Sport Oregon 9/19/24 Sport Oregon 9/19/24

Portland Lands WNBA Expansion Franchise

IT’S OFFICIAL: THE WNBA IS COMING TO PORTLAND. Led by RAJ Sports ownership group, Portland’s new expansion team to begin play at Moda Center in 2026

Wednesday marked another historic day for sports in the state of Oregon, as it was announced that the WNBA has awarded Portland the league’s 15th franchise, to begin play in 2026 and play its home games at Moda Center.

Portland’s WNBA expansion entry will be owned and operated by RAJ Sports, led by Lisa Bhathal Merage and Alex Bhathal. Those names should sound plenty familiar to area sports fans, as the Bhathal family are also the controlling owners of the NWSL’s Portland Thorns after finalizing their purchase of the iconic women’s soccer team this past January.

Wednesday’s announcement is a cumulation of the hard work that’s taken place in recent years to attract a WNBA expansion team to Portland. This significant movement gained a groundswell of support from local business leaders and government officials, recognizing what a WNBA team would bring to the community, and what the addition of Portland would mean for the league.

It’s no secret that Portland’s passion for women’s sports is deeply rooted in the city’s DNA. Sport Oregon has been proud to play a part in continuing to foster this support of women’s athletics through its many endeavors, including its robust SHE FLIES initiative that works to support, engage and celebrate girls and women in sport across Oregon. In conjunction with its bid partners, Sport Oregon played a pivotal role in securing the 2030 NCAA Women’s Final Four – the largest annual women’s sporting event in the country.

In the leadup to securing the Women’s Final Four and, now, a WNBA team, Portland reinforced its standing as a leader in women’s basketball support by hosting record-setting NCAA Tournament events that showcased the area’s passionate support for the game, including the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight rounds of the women’s tournament this past spring.

At Providence Park, the Thorns routinely generate record attendance numbers and have established a history of excellence on the pitch, as well, by winning three league titles since the inaugural NWSL season in 2013.

Now operating the Thorns, the Bhathal family saw the prospect of bringing a WNBA team to Portland as an opportunity that was too beneficial to pass up. The family fell in love with the city by experiencing its passion for the Thorns and seeing, first-hand, the impact that the soccer club has had on the community. They were firm in their belief that the city deserved a WNBA team and jumped at the chance to make that a reality and invest even further in women’s athletics in the city.

“For decades, Portland has been the global epicenter of sports lifestyle and today, we are now the global epicenter of women’s sports,” said Lisa Bhathal Merage, who will serve as controlling owner of the team and WNBA Governor. “We believe in the transformative power of women’s sports and are thrilled that the W will call Portland home.”

Adding to its growing stable of basketball holdings that includes the NBA’s Sacramento Kings, the NBA G-League’s Stockton Kings and the Kings Guard NBA 2K e-sports team, the Bhathal family says it will take a humble and collaborative approach to building the state’s newest professional sports team – one that everyone can be proud of, and one that is inclusive for everyone while being representative of Portland.“We know that Portland’s vibrant and diverse communities will highly support and rally around this team,” Lisa Bhathal Merage said. “Our goal is to grow this organization in partnership with the Portland community, and we look forward to supporting the best women’s basketball players in the world when they take the floor at the Moda Center in 2026.”

Portland became the third city added to the league as part of its current expansion plans, with Portland joining the Golden State Valkyries and an expansion team in Toronto that brings the league from 12 to 15 teams. The league’s stated goal is to expand to 16 teams by 2028.

Portland previously had a WNBA team in the early 2000s, with the Portland Fire serving as a popular draw in the city for three seasons. But today’s WNBA is a whole different ballgame. Now in its 28th season, the WNBA says it has seen significant growth in recent years, including its most-anticipated rookie class ever this past season, a groundbreaking new media rights deal and record-setting numbers for viewership, attendance, merchandise sales, social media engagement and digital subscriptions to WNBA League Pass.

Simply put, the WNBA is more popular than ever, and the addition of Portland is seen as a way to continue that upward trajectory for the league.

“As the WNBA builds on a season of unprecedented growth, bringing a team back to Portland is another important step forward,” said WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert. “Portland has been an epicenter of the women’s sports movement and is home to a passionate community of basketball fans. Pairing this energy with the Bhathal family’s vision of leading top-flight professional sports teams will ensure that we deliver a premier WNBA team to the greater Portland area.”

In its assessment of potential new markets for expansion, the league says it looks at many factors, including player-focused areas of interest that include a first-class arena and practice facilities and a strong local fanbase. On Wednesday, the Bhathal family confirmed that plans are in the works to build a new practice facility for the yet-to-be-named team in Portland.

Beyond the court, the city’s new WNBA team is expected to provide a significant boost to the local economy.

For starters, the WNBA schedule will activate the Rose Quarter even further than its current level by providing a regular attraction to Moda Center in the summer months when the Portland Trail Blazers and Portland Winterhawks are out of season. Area hotels, restaurants, entertainment venues and retailers no doubt will benefit from the additional events and resulting foot traffic as well. The new WNBA team also opens new opportunities for local and national businesses to invest in the city, in the form of marketing partnerships and hospitality.

With the team name and brand identity set to be unveiled at a later date, fans eager to get started supporting their new WNBA team can get a jump on season tickets by placing a deposit at WNBA.com/Portland.

While fans will have to remain patient for the many exciting developments to come in the history of their new Portland WNBA team, Wednesday was cause for great celebration and served as a momentous day for Oregon’s sporting landscape.

Sport Oregon 8/21/24 Sport Oregon 8/21/24

SHE ROCKS: Meet Ashley Highsmith and Get an Inside Look at How Unforgettable Concert Moments Became a Reality at Providence Park

With history in mind, large-scale outdoor concerts make their triumphant return to Portland

Providence Park has hosted thousands upon thousands of top-tier sporting events and standout athletic achievements over the decades. These days, it’s the iconic home to the Portland Timbers and Portland Thorns FC, but the stadium has featured all-star games, championship games, baseball, tennis, dog racing, professional football, college football, high school football, and pretty much everything in between since opening in 1926.

On Friday night, however, it was a pair of bands fronted by rock royalty that grabbed the headlines.

Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Dave Grohl and Chrissie Hynde led their respective bands, the Foo Fighters and Pretenders, during an historic evening at Providence Park. Also joined by opener Alex G, the Foo Fighters headlined the first outdoor concert at the stadium in some 19 years.

And it was epic.

But with all due respect to the rock legends taking center stage for such an historic moment, behind the scenes there was an operations all-star tirelessly managing pretty much every logistic imaginable to make sure the first show at Providence Park since 2005 went off without a hitch.

With that, we introduce you to Ashley Highsmith, the chief operating officer of the Portland Timbers and Providence Park, and learn what went into making this moment a reality.

Highsmith first joined the Timbers and Portland Beavers, the city’s Triple-A Baseball team, in 2004 as a member of the ticket sales department before steadily advancing her managerial career over the years. It didn’t take long for those around her to recognize her leadership qualities, and she’s tackled pretty much every job possible at the stadium during the last two decades.

She’s worn a lot of hats over the years, amassing a wealth of industry knowledge from several vantage points, including ticket sales, special events, guest services and operations. Now the COO, it wouldn’t be unusual to see Highsmith donning a construction helmet in recent months as the driving force to not only make the rebirth of outdoor concerts at Providence Park a reality, but make them a smashing success, as was evidenced with this past week’s first show.

The discussions surrounding becoming a regular venue for larger stadium concerts started in 2019 after Providence Park underwent a significant expansion. The project upped seating capacity by more than 4,000 seats on the east side of the venue to form a more complete horseshoe housing that was true to the original plans for the stadium in the early 1900s. Suddenly, Providence Park could reach that desirable 30,000 capacity range that larger stadium tours want, once you factored in the additional seats and field space that could be outfitted with temporary seating.

Highsmith was involved in early discussions with the prospective promoter, Live Nation. Providence Park started getting on people’s radar in 2019 and early 2020, but she says things slowed down during the pandemic. Fast forward to 2022, and things started to really get serious. By last year, the idea of hosting outdoor concerts at Providence Park became a reality, complete with an agreement with Live Nation, basic logistics navigated and interested tours coming to the table.

“In the last two or three years, this has been a constant project of mine,” Highsmith said. “And when I took on the role of COO, it rose to the forefront of my responsibilities.”

Highsmith was relatively new to the organization when the last comparable show occurred at the stadium, but she remembers it well. On June 1, 2005, the co-headlining Def Leppard and Bryan Adams “Rock ’N Roll Double Header Tour” kicked off at then-PGE Park. The basis of the tour was centered around playing minor league baseball stadiums and was a big deal at the time, but nothing remotely close to the scale and complexity of today’s large-scale shows. Later that summer, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts played the stadium as a stop during that year’s Nike Run Hit Wonder, but there had been no shows of significance until this past week.

To ease the labor involved with the stage builds necessary for such shows, Highsmith took the lead on a construction project to retrofit the south end of the stadium to provide for easier stage construction for the outdoor concerts. The project was completed during this past soccer offseason, with Highsmith and others working closely with Live Nation and the city to address the needs of a modern stadium tour.

“It just made it so that when the stage company showed up, all they had to do was build and there was nothing in the way,” Highsmith said. “That was a huge piece for us to get the size stage that we needed for these touring acts.”

