It didn’t take long for Janasia Wilson to steal the spotlight at the Nike Football Kickoff Classic on Thursday, after she predicted that her team would “win all these games” in a mic’d-up segment during warm-ups.

The quarterback from Irvington High School (New Jersey) led her team down the field in the first quarter of their 14-0 win over Willowbrook High School (Illinois). From the 2-yard line, Wilson snapped the ball, avoided an incoming pass rusher and scampered out to the right and into the endzone for her team’s first touchdown.

Wilson helped Irvington build their lead on another run in the first half. Rolling out to the right again, she cut inside past two diving defenders and crossed the endline to give her team a commanding two-touchdown lead.

The Blue Knights would not relinquish the lead from there. With their defense holding Willowbrook scoreless, Willowbrook’s two touchdowns were more than enough to seal the victory.

Just Women’s Sports mic’d Wilson up during warm-ups, and the jokes she made with her teammates reflected the moves she displayed later on the field.

“I would’ve juked you,” she said. “You would have got crossed. You would’ve been eating turf.”

@justwomenssports Janasia Wilson mic’d up at warm ups 🤣 @Nike #flagfootball #micdup ♬ original sound - Just Women’s Sports

The game was part of the second-annual Nike Football Kickoff Classic in partnership with the NFL, a round-robin showcase for some of the top girls’ and boys’ high school flag football programs in the country.

Two high school flag football teams, both from the same county in Florida, flew across the country to go head-to-head at the first-of-its-kind Nike Kickoff Classic on Friday, celebrating the return of football season across the country.

Playing at Nike World Headquarters in Beaverton, Ore., in the biggest spotlight of their young careers, the Robinson Knights defeated the Alonso Ravens 12-6 in a tightly contested game between the longtime rivals.

Co-hosted by the NFL alongside Nike, the game built upon last year’s groundbreaking commitment from the two powerhouse companies of $5 million in product to grow girls flag football in high school athletics across the country.

After two days of special events and programming, the teams found themselves on familiar territory, facing each other within the lines of the football field. Opting to defer after winning the coin toss, Alonso found itself on its heels against a surprisingly jitter-less drive led by Robinson quarterback Haidyn Spano. The first sophomore to earn the starting quarterback role for the Knights since 2007, Spano’s youth had both her and head coach Josh Saunders on edge coming into the game.

But on just her seventh pass for her sixth completion of the game, Spano connected with two-time first team all-state wide receiver Katejion Robinson, as she cut across the center of the field and watched her turn on the jets to cover the remaining 20 yards and find the end zone, giving the Knights a 6-0 lead.

After Alonso head coach Matt Hernandez watched his squad’s first drive come up short, despite several solid gains on short passes to senior running back Sadie Bodie, Spano proved further why she’s the one taking the snaps for Robinson. Perfectly placed passes to Bella Rodriguez and again to Robinson for big gains positioned the Knights with first-and-goal, but they turned the ball over on downs after a touchdown-saving deflection from Alonso junior linebacker Sophie Duong.

The last big play of the half came from Alonso QB Mieke Rowe with 26 seconds left. The reigning state leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns and total TDs, Rowe took the snap from midfield on first-and-15, rolled to her left and cut back center to avoid a tenacious rush from Alonso’s Julia Guillermo. She released a pinpoint pass in stride away from her body that sped through a defender’s arms for a completion to junior WR Carina Annunziata.

Unfortunately for Alonso, Spano played as big on defense as she did on offense and knocked down a pass to the end zone to end the half, protecting Robinson’s 6-0 lead.

Alonso started the second half with its best drive of the game, finally getting the ball into the hands of senior WR Eryn Klaus, the 2022 team MVP. After a long run up the center to put her team in the red zone, Klaus expertly sealed off her defender to notch Rowe’s first passing touchdown of the season, putting the Ravens on the board and tying the game at 6-all.

In the end, the consistent connection between Spano and Robinson proved to be the difference. With her length and speed, Robinson was unstoppable, cutting under when being backed and going deep when fronted.

But it was her senior teammate, Adriana Williams, who scored the decisive touchdown. On third-and-goal at the 1, Williams took a surprise short snap and laid out into the air, diving across the goal line and crossing the plane just before her flag was pulled.

After an impressive full-extension interception by Makenna Sturgis gave Alonso one final possession with about two and half minutes left in the game, a series of incompletions led to Rowe throwing an interception of her own.

As Spano took a knee and watched the final seconds tick off, the team erupted into celebration, and the sophomore QB and her coach shared a moment of mutual elation — the kind that only comes from having brilliantly risen to the occasion.

