Kate Yanchulis
Oct 25, 2022
The No. 5 Wisconsin women’s volleyball team will face off against No. 1 Nebraska on Wednesday in the midst of an eight-game winning streak — and an ongoing photo leak investigation.
The University of Wisconsin police department is investigating a leak of private photos and videos of Badgers women’s volleyball players, which were then shared on the internet, the athletic department announced on Oct. 19.
One of the photos appears to have been taken after the team won the Big Ten title last November and shows members of the team posing with their sports bras lifted, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
The athletic department called the leak a “significant and wrongful invasion” of the athletes’ privacy.
Despite the turmoil of the leak and the investigation, the Badgers keep winning. They swept Michigan State at home Friday and beat Michigan 3-1 on the road Sunday, improving to 15-3 overall and 9-1 in Big Ten play.
Still here. 😤 pic.twitter.com/A8a3bTwyMh
— Wisconsin Volleyball (@BadgerVB) October 24, 2022
Wisconsin outside hitter Sarah Franklin, who transferred from Michigan State in the offseason, stepped up against her former team. She recorded eight kills and four blocks in the win over the Spartans.
Against Michigan, middle blocker Devyn Robinson led the team with 17 kills. The Wolverines took the first set, but the Badgers won the next three to come away with the win.
“After set one, I felt like we just needed to stay calm and loose and it felt tense in the huddle, but we just had to realize that we have to take a deep breath and get back to our game,” Robinson said after the match.
Next up: a national championship rematch against top-ranked Nebraska (18-1, 10-0) in front of a sold-out crowd at UW Field House at 9 p.m. ET Wednesday. The match will air on Big Ten Network.
The Badgers bested the Cornhuskers in five sets to take their first NCAA title in program history last December. They’ll look to hand the Cornhuskers their first Big Ten loss of the season and extend their winning streak to nine matches.
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Emma Hruby
May 31, 2024
The Women's College World Series began on Thursday, as eight teams vie for the 2024 NCAA championship title.
UCLA, Oklahoma, Texas, and Florida have already moved on to the winners' bracket, emerging from Thursday's first round victorious. Meanwhile Alabama, Duke, Stanford, and Oklahoma State will face elimination tonight after all suffering first-round losses.
Texas and Oklahoma enter the final week of the postseason as top seeds, with the Longhorns winning the regular season and the Sooners taking the Big 12 Tournament Championship. Oklahoma is currently eyeing their fourth-straight title, having won every NCAA softball championship since the suspended season in 2020.
Despite an excellent regular season, Texas is still on the hunt for its first softball championship. And in yesterday's decisive win 4-0 over Stanford, Texas freshman Teagan Kavan became the first freshman in college history to throw a complete game shutout.
"I knew I was prepared and had been in front of a big stage before," Kavan said of her performance on Thursday.
The Blue Devils are also making NCAA history this week. Duke's Marissa Young — the first Black head coach in WCWS history — will lead the Blue Devils to their first visit to the final round of the softball playoffs Friday as they face off against Alabama.
Thursday’s session brought in 12,566 fans — a new session attendance record for the WCWS. All games will be broadcast live across ABC and ESPN networks.
Don't miss a moment of the action:
Game 5: Alabama vs. Duke — Friday, May 31st at 7 PM ET on ESPN2
Game 6: Stanford vs. Oklahoma State — Friday, May 31st at 9:30 PM ET on ESPN2
Game 7: UCLA vs. Oklahoma — Saturday, June 1st at 3 PM ET on ABC
Game 8: Texas vs. Florida — Saturday, June 1st at 7 PM ET on ESPN
Emma Hruby
May 31, 2024
The USWNT officially kicks off the Emma Hayes era in style this weekend, going up against South Korea in the first of two pre-Olympic friendlies.
The matches will serve as the final two opportunities to impress before Hayes names her 18-player roster for the 2024 Paris Olympics. After formally taking over late last week, the ex-Chelsea coach has gotten nothing but praise from the American side.
"Anyone in the soccer world knows Emma Hayes," forward Sophia Smith told reporters at USWNT training camp. "She's a legend and her resume speaks for itself. We all just trust her. Obviously trust is something you build. What she's done for the game and for the sport, we all trust her and are excited about her. I'm sure we'll learn a lot in the next week. We already have learned a lot in the first few days."
Of course, the USWNT has carried a chip on their shoulder following a disappointing World Cup last year. And as they look to the Olympics, Smith says it’s a good thing that the team is operating that way.
"If a team going into the Olympics doesn't have a chip on their shoulder, there's a problem there," Smith continued. "This team for so many years has set the standard, has been the best in the world, and that's what we want to continue on. We want to honor what this team has done before us, but we also want to set new standards and just be a different version of this team and be the best in the world."
Hayes appears to be the right person to propel that standard forward. And the goal, according to Smith, is to win a gold medal.