With eyes set on becoming a regular stop for large-scale outdoor concerts each year, there would be a lot riding on this first concert at Providence Park.

“We had to prove to everyone that they can count on our venue,” Highsmith said. “Basically, it’s a question of ‘can the house perform the way that we need them to perform so we can trust them for the next show?’

While managing all the required logistics like permits, fire marshals, insurance companies, Highsmith and her group still had to sell touring bands on this idea of an untested outdoor venue option in Portland. There were lots of site visits and meetings that went into the process. Ultimately, Highsmith says the Foo Fighters had a clear interest in being the band to mark the return of outdoor shows to Providence Park, and she couldn’t imagine a better fit to play that first show.

“We had to have a tour that believed in us, that we can do this with a product unseen,” she said. “Foo Fighters came to the table, and we went all in with them about a year ago and said, ‘this is it, this is going to be our first show and we’re going to make this happen.’”

Even then, after all those meetings, all that planning, it still came down to execution as the concert approached. After all, there’s a lot that goes into these shows. The entire field had to be covered in porta-floor, dozens of portable toilets brought in to service thousands of additional attendees. The production setup included a 70-foot-tall stage that took three days to complete. In all, Highsmith was responsible for coordinating the movements and scheduling for some 20 vendors, more than 200 total workers, 16 forklifts and a fleet of semis. From load in to load out, it was about a 13-day window required to prepare the venue for the first show. But in that time, it would instantly become the largest outdoor venue for such events in the state of Oregon.

Everyone involved knew they had one chance to make an impression. Thanks in large part to Highsmith’s management and oversight, the team at Providence Park knocked it out of the park and made that first impression a great one.

Photo: Craig Mitchelldyer

“This wouldn’t have happened without Ashley and her leadership,” said Heather Davis, chief executive officer for the Timbers and Providence Park. “She took this project and really made it hers from the beginning and marshalled all the internal resources, got every group in the club working on this in some fashion and worked closely with Live Nation, the city and all of the other resources that a big event like this requires.

“She kept the trains running and absolutely was the creative, solution-oriented leader you need when you do an event like this. She’s really responsible for Foo Fighters coming to Portland.”

Whether you’re talking about spectator sports, participation sports, concerts or any number of the unique gatherings that take place in the area, it’s events like these that really galvanize our community. Those in attendance won’t soon forget being a part of history during that magical night in the heart of the city. With 30,000 jubilant voices and the triumphant exclamation point of fireworks lighting up the sky from the stadium’s rooftop, the city was buzzing and alive Friday. Even if you weren’t in attendance, it just felt like Portland was back being Portland again.

For her part, Highsmith couldn’t even start to register the long hours she and key members of the staff worked on getting this first show off the ground. As a mother of four children, she was working remote double duty throughout the process, joy-sticking not only the logistics of the show, but also that of her family schedule. She says that it not only “took a village” to coordinate the stadium’s first concert in 19 years, but also at home. With assistance from two sets of grandparents and an understanding husband, who was able to enjoy the show with her, she sort of chuckles about managing it all.

“My first job is running a household, sports and activities that the kids still had to get to,” she said. “I still had to coordinate all those logistics as being a mom first, corporate mom second.”

But once the Foo Fighters kicked off their set, she says that all that work, all those long hours, the various accommodations, the obstacles and challenges overcome, all the nerves and anxious moments involved with making sure 30,000 people would enjoy that first concert…it just all went by the wayside.

“Hearing Foo Fighters take the stage, it was all worth it,” Highsmith continued. “Hearing the screaming fans, all that just went away, and it was magical.

“It was working some crazy hours, figuring out things on the fly, but it all came together, and I just couldn’t be more proud of the team at the stadium who, when it was time, really turned it on.”

When asked to rank her favorite or most rewarding events worked at Providence Park over the years, it took her about two seconds to declare Friday’s historic concert as her top pick.

“It’s my No. 1 all-time, 100 percent,” said Highsmith, who has worked thousands of events at Providence Park over the years.

She says the Timbers hosting MLS Cup in 2021 is second, and the Providence Black & White Ball in 2018 would be her wildcard choice as third.

One of the main drivers for Highsmith and the staff was the fact that this was a historic event for the stadium. This show wasn’t your ordinary garden variety; it was going down in the history books – the day Portland and Providence Park became a viable, larger-scale concert destination. There have been some significant concerts at the stadium over the years – including Elvis, David Bowie, Beach Boys, Bob Dylan and Van Halen – but none of them would match the scale and scope of this one.

“We kept saying, this is the next big moment in the history of a 100-year-old building. As staff, we’re putting our name on that.”

As soon as Friday’s show was over, the teardown work began immediately. First up, the production equipment had to be disassembled and loaded up on trucks, as the tour was off to Seattle for the next show. As part of this process, each of the roughly 4,500 chairs on the field had to have zip ties removed, then moved out of the way to make room for the semis, then stacked. The band’s production trucks were on the road by 3 a.m., but work continued through the night and next day, with the staging and flooring eventually being removed.

By Monday, the field was returned to soccer mode, and Highsmith was already scheduling departmental debrief meetings and planning for the next show. In reality, the work has just begun, as Green Day, Smashing Pumpkins, Rancid and the Linda Lindas come to Providence Park on Sept. 25.

As big as Friday’s first show was for Providence Park, it was equally important for the city of Portland. It brings economic impact to the city in many forms, as no longer is it necessary to travel long distances for area fans to see some of these bigger outdoor shows that required larger capacities. Like many of the sporting events Sport Oregon and its bid partners bring to our state, these are the types of events that fill hotel rooms, get people to our local eateries, promote shopping and exploration in our city and state. For the most part, fans have become all-too-accustomed to making the three-hour trek up north to see these types of shows in Seattle. Now, Portland is on the map, and the success of Friday’s show sent a message that Providence Park is an awesome place to hold shows of this magnitude.

More than that, Portland continues to be in a moment when it needs some wins, and for one night at Providence Park, it got just that. Officials indicated that more than 65 percent of the concert ticket holders came from outside Multnomah County. It’s likely that it was the first time many of those people had been to downtown Portland in a while, and the city delivered an exceptional event. Highsmith says that all city agencies, across all platforms, enthusiastically came together to make this an iconic event for everyone involved.

During a more subdued portion of the show, Grohl’s trademark acapella intro to one of the band’s more notable hits, “Times Like These,” had the crowd on the edge of its seat, as it typically does. It’s not a stretch to say that the song’s lyrics serve as more of a universal source of inspiration and reflection, especially to the band’s hardcore fans. So when Grohl soulfully presented the lines “it’s time like these you learn to live again” soon reinforced by “it’s times like these you learn to love again,” it’s hard not to put yourself into the song and the moment, in this case realizing in real time that Portland has begun to live again, love again as a community through memorable experiences such as this.

Sport Oregon 7/24/24 Sport Oregon 7/24/24

University of Oregon Softball sports announcer finds their voice — KATU

EUGENE, Ore. — PJ Rees feels right at home in this press box. It overlooks the softball field of the University of Oregon’s Jane Sanders Stadium, giving them the best view of the field as they make announcements and introduce players.

“I love being their voice,” Rees said. “I love being the person that’s representing softball in the neighborhood [and] on the campus.”

Public address announcing at The Jane (as the stadium is called by students and faculty) shows how far PJ has come.

They played softball on this very field in the 70s, though it was called Howe Field at that time.

“You had to love what you were doing then because there was no other reason to play,” they said.

In college, PJ was what’s called a “three-sport athlete.” They played volleyball, basketball, and softball, but the latter was their true love. They played on the first UO Women’s Softball Team that went to the Women’s College World Series in 1976.

“One of the advantages about sport is that it can give you a place of belonging and identity, and I felt more myself being a part of a team than anything else that I had done,” PJ said.

Reflecting on this experience, PJ recognizes they were hiding behind their identity as a dedicated athlete to conceal their internal struggle with their sexuality.

“In my day, nobody talked about identity,” they said. “Nobody talked about sexuality, but you had a sense that being gay or lesbian was so unacceptable.”

PJ hid their sexuality through college and into their professional years. After graduating from UO with a teaching degree, they coached high school sports for five years.

Then, they jumped back into the Duck pond to get their master’s degree in teaching. As a graduate teaching fellow, they landed a job as Assistant Volleyball Coach.

That’s when PJ’s façade started to crumble. It was the 80s and even though UO took an official gay-friendly stance, PJ says the head volleyball coach was homophobic and made remarks that had them fearing the worst.

“We had a very good working relationship, and I cared a lot about him,” they reminisced. “And I felt he’d fire me in a heartbeat if he found out who I was.”

In 1993, they decided enough was enough. They quit coaching without knowing what would come next.

“It was like stepping off a cliff and realizing that you can fall, or you can fly.”

For eight years, PJ worked part-time in TV as a color analyst, covering sports in Oregon.

Then, they returned to UO, this time on the academic side. They moved to the Physical Education and Recreation Department, first as a part-time teacher. Over the next few years, they climbed from part-time teacher to full-time, then from teacher to department head.

This time, they were out to their students and colleagues.

After putting in more than 20 good years as department head, PJ partially retired. You can still find them at The Jane and sometimes in the classroom, teaching Women’s Sports History.

In these roles, PJ can watch female athletes have experiences they never did.

“It’s what my generation longed for and worked for,” they said. “To see it happen is so fulfilling.”

Retirement also brought new surprises PJ’s way. Even in their 60s, they’re still learning who they are.

