OKLAHOMA CITY – Twenty-four members of the USA Softball Junior Women’s National Team (JWNT) kicked off their 2017 season in Oklahoma City, Okla. as the athletes and coaching staff will participate in training camp and exhibition games at the Softball Capital of the World®.   As the team begins preparations for the 2017 World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Junior Women’s World Championship this July 24-30 in Clearwater, Fla., the JWNT will conclude their training camp with five exhibition games June 16-18.

Click here for the roster for the 2017 USA Softball Junior Women’s National Team 

This marks the first time the team has come together since the announcement of the 2017 roster in January following the JWNT Selection Camp.  Set to conduct training throughout the week at the USA Softball Hall of Fame Complex, the Red, White and Blue will participate in five exhibition games against elite Junior Olympic (JO) travel clubs from across the United States: Absolute Blast – Rhinehart, Lady Gators – Jackson, LA VooDoo, South Dakota Renegades and the Texas Bombers.  The U.S. will face the Texas Bombers at 5 p.m. CT on June 16 followed by a 7 p.m. CT game against the South Dakota Renegades.  The team continues exhibition games on Saturday, June 17 with a 3 p.m. CT game against LA VooDoo and a 5 p.m. CT game against Absolute Blast before concluding their schedule on Sunday, June 18 at 9 a.m. against the Lady Gators.

Click here for the complete schedule for the 2017 Junior Women’s Friendlies exhibition series

Led by Head Coach Laura Berg (Oregon State head coach), Trisha Ford (Arizona State head coach), Kristie Fox (UT-Arlington head coach), two-time Olympian Natasha Watley (CSUN director of operations) and three-time Olympian Lori Harrigan-Mack (College of Southern Nevada pitching coach) will serve as assistant coaches for the 2017 USA Softball JWNT.

SCHEDULE ANNOUNCEMENT

The 2017 USA Softball JWNT game schedule for the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Junior Women’s World Championship has been set as the team will look to defend the Gold Medal.  Held July 24-30 at the Eddie C. Moore Sports Complex in Clearwater, Fla., a record 26 nations will be competing at the youth softball flagship event with the Red, White and Blue slated for six pool games before playoffs begin.   

Click here to see the complete schedule for the United States

The 26 teams that will compete are:

Pool A: Chinese Taipei, Guatemala, Italy, Philippines, Turkey, South Africa, USA
Pool B: Australia, Bahamas, Brazil, Israel, Japan, Netherlands, Peru
Pool C: Argentina, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, India, New Zealand, Puerto Rico
Pool D: Canada, China, Great Britain, Ireland, Korea, Mexico

Team USA will open up play against Turkey at 9 a.m. ET on July 24 with remaining pool play games against Chinese Taipei, Guatemala, Italy, Philippines and South Africa.  The U.S. will fight for a top-two seed in their pool as the top two finishers will advance into the Championship round robin, which will be divided into two pools.  The remaining teams in each pool will be split between two placement round divisions.

Currently ranked No. 2 in the world, the U.S. will look to defend their Gold Medal finish at the 2015 WBSC Junior Women’s World Championship, which was held in Oklahoma City, Okla 

— Courtesy of USA Softball

Asad Ayaz, President of Marketing at The Walt Disney Studios, has shared Disney’s latest Chinese Avengers: Endgame poster.

This one features both those who survived Thanos’ Snap and those who were not so lucky.

Original story follows below.

A new Chinese Avengers: Endgame poster has been revealed and it gives us a good look at some of the characters who survived Thanos’ snap, as well as a new Hulkbuster armor.

Via ImpAwards.com, this new poster features our heroes in different poses from the poster that was released alongside the latest trailer, and while we still don’t see the Hulk himself, we do have a new Hulkbuster armor which looks ready for battle.

In addition to the poster, Avengers: Endgame directors Joe and Anthony Russo tweeted out today that the Endgame score is complete and that “one of the greatest highlights of [their] career was getting to work with Alan Silvestri.”

