Golden State tips off | NWSL issues suspensions | NCAA softball heats up

Who wore it best?

Golden State tips off

The WNBA starts a new chapter tonight, as the Golden State Valkyries — the league’s first expansion team since 2008 — takes the court for a preseason showdown with fellow California side Los Angeles.

• “It’ll be our franchise’s first game,” Golden State forward Kayla Thornton told the media from training camp. “I’m just excited to get to the court.”

Finding a formula: Drawing from both April’s college draft and an earlier expansion draft within the league, the Valkyries’ roster is still a work in progress as they attempt to form a distinct playing style under first-year coach Natalie Nakase.

• Backed by an inaugural training camp lineup that appears to prioritize international talent, Golden State already waived Maryland standout Shyanne Sellers after drafting her 17th overall last month.

• UConn Cinderella story Kaitlyn Chen — taken No. 30 overall — is now the team’s only NCAA draftee.

• “It’s just that I have to choose the best 12 that are going to fit. Doesn’t mean it’s the most talented, it means it’s the best 12," Nakase said of the decision.

Big picture: The first new addition since the Atlanta Dream came onboard, the WNBA’s 13th club is already balancing building team culture with the natural growing pains of expansion.

• Golden State Warriors Sports — the ownership group behind both the Valkyries and the NBA’s Golden State Warriors — recently rebranded to simply Golden State to indicate equity among its properties.

Tune in: The Valkyries make their WNBA debut against the Sparks tonight at 10 PM ET, with live streaming coverage on WNBA League Pass.

NWSL hands down suspensions

The NWSL Disciplinary Committee issued new rulings on Monday, extending existing reprimands after further reviewing violations of the league’s rulebook.

• Racing Louisville forward Ary Borges earned an additional three-game suspension to her original April 27th red card offense for postgame dissent, after “Borges was found to have pushed the center official,” per a league release.

• The committee also handed Washington Spirit head coach Jonatan Giráldez an extra one-game suspension for his April 26th red card incident, determining that Giráldez “failed to exit the field as required by the NWSL following ejection from a match.”

Big picture: While the members of the NWSL Disciplinary Committee are anonymous, they’re responsible for monitoring conduct that warrants review beyond punishments given on the pitch.

• Borges previously apologized for her behavior during the Louisville’s chippy draw against Portland, saying she let the “the emotional side of the moment” get to her amid officiating concerns.

• “I’m not much of talking about referees because they are things that are beyond our control but what happened today in the match was a shame,” she added.

• Originally penalized for entering the opposing side’s technical area in the final minutes of the Spirit’s 3-0 loss to Gotham, Giráldez did not comment on the suspension, with assistant coach Adrián González telling reporters at the time, “Sometimes you have a lot of things that you cannot control… He was just trying to protect our players or coaching staff, but nothing else.”

Bottom line: Borges will sit out Louisville’s next three regular-season matches from May 9th through May 24th, while Giráldez is set to miss Washington’s May 10th game against Chicago.

Softball conference tourneys kick off

College softball wound down regular-season play over the weekend, transitioning into a slate of cutthroat conference tournaments ahead of this year’s 64-team NCAA DI tournament.

• Starting today and running through May 10th, conference tournaments follow a single-elimination format that feeds directly into May 11th’s Selection Sunday.

Big picture: Thanks in part to recent conference realignment, the powerhouse SEC appears to have the college softball landscape on lock this year, with this week’s matchups likely providing a sneak peek of late May’s national tournament.

• With the addition of newcomers No. 1 Oklahoma and No. 5 Texas, seven of the current Top 10 DI teams represent the SEC.

• Despite some growing pains — and seven conference losses — the defending champion Sooners continue to lead the pack as they hunt their fifth straight Women’s College World Series title.

• No. 2 Tennessee and No. 4 Texas A&M are in close pursuit, with both teams having previously held the No. 1 spot this season.

Tune in: No. 24 Georgia opens the SEC tournament’s first round against unranked Kentucky today at 1 PM ET, live on the SEC Network.

USA Rugby sets attendance record

The USA Women's national rugby union team set a new standard on Friday, welcoming a record 10,518 fans to Kansas City’s 11,500-capacity CPKC Stadium for a rivalry-fueled match against Canada.

• Friday’s attendance marked the largest-ever crowd for a US women’s rugby match, as the world No. 9 Eagles fell to No. 2 Canada 26-14 to open this year’s Pacific Four Series.

• “To see the crowd be over 10,500 like that was absolutely fantastic in this women’s purposely built stadium, and to debut rugby here in that stadium as well,” said US captain Kate Zackary. “Everyone I talked to after the game who they didn’t know what rugby was, has fallen in love with it.”

Next up: The Eagles are setting their sights on an even bigger venue this summer, anticipating a sell-out for their July 19th mixed doubleheader against Fiji inside Washington, DC’s 20,000-seat Audi Field.

Nike drops A’ja Wilson’s A’Ones

Nike A’Ones are flying off the shelves, as three-time WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson dropped the “Pink A’ura” edition of her signature shoe this morning — only to see it sell out within minutes.

• The new A’Ones dropped alongside a similarly hued apparel collection, with additional colorways also reportedly in the works.

• “My first A’One Collection reflects both my vision for the future of the game and the inspirations that fuel my performance and style every day,” Wilson said in the brand’s February announcement.

• Nike has been celebrating the shoe’s release with a series of ads — including this “Teaching the Pro” spot directed by Malia Obama.

Get in line: While Nike has removed the sneaker’s online listing for the time being, more inventory is expected to be released later this week.

Quote of the day

Former USWNT star Carli Lloyd
reflecting on the cost of success during her National Soccer Hall of Fame induction speech.