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Top Tennis Talent Lands in Saudi Arabia for 2024 WTA Finals

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The year’s final major tennis tournament begins on Saturday when the sport’s highest-ranked athletes descend on Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to compete in the 2024 WTA Finals.

Featuring the eight best singles players and eight best doubles teams, Slam winners and Olympic medalists alike will compete for the Billie Jean King and Martina Navratilova trophies before the winter break.

Also up for grabs is a piece of the record $15.25 million prize pool, larger than any Grand Slam purse and a nearly 70% increase over the 2023 pot. Should the champions go undefeated through the tournament, the singles winner will bank $5.155 million, while the top doubles duo will take home $1.125 million.

WTA tennis stars Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula play doubles together at Wimbledon 2024.
2024 French Open and Wimbledon doubles teammates Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula will open their WTA Finals singles campaigns against each other. (Francois Nel/Getty Images)

Eight days of elite tennis action

In both the WTA Finals singles and doubles categories, competitors are split into two groups of four.

Each singles player or doubles pair will play all others in their group for a total of three matches across the first six days. The top two in each group will then compete in the November 8th semifinals, with both finals set for November 9th.

In the singles contest, the Purple Group includes No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, No. 4 Jasmine Paolini, No. 5 Elena Rybakina, and No. 7 Qinwen Zheng, while the Orange Group lists No. 2 Iga Świątek, No. 3 Coco Gauff, No. 6 Jessica Pegula, and No. 8 Barbora Krejčíková.

In both competitions, 25% of the top eight athletes represent the USA. Along with Gauff and Pegula on the singles court, the doubles tournament includes No. 5 US duo Caroline Dolehide and Desirae Krawczyk as well as Nicole Melichar-Martinez and Taylor Townsend in the Nos. 6 and 8 pairs, respectively.

World No. 1 tennis player Aryna Sabalenka and No. 2 Iga Świątek share a friendly moment during practice for the 2024 WTA Finals.
Off-court friends No. 1 Aryana Sabalenka and No. 2 Iga Świątek are fierce on-court competitors. (Robert Prange/Getty Images)

Will Sabalenka play Świątek at the WTA Finals?

A showdown between Sabalenka and 2023 WTA Finals champion Świątek could be the event’s blockbuster match. The top-ranked players have yet to square off in a major tournament in 2024 — a year rife with highs and lows for both athletes.

Sabalenka started the WTA season by winning her second Australian Open, then later struggled through a shoulder injury that forced her to withdraw from Wimbledon. She capped the Grand Slam season in style, though, winning her first US Open in September.

As for five-time Grand Slam victor Świątek, 2024 brought the Polish phenom her fourth French Open title. A rockier second half to the season — including a third round and quarterfinal ousting from Wimbledon and the US Open, and a fall from the No. 1 ranking for the first time since November 2023 — motivated Świątek to seek a new coach.

How to watch the 2024 WTA Finals tennis tournament

The 2024 WTA Finals kicks off on Saturday, when US Open winner Sabalenka plays 2024 Olympic gold medalist Zheng at 11 AM ET.

Later, 2023 US Open champ Gauff will take on 2024 US Open runner-up Pegula at 8:45 AM ET on Sunday.

All 2024 WTA Finals matches will be broadcast live on the Tennis Channel.

LSU NIL Powerhouse Duo Among Forbes’ Top Creators in the World

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By: Michael Ehrlich | NIL Daily

The impact of LSU student-athletes on the NIL landscape continues to shine across the country and now expands even further. From a recent Prime Video docuseries to innovative partnerships and investments, Tiger athletes are trailblazing in every aspect of the sports business arena.

LSU duo Livvy Dunne and Flau’jae Johnson have been recognized by Forbes as two of the top 50 creators in the world, taking their place amongst a star-studded list of influencers, entertainers and entrepreneurs. The only athletes – at any level – to appear on this list, the Tigers are featured alongside a who’s who of influencers and creators such as MrBeast, the D’Amelio sisters, the Paul brothers and Alex Cooper, among others.

