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What NWSL misconduct report revealed about each club

(Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

The NWSL and NWSLPA released the findings from their joint investigation into “widespread misconduct” in the league on Wednesday afternoon.

Just Women’s Sports outlines key new details from the report, organized by club.

Angel City FC

  • One of two expansion teams for the 2022 season, Angel City FC did not figure prominently in the findings. Still, the report did note the club, like many others, had a “too narrow” anti-harassment policy, which only prohibits “unlawful” harassment. In contrast, the league’s anti-harassment policy “prohibits discriminatory and harassing conduct in any form, regardless of whether it rises to the level of a legal violation.”

Chicago Red Stars

  • Red Stars owner Arnim Whisler considered keeping coach Rory Dames on staff in a non-player-facing role despite knowing about the Washington Post’s 2021 report into his misconduct. In the end, Dames was asked to resign after the 2021 season, but Whisler still paid him for the rest of the year.
  • Craig Harrington, who served as an assistant coach for the Red Stars from 2018-19 and as the Utah Royals coach in 2020, “blurred professional boundaries” with players, including drinking with them at bars and making sexual comments to and about players. While he denied the reports, the investigative team did not find his denials to be “credible.”

Gotham FC

  • Alyse LaHue, who served as general manager from 2018 until her dismissal in 2021, made unwanted sexual advances toward a player during her time with the club.
  • During Christy Holly’s tenure as head coach from 2016-17, players reported to management that he was verbally abusive, but the club took no action. The club also “failed to share accurate information about Holly’s conduct both with the league and other clubs.”

Houston Dash

  • Vera Pauw, who stepped down in 2018 after one season in Houston, weight-shamed players and “attempted to exert excessive control over their eating habits.” Players said Pauw “wanted to exert control over ‘every aspect of their lives.’”
  • James Clarkson, who followed Paul as Dash coach and also served as general manager from 2019-22, was described by players as “volatile, verbally abusive, and as not showing appropriate regard for players’ wellbeing.” Players also said they feared retaliation if they spoke out. Clarkson was suspended in April and his contract will not be renewed, the Dash announced Wednesday.

Kansas City Current

  • Huw Williams took the reins as Current coach in 2021, and players expressed concerns about his demeaning communication style, including comments such as, “I’m going to ream your ass.” He moved to a front office role after the 2022 season, but the team parted ways with him last month.
  • Team owners Angie and Chris Long told Williams about the meeting with players, and they also “identified to him specific players who organized the meeting, although he did not know all the players who participated.”

North Carolina Courage

  • Paul Riley, who coached the Courage from 2017-21, engaged in similar misconduct with the club that led to his dismissal from the Thorns. Kaleigh Kurtz said she felt Riley had been grooming her and identified his conduct as abusive.
  • Club leaders were aware when they hired Riley that he had suggested two Thorns players kiss while at his apartment after a night of drinking, and that an investigation into his conduct showed he exhibited “poor judgment.”

Portland Thorns

  • Riley’s sexual misconduct in his two seasons with the Thorns in 2014 and 2015 was documented in detail by the US Soccer investigation released in October, and the NWSL and NWSLPA investigation corroborated that report.

OL Reign

  • Farid Benstiti, who served as OL Reign coach from 2020-21, was hired “despite public evidence that Benstiti had engaged in weight shaming of Lindsey Horan, who had played for him at Paris Saint-Germain.”
  • OL Reign CEO Bill Predmore told Benstiti he could not discuss diet or weight with players, but he criticized players’ weights and diets and said he would monitor their food and snacks. After he gave a speech in which he criticized players’ diets, the club took action and removed him as coach.

Orlando Pride

  • Amanda Cromwell, who served as Pride coach from 2021-22, and assistant coach Sam Greene, were investigated in March 2022 for inappropriate favoritism.
  • Both coaches then “engaged in retaliatory conduct toward players they believed to have participated” in the investigation. They were placed on leave and later banned from the league.

Racing Louisville

  • Christy Holly engaged in repeated sexual misconduct and abuse targeting player Erin Simon, as revealed in the US Soccer report and corroborated by the NWSL and NWSLPA report.

