For Athletes Unlimited midfielder Marie McCool, this summer has been a whirlwind.

In July, McCool helped Team USA to a gold medal at the World Lacrosse Championships. A few weeks later, she was back on the field in Maryland for the second season of Athletes Unlimited Lacrosse.

As she’s navigated each event, McCool has been aware of the toll the competitive games are taking on her body. It’s the most lacrosse she’s played consecutively since college, and she’s been taking steps in her recovery to ensure she remains in top shape each week.

“I kind of look at it as like a gift and an opportunity today to be able to play the sport that I love,” McCool tells Just Women’s Sports.

That mindset has resulted in some gutsy chances and highlight-reel performances.

At the world championships, McCool’s behind-the-back shot, which made SportsCenter’s Top 10 plays and caught the eyes of women’s sports figures like USWNT legend Heather O’Reilly, was actually the first that she’s ever taken in a game. That the assist came from Kylie Ohlmiller, her United States teammate and friend over the years, was an added bonus.

McCool as the other side of the pillow. @mariemccool4 🥶 pic.twitter.com/4n8jZhJfMR

— Just Women’s Sports (@justwsports) July 6, 2022

After winning a World Championship with Team USA in 2017 as a soon-to-be college senior, McCool entered this year’s tournament as a veteran. She embraced the role and, after leading Team USA to an 11-8 win over Canada with three goals in the title game, was named to the 10-player All-World team. She finished the tournament ranked second on the team with 20 goals, first in shooting percentage at 76.9 percent and third in draw controls with 17.

Through the first three weeks of the Athletes Unlimited Lacrosse season, McCool has leaned on that worldly experience — as well as her learnings from last AU season — to help guide the many talented rookies. Though she is 36 spots off the lead entering the final week of the 2022 campaign, with 607 total points through nine games, McCool has shown flashes of the attacking brilliance that have characterized her entire career.

“I think when something’s new, it’s really important to keep confident in yourself and your abilities. But sometimes you’re put in uncomfortable positions that can be challenging, so how can we build their confidence and help them maintain it when they’re still in that adjustment period and feeling a little bit uncomfortable?” she says of the younger players she’s mentored.

“I think that’s another really important piece that a lot of us veterans and people who played in the league last year are trying to help the rookies out with.”

McCool can also provide a unique perspective on the transition from college to the pros. After a standout career at the University of North Carolina from 2015-18, McCool entered the Women’s Professional Lacrosse League (WPLL) and won a championship in 2019, one year after being named WPLL MVP as a member of the Baltimore Brave.

Despite enjoying immediate success, she admits it was difficult to navigate a less structured athletic schedule, and she leaned on her U.S. teammates for advice.

“That year after I graduated, that summer into that fall was probably one of the toughest periods of time in my life,” McCool says. “You go from not having time to do stuff because you’re on such a set schedule to OK, I have time on my hands, but I don’t know what to do with it.

“I’ve always been a pretty determined person, and I was working out. But I think trying to figure out what workouts worked best for me on my own was the biggest challenge.”

A unique element of Athletes Unlimited, beyond the weekly drafting structure and points system, is that former collegiate rivals can be teammates at different points of the season. McCool, a two-time finalist for the Tewaaraton Award given annually to the best women’s and men’s college lacrosse players, has grown close with players from Boston College, Maryland and other top programs.

Building those relationships within lacrosse has helped elevate her level of play, too. After appearing for Team Waters and Team Arsenault earlier in the season, she’ll suit up for Team Moreno for the final three games. Each week she’s adjusted to her new environment, scoring 10 goals and winning a league-leading 35 draw controls. She’s also tied for second in shots saved alongside Charlotte North with 21.

Getting to play with former Boston College standout Dempsey Arsenault on Team USA and during Athletes Unlimited has been a highlight for McCool, who said she was elated to be drafted by the midfielder in Week 2.

“I was like, ‘Thank goodness it’s been so long,’” she says. “As much as I hated matching up on defense to Dempsey in college, it has been so nice to be able to be on her team.”

While she’ll go up against Arsenault once again this week, McCool remains thankful for the opportunity Athletes Unlimited affords to form relationships that will last long past her days playing the sport that she loves.

Emma Hruby is an Associate Editor at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @EHruby.

The 2025 NCAA volleyball season is down to four top teams, as the Division I national championship tournament's Final Four takes the court in Kansas City on Thursday night.

No. 1 seeds Pitt and Kentucky survived a series of high-profile tournament upsets to punch their tickets to Thursday's semifinals, where No. 3 seeds Texas A&M and Wisconsin will join the Panthers and Wildcats.

"The Final Four is just so special, it is so incredible," Wisconsin head coach Kelly Sheffield said ahead of Thursday's action. "You want as many of your players that are committed, that decide to come here, you want them to experience that."