Much more than athletes, the expert content creator Dunne and hip-hop star Johnson have built their resumes and business portfolios with diverse brand partnerships, unique marketing campaigns, polarizing content and trailblazing investments, none of which were possible pre-NIL. Both national champions in their own athletic arenas – Dunne in gymnastics and Johnson in basketball – the duo are top case studies for what is right in college athletics today.

To rank the world’s top creators, Forbes analyzed data – with the help of creator marketing firm Influential – on the estimated gross earnings, follower counts, engagement rates, and entrepreneurial activities of thousands of internet personalities.

According to Forbes, their top creator honorees earned almost $720 million over the last 12 months, an increase of $20 million from 2023. The influencer industry overall is estimated to be worth $250 billion today, with Goldman Sachs predicting that figure will jump to nearly $500 billion by 2027.

Coming in at 31 (Dunne) and 37 (Johnson) on Forbes’ list, the duo represents the future of what college athletes can achieve outside of their school work and athlete performance. Beyond their brand partnerships, which are vast – from Vuori, American Eagle and Jake Paul’s personal care brand W for Dunne and PUMA, Bose and Powerade for Johnson – both are also trailblazing from an investment standpoint as well.

Dunne is a co-owner in W and created her own fund to support other LSU female athletes, while Johnson has invested in Bazooka Candy Brands and has even purchased 20 acres of land in Atlanta to create future opportunities for the next generation.

As they each prepare for their upcoming seasons, while balancing school, sports and business, these two Tigers continue to cement themselves as the faces of what’s possible in this new NIL universe.

Johnson and No. 7 LSU tip off their season on November 4 versus Eastern Kentucky, while Dunne begins her final season on the gymnastics mat in early January.

Bonmatí, Hayes Win Big at 2024 Ballon d’Or Ceremony

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Dee Lab | Just Women’s Sports

After completing a perfect 2023/24 season with Barcelona FC, Spain midfielder Aitana Bonmatí won her second-straight Ballon d’Or award on Monday.

“I always say this is not something that you can do alone,” the 26-year-old said, crediting her teammates in her acceptance speech. “I’m so lucky to be surrounded by wonderful players who help me to keep growing into a better player.”

Only one other women’s footballer has won the award twice: Bonmatí’s teammate for club and country, Alexia Putellas, who clocked in 10th in this year’s final tally. The two now hold a combined four-year streak in winning soccer’s top honor.

The only other recipients in the award’s six-year history are USWNT star Megan Rapinoe and Norway’s Ada Hegerberg.

Barcelona celebrates their 2023/24 Champions League title.
Barcelona won 2024 Club of the Year at Monday’s Ballon d’Or ceremony. (Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

It’s Barcelona or bust at Ballon d’Or

Barcelona’s 2024 triumphs — winning a historic quadruple of Liga F, Champions League, Supercopa, and Copa de la Reina titles — earned the team Club of the Year honors last night.

That success was mirrored on the individual level, as well. Barça players owned the award’s Top 3 spots, with forwards Caroline Graham Hansen and Salma Paralluelo just behind Bonmatí in the final vote.

USWNT players Mal Swanson, Sophia Smith, and Trinity Rodman post in their Team USA swag at the 2024 Olympics.
The USWNT “Triple Espresso” front line all landed in the Ballon d’Or’s Top 10. (Brad Smith/ISI/Getty Images)

Olympic gold earns USWNT stalwarts votes

Of the five USWNT players on the Ballon d’Or’s 30-athlete shortlist, four landed in the Top 10, buoyed by their gold medal performance at the 2024 Paris Games. USWNT captain Lindsey Horan finished at No. 5 alongside the “Triple Espresso” strike squad of No. 4 Sophia Smith, No. 6 Mal Swanson, and No. 9 Trinity Rodman. 

