“I’ve got a little news for New York tonight,” O’Hara said, then pulled on a Gotham FC sweatshirt to cheers from the crowd.
The 34-year-old becomes the first NWSL player to sign with a new team in free agency. The league established free agency with its new collective bargaining agreement, ratified in February, and Tuesday marked the first day free agents could sign with new teams.
O’Hara played for Sky Blue FC, the franchise that would become Gotham, from 2013-17, but she was traded to the Utah Royals before the 2018 season and then to the Washington Spirit before the 2021 season.
“I’m so excited to be back in New York City, with these people, with this team,” O’Hara said. “Yeah, I’m back, baby.”
As a member of the USWNT, she has played in three World Cups, winning two. At the 2019 World Cup, she appeared in five of the seven matches for the U.S., including all knockout stage matches.
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Final Four Spotlight: Can UConn End Their NCAA Championship Drought?
UConn is headed to their third Final Four in the last four years. (Joe Buglewicz/Getty Images)
UConn might be the lowest seed left standing, but their championship pedigree looms largest of all, as the Huskies gear up to face No. 1 seed UCLA tonight in their quest to end a nine-year NCAA title drought.
“Before you even get here, you kind of know the pressures that exist by committing to UConn,” star guard Paige Bueckers said ahead of the Huskies’ 24th Final Four appearance. “It’s a decision you have to make even before you step on campus.”
UConn takes the NCAA inal Four court against UCLA tonight. (Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
Facing the Final Four with a healthy UConn roster
Reaching four of the last five tournament semifinals despite battling years of injury and availability concerns, UConn’s senior class is hell-bent on proving themselves once and for all on college basketball’s biggest stage.
This year’s run has benefitted greatly from backcourt duo Bueckers and Azzi Fudd, reunited in the postseason for the first time in over two years.
"Sarah impacts the game in so many ways, that you just have so much confidence in her, so much belief in her," UConn head coach Geno Auriemma said of Strong. "I don't know. Can't explain it."
Can UConn senior Paige Bueckers deliver an NCAA championship? (Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
Paige Bueckers powers the Huskies offense
Already UConn’s third all-time leading scorer, Bueckers has been on a scoring tear en route to the Final Four, dropping 30 points in her last three outings as she gears up to enter the 2025 WNBA Draft.
“When I say unique, I think she’s closer to one or two or three of most unique players I’ve ever coached,” Auriemma said. “And I’m really going to miss her.”
This Huskies squad has navigated both long-term adversity and recent hurdles with skill and confidence. But will they be the team that gets UConn back on the trophy-winning track?
Claire Watkins
Apr 4, 2025
Top NCAA Players Show Out at 2025 Women’s College All-Star Game
The Women’s College All-Star Game tips off this Saturday. (Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
March Madness isn’t the only game in town this weekend, as Saturday’s College All-Star Game provides WNBA hopefuls one last showcase before April 14th’s draft.
Voted on by members of the media and former coaches, this year’s roster features four All-Americans — Izzy Higginbottom (Arkansas), Shyanne Sellers (Maryland), Makayla Timpson (Florida State), and Harmoni Turner (Harvard) — alongside 16 All-Conference honorees.
Basketball icon Cheryl Miller will coach Saturday's Women's College All-Star Game. (Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
All-Star Game showcases WNBA-bound talent
Saturday's matchup returned to Final Four Weekend in 2024 after an 18-year hiatus. The game gives seniors no longer playing in the NCAA tournament a chance to show off their skills in front of pro scouts and a sold-out crowd.
An additional nine prospects are joining in for today’s All-Star Combine. Invitees include tournament standouts Michigan’s Jordan Hobbs and NC State’s Madison Hayes.
As college basketball grows more competitive, the game plays an important role in keeping the NCAA-to-WNBA pipeline moving.
How to watch the Women's College All-Star Game at the NCAA Final Four
The College All-Star Game tips off on Saturday at 3 PM ET, live on ESPN2.
Claire Watkins
Apr 4, 2025
Texas, South Carolina, UConn, and UCLA Tip Off the 2025 NCAA Final Four
The NCAA Final Four has arrived. (Ryan Hunt/Getty Images)
UCLA, UConn, Texas, and South Carolina have touched down in Tampa, each team laser-focused on tonight’s NCAA Final Four with a trip to Sunday’s national championship game on the line.
