All Scores

Kelley O’Hara embraces role as torchbearer for the next generation

(Lewis Gettier/USA TODAY Sports)

Kelley O’Hara had a big decision to make when a stranger called her up in 2019 and asked her to be an athlete ambassador for an unknown sports media startup.

The person on the other end of the phone was Haley Rosen, founder and CEO of Just Women’s Sports, on a mission to give women’s sports more media coverage. As O’Hara picked Rosen’s brain about her goals and vision for the company, an idea for a podcast was floated — one that would give athletes an opportunity to share their stories in their own words.

“Oh, I love podcasts,” O’Hara told her at the time, merely making conversation. “I’ve always thought it would be fun to host one.”

“Do you want to host this one?” Rosen asked.

A few minutes turned into an hour-long conversation, and by the end, O’Hara figured she’d give it a go, despite wondering if she’d even be good at it. Never mind that she had no way of knowing where this venture would end up.

It was the fact that women’s sports received only 4 percent of sports media coverage that convinced O’Hara she had to take the opportunity.

“I like to say I’m an optimistic realist, but also am pretty, ‘I don’t know if this is going to work, but it’s something I want to be a part of because it sounds like something that is going to address a problem that I see and that affects me and a lot of other people,’” said O’Hara. “Therefore, I want to be part of it … You can’t be waiting around, looking for someone else to do it.”

Taking initiative during moments of unpredictability has also defined O’Hara’s career as a soccer player. In her first year with the Washington Spirit last season, the veteran defender built a reputation as a locker-room motivator and on-field leader, helping the young team overcome tremendous adversity to win the NWSL championship. Instilling a “never-say-die” mentality in the Spirit, O’Hara was critical to the team’s 12-game winning streak and come-from-behind victory in the title game, scoring the winning goal off of a header in extra time.

Nowadays, to hear O’Hara talk about her approach to her teams and her podcast feels like one in the same.

“There’s no point complaining. It’s just wasted energy,” O’Hara said. “For me it was like, I want to be part of the solution. I think this is an issue. I think this is something that if addressed and done properly, can take women’s sports to the next level.”

Learning from the best

O’Hara learned to embrace challenges head-on during her early days with the U.S. women’s national team. As a rookie in 2010, she looked up to the older players and the sacrifices they made on and off the field to push women’s soccer forward.

Through her podcast, rebranded this year as The Players’ Pod, O’Hara has had the chance to interview athletes at the top of their games and at the forefront of effecting change inside and outside of their sports.

Within hers, O’Hara has been a leading advocate in the U.S. women’s national team’s fight for equal pay. Nearly two decades after USWNT players sat out of a 1996 Olympic camp in protest of their bonus money, O’Hara was a part of the USWNT Players Association’s bargaining committee that reached a historic settlement in February with U.S. Soccer, which committed to equal pay rates for the men’s and women’s teams across tournaments.

The USWNT’s performances on the field — including four World Cup titles and four Olympic gold medals — have been just as impactful in growing women’s soccer in the U.S. O’Hara cited Brandi Chastain’s game-winning penalty kick in the final of the 1999 World Cup, followed by her ripping her jersey off in celebration, as influencing her own journey.

“One of the most iconic pictures in sports history, in my opinion. A picture that elicits so many emotions in me,” O’Hara said. “Now, having gone through the career that I have and talking with her, I’m like, she’s just incredible. I definitely looked up to her when I was a kid, for sure.”

A key contributor to two of the USWNT’s World Cup championships, an Olympic gold medal in 2012 and a bronze last year, O’Hara cares deeply about upholding the program’s winning mentality and ultra-competitive culture.

Passing the torch

The USWNT roster looks very different now than it did just last summer at the Tokyo Olympics. Head coach Vlatko Andonovski has ushered in a new wave of talented, young players, who are vying for roster spots on next year’s World Cup roster and leaving many to wonder what that means for veterans such as Megan Rapinoe, Alex Morgan and Christen Press.