The lone goalkeeper on the list, USWNT star Alyssa Naeher, came in at No. 17. The Ballon d’Or does not include a separate individual award for women’s football’s top goalkeeper.https://www.instagram.com/p/DBrs9iagbsR/embed/captioned/?cr=1&v=14&wp=1080&rd=https%3A%2F%2Fjustwomenssports.com&rp=%2Freads%2Fbonmati-wins-second-ballon-dor-award-emma-hayes-named-top-womens-football-coach%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A831.5%2C%22ls%22%3A180.89999999850988%2C%22le%22%3A180.89999999850988%7D

Meanwhile, USWNT boss Emma Hayes brought home historic hardware of her own.

After leading Chelsea FC to a fifth-straight WSL title before winning Olympic gold with the USWNT, Hayes received the first-ever Women’s Coach of the Year award last night.

“I just want to say a big thank you to all the staff and players from both teams,” Hayes said after receiving the inaugural honor.

“Football is a team game and I’m very grateful to have led some amazing teams this year, so this award is for everyone who has been a part of the US team and Chelsea.”

Spain's Jenni Hermoso holds the Ballon d'Or Socrates Award for her humanitarian work.
Spain’s Jenni Hermoso is the first woman to ever win the Ballon D’Or’s Socrates Award. (FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images)

Hermoso’s advocacy honored

Former Barcelona forward and Spanish national Jenni Hermoso — who now plays for Tigres in Mexico’s Liga MX — became the third person and first woman to win the humanitarian Socrates Award in last night’s ceremony.

The award recognizes Hermoso’s efforts advocating for the advancement of the women’s game, equality at all levels of soccer, and her fight against sexual harassment in sports ignited by the nonconsensual kiss from ex-Spanish federation president Luis Rubiales during the 2023 World Cup trophy ceremony.

“Women’s football deserves a place for new and future generations,” the 34-year-old urged in her speech before imploring further action from the global soccer community.

“I’d like to ask all of you to get together and work together in order to make a better world possible and to make football become what little girls deserve for the future.”

The 2024 Ballon d'Or trophy sits onstage at Monday's ceremony.
The Ballon d’Or awards consistently occur during women’s international windows. (FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images)

Ballon d’Or ceremony spurs conversation about persisting inequities

While the Ballon d’Or has made strides by instituting a women’s football award in 2018, the ceremony continues to be fall during a FIFA women’s international window. The scheduling makes it near-impossible for many women’s football nominees to attend what is arguably the sport’s biggest night.

Last night, only a handful of European-based players were able to make the Paris event.

Even more, the Ballon d’Or ballot only honors one individual woman footballer, while the men’s night bestows three additional trophies: the Yashin for best goalkeeper, the Gerd Müller for top goalscorer, and the Kopa for best U-21 player. Plus, while 100 journalists vote for the final men’s tally, only 50 are tapped to weigh in on the women’s award.

History in Harare: USA Finishes Series with Chetna Reddy Pagydyala’s 136* Run-Blitz

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By: Yashaaditi Teki | USA Cricket

The USA Cricket women’s team secured its second victory in the 5th ODI of the series against Zimbabwe Women. Despite losing the series 2-3, the Coach Hilton Moreeng-led USA returns home with several historical milestones.

The 7-wicket victory against Zimbabwe at Harare Sports Club was fueled by the history-making performance of 16-year old ODI debutant, Chetna Reddy Pagydyala, with a scintillating 136 runs not out off 152 balls.

USA restricted Zimbabwe to 246 runs in 50 overs and chased the total down comfortably with more than 5 overs to spare.

USA won the toss and elected to field first

USA started their bowling attack with Tara Norris picking up a crucial wicket of the opponents’ opening batter for a duck, and giving USA a strong start. Thereafter, Zimbabwe women picked up their momentum with a 117-run partnership between Modester Mupachikwa scoring 59 off 78 deliveries and Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano scoring 60 runs off 68 deliveries.