Silvestri, in addition to Endgame, has scored such films as Avengers: Infinity War, Marvel’s The Avengers, and Captain America: The First Avenger. In the tweet, Silvestri and the Russo brothers were joined by the head of Marvel Studios Kevin Feige and executive producer Trinh Tran.

Avengers: Endgame will be released in theaters on April 26, 2019, and we’ve gathered together all the information you need to know in one handy guide.

However, you can also read about how Thanos’ snap almost happened in Avengers: Endgame and how some Marvel fans don’t trust the new Avengers: Endgame trailer, especially after the comments by the Russo brothers that they admit to using footage in trailer not in the movie.

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Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to [email protected].

Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN who can’t wait for this film and needs it to come out already. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. –  Two perfect games and a 16-hit week land Minnesota State senior Coley Ries and Cedarville junior Brianne O’DellLouisville Slugger / NFCA Division II National Pitcher and Player of the Week honors, respectively, for games played April 17-23.

Ries was nearly perfect in three starts, not allowing a base runner over the final 17.1 innings of the week. The right-hander from Eagle Lake, Minn. fanned 44 in 20 innings, did not issue a walk and allowed just two hits for a .032 opponent’s batting average. Those two hits came in the second and third frame of a six-inning shutout over Southwest Minnesota State. She struck out 11 and did not allow a base runner over the final 3.1 innings. Carrying that momentum into the weekend, Ries was perfect in her next two starts against Northern Sun Intercollegiate Athletic Conference foes Northern State and Minnesota State Moorhead. She struck out 15 in a 4-0 triumph over the Wolves and then sat down 18 of 21 Dragons she faced in a 7-0 victory. This marks Ries’ second NFCA weekly honor, earning her first in 2016.

O’Dell extended her hitting streak to 18 games as she recorded at least one hit in all six contests, including a pair of four-hit outings, helping the Yellow Jackets to a 4-2 week. She finished 16-for-21 (.762) with six doubles, a triple, 11 RBI, seven runs and a 1.143 slugging percentage. O’Dell was a perfect 7-for-7 in a mid-week sweep of Ohio Valley, recording four RBI in game one and posting four hits, two doubles and three RBI in the nightcap. In games two and three of a Great Midwest Athletic series against Kentucky Wesleyan, O’Dell was 7-for-8 with three doubles, four runs and three RBI. The Goshen, Ind. native added a triple, RBI and run scored in game one.

Player of the Week
April 26 – Brianne O’Dell (Cedarville)
April 19 – Kylee Moore (West Texas A&M)
April 12 – Shea Ibrahim (West Texas A&M)
April 5 – Taylor Luzzi (University of New Haven)
March 29 – Mariah Jameyson (Texas A&M University-Commerce)
March 22 – Natalie Lalich (Indianapolis)
March 15 – Kailey Green (Missouri Western)
March 8 – Lyndsay Butler (Wayne State University)
March 1 – Ashley Hardin (West Texas A&M)
Feb. 22 – Erika Lutgen (Missouri Southern)
Feb. 15 – Abbey Walters (UNC Pembroke)
Feb. 8 – Tiffany Hollingsworth (Humboldt State)

Pitcher of the Week
April 19 – Taylor Brandts (UVa-Wise)
April 12 – Jayden Chestnut (University of Central Oklahoma)
April 5 – Bridgette Sappington (Rockhurst) & Jessica Yost (Bemidji State)
March 29 – Amanda Houck (West Chester University)
March 22 – Michelle Sorensen (Henderson State)
March 15 – Brandy Marlett (Angelo State)
March 8 – Anna Kasner (Western Washington)
March 1 – Kylee Smith (North Georgia)
Feb. 22 – Ally Marcano (Flagler)
Feb. 15 – Rachel Pence (Florida Tech)
Feb. 8 – Anna Kasner (Western Washington)

