There were no horseshoes, four-leaf clovers or rabbit’s feet spotted on the Rocori bench Friday afternoon. But Lady Luck sure was wearing black and red.

The Spartans scored eight unearned runs to beat Byron 9-3 in the Class 3A softball final at the University of Minnesota.

It is the first state title for Rocori (20-5) which entered as the fifth seed but beat No. 4 Becker 2-1 in a 14-inning quarterfinal and upset top-seeded Mankato East 2-0 in the semis.

“You have to put the ball in play to win games, making them make mistakes putting the pressure on them and that’s what we did,” said Sophia Hess, who had two of the team’s eight hits.

Tied at 3 in the fifth, Rocori’s Jessica Boos singled to plate Jordyn Illies, who led off the inning by reaching on an error and taking second on a wild pitch. Boos scored two batters later on a throwing error.

Two more runs scored on a sixth-inning error as Rocori widened its lead.

Byron finished with five errors, four hits and struck out 12 times against Boos.

“Rocori played loose and I don’t think we did,” said coach Jacob Harmon.

An infield throwing error on a ground ball allowed two Rocori runners to score in the second and a dropped fly ball in the third made it 3-0 Spartans.

That lead did not last two outs.

Sixth-seeded Byron (17-7) got one back in the fourth with an RBI ground-rule double by Kaydence Fjerstad before Ella Brennan lined a two-run single to score two more Bears.

“We bounced back nice, but then it kind of snowballed on us and got of hand,” Harmon said. “Not all their hits were great hits. A lot of bloopers that fell in, just getting a piece of the changeup or this or that. Those balls didn’t fall for us.”

With the game tied, Boos said the Spartans kept their poise.

“It was a 0-0 game from there and we just knew what we had to do, and we got runners, we kept hitting the ball … we strung them together.”

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By BARBARA ORTUTAY, Associated Press

The blowup between the president of the United States and the world’s richest man has played out on social media in real time, the latest, perhaps ultimate example of how X has become Elon Musk’s personal platform, his own reality show where anyone can tune in to watch the mercurial twists and turns of his unpredictable personality.

And tune in they did.

The feud has birthed countless memes, hot takes and speculation, with some X users bringing out the popcorn emojis while rejoicing that the site has returned to its “fun” roots — back when it was called Twitter. While it’s not yet clear if the feud will have any permanent effects on X’s audience size or advertising business, its owner reposted a meme late Thursday suggesting that, at least for now, it was good for getting active users to tune into the platform. CEO Linda Yaccarino agreed.

“X operates as a personality-driven platform, and Musk’s high-profile conflicts can fuel engagement at least in the short term,” said Sarah Kreps, director of Cornell University’s Tech Policy Institute. “The platform has leaned into spectacle as a growth strategy, and controversy often drives traffic.”

Elon Musk attends news conference with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House, Friday, May 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

President Donald Trump, of course, posted through the breakup on his own personal platform, Truth Social with three updates targeting Musk directly on Thursday. But Truth Social’s audience is just a fraction of X’s, and social media experts at this stage don’t see it siphoning the former Twitter’s user base as a result of the feud. Trump was banned from Twitter in 2021 following the Jan. 6 riots on the Capitol and he returned more than 2.5 years later after Musk reinstated his account. On X, he has nearly 106 million followers — compared with less than 10 million on Truth Social, where he’s continued to post following the feud — at least 10 times on Friday.

“It’s a niche platform with limited reach outside Trump’s core base,” Kreps said. “That said, if Trump were to fully re-engage there and disengage from X entirely, it could fragment the right-wing audience somewhat. But barring major user migration, X still dominates in political discourse.”

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump, left, claps as Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk prepares to depart after speaking at a campaign event at the Butler Farm Show, on Oct. 5, 2024, in Butler, Pa. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

Trump hasn’t indicated that he’d leave X — and Musk hasn’t said he’d consider banning him — but the president has not posted on the site since June 3, although the official White House account has continued to send updates.

On BlueSky, meanwhile, many users seemed to delight in watching the drama unfold on the platform they (mostly) left behind, posting screenshots from X, Truth Social as well as their own share of memes and commentary. But the site, which has welcomed users disillusioned with Musk’s politics and policies on X, is unlikely to become a huge draw for Trump die-hards.