“We had a conversation in the hotel lobby, and I just told her the next three years are going to be awesome for us. And there’s going to be some struggle,” Robinson coach Josh Saunders said about Spano. “We saw the awesome, which was the fourth down play for the touchdown, and then we saw the youth on the interception at the end of the game where you’ve got to take care of the ball.

“We’re going to work through all that, but man, we’re very, very excited.”

Regardless of the final score, both teams successfully showcased what the game of girls flag football is all about and why it continues to catch on throughout the country.

Tessa Nichols is a contributing writer at Just Women’s Sports.

MANHEIM, Pa. — FBC United led the West Virginia Thunder 21-14 at the end of the first quarter in Monday afternoon’s Girls Under Armour Association U17 championship, and top-seeded FBC United had outrun, outrebounded and outshot the Thunder.

But with the game tied up late in the fourth overtime period, Dee Alexander drained a bucket to give the Thunder the lead, and they held on in the final seconds for an 80-77 victory over FBC United at the Spooky Nook Sports Complex.

“It was a tough game from the beginning,” Alexander said. “We had four overtimes and we had to step up to win the game like we were supposed to. FBC was very tired. They couldn’t take it no more.

“We knew what we were supposed to do. This is what our goal was, and we came to win.”

From the moment the Atlanta-area powerhouse first took the floor donning warm-up jerseys with “PROVE THEM WRONG” emblazoned across the front, to the moment Stanford commit Courtney Ogden hit a 3-pointer to take the first lead of the game, it was clear that FBC United knew exactly what needed to be done.

“This is how we play,” FBC United’s Jaloni Cambridge said. “I’m not gonna lie, I was really tired. But I had to figure out a way because playing fast is our key to the game.”

Cambridge hadn’t been with the team since May because she was helping guide the USA U17 National Team to a gold medal in Hungary, while her FBC United teammate Ogden had done the same a month earlier with the U18 National Team in Argentina.

Every member of FBC United’s starting lineup — Cambridge, Ogden, UNC commit Reniya Kelly, Alabama commit Essence Cody and 2024 power forward Joyce Edwards — is elite. The squad found total synergy early on, and it showed.

It took the Thunder a bit longer to kick things into gear. Whenever Alexander or 2023 standout Kymora Johnson tried to heat things up, there was often a disconnect somewhere else. The team that moved as one earlier in the weekend couldn’t seem to find its footing.

The height advantage for FBC United didn’t hurt either — the top-seeded team has an average height more than two inches taller than that of the Thunder.

FBC United took a 37-27 lead into halftime, and the second quarter didn’t feel much different than the first. In fact, the two teams met earlier in the GUAA circuit during Session I in April when FBC United won handily, 70-43.

However, what happened in the second half was not only a testament to Thunder coach Scott Johnson, but also to the grit of his players.

Slowly but surely, West Virginia locked in, led by a double-figure scoring effort from 2025 standout ZaKiyah Johnson, the small forward who was given the task of matching up against Edwards.

Having the patience and understanding of exactly when and where to strike beneath the basket is one thing, but for ZaKiyah Johnson and Edwards — who both play an unselfish, up-tempo style — it became a spectacle.

“That’s definitely the game I love,” ZaKiyah Johnson said. “I love competing. I love the pressure. It was so fun, and I can’t wait until next year.”

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The West Virginia Thunder's Kymora Johnson cuts down the net after the Thunder defeated FBC United 80-77 in the championship of the 2023 GUAA tournament Monday in Manheim, Pa. (Mina Park/Just Women's Sports)

The Thunder muscled their first lead of the game with under two minutes remaining in the third quarter when Kymora Johnson drained a bucket to give her side a 46-45 advantage.

That moment was key, as everything for the Thunder seemed to fall into place.

Forcing turnovers, making big blocks, drawing fouls — FBC United was still very much plugged in, but the control they previously had in the first half was gone. At the end of the third quarter, the Thunder remained on top, 52-50.

Packed like sardines, unbelievably hot and expecting a fight in the fourth quarter, the crowd gathered around the court continued to grow over the course of the game.

In the fourth quarter, ZaKiyah Johnson and Alexander were the difference, using stifling defense and battling for every loose ball to push the Thunder’s lead to as many as six points in the final period.

FBC United kept their foot on the gas. Clutch plays from Cambridge, Cody and Edwards allowed FBC United to stay in it.

In fact, Cody set her team up for the win with a hard-fought bucket with just under two minutes remaining. She was fouled on the shot but couldn’t connect on the free throw, and Alexander grabbed the rebound and took it to the basket to tie things up at 65-all.

Trailing 69-67 with 5.3 seconds left in the first overtime period, Thunder 2023 point guard Timberlynn Yeast went to the line with an opportunity to tie the game.

“I was nervous, but I’m proud of this team,” Yeast said. “I just knew I had to hit those free throws for us to win.”