Two teams will look to make history this weekend, with Pitt and Texas A&M both in pursuit of a program-first national championship.

While the Aggies are in uncharted territory, booking their first-ever semifinals berth last weekend, the Panthers are hunting a breakthrough, hoping to claim a first-ever championship final appearance in their fifth consecutive trip to the Final Four.

As for Kentucky and Wisconsin, the Wildcats and Badgers will be looking to add a second trophy to their cases after booking their first program titles in 2020 and 2021, respectively.

How to watch the 2025 NCAA volleyball Final Four

The 2025 NCAA volleyball semifinals begin at 6:30 PM ET on Thursday, when No. 3 Texas A&M takes on No. 1 Pitt before No. 3 Wisconsin faces No. 1 Kentucky at 9 PM ET.

Both Final Four clashes will air live on ESPN.

As the 2028 LA Olympics come into focus, the FIFA Council unveiled the regional allocations for the Summer Games' first-ever 16-team women's soccer tournament this week.

According to the Council's Wednesday report, 2.5 slots will go to AFC (Asia), 2 to CAF (Africa), 3 to Concacaf (North and Central America), 2.5 to Conmebol (South America), 1 to OFC (Oceania), and 4 to UEFA (Europe), with one additional slot reserved, as always, for the host nation — the reigning Olympic gold medalist USWNT.

While the expanded competition allows for greater depth, one AFC and one Conmebol team will ostensibly have to face an inter-continental playoff to determine which region can send an additional team to the 2028 Olympics.

One the other hand, Concacaf's representation will double from 2024, growing from two to four teams given the automatic berth of the USWNT.

Similarly, after host nation France's autobid boosted UEFA'a 2024 allocation to three teams, this week's new distribution doubles the European confederation's previous non-host two-team max for the LA Games — meaning all four of the 2027 UEFA Nations League semifinalists will qualify to compete for gold in 2028.

Notably, CAF and OFC are the only confederations to not see an increase on their previous allocation from the FIFA Council.

The puck dropped on the 2025/26 PWHL Takeover Tour on Wednesday, when the No. 2 Montréal Victoire took down the No. 5 Toronto Sceptres 2-1 in an overtime shootout in front of a sold-out crowd in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Packed into Scotiabank Centre, 10,438 fans watched Team Canada and Victoire captain Marie-Philip Poulin score the shootout's lone goal, handing Montréal their third straight win.

"It was amazing to see the young girls and boys in the crowd wearing our jerseys, saying our names, and wanting our autographs," said Victoire head coach Kori Cheverie. "It's just extremely special."

The PWHL's 16-stop Takeover Tour is just beginning, with nine games planned for Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Washington DC, Denver, and more before the league pauses for the 2026 Winter Olympics.

"We hope that the impact is a positive one. Everywhere we go, that's the impression we want to leave — for little girls to know that they have a dream and that their dream can become a reality," said Sceptres captain and Nova Scotia product Blayre Turnbull following Wednesday's Tour stop.

Halifax marks the third-year league's fourth sold-out stop, joining fellow Canadian cities Edmonton, Québec City, and Vancouver.

How to attend the 2025/26 PWHL Takeover Tour

The PWHL will next pull into Chicago's Allstate Arena for a Takeover Tour stop on Sunday, when the No. 8 Ottawa Charge will take on the No. 6 Minnesota Frost on at 2 PM ET.

Tickets are currently available for purchase via Ticketmaster.

Months after Napheesa Collier set the WNBA ablaze with her viral exit interview criticizing league leadership, the Minnesota Lynx star said "nothing has changed" at the front office level as CBA negotiations stall.

"The conversation has been had now [and] people are seeing that changes need to be made," Collier said this week from Miami, where Unrivaled 3×3 is gearing up for its second campaign.

"I feel confident in the [union] and where we are internally with our players and the future," she continued.

In her October press conference, Collier publicly called the WNBA front office "the worst leadership in the world," putting commissioner Cathy Engelbert in the hot seat amid tense CBA negotiations with serious implications on next season's play.

The league and the WNBPA are currently sparring over revenue sharing, with diverging compensation expectations further distancing the two sides.

"Obviously, there's frustration in that both sides are trying to get what they want, but we still have that fire within us that we're willing to do what it takes," Collier said. "We're going to do whatever it takes to get what we think we deserve."

As talks drag on, Collier sees Unrivaled — the offseason 3×3 league she co-founded with New York Liberty star Breanna Stewart — as fueling the players' fight.

"Us being here in December and January until March, it's a crucial time in the CBA," Collier acknowledged.

"Having us all in one place is beneficial," she explained. "To have players congregate in that way, where you can have those in-person conversations and updates like that, that does help to get things moving more quickly."