USWNT gets it done | Atlanta & Phoenix rise up | Spirit coach jumps ship

Ready your passports.

USWNT comes out swinging

The US didn’t miss a beat on Saturday, comfortably taking down China PR 3-0 to kick off a series of two international friendlies with the USWNT’s first match since early April.

• Forward Catarina Macario opened the scoring in the 28th minute, before midfielder Sam Coffey doubled the scoreline later in the first half and a Lindsey Heaps header in the 54th minute put on the finishing touches.

Big picture: Coach Emma Hayes’s top-ranked US squad played fluidly against No. 17 China PR, dominating the attack with more than 70% possession while notching seven shots on goal.

• “I feel like I’m working a lot on trying to join the play more, get up in counter-measures. I tend to play it too safe, and think too ‘worst-case scenario,’ so I was just trying to join,” Coffey told TBS after tallying her second international goal.

Fresh faces: The match also saw the international debut of 32-year-old midfielder Lo’eau Labonta, who became the oldest player to earn a first cap in USWNT history.

• “When they called my name, I was sitting being the best cheerleader I could be on the bench,” LaBonta joked after the win. “I was like, ‘This is amazing. I’ve never been field-view watching the national team.’ It was so cool.”

Up next: The US will go again on Tuesday against Jamaica, but it appears that Hayes’s roster reshuffling hasn’t yet hindered their ability to control games.

Atlanta & Phoenix make in-roads

While unbeaten New York and Minnesota look down from the top, Phoenix and Atlanta are shaping up to be the early season’s biggest players, as the No. 3 Mercury and No. 4 Dream continue to climb the WNBA standings.

• The Mercury topped the skidding LA Sparks 85-80 on Sunday to reach 5-2 on the season, while the Dream secured their own 5-2 record after Friday’s 94-87 win over the Storm.

Big picture: Atlanta and Phoenix made some of league’s boldest offseason moves this year, as Mercury legend Brittney Griner joined the Dream in free agency while Phoenix picked up top talents Alyssa Thomas and Satou Sabally.

• With Thomas nursing an injury, Sabally led Phoenix over LA behind a team-high 24 points on Sunday.

• Griner’s 15-point, eight-rebound performance helped Atlanta quiet Dallas 83-75 last weekend, before established stars Allisha Gray and Rhyne Howard combined for 61 points against Seattle.

Rising tides: Even the bottom of the table saw some light over the weekend, as Connecticut registered their first victory of 2025 on Friday, edging out injury-laden Indiana to become the final WNBA team to enter the win column this season.

• Though the Sun came crashing back to Earth on Sunday, falling to New York by a steep 48-point margin in the first day of Commissioners Cup play.

Spirit coach jumps ship

Another Spirit coach is departing DC, with Washington announcing this morning that first-year NWSL manager Jonatan Giráldez will join France’s OL Lyonnes as head coach.

• Giráldez will step away from the Spirit after their June 18th match, with assistant Adrián González — who led Washington as interim manager prior to Giráldez’s mid-2024 arrival — set to take over the squad.

• The move follows the recent announcement that OL Lyonnes boss Joe Montemurro is Australia-bound, breaking his two-year contract to head up his home country’s national team, the Matildas.

Big picture: With Giráldez jumping from one Michele Kang-owned team to another, the former Barcelona manager’s European return raises questions about Kang’s multi-club ownership model — and concerns about the future of Spirit stars like the injured star Trinity Rodman, who recently took leave from the NWSL to seek treatment overseas.

• “We are not going to sacrifice one team to make another team successful. Absolutely not,” Kang told Forbes in 2024 interview. “Our goal is to make every team the champion in each of their leagues.”

• In addition to the Spirit and OL Lyonnes, Kang’s Kynesca corporation also owns recently promoted WSL side London City Lionesses.

Bottom line: The Spirit has weathered big changes before, but Kang’s involvement in this particular personnel swap will come under the spotlight should Washington lose pace later this season.

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US stars keep rolling in Paris

Two US tennis stars are still shining at the 2025 French Open, as world No. 7 Madison Keys and No. 2 Coco Gauff blew through their Round of 16 matches to set up tomorrow’s all-American quarterfinal showdown.

• Gauff dealt Russia’s Ekaterina Alexandrova a dominant 6-0, 7-5 loss early this morning, while Keys topped fellow US player Hailey Baptiste in straight sets shortly afterwards.

• “Coco is so good, and especially on clay,” Keys said ahead of her upcoming opponent. “She’s an unbelievable player and such a great athlete. She’s done really well here making the finals before, so I’m looking forward to it and happy to see there will be another American in the semifinals.”

US on point: Five US women and three men reached the fourth round at Roland-Garros this past weekend, tying the country's 1985 record before Baptiste joined No. 3 Jessica Pegula and No. 16 Amanda Anisimova on the ousted list.

• No US player has won the French Open since Serena Williams in 2015, with both Gauff and Keys shooting for a date with either No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka or No. 5 Iga Świątek — winner of four of the last five tournaments.

Tune in: See who survives as Gauff takes on Keys tomorrow morning (time TBD), live on TNT.

Korda comes close

World No. 1 Nelly Korda clocked her best finish of 2025 at this weekend’s US Open, tying Japan’s Rio Takeda for second place as the decorated US golfer continues to hunt her first LPGA Tour win of the year.

• “When you come so close and you kind of feel that adrenaline coming down 18, the one thing that you want to do is hold the trophy at the end of the day,” Korda said afterwards. “And I’m not.”

Cashing in: Sweden’s Maja Stark walked away with the win, earning her first career major title — plus the $2.4 million winner’s purse — over Korda by two shots.

• “It feels so surreal, and it felt like it was so far away just a couple of weeks ago,” the 25-year-old said.

Quote of the day

Texas infielder Joley Mitchell
on teammate Teagan Kavan pitching a complete game at the WCWS the same day her grandmother died — a feat that led the Longhorns to the national semifinals.