Yeast remained calm and collected, and she did just that, sending both teams into the second overtime tied at 69-all.

With GUAA rules limiting the remaining overtime periods to just one minute in length, Ogden opened the second extra period with a 3-pointer, and the crowd erupted when Thunder 2023 power forward Ella Weaver answered on the other end with her own shot from beyond the arc, tying the game at 72-72 with 14.5 seconds left on the clock.

Alexander forced a key turnover, and FBC United coach Alfred Motton called a timeout. It was obvious that West Virginia felt the tide turning in its favor, as Kymora Johnson began hyping up the crowd.

FBC United forced a turnover of their own, but Alexander blocked a shot at the other end, sending both teams into a third overtime.

In the fourth overtime, a three-point play by Alexander pushed the Thunder ahead 75-72, but Cambridge did the same thing on the other end to tie things back up, 75-75.

Then, ZaKiyah Johnson won another battle beneath the basket against Edwards, and after Alexander’s bucket gave the Thunder the lead for good, Yeast went to the free-throw line with 6.1 seconds remaining. She missed her first shot but hit the second, and FBC United was unable to answer.

“I feel like West Virginia’s price? Yesterday’s price ain’t today’s price,” Thunder coach Scott Johnson laughed after the comeback win. “The price is going up for the program. I’m ecstatic for the girls. I’m at a loss for words right now.”

Click here to see a recap of Sunday’s action.

GUAA championship scores

U17: West Virginia Thunder 80, FBC United 77

U16: Northwest Blazers 57, Bay State Jaguars 54

U15: Northwest Blazers 49, Western PA Bruins 34

Caroline Makauskas is a contributing writer for Just Women’s Sports. She also writes about college basketball for Blue Ribbon Sports and covers a variety of sports on her TikTok @cmakauskas. Follow her on Twitter @cmakauskas.

The French duo of Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic came from behind to defeat Americans Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, to claim the French Open doubles title in front of a home crowd Sunday at Roland Garros.

Garcia and Mladenovic add this year’s trophy to their 2016 French Open championship. Mladenovic, the former WTA doubles World No. 1, also won the title with partner Timea Babos in 2019 and 2020, bringing her tally to four Roland Garros women’s doubles championships.

The partners, while proven champions, had only competed in three events together since 2017 prior to this French Open run. They needed a wildcard to enter the main draw at Roland Garros.

After falling behind a set to Gauff and Pegula, Garcia and Mladenovic took charge, saving five of their six break points in the last two frames compared to going zero for six in the opening set.

The French team also overpowered the Americans on serve, winning 65 percent of their first-service points compared to 51 percent from Gauff and Pegula.

Sunday’s victory capped off a thrilling run for Garcia and Mladenovic, who came back from a set down in half of their matches at Roland Garros, including the final and semifinal.

Gauff also competed in the tournament’s singles title match Saturday, falling to Iga Swiatek in straight sets.

Nichelle Prince led the Houston Dash to an emphatic 5-0 victory over the Orlando Pride, notching the first hat trick of her NWSL career and the first in club history Friday night.

The Canadian international logged her first finish in the 27th minute, getting in behind the Pride backline before beating the goalkeeper to put the Dash up 1-0.

Ten minutes later, Prince charged into the Orlando box before striking a curler that deflected off a Pride defender into the back of the net to put the scoreline at 3-0 before the half.

Finishing off her historic performance, Prince collected a missed Pride clearance before chipping the goalkeeper to log her third goal of the night in the 49th minute.

Friday’s 5-0 victory marks Houston’s biggest win since the club’s 6-1 result over Sky Blue FC on August 25, 2018.

The Portland Thorns snapped their four-game winless streak, downing Angel City 3-0 at Providence Park on Friday night.

With their last victory coming in April, the Thorns clinched a critical three points in the NWSL standings with their Friday night shutout.

“This team desperately needed a win,” said Christine Sinclair, who notched a brace in the match. “We’ve been playing well, just haven’t gotten the results, and it was nice to put on a show for the fans.”

There was plenty to celebrate at Providence Park, with the club hosting Pride night as players donned jerseys with rainbow-colored numbers for the occasion.

“What an opportunity to give our amazing fans a party,” said Thorns coach Rhian Wilkinson. “This league is so tight, so anytime you can grab three points is huge.”

The celebratory evening was marked by an important first, with fans cheering as Kelli Hubly scored her debut NWSL goal to put the Thorns up 1-0 in the 15th minute. Hubly nodded in a Sophia Smith corner, celebrating with her teammates after her breakthrough goal.

The 27-year-old has been with the club since 2017.

Next up: The Thorns will look to build a win streak as they travel to take on the San Diego Wave on Wednesday.

