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Marymount volleyball ascends to No. 10 in bounce-back campaign

The Marymount volleyball team poses with the trophy after finishing second at the Dave Mohs Tournament last weekend. (Photo courtesy of Amanda Zamani)

Marymount volleyball’s season has been anything but predictable.

Coming off an undefeated season, the Sailors checked in at No. 2 in the first Just Women’s Sports team rankings of the 2022 season. Then they lost four of their first 14 matches, including their first Mission League defeat in five years.

Suddenly, the Sailors were unranked heading into the prestigious Durango Fall Classic tournament, and that’s when the turnaround began.

Behind the all-tournament play of outside hitters Torrey Stafford and Kate Martin and libero Lexi Trapani, the Sailors finished second — their sole blemish was a loss to top-ranked Cathedral Catholic.

The Sailors nabbed another top-three tournament finish this past weekend at the Tournament of Champions Southwest, losing to No. 3 Cornerstone Christian in the semifinals. Since that 10-4 start, Marymount has won 17 of its last 19 matches, and this Tuesday, it avenged that Mission League defeat to Sierra Canyon with a four-set victory over the Trailblazers.

Marymount has the talent to make a postseason run with Pittsburgh-bound Stafford and Trapani, a Santa Clara commit, but just to get back to this point has been an accomplishment after the Sailors lost five Division I players from last year’s roster.

Thanks to their hot play and strenuous schedule, which includes four wins over ranked opponents, Marymount checks in at No. 10 in the latest JWS rankings, rising three spots.

Check out the complete rankings below, and click here to view last week’s rankings.

1. Cathedral Catholic (Calif.), 28-0

The Dons notched a three-set sweep Tuesday and still haven’t dropped a set, with the GEICO Girls Volleyball Invitational looming this weekend.

2. Bloomfield Hills Marian (Mich.), 28-0

The Mustangs celebrated Senior Night with a three-set sweep Wednesday.

3. Cornerstone Christian (Texas), 53-2

After finishing second at Tournament of Champions Southeast earlier this season, Cornerstone Christian got its TOC title, beating Marymount and Mira Costa en route to the Southwest crown.

4. McCutcheon (Ind.), 26-1

The Mavericks won on back-to-back nights as Chloe Chicoine accumulated 30 combined kills between the two matches.

5. Westminster Christian (Fla.), 14-0

The Warriors have dropped just three sets all season and continued to roll with two more sweeps this past week.

6. Prestonwood Christian (Texas), 30-1

The Lions have more than a week off to prepare for the final month of regular-season play.

7. Mira Costa (Calif.), 25-3

The Mustangs tested themselves against top-tier competition at TOC Southwest, beating some of the top teams from Arizona and Nevada. They defeated Mater Dei in the semifinals and won a set off Cornerstone Christian before falling in the championship.

8. Washburn Rural (Kan.), 20-1

The Junior Blues won the Centennial League Championship this past weekend, with coach Kevin Bordewick picking up his 1,000th win in the process. They followed it up with a win over a solid Olathe Northwest team on Wednesday.

9. Highland Park (Texas), 33-2

Since falling to Prestonwood Christian on Aug. 27, the Scots have not dropped a set.

10. Marymount (Calif.), 27-6

Two-thirds of the Sailors’ losses have come against teams ranked in the top 10.

11. Fayetteville (Ark.), 28-2

The Bulldogs suffered their second defeat of the season this past weekend, falling to Liberty North at the Blue Springs South Invitational, but they finished 4-1 on the day.

12. Tompkins (Texas), 30-2

The Falcons picked up two more district wins, with Cindy Tchouangwa notching 21 kills and Tendai Titley adding 15 in a four-set victory Friday.

13. Hamilton Southeastern (Ind.), 26-1

After their regular-season finale, the Royals will turn their attention to the postseason.

14. St. James Academy (Kan.), 23-1

The Thunder won the Janice Van Gorp Volleyball Classic and then added two more wins Tuesday.

15. Mother McAuley (Ill.), 24-2

The Mighty Macs lost a rematch against Assumption but bounced back to win the prestigious ASICS Challenge tournament for the first time since 2016.

16. Sierra Canyon (Calif.), 26-4

After beating reigning state champion Marymount earlier this season, Sierra Canyon lost the rematch Tuesday.

17. Oconomowoc (Wis.), 32-1

Lilly Wagner racked up 32 assists as the Raccoons cruised to a three-set sweep Tuesday and stretched their winning streak to 26 matches.

18. Cypress Ranch (Texas), 35-2

Bianna Muoneke is one of the nation’s leaders in kills with nearly 600, and the Mustangs haven’t lost since August.

