Portland Thorns players took the field Sunday after a heavy three weeks. The franchise featured prominently in the Sally Yates report on systemic abuse in the NWSL released at the start of the month.

Players asked for fan support even as calls for Merritt Paulson to sell the team increased. Many of the team’s sponsors pulled or threatened to pull dollars from the team.

The balance between support for the players and criticism of ownership could be seen Sunday as 22,035 people turned out in support of the Thorns – the second-largest crowd in NWSL playoff history. Ahead of the game, the Rose City Riveters fan group hosted a rally to cheer for players as they arrived.

“This is the Portland soccer community,” Gabby Rosas, president of the 107 Independent Supporters Trust, told The Oregonian. “You put the call out that says the players need to feel support, and people show up. That’s never been in question this entire time over the last year. It’s always been about supporting the players, but it’s how do you balance that with calling for accountability from the leaders who are in place? I think that’s been the complexity of the situation.

“We’re angry, yes, but we can come at that in different ways. When we are engaging with the players, it’s important that they know we’re not going anywhere.”

The players reflected that support right back to the fans, as Crystal Dunn sent home a stoppage time winner against the San Diego Wave to put Portland back into the NWSL Championship for the first time since 2018.

“It’s a new dawn,” Thorns coach Rhian Wilkinson said. “The players needed it. They needed to see that they’re loved.”

Even amid the fanfare, though, the match also featured calls for change from both fans and sponsors sprinkled throughout the stadium.

Outside of Providence Park, a “For Sale” sign was hung on a sculpture, while inside the stadium fans held up signs of their own calling for the sale of the team. While Paulson has stepped back as CEO of the Thorns, he has not committed to selling the Thorns or the MLS’ Portland Timbers.

Plenty of “for sale” signs in the North end of Providence Park. #BAONPDX #NWSL pic.twitter.com/gL8mNQgIIR

— Ryan Clarke (@RyanTClarke) October 23, 2022

Signage around the stadium from sponsors also indicated mounting pressure for the Thorns front office. While some sponsors have threatened to pull their dollars if the team doesn’t make changes, others already have redirected their funds to go directly to the players.

“We stand with the players,” wrote signs from sponsors Laurelwood Brewing Co., Toyota and Jamba Juice.

Thanks @LaurelwoodBeer for supporting the players #BAONPDX pic.twitter.com/p3cRbS2ENK

— Jeanette 💀🏟️🏠en (@Acquanettie) October 23, 2022

Other sponsors, including SeatGeek, had signage reading, “To the players, we have your backs,” or other similar sentiments.

As those players shift their focus to Saturday’s final against the Kansas City Current at Audi Field in Washington, there’s just one thing on their minds.

“We have to win it this year,” Dunn said. “We’ve gone through so much.”

Cameron Brink already has her rookie of the year pick for the upcoming WNBA season, and it’s Indiana-bound star Caitlin Clark. 

In the latest edition of Kelley on the Street, host Kelley O'Hara caught up with Brink in New York hours before the Stanford phenom went No. 2 overall to the Los Angeles Sparks at the 2024 WNBA Draft. When O’Hara asked who would win the WNBA's rookie of the year, she answered without pause.

"Caitlin Clark," she said, while a fan commented that she thought Brink would take home the award. Brink later added that the extra foul granted to WNBA players will be "good for me."

"I hope it’s me," Charisma Osborne, who was later drafted by the Phoenix Mercury, said when asked her ROY prediction. "But, I don’t know — we’ll see."

Watch more of Kelley on the Street:

Maria Sanchez issued a statement on Thursday, confirming recent reports that she has requested a trade from the Houston Dash. 

In it, she revealed that the club has been aware of the request "since late March."

"This has all taken a toll and isn’t an easy thing to talk about, but I want to confirm that I’ve requested an immediate trade," she wrote. "My expectations and reasons have been clear. I trust that my current club’s management will honor my decision in a timely manner and proceed with accepting a trade."

"I’m eager to refocus and dive back into what I love most: playing football," she concluded.

Thank you, everyone, for the outpouring of kindness and support. pic.twitter.com/gcnN7dhCJU

— Maria Sanchez (@Maria17_7) April 19, 2024

Reports of Sanchez's trade request first surfaced on ESPN last week, and were later confirmed by multiple sources. 

