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Louisville’s Hailey Van Lith is made for March

(Alika Jenner/Getty Images)

SEATTLE — Snoqualmie Pass can be unforgiving.

In the winter snow flurries swirl, semis pull over to apply chains, and the traffic slows to near-glacial speeds. The roads can become near-glacial, too.

But Snoqualmie Pass became a strange kind of friend to Louisville coach Jeff Walz. It was the thing that guided him to Hailey Van Lith, a player he had his eye on since she was in eighth grade.

Walz made several recruiting trips to Cashmere, Wash., a town of just over 3,000 people, situated 12 miles outside of Wenatchee, where Van Lith played high school basketball. He’d fly into the Sea-Tac airport, and then hop in a car to make the two-hour and 17-minute drive. Walz scoffed at those semis on the side of the road.

“I couldn’t figure out why all the semis were pulled over,” he joked. “It just opened things up for me as the snow was coming down to make a quick trip.”

The roads, the snow and Snoqualmie were worth it to get Van Lith.

Now, together, they’ve returned to her home state for the Sweet 16. No mountain drives required this time, as the airport is just 19 minutes from Climate Pledge Arena.

In the winter, Snoqualmie Pass becomes unforgiving. And in March, Hailey Van Lith does the same.

The Louisville guard is known for being hyper-competitive. When she plays, Van Lith’s blue eyes stretch wide, her mouth hangs open, gasping for every breath she can get. Her work ethic is undeniable. Her skills, remarkable. Her spirit, fiery enough to melt the snow on a Washington winter road.

In March, though, all of those qualities are amplified.

There’s something about a win-or-go-home atmosphere that makes Van Lith come alive. And on Friday, fans in her home state saw that passion firsthand as Louisville topped Ole Miss 72-62 for a spot in the Elite Eight.

Van Lith led the charge, with 21 points, five rebounds and four assists. She also played 40 minutes, a normal occurrence for the guard who averages 36.7 minutes per game.

“The kid loves to compete,” Walz said. “She just loves these types of moments. And I’m really happy for her, because for a kid to come from Cashmere, all the way to Louisville, Kentucky, that’s a commitment. It’s a sacrifice.”

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(Alika Jenner/Getty Images)

It didn’t feel like a sacrifice to Van Lith. In Walz, she saw a kindred spirit. Someone as passionate as her. She realized that when he’d send her photos on the snowy roads as he drove to her high school games.

And when she got to Louisville, his support only increased.

After Louisville beat Texas in the Round of 32, Van Lith and Longhorns guard Sonya Morris exchanged words in the handshake line. Much was made of the moment, but Van Lith brushed it off. Others didn’t.

Walz got an email from an angry spectator, unhappy with the situation and the way Van Lith handled it. Walz could have ignored it, but that’s not his style.

“I ripped the guy’s tail,” he said.

Add it to the list of reasons Van Lith chose Louisville. She needs a coach like that. One that doesn’t ignore nasty emails. One that not only sees Van Lith for who she is, but loves her for it.

“I needed someone who believed in me and was going to let me be me,” she said. “Like, I’m competitive, I’m passionate, I love the game, and I needed a coach who was going to let me express that on the court.”

When the bracket came out, showing Louisville’s tournament path would go through Seattle, Walz was elated. He wanted this moment for Van Lith.

When her name was announced pregame, Van Lith received an echoing ovation. And after the game, once she finished TV interviews, Van Lith left the court in a half-run, half-skip motion, grinning at the crowd.

But between those moments, she could have been anywhere. The home crowd didn’t enter her mind. Winning did. That’s all she could think about for 40 minutes.

“I’m a very focused player and everyone knows that about me,” Van Lith said. “There were no distractions before the game, to say the least. But after the game, I went and kissed all the babies and hugged all the people. So after business is done, then I celebrate, but before then, I was locked in to winning the game.”

Van Lith was locked in from the jump, scoring seven points in the first quarter. She had 10 by halftime before going through a rough patch in the third and partway through the fourth. She was 3-for-10 in the second half, but when Louisivlle needed her most, the guard delivered. With 2:53 left, Ole Miss cut what had been a double-digit lead down to 58-53 after Myah Taylor secured a turnover and converted a fastbreak layup.

Van Lith responded with a jumper to get Louisville’s lead back to seven, and then closed the game out with four free throws in the final 40 seconds.

As the final seconds ticked off the clock, Van Lith looked up. Her serious demeanor faded away and her face lit up with a smile. “Oh my gosh,” she called out, as the reality set in. Louisville was going back to the Elite Eight.

The Cardinals started their season 5-4 and ended up losing 11 games, six of which came in a challenging ACC conference slate.