O’Hara was the only player on the USWNT’s April roster with more than 100 caps, giving her the responsibility of passing on the values she learned from her older teammates when she was a rookie.

“I’ve always looked at it as this sacred team,” O’Hara said. “I have a responsibility that I didn’t used to have to create the culture, contribute to the culture to make sure the team stays here, and not just stay here, but keep taking steps forward.”

Since moving to the Spirit in a trade from the Utah Royals in December 2020, and teaming up with USWNT newcomers Trinity Rodman and Ashley Sanchez, O’Hara has regular opportunities to impart those principles.

img
O'Hara and the 19-year-old Rodman have formed a close friendship. (Robert Mora/ISI Photos/Getty Images)

Spirit head coach Kris Ward says they joke all the time that O’Hara and fellow defender Emily Sonnett latched onto Rodman and Sanchez at the end of the 2021 season, helping them prepare for call-ups to the national team. Rodman and Sanchez were both invited to the November camp in Australia, which took place the same week they won the NWSL championship, and they have been named to every USWNT roster since then.

O’Hara, 33, is aware her career will wind down eventually, and she has begun to encourage some of the younger veterans to step into more vocal roles. Mallory Pugh, 24, and Rose Lavelle, 26, are two players Andonovski cited as emerging leaders during the most recent USWNT camp.

“It is not hard to see how much Kelley influences this team and how much of an example she is for this team and a leader,” Andonovski said in April.

“I think there are a handful of players who are waking up now, who realize that they are veterans, who might not have thought about it before but they are now,” O’Hara said. “I think it’s very exciting. I’ve told those players, ‘Guys, this is now your responsibility. You’ve got to take ownership of where this team goes.’”

Primed for success

The Spirit learned a lot about what they were capable of last season, finding success even as external factors — Richie Burke’s firing, a public ownership dispute, an investigation into workplace culture and multiple forfeits due to COVID-19 — continued to emerge and threaten their progress.

Now in a more secure environment, with Ward as head coach and Michele Kang as the new majority owner, O’Hara feels she can more easily channel her energy into winning games. It helps that on the field the Spirit are “really friggin’ good,” as O’Hara describes them.

As Washington transitions from the Challenge Cup final into the regular season and tries to make a run at a repeat NWSL championship, O’Hara has allowed herself more freedom in the attack, pushing into the opponent’s box from her position on the backline more frequently.

“She’s feeling that, and that’s emanating throughout the entire team to make them really feel like they’re building into something special,” Ward said.

img
(Ruth Annan/@annanproductions/Just Women's Sports)

Meanwhile, The Players’ Pod, now in its fifth season, continues to grow and reach new listeners. Always looking for ways to use the platform to push women’s sports forward, O’Hara has tapped into a vision she had from the first season: interviewing people like general managers, investors and coaches, who offer a wider range of perspectives and experiences within women’s sports.

O’Hara’s responsibilities as a host, teammate and leader are keeping her busy, and fueling her drive even more.

“Honestly, I couldn’t be happier with where I’m at in terms of my professional career and the team I get to play for,” she said.

Jessa Braun is a contributing writer at Just Women’s Sports covering the NWSL and USWNT. Follow her on Twitter @jessabraun.

After Sophie Cunningham Injury, Indiana Fever Rally to Historic Comeback Win

Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham clutches her knee after being injured during a 2025 WNBA game.
Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham exited Sunday's game against the Connecticut Sun with an apparent knee injury. (David Butler II/Imagn Images)

The No. 6 Indiana Fever are laughing in the face of adversity, pulling off the biggest comeback win in team history on Sunday despite guard Sophie Cunningham exiting with a right knee injury following a second-quarter collision.

As Cunningham joined fellow guards Caitlin Clark (right groin), Aari McDonald (broken foot), and Sydney Colson (ACL tear) on the injured list, the Fever overcame a 21-point deficit to down the No. 13 Connecticut Sun 99-93 in overtime behind guard Kelsey Mitchell's 38-point performance.

