in 10 previous appearances in Indian Wells.

“Why not try and add that one to the resume?” says Knowles, noting that she had never won the title in Dubai until last month. “She’s playing still at a very high level.”

Pegula says the key to keeping things fresh is maintaining her love of the game by continuing to improve and experiment with new ideas, a process that keeps her engaged mentally and eager to compete.

“I’m not afraid to kind of take that risk of changing and working on different things,” she says, “which just keeps my mind working and problem solving.”

For a player who never needed tennis, she remains determined to see how much more it can give her.