Adonis Lattimore, a Virginia high schooler born with no right leg and a left leg that ends at his thigh, took home a state wrestling championship—a shock to everyone except him.

“Really if you work hard, you can do anything—even win a state championship without legs,” the Landstown High School senior said.

Lattimore, who also has only one finger on his right hand, won first place in the Virginia High School League Class 6, 106-pound weight class at the Virginia Beach Sports Center Saturday. He was 32-7 this season.

“Amazing,” Landstown coach James Sanderlin said. “He did all the work. I just get to be a part of the journey. It’s an amazing feeling to watch him do it and have the support of the crowd. It was awesome. He’s a hard-working young man. I’m just speechless.”

Lattimore was a regional qualifier as a freshman but didn’t make it far, then missed the tournament as a sophomore. COVID-19 canceled wrestling altogether last year.

“I’ve been dreaming of this since I knew what it was, and to finally have it happen is just—I don’t know how to explain it,” Lattimore said.

One of the greatest boxers to fight in the ring, Pernell Whitaker, was hit by a car in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and was killed. The 55-year-old southpaw is remarked as one of the best boxers in history.

According to FOX News, the driver stayed at the scene, saying they didn’t see Whitaker when he was walking on the street.

“I guess he was wearing dark clothes, the road was dark and the driver didn’t see him,”  Devon Whitaker, son of Pernell, told the Virginian-Pilot. “That all I can say about him, I can’t really say how I’m feeling because I’m feeling shocked. I’m still trying to process everything that’s going on. But he was a cool guy.”

30 SPORTS FIGURES WHO DIED IN 2018 – TRIBUTE SLIDESHOW 

Police received an emergency call late on Sunday night, when officers located the man who was hit by the vehicle, he was found dead at the scene.

“When officers arrived on scene they located an adult male victim who had been hit by a vehicle. The victim succumbed to his injuries on the scene,” said L.M. Bauder, the Virginia Beach Police Department spokesman, according to ESPN.”The driver of the vehicle remained on scene with police.”

Whitaker was placed in the Boxing Hall of Fame 13 years ago, and was known for winning world titles in four different weight classes. He thrived in the late 80s and early 90s, winning a lightweight world championship, one junior welterweight and welterweight championship, and a junior middleweight championship. He was regarded as one of the best defensive boxers of his generation, tiring out opponents and constantly making them miss.

“I loved PW and he loved me — there was no doubt,” Kathy Duva, the Main Events promoter who was in charge of promoting Whitaker through the entirety of his career, said according to ESPN. “He was this person who was only comfortable in the ring. He had demons but when he was in the ring that was when he was in control and when he was happy and when he was the very best at what he did, and he wanted to show that to everybody.”

The University of Virginia men’s basketball team has declined an invitation to attend the White House and meet President Donald Trump after winning the 2019 NCAA Championship, it was announced Friday.

UVA’s coach, Tony Bennett, tweeted that the team wouldn’t attend the capital. On the UVA Twitter account, he wrote: “We have received inquiries about a visit to the White House. With several players either pursuing pro opportunities or moving on from UVA, it would be difficult, if not impossible to get everyone back together. We would have to respectfully decline an invitation.”

UVA beat Texas Tech in April to win its first NCAA men’s championship. Multiple pundits came out in support of the move, most notably former 2016 U.S. Vice Presidential candidate Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Virginia). Kaine tweeted: “UVA b-ball is built on 5 pillars: Humility, Passion, Unity, Servanthood, Thankfulness. Trump has 3 pillars: I, Me, Mine. Good call Hoos!”

30 SPORTS FIGURES WHO DIED IN 2018 – TRIBUTE SLIDESHOW  

During Trump’s tenure, White House visits have become anything but a sure thing, especially compared to how they were under Barack Obama. Previous NCAA basketball champs Villanova and North Carolina also declined to visit Trump’s White House.

In January, Clemson‘s visit to the White House became a spectacle after Trump served their football team fast food due to the government shutdown. Trump’s comments about the white supremacist rally in August 2017 in Charlottesville — where the University of Virginia is located — which recently resurfaced after the president defended himself, also likely impacted the Cavaliers’ decision to not visit the White House.

In pro sports, the Golden State Warriors declining a White House visit in 2018 sent the NBA and the President into an uproar. The Boston Red Sox would do the same this year. Many players on the Philadelphia Eagles also refused to visit the White House after winning the Super Bowl last year.

Virginia made history on Monday night for the second year in a row. This time, it was much sweeter.

After becoming the first-ever No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 16 seed in NCAA Tournament history, they were crushed. Virginia Cavaliers star Kyle Guy had no answers about the team’s philosophy, its heart and its legitimacy. All that loss did was expose those.

“I try to use every single experience I’ve been through to help me through hard times or good times or any times,” Guy said. “I think that UMBC is the greatest life lesson I’ve ever learned.”

