The Seawanhaka Sports Rundown is a weekly roundup of five stories that examine developments in sports news at the local, state, national and international levels.
By: CHASE GOODMAN / STAFF WRITER
WrestleMania 40 Takes Over Philadelphia This Weekend
On Saturday April 6th, The 40th anniversary of WrestleMania will kick off and it looks like the fans will be in for a real treat. The biggest wrestling event in the world is headlined by a rematch between back-to-back Royal Rumble winner, Cody Rhodes, who looks to avenge his previous loss at last year’s Showcase of the Immortals against WWE Champion, Roman Reigns.
This has all the makings for a legendary matchup. Reigns will be accompanied by his faction, “The Bloodline,” which recently picked up its newest member, ten time World Champion, The Rock. On last week’s episode of Monday Night Raw, The Rock brutality assaulted Rhodes, continuing the onslaught even after Raw went off the air.
Ahead of the title rematch on Night 2, Rhodes will team up with World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins in a tag team match against Reigns and The Rock. The match, which will main event Night 1, is crucial to the outcome of the title match because if Rhodes and Rollins win, all Bloodline members will be banned from ringside for the WWE Championship match. However, if Reigns and The Rock win, the title match will be held under “Bloodline Rules.”
Complementing the stacked main events, Drew McIntryre will challenge Seth Rollins for the World Heavyweight Championship and Jey Uso will take on Jimmy Uso in a classic brother vs brother showdown. In addition, Gunther looks to defend his Intercontinental Championship against Sami Zayn, while Logan Paul will defend his United States Championship in a triple threat match against Kevin Owens and Randy Orton.
The Shoe Fits? NC State Wolfpack Marches Into The Final Four
In an in-state rivalry matchup, 11-seed NC State took down 4-seed Duke 76-64 to advance to the Final Four for the first time since 1983. NC State came into this tournament heavily written off. In fact, according to March Madness brackets filled out by millions of people, only 1.94% of brackets predicted NC State to reach the Final Four.
The Wolfpack dealt with mediocre conference play this season. Having gone 9-11 in the ACC, which included a four game losing streak ahead of the conference tournament, an uninspiring 10-seed didn’t leave many people impressed. What did impress people, though, was NC State winning all five games in five days to win the ACC Tournament and an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. Two of these victories included wins over ACC Regular Season Champions North Carolina and the same team they would beat to win the South Region, Duke.
Duke were obvious favorites entering this game as many bettors and fans figured that the Blue Devils would avenge their tournament loss and make the Final Four for the first time since 2015. At one point, Duke held a nine point lead on the brink of halftime. That would not shake NC State as they scored 55 points in the second half to beat Duke once again.
The face of the Wolfpack, DJ Burns Jr, scored a season high 29 points to go along with teammate and fellow DJ, DJ Horne’s 20 points in the victory. NC State will take on 1-seed and Midwest regional winners, Purdue on Saturday, April 6.
The 2024 MLB Season Starts
We are underway with a brand new baseball season and after an interesting offseason, it will be a treat to see how this new season of America’s favorite pastime unfolds. Half of the teams in the league hosted their home openers this past weekend which have either given fans hope or made them brace for impact.
Excitement arose in Baltimore with new Orioles ace, Corbin Burnes. Burnes shut down the Angels with six strong innings of one run ball with 11 strikeouts en route to a blowout 11-3 Orioles win. Last season, the Orioles finished as the best team in the American League but were quickly swept in the ALDS by the eventual World Series Champions, the Texas Rangers. Pitching was a concern for Baltimore so they traded for the former Milwaukee Brewers ace to address that need. Burnes is a three time All Star and a 2021 NL Cy Young Winner.
Another AL East team had its new star thrive as well. In his first series with the New York Yankees, Juan Soto faced a familiar foe in the Houston Astros. In 2019, a then 19 year old Soto helped the Washington Nationals beat the Astros in seven games in the World Series. In Houston, Soto batted .529 with an emphatic home run and four RBIs. Soto played a large role in the Yankees’ sweep of the Astros, where he saved the first game with his stellar defense, throwing out Astros Shortstop Mauricio Dubón in the bottom of the ninth inning.
Only four teams have started out perfect in the new season, while four teams have yet to pick up their first win. There is plenty of room for improvement as the season rolls on.
Jonathan Quick Sets NHL Record for Most Wins By an American Goalie
The New York Rangers are showing why there is “No Quit In NY,” as they picked up their 50th victory of the season against the Arizona Coyotes. This matchup was high scoring, featuring 13 goals scored between the two teams. In the end, the Rangers came out on top, led by Alexis Lafrenière, who had a hat trick and two assists, alongside Artemi Panarin with a goal and a hat trick of assists.
The win is monumental for Rangers Goalie Johnathan Quick, who picked up his 392nd career victory to set a new record for most victories by an American born goalie. Quick is in his first season with the Rangers, having been signed as a free agent. He currently serves as the backup goalie to two time All-Star and Vezina Trophy winner, Igor Shesterkin.
Quick is best remembered for his heroic time with the Los Angeles Kings from 2008 to 2023. With the Kings, Quick won two Stanley Cups, made three All Star appearances and received the Conn Smythe Trophy for most valuable player in the playoffs for his incredible performance in the 2012 playoffs. His Kings career ended with a midseason trade to the Las Vegas Golden Knights last season but fortunately for Quick, he won another Stanley Cup as the Golden Knights beat the Florida Panthers in five games.
Haason Reddick Traded To The Jets
Jets fans had already been buzzing over the recent signings made in the past couple of weeks. Whether it was bolstering their offensive line by signing All Pro Tackle Tyron Smith and two time National Champion Guard John Simpson or signing Wide Receiver Mike Williams to go along with Garrett Wilson, Jets fans' hopes of finally making the playoffs were heightened.
One major loss for the Jets was edge Bryce Huff departing in free agency to the Philadelphia Eagles on a three year contract worth $51.1 million. This move left linebacker Haason Reddick expendable. With the Jets needing to find a replacement, they sent a conditional 3rd round pick to the Eagles for Reddick.
Reddick was taken with the 13th overall pick in the 2017 NFL draft by the Arizona Cardinals and was highly considered the best linebacker prospect. He didn’t see consistent playing time until his fourth season in the league, where he finished with 12.5 sacks, 63 tackles and a career best 15 tackles for a loss.
After spending the 2021-22 season with the Carolina Panthers where he had another double digit sack season, he signed where his career truly blossomed. With the Eagles, he made the Pro Bowl twice and even made the Second Team All Pro in 2022.
Just two seasons removed from a career high 16 sack season, Reddick is joining a star-studded Jets defense including cornerbacks Sauce Gardener and DJ Reed, linebacker CJ Mosley and the Williams Brothers, linebacker Quincy and defensive tackle Quinnen. The Jets defense finished third in the league in total yards allowed, second in passing yards allowed and finished in the top ten in sacks. If one thing can be made certain about this transaction, an already scary defense just got even scarier.