USA’s introduction of spin into the attack resulted in two quick wickets by Ritu Singh, shifting the momentum back towards USA’s favor. Saanvi Immadi provided excellent support once again by bowling an economical spell of 10 overs, 36 runs, with 2 maidens which aided in slowing down Zimbabwe’s scoring-rate during a crucial stage of the game.

Skipper Aditiba Chudasama ended the innings by picking up two wickets with Tara Norris following her lead to pick up a wicket in the death overs. USA Women maintained their composure and restricted Zimbabwe Women to 246 runs in 50 overs.

USA Women responded with a dominating chase that was fueled by Chetna Reddy Pagydyala’s historical milestone of scoring 136* runs in 152 deliveries, becoming the first American female player to score a century in any format of international cricket.

She now holds the world record for the highest individual score on debut in women ODIs of 136*, surpassing a 51-year old record held by England’s Lynne Thomas.

Pagydyala is also the second youngest to score a century on debut in a women’s ODI, only bettered by Amy Hunter of Ireland who achieved the rare milestone on her 16th birthday. The Southern Californian’s 136* also gives her the 14th highest maiden hundred in women’s ODIs.

Pagydyala and Disha Dhingra put on an impressive 116-run opening partnership, setting a confident tone throughout the innings. USA finished the chase with another crucial, 88-run partnership between Chetna Reddy Pagydyala and Sindhu Sriharsha (35 runs off 39 deliveries), taking the team to victory with 7 wickets remaining.

Despite the series loss, USA women have left an indelible mark at Harare with many firsts. Skipper Chudasama’s squad registered its first ODI win since gaining ODI status and Pagydyala picked up several records with her blistering century on debut.

USA Cricket expresses its gratitude to Zimbabwe Cricket for hosting our women’s team and congratulates both teams on a successful, competitive and exciting series.  

Gillian Apps: “It’s the idea of making this better”

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Ian Kennedy | The hockey News

Women and girls have historically been excluded from hockey. For more than a century, women have been barred from rinks, kicked off teams, and forced out of leagues. Girls have been given leftover ice times in the middle of the night, or early hours; and they’ve worn equipment not made for their bodies, faced ridicule and discrimination, and despite it all, continued to play the game of hockey.

The barriers are obvious, and it’s why Hockey Canada and a special steering committee aimed at solving these problems for women and girls, have released the first phase of their plan, a paper titled “building the future of women’s and girls’ hockey.”

Leading the charge is three-time Olympic gold medalist and three-time World Champion Gillian Apps. Apps is a member of Hockey Canada’s new board of directors and the lead of Hockey Canada’s Women’s and Girls’ Steering Committee.

Apps knows change has been slow, but feels that the new group, alongside HockeyN Canada are committed to opening opportunities for women and girls.

“It was very clear how Hockey Canada is committed to this,” Apps told The Hockey News.

“It is a testament to say, women and girls hockey matters to everyone involved in this paper, and the steering committee when people were asked to be a part of this, no one hesitated. People truly believe in, ‘how do we make women’s and girls’ hockey in Canada better.’ We have our paper but really trying to understand how Canadians are interacting with the game from coast-to-coast and put strategies in place to try to make it a really great experience, keep women in the game, have new Canadians start hockey and have that be an easy experience. Even for a 30-year-old, 40-year-old woman who has never played hockey before, how can she get involved in a learn to play?”

“It’s an exciting project, it’s an enormous project. We’re trying to get the voice of the country from coast to coast. It’s something that obviously matters a lot to me and something I’m really excited about.”

Apps grew up playing in an all-girls program in Markham-Stouffville, and she recognizes she was one of the lucky ones. She also saw the bulk of her career played without fanfare. After a collegiate career at Dartmouth, which included her first World Championship and Olympic golds, Apps went on to play in the CWHL with the Brampton Thunder.