After the four early losses, Louisville fell out of the national rankings. Questions about the trajectory of the Cardinals’ season arose outside of the program. But inside, everything stayed the same. They knew where they would be in March.

“Despite what the outside public thought, it was an expectation for us to be here,” Van Lith said of the Elite Eight. “That’s why we got it done because we expected that of ourselves. We’re not hoping or wishing for anything. We’re going out there and we’re executing.”

The ups and downs of the season were Louisville’s Snoqualmie pass. Not ideal, but worth it to get to something great on the other side.

Eden Laase is a Staff Writer at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @eden_laase.

USC’s McKenzie Forbes: From Gap Year to the NCAA Tournament

As part of our 1-v-1 video series, USC’s India Otto sat down to interview her teammate McKenzie Forbes. 

Here are five things to know from our conversation with the graduate transfer from Folsom, California.

#1 Inspired by USC’s Head Coach, Lindsay Gottlieb, McKenzie wants to be a basketball coach or work in the front office in the future.

When weighing in on what makes a good coach, McKenzie said x’s and o’s are important but “Coaching is a lot of relationship managing and people managing. I think you have to be a good people person and be able to build those relationships, but also in that same breath, you can’t be afraid to have people dislike you in moments. I think that’s a big part of leadership.”

#2 McKenzie says the trajectory of her career changed when she made the decision to transfer from Cal to Harvard.

 In order to transfer, she was forced to take a gap year and spend a lot of time in the gym. “I completely transformed my body and, going into the Harvard season, felt like I was a completely different player. Going to Harvard and playing in a more mid-major conference, I had the ball in my hands a lot more than I might have if I transferred to another Power 5. It really developed other parts of my game.”

#3 How does McKenzie think USC will do in the Women’s College Basketball Tournament?

“I’m not going to give a typical interview answer. I want a Final Four. We have that potential and capability. Like why not? Why not us? I think we have all the pieces.”

#4 Her older brother, Marcus, was her biggest mentor growing up.

“He was basically my trainer from Elementary school on until he went to college.”

#5 Fun facts about Forbes:

She can juggle and she was the quarterback of her Pop Warner football team. “I was slow but I could throw it!”

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

Christen Press back training with Angel City FC

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 15: Christen Press #23 of Angel City FC waves to fans following a game between the Portland Thorns and Angel City FC at BMO Stadium on October 15, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Katharine Lotze/Getty Images)

Christen Press continues to inch her way back to a return, having returned to training with her club team Angel City. 

Angel City FC coach Becki Tweed said on Wednesday that Press is back with the team full-time as she continues to make her way back from an ACL injury. While she’s still working on rehab, her being back with the team gives staff a better picture of her progress. 

"Christen [Press] is back with us full time which is amazing,” she said. “Having her in and around the team every day, continuing to work hard on rehab ... she's in a space where being in with the team is really important to her and her progression as well.”

The status update comes days after Press posted videos to social media that featured her doing lateral movement in cleats on grass. 

“Look out world she’s on the move !” Press captioned it. 

Press has been sidelined with an ACL injury since 2022, which caused her to miss the 2023 World Cup. She’s since had four separate surgeries to help repair her ACL.

Press told The Athletic a month ago that she’s been “relentless” in her optimism with her recovery despite it being a “slow process.”

“I have a bit of relentless optimism,” she told The Athletic. “I never, ever doubted that I would make it back on any of the timelines I’ve been on."

"Every single time I’ve heard, ‘You have to have surgery,’ I’m completely shocked,” she said. “When somebody asks me how it’s going, I’m like, ‘It’s going great. And it was going great every time. So I don’t know what to tell you anymore!’”

Sophia Smith re-signs with Portland on record deal

(Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports)

Sophia Smith is now the NWSL’s highest-paid player. 

The Portland Thorns announced on Wednesday that they have signed Smith to a new contract through the 2025 season, with an option for 2026. While the terms of the deal were not disclosed, the team did reveal that Smith is now the highest-paid player in the league on an annual basis.

It’s the latest in what has been a series of record-breaking contracts in the NWSL offseason. 

Chicago Red Stars forward Mallory Swanson, Bay FC forward Racheal Kundananji, and Orlando Pride forward Barbra Banda all signed multi-year deals worth between $2 million and $2.5 million in total. While Smith’s contract is shorter and not worth as much over the long-term, the annual worth is higher. 

“We are over the moon to have Soph commit again to the Thorns. She is a proven, world-class talent and one that we are excited to have contribute to the team’s continued success,” said head coach Mike Norris in a statement. “We look forward to working with her in a Thorns jersey as she continues to shine as one of the top strikers in the world.”

In just four seasons in the NWSL, Smith has led the Thorns to five trophies – including the 2022 NWSL championship – while winning league and championship MVP in 2022. In 61 appearances with Portland, she has 34 goals – including a brace to start this season against Kansas City. 