"We came in at halftime, we talked about chipping away, being resilient," said Indiana forward Aliyah Boston, who notched 14 points and 13 rebounds for her 15th double-double of the year in Sunday's win, setting a new single-season Fever record. "That's kind of been our story this entire season."

Amid the myriad injuries causing the beleaguered Fever to lose steam in the WNBA standings, Cunningham's knock — which will reportedly undergo an MRI assessment on Monday — is just the latest blow in an expected banner year for the 25-year-old franchise.

Seeing increased playing time since Clark's mid-July injury, Cunningham is averaging 8.6 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.2 assists per game while shooting 46.9% from the field this season.

Looking to bolster their backcourt with Clark's return timeline still in question, Indiana signed veteran guard Odyssey Sims and rookie Kyra Lambert to hardship contracts last week.

"This group is tight.... They stay together," Fever coach Stephanie White told reporters following Sunday's game. "I think, for us, reiterating we've got to be where our feet are. We can't look too far behind us. We can't look too far in front of us. We've got to make sure that we're focused on one day at a time."

How to watch the Indiana Fever in this week's WNBA slate

Indiana will be thankful for a few days off this week, taking time to recover before hosting the seemingly unstoppable No. 1 Minnesota Lynx on Friday.

The Fever's clash with the league leaders will tip off at 7:30 PM ET, with live coverage airing on ION.

Seattle Storm Upset Atlanta Dream in Sold-Out WNBA Canada Game

Seattle Storm guard Brittney Sykes celebrates a win with teammates Skylar Diggins and Nneka Ogwumike after a 2025 WNBA game.
The Seattle Storm upset the Atlanta Dream in front of a sold-out Vancouver crowd on Friday. (Anne-Marie Sorvin/Imagn Images)

The WNBA's first-ever regular-season Canada Game was a hit, as the No. 8 Seattle Storm upset the No. 2 Atlanta Dream 80-78 in front of a sold-out crowd inside Vancouver's Rogers Arena on Friday.

Storm star Skylar Diggins registered 21 points and 11 assists in the matchup, combining with Nneka Ogwumike's 16 points to help end Seattle's six-game losing streak — and snap the Dream's six-game winning streak.

Seattle's 2025 No. 2 overall draft pick Dominique Malonga also showed out, with the 19-year-old tallying 12 points and eight rebounds over her 19 minutes of play.

"It was an incredible crowd tonight," Diggins said afterwards. "First time in Vancouver, they showed a lot of love. We just love coming out here, playing in front of this electric [crowd]... We really leaned on them tonight to help us lock in that victory."

As for Atlanta, the Dream's offense stuttered after losing guard Jordin Canada to a hamstring injury last week, with the team netting just two of 13 three-point shots despite entering the clash averaging 9.6 shots from behind the arc per game.

Canada will miss at least two weeks of action, with newly healthy Atlanta heavy-hitters Rhyne Howard and Brittney Griner expected to pick up the slack in her absence — and it appears they're already righting the ship: The Dream overcame the No. 7 Golden State Valkyries 79-63 on Sunday with a team victory that saw five players reach double-digit scoring.

How to watch the WNBA this week

After falling 85-82 to the No. 4 Phoenix Mercury on Sunday night, the No. 8 Seattle Storm will look to bounce back against the No. 12 Chicago Sky on Tuesday. The game will tip off at 8 PM ET, with live coverage on WNBA League Pass.

Later on Tuesday night, the No. 2 Atlanta Dream will battle the No. 5 Las Vegas Aces at 10 PM ET, airing live on NBA TV.

