Claire Watkins
Jun 5, 2024
The USWNT cruised through their final gameprior to naming their 18-player Olympic roster on Tuesday, defeating Korea Republic 3-0 in a rain-soaked game that saw significant rotation to thestarting XI.
Manager Emma Hayes replaced nine of Saturday's starters withplayers vyingfor a major tournament roster spot, a move that resulted in interesting returns. Alex Morgan was back in the starting lineup, while center-back Sam Staab earned her first international start in her second game with the team.
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Crystal Dunn started the match as a forward thenopened the floodgateswith her first goal in 75 international matches. Sophia Smith came on as a reserve in the second half alongside Mallory Swanson and Trinity Rodman, promptly doubling the scoreline at a tight angle for a sharp finish. Casey Murphy started in goal, making a number ofclutch savesto keep South Korea off of the scoresheet.
But the biggest moment of the gamebelonged to Ajax midfielder Lily Yohannes, who scored in her first-ever USWNT cap.
The teenager wasimmediately mobbedby her teammates — including most of the US bench — in celebration as nearly 20,000 fans gave her a standing ovation. Just a few days shy of her 17th birthday, Yohannes is the third-youngest to score for the national team and the youngest player to make her debut since USWNT legend Kristine Lilly took the field for the first time in 2001.
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Yohannes is likely on the Olympic roster bubble, but is of great interest to the US as atalented connecting midfielder. But having been born in Virginia before moving to Amsterdam as a child, Yohannes could still possibly decide to play for the Netherlands national team.
Hayes will be makingfinal roster decisionsin the coming weeks, setting the Paris-bound squad up for two send-off friendlies at the end of July. 18 players will make the official Olympic roster, alongside four alternates for training purposes and in case of injury.
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Emma Hruby
Jun 7, 2024
The NWSL is back in action this weekend following the June international break, as stars look to showcase Olympic form while clubs aim to build momentum going into the latter half of the season.
All but four clubs have played 11 games, with Orlando, Kansas City, and Washington beginning to separate themselves from the pack at the top of the NWSL table. But it’s close quarters across places four through eight, with just seven points separating the teams as the league prepares for the most-expanded postseason in NWSL history.
Orlando and Kansas City are riding unbeaten streaks, with the Pride on a historic eight-game winning streak. Forward Barbra Banda is the leader of the charge, with eight goals through just seven NWSL games played. She’s tied with Portland’s Sophia Smith in the Golden Boot race.
With more than half the season to play, both Banda and Smith could be at a pace to contend for Sam Kerr's single-season NWSL scoring record of 18 goals.
While the top three NWSL teams will go up against the bottom three this weekend, all eyes will be on Chicago where the Red Stars will play Bay FC in their first-ever match at historic Wrigley Field.
The Red Stars are aiming to break the NWSL single-game attendance record, as they take the field inside the Chicago city limits for the first time since 2022. As of May 23rd, Chicago had sold 22,000 tickets, chipping away atSeattle's record of 34,130 when in 2023.
Emma Hruby
Jun 7, 2024
The Oklahoma Sooners swept the Texas Longhorns on Thursday to earn their fourth-straight Women's College World Series championship.
It’s the first time any team has won four straight championships in NCAA softball history.
Oklahoma pitcher Kelly Maxwell was named 2024 WCWS Most Outstanding Player after the team's 8-4 win sealed the deal for the Sooners.
"They've cemented this program in history," said coach Patty Gasso after the game, whose eight national titles ties Arizona's Mike Candrea for the most won by any coach in Division I softball history. "They've cemented themselves in history. History can change, but these guys will never, ever be forgotten."
The Sooners were dealt some pressure along the way, with their 20-game NCAA tournament winning streak snapped by Florida earlier in the week. There were no guarantees about Texas, either, with the Longhorns topping Oklahoma in their regular season series earlier this year.
Gasso even conceded that this has been the team’s hardest title win yet, even though the Sooners outscored Texas 16-7 over two games in the finals. The title is Oklahoma's eighth championship overall, as well as their sixth in the past eight postseasons.
"'Heavy is a head that wears the crown' is the one thing that really stuck out," Gasso said. "I heard someone say that. That really has felt true. It's been exhausting. These players are exhausted, but they keep going."
Emma Hruby
Jun 7, 2024
Aaliyah Edwards made rookie history on Thursday as her Washington Mystics made some WNBA history of their own — and not the good kind.
With 23 points and 14 rebounds, Edwards became the first rookie this season with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds in a single game. She also had four blocks, becoming only the fourth rookie in WNBA history to record a game with at least 20 points, 10 rebounds, and four blocks within her first 10 career games, per ESPN.
The former UConn star has now led the Mystics in points and rebounds in consecutive games, joining Chamique Holdsclaw as the only two rookies in franchise history to do so.
"I just need everyone to know when everyone’s talking about the rookie class, don’t forget her name," Shatori Walker-Kimbrough said of her teammate after the game. "She made a statement today. She makes a statement every day. She comes in, she works. She puts her head down and works. She needs a little bit more talk, and she doesn’t let that affect her."
While Edwards has been finding her groove, the Mystics have been unable to mirror the No. 6 overall draft pick's performance. Despite a halftime lead, they lost 79-71 to Chicago to fall to 0-10 on the season. It marks the worst start in franchise history.
"Extremely frustrated," coach Eric Thibault said postgame.
Emma Hruby
Jun 6, 2024
Oklahoma is on the brink of a four-peat at the Women’s College World Series after taking Game 1 over Texas of the championship series 8-3.
Should the Sooners win, they earn an eighth-overall and fourth-straight WCWS title. No other team has won four consecutive NCAA softball championships.
"This is it," Sooners pitcher Kelly Maxwell, who transferred in this season from Oklahoma State, said of being on the brink. "This is my last opportunity. I'm just going to do everything I can to keep this team in it. I know that they have my back and I got theirs."
While Oklahoma has dominated throughout the regular season, they did face an unexpected setback courtesy of ared-hot Florida team. In Monday’s Game 11, the No. 6-seeded Gators snapped the Sooners’ 20-game NCAA tournament win streak, forcing Tuesday’s winner-take-all Game 12 with a convincing 9-3 win. Florida’s victory was fueled by two monster home runs from infielder Skylar Wallace alongside Keagan Rothrock’s ace pitching.
Despite the upset, a recomposed Oklahoma took the field the following day for a tight eight-inning clash culminating in awalk-off blastfrom Jayda Coleman that sent the Sooners to WCWS final.
But head coach Patty Gasso knows there’s still work to be done in the WCWS.
"We're not over-jubilant because we know there's still a lot of work to do against a very, very good team that has very good pitchers, very good hitters," Gasso said. "We know what's in front of us still. So you don't see us celebrating."
Texas, meanwhile, entered the postseason as the No. 1 overall seed. And the Longhorns are not about to roll over: In their Super Regional against Texas A&M, they lost the first game before winning the next two to advance.
Earlier this season, they lost the first game of their series to Oklahoma before rebounding to take their first series over the Sooners since 2009.
"Now it's theirs to lose in some respect," Texas coach Mike White said of the Sooners. "They have to win one of the next two games. I like being in that position, sometimes being the underdog. We're the top dog for a little bit, so to speak, but were we? They're three-time national champions. It's a mind game.
"Champions reframe. How can we reframe from this loss, what we're facing right now, come out and have a better game and see if we can play some good softball."
Game 2 of the WCWS Championship Series starts at 8 PM ET on Thursday, June 6th and will be broadcast live on ESPN. Game 3, if necessary, will air on ESPN on Friday, June 7th starting at 8 PM ET.
