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Tag: the final

  • Trinity Rodman, Spirit size up Gotham FC in NWSL championship

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    (Photo credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images)

    SAN JOSE, Calif. — The Washington Spirit fell one win short of capturing the NWSL championship last year.

    They get another chance at grabbing the trophy on Saturday when they face Gotham FC.

    ‘Super pumped to be in the final again back-to-back years,’ Spirit star Trinity Rodman said. ‘Just focused on us and being able to take it home to D.C.’

    Rodman, and her team, also are focused on her health.

    The 23-year-old U.S. women’s national team star sustained a knee injury in mid-October that kept her out of action until she returned for a brief cameo at the end of the Spirit’s semifinal win last weekend.

    The extent of her availability for Saturday remained uncertain as of media day on Thursday.

    ‘Getting another week under my belt is nothing but positive,’ Rodman said. ‘I was able to get those minutes last week, and I’m really grateful for that. (The recovery) has been extremely smooth, and I’m hoping that we do really well this weekend and I can see the field again, hopefully for a couple more minutes.’

    Rodman acknowledged that the game will carry extra spice considering the Spirit beat Gotham in a penalty-kick shootout in last year’s semifinals. Gotham won the teams’ first meeting this season before the sides played to two scoreless draws.

    ‘Whenever we play Gotham, I think you never know what you’re going to get, which I think is the coolest thing about our sport,’ Rodman said. ‘… You have no idea what the result is, who’s going to score, what arguments are going to happen on the field. So I’m extremely excited to play Gotham again.’

    Gotham FC are seeking something of a rerun of their lone previous championship. They were the last playoff seed (then No. 6) in 2023 when they emerged on top. This year, they are the eighth and final seed in the playoffs, yet they are back in the final.

    The similarities end there, though, according to forward Midge Purce.

    ‘I think (2023) was a true Cinderella story where we really overcame, and I don’t look at this team and think Cinderella,’ Purce said. ‘(The final) is where we deserve to be for the amount of talent we have.’

    Gotham FC squeezed into the last playoff spot this year after going winless in their final four regular-season games (0-2-2).

    Then Gotham opened the playoffs against the league’s dominant top seed, the Kansas City Current, and pulled off a stunning 2-1 win in extra time. Katie Stengel’s goal in the 121st minute completed the upset.

    Gotham provided more dramatics in the semifinals at Orlando. Jaedyn Shaw’s 96th-minute free kick from just outside the penalty area bounced in the box and sailed into the far corner of the net, giving Gotham FC a 1-0 win.

    Shaw said of the postseason turnaround, ‘It’s the mentality. We knew that the past few games leading into the playoffs weren’t great for us, weren’t good performances, we weren’t getting results. So I think we knew coming in … we had to lock in and come together as a group and bring that mentality to win.’

    The Spirit, who fell 1-0 to the Orlando Pride in the 2024 NWSL championship match, finished second in the regular season this year despite failing to win their final three contests (0-2-1).

    Washington needed a penalty-kick shootout to get past Racing Louisville after a 1-1 draw in the quarterfinals.

    The semifinals weren’t as stressful for the Spirit. Washington jumped on top of the Portland Thorns in the 27th minute when Rosemonde Kouassi’s end-to-end run down the right flank set up Gift Monday for the opening goal. A second-half tally from Croix Bethune secured a 2-0 victory.

    Spirit midfielder Hal Hershfelt said, ‘We’re young, we’re fiery, but keeping our heads. It’s a huge game (on Saturday), but I feel like if we don’t deviate from the stuff we do all year, we’ll find ourselves (winning).’

    –Rick Kaplan, Field Level Media

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  • UCF escapes pesky Hofstra for four-point win

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    (Photo credit: Sophia Scheller-Imagn Images)

    Riley Kugel scored 19 points for host UCF, which held off upset-minded Hofstra to earn an 82-78 win in the season opener for both schools Monday night in Orlando, Fla.

    Jordan Burks had 17 points and a team-high seven rebounds for UCF, which didn’t return anyone who scored for the team last season. Kugel transferred to the Knights from Mississippi State while Burks arrived from Georgetown.

    Themus Fulks, a transfer from Milwaukee, added 16 points with eight assists and hit the tiebreaking long 2-pointer that gave the Knights the lead for good at 66-64 with 7:38 left.

    Another Milwaukee transfer, Jamichael Stillwell, finished with 10 points.

    The Knights were 22 of 36 from the foul line, including 17 of 23 in the second half.

    Cruz Davis scored 17 points while true freshman Preston Edmead had 16 points and a team-high six assists for Hofstra, a member of the Coastal Athletic Association.

    German Plotnikov finished with 13 points for the Pride. Silas Sunday added 10 points and six rebounds.

    Hofstra took a 16-7 lead to open the game before UCF went on a 29-11 run to take its biggest lead at 36-27.

    The Pride scored the final five points of the first half to begin a 30-18 run that ended with Joshua DeCady’s layup and Edmead’s free throw to put the visitors ahead 57-54 with 10:47 to go.

    UCF scored 10 of the next 14 points before Edmead tied the game for the final time with a 3-pointer with 8:10 left. The Knights expanded their lead to eight points twice, the last at 79-71, before Hofstra got within three points twice in the final minute.

    UCF’s Devan Cambridge missed a pair of free throws with 16 seconds left, but Burks pulled down the rebound and Fulks iced the win by sinking his second free throw six seconds later.

    –Field Level Media

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  • Los Angeles Chargers Sign Foster Sarell to Active Roster

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    Chargers Communications

    The Los Angeles Chargers today signed tackleFoster Sarellto the active roster and signed tackleBobby Hartto the practice squad.