SEC titans Texas and South Carolina will square off for the fourth time this season, with the Longhorns looking to upset the reigning champs in their first Final Four appearance since 2003.
UCLA and UConn will later link up for the first time since 2023, with the Bruins fighting for a ticket to their first-ever championship game against a tournament-tested — but title-less — Huskies class.
Texas faces SEC rival South Carolina in Friday's first Final Four matchup. (Adam Davis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Top-ranked teams square off in tonight's Final Four
Three of tonight’s teams entered the tournament as No. 1 seeds — Texas, South Carolina, and UCLA — while all four ranked among the AP’s Top 10 throughout the regular season.
“Not only is every team different in terms of their talent base and strengths and weaknesses, but their makeup internally is different,” UCLA head coach Cori Close said on Thursday.
“Whoever gets through this semifinal and final will have done it against the best of the best,” said Texas head coach Vic Schaefer. “We all understand it. It’s hard to do.”
"It’s going to come down to heart, effort, and controlling the things that we can control, which is attitude and effort,” echoed South Carolina senior Te-Hina PaoPao.
After a year of unparalleled parity at the top, there can still only be one winner — and whoever cuts the nets down on Sunday will surely be worthy.
Dawn Staley and the South Carolina Gamecocks take the court tonight for their fifth consecutive Final Four. (Justin Tafoya/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
How to watch the Women's Final Four and NCAA Championship this weekend
The Final Four tips off tonight at 7 PM ET on ESPN, with Sunday’s NCAA championship game starting at 3 PM ET on ABC.
JWS Staff
Apr 4, 2025
‘Sports Are Fun!’ Takes Over Tampa for the NCAA Final Four
'Sports Are Fun!' took over Tampa for a special Final Four live show this week. (JWS)
Welcome to another episode of Sports Are Fun! presented by TurboTax.
Every week on Sports Are Fun!, co-hosts soccer legend Kelley O'Hara, sports journalist Greydy Diaz, retired NWSL great Merritt Mathias, and JWS intern BJ serve up their hottest takes on the biggest women's sports headlines.
This week, Just Women’s Sports brought Sports Are Fun! to Tampa for a live recording ahead of the NCCA Final Four.
'Sports Are Fun!' guests give their takes on the NCAA Final Four
Lisa Leslie on why UConn star Paige Bueckers doesn’t need a championship to secure her legacy
“There's a whole career beyond college… She’s about to be the No. 1 draft pick in the WNBA. Now, if she gets there and she doesn't have a stellar career in the W, then maybe we don't talk about her anymore. But I don't really see that happening.”
Aaliyah Edwards on what UConn needs to do to stop UCLA in the Final Four
“The first thing is, we just need to set the tone, play our game, focus on us. Because we've been doing great things. Second thing would be to limit the touches inside… And the third thing, which is like a UConn motto, is just play hard, play smart, and have fun.”
“Obviously respect to UCLA, but I think we got it in the bag.”
Kelsey Mitchell on NIL pressure and Olivia Miles entering the NCAA transfer portal
“I grew to respect people like Caitlin [Clark] because she handled it so gracefully… With Olivia, I'm sure whatever she decides to do, I'm going to say it was for her and what she needed for her career. But I hope consciously that they make decisions based on what they need for themselves.”
“Not all money is good money. Hopefully whatever she decides to do is for her and she goes where she’s loved and where she’s celebrated, not tolerated.”
Gabriela Jaquez on how UCLA is preparing for their Final Four matchup against UConn
“We're feeling great. We're feeling very confident, excited. I think coming here in the Final Four, it's such an extravagant experience, and I'm so thankful for it and these opportunities. But yeah, we all are here to play basketball and win games, and we're excited and we're really confident.”
'Sports Are Fun!' places Kelley O'Hara at the intersection of women's sports and fun. (Just Women's Sports)
About 'Sports Are Fun!' with Kelley O'Hara
'Sports Are Fun!' is a show that’ll remind you why you fell in love with women's sports in the first place.
Join World Cup champ, Olympic gold medalist, and aspiring barista Kelley O'Hara as she sits down with sports journalist Greydy Diaz and a revolving cast of co-hosts and friends. Together, they're talking the biggest, funnest, and most need-to-know stories in the world of women’s sports.
From on-court drama to off-field shenanigans, to candid (and silly) chats with the most important personalities in the space, this show screams "Sports Are Fun!"
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