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Red Roses pick up where Lionesses left off in England women's great sporting summer

Published

4 months ago

August 22, 2025

Red Roses pick up where Lionesses left off in England women's great sporting summer

Crouch. Set. Re-engage. A sporting summer in which England’s women have already taken centre stage begins a powerful second act on Friday night as the Red Roses kick off the Women’s Rugby World Cup in Sunderland. The Lionesses have already shattered many perceptions in winning the Women’s Euros twice. Now the Red Roses hope to forcibly ram home the message.

More than 40,000 fans will be at the Stadium of Light to see England begin their campaign against the United States, with millions more expected to watch it live on BBC One. The result is expected to be a rout. In fact, anyone betting £100 on the Red Roses to win will get just 10p in winnings if they are successful.

Unsurprisingly the Red Roses are also huge favourites for the tournament, having lost only one of their past 58 matches. That defeat came in the 2022 World Cup final against New Zealand, one of the few teams apart from England to have a squad of professional players.

But while the teams fight it out for the World Cup trophy, a separate battle for hearts and minds will also take place over the next month as organisers attempt to capitalise on the growing popularity of the women’s game across the globe.

“Our ambition for this tournament goes far beyond the pitch,” says Sarah Massey, the Women’s Rugby World Cup managing director. “We want to use the platform that this tournament has to empower real change.

“We want to be able to show that women and girls can be anything, do anything and belong anywhere in rugby, in sport and in society. And we want to use this to break down barriers and challenge stereotypes. If you can’t see it, you can’t be it.”

Those are lofty words but organisers insist they are backed up with action by its all-women leadership team. Fourteen of the 16 teams’ security advisers are women, 62% of volunteers are women and the pitch for the final – which will be staged in front of a record-breaking crowd of 82,000 people at the Allianz Stadium in Twickenham – will be prepared by an all-women grounds team.

These are exciting times for women’s rugby, but even its most ardent supporters acknowledge that the sport is still at least a decade behind women’s football. The world No 2 ranked team, Canada, are still largely amateur and have had to raise funds from businesses to help them prepare, while many players are taking annual leave from their day jobs to play in England.

That perhaps adds to the tournament’s charm. Nonetheless, the gap between the best – England, Canada, New Zealand and France – and the rest also remains large, and there will be huge mismatches in the group stages. However organisers insist the expansion from 12 to 16 teams will help the game develop globally in the long run.

Ilona Maher of the USA Womens Eagles signs autographs for fans.

“We’ve made the decision to grow the game,” says Sally Horrox, the chief of Women’s Rugby World Cup. “But it’s worth acknowledging that the unions around the world are all on a very different stage of their development, and that will reflect in some of the scorelines.

“However, we are getting to a more competitive game with really rapid strides being made by a number of countries around the world. So we are confident that we are on the right trajectory.”

Notably, the women’s game already has one mainstream star: the American Ilona Maher, who has more than five million followers on Instagram and appeared on Dancing With The Stars. But World Rugby is hoping that she could be the first of many in the US, with the 2028 Olympics to be staged in Los Angeles and the Rugby World Cups of 2031 and 2033 also being held in the US.

Meanwhile back in Britain, UK Sport insists that the Women’s Rugby World Cup is the start of a range of events – including the Women’s T20 Cricket World Cup in 2026, Tour de France Femme in 2027, and bids for future World Athletics Championships and Women’s World Cup – to push women’s sport.

“We see this tournament as the spark to light a decade of progression of women’s sport in the UK over the next 10 years,” says Esther Britten, the head of major events at UK Sport. “We want to showcase women’s sport at its very best and to inspire millions.”

It is a message shared by Horrox on the eve of a Women’s World Cup she believes will be a gamechanger for the sport. “As a tournament, we are ready,” she says.

“We’re ready to break records in attendance, viewership and engagement. This is going to be the biggest global celebration of women’s rugby that we have ever seen. I’ve no doubt it’s going to be inspirational. It’s going to inspire the next generation of children, girls and boys and new fans, and bring them to this sport.”

