Arizona

College World Series: Arizona baseball has shown ability to bounce back from losses

Published

10 months ago

June 14, 2025

College World Series: Arizona baseball has shown ability to bounce back from losses

OMAHA, Neb.—Getting to the College World Series requires winning a bunch of games against very good opponents. The eight qualifiers have shown their ability to navigate two weekends’ worth of tough competition with little or no blemishes.

But once the CWS starts, someone has to lose. Arizona was one of the vanquished, falling 7-4 to Coastal Carolina in Friday’s series opener, dropping it into the loser’s bracket and one setback away from elimination.

“It’s a familiar feeling being at the bottom,” shortstop Mason White said.

Arizona (44-20) will play Louisville (40-23) at 11 a.m. PT Sunday, the first step in what would be a tremendously steep climb to stay alive in the series. The Wildcats would have to win four in a row to reach the championship series, with three of those on consecutive days.

It’s not impossible, as several CWS teams have accomplished this feat. Oregon State won the 2018 national title after losing its opener, as did South Carolina in 2010 and a pair of UA national champions. The 1976 and 1980 squads started 0-1 only to run off five in a row to earn the program’s first two titles.

None of those were this year’s Arizona team, but the current squad has shown the ability to “flush” losses quickly. Last weekend the Wildcats were thumped 18-2 at North Carolina in the first game of the Super Regionals and then came back to win the next two, both of which they trailed in the 7^th inning or later.

That was the most recent example, while there were several during the regular season.

“They’ve done it all year,” UA coach Chip Hale said. “We’ve lost Fridays and won the series.”

The Wildcats lost 13-4 at Houston on May 15, a fifth loss in six games that eliminated any chance to host a regional and got them close to the NCAA Tournament bubble. But a day later they won 14-6, the start of an 8-game win streak that included perfection at the Big 12 Tournament (which was a trio of single-elimination games) and the Eugene Regional.

Arizona also won series against Oklahoma State and BYU after dropping the opener.

“I think this is a group we want to do it with,” sophomore pitcher Owen Kramkowski said. “This is all the guys we feel most confident doing it with. We’ve done it before, so it’s just taking it pitch by pitch and knowing it can happen. If we trust it it will happen. So just trusting everyone we’ve got with us is the biggest part right now.”

Arizona has lost its College World Series opener nine previous times, most recently in 2021. The Wildcats went 0-2 that year, but in four of the previous instances they’ve won at least one game after that initial loss.

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Arizona

Michigan defenseman Hunter Hady transfers to Arizona State

Published

1 hour ago

April 22, 2026

Press Room

Michigan defenseman Hunter Hady transfers to Arizona State

Former Michigan sophomore defenseman Hunter Hady has transferred to Arizona State, according to an announcement on the team Instagram. The 6’4’’ defenseman will join the Sun Devils for his junior year.

Hady played just two games on Michigan’s blue line this season against Harvard in November and against Bentley in the NCAA regional semifinal. He recorded a secondary assist on junior forward Garrett Schifsky’s goal in the Bentley game for his only point of the year.

Hady’s contributions were more substantive in his freshman season — though his point total remained the same. He played 32 games for Michigan as the team struggled to find defensive pairings that worked throughout the year. Hady was a reliable blue line presence who could be counted on to provide solid defense and not make significant errors.

Prior to playing for the Wolverines, Hady spent three seasons with the Chicago Steel of the USHL, where he played with current Michigan teammates senior defenseman Luca Fantilli, sophomore forward Michael Hage and junior forward Jayden Perron, among others. He joins an Arizona State team that lost ground in the NCHC this season and is looking to reach a Frozen Four for the second time in its program history.

