Across social media, the Washington Spirit have been using the phrase “#RiseUpDC,” but behind the curtain, the team’s theme is “Together.”

At practices, before games, in the locker room and on media calls, the players have intentionally used the word through the second half of the season following a chapter of abuse allegations against former coaches, COVID-19 cases that resulted in forfeited games and ownership changes.

“Staying together, really just focusing on that,” defender Sam Staab said. “[It] switches our mentality to be like, ‘Let’s just send it.’ We’ve had a pretty tough year, so we’re just going for it.”

The Spirit exemplified that approach Sunday, with their deep bench playing a key role in a 1-0 extra-time win over the North Carolina Courage in the NWSL quarterfinals.

“It takes every one of us, and we’ve really come together and relied on each other throughout this entire season and especially tonight,” goalkeeper Aubrey Bledsoe said after the game.

The @WashSpirit are on to the semis! pic.twitter.com/p0GSU62CdS

— Just Women’s Sports (@justwsports) November 8, 2021

‘We’re so deep’

North Carolina controlled much of the game in the opening 45 minutes, forcing Bledsoe to make multiple challenging saves and reminding everyone why she is a nominee for NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year.

Washington’s six substitutions rolled in through the second half, giving them a boost in momentum.

45’ M Tori Huster in for M Tayor Aylmer
70’ M Julia Roddar in for D Tegan McGrady
70’ F Tara McKeown in for F Ashley Sanchez
98’ D Anna Heilferty in for M Tori Huster (injury)
115’ D Paige Nielsen in for M Dorian Bailey (injury)
118’ M Saori Takarada in for F Trinity Rodman

The first sub to start the second half was Tori Huster, the only remaining player from the Spirit team that advanced to the NWSL finals in 2016, and she made her veteran presence felt immediately. The Spirit fired off multiple shots in the first five minutes of the half, taking the pressure off of Bledsoe and repeatedly testing Courage goalkeeper Casey Murphy.

Tara McKeown, the 22-year-old who started 11 of 21 games this season, helped turn Washington’s offensive energy around with multiple runs up the field that were not there in the first 45.

When Huster went down just outside North Carolina’s box a few minutes into extra time, with what is expected to be a serious injury, the Spirit had to send on a sub for their sub. In this case, it was 22-year-old Anna Heilferty. The rookie was entering her first playoff game when the stakes were highest, but the Spirit didn’t flinch, even against an experienced team like the Courage.

“We’re so deep, the amount of talent that we have,” Bledsoe said of the bench.

After the Spirit had registered 13 shots on target, Golden Boot winner Ashley Hatch buried the golden goal in the second period of extra time. The 2021 MVP candidate had been having a quiet game up until that point.

“I believe in every single one of our players and every single girl that steps on the field,” Hatch said. “Our subs made a huge difference in the game today. … That belief in each other is what helped us win this game.”

HATCH pic.twitter.com/Huo70COu5o

— Just Women’s Sports (@justwsports) November 8, 2021

‘They’re the Little Engine That Could right now’

Spirit interim coach Kris Ward describes himself as someone who’s “not afraid to use the bench.”

“We’ve got an unbelievable bench and they proved that in so many ways,” he said.

Ward has taken a hands-off approach this season since being named interim coach in August, recognizing the players have needed emotional support and space to come together, more than they’ve needed coaching.

“I think once we made the [coaching] change in August, everyone’s been a little bit more laidback and it really helps when we’ve got a young, creative team,” Bledsoe said. “It’s just been a good time of everyone just trusting in each other’s abilities, and you’re really seeing us start to play free and play together and it’s really exciting.”

Ward’s guidance has helped the Spirit advance the furthest they’ve been as a program since 2016. Before the playoffs began, Staab said she and the team were ready to move on from the turmoil of the season and focus on themselves.

Ward was in hands-on coaching mode after Sunday’s quarterfinal, pleased with the second-half energy but challenging the offense to slow down the attack. As much as the young team lets him, at least.

“Sometimes, youth is just going to youth, and they’re just going to go and that is an advantage in and of itself,” Ward said with a laugh.

Going into Washington’s semifinal against OL Reign next Sunday, there will be coaching, but Ward won’t lose sight of the togetherness that got the Spirit to this point in the first place.

“That’s been a big key for us, just getting through things together,” he said. “They’ve always had each other’s backs, and so it’s just trying to keep the train rolling. They’re the Little Engine That Could right now.”

Jessa Braun is an editorial intern for Just Women’s Sports. She is also the Head of North American Content for the Women’s Sports Alliance. You can find her on Twitter @jessabraun.

U.S. Soccer announced Tuesday that the USWNT will play their last home game on July 16th in the lead-up to the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris.

The 2024 Send-Off Match against Costa Rica will take place at Washington, DC’s Audi Field — home to both the Washington Spirit and DC United — at 7:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, July 16th. The friendly rounds out a four-game Olympic run-up campaign under incoming head coach Emma Hayes’ side, with the last two set to feature the finalized 2024 U.S. Olympic Women’s Soccer Team roster.

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Hayes will appear on the USWNT sideline for the first time this June, helming the team as they embark on a two-game series against Korea Republic hosted by Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado on June 1st followed by Allianz Stadium in St. Paul, Minnesota on June 4th. 

The team is then scheduled to meet a talented Mexico squad on July 13th at Gotham FC’s Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey, where the Olympic-bound lineup will attempt to rewrite February’s shocking 2-0 loss to El Tri Femenil in the group stages of this year’s Concacaf W Gold Cup. And while clear roster favorites have emerged from both of this year’s Gold Cup and SheBelives Cup rosters, a spate of recent and recurring injuries means making it to the Olympics is still largely anyone’s game.