Portland Thorns Continue Steady NWSL Climb Behind Historic Olivia Moultrie Goal

Portland Thorns midfielder Olivia Moultrie strikes the ball as North Carolina Courage defender Maycee Bell chases during a 2025 NWSL game.
Portland Thorns midfielder Olivia Moultrie scored her 13th career NWSL goal in Saturday's draw with North Carolina. (Grant Halverson/NWSL via Getty Images)

The No. 5 Portland Thorns snagged another result over the weekend, grabbing a point off a 1-1 Saturday draw with the No. 9 North Carolina Courage to further solidify their spot on the NWSL table.

Midfielder Olivia Moultrie opened scoring with a first-half bullet to put Portland up 1-0, before Courage forward Tyler Lussi equalized with a 70th-minute strike.

With her 13th career goal on Saturday, 19-year-old Moultrie became the NWSL's joint-leader in regular-season goals scored by a teenager — sharing the all-time record with North Carolina attacker Jaedyn Shaw.

The Portland Thorns are currently making a case for the league's "best of the rest," after Saturday NWSL action saw the San Diego Wave rocket up the table to No. 2 with a 2-1 win over No. 11 Bay FC while the No. 1 Kansas City Current and now-No. 3 Orlando Pride ended in a 0-0 stalemate.

Despite losing veteran anchors Christine Sinclair, Becky Sauerbrunn, and Meghan Klingenberg to retirement and USWNT star Sophia Wilson to maternity leave, Portland has figured out how to generate new offensive opportunities via young talent like forwards Reilyn Turner and Pietra Tordin.

More experienced midfielders like Moultrie and Sam Coffey are also contributing, with Coffey scoring her second season goal on August 10th to match her entire 2024 total.

As for North Carolina, the questions continue for the Courage as they struggle to stack results amid the abrupt sacking of head coach Sean Nahas earlier this month.

According to a statement released after the Courage's August 8th loss to the then-No. 12 Houston Dash, Nahas was removed due to "confounding performance issues, culture issues, and a perceived lack of fit that created an environment that club leadership felt was untenable to the point that change was necessary at the head coaching position."

How to watch Monday's NWSL match

In a rare Monday matchup, the NWSL's 16th matchday will wrap with the No. 6 Seattle Reign hosting the No. 13 Chicago Stars — with a Reign win sending Seattle above Portland to No. 5 on the NWSL table.

Live coverage of the 10 PM ET match will air on CBS Sports Network.

Six-Time Grand Slam Winner Iga Swiatek Advances to 1st-Ever Cincinnati Open Final

Iga Świątek tosses a serve during her 2025 Cincinnati Open semifinal against Elena Rybakina.
World No. 3 Iga Świątek booked her first-ever Cincinnati Open final on Sunday. (Robert Prange/Getty Images)

Tennis star Iga Świątek can cross another item off her bucket list, with the world No. 3 downing No. 10 Elena Rybakina 7-5, 6-3 on Sunday to clinch a spot in the 2025 Cincinnati Open final — Świątek's first-ever championship appearance at the US Open tune-up tournament.

"At the beginning, the level was pretty crazy," the six-time Grand Slam winner told reporters after Sunday's match, commending Rybakina. "But I was there to play with intensity, good quality, and I'm happy with the performance."

One of only two WTA 1000 events without a Świątek finals appearance, the annual Cincinnati Open has seen the Polish tennis star advance to the semifinals in both 2023 and 2024 — falling both times to the eventual tournament champion.

With No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka and No. 2 Coco Gauff both making quarterfinal exits, Świątek will next face No. 9 Jasmine Paolini in Monday's final, after the Italian contender fought past No. 36 Veronika Kudermetova 6-3, 6-7(2), 6-3 in their Sunday afternoon semifinal.

Świątek last shared a finals court with Paolini at the 2024 French Open, with Świątek going on to lift her fourth Roland Garros trophy following a straight-set victory in the clash.

How to watch the 2025 Cincinnati Open final

The 2025 Cincinnati Open final between Świątek and Paolini kicks off at 6 PM ET on Monday, with live coverage airing on the Tennis Channel.

Start your morning off right with Just Women’s Sports’ free, 5x-a-week newsletter.