San Diego Wave

  • Former U.S. women’s national team coach Jill Ellis denied receiving complaints from forward Christen Press about Chicago Red Stars coach Rory Dames during. Ellis, who now serves as Wave president, also did not recall players bringing verbal abuse by NWSL coaches to her attention during her time with the USWNT from 2014-17.

Washington Spirit

  • Richie Burke, who coached the Spirit from 2019-21, “used racial epithets, made jokes about race and ethnicity, and undermined activism on issues of race.” While he acknowledged much of this conduct to investigators, he “did not view his conduct as problematic.”

NWSL

  • The NWSL itself also received criticism in the report. For example, Lisa Levine, who worked as general counsel for the league from 2017-21, mishandled player complaints, including those regarding Riley. When interviewed by the investigative team, she “deflected criticism of the NWSL’s failure to act in response to these complaints onto the players themselves.”

US Soccer

  • US Soccer too bears responsibility for systemic failures, the investigation found. The federation managed the NWSL from 2013-20, and whole former US Soccer president Sunil Gulati said they relied on the league and teams to develop misconduct policies, expectations were not communicated clearly, which resulted in a lack of oversight at all levels.

USC’s Aaliyah Gayles Opens Up About Her Journey Back to Basketball

USC Basketball - Aaliyah Gayles

As part of our 1-v-1 video series, USC’s India Otto sat down to interview her teammate Aaliyah Gayles. Here are five things to know from our conversation with the redshirt freshman guard from Las Vegas.

#1 Aaliyah suffered from a near-death act of violence in 2022.

The incident taught her a lot about herself and the support around her. “[USC] Coach Lindsay [Gottlieb] was one of the first people to fly out there and come see me. That means a lot to me off the court.” 

#2 Her favorite USC memory is when she surprised her teammates after getting out of the hospital.

She left her walker at the door to show she was on the road to returning to the court. “That was my favorite memory because it was family. It was my first time being able to walk to you guys and see you practice.”

#3 There's a reason she wears #3.

#3 was her grandpa’s favorite number and a golden number in her life. Plus, AG3 has a nice ring to it. 

#4 She has a list of basketball GOAT’s:

Candace Parker, Magic Johnson, Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, and Cason Wallace.

#5 There have been many celebrity appearances at USC’s games over the years, especially this season.

Aaliyah’s favorites include Will Ferrell, Kehlani, and Saweetie. And she hopes Lil Durk will come to watch a game soon.

Watch the full conversation on the Just Women’s Sports YouTube channel.

Gotham, USWNT forward Midge Purce out with ACL tear

(Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports)

Midge Purce announced on Wednesday that she has torn her ACL. 

The Gotham FC and USWNT forward went down with the injury on Sunday during Gotham’s 1-0 win after tweaking it earlier in the game. Gotham coach Juan Carlos Amorós did not have any immediate updates following the match, with further evaluation revealing the tear. 

“It’s a reality I’m still struggling with and has left me with not too much to say,” Purce wrote in a statement on social media. “I’m heartbroken to no longer be available for my season with Gotham FC or for Olympic selection with the USWNT – know I’m rooting for you both all year long. 

“Though you may not see it, I’ll be doing everything I can to get back on the field.”

Purce is just the latest women's soccer star to tear her ACL, and joins USWNT teammate Mia Fishel in having torn her ACL in the last couple of months. Other notable players include Catarina Macario and Christen Press, with Macario only just returning to the USWNT lineup after tearing hers in 2022. 

International stars such as Alexia Putellas, Beth Mead, Vivianne Miedema and Leah Williamson have also suffered ACL tears. 

Purce’s injury caused Amorós to call out the international schedule, which has been a growing point of concern as more players fall victim to injuries and the playing schedule becomes more packed. Kansas City’s Debinha suffered a hamstring injury in the team’s opening game, while both Lynn Williams and Rose Lavelle have yet to play for Gotham due to injuries picked up during the W Gold Cup. 

“We lost Midge during the game which for me is a bittersweet flavor,” Amorós told reporters after Sunday’s game. “By the way, it’s another player that came from the Gold Cup. Last week, it was Debinha. We are paying the consequences of a tournament that shouldn’t have happened.”