“I’m neither feminine nor masculine, I’m non-binary,” they said. “I’m in my late 60s, and I’m happy to have the language that rings true for me.”

Last year, PJ joined a group of LGBT faculty and students at UO, providing an opportunity to build community and share experiences.

This is where they heard the term non-binary for the very first time. “It was as if my life came into focus like it never had before, and I realized that was the phrase that most clearly described me.”

PJ says they have felt loved and accepted since coming out as non-binary. They hope to have more conversations about their identity with colleagues, friends, and loved ones.

It took time and stepping away from what they loved, but PJ has found their voice and it’s as loud as the one soaring through the sky at The Jane.

KATU and the Women's Foundation of Oregon are proud to support SHE FLIES by sharing the stories of influential girls and women in sports throughout 2024.

The Women's Foundation of Oregon is harnessing the power of teamwork to champion girls in sports. We're a group of people who work together to support and promote gender justice. We believe in being free and fair, working as a team, finding happiness, growing, being honest, showing bravery, and making things right.

KATU Story

Sport Oregon 7/24/24 Sport Oregon 7/24/24

Top LPGA Golfers Return for 53rd Edition of Portland Classic at Columbia Edgewater Country Club, Aug. 1-4

Always a popular stop on the LPGA Tour, this year’s Portland Classic will be held at Columbia Edgewater Country Club from Aug. 1-4. The top LPGA golfers once again will bring their talents to Portland, this year with an increased purse of $1.75 million on the line.

Now in its 53rd year, the annual tournament is the longest-running, non-major LPGA Tour event. This year, the Portland Classic has new features and familiar favorites in store for area fans, including a newly remodeled Champions Club for spectators to enjoy the action on the 18th green. Additionally, fans can expect to see new beer gardens as they walk the course encouraging the LPGA pros. The always-popular Umpqua Family Fun Zone returns, once again appealing to kids and adults of all ages with free snow cones and Discover Golf games. For the hungry crowd, there will be a host of local food trucks onsite that feature the best in local fare.

“We're so happy that the Portland Classic will be back for year 53,” said Rick McCloskey, tournament director for the Portland Classic. “This community event continues to grow in importance as it reflects our support here of women empowerment and females in sports. We are excited that, once again, we will have a Family Fun Zone going on during the event and that we will also be having many activities on Saturday in support of Girls in Sports. So, bring your entire family for some fun while watching the best golfers in the world.”

Tickets for the 2024 Portland Classic are currently available. Fans can choose between single-day ticket options or weekly passes. Active military, veterans and kids 17 and under are admitted free of charge but require a ticket, available online, to be scanned for admission. AAA members get in free on Thursday, Aug. 1, by presenting their membership card at the gate (no advance ticket necessary).

Portland Classic ticket information

This year’s field again features an impressive list of the top women’s golfers in the world, including 13 LPGA Tour major champions who are set to tee off at Columbia Edgewater. The field features 2023 U.S. Women’s Open champion, Allisen Corpuz, fan-favorite Danielle Kang and fellow tour veterans Angela Stanford, Brittany Lincicome and Stacy Lewis.

Three past champions return with eyes set on adding another Portland Classic trophy to their case, including Thailand’s Chanettee Wannasaen, who is back to defend her title after shattering the course record with a 26-under score to win her first LPGA Tour event last year. Wannasaen makes her return to Portland after securing her second LPGA Tour victory at last week’s Dana Open. Also returning are Andrea Lee, who won the event in 2022, and Lewis, winner of the 2017 Portland Classic.

There are four players in the field from the state of Oregon, including University of Oregon alum Caroline Inglis, who is a member at Columbia Edgewater. Gigi Stoll of Beaverton will be making just her fourth LPGA Tour start of the season at the Portland Classic, while Yvonne Yu Qi Vinceri, an amateur from Redmond, Ore., will be making her first-ever LPGA appearance. Vinceri won the Les Schwab Tires Amateur Open in June to earn her place in the field as a sponsor invite. Tigard’s Victoria Gailey also joins the field as a sponsor invite in the event.

For aspiring young golfers in the area, the Les Schwab Tires Junior Tournament will be held on Columbia Edgewater’s par-3 course on Saturday, Aug. 3. The one-day tournament is open to girls aged 7-18, with two competition groups, including one for ages 7-12 and another for ages 13-18. The Junior Tournament will feature a host of special activities, including interactions with some of the LPGA professionals and a book-signing by M.J. McCloskey, author of “When Girls Win.” Representatives from SHE FLIES and adidas will be onsite Saturday with additional activities to make the day even more entertaining.

Les Schwab Tires Junior Tournament information/registration

This year’s festivities around the tournament are further accented with the Portland Classic 2024 Women’s Leadership Summit, which will be held at the Tiger Woods Center on the Nike campus Thursday, Aug. 1, starting at 12:30 p.m. Now in its ninth year, the Women’s Leadership Summit will feature a host of well-known speakers to highlight the engagement conference that is focused on the empowerment of female leaders.

The deadline for tickets to the leadership summit is Thursday (July 25), so act fast if you’d like to attend this year’s event.

Portland Classic 2024 Women’s Leadership Summit tickets

While the caliber of golf and scenic Oregon landscapes have set the stage for memorable tournaments over the years, the Portland Classic also has a long history of giving back to the local community. Backed by the volunteer support of local business leaders and individuals that make up the Tournament Golf Foundation, the event has made an indelible impact on the area, with over $18 million raised for local organizations since its inception in the early 1970s.

Volunteer opportunities remain available for those interested in helping make this year’s Portland Classic a big success. Volunteer roles include pro-am caddies, marshals, walking scorers, transportation providers, green team and other duties.

“We have something for everyone, whether it’s helping for a day or the whole week,” said Monica Olson, assistant tournament director for the Portland Classic. “This tournament runs on volunteers, so we are always looking for extra help.”

Volunteer information/registration

For those unable to attend the tournament, the Golf Channel will provide live first-round coverage of the Portland Classic on Thursday from 3-6 p.m. PT, second-round coverage Friday from 3-6 p.m. PT, third-round coverage on Saturday from 3-5 p.m. PT, and final-round coverage Sunday from 3-5 p.m. PT.

Sport Oregon 6/25/24 Sport Oregon 6/25/24

Now A Full-Fledged WNBA Star, Former Oregon Standout Sabrina Ionescu Eyes Olympic Gold

It’s been a little over four years since Sabrina Ionescu put the finishing touches on her record-setting college basketball career at the University of Oregon. Since that time, she’s firmly established herself at the professional level as a top player in the WNBA and now has the opportunity to pursue her dreams of Olympic gold after being named to the 2024 USA Basketball Women’s National Team that will compete at the 2024 Paris Olympics in just a matter of weeks.

While this will be Ionescu’s first Olympic Games, she has systematically risen up the ranks of the international game with USA Basketball, most recently helping the United States win the gold medal at the 2022 FIBA Women’s World Cup.

Looking ahead to Paris, Ionescu joins an experienced roster that has a combined 15 Olympic gold medals, 18 FIBA Women’s World Cup titles and more than 50 WNBA All-Star appearances. In Paris, the American women are seeking their eighth straight – and 10th overall – Olympic gold medal.

For her part, Ionescu already is a two-time All-WNBA second team selection and WNBA All-Star with the New York Liberty and is one on the leading vote-getters thus far in this year’s all-star fan voting, which opened June 13 and concludes this Saturday at 8:59 p.m. (PT). In an added twist, this year’s WNBA All-Star Game pits the U.S. Olympic team against the remaining WNBA All-Star selections in Phoenix on Saturday, July 20.

The No. 1 overall pick of the Liberty in the 2020 WNBA Draft, Ionescu became the first WNBA player to record 500-plus points, 200-plus rebounds and 200-plus assists in a single season. Additionally, the guard became the fastest Liberty draft pick to eclipse 1,000 career points, doing so in just 66 games, and recently added to her impressive collection of superlatives by reaching 300 career three-pointers faster than any player in WNBA history.

Through 18 games with New York this season, she has helped the Liberty to their best start in franchise history by averaging a career-high 19.3 points, 6.7 assists and 33.2 minutes played per game. Last season, Ionescu helped lead the Liberty to their first WNBA Finals appearance since 2002, ultimately coming up just short of the franchise’s first WNBA title by falling to the Las Vegas Aces.

Locally, we all remember Ionescu’s incredible career with the Oregon Ducks. She left the program after her senior season with a long list of achievements, namely winning two Wooden Awards and earning the distinction of being the first NCAA player – male or female – to record 2,000 career points, 1,000 career rebounds and 1,000 career assists. During her junior season, she helped lead the Ducks to their first Final Four.

But despite all of her accomplishments, the unique opportunity to represent her country in pursuit of an Olympic gold medal isn’t lost on Ionescu.

“It’s been something that I’ve wanted to do ever since I was a little girl,” Ionescu recently told Sports Illustrated. “I understand that I would be able to have the opportunity to go out and compete with the best in the world, go out there and fight for another gold medal.”

And she’ll soon realize her dream. The USA women will gather for a training camp in Phoenix before taking on the WNBA All-Stars there on July 20. The team will then depart for London, where they will play Germany in a tune-up game leading up to the Paris Olympics.

“Everyone wants to put USA across their chests and represent their country,” she told Sports Illustrated, “and I will never take one of these moments for granted.”