Virginia Wins NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship Game

But in it, the Cavaliers found resolve. They won their first-ever National Championship.

On Monday in Minneapolis, Virginia answered any questions its critics had. They ended this year in the final round. More importantly, they won against the Texas Tech Red Raiders, 85-77. It took an overtime performance as well as a 12-second comeback but still, it was their bus that had the custom wrapping reading “2019 National Champions” on it.

30 SPORTS FIGURES WHO DIED IN 2018 – TRIBUTE SLIDESHOW

That’s not to say that their fans ever expected it. The Cavaliers put awe into the hearts of their fans and probably caused heart attacks in a few. They averaged a 7.5-point margin of victory, the third smallest for any winner since the field expanded in 1985 and the smallest by any No. 1 seed. Three of their six games came down to the final possession in regulation as well. Braxton Key blocked a Texas Tech jumper as time expired to force overtime and a few days earlier, Guy hit three free throws in the final seconds of the Final Four.

Guy scored 24 points and grabbed 3 rebounds in the game. De’Andre Hunter was good for 27 points and 9 rebounds as well as the game-tying three-pointer with 12 seconds left. He pushed himself up a few mock draft boards with his performance. Head coach Tony Bennett proved that his slow-tempo offense, ranked 316th or lower, can win big.

Most importantly, the Cavaliers avenged the pain of last year’s tournament the best way possible, with a win this year.

Virginia Tech‘s Buzz Williams will be the new Texas A&M coach. Virginia Tech announced the news in an official press release on Wednesday that Williams will be accepting the same position in College Station.

Coach buzz williams returns to Texas A&M

30 SPORTS FIGURES WHO DIED IN 2018 – TRIBUTE SLIDESHOW

They’re had been rumors for a while now spectating who could be the new coach for the Texas A&M. Coach Williams name was twirled into the rumors for a while now, but as we can see all for good reason.

Not many know this but Williams has a strong career of coaching being a part of several different teams and having strong seasons whether he was at. At Marquette, Williams was able to go to the NCAA tourney 5 of 6 seasons at and was able to do what no coach has done at Virginia Tech yet — been successful. Williams adds on to his impressive resume by having took the Hokies to 3 straight NCAA tourneys. Who knows how long his tenure at Texas A&M lasts.

Coach Williams is known for getting big moments out of his players and being able to bring his team together. After suffering a tough loss from tournament favorite Duke, the players and coaches at Texas Tech joined in a prayer to end the season. In the video you can see the players passion, and how they were able to come together as a team but still ended up falling short.

The Duke Blue Devils that field Zion WIlliamson, Cam Reddish and RJ Barrett are the heaviest favorites to win the 2019NCAA Championship since the 2014-2015 Kentucky Wildcats.

Blue Devils Faves To Win March Madness 2019

That team, led by Karl-Anthony Towns, Devin Booker and Willie Cauley-Stein, went undefeated in the regular season before falling in the final four to No. 3 Wisconsin.

If the Blue Devils don’t come out of March Madness as champions, billions of dollars will be won by bookmakers and millions of brackets will be busted. More money was bet on the school to win the national title than any other team across the nation this season. Roughly one-in-five bets, 19%, bet on the NCAA Championship at William Hill U.S. sportsbooks is on Zion and company.

Duke is seeded as No. 1 in the East region. Multiple sportsbooks have them at 2-1 odds. However, the Kentucky team was near to even odds before they bowed out prior to the national championship game.

Fellow No. 1 seeds Virginia, Gonzaga and North Carolina are all close to Duke in the odds. Virginia, who last year made history by being the first No. 1 seed to be eliminated in the first round, has 6-1 odds. Gonzaga and the Tarheels both are listed at 8-1. After those four, odds jump up into double digits. Kentucky, Michigan, Michigan State and Tennessee make up strong dark horse teams.

30 SPORTS FIGURES WHO DIED IN 2018 – TRIBUTE SLIDESHOW

However, if Virginia does win this year, Vegas will pay out heavily. In January, MGM Sportsbooks took a “near six-figure” bet on the Cavaliers to win the title. At the time, the team had 12-1 odds.

“Virginia is really the only bomb we’re facing,” Jay Rood, MGM vice president of risk, told ESPN.

ESPN reports similar trends. In the 1.3 million completed brackets on their website, close to 54% of entries picked Duke as the winner. North Carolina was the second-most popular choice, picked to win it all in 11.5% of brackets.

ACC winners Virginia obtained the top seed in the NCAA men’s basketball tourney draw Sunday evening.

NCAA Tournament 2018 Preview

The Cavaliers are thus the favorites to reach their first Final Four in 34 years. Virginia defeated North Carolina 71-63 on Saturday to win the ACC title and finish 31-2. The other top-seeded teams this year are Big East champions Villanova; Big 12 regular season and tournament champions Kansas; and Big East regular season champions Xavier.