In December of last year, Sanchez signed a three-year contract with the Dash valued at $1.5 million including bonuses and an option year. It was the largest contract in NWSL history at the time — a figure that would be eclipsed by multiple contracts in the following months. 

Sanchez spent the offseason as a restricted free agent, meaning that Houston could match any other team's offer to retain her rights. Should the Dash trade Sanchez, her current contract terms would remain intact, limiting potential buyers to teams able to afford to take on an inking of that size.

The Dash has yet to address the trade, instead reiterating to ESPN that Sanchez is "under contract, a choice she made in free agency at the end of 2023." 

Both the NWSL trade window and transfer window close tonight, April 19th, at 12 a.m. ET. The window will stay closed through the next 11 regular season games, reopening on August 1st, 2024.

The four-time league champion Seattle Storm unveiled their new practice facility on Thursday, with Storm co-owner Lisa Brummel dubbing Interbay's Seattle Storm Center for Basketball Performance the team’s "new home."

"It's just such a special space," Brummel told Fox 13 Seattle. "I think when the players get here, it's gonna be overwhelming."

The sprawling 50,000-square-foot, $64 million property is just the second designated practice facility to be designed and built expressly for a WNBA team, with the Storm further noting that 85% of all design and engineering team members involved in the project's construction were women and people of color. The finished product holds two professional indoor courts, two 3x3 outdoor courts, a state-of-the-art locker room, and players' lounge, plus designated areas for strength and conditioning, kitchen, dining, and nutrition, and recovery. 

"This facility reflects our commitment to providing our athletes an exceptional environment that supports their growth, health, and performance," said Storm co-owner Ginny Gilder in an official team release. "It’s built for women, by women, embodying our dedication to leading the way in professional women’s sports."

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For their part, the team can't wait to make the faciilty their own.

"It's amazing," Storm guard Jewell Loyd told Fox 13. "Not having to drive everywhere around, knowing you have access anytime of the day to get into the gym, to workout." 

Head coach Noelle Quinn said she predicts the team is "never going to leave this building."

"Which is a good thing for me," she continued. "You talk about having an edge in performance. We want our athletes to not only perform on the court, but get whatever they need."

All of the Storm's staff and operations will now live under one roof, and the team also has plans to launch a youth basketball program operating out of the building.

The Caitlin Clark effect is quickly making its mark on the big leagues, as WNBA host teams around the country rush to upgrade their Fever games to larger arenas in order to accommodate surging ticket sales.

With Clark mere weeks away from her Indiana Fever debut, both the Las Vegas Aces and Washington Mystics have officially relocated their scheduled home games with head coach Christie Sides' squad. On Thursday, the Mystics became the latest to adjust their plans, moving their June 7th matchup from Entertainment & Sports Arena in Southwest DC to the more centrally located — and much larger — Capital One Arena "due to unprecedented demand."

The Mystics home court's capacity taps out at 4,200, while Capital One Arena — home to the Wizards, Capitals, and Georgetown Hoya's Men's Basketball — can fit nearly five times that crowd at some 20,000 spectators.

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"The move to Capital One Arena will allow for additional fans in the stands as well as premium hospitality options, including Suites and the all-new all-inclusive courtside Hennessy Lofts," the team announced via Thursday's press release.

The Aces were one of the first teams to switch venues, aiming to take on the Indiana Fever in front of as many as 20,000 fans inside T-Mobile Arena on July 2nd. That’s a sizable a boost from their home venue, which holds just 12,000.

For those still planning to face the Fever in their home arenas, ticket prices have skyrocketed. Previously scheduled construction has already forced the LA Sparks to relocate their first five games — including their May 24th clash with the Fever — to Long Beach State's Walter Pyramid. The temporary venue is quite the downsize, holding just 4,000 in comparison to Crypto.com Arena's near-19,000. As of Friday, the get-in price for that game started around $400.

Despite fans launching a Change.org petition urging relocation, the Chicago Sky say they're unable to move their June 23rd Fever meeting from Wintrust Arena's 10,000-seat facility to the 23,500-seat United Center due to a concert. Tickets for that game start around $325 as of Friday.