Sports

No. 3 Volleyball sweeps Florida A&M, 3-0, to advance in NCAA Tournament

Published

2 minutes ago

December 6, 2025

Your Sports Nation

AUSTIN, Texas. — The No. 3 Texas Volleyball team improved to 42-0 in the NCAA First Round after sweeping Florida A&M (25-11, 25-8, 25-14). The Longhorns improved to 24-3 on the season behind Emma Halter’s historic night on defense.

Halter moved up to No. 8 on the all-time Texas digs list with 25 tonight, making it a 1,282 total. Halter also broke the Texas record in three-set matches with 25 digs. She’s now the fourth Longhorn to record 25, joining Dariam Acevedo (2006), Adrian Greenmail (2001) and Carrie Busch (1995).

Ayden Ames matched her career high with eight blocks, leading the Longhorns to tally nine total. Ramsey Gary also recorded a season high three aces for a match high. The Longhorns recorded 42 kills to the Rattlers 15, holding them to a -.027 – the lowest opponent hitting percentage of the season.

Set One: Texas dominated the opening set 25-11, limiting the Rattlers to a .000 attacking percentage while hitting .414 themselves. Torrey Stafford led the charge with five kills and a .455 hitting percentage. Swindle recorded nine assists and Halter registered 10 digs. The Texas defense totaled four and a half blocks in the first set.

Set Two: The Longhorns held the Rattlers to only eight points, tying their opponent season low in the second set. Stafford added six more kills out of her 13 total, while Texas put up four team blocks behind Ames’ four.

Set Three: The Longhorns saw Cari Spears add four kills and Whitney Lauenstein add one of her five kills in the third. Lauenstein also totaled four blocks on the night and hit for .571.

Up next Texas will face off against No. 25 Penn State in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday, Dec. 6 at 6:30 p.m. CT on ESPN+.

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Volleyball sees season end in NCAA DII Second Round

Published

19 minutes ago

December 6, 2025

Your Sports Nation

WINGATE, N.C. – Another successful Lenoir-Rhyne Volleyball season has come to an end. The Bears fell 3-1 to #3 seeded Anderson in the NCAA DII Tournament second round on Friday, closing their season at 23-8.

Emmaleigh Allen led the team with 13 kills while Emmie Modlin and Alicia Barbarito combined for 38 assists.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP

Final: Anderson 3, Lenoir-Rhyne 1 (29-27, 20-25, 25-9, 25-18)

Records: Anderson (23-7, 16-4 SAC), Lenoir-Rhyne (23-8, 14-4 SAC)

Location: Wingate, NC | Cuddy Arena

STORY OF THE MATCH:

Down early on, the Bears went on a late 4-0 run to tie the score at 22 in the first set.

Lenoir-Rhyne had set point at 26-25, but a 4-1 run from Anderson gave the Trojans the 29-27 set victory.

Hadley Prince produced back-to-back service aces to help Lenoir-Rhyne win the second set 25-20.

Anderson dominated the third set 25-9, finishing with a .317 hitting % and just four attack errors.

Lenoir-Rhyne responded early in the fourth set, jumping ahead 6-3.

The Trojans did not look back after tying the match at 7, keeping the Bears an arms length away the rest of the set.

STATS OF THE GAME:

Anderson finished with an advantage in kills (59-to-46), hitting % (.276-to-.127), and assists (57-to-43).

There were a combined 38 block assists and solo blocks between the two teams.

Kayli Cleaver and Averie Dale combined for 11 total blocks

Hadley Prince led the team with 19 digs while Addison Vary collected two service aces.

BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:

This was the fourth meeting this season between the Bears and Trojans, with each team winning twice.

Emmaleigh Allen generated her sixth double-double this season after finishing with 13 kills and 16 digs.

Kayli Cleaver finished the season as the team leader in kills (363) and kills per set (3.36) for the second straight season.

The 2025 Lenoir-Rhyne Volleyball Team finished with the second highest hitting % in school history at .235, just .05 away from the record held by the the 1998 squad.

Averie Dale finished with a .399 hitting %, which ties the program’s individual season record held by Michelle Baity in 1999.

The Bears produced their third straight season with 20 or more wins and set a new program record winning 13 matches at home.

Nicole Barringer now holds an 87-35 record in four years as the Bears’ head coach.

Barringer is the first coach in program history to lead the team to three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances.