19. Santa Fe (Fla.), 14-1

Following an extended break due to Hurricane Ian, Santa Fe returned to action Tuesday with a victory in straight sets.

20. Assumption (Ky.), 26-6

The Rockets avenged a loss to Mother McAuley but couldn’t keep the momentum going in tournament play, losing twice in the ASICS Challenge.

21. Benet Academy (Ill.), 20-1

The Redwings dropped the first set but bounced back to defeat reigning Nebraska state champion Skutt Catholic in a tight three-set match.

22. ‘Iolani (Hawaii), 19-5

The Raiders end the regular season one win shy of 20, but with victories over California powerhouses Sierra Canyon and Redondo Union.

23. Dike-New Hartford (Iowa), 28-2

Payton Petersen leads the Wolverines with 258 kills and is second with 174 digs, while her twin, Jadyn Petersen, has a team-high 189 digs and ranks second on the team with 175 kills.

24. Mater Dei (Calif.), 24-7

The Monarchs snagged fourth place at the TOC Southwest tournament and now look to finish the regular season on a high note.

25. Liberty North (Mo.), 26-1

The Blue Jays are new entrants into the top 25, with sisters Ashley and Abigail Mullen leading the way. Ashley, a senior, has 762 assists and is averaging nearly 10 per set, and Abigail, a sophomore, has a team-high 294 kills.

Phillip Suitts is a contributing writer at Just Women’s Sports. He has worked at a variety of outlets, including The Palm Beach Post and Southeast Missourian, and done a little bit of everything from reporting to editing to running social media accounts. He was born in Atlanta but currently lives in wintry Philadelphia. Follow Phillip on Twitter @PhillipSuitts.

USWNT to face Costa Rica in final Olympic send-off

uswnt sophia smith and tierna davidson celebrate at shebeilves cup 2024
The USWNT will play their final pre-Olympic friendly against Costa Rica on July 16th. (Photo by Greg Bartram/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images for USSF)

U.S. Soccer announced Tuesday that the USWNT will play their last home game on July 16th in the lead-up to the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris.

The 2024 Send-Off Match against Costa Rica will take place at Washington, DC’s Audi Field — home to both the Washington Spirit and DC United — at 7:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, July 16th. The friendly rounds out a four-game Olympic run-up campaign under incoming head coach Emma Hayes’ side, with the last two set to feature the finalized 2024 U.S. Olympic Women’s Soccer Team roster.

Hayes will appear on the USWNT sideline for the first time this June, helming the team as they embark on a two-game series against Korea Republic hosted by Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado on June 1st followed by Allianz Stadium in St. Paul, Minnesota on June 4th. 

The team is then scheduled to meet a talented Mexico squad on July 13th at Gotham FC’s Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey, where the Olympic-bound lineup will attempt to rewrite February’s shocking 2-0 loss to El Tri Femenil in the group stages of this year’s Concacaf W Gold Cup. And while clear roster favorites have emerged from both of this year’s Gold Cup and SheBelives Cup rosters, a spate of recent and recurring injuries means making it to the Olympics is still largely anyone’s game.

Broadcast and streaming channels for the USWNT's final July 16th friendly at Audi Field include TNT, truTV, Universo, Max, and Peacock.

Caitlin Clark’s WNBA start to serve as 2024 Olympic tryout

Clark of the Indiana Fever poses for a photo with Lin Dunn and Christie Sides during her introductory press conference on April 17, 2024
The talented Fever rookie is still in the running for a ticket to this summer's Paris Olympics. (Photo by Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images)

The USA Basketball Women's National Team is still considering Caitlin Clark for a spot on the Paris Olympics squad, says selection committee chair Jennifer Rizzotti. 

On Monday, Rizzotti told the AP that the committee will be evaluating the college phenom’s Olympic prospects by keeping a close eye on her first few weeks of WNBA play with Indiana.

The move is somewhat unconventional. While Clark was invited to participate in the 14-player national team training camp held earlier this month — the last camp before Team USA’s roster drops — she was unable to attend due to it coinciding with Iowa’s trip to the NCAA Women’s Final Four.

Judging by the immense talent spread throughout the league in what might be their most hyped season to date, competition for a piece of the Olympic pie could be fiercer than ever before.

"You always want to introduce new players into the pool whether it's for now or the future," said Rizzotti. "We stick to our principles of talent, obviously, positional fit, loyalty and experience. It's got to be a combination of an entire body of work. It's still not going to be fair to some people."

Of course, Clark isn’t the first rookie the committee has made exceptions for. Coming off an exceptional college season that saw her averaging 19.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 4 assists per game for UConn, Breanna Stewart was tapped to represent the U.S. at the 2016 Olympics in Brazil less than two weeks after being drafted No. 1 overall by the Seattle Storm. Eight years prior, fellow No. 1 pick Candace Parker punched her ticket to the 2008 Games in Beijing just two weeks after making her first appearance for the L.A. Sparks.

