Jacob Ballard, BYU Swimming & Diving

A 2020 graduate of Central Valley High (Spokane Valley) who swam for a handful of years for Sandpoint High and the Sandpoint Sharks, Jacob was a part of the Cougars' 800-meter free relay (7:38.60) that placed second out of four teams at the USA Swimming TYR Summer Long Course Championships held Tuesday, Aug. 5, through Friday, Aug. 8, at the William Woollett Jr. Aquatics Center in Irvine, Calif. Along with teammates Darwin Anderson, Payton Plumb, and Max Kleinman, he also helped BYU to a fifth-place finish out of seven teams in the 400-meter medley relay (3:48.48). Ballard rounded out the competition with the 200-meter fly, placing 13th with a time of 2:05.21 in the prelims and 2:05.98 in the finals.

Emma Thielbahr, University of Denver Soccer

A 2022 graduate of IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) who also played soccer for Sandpoint High, Emma played a team-high 156 minutes during a pair of preseason exhibition matches against No. 25 Texas Tech and Northern Colorado last week. She played in all 90 minutes in the matchup with the Red Raiders and 66 of 84 minutes in the matchup against the Bears, which was suspended due to lightning. The former two-time Inland Empire All-League selection is set to see significant time this season after a breakthrough redshirt sophomore campaign a year ago. As a defender, she played in all 19 matches and saw a team-high 1,698 minutes in 2024, being named to the Summit League All-Newcomer Team for her efforts. The Lady Pioneers open the season Thursday at Air Force.

    Emma Thielbahr