With the Opening Ceremony set for July 26, Team USA begins Olympic group stage play by taking on Japan on July 29. The U.S. women then turn their attention to Belgium on Aug. 1 and Germany on Aug. 4 to round out Group C play.

Beaverton native Cameron Brink named to 3x3 U.S. Olympic team but out due to injury
Another women’s basketball player with local ties received the distinct honor of being selected to a Team USA roster recently, as Beaverton native Cameron Brink was named to the 2024 USA Basketball 3x3 Women’s National Team to compete in Paris.

Unfortunately, Brink is unable to participate in her first Olympic Games after suffering a season-ending ACL injury June 18 while playing for the Los Angeles Sparks. The second overall pick of the Sparks in this year’s WNBA Draft, Brink played her high school basketball locally at Southridge High School and Mountainside High School before a standout collegiate career at Stanford, winning a national championship with the Cardinal in 2021.

To follow all of your favorite athletes during the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics, stay up to date with this handy page that lists all of the recently qualified athletes slated to represent the United States.

Sport Oregon 5/29/24 Sport Oregon 5/29/24

Thorns FC win streak comes to an end, but recent run has team in good position entering international break

Photo Credit: Portland Timbers, Craig Mitchelldyer

Looking to extend their team-record winning streak and further their pursuits towards a new NWSL record for consecutive victories, Portland Thorns FC traveled across the country to Orlando, Fla., Friday with history in mind.

Only problem was, they faced an equally hot Orlando Pride.

In the end, the Pride emerged with a 2-1 victory, extending their own winning streak to eight straight games, which sets a new NWSL record. The loss was the Thorns’ first since April 13, snapping their team-record six-game winning streak.

The matchup between the two hottest teams in the league had extra spice to it for sure. In fact, it marked the first time in league history that two teams riding winning streaks of four-plus games faced one another.

It’s hard to fault the Thorns, considering their recent run of form and their dramatic turnaround this season. Add to that, they were without offensive standout Sophia Smith for the game against the Pride due to injury.

As hot as they’ve been lately, it hasn’t always been that way this season. But after going winless and totaling just one point over their first four games of the year, the Thorns are now 6-4-1 (19 points) as they near the halfway point of the season, good for fourth place in the 14-team NWSL after this past game week.

Under the direction of interim head coach Rob Gale, the season turnaround has been remarkable. During its six-game win streak, Portland scored a whopping 17 goals while scoring multiple times in each of the six games.

Gale, who joined the Thorns staff as an assistant coach in 2023, was named interim head coach on April 16 of this year and has guided the team to victories over Houston (twice), Chicago, Bay FC, Washington and Seattle since taking over. The recent run of form quickly helped the Thorns get things back on track after their worst four-game start to a season in their history.

After Friday’s loss – the first since Gale took over – Gale reflected on the winning streak that was and the performance of the team over the last six weeks.

“[I am] Just awfully proud of all the players, the organization,” Gale said. “We came in under difficult circumstances. We were a new team, we had to adapt quickly and I’m so proud.”

Now, the Thorns enjoy a bye week as they enter an international break. They return to action on Saturday, June 8, as they play host to the North Carolina Courage on Pride Night at Providence Park.

Off the field, the Thorns announced last week the addition of several new investors to their ownership group.

Sport Oregon 5/16/24 Sport Oregon 5/16/24

Athletes Can Boost Physical Performance by Upping Mental Game — KATU

PORTLAND, Ore. — It's Mental Health Awareness Month, and feeling good mentally can be a game-changer for athletes.

One Portland woman is making it her mission to help athletes boost their physical performance by harnessing the power of their minds.

Anna Hennings is a mental performance coach for athletes, mainly for indoor volleyball players and beach volleyball players.

She uses her master's in sports psychology to teach athletes mindfulness and attention training.

"What I do is I use that knowledge to coach athletes and teams on how to strengthen their mental game so that their mind can work for them instead of against them," she explains.

Hennings provides one-on-one and team coaching, both in-person and remotely. Though a majority of her clients are from Oregon, she teaches athletes all over the United States.

Before Hennings became a Certified Mental Performance Consultant, she went to the University of California - Davis and studied fashion business. After a decade in the retail world, she decided she wanted to do more impactful work.

That's when she discovered the field of sport psychology.

As a lifelong athlete, sport psychology appealed to both Hennings' love of sports and her desire to help others. She promptly enrolled at John F. Kennedy University to earn her Master of Arts degree in Sport Psychology.

After graduating, Hennings quickly launched her career. She moved to Central Texas with her husband, Garren, and their two cats, Denali and Tux. There, she served as the Lead Resilience Trainer and Mental Performance Expert for the U.S. Army at Ford Hood.

She moved back to the West Coast during the COVID-19 pandemic, where she was offered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to coach the women's volleyball team at Pepperdine University. She describes this as one of the most rewarding moments of her career because she got to work with the coaches who led Olympic beach volleyball players Kerri Walsh and April Ross to their respective 2016 bronze medals.

After that 2020-2021 volleyball season, Hennings opened her own private practice, which she has been doing ever since. She's also the exclusive mental performance coach for the Columbia Empire Volleyball Association (CEVA), which is the entity that governs youth volleyball in the Pacific Northwest.

Throughout her career, Hennings has noticed that her clients have had the same struggle, no matter what level they're at.

"So many of the people I work with are highly self-critical," she says. "I think there's this belief if we are hard on ourselves, it'll make ourselves work harder."

Instead, negative self-talk wears athletes down.

"Being highly self-critical actually tanks our self-confidence," Hennings says.

That loss of confidence can push players away from the sport they love. That's what happened to Hennings, who played volleyball both recreationally and competitively until she was 16 years old.

"I left competitive volleyball when I was the age of most of my clients," she says. "I didn't know how to handle the pressure. I wasn't having fun anymore. There was a lot of teammate drama that was really throwing me off from the game."

One of her primary motivations behind being a mental performance coach is to ensure another athlete doesn't have the same experience she did.

"If I had some of these tools, I think I would have stayed in the sport a lot longer," she admits.

The tools she gives her clients don't just make them feel better, they play better as well.

"With an athlete who learned how to speak to themselves more effectively, they learn how to move past mistakes they make more effectively [and] that teammates make more effectively," she explains. "They stay more present in the game. Their anxiety tends to be lower."

At that point, Hennings says "that just creates this cocktail of being able to give yourself the best chance at playing how you want."

KATU and the Women's Foundation of Oregon are proud to support SHE FLIES by sharing the stories of influential girls and women in sports throughout 2024.

KATU Story

Sport Oregon 4/25/24 Sport Oregon 4/25/24

14-year-old Girl Finds Confidence at Rose City Rollers — KATU

PORTLAND, Ore. — Off the track her name is Marisol Lasuncet, but once she laces up those skates, she's Rolling Thunder.

As the star on her helmet indicates, she's her team's jammer. It's a role she takes very seriously.

"As a jammer, the feeling I get when I can get through and I can score points for my team, I think that alone can make you feel very empowered," she said.

As jammer, Thunder's the only player who can score points. She has to break through the blockers from the other team.

It's a position that requires confidence, something Thunder says she didn't always have.

"It all just felt really new to me," she said, reflecting on when she was new to the sport. "I was really scared and nervous."

Just two years ago, Thunder started in a summer camp at Rose City Rollers -- the world's largest derby league, based in Portland.

She loved the sport right from the beginning, especially the supportive atmosphere.

"Even when you're a beginner, you feel like you can ask people things and still make a lot of friends."

Two years into the sport, she sees herself in a whole new light.

“I just feel more like I can be myself," she said. "I kind of care less what people think.”

Now, Thunder's is on Rose City Rollers' regional travel team, Undead Avengers.

Stories like Thunder's are what makes this all worth it for Kim "Rocket Mean" Stegeman, the league's founder.

“The most rewarding part of being in my role, I mean, I've been here for 20 years, and it is, without a doubt, watching the change in people's lives.”

In 2004, Rocket Mean and her friends established Rose City Rollers and its first team Guns N Rollers. Many of those first players based their names off Guns 'N Roses songs (Rocket Mean is a spoof on the song "Rocket Queen").

Just like a rocket, Rose City Rollers really took off.

"Rose City Rollers is the biggest derby team in the world," Rocket Mean said. "We have 18 teams and programs here. We host 50 games a year, at least."

Thanks to the She Flies grant Rose City Rollers received from Sport Oregon in 2022, the league is able to fund a whole litany of programs.

Teams are divided by age and skill level. Here's a list below:

The Junior Rose Petals program is for ages 7-12 and has five teams: Rose Petals Travel Team, Bad Apples, Killer Bees and Skaters of Doom.
The Junior Rosebuds program is for ages 12-18 and has five teams: Rosebuds Travel Team, Bleeding Hearts, Death Scar Derby Droids, The Undead Avengers and Rainbow Bites.
There are seven adult teams, which include the two national teams, Wheels of Justice and Axles of Annihilation. The home teams include Break Neck Betties, Guns N Rollers, Heartless Heathers and High Rollers. There's also a recreational team called Wreckers.

The league is marking its 20-year anniversary by hosting the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) Global Championship Tournament in November. There, Rose City Rollers' four-time world championship team "Wheels of Justice" will defend their title as reigning champs.

For Rocket Mean, what's most important is making roller derby accessible to anyone.

"We also have a rental program, so anybody can join derby," she said. "You don't have to buy gear, which I know there's a lot of parents out there that would love that because parents do not love shelling out $300 to find out their kid doesn't like a sport."