While the stands would be packed for international tournaments, despite the fact the CWHL features the same national team stars, players, teams, and the league received almost no recognition. It’s why Apps believes visibility in media coverage, and through the PWHL are crucial to the next step for women and girls in hockey.

“Visibility and celebration is a really important thing,” Apps said. “The PWHL for example, for people to be able to watch those games, we’ve been fighting for so long in women’s hockey to be able to just have people in the rinks. I can’t tell you how many times when I was playing in, long ago, the CWHL and we had probably combined between the two teams 20 Olympians on the ice and we were at a rink in Brampton and no one was there except our parents.”


“It’s funny to think it because we were like ‘wow, I’m sure people would love to see this’, and then we’d play at the Air Canada Centre and it would be sold out. It’s juts the visibility and the ability for people to come watch and watch on TV and young girls to watch and young boys to watch.”

Ice time is another recognized gap as organizations have historically allocated ice to boys programs, men’s recreational leagues, and all other user groups before women and gils. Apps also recognizes that a barrier to participation and retention in Ontario will be different than the barriers in Prince Edward Island, or Northern Canada.

That’s why the next step in Hockey Canada’s process, in collaboration with IMI International, is to conduct surveys and interviews with all stakeholders, from parents to players, coaches and staff, and those who have left the game altogether to “try to figure out how we can really come up with strategies that can help people have a better experience and help people stay in hockey,” as Apps says.

The data collection phase, as Apps stated, is important “to have a pulse on underrepresented communities, new Canadians, the BIPOC community, people that have played hockey but then have since quit, understanding ‘why did you leave the game?’ and ‘can we get you back?'”

When they’ve collected the data, Apps and her steering committee, which also includes Jayna Hefford, Angela James, Mary-Kay Messier, Therese Brisson, Kim St. Pierre, Katherine Henderson, Marion Jacko, Allison Sandmeyer-Graves, Pierre Arsenault, Cassie Campbell-Pascall, Debra Gassewitz, Rob Knesaurek, Anne Merklinger, and Brad Morris, will look at developing and applying strategies in partnership with Hockey Canada to enact change.

“We’ll have some time where we’re just in pure data collection mode and then coming together and figuring out what are the insights from that, and really after that it’s the idea of how do we think through these difficult problems and come up with strategies and then put them into place,” Apps Said. How can Hockey Canada put them into place across the country so that we address these barriers…and make people’s experience better.”

In the end, it’s about removing barriers, and creating a better experience that promotes inclusion and lifelong participation in all communities in Canada, that has Apps and Hockey Canada optimistic.

“I hope that it makes peoples love for the game stronger and their experience better. There are always going to be things that are hard…but I think that overall if we can really make women’s and girls hockey across the country for everyone, something that it is more enjoyable than it is today, that is more accessible than it is today, that gives women and girls the opportunity that if you want to be an elite hockey player it’s up to you, that you are given all the resources that you need and you can choose whether you do that or not,” said Apps.

“It’s the idea of making this better, it’s a really hard problem to solve, and some of these barriers in order to fix, it doesn’t hap

USA Women Registers 1st Historic ODI Win to Keep Zimbabwe Campaign Alive

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By: Vency Saurabh Patel | USA CRICKET

The USA Cricket women’s team secured a historic first ODI win today after playing only five ODIs since gaining status in this format of the game in 2022.

The four-wicket victory against Zimbabwe is Aditi Chudasama’s first win since taking the helm of the team this month. After facing unfavorable results in the first two matches, the USA bounced back by bowling out Zimbabwe for 179 runs in 48.4 overs and chasing the total in 37.2 overs. The win keeps USA’s hopes alive in the five-match series currently underway at the Harare Sports Club.  

USA won the toss and elected to field first

After winning a crucial coin-toss, USA opted to send Zimbabwe in to bat on a challenging first-innings pitch. Zimbabwe struggled to build momentum, with top-scorer Modester Mupachikwa contributing 34 runs off 59 balls, and Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano adding 28 runs off 46 balls. 

