Ashley Hatch is a forward for the Washington Spirit of the NWSL. 

What were your thoughts on the Fall Series and how your team played? 

It was great to get back out there, and although the format was different it felt like normal. Having a week of practice, preparing for a game, then having another week of practice, and preparing for a game. That was really nice and it felt like it was normal for a little bit, and it was kind of nice to get into that rhythm. I’m a little sad that it’s over. But in regards to how we played as a team, obviously we would have liked to win and score a few more goals. I think overall we’re pretty happy with how we dealt with the unusual circumstances. And I think towards the back end of the fall series, we really started playing well together as a team. We started to really mesh on the field and it was a lot of fun. I wish we could have had another game or two.

You’re heading into national team camp. How did you find out about the call up?

I just got an email notifying me about being invited. It had the camp details and all that jazz. And then after I got the email about 5, 10 minutes later, Richie Burke, our coach, texted me and just congratulated me.

Do you have any personal goals for the camp?

Just to go in there and just play my best. Every camp situation is always an intense environment, because you’re surrounded by such great athletes and soccer players. I’m just focusing on being myself and having fun, but I have fun when I perform well, so performing well is the priority.

Are there any of the veteran names on the list that you’re especially excited to go up against?

I mean, honestly, everyone definitely belongs there, and so I think I’m just excited to be in an even more competitive environment that I’m already in. Obviously it’s going to be fun to play with girls who have been there longer than I have. But I’m pretty excited just to be there.

You have been to a few camps before. With such a young roster, how will your experiences help you do well?

That’s a good question. I think it helps because I know a little bit of what to expect. I’ve had the experience before. It still doesn’t take away from the initial nerves and jitters of training, but I think just having that experience will help me calm those nerves a little bit, and hopefully be able to get into the rhythm of being myself sooner as opposed to halfway through the week.

Are there any younger players that you were especially excited to see make the roster?

Yeah. I mean, obviously Ashley Sanchez, my teammate, I’m super excited for her. I think it will be fun to be there with her. I think she’s super talented, and it’s going to be a great environment for her to push herself and get better. Every camp you go into is an opportunity to become a better player. I’m excited for her. I’m also really excited for Aubrey Bledsoe. She’s not a young player, I think this will be her second camp, but we’ve never been in a camp together before, and I think she is very deserving of it. I’m excited to see her in a more competitive environment, because I think it’ll help her become even better of a keeper than she already is.

This will be your first camp with Vlatko Andonovski. What are your expectations for his coaching style and playing under him? 

I’m excited that I got to go to the ID camp last year, so I got a small glimpse of what he is like as a coach. I think this camp is a lot different than that camp. I think he will have even higher expectations for all of us. I’m excited. He’s a really smart coach, and so is all his coaching staff. I’m excited to hopefully get a lot of feedback on what I can improve on, and what they see with me going forward, and also just learning from them as coaches.

I know when we chatted with you in the past you were very straightforward about your goal of wanting to make the national team. Obviously this camp is one step closer. What would success mean for you in this camp and what are the next steps for reaching your goal?

I feel like success is super hard to define, but obviously there’s other camps in the future. I feel like it would be a sign of success if I was able to get invited to more of those. Or even if I don’t get invited to those, just getting positive feedback that I’m headed in the right direction. Any step in that direction I would be definitely excited about, but I’m also not focusing a ton on that, because I know I need to first take care of business in this camp.

Rose Lavelle is hoping to return to the field soon. 

The 28-year-old midfielder has been sidelined with a lower leg injury since the Gold Cup in early march. Since then, she has yet to play for new club Gotham FC in the NWSL. She also missed a potential USWNT appearance at the SheBelieves Cup in April, where senior team newcomer Jaedyn Shaw saw success assuming Lavelle's role in the attacking midfield. 

At the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee media showcase on Monday, Lavelle told reporters that she’s doing well and hopes to be back soon.

"I’m doing good — I’m hoping I’ll be back in the next couple weeks," Lavelle said. "It’s frustrating to start the year off with an injury, just because I feel like you come off preseason and you’re revving to go, so it’s so annoying."

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Lavelle is still looking to compete for one of just 18 Olympic roster spots. When healthy, she ranks as one of the national team’s most trusted assets, but considering this most recent injury, her health is an obvious concern. Faced with an onslaught of experienced competitors and young talent, incoming USWNT coach Emma Hayes will have some big decisions to make when selecting the Paris-bound squad — a reality Lavelle seems to be taking in stride as she works to regain full fitness.

"We have so many special players, we have so much depth, and so many different weapons to utilize on and off the bench," Lavelle said. "Unfortunately that means really good players are going to get left off, too. And I think for all of us, it’s just about being ready for whatever role is given to us, embracing that, and looking to put it into a collective picture so that we can go into the Olympics ready to go."

Stanford has found its replacement for legendary head women's basketball coach Tara VanDerveer in associate head coach Kate Paye.