If your kid does like this sport, it could change their life, like it changed Thunder's.

“I think derby definitely helped me have a confidence boost and just be able to fully be myself.”

KATU and the Women's Foundation of Oregon are proud to support SHE FLIES by sharing the stories of influential girls and women in sports throughout 2024.

KATU Story

Sport Oregon 4/4/24 Sport Oregon 4/4/24

Meet the Women of the Portland Timbers — KATU

For the Portland Timbers, it's all men on the field. Off the field, it's a group of women running the show.

Meet Ashley Highsmith, Sarah Keane, Robin Beavers, PhD, and Heather Davis.

You won't see their faces as much as the athletes', but they're just as crucial to the organization.

"You got to work hard and show up every day," said Chief Operations Officer Ashley Highsmith. "It's no different when you're on the field or off the field."

A sports fanatic and athlete, Highsmith knew at a young age that she wanted to work in the sports realm.

After graduating from Oregon State University in 2003, she left the Beaver Dam to start her career as a Group Ticket Sales Manager at Providence Park Stadium. She had a front-row seat to the club's expansion into Major League Soccer, and Providence Park's numerous renovations.

Over the next few decades, Highsmith continued to climb the sports management ladder. In 2023, her hard work paid off when she earned the position of COO.

Highsmith, a wife and mother of four, says her colleagues at the Timbers Club are her "second family."

Just like the athletes on the field, she and her colleagues play as a team.

"We all want the best for the club, we all want the best for the Timbers [and] we all want the best for the stadium," said Chief Financial and Administrative Officer Sarah Keane. "So, to be able to work together with these amazing women, it's just inspiring all the time."

Keane has an extensive career in nonprofit finance and administration, including roles at Oregon Food Bank, New Avenues for Youth, and the Oregon Zoo.

Growing up, Keane participated in as many sports as she could, but her real love was lacrosse. Her first foray into sports management was back in 2006 when she served as Treasurer for the Oregon Women's Lacrosse Umpire Association.

"I was kind of shy, but sports gave me that confidence," Keane said.

This sentiment rings true for Dr. Beavers, the Timbers' Vice President of Community and Social Impact.

"[Sports] make me feel like I can do anything," she said. "On or off the field or the court, I can do anything anybody else can do."

Dr. Beavers joined the Timbers Club back in 2022. With over 20 years of experience working in nonprofits, youth and family services, higher education, and the mental health field, Dr. Beavers is truly a jack of all trades. She has always made equity and inclusion the heart of her work, and this role is no different.

"It means a lot to be able to use the position to not just uplift communities of colors, but also the city in general," she said.

Working as a female sports executive does come with a set of challenges that will sound familiar to most women.

"We have to prove ourselves in a male-dominated world, and I think that's always a challenge," Dr. Beavers explained.

As a Black woman, this feeling is even more pronounced to her.

“When you grow up as a Black person, there's all these barriers," she said. "And on top of that, being a woman. I just feel like I have to constantly prove myself over and over again.”

Being in leadership at the Timbers means that Dr. Beavers and her colleagues can chart their own path.

"That in itself is just empowering - to be able to work in a sport that is male-dominated, but to be led by women," Dr. Beavers said.

Leading this trio of women is Chief Executive Officer Heather Davis.

Davis was appointed as CEO back in January 2023, making her one of the highest-ranking female sports executives in Oregon's history. "It's been really empowering for me to have support in what is a male-dominated industry, in men's professional sports, to be able to find my own leadership style," she said.

Before joining the club, she spent nine years at the NFL office as the lead legal counsel for international operations.

"Sports has always been an industry and environment that I've felt comfortable in," she said.

She also has experience working in the realm of politics. From 1981-2001, she was a Special Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of Presidential Scheduling during the Clinton Administration. Between 2001 and 2002, she served in the Office of Senator Hilary Clinton as her Director of Scheduling.

With vastly different experiences and areas of expertise, each of these women found a home at the Timbers Club.

"There's lots of roles in a sports team," Keane said. "So, figure out what you wanna do. Maybe you're passionate about accounting, maybe it's marketing, maybe it's on the sporting side and just go out there and get that experience."

Whether it's running on the field or running the whole team, there are roles for women in sports everywhere.

Heather Davis is the highest-ranking female sports executive in Oregon history. Courtesy: Portland Timbers

KATU and the Women's Foundation of Oregon are proud to support SHE FLIES by sharing the stories of influential girls and women in sports throughout 2024.

KATU Story

Sport Oregon 3/4/24 Sport Oregon 3/4/24

George Fox University Women's Golf Team Overcomes Odds and Wins National Championship — KATU

CANBY, Ore. — George Fox University started its women's golf team only 17 years ago, but that hasn't stopped its players from making history.

On May 12, 2023, the team won the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) Division Three Women's Golf Championship.

"So many people thought that we could never do it from Oregon because of the rain and everything we have going on here, and we're competing against California schools and Texas schools," said Coach MaryJo McCloskey. "Just getting it done felt like such an amazing accomplishment for everyone."

That victory was sweet, and not just because of the massive trophy. It's because the team did it together.

"This last year, winning the national championship together as a team was one of the most special moments we've had," said team co-captain Makensie Toole, a senior at George Fox.

It was an emotional moment for co-captain Alison Takamiya, also a senior at George Fox. "I just remember, I was the last one to putt out in the group, and then as soon as I made the putt, everyone started rushing toward me with water bottles," she said. "[They] started spraying me and each other, and then we all gave each other a big hug and it was just a 'wow, we did it' moment.

Takamiya and Toole are highly decorated golfers, with first-, second-, and third-place awards from the NCAA, the Northwest Conference (NWC), and the Women's Golf Coaches Association (WGCA).

They know that the foundation was built right here for any future success they have on their own.

Takamiya says "Having that support system is really important" for her personal growth.

It's the same for Toole.

“It's really cool to have the opportunity to be around a bunch of women who inspire me every day to get better," she said. "We kind of inspire each other to get better together.”

McCloskey believes the connection between the players is the key to her team's success.

“We care about each other, and it's not about, 'I want to beat you, I want to beat you,''' McCloskey explained. "It's more about, let's all do this together.”

What's just as important as supporting teammates is giving that same support to yourself. It's something McCloskey had to do herself. When she started as a coach at Lewis and Clark College, she was the only woman in her conference.

"I have been on this journey for the last 25 years or so, and I've just really learned a lot about mental toughness and what it takes to be ready for that magic moment," she said. "It took me a long time to get this information and I want girls to get it quicker."

That inspired McCloskey to write her book, 'When Girls Win.'

“Everyone has greatness inside, and in order to bring that greatness out, you have to say great things to yourself," she explained. "That's what I really want people to get out of my book. I want people to realize that we get in our own way so much.”

With an NCAA Championship under their belts, it's safe to say that nothing is getting in this team's way.

KATU and the Women's Foundation of Oregon are proud to support SHE FLIES by sharing the stories of influential girls and women in sports throughout 2024.

KATU Story

Sport Oregon 2/6/24 Sport Oregon 2/6/24

Oregon Nonprofit Empowers Young Girls Through Running — KATU

PORTLAND, Ore. — Two years ago, Cary Sampson joined the Oregon-based nonprofit Girls on the Run as a coach. "It's a really empowering experience for the girls and the coaches," she said. At that same time, her daughter Antwanna joined as a runner. Seeing her daughter participate in the program makes Cary feel "great as a mom."

Since then, Cary has noticed changes in 10-year-old Antwanna. "I've noticed that she has a lot of empathy," she said. “That's something that maybe we were lacking before, but I think Girls on the Run teaches girls to have empathy for other people, and I think that's one of the things I've noticed that's improved in her.”

Antwanna feels some physical changes in herself. "I run a lot faster now," she said. She's also discovered some mental changes. "If you're mad about something, you can take it out in running," she explained. "And then, just completing a goal that you make makes it better."

Teaching young girls emotional regulation and goal-setting is exactly what Girls on the Run strives to do. "At Girls on the Run, we use a research-based curriculum that pairs social-emotional learning with physical activity to support girls in our community with the skills they need to thrive," said Mavia Haight, Executive Director of Girls on the Run. She became executive director five years ago. "It's so incredibly rewarding to be with Girls on the Run," she said.

For Mavia, one of the most rewarding parts is watching the girls run a 5k. "Every season, the girls build up to completing a 5k at the end," Mavia explained. The 5k is an opportunity for the girls to demonstrate their growth after 10 weeks of practice. "I mean, even thinking about watching those girls cross the finish line on 5k day makes me a little emotional, it's just so rewarding," Mavia said. The first step in accomplishing this 5k is helping the girls believe in themselves first.

That's where the coaches come in. "We get to go through these lessons together about how we can build each other up, make each other better, and encourage each other," said Cary.

These lessons help girls like Antwanna build resilience. "It feels really good to complete a mission," she says.

Aside from the 5k and the amazing snacks waiting at the finish line, Antwanna's most grateful to Girls on the Run for making her feel noticed.

Girls on the Run is for 3rd-5th grade girls. Spring season lasts from March 18, 2024-June 1, 2024. Registration opens for coaches on February 16 and for participants on February 21. If you're interested in coaching, click here. For participation, click here. Email info@girlsontherunpdx.orgor call (503)318-5212 for more information.

