March=Womens Sports Madness

Japan Win the 2025 SheBelieves Cup

The SheBelieves Cup concluded this past Wednesday. The final game between the USA and Japan determined who would hoist the trophy. Both teams were undefeated going into this game, but Japan had the advantage in goal differential. For the US it was a must-win game. For the fourth time Japan and USWNT would be facing off with a trophy on the line and the tension was in the air as the teams walked out onto the pitch. The whistle blew and it was all Japan from the start. In less than two minutes, Japan got themselves on the score sheet after Yuka Momiki hit a shot far netting. After a miscommunication between USA defender Sonnett and Goalie Jane Cambell caused them to run into each other defending the through ball and gifting Momiki an open net to score with ease. The shock scattered throughout the stadium as it was unlike the US to give up such an early goal, but just twelve minutes later, rookie standout Ally Senetor got the US right back into the game. Tied 1-1 the score remained the same going into the half, but once the second half started, Japan once again came out on fire and scored the second and game-winning goal just five minutes into the second half. Japan was awarded a free kick, and after Campbell made the first save, she wasn’t able to make the second as Toko Koga hit the follow-up shot. As the rest of the game went on, US Head Coach Emma Hayes tried to make some game-changing subs, but no one was able to break through. For the first time under Emma Hayes, the USWNT suffered their first loss. As Japan raised the SheBelieves trophy in the background, Emma Hayes had some encouraging words after suffering their first loss; she said, “You want to learn this lesson now. It allows me to say these are the things we have to do at the highest level. That’s what development is. We’re not playing for the World Cup today. We’ll be back, don’t worry about it. We’ll be back.” She is correct in this statement, considering that this team was full of young talent and missing many of the players from the 2024 Olympics. Emma Hayes's belief in developing the younger talent will hopefully be helpful for the next major tournament cycle, which is only two years away.

March=Womens Sports Madness 

You’ve probably heard of “March Madness,” the insane college basketball tournament that draws in millions of fans who fill out their bracket in hopes of getting that perfect bracket, or even fans from the smaller schools hoping to pull off the Cinderella run. Well, for those who are fans of women’s sports, there is plenty of madness to look forward to this March. To start, we have the return of the NWSL leading off with the 2025 Challenge Cup, which will be a rematch of the 2024 NWSL Championship between Washington Spirit and Orlando Pride since the Pride won both the regular season and the Final. The official kick-off of the regular season will be on Friday, March 14th, with Orlando Pride taking on the Chicago Red Stars.

In other news, we also get to see the first-ever Unrivaled Playoffs, which start on March 16th with semi-final match-ups, and then the Final will be on Monday, March 17th at 7:30 PM E.T. The trophy could be anyone’s, but the front runner is definitely the Napheesa Collier and her team the Lunar Owls, but make sure to tune in to see who wins the inaugural Unrivaled 3v3 championship. To cap this amazing month off, we go back to the “March Madness Tournament,” where we will get to see nonstop basketball from the top teams and players in Women’s College basketball. Every year, the women’s tournament has grown more and more, this year will most likely be no different as players like Hannah Hidalgo and Juju Watkins get to build off their amazing freshmen years and hopefully take their teams far in the tournament for their sophomore year. For other players like UConn’s Paige Bueckers and Notre Dame’s Olivia Miles, this will be their final chance to win it all. Both players have had their share of knee injuries that unfortunately derailed some of their college careers, but both are looking to make the ultimate comeback by getting that NCAAWB Championship Trophy. March Madness will officially begin on March 21st, but as you read this, most of the conference regular season champions have been crowned, so make sure to tune in next week for an update on the tournament bracket and where every top team is seeded.