Emma Hruby
Oct 21, 2022
The University of Wisconsin athletic department is investigating a recent leak of private photos and video of its women’s volleyball players.
While the athletic department did not offer up any details of the leaked material in its statement, it did say that the pictures and video were not intended to be made public. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, one of the photos obtained by the outlet appears to have been taken after the team won the Big Ten title last November, showing members of the team with their sports bras lifted.
Similarly, the Wisconsin State Journal reported that the photos were taken from inside the team’s locker room.
Statement from UW Athletics pic.twitter.com/M2lK2OYg8a
— Wisconsin Badgers (@UWBadgers) October 19, 2022
“UWPD is not investigating the volleyball student-athletes for wrongdoing in this matter,” the statement said. “Our top priority is supporting our student-athletes and we are providing them with the appropriate services and resources.”
They called the leak a “significant and wrongful invasion” of the athletes’ privacy, with University of Wisconsin police investigating multiple crimes, “including potential violations of university policies and criminal statutes.”
According to the university, the athletes contacted the police upon becoming aware of the leak.
On Thursday, University of Wisconsin police spokesman Mac Lovicott confirmed the investigation.
Wisconsin won its first national title last year, and is currently ranked fifth in the country with a 13-3 record (7-1 Big Ten). The Badgers are set to play Michigan State on Friday.
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JWS Staff
Oct 1, 2024
In this week's episode of The Late Sub, host Claire Watkins takes a look at the first games of the 2024 WNBA semifinals, discussion whether or not Aces and Lynx fans can find the silver lining in their teams' respective shortcomings heading into Game 2.
Then, she shouts out the big winners and losers of this weekend's NWSL's slate, including this season's historic Golden Boot race and the competition to clinch one of the final playoff spots.
The Late Sub with Claire Watkins brings you the latest news and freshest takes in women’s sports. This is the weekly rundown you’ve been missing, covering the USWNT, NWSL, WNBA, college hoops, and whatever else is popping off in women’s sports each week. Special guest appearances with the biggest names in women’s sports make The Late Sub a must-listen for every fan. Follow Claire on X/Twitter @ScoutRipley and subscribe to the Just Women’s Sports newsletter for more.
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Dee Lab
Oct 1, 2024
On Monday, the WNBA announcedthat theexpansion draftfor incoming 2025 franchise the Golden State Valkyries will be held December 6th.
This will mark the league's first expansion draft since 2008, when the Atlanta Dream joined the league.
League sets draft limitations on 2025 expansion draft
Per therules, the WNBA's 12 current teams can protect up to six players each, with all others available for selection. Those available for selection include all athletes each franchise holds rights to as of the end of the 2024 regular season. Accordingly, that pool spans both active players and those on suspended, retired, core, draft, or reserved lists.
Current teams must submit full roster lists showing all players — including those protected — to the league by a yet-to-be-set deadline. That deadline will likely fall around 10 days prior to the expansion draft.
In the expansion draft, the Valkyries will be able to pick a maximum of one player from each team. They can also choose only one 2024 unrestricted free agent.
Valkyries trade window could spur strategic WNBA moves
Perhaps most interestingly, once all roster lists are submitted, Golden State will be allotted a short pre-draft trade window to broker deals.
During this window, they can negotiate with teams to select, or purposefully not select, certain athletes. Golden State can also pick a player with the express purpose of trading them to another franchise.
Expect more WNBA roster shake-ups next season
The league has yet to announce if Golden State will be granted 2025 college draft picks, but has said the Valkyries will be eligible to participate in February’s free agency period.
With two new WNBA franchises in Toronto and Portland slated to begin play in 2026, Golden State's draft will likely be a preview of more expansion drafts to come next year.
While December 6th's proceedings will air live on ESPN, other aspects of the expansion draft will not be made public, including the current teams's protected playerslists.
JWS Staff
Oct 1, 2024
Welcome back to Fast Friends with Kelley O'Hara and Lisa Leslie!
In today's episode, our hosts cover the 2024 WNBA semifinals, including the New York Liberty's Game 1 victory over the Las Vegas Aces and Connecticut Sun guard Marina Mabrey's impressive playoff run.
"There is a player, Marina Mabrey... How she got out of Chicago, I will never know, mid-season," Leslie says on the episode. "But that is a game-changer."
Also on today's docket? Kelley's NWSL end-of-season table predictions and much more.
Coming off the success of JWS's Olympic commentary show The Gold Standard, Fast Friends features two legendary athletes serving up insider insights and unique takes on the biggest stories in women's sports every week.
Subscribe to Just Women's Sports on YouTube to never miss an episode.
JWS Staff
Oct 1, 2024
In a Just Women's Sports exclusive release, women's health and wellness startup Sequel announced an agreement with Stanford Athletics to provide Stanford athletes with free Sequel Spiral Tampons through the 2024/25 academic year.
This is the first time a college athletic program has entered an official collaboration with a tampon brand in NCAA history.
A Division I school, Stanford's history as a women's sports powerhouse runs deep. With broad representation on both past and present USWNTs — including superstars Tierna Davidson, Sophia Smith, Naomi Girma, Catarina Macario, Kelley O'Hara, Christen Press, and Julie Foudy — the Cardinal won the NCAA women's soccer championship in 2011, 2017, and 2019.
Women's basketball has also been an area of strength for Stanford, picking up NCAA championships in 1990, 1992, and 2021. Through the years, the school has produced elite WNBA talent like Cam Brink, Nneka Ogwumike, Lexie Hull, Haley Jones, Karlie Samuelson, Candice Wiggins, and Jennifer Azzi under the guidance of now-retired NCAA coaching legend Tara Vanderveer.
"We are committed to supporting the health and well-being of all our athletes," Stanford assistant athletics director Sarah Lyons told JWS. "This collaboration offers an important resource to our female athletes, allowing them to concentrate on excelling in their sport."
Sequel is the brainchild of Stanford-educated engineers Greta Meyer and Amanda Calabrese. As former high-level athletes frustrated with the inadequacy of conventional tampons, the co-founders drew on their competitive experiences to inform their reinvention.
"Whether we were competing in our respective sports or making our way through the Stanford School of Engineering, Amanda and I had no patience for tampons that leaked," Meyer, a former DI lacrosse player at Stanford, said. "Because we were unable to find one that was suitable for peak performance, we committed to creating our own."
Sequel's relationship with Stanford goes beyond its co-founders degrees, however, as a shared class at the Palo Alto institution actually gave rise to the pair's original business idea.
"This collaboration marks a full-circle moment for us, as our tampon re-design began as a class project during our senior year at the university," Calabrese said. "Just five years later, the Sequel Spiral Tampon is FDA approved as a medical device, available nationwide and now, available to Stanford athletes.
The first significant tampon redesign in more than 80 years, the Sequel Spiral Tampon features a proprietary structure engineered to absorb fluids more evenly and efficiently.
According to Sequel's website, most tampons are fit with linear channels drawing fluid down in a way that can cause leakage, while the Sequel Spiral's channels are wrapped around the tampon, creating a longer flow path designed to increase absorption and prevent leakage.
"As the winningest college in existence, Stanford's collegiate athletes are the ultimate peak performers and we are thrilled to be providing them with the tampon we wish we'd had on game day," added Calabrese.