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Volleyball’s Season Ends In Round Of 32 to No. 3 Wisconsin

Published

35 minutes ago

December 6, 2025

Your Sports Nation

MADISON, WISC – Carolina volleyball falls to No. 3 Wisconsin Badgers (25-14, 25-21, 25-27) in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Tar Heels improved after each set, raising their hitting percentage from .146 to .317. Laynie Smith led the way offensively as she hit .400 with seven kills on only 15 attacks.

Carolina dropped the first set 25-14, but Bridget Malone was the bright spot as she came off the bench and hit above .444 with four kills.

The Tar Heels had a much better second set, putting together an impressive 7-2 run in the middle of the match that brought the score to 17-18. The Tar Heels continued to fight back against the top-ranked Badgers.

The Tar Heels battled back in the third set as the final set was tied 19 times and there were ten lead changes.

Maddy May wrapped up her legendary Tar Heel career tonight. May played in every single set (445) of every single match (118) over her four-year career. May currently sits third all-time in program history with 1622 digs. The senior closed out her time in Chapel Hill on a high note, as she was named Second Team All-ACC for the first time in her career.

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Arizona State volleyball advances to NCAA Tournament second round

Published

52 minutes ago

December 6, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Dec. 5, 2025, 7:31 a.m. MT

Arizona State volleyball swept Coppin State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
ASU will now face Utah State in the second round for a chance to advance to the Sweet 16.

No. 2 seed Arizona State volleyball completed the first step in the NCAA Tournament, taking care of Coppin State on Thursday, Dec. 4, at Desert Financial Arena with a sweep, 25-11, 25-14, 25-12.

The Sun Devils, ranked eighth in the nation, earned the opportunity to host the first two rounds at home and were all business to start the match. ASU never surrendered a lead against the Eagles and even held them to a negative hitting percentage of -.082 for the night.

TaKenya Stafford led CSU with five kills.

“At the beginning, we talked about going into this game with a lot of energy and that carried over into the game and we could feel it, as well as the fans bringing that to the court as well,” outside hitter Tatum Parrott said.

The Sun Devils have been dominant at home this season, but have struggled with their starts in past games. The key to avoiding the mental lapses came from the service line.

ASU was aggressive with its serving to start the first set, getting a 4-0 advantage in service aces as the Eagles sided out only 36% of the time in that set. ASU also finished both the first and third sets with a 6-0 run.

“I was proud that they came out and did this because we’ve had some lapses this season, especially in the first set and we kind of take our foot off the gas,” coach JJ Van Niel said. “That was my message, everything we’re doing today is preparing us for tomorrow night (second round against Utah State), so we had high efforts today and we’ll have high efforts tomorrow.”

With ASU holding a lead over CSU throughout the match, Van Niel brought in several players who normally don’t see a lot of action. Even with ample rest, star opposite Noemie Glover had a sizable role in ASU’s victory with 14 kills while hitting a blistering .522.

“You never know what will happen. I’ve been in a spot where a key player goes down in the tournament and you got to be ready,” Van Niel said. “I want to get us all in there and get some reps just in case, so you just try a couple of things out and see what happens.”

CSU applied the pressure on ASU midway through the second set and scored two consecutive points to get within three.

But middle blocker Colby Neal responded for ASU with a kill on the next point, and then Parrott blocked CSU’s Ayanna Pharoah for a 16-11 lead.

ASU’s middle blockers were efficient as Neal provided steadiness whenever the Sun Devils would slip up against CSU and finished with five kills on .556 hitting. Ella Lomigora racked up two solo blocks and a team-high six block assists.

The Eagles didn’t go away, as Bailey Miller’s attack error gave them the point, but Neal once again delivered with a kill on the next point for a 17-12 lead for ASU.

Three consecutive errors from CSU gave ASU a 20-12 lead, which then led to the Sun Devils allowing only two more points from the Eagles to win the set.

ASU finished with a relatively clean game with seven errors, while forcing 26 from CSU. However, the second round is going to be much more difficult to get through. Even though there are a few holdovers from last year’s tournament team, the memories of the second-round loss to Texas A&M still linger.