In the lead-up to Paris’ Opening Ceremony on July 26th, USA Basketball Women’s National Team is scheduled to play a pair of exhibition games. They'll first go up against the WNBA's finest at the July 20th WNBA All-Star Game in Phoenix before facing Germany in London on July 23rd.

While an official roster announcement date hasn’t yet been issued, players won’t find out if they’ve made this year’s Olympic cut until at least June 1st.

WNBA teams make history with 2024 season ticket sell-outs

Arike Ogunbowale on the wnba court for the dallas wings
The Dallas Wings are now the third team to sell out their entire season ticket allotment in WNBA history. (Michael Gonzales/NBAE via Getty Images)

For the first time in history, three different WNBA teams have completely sold out of season ticket plans well before the league's May 14th kick-off.

Call it the Caitlin Clark effect, attribute it to this year’s tenacious rookie class, or look to the skyrocketing visibility of veteran players across the board. But no matter the cause, facts are facts: Tickets to the 2024 WNBA season are selling like never before. 

On Monday, the Dallas Wings became the third team to sell out of season ticket memberships in the league’s 27-year history. The announcement from Arlington came shortly after the Atlanta Dream issued their own season ticket sell-out statement, also on Monday, and almost seven weeks after the back-to-back WNBA Champion Las Vegas Aces made headlines by becoming the first-ever WNBA team to sell out their season ticket allotment.   

According to the Wings, season ticket memberships will fill nearly 40% of the 6,251 seats inside their home arena, College Park Center. The club also said that their overall ticket revenue has ballooned to the tune of 220% this year, spanning not just season tickets but also a 1,200% increase in single ticket sales. There’s currently a waitlist to become a Dallas season ticket holder, a status that comes with extra incentives like playoff presale access and discounts on additional single-game tickets. 

In Atlanta, season tickets aren't the only thing flying off the shelves. The Dream also announced that they broke their own record for single-game ticket sales during a recent limited presale campaign. Sunday was reportedly their most lucrative day, with five different games totally selling out Gateway Center Arena. Individual tickets for all upcoming matchups will hit the market this Thursday at 8 a.m., while a waitlist for season ticket memberships will open up next Tuesday at 10 a.m.

"Excitement around women's sports, particularly basketball, is at an all-time high and nowhere is that felt more than here in Atlanta," Dream president and COO Morgan Shaw Parker said in the team’s statement. "We’ve continued a record-setting growth trajectory over the past three years under new ownership — both on and off the court — and 2024 is shaping up to be our best season yet."

As of Tuesday, season ticket sales revenue for Caitlin Clark’s hotly anticipated Indiana Fever debut haven’t yet been announced by the club. But if these numbers are any indication — not to mention the explosive demand for Fever away games felt by teams around the country — it won’t be long before we see some scale-tipping figures coming out of Indianapolis.

Nelly Korda ties LPGA record with fifth-straight tournament win

Nelly Korda of the United States celebrates with the trophy after winning The Chevron Championship
Nelly Korda poses with her trophy after acing her fifth-straight tour title at The Chevron Championship on Sunday. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

25-year-old American pro golfer Nelly Korda secured her spot in LPGA history on Sunday, notching her fifth-straight title at this weekend's Chevron Championship in The Woodlands, Texas.

Ranked No. 1 in the world by Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, Korda joins Nancy Lopez (1978) and Annika Sörenstam (2005) as just the third LPGA player to rack up five consecutive tour wins. She is also the third No. 1-ranked player to capture The Chevron Championship victory since the rankings debuted in 2006, accompanied by Lorena Ochoa and Lydia Ko.

The Florida native shot three-under 69 in Sunday's final, besting Sweden's Maja Stark despite Stark's valiant come-from-behind attempt in the 18th. Korda finished with a four-day total of 13-under 275, celebrating her two-stroke win by cannonballing into Poppie's Pond, much to the crowd's delight. She left The Club at Carlton Woods with $1.2 million from an overall purse of $7.9 million.

It wasn't long ago that the two-time major champion's current winning streak seemed unimaginable. After maintaining her No. 1 position for 29 weeks, Korda underwent surgery to remove a blood clot from her left arm in 2022. She returned to the course not long after, but failed to win a single tournament in 2023 before seeing a surge in form during the first four months of 2024. As of today, she hasn't lost a tournament since January.

Korda will attempt a record sixth-straight win at next week's JM Eagle LA Championship at Wilshire Country Club in Los Angeles, where she'll vie for a cut of the $3.75 million purse.

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