“We’re talking about protecting the players, [who shouldn’t] go to play an international competition after one week of preseason,” Amorós continued. “We’ve seen the consequences now. We’ve got Rose, Lynn, last week it was Debinha in Kansas [City] and now we have Midge. From my experience, the clubs are going to keep paying for that competition."

In her statement, Purce said that “so many friends, teammates and even players I’ve only ever competed against” reached out to offer support. 

“I am so blessed,” she wrote. “Your messages have meant so much to me throughout this process, you have consoled what, for a moment, felt inconsolable. Thank you for reminding me that our football world is not only full with incredibly talent but also, incredible kindness.”

Lauren Jackson included on Australia Olympics roster

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - OCTOBER 01: Lauren Jackson of Australia celebrates with team mates after playing her final Opals game during the 2022 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 3rd place match between Canada and Australia at Sydney Superdome, on October 01, 2022, in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Kelly Defina/Getty Images)

Lauren Jackson has come out of retirement once again to compete for a spot on Australia’s Olympic roster. 

Jackson was included on the 26-player roster named by coach Sandy Brondello on Tuesday that will take part in training camps, tours and games in the lead-up to the Paris Olympics. The roster will eventually be whittled down to just 12 players selected from the 26 named on Tuesday.

Jackson helped Australia qualify for the Olympics with a win over Germany in February. After that, she announced her retirement, revealing that she struggled to spend so much time away from her two young children. 

The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper reported that Jackson and the basketball federation had come to an agreement in which they would help cover costs for her children to travel with the team for training camps and the Olympics. 

She’s largely expected to make the Opals’ Olympic roster. 

"It's always an exciting time to announce an Olympic squad and I congratulate all the athletes," Opals coach Sandy Brondello said. "They all know what it means to play for Australia and they all want the opportunity to represent their country at an Olympics. Our squad is full of exceptional talent and they will make the decision to pick a final 12 very difficult."

At the 2022 FIBA World Cup, Jackson helped Australia win a bronze medal with 30 points against Canada. She had previously retired in 2016 due to knee injuries, but slowly made a return in a domestic Australian league the last few years.

Jackson has won four Olympic medals, including three consecutive silver medals starting with Sydney in 2000 when she was a teenager. 

First two rounds of NCAA tournament boast record attendance, viewership

(David K Purdy/Getty Images)

The first two rounds of the women’s NCAA tournament broke attendance and viewership records set just last year – and it wasn’t even close. 

The NCAA announced on Tuesday that attendance for the first two rounds of the tournament was more than 292,000 – up from last year’s record, when almost 232,000 fans attended the first two rounds.

Among the host sites, Iowa had the biggest crowds with nearly 29,000 fans packing Carver-Hawkeye Arena in the first and second rounds. 

"We expected the historic success and quality of play and high level of competition from the regular season would carry through into March Madness. Our championship is again delivering," NCAA vice president of women's basketball Lynn Holzman said in a statement. "Record crowds, ratings, incredible performances and evolving storylines will continue to make the next two weeks a must-see for fans across the world."

And for those that couldn’t attend the sold-out Iowa games, they watched on television. Monday’s matchup between Iowa and West Virginia drew 4.9 million viewers, setting a record for a women’s D-I tournament game prior to the Final Four. 

It is also the third most watched tournament game in the last 20 years, behind last year’s national championship between LSU and Iowa (9.92 million) and Iowa’s Final Four win over South Carolina (5.6 million).

Iowa’s game against Holy Cross in the first round drew 3.23 million viewers. 

But it wasn’t just Iowa drawing big viewership. ESPN’s five games on Monday averaged 2.25 million viewers. UConn and Syracuse drew 2.05 million viewers while LSU and Middle Tennessee on ABC drew 2.01 million viewers on Sunday. 

The full, 16-game slate for the second round averaged 1.4 million viewers – a 121% increase from last year and the highest average ever for the second round.

The full tournament so far is averaging 812,000 viewers per game, a 108% increase from last year.

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