She’s also a member of the USWNT, having scored 16 goals in 44 international appearances.  Set to become a free agent at the end of this season, she told ESPN she “thought of all the options” but ultimately Portland felt like the right decision.

"There is no place like Portland," Smith said in a small roundtable interview that included ESPN. "I don't believe there's an environment like Portland to play in and it's a city that's so special to me and a city that I feel like I've grown up in almost and become who I am."

She also told ESPN that the team’s new ownership “changes everything.” The club is now led by the Bhathal family, who bought the club after Merritt Paulson was forced to sell it following his part in the NWSL’s abuse scandal. 

"Since I've been here there has been a lot of things going on with this club -- a lot of not-great things going on with this club -- and I have just been waiting for some stability and some reassurance that this club is headed in the right direction, and the Bhathal family coming in is doing exactly that, if not more,” Smith said. 

"Their vision for this club is so exciting, and you can just tell how passionate they are about making this what it should be and continuing to push the standard in women's soccer globally.”

Caitlin Clark offered $5 million to compete in Ice Cube’s league

IOWA CITY, IOWA- MARCH 25: Guard Caitlin Clark #22 of the Iowa Hawkeyes celebrates as time runs out in the second half against the West Virginia Mountaineers during their second round match-up in the 2024 NCAA Division 1 Women's Basketball Championship at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on March 25, 2024 in Iowa City, Iowa. (Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images)

Caitlin Clark has been offered $5 million to play in Ice Cube's Big3 league, he confirmed on social media Wednesday after the offer leaked.

"We intended the offer to remain private while Caitlin Clark plays for the championship," Ice Cube wrote on social media. "But I won't deny what's now already out there: BIG3 made a historic offer to Caitlin Clark. Why wouldn't we? Caitlin is a generational athlete who can achieve tremendous success in the BIG3."

While there has yet to be a women's player in the league, both Nancy Lieberman and Lisa Leslie have been part of the league as coaches and won championships.

"The skeptics laughed when we made Nancy Lieberman the first female coach of a men's pro team, and she won the championship in her first year," Ice Cube continued. "Then Lisa Leslie won it all in year two. With our offer, Caitlin Clark can make history and break down even more barriers for women athletes."

Ice Cube, whose name is O’Shea Jackson, says that the offer was made with the intention that Clark be able to compete in the WNBA “offseason.” Clark is largely expected to be the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA draft in April. But it’s unclear how the scheduling of the two leagues would work. 

The 2024 Big3 season is set to tip off on June 15, with 10 games spanning through mid-August. The WNBA regular season, meanwhile, begins on May 14 and ends on Sept. 19.

On “The Pat McAfee Show” on Wednesday, Jackson said that the league has yet to hear back from Clark. 

“We just need an answer, as soon as they are ready to give it to us,” he said. “It’s always 50-50 till we get a no. At the end of the day, it’s a generous offer.”

The offer – as well as the confusion on Jackson’s part about the timing of the WNBA season – caused some current WNBA players to react. 

"It's funny cause I be seeing his son at W games.. they don't talk?" wrote former No. 1 pick Rhyne Howard

"So no other women's basketball player has came to mind in the last 7 years?" wrote Lexie Brown, adding that she'd support if Ice Cube wanted to build a women's iteration of the league. She later discussed it on the Gils Arena Show, noting that his reasoning of wanting to “uplift and support WNBA players and women athletes” is a “cop out.”

Kalani Brown, meanwhile, told Clark to "take that money" and start a women's Big3.

WNBA salaries has been a talking point in recent months as more collegiate stars declare for the league. WNBA stars have often made more money playing abroad than they have in the WNBA. Clark is expected to be the No. 1 pick in the WNBA draft on April 15, with a rookie salary of $76,535 for lottery draft picks (Nos. 1-4) that rises to $97,582 by her fourth season. But she also has an NIL valuation of almost $3.5 million.

Diana Taurasi famously skipped the 2015 WNBA season at the request of her Russian club, who paid her more to sit out than she would have made in the W. Her contract with the club was reportedly near $1.5 million per year.

Jackson also seemed to suggest that his league could be an alternative to going abroad

“America’s women athletes should not be forced to spend their off seasons playing in often dismal and dubious foreign countries just to make ends meet,” he wrote. Although it’s unclear whether or not the rapper intends to make offers to additional WNBA players. 

While the league does hold prioritization rules in its CBA, those typically apply only to players playing in overseas leagues. It’s unclear whether or not that would prevent Clark’s participation in the Big3 league.

WNBA players that don’t want to go overseas currently have the option of playing in Athletes Unlimited, which competes in the WNBA offseason.

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