Washington finds a way | USA Hockey wins Worlds | Stanford sets softball record

The floor is lava.

Depleted Spirit downs the Pride

Washington netted an unlikely victory in this weekend’s NWSL action, snapping second-place Orlando’s 22-game home unbeaten streak with a narrow 1-0 win — fueled by newly signed forward Gift Monday’s debut goal.

• “We knew it was going to be a fight,” Spirit goalkeeper Aubrey Kingsbury said after the game. “We know they’re physical, so we came [and] we matched that.”

Big picture: Washington continues to eke out wins despite a depleted roster, with a full 11 players unavailable for Saturday’s 2024 NWSL championship rematch due to injury.

• At the top of that list is star forward Trinity Rodman, with the 22-year-old’s agent telling the Washington Post that she’s “taking time away from team activities” to see a doctor in London about lingering back issues.

• Additional absences include Croix Bethune (hip), Hal Hershfelt (ankle), Casey Krueger (knee), and Ouleye Sarr (SEI back), yet Washington keeps managing to find a way, finishing the weekend third in the standings — and tied with Orlando on points.

Traffic at the top: Kansas City also benefitted from the Spirit’s win, leapfrogging Orlando to claim first place after Saturday’s comfortable 2-0 result against No. 10 Houston.

• The Current have notched five wins in as many matchdays, becoming the league’s only remaining unbeaten team this season.

Bottom line: The Spirit may have flipped the script against the reigning champs, but Rodman’s uncertain timeline casts a shadow over the team’s 2025 redemption tour.

Angel City hits a speed bump

While the Spirit stacked points out East, Angel City saw their unbeaten streak squashed this weekend, with Gotham defeating the LA club 4-0 on Friday behind by a brace from forward Esther.

• The loss dropped Angel City’s goal differential to -1, after the team failed to register a single shot on target against the competition.

Big picture: Angel City had been on an unexpected moonshot to the top of the NWSL table, but Friday’s stumble underlined just how much more progress they’ll look to make under incoming manager Alexander Straus.

• “We have a really young squad right now,” said captain Sarah Gorden after the game. “And we just played a really experienced team. This is part of the process, and it’s part of a long season.”

NY/NJ on the rise: Bolstered by star forward Midge Purce’s return, Saturday’s win launched Gotham into fourth place, tying ACFC on points after two straight statement victories.

• “We’ve been working very hard in training, and it’s showing in the matches,” Esther said. “Everyone is giving their all, and we’re really united as a group.”

Bottom line: Angel City’s growing pains were perhaps inevitable, but Gotham’s sudden surge after a slow start is shaking things up near the top of the standings.

USA Hockey wins Worlds

Team USA skated to victory on Sunday, taking down arch-rival Canada in a 4-3 overtime thriller to earn the team’s 11th IIHF Women’s World Championship title.

• The US is now closing in on Canada’s record-13 World Championship wins, setting the tone in the run-up to next year’s Winter Olympics as North America’s PWHL showcased its growing influence on the international stage.

How it happened: After losing starting goalkeeper Aerin Frankel to injury in the third period, backup goalie Gwyneth Philips stepped in, seeing the US to a back-and-forth 3-3 tie at the end of regulation.

• 20-year-old forward Tessa Janecke then played hero for the States, tapping in the golden goal off a turnover with just three minutes left in the first overtime period.

• "Just shows how strong we are as a group and how much we can persevere through anything,” Janecke said afterwards. “I wouldn’t want to do it with any other group."

Big picture: The tournament itself also proved to be a success, setting a new Women’s World Championship attendance record as 122,331 total fans took in the games in Czechia.

• "I think this is a watershed moment for women’s hockey, and it’s really exciting to be a part of," said US captain Hilary Knight after earning her 10th Worlds gold medal.

Bottom line: In a shifting hockey landscape, the USA-Canada rivalry is only getting more intense — with the looming 2026 Olympics providing yet another chance to steal the global spotlight.

Stanford makes softball history

Stanford shattered NCAA softball’s attendance record this weekend, welcoming 13,207 fans inside the university’s football stadium for Saturday’s “Big Swing” against Cal.

• The Cardinal’s 10-8 loss to their new ACC rivals blew past the previous record of 12,566, set on the first day of the 2024 Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.

• The game also marked Stanford Athletics’ largest-ever non-football crowd.

Big picture: Despite dropping Saturday’s matchup, No. 16 Stanford ultimately took the three-game series against the Bears to advance to their first-ever ACC championship tournament.

• “It was kind of like a mini College World Series experience,” Stanford junior Kyra Chan said after the game.

Oklahoma lifts NCAA gymnastics trophy

Oklahoma’s gymnastics team won their third national championship in four years on Saturday, topping UCLA, Utah, and Missouri with an overall score of 198.0125.

• The Sooners have earned seven titles since 2014, finishing atop the standings once again after falling short of a three-peat last year.

• Oklahoma senior Jordan Bowers also won the individual all-around competition on Thursday, while UCLA’s Jordan Chiles (uneven bars) and Brooklyn Moors (floor), LSU’s Kailin Chio (vault), and Missouri’s Helen Hu (beam) took apparatus honors.

Takeaway: "Just truly a fairytale ending," Bowers told the ABC broadcast. "I’m so freaking proud of this team, and I’m so proud to be a Sooner."

Quote of the day

Vancouver Rise midfielder Quinn
after scoring the very first goal in Canada’s Norther Super League history.