    Sarellmade three starts in 36 regular-season games played for the Chargers from 2022-25, also appearing in a pair of postseason games for Los Angeles. He was elevated twice this season for the Bolts, playing in the Week 4 contest. Sarell came into the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the Baltimore Ravens in 2021 before joining the Bolts later that year. Sarell played four years (2017-20) at Stanford University, starting 17-of-34 games along the offensive front. He was part of Cardinal teams that appeared in two bowl games and, in 2019, started all 11 games at right tackle to earn honorable mention All-Pacific-12 recognition.

    Hartwas a seventh-round choice by the New York Giants in the 2015 NFL Draft (226th overall), starting 67-of-98 career regular-season games with the Giants, Bengals, Titans and Bills. He started along a Giants line in 2016 that protected quarterback Eli Manning to throw for over 4,000 yards. While with the Bengals, he paved the way for running back Joe Mixon to top 1,000 in back-to-back seasons (2018-19) and protected quarterback Joe Burrow during his rookie season in 2020. Hart has appeared in three career postseason games.

    Over a four-year career at Florida State (2011-14), Hart started 37 games, including the final 28 of his tenure at right tackle. He helped the Seminoles win the final BCS National Championship in 2013, blocking for an offense that set school and Atlantic Coast Conference records in total offense (7,267 yards), points per game (51.6), yards per play (7.67), total touchdowns (94), passing touchdowns (42) and the NCAA record for points scored (723). He was a third-team All-ACC selection in 2014, protecting future No. 1 overall pick and reigning Heisman Trophy-winner Jameis Winston, while also blocking for Dalvin Cook to become the first Seminole freshman running back to rush for 1,000 yards.

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  • Pirates play spoiler role, nip wild-card hopeful Reds

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    (Photo credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images)

    Oneil Cruz belted a two-run homer and five relievers combined for 4 1/3 scoreless innings to lead the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates past the Cincinnati Reds 4-2 on Tuesday night in Cincinnati.

    Elly De La Cruz homered and went 3-for-4 for the Reds, who entered the night tied with the New York Mets for the third and final wild-card spot in the National League. Both teams had a one-game lead over Arizona.

    Left-handed reliever Hunter Barco (1-0) made his major league debut for Pittsburgh (68-89), tossing a scoreless sixth inning to earn his first big league win. Dennis Santana tossed a scoreless ninth for his 15th save in 17 chances.

    The Reds (80-77) hit into double plays to end each of the final three innings.

    After hitting a batter in the first, Cincinnati starter Brady Singer (14-11) got into trouble in the second when Jack Suwinski doubled, Nick Yorke hit an RBI single to center and Alexander Canario doubled to make it 2-0.

    Following another out, Cruz drove a Singer sinker into the seats in left for a 4-0 Pirates lead. Singer was charged with four runs on seven hits in 5 1/3 innings.

    De La Cruz, who hadn’t homered since July 31 before belting a long ball Saturday, connected for his second homer in three games against Pittsburgh starter Johan Oviedo in the second to get two runs back. De La Cruz’s 21st of the season came with Spencer Steer aboard and cut the Pittsburgh lead to 4-2.

    Oviedo, charged with two runs on two hits and three walks over 4 2/3 innings, was removed one out from being eligible for the win in the fifth, as Dauri Moreta was called on to get the final out. Moreta recorded it when TJ Friedl was thrown out trying to advance on a potential wild pitch to Noelvi Marte.

    The Reds caught a break in the bottom of the fourth. Will Benson’s foul fly down the left field line was ruled a catch by Suwinski, who made a lunging, full extension grab of the ball as it was slicing away from him. But the Reds challenged, and the ball was ruled a trap.

    But given a second chance with runners on first and second, Benson struck out to end the frame.

    –Field Level Media

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  • Explosive Lynx offense hands loss to injury-plagued Fever

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    (Photo credit: Grace Smith/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

    Jessica Shepard had a triple-double, Kayla McBride tied her season-high with 29 points and the visiting Minnesota Lynx rode a strong third quarter to a 95-90 victory over the Indiana Fever on Friday night.

    Shepard finished with season-highs of 22 points and 11 assists and added 11 rebounds, and Natisha Hiedeman scored 17 for the Lynx (29-7), who trailed by as many as 12 points in the first half before McBride helped them get within two points at halftime and outscore the Fever (19-17) 32-17 in the third quarter.

    WNBA-leading Minnesota, playing its seventh consecutive game without star forward Napheesa Collier (ankle), had lost consecutive games for the first time this season and was completing a back-to-back after a 75-73 loss at Atlanta on Thursday.

    Kelsey Mitchell scored 27, Lexie Hull had 23, Aliyah Boston had 15 and Shey Peddy added 10 in her debut for the Fever, who played their 14th consecutive game without All-Star guard Caitlin Clark (groin) and their first since losing guard Sophie Cunningham, the team’s most accurate 3-point shooter, to a season-ending knee injury.

    McBride made a jumper to start the third-quarter scoring and she added two more during a 9-0 run that gave Minnesota a 65-56 lead. Mitchell made a 3-pointer to end the run, but Hiedeman scored the final four points to give the Lynx an 82-69 lead at the end of the third quarter.

    Indiana got within five points four times in the final 2:02, but got no closer.

    Hull scored 11 points and the Fever made 5 of 6 3-pointers while taking their largest lead of the first quarter, 22-13. Shepherd had the last four of her 10 first-quarter points and two assists to help the Lynx close within 27-22 at the end of the first quarter.

    Minnesota’s DiJonai Carrington’s basket started the second-quarter, but Damiris Dantas, Hull and Peddy made consecutive 3-pointers and Indiana expanded the lead to 36-24. McBride responded with consecutive 3-pointers and added nine more points and an assist to help the Lynx pull even at 50 before Mitchell’s jumper gave Indiana a 52-50 halftime lead.

    –Field Level Media

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