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Arizona

Pilot Jessica Cox to be inducted into Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame

Published

14 hours ago

April 21, 2026

Press Room

Pilot Jessica Cox to be inducted into Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Jessica Cox, the world’s first licensed armless airplane pilot and a leading advocate for disability-led innovation, will be inducted into the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame on Friday, May 15, 2026. The induction ceremony, hosted by Rightfooted Foundation International in collaboration with the Pima Air & Space Museum, will take place at the museum from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Cox’s recognition honors both her historic achievement in flight and her ongoing work expanding access and opportunity for people without arms. Through her leadership at Rightfooted Foundation International (RFI), Cox has championed mentorship, education and practical innovations that help aspiring pilots and families reimagine what’s possible in aviation and beyond.

“Saying I’m proud of her can’t fully encompass what I feel,” said Patrick Chamberlain, Cox’s husband and RFI’s Inclusive Engineering Director. “Jessica’s induction into the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame recognizes both what she has accomplished and what she continues to do. She has helped shed light on the many pilots with disabilities in aviation and shown the world that disability does not mean inability.”

The 2026 induction class also honors two military aviators: Frank Schiel Jr., a Phoenix-born Flying Tigers veteran credited with seven enemy aircraft destroyed in World War II, and James K. Johnson, a Phoenix-born U.S. Air Force colonel and Korean War double ace credited with ten aerial victories.

The Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame, established in 1985 and housed in the Dorothy Finley Aerospace Gallery at Pima Air & Space Museum, pays tribute to Arizonans who have made significant contributions to aviation and aerospace history.

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2026 NFL draft: 3 potential trades back from No. 3 for Arizona Cardinals

Published

1 day ago

April 21, 2026

Press Room

2026 NFL draft: 3 potential trades back from No. 3 for Arizona Cardinals

Since the Arizona Cardinals want to trade back from the No. 3 picks, here are three deals that could work.

The Arizona Cardinals have the third pick in the 2026 NFL draft, which begins this week on Thursday. All the reports coming out are saying that they want to trade out of the pick to acquire more draft picks.

But what does a trade look like and who could be involved?

The Kansas City Chiefs are involved in talks at some level. ESPN’s Adam Schefter expects trade talks to heat up this week.

NFL teams use a variation of a trade value chart when it comes to draft picks. Now, what a team actually is willing to give up can be influenced by potential competition with other teams, but we can’t count on that.

Here is the general trade value chart teams use.

Here are some potential deals that could be done.

Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs have two first-round picks, which would be appealing to the Cardinals, who reportedly want to make a move for quarterback Ty Simpson, and the 29th pick might be just the spot to get him.

The third overall pick is worth 514 points.

The Chiefs’ picks at No. 9 (387 points) and No. 29 (202 points) together are worth 589.

To make up the difference, the Cardinals could give up No. 65 (78 points) for a total of 592 points.

One deal could be:

Cardinals receive get No. 9 and No. 29 (589 points)
Chiefs receive No. 3 and No. 65 (592 points)

Another could be:

Cardinals receive No. 9, No. 29, No. 74 and 2027 third-round pick (653 points + value of future third-round pick, which is 36-78 points)
Chiefs receive No. 3 and No. 34 (689 points)

The Cardinals keep their third-round pick and the Chiefs essentially move back five spots from No. 29.

Dallas Cowboys

The Cowboys have the 12th and 20th picks but no pick in the second round.

Pick No. 12 is 347 points and No. 20 is 269 for a total of 616.

This deal is close:

Cardinals receive No. 12, No. 20 (616 points)
Cowboys receive No. 3, No. 65 (592 points)

New Orleans Saints

The Saints are perhaps a dark horse to move up, although they do not have two first-round picks. They have the No. 8 pick, worth 406 points. Their second-round pick, at No. 42, is worth 142 points.

This deal could work:

Cardinals receive No. 8, No. 42 (548 points)
Saints receive No. 3, No. 104 (547 points)

Then the Cardinals could use their two second-round picks to then move back into Round 1 to get Ty Simpson.

They could trade No. 34, No. 42 and No. 65 (395 points) for No. 28, No. 38 and No. 106 (398 total points).

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

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