Utah State, the winner of a thrilling five-set match against Tennessee, is a tough matchup. The teams meet in the second round on Friday, Dec. 5, at 6 p.m. MST at Desert Financial Arena. The winner advances to the Sweet 16.

“I still remember what happened last year,” Van Niel said. “But I don’t think my job is to remind them about it. It’s really (focusing on) we just need to come out and play our game of volleyball and see what happens.

“We can’t control our opponent. Utah State did a great job tonight, and I can’t control how well they play. All we can control is our effort and intensity.”

Reach the reporter at jenna.ortiz@arizonarepublic.com, as well as @jennarortiz on X.

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Purdue volleyball vs Baylor NCAA tournament final score, game result, next

Published

1 hour ago

December 6, 2025

Your Sports Nation

8:25 pm ET December 5, 2025

When is Purdue volleyball’s next game? Purdue volleyball next game in Sweet 16. Who does Purdue volleyball play next?

Aaron Ferguson

Barring an upset, the Boilers are headed to Pittsburgh, the No. 1 seed in their quadrant. Times for next weekend are to be determined, and Purdue will know its opponent late Saturday night. Florida punched its ticket with a sweep of No. 7-seed Rice in an upset, and the Gators will play either No. 2 SMU or Central Arkansas.

It may set up a potential rematch with SMU, which Purdue beat 3-1 on a neutral court.

8:21 pm ET December 5, 2025

Purdue volleyball highlights vs Baylor

Aaron Ferguson

Limited highlights circulating, but here’s how it looked inside Holloway Gymnasium:

8:18 pm ET December 5, 2025

Purdue volleyball stats vs Baylor

Aaron Ferguson

Purdue’s offense was brilliant all night with a .405 clip and three hitters in double figures: Kenna Wollard, 18-3-34 (.441); Akasha Anderson, 17-4-36 (.361); and Lindsey Miller, 10-1-16 (.562). Taylor Anderson spread it around with 45 assists, adding seven digs, three blocks and a kill.

The Boilers block had a 12-5 edge over Baylor, led by Dior Charles (five) and Miller (four) in the middle. Charles added seven kills. And while Grace Heaney struggled swinging early on the right side, she was key in other areas with four blocks, three service aces and three digs to go with her four kills.

Baylor was held to hitting .250 for the match, and began settling in over the final two sets. It played five against Arkansas State on Thursday night, and struggled against Purdue’s block early, and compounded matters with 11 service errors. Though, Purdue had 13 service errors.

Victoria Davis was key with 13 kills (.458), but Baylor began spreading the attack out and used 13 players to wear down Purdue’s block through the middle part of the match.

8:10 pm ET December 5, 2025

Purdue volleyball score, result vs Baylor in NCAA tournament game today

Aaron Ferguson

Taylor Anderson with a solo block on a joust at the net for the four-set win, 25-16, 25-19, 23-25, 25-20. Impressive resolve in what wasn’t a perfect match for the Boilers to close out their Holloway Gymnasium portion of the schedule.

Purdue advances to the Sweet 16 for the third straight season, and fourth in five. An impressive feat for a team that lost 92.5% of its offensive production.

8:05 pm ET December 5, 2025

Coach Dave Shondell not happy with officiating in Purdue volleyball game

Aaron Ferguson

Coach Dave Shondell effectively yelled a variation of, “What are you doing,” as he challenged a potential touch on the last point. He was probably more upset over what appeared to be a possible carry. He lost the challenge as it goes out, thus making it 19-17 Purdue in the fourth set.

Shondell is out of challenges for the fourth set. He’ll get an extra should it go to a fifth set.

7:58 pm ET December 5, 2025

Score of Purdue volleyball game vs Baylor

Aaron Ferguson

The Bears have spread out their attack to keep Purdue’s block off balance. The Boilers have 10 blocks but none in the fourth set. They led 16-10 but Baylor is on a 4-0 run to force a Dave Shondell timeout.

7:53 pm ET December 5, 2025

Purdue volleyball score vs Baylor in NCAA tournament second round today

Aaron Ferguson

The Boilermakers have three straight points to take a 14-9 lead in the fourth set, leading 2-1. Baylor takes a timeout to try and halt matters. Purdue is hitting .538 in the set as Kenna Wollard (15), Akasha Anderson (15) and Lindsey Miller (10) all have at least 10 kills.