USA’s impressive bowling performance, particularly from Geetika Kodali, who claimed a historic and match-winning 5 wicket-haul for 43 runs, played a crucial role in dismantling Zimbabwe’s batting. 

Saanvi Immadi provided excellent support with 3 wickets for 28 runs, while Tara Norris and Isani Vaghela maintained economical figures of 2.62 and 2.66, respectively, as they applied constant pressure throughout the innings. 

In response, the USA Women chased the target confidently, scoring 182 runs for the loss of 6 wickets in just 37.2 overs.  

Openers Gargi Bhogle (36 off 57 balls) and Disha Dhingra (41 off 46) provided a solid start for Team USA with an 87-run partnership before Dhingra fell to Audrey Mazvishaya in the 16th over. Vice Captain Anika Kolan anchored the chase with the top-score of 43 runs off 59 balls.  

Despite Zimbabwe’s bowlers Josephine Nkomo (2/32) and Olinda Chare (2/41) claiming a few wickets and creating a middle-order wobble, Sindhu Sriharsha guided the team home with a crucial 30 runs off 45 balls. 

The series remains alive as both teams head into the fourth ODI on Saturday, October 26. USA will look to carry forward its momentum to level the series against Zimbabwe.  
 

USA Innings Summary: 
 

●  USA: 182/6 (37.2 overs) 

●  Anika Kolan: 43 (59) 

●  Disha Dhingra: 41 (46) 

●  Gargi Bhogle: 36 (57) 

●  Zimbabwe Bowling: Josephine Nkomo – 2/32 (9), Olinda Chare – 2/41 (9.2), Audrey Mazvishaya – 1/33 (9) 

USA Women Squad: 

Aditiba Chudasama (C), Disha Dhingra, Ella Claridge, Gargi Bhogle, Geetika Kodali, Isani Vaghela, Jivana Aras, Lekha Shetty, Ritu Singh, Anika Kolan, Sindhu Sriharsha, Chetna Pagydyala, Saanvi Immadi, Sai Tanmayi Eyyunni, Tara Norris

Zimbabwe Innings Summary: 

●  Zimbabwe: 179 (48.4 overs) 

●  Modester Mupachikwa: 34 (59) 

●  Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano: 28 (46) 

●  Audrey Mazvishaya: 26* (41) 

●  USA Bowling: Geetika Kodali – 5/43 (10), Saanvi Immadi – 3/28 (9), and 

Isani Vaghela – 1/16 (6) 

Zimbabwe Women Squad: 

Josephine Nkomo (C), Ashley Ndiraya, Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano, Runyararo Pasipanodya, Sharne Mayers, Adel Zimunu, Beloved Biza, Christabel Chatonzwa, Modester Mupachikwa, Audrey Mazvishaya, Lindokuhle Mabhero, Loryn Phiri, Nomvelo Sibanda, Olinder Chare, Tendai Makusha 

See full scorecard here. 

Upcoming games: 

  • Saturday, October 26, 9:15am: 4th ODI 
  • Monday, October 28, 9:15am: 5th ODI

Watkins, Bueckers headline preseason AP All-America team in women’s hoops; 3 sophomores for 1st time

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By  DOUG FEINBERG | AP News

USC star JuJu Watkins and UConn’s Paige Bueckers headline The Associated Press preseason All-America women’s college basketball team released Tuesday that for the first time includes three sophomores in a clear sign of the young talent in a sport coming off a record year of fan interest.

Watkins and Bueckers were unanimous choices by the 30-member national media panel that selects the AP Top 25 each week. It’s the third appearance on the team for Bueckers, who also was a preseason choice in her sophomore season and last year.

The duo was joined by Hannah Hidalgo of Notre Dame, Madison Booker of Texas and Kiki Iriafen of USC. Watkins, Hidalgo and Booker are all second-year players.