KATU and the Women's Foundation of Oregon are proud to support SHE FLIES by sharing the stories of influential girls and women in sports throughout 2024.

KATU Story

Sport Oregon 2/2/24 Sport Oregon 2/2/24

Fuel the Future benefiting SHE FLIES, Sport Oregon Foundation to be held May 10

Signature new fundraising and awards event to take place at the Multnomah Athletic Club

Excitement is building for a new fundraising and awards celebration this spring, as Sport Oregon presents Fuel the Future benefitting SHE FLIES and the Sport Oregon Foundation. The inaugural event will be held at the Multnomah Athletic Club on Friday, May 10, from 5-8 p.m.

Fuel the Future will feature a host of new and familiar highlights, including the introduction of the SHE FLIES Community Grant recipients for 2024. It also will include a new awards program, as the organization will celebrate the winners of the inaugural SHE FLIES Pillar Awards. These annual awards will recognize local girls, women and organizations that best exemplify one of the three SHE FLIES pillars: keeping girls in the game, empowering women in coaching and fitness for life.

Fuel the Future will serve as a critical fundraiser for the Sport Oregon Foundation and its flagship initiative, SHE FLIES. The event will feature a live and silent auction, and several sponsorship opportunities are available to help the organization fulfill its mission of breaking down barriers to physical activity, with an emphasis on underserved youth, and the SHE FLIES initiative and its work to support, uplift and celebrate girls and women in sports.

Guests at Fuel the Future will have the opportunity to purchase $25 raffle tickets that allows them the opportunity to choose a bottle of mystery wine from the Wine Wall. Each bottle is valued at $25 or above, and as each bottle is uncovered, guests will learn what bottle they get to take home.

A host of great sponsors are already partnering on the inaugural event, including AAA, Enterprise Mobility, Hyphn, PNC Bank, Stoller Winery, US Bank and the Women’s Foundation of Oregon. The sponsorship opportunities offer local businesses a way to continue supporting the Sport Oregon Foundation and SHE FLIES mission as part of this special night.

For those interested in sponsorship opportunities and tables for the event, please contact Kristin Spear, Sport Oregon director of strategic partnerships, at kristin@sportoregon.org. Those interested in donating auction items are encouraged to contact Anita Moreno, executive assistant and member relations manager with Sport Oregon, at anita@sportoregon.org.

We look forward to everyone’s support in helping us fulfill the Sport Oregon Foundation’s mission by joining us for this special night of connecting with fellow athletes, business leaders, community partners and SHE FLIES ambassadors from across our wonderful sports community.

Sport Oregon 1/29/24 Sport Oregon 1/29/24

2024 SHE FLIES Community Grant Application to Open After Awarding Over $100,000 in 2023 Through the Sport Oregon Foundation

Grant application process for 2024 opens Feb. 7 on SHEFLIES.org

Sport Oregon today announced that the organization is opening its 2024 SHE FLIES Community Grant cycle Wednesday, Feb. 7, through the Sport Oregon Foundation. Grant-seeking organizations aligning with the SHE FLIES mission and corresponding focus areas are encouraged to apply for 2024 grants at SHEFLIES.org.

SHE FLIES is the flagship initiative of the Sport Oregon Foundation, with a mission to connect girls and women across Oregon to sports, and to create inclusive communities through its programs, partnerships and networks. It aims to do so through three focus areas: keeping girls in the game, empowering women in coaching and promoting fitness for life.

In 2022, SHE FLIES awarded grants to six deserving groups, including Active Children Portland, The Children’s Course, Hood River Outrigger Canoe Club, Ophelia’s Place, the Rose City Rollers and Skate Like a Girl.

In 2023, SHE FLIES built on that momentum by awarding nearly 500 percent more total funds to eight deserving non-profits, including Adaptive Sports Northwest, Adelante Mujeres, Bridge City Soccer Academy, Elite Sports Academy, Friends of Baseball, Girls on the Run Greater Oregon, Portland Tennis & Education and Special Olympics Oregon.

Thanks to a substantial financial commitment of $200,000 from Alaska Airlines in late 2022, Sport Oregon has been able to increase the amount awarded through the SHE FLIES Community Grants program in 2023 and 2024.

“At Alaska Airlines, we believe everyone deserves the opportunity to play, grow and thrive in athletics,” said Harry Cheema, public affairs manager at Alaska Airlines. “We are proud to support Sport Oregon through the She Flies Community Grant program to level the playing field for girls and women in sports. Alaska is committed to improving access to sports and contributing to the growth and development of athletes, and this partnership allows us to reach communities all across the great state of Oregon.”

The application period for this year’s SHE FLIES grants will end Friday, April 5 at 5 p.m. (PST), and applicants will be notified in early May. Sport Oregon will recognize the 2024 SHE FLIES grant recipients during its annual fundraising gala. Fuel the Future benefiting SHE FLIES and the Sport Oregon Foundation will take place on Friday, May 10 at the Multnomah Athletic Club. Funds will be distributed to grantees in June.

In addition to the community grants program, Sport Oregon annually produces a number of special events and relevant programming in support of the SHE FLIES initiative.

The 2024 calendar of SHE FLIES events begins Wednesday, Feb. 7, with Sport Oregon’s National Girls and Women in Sports Day Trivia Night at the Sports Bra in Northeast Portland. The event, which will be held from 6-8 p.m., is first come, first served, with no RSVP required, so interested participants are encouraged to arrive early. Help us celebrate the achievements and contributions of girls and women in sports and test your women’s sports trivia knowledge for a chance to win! Trivia teams can have a maximum of six people, with the top three teams receiving prizes.

For more information on SHE FLIES and additional events and activities on tap this year, go to SHEFLIES.org.

Sport Oregon 1/9/24 Sport Oregon 1/9/24

Breaking Down Barriers in Athletics at Adaptive Sports Northwest — KATU

PORTLAND, Ore. — Sports are all about defying odds, whether that's defeating an opponent or beating a record. However, for the athletes at Adaptive Sports Northwest (ASNW), breaking down barriers is a daily routine.

ASNW is a nonprofit that provides adaptive sport opportunities at all levels, from recreational to competitive. With the help of a grant from Sport Oregon's 'SHE FLIES' initiative, ANSW is able to hold monthly practices just for female para-athletes. These monthly practice sessions are part of ASNW's 'She's On the Move' program. So far, ASNW offers practice sessions for adaptive basketball and goalball, with a similar initiative in other sports to come.

ASNW Executive Director, Jen Armbruster, says 'She's On the Move' opens new possibilities for female para-athletes. "What's really nice about this initiative is that we can have that younger generation as well, looking up and finding that community," she said. "And for older women as well, for them to be able to say 'hey, I can be an athlete, I can go recreate and go wherever I want to go,' whether that's playing division three ball, going to college with wheelchair basketball or goalball. . . or just finding that community with the group of women."

Armbruster is a para-athlete herself, she knows how playing sports can benefit a person on and off the court. "Sports, for me, has just been such a huge thing in my life, whether that's been time management, getting through school, making sure my grades are good enough, and then, just having those goals and working toward them."

After losing her vision at 14 years old, Armbruster was introduced to goalball. She made the U.S. Paralympic team at just 17, then went on to compete in the games seven times and win four medals - one gold, one silver, two bronze.

Now, she helps others accomplish their goals and experience the joy of playing.

This means everything to athletes like Evita Rush. "I never got the chance to play as a younger kid. It was introduced to me at 15," she explained. "I never got to play on team sports at my school or anything like that."

Rush is a player on ASNW's adult wheelchair basketball team, the 'Portland Wheelblazers.' After nearly a decade at ASNW, she's a familiar face on and off the court. On top of playing for the Wheelblazers, she volunteers at many of ASNW's events.

Events like those hosted through 'She's On the Move' give para-athletes like Rush the space to excel in the sport they love, while building community.

For Armbruster, it's a pleasure "to see the smiles on the court [and] to see the comradery amongst both young and old," but what she finds most rewarding is "just watching folks get to enjoy what they love to do."

Rush says the space for female para-athletes is powerful. "It breaks down barriers," she said. "It's huge, and it's very helpful."

KATU and the Women's Foundation of Oregon are proud to support SHE FLIES by sharing the stories of influential girls and women in sports throughout 2024.

KATU Story

Sport Oregon 10/10/23 Sport Oregon 10/10/23

KeyBank Partners With Portland Thorns To Donate $200,000 to Local Nonprofits Supporting Girls and Women in Sports

Four nonprofits benefit from program partnership

PORTLAND, Ore., October 10, 2023 /3BL/ - KeyBank has partnered with the Portland Thorns and Team Captain Meghan Klingenberg during the 2023 National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) regular season to create “Assist Off the Pitch.” Throughout the regular season, for every assist recorded by the Thorns, KeyBank donated $5,000 up to $200,000. With the season coming to an end, KeyBank has proudly awarded four local Oregon-based nonprofits with $50,000 donations to support programs dedicated to women and girls in sports.

Recipients include The Portland Thorns Academy, She Flies, Girls Inc., and New Avenues for Youth, each of whom joined KeyBank on the pitch during the Thorns game October 7 for a special ceremony. KeyBank also partnered with the Thorns to create a video series where each organization had the opportunity to share more about their mission, goals and the communities they impact.

“We are honored to partner with the Thorns on this great initiative,” said Josh Lyons, KeyBank’s Market President for Oregon and S.W. Washington and Commercial Banking leader. “Not only did we get to celebrate each assist throughout the season, we knew they would make an impact on women and girls across the region. We proudly support each of these nonprofits and the work they do in our community. And of course, Go Thorns!”