Broadcast and streaming channels for the USWNT's final July 16th friendly at Audi Field include TNT, truTV, Universo, Max, and Peacock.

The USA Basketball Women's National Team is still considering Caitlin Clark for a spot on the Paris Olympics squad, says selection committee chair Jennifer Rizzotti. 

On Monday, Rizzotti told the AP that the committee will be evaluating the college phenom’s Olympic prospects by keeping a close eye on her first few weeks of WNBA play with Indiana.

The move is somewhat unconventional. While Clark was invited to participate in the 14-player national team training camp held earlier this month — the last camp before Team USA’s roster drops — she was unable to attend due to it coinciding with Iowa’s trip to the NCAA Women’s Final Four.

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Judging by the immense talent spread throughout the league in what might be their most hyped season to date, competition for a piece of the Olympic pie could be fiercer than ever before.

"You always want to introduce new players into the pool whether it's for now or the future," said Rizzotti. "We stick to our principles of talent, obviously, positional fit, loyalty and experience. It's got to be a combination of an entire body of work. It's still not going to be fair to some people."

Of course, Clark isn’t the first rookie the committee has made exceptions for. Coming off an exceptional college season that saw her averaging 19.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 4 assists per game for UConn, Breanna Stewart was tapped to represent the U.S. at the 2016 Olympics in Brazil less than two weeks after being drafted No. 1 overall by the Seattle Storm. Eight years prior, fellow No. 1 pick Candace Parker punched her ticket to the 2008 Games in Beijing just two weeks after making her first appearance for the L.A. Sparks.

In the lead-up to Paris’ Opening Ceremony on July 26th, USA Basketball Women’s National Team is scheduled to play a pair of exhibition games. They'll first go up against the WNBA's finest at the July 20th WNBA All-Star Game in Phoenix before facing Germany in London on July 23rd.

While an official roster announcement date hasn’t yet been issued, players won’t find out if they’ve made this year’s Olympic cut until at least June 1st.

For the first time in history, three different WNBA teams have completely sold out of season ticket plans well before the league's May 14th kick-off.

Call it the Caitlin Clark effect, attribute it to this year’s tenacious rookie class, or look to the skyrocketing visibility of veteran players across the board. But no matter the cause, facts are facts: Tickets to the 2024 WNBA season are selling like never before. 

On Monday, the Dallas Wings became the third team to sell out of season ticket memberships in the league’s 27-year history. The announcement from Arlington came shortly after the Atlanta Dream issued their own season ticket sell-out statement, also on Monday, and almost seven weeks after the back-to-back WNBA Champion Las Vegas Aces made headlines by becoming the first-ever WNBA team to sell out their season ticket allotment.   

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According to the Wings, season ticket memberships will fill nearly 40% of the 6,251 seats inside their home arena, College Park Center. The club also said that their overall ticket revenue has ballooned to the tune of 220% this year, spanning not just season tickets but also a 1,200% increase in single ticket sales. There’s currently a waitlist to become a Dallas season ticket holder, a status that comes with extra incentives like playoff presale access and discounts on additional single-game tickets. 

In Atlanta, season tickets aren't the only thing flying off the shelves. The Dream also announced that they broke their own record for single-game ticket sales during a recent limited presale campaign. Sunday was reportedly their most lucrative day, with five different games totally selling out Gateway Center Arena. Individual tickets for all upcoming matchups will hit the market this Thursday at 8 a.m., while a waitlist for season ticket memberships will open up next Tuesday at 10 a.m.

"Excitement around women's sports, particularly basketball, is at an all-time high and nowhere is that felt more than here in Atlanta," Dream president and COO Morgan Shaw Parker said in the team’s statement. "We’ve continued a record-setting growth trajectory over the past three years under new ownership — both on and off the court — and 2024 is shaping up to be our best season yet."

As of Tuesday, season ticket sales revenue for Caitlin Clark’s hotly anticipated Indiana Fever debut haven’t yet been announced by the club. But if these numbers are any indication — not to mention the explosive demand for Fever away games felt by teams around the country — it won’t be long before we see some scale-tipping figures coming out of Indianapolis.

25-year-old American pro golfer Nelly Korda secured her spot in LPGA history on Sunday, notching her fifth-straight title at this weekend's Chevron Championship in The Woodlands, Texas.

Ranked No. 1 in the world by Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, Korda joins Nancy Lopez (1978) and Annika Sörenstam (2005) as just the third LPGA player to rack up five consecutive tour wins. She is also the third No. 1-ranked player to capture The Chevron Championship victory since the rankings debuted in 2006, accompanied by Lorena Ochoa and Lydia Ko.

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The Florida native shot three-under 69 in Sunday's final, besting Sweden's Maja Stark despite Stark's valiant come-from-behind attempt in the 18th. Korda finished with a four-day total of 13-under 275, celebrating her two-stroke win by cannonballing into Poppie's Pond, much to the crowd's delight. She left The Club at Carlton Woods with $1.2 million from an overall purse of $7.9 million.

It wasn't long ago that the two-time major champion's current winning streak seemed unimaginable. After maintaining her No. 1 position for 29 weeks, Korda underwent surgery to remove a blood clot from her left arm in 2022. She returned to the course not long after, but failed to win a single tournament in 2023 before seeing a surge in form during the first four months of 2024. As of today, she hasn't lost a tournament since January.

Korda will attempt a record sixth-straight win at next week's JM Eagle LA Championship at Wilshire Country Club in Los Angeles, where she'll vie for a cut of the $3.75 million purse.