Selected Top Performances
Chelsea Hawks, Molloy (ECC Pitcher of the Week)- 3-0, 1.38 ERA, 37 K, 3 BB, .141 opp. BA, Program’s first-ever perfect game against Dominican (14 K); Sydney Ponto, Caldwell– 4-0, 0.23 ERA, 48 K, 5 BB, 30 IP, 2 SHO, .137 opp. BA, Perfect game vs. Goldey-Beacom (9 K); Makinlee Sellevold, Western Washington (GNAC Player of the Week)- .588 (10-for-17), 3 2B, 2 HR, 14 RBI, 6 R, 1.118 SLG; Brandy Marlett, Angelo State (Lone Star Pitcher of the Week)- 3-0, 1.00 ERA, SHO, 37 K, 3 BB, .176 opp. BA; Jenna Lenza, Grand Valley State (GLIAC Player of the Week)- .529 (9-for-17), 3 2B, HR, 8 R, 5 BB, .636 OBP; Samantha Waskowitz, Merrimack (NE 10 Player of the Week)- .588 (10-for-17), 2B, 3 HR (Grand Slam), 7 RBI, 6 R, 4 SB; Allison Lipovsky, Grand Valley State (GLIAC Pitcher of the Week)- 3-0, 2 SHO, 0.64 ERA, 8 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 34 K, .108 opp. BA; Cassidy Wootten, Mercy (ECC Player of the Week)- .571, 3 HR, 9 RBI, 6 R; Chandler Walker, Pfeiffer (Conference Carolina’s Player of the Week)- .462, 2 2B, HR, 9 RBI; Jasmine Harris, Barry (Sunshine State Player of the Week)- .500, 9 H, 5 XBH, 9 RBI, 8 R, 3 BB; Nikole Van Gennep, Eckerd (Sunshine State Pitcher of the Week)- 2-0, 1.00 ERA, SHO, 2 CG, 12 K , 2 BB, 6 H, 14 IP; Ashley Mills, St. Mary’s (Heartland Pitcher of the Week)- 3-0, 0.00 ERA, 0 R, 5 H, 11 K, 16.1 IP.

The world’s agriculture producers are not growing enough fruits and vegetables to feed the global population a healthy diet, according to new Canadian-led research.

The study, published this week in the scientific journal PLOS ONE, indicates that agricultural practices aren’t keeping step with prevailing dietary wisdom, greatly overproducing grains, sugars and fats while growing three times less produce than what nutritionists suggest everyone should consume.

The study, led by researchers at the University of Guelph and completed by a team of more than a dozen scientists in Canada and the United Kingdom, also stressed that a focus on growing more fruits and vegetables should go hand in hand with reduced reliance on livestock production in order to limit the agriculture sector’s overall impact on the environment.

Not yielding enough

“We just wanted to ask the question, ‘is what we’re producing globally matched with what nutritionists recommend,” said University of Guelph professor Evan Fraser, who co-authored the study led by Krishna KC, a researcher at the school. “The answer is no.”

The study contrasted United Nations agriculture production data from 2011 with the nutritional guidelines set out in the Harvard Healthy Eating Plate or HHEP model, an internationally recognized blueprint for consuming a healthy diet.

The study said the HHEP advises that 50 per cent of a person’s diet should be comprised of fruits and vegetables, with 25 per cent dedicated to whole grains and the last quarter reserved for a combination of protein, fat and dairy. The study notes that the Canadian Food Guide, updated last year, calls for 27 per cent less produce, 34 per cent less protein and 60 per cent more dairy than the HHEP model.

In order to feed everyone according to the HHEP’s guidelines, the study found global agriculture would have to produce 15 servings of fruits and vegetables per person per day. The 2011 data, however, suggested current practices were yielding just five servings.

The study also documented a smaller shortfall in protein production, with three servings per person per day produced compared to the five recommended by the HHEP.

Fraser said other food groups, however, were being grossly overproduced.

The study said agriculture should produce one serving each of oil and dairy, zero servings of sugar, and eight servings of whole grains per person per day to keep the population in compliance with the HHEP.

Instead, it found 2011 agricultural practices were yielding three servings of oil and fat, four of sugar, one of milk and a whopping 12 servings of grains per day.

Fraser said there are numerous, complex reasons for much of the overproduction, noting that people in impoverished countries often focus on growing grains because they offer a cheap, easy source of calories.

But he said government subsidies and industry lobbies also played a significant role, citing a long-standing, multibillion-dollar U.S. government subsidy for corn growers as one example.