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“It’s too early to measure any long-term shifts in user behavior, but political audiences on X have tended to be resilient, even in the face of controversy,” Kreps said. “Trump supporters are unlikely to abandon the platform en masse unless there’s sustained antagonism or a perceived shift in content moderation policy. Right now, this looks more like a personality clash than an ideological break so user migration feels speculative at this stage.”

As for X’s advertising business, Emarketer analyst Jasmine Enberg said she doubts the feud will have a material effect.

“Advertisers who were spending small sums on the platform due to Musk’s proximity to Trump may rethink their commitments,” she said. “At the same time, the breakup between Musk and Trump hasn’t eliminated the threat of legal or business repercussions given the FTC investigation into the alleged ad boycott, so there’s still incentive for those brands to stay.”

According to The New York Times, which cited unnamed sources, the Federal Trade Commission is investigating whether roughly a dozen advertising and advocacy groups violated antitrust law by coordinating boycotts among advertisers that didn’t want their brands to appear next to hateful or other objectionable content.

In the end, Musk “remains a divisive figure, regardless of his position in the White House,” Enberg said, and any efforts by X to make the platform less divisive — such as a recent program designed to elevate content that people agree on —“can only go so far with brands and consumers if he continues to use X as his own personal megaphone to amplify controversial content.”

By MARK SHERMAN, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The sequence of events is familiar: A lower court judge blocks a part of President Donald Trump’s agenda, an appellate panel refuses to put the order on hold while the case continues, and the Justice Department turns to the Supreme Court.

Trump administration lawyers have filed emergency appeals with the nation’s highest court a little less than once a week on average since Trump began his second term.

The court is not being asked to render a final decision but rather to set the rules of the road while the case makes its way through the courts.

The justices have issued orders in 13 cases so far. The Trump administration has won more than it has lost, including in two cases Friday in which the high court blocked lower court orders involving the Department of Government Efficiency.

Among the administration’s other victories was an order allowing it to enforce the Republican president’s ban on transgender military service members. Among its losses was a prohibition on using an 18th century wartime law called the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelans alleged to be gang members to a notorious prison in El Salvador.

Two arrived this week, including one on Friday.

The Education Department has laid off nearly 1,400 employees

A federal judge in Boston has ordered the employees reinstated and also blocked action on Trump’s plan to dismantle the department, one of his top campaign pledges.

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In his order last month, U.S. District Judge Myong Joun wrote that the layoffs “will likely cripple the department.” The federal appeals court in Boston rejected the administration’s emergency request to put Joun’s order on hold.

On Friday, Solicitor General D. John Sauer told the Supreme Court that Joun’s overstepped his authority and was substituting his policy preferences for those of the Trump administration.

The layoffs help put in the place the “policy of streamlining the department and eliminating discretionary functions that, in the administration’s view, are better left to the states,” Sauer wrote.

The Massachusetts school districts, education groups and Democratic-led states that sued over Trump’s plan have a week to respond.

Another judge blocked plans to downsize the federal workforce

On Monday, Sauer renewed the administration’s request for the high court to the way for downsizing plans, while a lawsuit filed by labor unions and cities proceeds.

The high court filing came after an appeals court refused to freeze a California-based judge’s order halting the cuts, which have been led by the Department of Government Efficiency. The appeals court found that the downsizing could have broader effects, including on the nation’s food-safety system and health care for veterans.

In her ruling last month, U.S. District Judge Susan Illston found that Trump’s administration needs congressional approval to make sizable reductions to the federal workforce.

The administration initially asked the justices to step in last month, but withdrew its appeal for technical, legal reasons.

The plaintiffs have a Monday deadline to respond.

A judge rebuked the administration over deportations to South Sudan

The Trump administration’s latest appeal asks the high court to halt an order by U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy in Boston. The White House violated his earlier order, Murphy found, with a deportation flight bound for the African nation carrying people from other countries who had been convicted of crimes in the U.S.

Those immigrants must get a real chance to raise any fears that being sent there could put them in danger, Murphy wrote.

Trump’s top Supreme Court lawyer, Solicitor General D. John Sauer, asked for an immediate high court order that would allow the third-country deportations to resume.

Murphy has stalled efforts to carry out deportations of migrants who can’t be returned to their home countries, Sauer wrote. Finding countries willing to take them is “a delicate diplomatic endeavor” and the court requirements are a major setback, he said.