"The goal is to win a gold medal, but right now we have a new coach, we have a new system," she added. "The main goal and priority is the process and just learning and adapting and growing and taking each day as a chance to get better and grow with this group.”
"I think for me, it's just [having] the leader again, and the voice and when you get on field it's awesome," echoed USWNT captain Lindsey Horan. "You get some jokes here and there but [Hayes is also] just demanding a lot out of us and keeping the standard, but also the positive encouragement feedback as well and giving voices to us as well."
Hayes will have a short runway to manage the high expectations of the job, with the US looking to put their previous performances behind them as quickly as possible. And the stacked Olympic lineup will be no easy challenge for the 2019 World Cup Champions as they vie for their first gold medal since 2012.
Speaking with media on Friday, Hayes said that it’s been "such a joy" to be back in the States, saying that her aim is to protect the team's long legacy going forward.
"We all know the main ingredients of the American DNA," she said. "That will not change under my stewardship."
She also noted that the team has come along nicely under interim coach's Twila Kilgore's leadership, comparing the players to sponges for their ability to take in a lot of information quickly.
"I think the tactical understanding is there more than I anticipated," she said, while also saying she anticipates some "tired brains."
Luckily, a few fitness concerns appear to have subsided, as a number of recently injured call-ups returned to the pitch in last weekend's NWSL games. Alex Morgan, Jaedyn Shaw, and Naomi Girma all made appearances for San Diego last Thursday after dealing with lingering knocks, while defender Tierna Davidson and club and country teammate Rose Lavelle have consistently been working their way back onto the field with Gotham.
The biggest question mark going into Saturday's match will be Smith, who missed Portland's showdown with Orlando due to a leg injury last Friday.
Emma Hruby
May 31, 2024
World No. 1 Nelly Korda got off to a career-worst start at the US Women’s Open on Thursday, shooting a 10-over 80.
A mere three holes into the tournament, the LPGA star carded a 10 on a par-3, watching as her ball rolled into the water three consecutive times.
"Making a 10 on a par-3 will definitely not do you any good at a US Open," Korda told reporters afterwards. "Just a bad day in the office."
With 15 holes to go, Korda said her hope was to keep her score below 80. Instead, she finished with three birdies and six bogeys on the remaining holes. The round marked her second-straight round of 80 in the US Women’s Open after she shot 80 in the final round at Pebble Beach last summer.
Korda finished the day 12 shots out of the lead, despite entering the tournament as a favorite. She’s won six of her last seven tournaments, including an LPGA record-tying five wins in a row.
"I just didn't really want to shoot 80," Korda said. "And I just kept making bogeys. My last two rounds in the US Women’s Open have not been good."
And the oft unbeatable Korda had no answers on Thursday. With a projected cut line of +4, she has a lot of ground to make up on Friday should she want to advance to the weekend.
"I’m human. I’m going to have bad days. I played some really solid golf up to this point," she added. "Today was just a bad day. That’s all I can say."
Emma Hruby
May 31, 2024
A couple of marquee signings and one key absence highlight an eventful international break in the NWSL.
On Thursday, the Kansas City Current announced that star defender Gabrielle Robinson is out for the season with an ACL tear. Robinson, the only Current defender to start and play every minute of the team’s first 10 games, sustained the injury during the team’s 1-0 win over Utah.
"Gabby has been one of the league's best defenders this year and we are heartbroken for her," Current head coach Vlatko Andonovski said in a team release. "She has worked so hard to make an impact on our club. She has one of the best attitudes around this injury and we are confident she will make a full return as she tackles her recovery process with a positive attitude.
"Her teammates have been incredibly supportive, and we have talented players that will be able to step in during her absence."
The Current are one of just two undefeated teams left in the NWSL, sitting second behind the Orlando Pride. The Pride, running off an eight-game win streak, announced the signing of Zambian midfielder Grace Chanda on Thursday.
Her Zambia national team co-star Barbra Banda joined the Pride earlier this season, and currently tops the Golden Boot race with eight goals in seven games for Orlando. Chanda is set to join the Pride after the Summer Olympics.
Chanda played the last two years for Madrid CFF, making 28 appearances for the club. While she helped Zambia qualify for last summer’s Women's World Cup, she missed the tournament due to illness.
"I am extremely excited to join Orlando. It is a great club, where I will be able to play alongside amazing players, like Marta and Barbra," Chanda said in a statement. "This is a very important step in my life because I have always wanted to play in the NWSL, one of the best leagues in the world."
Also announcing a big-name pick-up is the Washington Spirit, who are set to add Manchester City defender Esme Morgan to the lineup.
Morgan made 53 appearances over her seven seasons with Manchester City, which included time spent on loan to Everton. A member of the England national team, she was named to the Women’s World Cup squad last summer.