The Cardinal confirmed the hiring on Tuesday via a press release. Paye was largely expected to replace the longtime head coach, as the college mentioned they were still negotiating Paye's contract when they announced VanDerveer's retirement.

In Tuesday's statement, Paye reported that she was "humbled" to have been tapped to lead the women’s program.

"Stanford University has been a central part of my life for as long as I can remember and I am humbled to have the opportunity to lead its women’s basketball program," Paye said. "I’d first like to thank Tara, who has played such a pivotal role in my career for her friendship and guidance. It’s not what she’s done, but how she’s done it, that has had such a profound impact upon me."

A Woodside, California native, Paye played under VanDerveer from 1992 to 1995, taking home a national title her freshman year. After graduation, Paye briefly joined San Diego State as an assistant coach before making her professional debut with the ABL's Seattle Reign in 1996. After finishing her playing career with the WNBA's Seattle Storm, she joined the team’s coaching staff in 2007 and has been with the organization ever since, picking up another national title win — this time as associate head coach — in 2021. Paye's brother John played quarterback for Stanford from 1983 to 1986, while also serving as a point guard on the basketball team.

In her own response, VanDerveer said that she was "grateful" that Stanford picked Paye to follow in her stead. Last week, the decorated coach stated that this year would be her last after 38 seasons at the helm and three national titles under her belt.

"She has long been ready for this opportunity and is the perfect leader for Stanford at this time of immense change in college athletics," VanDerveer noted. "Kate was the choice for this job and I am confident she will achieve great success as head coach."

The 2024 WNBA Draft has officially concluded, leaving the newly minted rookie class facing a tough road ahead.

Only 144 roster slots are available throughout the league’s 12 teams, the reason why the players are sometimes referred to as the “144.” And Monday’s draft picks are set to join a large group of established players competing for those same roster spots, from seasoned veterans to young athletes determined to prove their value on the court.

Last year, just 15 of the league’s 36 draftees made it onto their drafting team's opening-day squad.

In reality, there are oftentimes fewer than 144 spots available, as not every team maxes out their roster. Per the league's CBA, each team roster must maintain a minimum standard of 11 players, but those lists can include players out with injuries or on other forms of leave. Players can also be assigned to short-term hardship contracts, something waived players must be prepared for at any point during the season.

Earlier this week, Laeticia Amihere — a 2022 national champion with South Carolina who currently plays for the Atlanta Dream — took to TikTok to provide some insight into the WNBA training camp process. 

"You can either get drafted on Draft Night, or you can get signed by a team," she said. "Once that happens, you go to training camp literally like two weeks later... Basically everybody's got to try out. There's 12 roster spots, and there's like 18 people at the at the trial."

@laeticiaamihere Replying to @dantavius.washington #wnba #draft ♬ original sound - Laeticia Amihere

Amihere also had an important point to make: Getting cut does not signify a player’s abilities. 

"If you get cut after training camp, that does not mean you're not good," she said. "That does not mean that player sucks, don't stop supporting that player. Literally, there's so many reasons somebody can get cut."

"If you guys look at the best players in the league, most of them have bounced around teams," she added. "And I promise you it is not a bad thing, it's just how the league is."

Things, however gradually, are changing. With Golden State's WNBA team scheduled to launch in time for the 2025 season, league expansion is just around the corner. On Monday, Commissioner Cathy Engelbert announced that the league is aiming to grow to 16 teams by 2028. But by then, it might be too little too late for the generation of talent emerging from an increasingly competitive NCAA system.

Monday night’s WNBA draft added to the nationwide uptick in record-breaking women's sports viewership, pulling in 2.45 million viewers throughout the nearly two-hour broadcast and peaking at 3.09 million, according to an ESPN release. 

That number shatters the previous draft viewership record — 601,000 in 2004 — which was fueled primarily by then-No. 1 pick Diana Taurasi entering the league after UConn's historic three-peat March Madness performance.  

The 2023 WNBA draft drew 572,000 viewers, the most for any televised WNBA event since 2.74 million tuned in to NBC for a Memorial Day matchup between the New York Liberty and Houston Comets back in 2000.

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While many came to watch Caitlin Clark get drafted No. 1 overall, it’s important to note that viewership didn’t take a massive dip after the superstar shooter left the stage. The numbers show that a bulk of the audience stuck around to watch the remainder of the show, making 2024's event not just the most-viewed WNBA draft in history, but also the most-viewed WNBA program to ever air on ESPN platforms.

Draft Day's popularity is yet another sign indicating an expected rise in WNBA regular season viewership. Clark and Iowa's NCAA tournament showdown with the Chicago Sky-bound Kamilla Cardoso's South Carolina side drew a record 18.7 million to ABC's Sunday afternoon broadcast. Banking on this trend, 36 of Indiana's upcoming 40 games are set to be shown on national television. In-person ticket sales are also soaring, leading the defending WNBA champion Las Vegas Aces to re-home their matchup with the Fever to a venue that can accommodate some 6,000 more fans.