“It’s unbelievable. Those players excelled as freshmen and their teams won. They did it in multiple ways,” USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb said. “It’s really exciting for the game and the future of it.”

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Gottlieb’s stars, Watkins and Iriafen, are the first pair of teammates selected to the All-America team since 2017-18, when UConn had three of the five players chosen. Iriafen entered the transfer portal soon after Stanford Hall of Fame coach Tara VanDerveer announced her retirement in April.


“Kiki came because she wanted to play with JuJu, who recruited her because she wanted to play with Kiki,” Gottlieb said. “It’s exciting to see their personalities mesh.”

Watkins and her fellow sophomores were part of the ratings and attendance boom last season for women’s college basketball that was led by Iowa’s Caitlin Clark and LSU’s Angel Reese. NCAA Tournament attendance was the highest it’s ever been and the championship game that featured Clark and Iowa against undefeated South Carolina had a record TV audience of 18.7 million, the highest for a basketball broadcast of any kind in five years.

Bueckers averaged 21.9 points and 5.2 rebounds to help UConn reach the Final Four, where the Huskies lost to Iowa in another game that drew high vioewership. UConn’s star has eligibility left after sporadic injuries, but has said this will be her last year in school. She finally had a healthy season last year for the Huskies after missing most of her sophomore year.

Watkins burst onto the national scene as a freshman last year and put up eye-popping numbers. The Los Angeles native averaged 27.1 points, second only to Clark, and set the national record for a freshman with 920 points. She helped the Trojans reach the Elite Eight in their deepest NCAA Tournament run in three decades.

There are high expectations for the team, which is ranked third in the preseason poll behind No. 1 South Carolina and No. 2 UConn. Iriafen averaged 19.4 points and 11.0 rebounds for Stanford last year, including scoring a career-high 41 in the second round win over Iowa State in the NCAA Tournament.

Hidalgo, like Watkins, had a stellar freshman season. She averaged 22.6 points, 6.2 rebounds and 5.5 assists for the Fighting Irish, helping the team win the ACC Tournament and advance to the Sweet 16.

Booker stepped up her play for the Longhorns after Rori Harmon went down with an ACL injury in late December. She was thrust into the starting point guard slot and shined, averaging 16.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists. Those numbers were even higher after Harmon’s injury.

Bueckers, Watkins and Hidalgo were all first-team AP All-Americans in the spring. Booker was on the second team with Iriafen earning honorable mention.

The AP began releasing a preseason All-America team before the 1994-95 season.

Everything you need to know ahead of Women’s Rugby World Cup draw

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By Martyn Thomas

1 day ago

Fans will be able to plot their team’s path to Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 glory once Thursday’s eagerly anticipated draw has been made.

Now that all 16 teams for the expanded showpiece tournament have been confirmed the next step is to find out who each team will be playing during the pool stage.

The qualified nations have been seeded based on Monday’s World Rugby Women’s Rankings and divided into four bands.

With exactly one year to go until Women’s Rugby World Cup England 2025 kicks off
in Sunderland, excitement is sweeping across the host nation in anticipation of what
will be the biggest and most accessible celebration of women’s rugby ever.

Register now for the ticket presale

The top four seeds have been prepopulated into the first position of each pool, with England in Pool A, Canada in Pool B, New Zealand in Pool C and France in Pool D.

You can find out who will join them in those pools by watching the official draw live on the BBC and RugbyPass TV from 19:20 BST (GMT+1) on Thursday.

To help you prepare for the draw, we have taken a closer look at each of the four bands.

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Band one

Teams: England, Canada, New Zealand, France

How they qualified: England were guaranteed their place at the tournament as hosts, while the Black Ferns are defending champions and Canada and France also made it due to their performance at Women’s RWC 2021, where they contested the bronze final.

