BASEBALL
The Norfolk Tides announced their 2025 schedule Monday, and it will start with a home game March 28 against Durham.
The Tides will play 150 games, 75 at home, for their 56th Triple-A season and 32nd at Harbor Park.
The Tides will play nine opponents at Harbor Park: Durham, Memphis, Gwinnett, Nashville and Jacksonville will visit twice, and Lehigh Valley, Syracuse, Charlotte and Rochester will visit once. Most series will remain six games.
Former Tides manager Cubbage dies
Charlottesville native Mike Cubbage, a former baseball and football player for the Virginia Cavaliers who spent 50 years in pro baseball, including managing the Tidewater Tides from 1987-89, died Saturday. He was 74.
He retired from baseball in 2020, following a final season disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic response.
The Washington Nationals held a moment of silence Sunday for Cubbage, a 2020 inductee to the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame. He had been a scout for them, winning a World Series ring for 2019.
He was drafted from Charlottesville’s Lane High by the Washington Senators in 1968, but went to UVA, where he played football and baseball. Cubbage became the starting quarterback as a sophomore but suffered an elbow injury, then concentrated his focus to baseball.
He was drafted again in 1971 by the Senators and spent three years in the minors before making his MLB debut with Texas in 1974. Cubbage played eight seasons in the big leagues, spending time with the Rangers, Minnesota Twins and New York Mets. A left-handed-hitting infielder, he had a .258 average, 34 home runs and 251 RBIs.
Cubbage coached and managed in the big leagues, finally working in scouting. In 1991, he was 7-5 in the Mets’ interim manager after Bud Harrelson was fired.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Tribe ranked 16th in coaches’ poll
William & Mary garnered the No. 16 national ranking in the FCS coaches’ preseason poll announced Monday. The Tribe previously was ranked 15th by Stats Perform and 17th by Hero Sports.
Richmond was ranked 12th by the coaches. The Coastal Athletic Association teams ranked besides UR and W&M were No. 6 Villanova and No. 14 Albany.
Defending champion South Dakota State was a unanimous No. 1 selection, followed by North Dakota State, Montana and Montana State.
ODU LB, Indian River grad on Bednarik list
Old Dominion linebacker Jason Henderson, Virginia Tech lineman Antwaun Powell-Ryland (an Indian River High graduate) and Virginia safety Jonas Sanker were named to the Bednarik Award Watch List, the Maxwell Football Club announced. The award goes to the outstanding defensive player in college football.
According to ODU, Henderson is the only returning FBS All-American this season.
Other players on the list include East Carolina cornerback Shavon Revel and Navy linebacker Colin Ramos.
UVA WR to miss start of year
Virginia wide receiver JR Wilson will miss the start of the season after undergoing a procedure on his knee, according to Charlottesville Daily Progress writer Greg Madia.
COLLEGE FIELD HOCKEY
Tribe shares second in CAA poll
William & Mary shared the No. 2 spot in the CAA preseason poll with Drexel, while Monmouth was predicted No. 1. Northeastern, Delaware, Hofstra and Towson rounded out the poll from fourth through seventh.
The Preseason All-CAA team included W&M goalkeeper Maddie George, a graduate student from Chesapeake, and Tribe midfielder Pyper Friedman.
Tribe forward Josie Mae Gruendel received honorable mention.