Arizona State, Syracuse and Oklahoma also made the cut. Baylor, Louisville and Oklahoma State didn’t make it, and Notre Dame was the last team left out of the field.

St. Mary’s also missed out despite boasting a 28-5 record.

Defending national champions North Carolina earned the No. 2 seed in the West and will open against first-time Tournament entrants Lipscomb in Charlotte on Friday. The Tar Heels are 33-1 in NCAA tournament games in North Carolina, their only loss having come in 1979.

The tournament starts Tuesday with first-round games in Dayton, with UCLA facing St. Bonaventure. Arizona State and Syracuse will play each other Wednesday.

The Midwest region features top seed Kansas, No. 2 seed Duke, and No. 3 seed Michigan State — all of whom were ranked in the top 4 in the Associated Press poll.

The Final Four will be March 31 and the championship game will be held April 2.

Several college basketball teams, of course, are still facing scrutiny from the FBI, who is investigating said programs for illegal recruiting tactics and other corruption charges relating to payments to players and their families, and bribing officials and advertisement executives.

Here is the full tournament bracket for March Madness 2018:

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NEW YORK, NY – MARCH 11: Kris Jenkins #2 of the Villanova Wildcats drives to the basket against Cole Huff #13 of the Creighton Bluejays during the Big East Basketball Tournament – Championship Game at Madison Square Garden on March 11, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)

After an extremely lengthy tournament, yesterday the College World Series officially concluded with the deciding game three between Virginia and Vanderbilt. And in miraculous fashion, Virginia overcame a 1-0 series deficit to defeat Vanderbilt in game three and take home their first NCAA baseball championship.

Virginia Wins College World Series

Virginia has had a long and arduous journey to the finals. A young team dealing with a lot of injuries, they were able to battle through adversity for the school’s first national championship. Their 41-24 record (15-15 in ACC play) displays a group that simply got hot at the right time, which has started to become a staple in the CWS: Virginia is the fourth champion in a row to not enter the tournament seeded and the tenth over the last twelve years, according to ESPN.

Best of all, their improbable run, which gave the ACC their first champion since Wake Forest in 1955, was concluded with yet another come from behind victory: they have done this in seven of their ten postseason victories. And the icing on the cake has to be defeating Vanderbilt, who defeated them in the CWS finals just a year ago.

Many expected Vanderbilt to close the series after their round opening 5-1 blowout, but Virginia battled back with some fantastic pitching. The combined effort of Adam Haseley and Josh Sborz shutout the Commodores in game two and a wonderfully mature seven-inning performance from Brandon Waddell secured last night’s 4-2 victory.

In fact, when Vanderbilt jumped on Waddell early, scoring two runs in the first inning, many expected a long day for the junior. But after the first, he buckled down and allowed only two more hits from the very strong Vandy bats. And teammate Pavin Smith did the rest, homering in the fourth to even the game and driving in a total of three runs on the day.

Simply, this win capped a surprising turnaround season for the Cavaliers, who nearly missed their conference tournament a few months ago.

Two familiar foes will go at it in Omaha these next three nights for the 2015 NCAA Baseball championship at the College World Series. After Virginia’s 5-4 win over Florida on Saturday, the Cavaliers move on to face Vanderbilt in the best-of-3 championship series. It’s a rematch of the 2014 College World Series final, which was won by the Commodores two games to one.

Defending champion Vanderbilt has had a fairly easy ride in Omaha, going 3-0 at the College World Series to this point and avoiding the loser’s bracket altogether. Vanderbilt’s also gone 8-0 through the NCAA Tournament. The Commodores also boast two top 10 2015 MLB Draft picks– pitcher Dansby Swanson was drafted first overall by the Arizona Diamondbacks and Carson Fulmer was picked up 8th by the Chicago White Sox.

Virginia had to survive a second game against Florida after losing Game 1 of the semifinals 10-5. The Cavaliers rallied in the late stages of Game 2 to go ahead 3-2 on the Gators and held them off in the 9th inning to clinch their second straight berth in the championship round. Virginia is 8-1 in the NCAA Tournament, including three wins against the SEC and a sweep in the super regionals against former ACC conference mate and bitter rival Maryland.

The championship sets up two familiar foes in Vanderbilt and Virginia, who have gone to the top of the college baseball world in fairly short order. This is only the third College World Series for Vanderbilt, the first coming in 2011, and the fourth for Virginia, who’s first was in 2009. Vanderbilt’s title last year was the fourth in six years for the SEC, but the first baseball title in school history. Virginia has yet to win the national title and is looking to clinch the first NCAA Baseball title for the ACC since Wake Forest did so 60 years ago.

Game 1 is scheduled for tonight at Omaha’s TD Ameritrade Park at 8 pm EST. Game 2 will take place Tuesday and, if necessary, the deciding Game 3 will be held on Wednesday. All games will be on ESPN and first pitches will be shortly after 8 pm EST.