The court could act at any time.

Trump wants to change citizenship rules in place for more than 125 years

Several judges quickly blocked an executive order Trump signed on his first day in office that would deny citizenship to children who are born to people who are in the country illegally or temporarily.

The administration appealed three court orders that prohibit the changes from taking effect anywhere in the country.

Earlier in May, the justices took the rare step of hearing arguments in an emergency appeal. It’s unclear how the case will come out, but the court seemed intent on keeping the changes on hold while looking for a way to scale back nationwide court orders.

One possibility advanced by some justices was to find a different legal mechanism, perhaps a class action, to accomplish essentially the same thing as the nationwide injunctions blocking Trump’s citizenship order.

Nationwide injunctions have emerged as an important check on Trump’s efforts to remake the government and a source of mounting frustration to the Republican president and his allies.

Judges have issued 40 nationwide injunctions since Trump began his second term in January, Sauer told the court during the arguments.

The court could act anytime, but almost certainly no later than early summer.

“By listening to residents and responding to their needs, we can ensure that East New York’s growth creates opportunity while preserving its identity.”

The intersection of Atlantic and East new York avenues, pictured here in 2019. (Photo by Adi Talwar)

East New York has long been a neighborhood defined by resilience. It’s where families have built their lives, small businesses have kept communities connected, and neighbors have had each other’s backs.

Yet, while other Brooklyn neighborhoods have seen new resources and investments transform their streets, East New York has been left waiting. Despite being home to one of New York City’s busiest transit hubs, Broadway Junction lacks deeply needed public spaces, job opportunities, and affordable housing. Our community wants to see commonsense quality-of-life investments, but we have been kept waiting.

Recently, officials have started taking action, investing to uplift the people who call this neighborhood home. The city and MTA’s $500 million commitment to improve Broadway Junction is a step in the right direction, promising better public spaces and station upgrades to make it more accessible and welcoming. Soon, NYC EDC’s improvements outside the station and the new Human Resources Administration offices at 2440 Fulton will bring jobs and resources to the heart of our neighborhood.

These changes are encouraging, but they come with understandable concerns. Too often, investment has meant disruption, displacement, and broken promises. That’s why it’s critical that East New York’s future is shaped by and for the people who live here. True progress means centering the voices of longtime residents and ensuring their needs—more housing, safer streets, stronger local businesses—guide the path forward.

As a longtime resident of East New York who has worked in the Broadway Junction area for 25 years, I am acutely aware of the challenges our community faces. East New York is rich with history, culture, and spirit. It’s where neighbors know one another, local businesses anchor our streets, and families have built their lives for generations. But too often, when new development comes to neighborhoods like ours, it ignores what makes these communities special.

But there’s a better way, one that strengthens communities rather than displacing them. That means thoughtful development to create local jobs, invest in shared spaces, and prioritize deeply affordable housing to ensure stability.

We’ve seen signs of this approach taking shape. The Herkimer-Williams project, which aims to transform the concrete lots around Broadway Junction, has taken steps in the right direction. Totem, the development team, analyzed past studies of Broadway Junction and held over 100 touchpoints with the local community to incorporate such feedback into a proposal. 

While the initial design already reflected years of community visioning, Totem then spent another two years engaging directly with residents, community leaders and local stakeholders to shape a revised plan, one that reflects the local evolving desires for permanently affordable housing, expanded job opportunities and increased public space.

Totem’s blueprint includes affordable housing, retail, supportive services, community spaces, and room for local businesses—a holistic mix aimed at boosting social connections, stimulating the economy, and meeting long-neglected needs. It’s a practical and grassroots approach that speaks to the hopes of those who’ve lived and worked here for generations.

While we still have work ahead, this kind of engagement shows how developers can, and should, build with the community rather than for it. By listening to residents and responding to their needs, we can ensure that East New York’s growth creates opportunity while preserving its identity.

Our future depends on development that reflects our voices. In choosing negotiation over confrontation, we’re that much more likely to achieve a collective vision for Broadway Junction. Our community’s strength has always come from its people, and together, we can make sure that strength guides East New York’s future.

Bill Wilkins is the executive director of the Local Development Corporation of East New York.

The post Opinion: East New York, It’s Our Time To Level Up appeared first on City Limits.