Fraser said the current crop-to-diet ratios play a direct role in levels of diabetes, obesity and other conditions strongly tied to diet, adding the shortfalls and their ensuing results would only intensify as the earth’s population continues to climb.

Nor is the solution as simple as merely growing more fruits and vegetables.

Fraser said that if the agriculture industry immediately corrected its imbalances and shifted its production priorities to align with the HHEP, a new problem would emerge.

He projected doing so would free up 51 million hectares of arable land globally, but the total amount of land used for agriculture would jump by 407 million hectares thanks in part to increased availability of pasture for livestock. Greenhouse gas emissions would also rise as a result, the study predicted.

Fraser and the team of researchers said a focus on growing more fruits and vegetables should be accompanied by reduced reliance on livestock in order to keep the global food supply sustainable.

Fraser said he “cannot imagine an agro-ecosystem without animals in it,” arguing animals play a role in cycling nutrients in the environment and preserving the quality of certain types of land.

But he said the best path forward would couple a significant increase in fruit and vegetable production with a shift away from animal protein.

“If we want to move forward to feed the future … and we want to be healthier and we don’t want to increase the amount of land that agriculture uses, we both have to shift to a Harvard Healthy Eating Plate model and we have to shift our protein consumption away from livestock-based to plant-based,” he said.

Warning! Spoilers for exclusive Godzilla: King of the Monsters footage at WonderCon 2019 below. 

In a packed arena at the Anaheim Convention Center, fans eagerly awaited Warner Bros. presentation for its upcoming slate of films. And while there were cheers and applause for Annabelle Comes Home (check out the new trailer) and Shazam! (read our review), the Godzilla footage we saw was… “Something special.” Those words were spoken by Godzilla: King of the Monsters director Michael Dougherty before the footage played. And he was right!

Below is a recap of the exclusive footage that we saw at WonderCon 2019.

The Intro

The trailer begins with Admiral William Stenz (portrayed by David Strathairn) talking over a montage of mass destruction, as several monsters decimate cities all over the world. Stenz says that every continent is under attack. The chaos looks biblical, which Dougherty later told the audience was intentional. “We want to put the ‘god’ back in Godzilla,” the director said. That scene in a previous trailer where you see Ghidorah perched on top of a volcano “was inspired by the Book of Revelation,” Dougherty said.

After the intro concluded, the footage shifted to Monarch Outpost 32 in Antartica (according to the official movie marketing site MonarchSciences.com). This is where Monster Zero (aka Ghidorah) is still frozen. Unfortunately for all of the people at the base, that reality is about to change.

Ghidorah vs. Godzilla

At Outpost 32, Dr. Emma Russell (played by Vera Farmiga) activates what looks to explosives or heating devices that break Ghidorah out of his icy shell. Emma’s daughter, Madison (Stranger Things’ Millie Bobby Brown), is also there. When the ice breaks, all hell breaks loose and the soldiers and scientists can only look on in horror and try to run for their lives. When Ghidorah emerges, he uses his bio-electrical energy to kill some of the bystanders. Dr. Russell and her daughter escape in a helicopter, but before they can breathe a sigh of relief, a blip on the helicopter’s radar shows something very big coming towards them. You guessed it, it’s Godzilla.

Godzilla emerges out of the ice with a thunderous roar. The two titans stare each other down for a few seconds before the big battle begins. We only got a glimpse at what’s in store for their battle, but from the limited footage we saw, it looks bonkers.

The Conclusion

The footage went back to a montage of the monsters wreaking havoc on civilization, but this time, instead of Strathairn’s deep-soothing voice, operatic vocals were used to accentuate the harrowing tone. More fast cuts of Godzilla vs. Ghidorah were shown, including shots of Mothra and Rodan in action. It was almost too much to take in, but no one was complaining.

The movie is still weeks away, but IGN has you covered with our coverage from the set of Godzilla: King of the Monsters, where the creators talk about how the “pay-per-view” of Godzilla battles is coming.

Godzilla: King of the Monsters hits theaters on May 31, 2019.