Anchorage’s Alissa Pili took the court for the first time as a member of the Los Angeles Sparks on Saturday night in a 72-59 loss to the Golden State Valkyries. She logged three minutes and went 0 of 1 from the field and 1 of 2 from the-free throw line, finishing with one point. It marked the former Dimond High multi-sport star’s first action in a game in nearly a month since her last appearance with the Minnesota Lynx on July 10. A day later on Sunday, the Sparks announced they signed the No. 8 overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft to a second straight seven-day contract, extending her stay in Southern California, where she began her college career and starred at USC.
The NFL preseason officially got underway this past week and saw a handful of Alaskans take the field in exhibition action for their respective teams. Among them were Pili’s older brother Brandon Pili who is a third-year defensive tackle that made his debut with the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday in a 23-23 tie against the Las Vegas Raiders. The former undrafted free agent who also played collegiately at USC started the game and played through the early portion of the third quarter.
In that same game on the opposite defense, another Alaska-born player made some nice plays for the Raiders. Third-year defensive end Tyree Wilson is the highest-ever draft pick to come out of the 49th state as the No. 7 overall in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Anchorage’s Edefuan Ulofoshio is a second-year inside linebacker for the Buffalo Bills and saw the field quite a bit in the team’s 34-25 loss to the New York Giants on Saturday. His 43 snaps on defense tied for third-most on the team and he added another 10 on special teams. He checked into the game for the first time on defense with just over six minutes left in the second quarter and made a nice stop for the first of his two solo tackles to limit what looked like was going to be a chunk play. To start the second half, he helped force back-to-back three-and-outs and made his second solo tackle for minimal gain on the third drive.
Anchorage’s Aiden Williams made his NFL debut with the Pittsburgh Steelers as an undrafted offensive lineman in the team’s 31-25 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Saturday. His 54 offensive snaps tied two of his fellow linemen for the most by any player on the team on either side of the ball.
The University of Alaska Anchorage hockey team has officially unveiled its 2025–26 schedule with some exciting matchups for Seawolves fans to look forward to. They’ll be taking on two of the nation’s elite programs early on with a two-game home-opening series with perennial contender Bemidji State University followed by back-to-back, two-game road stints against St. Cloud State and 2024 national champion Denver University, led by Anchorage born and raised coach David Carle.
“This schedule reflects who we are and who we want to be,” UAA head coach Matt Shasby said in a statement. “We’re challenging ourselves early and often. Bemidji is a tough opener, and going on the road to face blue bloods like Denver and St. Cloud will show us exactly where we stand.”
The Seawolves in-state rival University of Alaska Fairbanks remained busy on the recruiting trail this past week with announcement of defenseman Liam Fleet to the 2025-2026 roster. The 6-foot-2 and 205-pounder most recently played in the NAHL for the Shreveport Mudbugs the past three seasons, where he recorded 10 goals and 40 assists.
“Liam is a smart, steady defenseman who makes a great first pass and defends with purpose,” Nanooks head coach Erik Largen said in a statement. “He plays a physical brand of hockey. He’s a respectful, hard-working young man who brings a quiet confidence to our team. We are excited to welcome him to our family.”