“The Portland Thorns are proud to partner with KeyBank on this initiative,” said Todd Spear, SVP of Corporate Partnerships for the Portland Timbers & Thorns. “Each recipient nonprofit deserve these funds and we look forward to watching them make true impact.”

ABOUT PORTLAND THORNS FC
Portland Thorns FC is an American professional women's soccer team based in Portland, Oregon that plays their home matches at the iconic Providence Park. Established in 2012, the team began play in 2013 as one of the founding teams of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) – the top-ranked professional women's soccer league in the United States. Thorns FC rank among the best globally in attendance across male and female professional soccer clubs. The team has won eight trophies – three NWSL Championships (2013, 2017, 2022), two NWSL Shields (2016, 2021), NWSL Challenge Cup (2021), Women’s International Champions Cup (2021), NWSL Community Shield (2020).

ABOUT KEYCORP
KeyCorp's roots trace back nearly 200 years to Albany, New York. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Key is one of the nation's largest bank-based financial services companies, with assets of approximately $195 billion at June 30, 2023. Key provides deposit, lending, cash management, and investment services to individuals and businesses in 15 states under the name KeyBank National Association through a network of approximately 1,000 branches and approximately 1,300 ATMs. Key also provides a broad range of sophisticated corporate and investment banking products, such as merger and acquisition advice, public and private debt and equity, syndications and derivatives to middle market companies in selected industries throughout the United States under the KeyBanc Capital Markets trade name. For more information, visit https://www.key.com/. KeyBank is Member FDIC.

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CONTACT: KeyBank | Laura Suter | 206.343.6953 | laura_suter@keybank.com

Sport Oregon 4/11/23 Sport Oregon 4/11/23

Second-Annual SHE FLIES Community Festival Coming May 21

Sport Oregon Foundation to award $125,000 in Community Grants at this year’s festival

The second-annual SHE FLIES Community Festival is coming soon, with this year’s event set for Sunday, May 21, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Overlook Park in North Portland (1599 North Fremont Street).

Designed for the whole family, the event will feature live fitness activities, interactive exhibits and the awarding of $125,000 in grants to deserving organizations already advancing the SHE FLIES mission. The SHE FLIES Community Festival is free and open to the public, and all are encouraged to attend.

The event invites anyone wanting to learn more about the Sport Oregon Foundation’s flagship SHE FLIES initiative or to get directly involved the chance to come out and hear from athletes, coaches and parents, meet the grant recipients and hear about the great work they do. Interactive activities will include a variety of workouts and fitness activities, aimed at educating and reinforcing the importance of a fit-for-life lifestyle.

It has been roughly two years since Sport Oregon formally introduced its new SHE FLIES initiative. The goal, from the start, was to build a community to support the organization’s efforts to foster safe community spaces where all girls and women have equitable opportunities and are greater empowered to use sports to take flight and realize the many benefits that participation provides. Pleased with the success of the first-ever SHE FLIES Community Festival in 2022, organizers are excited to continue to grow the event.

“We have been very pleased with the initial support our SHE FLIES initiative has received in a relatively short amount of time, and we are looking forward to building on last year’s Community Festival,” said Julia Mayfield, director of foundation relations for Sport Oregon. “Our goal is to offer an event where community members and families can learn more about our mission while enjoying free fitness and educational activities, and learning how to stay active and involved.”

At its core, SHE FLIES is inspired by a fundamental belief that, through sports, people learn to soar as confident individuals, team players and strong leaders. Further, its mission is to connect girls and women across Oregon to sports, and to create inclusive opportunities through its programs, partnerships and networks.

The SHE FLIES initiative includes three primary areas of focus, and also aims to bring together like-minded groups already doing great work in the community. With girls being twice as likely to drop out of sports by age 14 than boys and participation rates ranking statistically lower for girls of color or from low-income households, a key focus area is that of “keeping girls in the game.” Secondly, the initiative aims to empower women coaches, with statistics showing less than 30 percent of youth coaches being women. Thirdly, SHE FLIES strives to inspire a “fitness-for-life” mentality, encouraging a life-long pursuit in sports and of staying healthy through regular exercise.

A big part of the SHE FLIES mission is focused on engaging parents, and promoting the many benefits of leading a healthy lifestyle not only for younger girls, but as a lifelong pursuit to enhance anyone’s quality of life, regardless of age.

We look forward to seeing everyone at this year’s SHE FLIES Community Festival!

Join Us
The second-annual SHE FLIES Community Festival is a free event open to anyone who would like to attend. No RSVP required. It will be held at Overlook Park in North Portland (1599 North Fremont Street) on Sunday, May 21, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

For More Information on SHE FLIES
To learn more about SHE FLIES, its grants program and overall mission to connect girls and women across Oregon to sports, and to create inclusive communities through the organization’s programs, partnerships and networks, go to www.sheflies.org.

Sport Oregon 1/30/23 Sport Oregon 1/30/23

Sport Oregon Foundation Offers $125,000 in Grants Through SHE FLIES Initiative in 2023

2023 grant application process opens Feb. 2 on SHEFLIES.org; Alaska Airlines to contribute $200,000 over next two years to grants program

PORTLAND, Ore. – Sport Oregon today announced that the organization is opening its 2023 SHE FLIES Community Grant cycle Thursday, Feb. 2, with $125,000 available this year through the Sport Oregon Foundation. Grant-seeking organizations aligning with the SHE FLIES mission and corresponding focus areas are encouraged to apply for 2023 grants at SHEFLIES.org.

For Sport Oregon COO Maika Janat-Vennemann, “Last year was really about building a network and constructing what SHE FLIES is, and can be. As a connector and trusted voice in sports, Sport Oregon is uniquely qualified to uplift girls and women in sport. When girls are in, we all win.”

Thanks to a substantial financial commitment from Alaska Airlines, Sport Oregon has increased the amount awarded through the SHE FLIES Community Grants program, from $25,000 in the program’s first year to $125,000 in 2023. Alaska Airlines has committed $200,000 in support of the SHE FLIES Community Grants program over the next two years ($100,000 per year for 2023 and 2024).

The application period for this year’s SHE FLIES grants will end Friday, April 7 at 5 p.m. (PST), and applicants will be notified in early May. Sport Oregon will recognize the 2023 SHE FLIES grant recipients during its second-annual SHE FLIES Festival later in May, and funds will be distributed to grantees in June.

In addition to the community grants program, Sport Oregon annually produces a number of special events and relevant programming in support of the SHE FLIES initiative.

The SHE FLIES calendar of in-person events for 2023 kicks off this week with Sport Oregon’s National Girls and Women in Sports Day Panel. The event, which will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at PNC Live Studio in downtown Portland on Wednesday, Feb. 1, will feature speakers of different ages, sports and levels to compare and contrast how their experiences got them to where they are today. The panel will celebrate these amazing athletes and advocates, but also engage them in real conversations about pressures and challenges faced along the way, and why they ultimately stuck with it to make sport such a big part of their lives.

For more information on SHE FLIES and additional events and activities on tap this year, go to SHEFLIES.org.

Sport Oregon 1/12/23 Sport Oregon 1/12/23

An Important Part of the Journey: Athletes Redefined Assisting Athletes in Preparations for Post-Playing Pursuits

Program aims to help the athletes of today become the professional leaders of tomorrow

High-level athletes face a number of challenges on their way to the ultimate success they strive to achieve on the field of play, regardless of the sport. But what gets left out of the equation, more times than not, is planning for their post-playing days.

Shannon Boxx – a three-time Olympic gold-medal winner and 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup champion while playing for the U.S. Women’s National Team in soccer – has first-hand experience with the difficult transition from the playing field to the board room, so to speak. Upon retiring in 2015 – after 12 years with the national team and 14 years as a professional soccer athlete – Boxx actually thought she had done a good deal of planning for her future beyond the field. She felt very fortunate to end her playing career exactly how she wanted to, and on her own terms. But she quickly found out that it was going to be more difficult than expected to really find that one thing she was passionate about pursuing off the field.

Her immediate focus upon retirement was on raising a family. She had a daughter near the end of her playing career, and welcomed a son roughly a year after retirement. Beyond this focus on family, though, Boxx – a finalist for the 2005 FIFA World Player of the Year and a 2022 inductee into the National Soccer Hall of Fame – found it difficult to pinpoint the right path professionally, at least at first. When describing her immediate professional exploration upon retirement, Boxx says she “said yes to a lot of different things” but that it took time to really figure out what she wanted to do.

“I definitely had to figure out my identity past sports,” Boxx said. “What else am I good at, what else am I passionate about?”

In 2019, she attended a conference that focused on females in the corporate world, and it just clicked. As a psychology major at the University of Notre Dame and through the leadership and teamwork skills gained during her playing days, Boxx quickly realized how to transfer her love for empowering others with her love of sports. And from this inspiration, her new endeavor, Athletes Redefined, was born.

Under the umbrella of the company, Ethos Mentality Group, Boxx and the company’s co-founder, Jen Croneberger, have set out to redefine how female athletes, in particular, go about planning for their future through Athletes Redefined. While still in the thick of their playing careers, there is a bit of a stigma attached to planning for the day when athletes no longer take the field of play. It can be viewed as a distraction, when in reality, according to Boxx, developing a plan ahead of time can actually boost how one performs on the field. Boxx says this planning can release a lot of stress and anxiety, and through Athletes Redefined, she and Croneberger – a sought-after, four-time TEDx speaker and compassionate leadership and culture change consultant – hope to inspire athletes to see the many wonderful possibilities that lie ahead by providing a blueprint for success.