7:44 pm ET December 5, 2025

Purdue volleyball score vs Baylor tonight in NCAA tournament

Aaron Ferguson

Baylor takes the third set, 25-23, and trails Purdue 2-1 after three sets. The Bears hit .371 in the set and are led by Victoria Davis with 12 kills (.524).

Purdue hit .333, its worst of the match so far, in the set, and even with three service aces, it couldn’t overcome passing issues late in the set.

7:31 pm ET December 5, 2025

Baylor scoring run takes set lead against Purdue volleyball

Aaron Ferguson

That’s four straight points for the Bears, forcing Dave Shondell to take a timeout, as overpasses continue to be an issue for Purdue. Baylor challenged that setter Taylor Anderson went over the net and won. It’s 21-20 Bears, needing to keep their season alive in Set 3.

7:22 pm ET December 5, 2025

Purdue volleyball timeout needed as Baylor charges back

Aaron Ferguson

The Boilers take a timeout as their passing has taking a toll on this third set, seeing their lead trimmed to 17-15 after a pair of overpasses.

7:17 pm ET December 5, 2025

Purdue volleyball score vs Baylor tonight in NCAA tournament

Aaron Ferguson

The Boilers win the race to the media timeout, leading 15-10 at the break. They continue their hot hitting in the third set at .438. It’s been Baylor’s best set in efficiency so far at .263 but it also has three service errors.

7:13 pm ET December 5, 2025

Purdue volleyball score vs Baylor tonight in NCAA tournament

Aaron Ferguson

Sienna Foster checks in to serve for the Boilers, who lead 11-8 looking for a sweep in Set 3.

7:00 pm ET December 5, 2025

Purdue volleyball score tonight vs Baylor

Aaron Ferguson

Baylor had a nice 6-1 run to pull within 17-16, but seemingly ran out of steam. The Boilers take a 2-0 lead after a 25-19 edge in Set 2. The Boilers hit .452, and are at .466 for the match. They’re led by an errorless Kenna Wollard with 10 kills (.714). Purdue also has an 8-1 advantage in blocks.

After 70 swings in Thursday night’s five-set win, Baylor’s Ksenia Rakhmanchik has five kills on 19 swings and three errors (.105).

6:51 pm ET December 5, 2025

Baylor run forces Purdue volleyball timeout

Aaron Ferguson

How about three straight points for the Bears after trailing 16-9? Baylor has rolled through substitutions searching for answers and Brielle Warren hitting 2-0-3 with sister Bailey Warren at 6-3-14.

6:46 pm ET December 5, 2025

Purdue volleyball score vs Baylor

Aaron Ferguson

Defense has been the name of this second set. Purdue is out to a 15-7 lead, forcing a second Baylor timeout. The Bears have a sideout percentage of 53.8%. Purdue’s? Boilers are at 91.7%, meaning a lot of one-and-dones for Baylor’s offense, which is hitting .050 in the second set and .130 for the match.

6:39 pm ET December 5, 2025

Purdue volleyball score vs Baylor in NCAA tournament

Aaron Ferguson

After taking the first set, running away with it, Purdue kept running. Its out to a 9-3 lead in the first to force a Baylor timeout. The Bears are hitting minus-.111 with three errors and two kills on nine swings. Purdue is up to .625 to start the set.

6:29 pm ET December 5, 2025

Score of Purdue volleyball game today vs Baylor

Aaron Ferguson

Purdue takes the first set 25-16 after the Bears led 2-1, but then never settled in offensively. Purdue hit .481 and held the Bears to .176 — perhaps the five-setter last night catching up to Baylor. Just one error for the Boilers, who were led by Akasha Anderson’s five and Kenna Wollard’s four. It was a 5-1 blocking set for the Boilers, too.

6:23 pm ET December 5, 2025

Baylor coach has conversation with setter Harley Kreck

Harley Kreck directed an aggressive offense in a five-set win last night, but is getting encouragement from her coach as Baylor takes a timeout, trailing Purdue 19-13 in the first set.