No. 1 Iga Swiatek has done it again, continuing her historic run to claim the French Open title Saturday.

The 21-year-old cruised past Coco Gauff 6-1, 6-3 with a dominant performance to clinch her second French Open championship in three years and sixth straight title. Swiatek is the youngest multiple Grand Slam winner since Maria Sharapova secured her second major at 19 years old at the U.S. Open in 2006.

With Saturday’s victory, Swiatek extends her win streak to 35 straight matches, tying Venus Williams for the longest streak since 2000 and the third-longest since 1990.

Swiatek got off to a swift start in Paris, claiming the first set 6-1 in 32 minutes. The Polish star notched eight winners and eight unforced errors, while Gauff logged seven winners and 14 unforced errors.

The American teen briefly grabbed momentum, jumping to a 2-0 lead to start the second set as Swiatek uncharacteristically hit five unforced errors in the opening two games. Regaining her composure, Swiatek charged ahead to down Gauff 6-3 in the second to lock up the victory.

With the two competitors holding a combined age of 39 years, Saturday’s final was the youngest at Roland Garros since Iva Majoli, 19, stunned 16-year-old Martina Hingis in 1997.

Gauff and Swiatek’s youthful exuberance was on full display in the post-match trophy ceremony, with both players becoming emotional as they thanked the Roland Garros crowd. Through tears, Gauff acknowledged her team, the fans and even the photographers, thanking them for taking quality snaps of her throughout the tournament.

“Hopefully, this is the first final of many,” Gauff said.

Swiatek was similarly emotional as she addressed the French Open spectators, receiving rapturous applause from the crowd as she honored those suffering in Ukraine amid the war, telling them to “stay strong.”

Freshly 21 as of Tuesday, Swiatek is the fourth-youngest multiple French Open champion in the Open Era, behind Monica Seles, Stefanie Graf and Chris Evert.

Oklahoma State softball came from behind Thursday night to avoid an opening-night upset at the Women’s College World Series, defeating Arizona 4-2.

The Cowgirls trailed Arizona 2-1 heading into the sixth inning, with Oklahoma State’s offense cold.

Junior outfielder Karli Petty, however, turned the game around just in time for the Cowgirls, blasting a three-run home run to dead center field to secure a 4-2 win over Arizona.

Petty’s game-winning homer marks just her fifth home run of the season. This one came in front of a record crowd of 12,320 at USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City — and one girl in the stands snagged the ball out of the air as it sailed into the bleachers.

“It’s really nice to come back and play somewhere that’s really familiar, and it’s just even better to come back with over 12,000 fans,” Petty said following the match. “It’s really exciting to see how much this place has grown from when I was little growing up. It’s an amazing feeling to be in this moment in all aspects of my life.”

Up next: No. 7 Oklahoma State will face No. 14-seed Florida at 7 p.m. ET Saturday on ESPN.

Coco Gauff has a chance to sweep the French Open after the 18-year-old and her partner Jessica Pegula advanced to the doubles final at Roland Garros.

The American duo defeated their fellow countrywomen Madison Keys and Taylor Townsend 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) in Friday’s semifinal to move on to Sunday’s championship match.

Gauff will have a full schedule as she prepares to take on No. 1 Iga Swiatek in the singles final Saturday.

Last year, Barbora Krejcikova became just the seventh woman ever, and the first since 2000, to win the singles and doubles titles in Paris.

Gauff and Pegula will take on French team Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic, who beat Lyudmyla Kichenok and Jelena Ostapenko in three sets (2-6, 6-4, 6-2) in the other semifinal.

Ashlyn Harris made history Sunday night, becoming the first NWSL goalkeeper to reach 500 career regular-season saves.

The veteran keeper reached the milestone during Gotham FC’s 1-0 win over Angel City FC.

“I am really proud of 500 saves,” Harris said after the match. “It really is a testament to how long I have been doing this craft, but after the game, just seeing the amount of people who are willing to share their stories of how in some small way maybe I’ve moved them or helped them with either mental health or coming out and showing up for the LGBTQ community. Those things are what really mattered to me every weekend.”

Harris notched an impressive six saves during Sunday’s contest, preserving the clean sheet for Gotham FC.

Officiating took center stage during the matchup between Angel City and Gotham FC, with Gotham’s Imani Dorsey, Kristie Mewis, Midge Purce and the coaching staff all booked for yellow cards.

Gotham FC, however, persevered, with Ifeoma Onumonu scoring the game-winner for her side. The star striker, assisted by Purce, struck a low shot to the near post for her first goal of the 2022 regular season.

Sunday’s victory improves Gotham FC to 2-2-0, while Angel City falls to 3-2-0 but maintains its spot at second place in the NWSL standings.