Team to avoid: Canada are arguably the most-improved side in international rugby, but no team from the other three bands will want to be drawn in Pool A. The Red Roses are on a 20-match winning run and have lost just once in their previous 51 Tests.

John Mitchell’s side head into the draw with a record World Rugby Women’s Rankings rating having become the first team – men’s or women’s – to break through the 97-point barrier with victory against Canada last weekend.

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Band two

Teams: Australia, Ireland, Scotland, Italy

How they qualified: Ireland booked their ticket to England by finishing third in the Women’s Six Nations standings earlier this year. Australia, Scotland and Italy secured their passage at the end of WXV 2.

Portland Snaps Orlando’s Unbeaten Streak in NWSL Weekend Action

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With their first NWSL win since July 5th, Portland ended Orlando’s record 24-match unbeaten streak on Friday.

Thorns forward Morgan Weaver’s 13th-minute opening goal marked the first time the Pride trailed in a game since March 22nd.

Portland captain Christine Sinclair notched her 78th goal across all NWSL competitions to secure the 2-0 finish. The soon-to-retire legend’s 55th-minute strike puts her just behind league-leader Lynn Williams, who scored her 80th goal in Gotham’s 2-0 win over Chicago on Saturday.

The Pride, who secured the 2024 NWSL Shield earlier this month, notably did not start their three leading scorers: Barbra Banda, Marta, and Adriana. All entered in Friday’s second half to face a Thorns side still missing top scorer Sophia Smith due to ankle injury.

Seventh-place Portland will look to clinch their postseason spot in the NWSL season’s final two matchdays, a fact cheekily pointed out by Marta after the Thorns’s victory.https://www.instagram.com/p/DBDE4CTstvY/embed/captioned/?cr=1&v=14&wp=1080&rd=https%3A%2F%2Fjustwomenssports.com&rp=%2Freads%2Fportland-thorns-win-orlando-pride-game-nwsl-unbeaten-streak-record-ends%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A324.70000000298023%2C%22ls%22%3A178.60000000149012%2C%22le%22%3A178.60000000149012%7D

Chawinga bags NWSL scoring record

With her season’s 19th goal in Saturday’s 1-0 win over Bay FC, Kansas City striker Temwa Chawinga surpassed former Chicago Red Star Sam Kerr’s 2019 scoring tally to etch her name into the NWSL record books. Like Kerr, none of the Malawian’s goals in her record-setting run have come from penalties.

“[The single-season scoring record] means a lot to me because it’s a very difficult league… So I thank my teammates and I thank God for giving me this chance to be here,” Chawinga said after the game.

“We know teams now are trying to close her down and close the space down in the area where she gets most of her chances,” KC boss Vlatko Andonovski told reporters after the match. “She ran out and hit a bomb.”

The all-but-guaranteed 2024 NWSL Golden Boot winner now boasts six more goals than the league’s second-leading scorer, the Pride’s aforementioned Banda.

The weekend’s results also saw the fourth-place Current earn a first-ever home playoff match alongside second-place Washington and third-place Gotham, while sixth-place Chicago officially secured their postseason berth.

Cloé Lacasse sits on Utah's throne after her record-breaking hat trick on Sunday.
Utah Royals forward Cloé Lacasse made hat trick history on Sunday. (Rob Gray/Imagn Images)

Lacasse hat trick sees Seattle eliminated from playoffs

Utah forward Cloé Lacasse’s Sunday hat trick didn’t just lift the Royals 3-0 over the Seattle Reign, it also made NWSL history.

The Canadian national opened scoring off of a third-minute corner kick, tying Utah’s record for the fastest goal before firing off two more before halftime.

The feat marked the first hat trick of the 2024 NWSL season as well as the first in Utah Royals history, with Lacasse joining Crystal Dunn as the only other NWSL player to ever book three first-half goals.

Now on a three-game winning streak, the victory keeps 10th-place Utah in the postseason hunt, while also eliminating Seattle from playoff contention.

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