6:20 pm ET December 5, 2025

Purdue volleyball run forces Baylor to take timeout

Aaron Ferguson

The Bears needed a timeout as Purdue scored twice more after the media timeout, a 3-0 run, despite Baylor hitting .409. It does have three service errors, though. It’s 17-12 Purdue.

6:18 pm ET December 5, 2025

Score of Purdue volleyball game vs Baylor in NCAA tournament today

Aaron Ferguson

Purdue wins the race to the media timeout, taking a 15-12 lead. It’s been an errorless set so far for Purdue, 9-0-13 (.692), with Kenna Wollard (three kills) and Lindsey Miller (two) perfect, and Akasha Anderson pacing the match with four kills (.800).

6:10 pm ET December 5, 2025

Purdue volleyball loses challenge in first set

Aaron Ferguson

Dave Shondell’s challenge failed, thus it is 8-5 Baylor and the Boilers have one fewer challenge for the night.

6:09 pm ET December 5, 2025

Purdue volleyball picks it up after slow start against Baylor

Aaron Ferguson

Baylor took an early lead, so early that this match was tied 3-3, and then the Boilers scored five of the next six points to take an 8-4 lead.

Coach Dave Shondell is challenging there was no touch and Baylor’s attack sailed out without help.

6:01 pm ET December 5, 2025

First serve on deck for Purdue volleyball vs Baylor in NCAA tournament

Aaron Ferguson

Starting lineups are wrapping up and the match will be underway in minutes.

5:45 pm ET December 5, 2025

Akasha Anderson comes up in clutch time for Purdue volleyball

Aaron Ferguson

Akasha Anderson transferred most recently from Michigan State, where she spent her lone postseason at home. After arriving in West Lafayette, “Kash” has earned her nickname as she showed Thursday night.

5:15 pm ET December 5, 2025

How Purdue volleyball advanced in NCAA tournament vs Wright State

Aaron Ferguson

The Boilermakers went out to a sweep in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Here’s a look back at how it happened:

5:00 pm ET December 5, 2025

Kenna Wollard leaves lasting impression on Purdue volleyball coach Dave Shondell

Aaron Ferguson

Sitting behind Chloe Chicoine and Eva Hudson, or standing opposite them on the court, was Kenna Wollard. An AVCA player of the year semifinalist, she has clearly restored hope into coach Dave Shondell as he was emotional in talking about her earlier this season.

4:45 pm ET December 5, 2025

How Grace Heaney developed into Purdue volleyball’s efficient hitter

Aaron Ferguson

A native of Nebraska, Grace Heaney stuck with Purdue even through injuries. The redshirt sophomore has been incredibly efficient this season. Here’s more from earlier in the year:

4:30 pm ET December 5, 2025

How transfers found their way into Purdue volleyball culture

Aaron Ferguson

The Monon Spike match was a test of sorts for Akasha Anderson, Dior Charles and several other Purdue transfers. It’s a rivalry, in coach Dave Shondell’s eyes, and allowed a pair of newcomers to see his competitive side. Here’s what it meant to them:

4:15 pm ET December 5, 2025

Dave Shondell considered retirement but Purdue volleyball reenergized him

Aaron Ferguson

Dave Shondell spoke candidly about the transfers of Chloe Chicoine and Eva Hudson, to the point he was considering retiring as the new age of player empowerment and movement hit his program — hit Purdue. So what did this season’s team leave as an impression on him? It’s in their motto, “Ever grateful,” he said.

From my exclusive conversations with the 67-year-old Shondell:

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Live updates, how to watch

Published

1 hour ago

December 6, 2025

Your Sports Nation

The Longhorns celebrate after winning the game against Florida A&M during the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Gregory Gymnasium in Austin, Friday, Dec. 5, 2025.

Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman

Texas volleyball, with its first No. 1 seed in three years, began what coach Jerritt Elliott hopes is a three-week journey through the NCAA Tournament Friday with a resounding sweep over Florida A&M Friday at Gregory Gymnasium.

But the competition will significantly stiffen Saturday when the Longhorns (23-3) face defending national champion Penn State in a second-round meeting. The eighth-seeded Nittany Lions (19-12), which beat South Florida 3-1 in the first game Friday at Gregory Gymnasium, have endured a rocky season that included the September departure of All-American setter Izzy Starck because of mental heath concerns.