Boxx and Croneberger have set out on this mission to empower current and former women’s athletes with the firm belief that the skills gained through sports are extremely valuable – and appealing to employers – in the corporate world. The focus of Athletes Redefined, first and foremost, is in helping athletes make the transition. The aim is to help athletes find their identity, give them the necessary confidence and get them to see the skills they gained as an athlete, and shine a light on how those skills are ultimately beneficial and transferable to what they want to do next with their career.

“Our goal is to get these athletes to see this as an important part of their journey,” Boxx said.

The efforts and mission of Athletes Redefined is well-supported by studies that show 95 percent of Fortune 500 CEOs were athletes, and that 80 percent of female Fortune 500 executives have a background in competitive sports.

While Athletes Redefined is still in its development phase, Boxx and Croneberger are focused on networking and connecting people who really want to help make a difference by getting involved. A key part of this development stage for the program is raising interest from companies that see the value in empowering women. Boxx says a primary goal of the program is to provide workshops and mentorship at no cost to the participating current and former athletes, so building the sponsorship piece is key to its success.

To help further its reach in these areas, Athletes Redefined has partnered with Sport Oregon as a primary connector. With its flagship SHE FLIES initiative, the mission of Sport Oregon and Ethos Mentality Group’s Athletes Redefined are essentially mirror images of one another, with a foundational goal of helping the girls of today to become the athletes and business leaders of tomorrow.

The two groups are working closely on producing an upcoming two-day workshop, targeted for the spring. The two-day workshop will be followed by a 90-day period of ongoing mentorship to help athletes implement their action plan, continue to refine their strategy for success and execute on the “playbook” provided during the workshop.

Sport Oregon also is helping to identify sponsors for the developing program, to ensure the service and mentorship is free to those interested.

“The partnership with Sport Oregon is amazing,” Boxx said. “We all want the same thing – to empower girls and women – so it’s just such a great partnership.”

How To Get Involved
Whether you’re a company interested in supporting Athletes Redefined through sponsorship, or you’re an athlete interested in learning more about professional planning and goal setting, additional information is available at www.ethosmentality.com and on LinkedIn.

Sport Oregon 11/21/22 Sport Oregon 11/21/22

Portland Lands First-Ever NCAA Women’s Basketball Final Four

PORTLAND, Ore. — Portland has been announced as the official host city for the 2030 Division I NCAA Women’s Basketball Final Four, per official NCAA statement this morning. It will be Portland’s first time hosting this world-class event, and the bid process has been driven collaboratively by Sport Oregon, Travel Portland, the Rose Quarter / Portland Trail Blazers, and the University of Portland Pilots.

“To say we are excited is a massive understatement – this is a huge win for our community and our bid partners,” said Sport Oregon CEO Jim Etzel. “It is a testament to the culture and passion of women’s basketball fans in Oregon. We are deeply appreciative of the Women’s Basketball Committee and the NCAA for choosing Portland, and we can’t wait to show everyone what we already know, that this is the best place in the world for women’s athletics.”

Portland was a finalist for the 2025 and 2026 Women’s Final Fours back in 2020, but ultimately fell short in securing either of those events. In 2019, Portland hosted one of the most successful Women’s Basketball Regionals in history, and were set to do the same in 2020 before the cancellation of the NCAA Tournament. The University of Portland will act as the host school for the Portland Women’s Final Four.

“It is a tremendous honor to serve as institutional host on this successful bid to bring the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Final Four to Portland,” University of Portland Vice President for Athletics Scott Leykam said. “The University of Portland is home to women’s athletic programs that were at the forefront of the growth of women’s sports in our great city and state and this is a great way for us to continue that legacy.”

The bidding group has worked for the bulk of this year on making their pitch to the NCAA. Representatives from the NCAA and Women’s Basketball Committee were in Portland in September for the official site tour, and had a chance to analyze critical venues, and meet several stakeholders in the community. The bidding group’s final presentation to the NCAA was held November 16th in Dallas.

Now, Moda Center and the overall the Rose Quarter will serve as the epicenter of women’s basketball in 2030.

"We are thrilled to have the opportunity to hold the NCAA Women's Final Four in Portland at the Rose Quarter in 2030,” said Chris Oxley, Senior Vice President, Government Affairs & Strategic Initiatives, Portland Trail Blazers and Rose Quarter. “The success of the women’s regional in 2019 held at Moda Center, last year’s men’s tournament, and the continued success of other collegiate basketball events on our campus is a testament to the passionate basketball fans that make up our community. We’re thrilled to continue bringing high level women’s basketball to Portland.

A Women’s Final Four will be an economic boon for the Portland hospitality community, as the WBCA Coaches Convention will also make Portland its home over the same weekend. Between the WBCA and the Women’s Final Four, an estimated 11,000 hotel rooms will be utilized for the overall event between downtown and the Lloyd District.

“It is with immense pleasure and pride that Travel Portland celebrates the NCAA’s Women’s Final Four coming to Portland,” said Jeff Miller, President & CEO of Travel Portland. “With over 50 years of supporting women’s athletics, there is not another city in the country that will embrace this event and what it stands for more than Portland. Travel Portland - along with our partners - enthusiastically looks forward to welcoming the world of women’s basketball to our inclusive, diverse and women’s-sports-loving city.”

The Oregon Convention Center will host the WBCA Coaches Convention, along with Tourney Town, a free public fan festival for basketball fans. Several other events will be held around Final Four weekend throughout the city, along with legacy-building community opportunities in the years prior. An official Local Organizing Committee will also be developed, inclusive of the bidding organizations. Portland was among seven finalist cities for the five open years of hosting.

“We’ve put in a lot of work to get to this day, and this is certainly a great feeling,” said Etzel. “But the work we have ahead of us is even more substantial. Our bidding partners are aligned, our community is hungry, and Portland is ready to host a Women’s Final Four.”

Outside of Portland, the other winning host cities were Columbus, OH (2027); Indianapolis, IN (2028); San Antonio, TX (2029); and Dallas, TX (2031).

Sport Oregon 11/17/22 Sport Oregon 11/17/22

SHE FLIES Celebrates Impactful First Year, Sets Sights on Greater Accomplishments in 2023

Sport Oregon to host Holiday Bash Dec. 6 to benefit flagship SHE FLIES initiative

When Sport Oregon launched its new SHE FLIES initiative last year, the organization had clear objectives for the signature endeavor. In its most simple terms, 2022 would take a building approach, with more ambitious goals in store for 2023.

As the flagship initiative of the Sport Oregon Foundation, the focus of SHE FLIES is connecting girls and women across Oregon to sports, and creating inclusive communities through its programs, partnerships and networks. It aims to do so through three focus areas: getting girls in the game, empowering women coaches and promoting fitness for life.

Now, as the holiday season approaches and 2022 winds down, it’s rewarding for the organization to look back at the first full year of SHE FLIES and see the strategic work behind building such an impactful initiative from the ground up come to life.

“The past year was really about building a network and constructing what SHE FLIES is, and can be,” said Maika Janat-Vennemann, COO of Sport Oregon.

As Sport Oregon continues growing the initiative to achieve increased impact, awareness and support, it is hosting The Sport Oregon Holiday Bash benefitting SHE FLIES. The event is set for Tuesday, Dec. 6, from 5-7:30 p.m. at the Cosmopolitan Ballroom at Hotel Eastlund in Portland. The Holiday Bash will feature an online auction, a raffle and a live auction with exclusive packages, such as a Grand Slam trip for two to New York to take in the 2023 US Open for tennis and a VIP access experience for next year’s INDYCAR Grand Prix of Portland.

Individual tickets and tables for The Sport Oregon Holiday Bash are currently available for purchase.

The goal all along has been to build a solid foundation for SHE FLIES, with the focus of 2023 centering around boosting its programs and increasing its impact.

“This first year was more about friends raising than fund raising,” Janat-Vennemann continued.

Still, while it’s a relatively new initiative, it’s safe to say SHE FLIES is off and soaring on the strength of a great first year. In 2022, SHE FLIES has generated upwards of $100,000 in revenue thus far. Through SHE FLIES, Sport Oregon awarded $25,000 in Community Grants in the spring. Additionally, the organization launched a new SHE FLIES content series, produced a free SHE FLIES Festival event, hosted a Women in Motorsports panel event in conjunction with the INDYCAR Grand Prix of Portland, and SHE FLIES became the exclusive non-profit partner and beneficiary of The Red Gala. Notably, the organization has established a number of strategic partnerships that have set a great foundation for the organization to experience continued growth for SHE FLIES.

Looking ahead to next year, Sport Oregon is looking to substantially add to and further enhance its events and fundraising efforts around SHE FLIES. For starters, the organization aims to give a minimum of $125,000 in Community Grants, with the new cycle beginning February 2023. Additionally, plans are in place to make the SHE FLIES Festival a much larger event, with future plans to expand it to additional communities across Oregon.

While there are plenty of successes to celebrate at the upcoming Holiday Bash, there is still work to be done to ensure 2023 is even bigger and better than expected. The organization hopes you can join them in their efforts to connect girls and women across the state to the many benefits of sports participation.

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