Dallas, TX
Who is Ellen Weinberg-Hughes? Mother of Olympic heroes Jack, Quinn has ties to Dallas
For the first time since 1980, the United States secured an Olympic gold medal in men’s hockey on Sunday.
Throughout the 2026 Olympic tournament, the U.S. was propelled by brothers Jack and Quinn Hughes. Quinn provided a game-winning overtime goal as the U.S. defeated Sweden in the quarterfinals, while Jack provided the winning goal in the U.S.-Canada gold medal matchup.
As the Hughes brothers earned praise, several hockey fans pointed out how their mother has connections to North Texas. Ellen Weinberg-Hughes grew up in Dallas, forming part of the legendary 1984 Dallas Sting Soccer Club.
Here are five things to know about Weinberg-Hughes:
She was a multi-sport star growing up in Dallas
Weinberg-Hughes played hockey and soccer throughout her childhood in Dallas. In 1981, 12-year-old Weinberg-Hughes was featured in a news story from KXAS-TV (NBC5) as she suited up for her Dallas youth hockey team.
One of her hockey team’s coaches was her father, Dr. Warren A. Weinberg. In the interview, Weinberg-Hughes shared her goal to play hockey at the professional level.
“It’s just a goal I want to reach,” Weinberg-Hughes said.
She was also a standout at soccer. More on that below…
She made history with the Dallas Sting Soccer Club
Weinberg-Hughes played for the Dallas Sting Soccer Club in the 1980s. She was part of the team that captured worldwide attention in 1984 when it won the first FIFA-sanctioned world women’s tournament in Xi’an, China.
That tournament played a key role in the development of the first women’s World Cup, which took place in 1991. Weinberg-Hughes can be seen in the Sting team photo below.
Weinberg-Hughes told NBC earlier this year that her best friend on the Sting Soccer Club was Carla Overbeck.
(Read more about the historic Sting Soccer Club here.)
A look at a Dallas Sting team photo from 1984. Top row (left to right): Kelly Hogan, Barbara Garland Landrum, Nicole Dreyfus Sanders, Megan Rust, Kyllene Carter Weiss, Michelle Conaway Kimzey, Tony Catchings, Pam Patak Lowry, Kasey Jones Parker, Erin Adamson-O’Donnell. Bottom row (left to right): Amy Eklund Maisel, Melinda Derden Reese, Sheri Mungai, Ellen Weinberg-Hughes, Jennifer Lawson Longnecker, Carla Werden Overbeck, Tina Edgar, Alicia Tannery Donelan.
Courtesy Michelle Kimzey / Courtesy Michelle Kimzey
Hockey has been a constant in her life
Weinberg-Hughes continued to play multiple sports when she suited up at the University of New Hampshire from 1988-91. She ultimately played for the United States’ women hockey team, earning a silver medal at the 1992 IIHF Women’s World Championship in Finland.
Her husband, Jim, was also a hockey player who previously held a front-office role with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
She celebrated multiple gold medals this winter
Weinberg-Hughes was pretty busy throughout the Milan Cortina Olympic Games. According to NBC, she served as a player development consultant for the U.S. women’s hockey team this winter.
That means Weinberg-Hughes got to celebrate the U.S. women’s gold medal a few days before her sons Jack and Quinn led the U.S. men’s team to victory.
The U.S. women defeated Canada 2-1 in overtime Thursday, while the U.S. men defeated Canada 2-1 in overtime Sunday.
Find more Stars coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
Dallas, TX
Dallas shooting injures 2 as police search for suspect
Dallas police are searching for a shooting suspect after two people were shot early Saturday morning.
The shooting incident happened around 6:30 a.m. when Dallas officers responded to a shooting call in the 7600 block of South Central Expressway, where two people had been shot.
Officials said one victim was taken to the hospital in critical condition by Dallas Fire-Rescue. The other was transported by private vehicle in stable condition.
No arrests have been made as of Saturday afternoon, according to Dallas Police.
The shooting investigation is ongoing and this story will be updated as we learn more.
Dallas, TX
All-day restaurant and patio coming to Dallas’ Knox and more top stories
UPDATE 6-26-2026: Gracie has been found about four miles south of the Cedar Hollow Ranch, according to a Facebook update from Real County Animal Rescue. Ranch manager Vic Jones has assembled a team to safely bring the wandering giraffe home.
—
A giraffe named Gracie is missing in Texas, and the search for her has become a tall order.
Gracie, who is about 3 years old, has been missing for nearly two weeks after escaping her enclosure at Cedar Hollow Ranch in the Texas Hill Country, said Vic Jones, who owns the remote property about 100 miles west of San Antonio. He said Wednesday, June 24 that Gracie had wandered into a part of the privately owned preserve that other giraffes previously avoided.
Jones said he has sent up helicopters to look for Gracie, a few sightings have trickled in, and a $5,000 reward is on the table.
But the giraffe, which stands roughly the height of a tree, hasn’t turned up.
“She wound up going up and feeding in an area on the hillside and the rocky ledges that none of the other giraffes had ever gone on before,” Jones said. “And when she came down off of there, she came down on the wrong side of the gate.”
The ranch is in rural Real County, where its roughly 2,700 residents were put on alert to be on the lookout for a missing giraffe. Jones said the search area is extremely remote, and the likelihood of Gracie encountering any humans is low.
“People are not in danger of her because she’s not around people,” Jones said. ‘She’s out in very, very rough, heavily wooded lands.”
The Texas Hill Country has one of the largest concentrations of exotic captive animals in the country. Real County Sheriff Nathan Johnson said the mild climate and rugged terrain seems to serve as a good stand-in for most of the animals’ native African environments.
He rattled off a list of animals that have gone missing over the years, especially after floods, but said this was his first giraffe.
“I’ve had wildebeests, I’ve had water buffalo, I’ve had monkeys, I’ve had zebras, all go missing,” Johnson said. “Sometimes we recover them, and sometimes we don’t.”
While the middle of Texas is not a giraffe’s native environment, Jones said Gracie should be able to find plenty of leaves and other vegetation to eat. He said other animals were not likely to bother her.
Jones said he initially had helicopters searching an area of about 7,500 acres (3,000 hectares) with no luck. A few days later, there was a report that Gracie was spotted to the south.
But by the time they could search the area, Jones said, she was already gone.
“We’re always two three days late for where the information is coming from, so that makes it tough,” Jones said.
Dallas, TX
How to buy Egypt vs. Australia World Cup soccer tickets
Egypt takes on the Socceroos on Friday, July 3. See ticket prices for Dallas
Editor’s note: See all updated scenarios for the 2026 World Cup tournament bracket
The most volatile group has come to a close at the 2026 World Cup.
Egypt and Iran played to a 1-1 draw late on Friday night, which allowed Belgium to rise up from third place all the way to the top spot in the group while Egypt took second. Iran will have to wait and see if their third place finish is good enough to qualify for the knockout round.
As the Group G runner up, Egypt will take on Australia in the round of 32.
SHOP: Egypt vs. Australia 2026 World Cup tickets
Australia finished as the second-place team in Group D, sitting on four points. Egypt and Australia will face off in Dallas on Friday, July 3, the final match of the round of 32.
Here is everything you need to know in order to buy Egypt vs. Australia World Cup tickets.
Shop Egypt vs. Australia tickets
Egypt vs. Australia round of 32 World Cup tickets
As of publication, the cheapest ticket to attend the Egypt vs. Australia costs $834. Lower-level seats for the round of 32 match at AT&T Stadium in Dallas start at $1,083.
Egypt World Cup next opponent
Egypt will take on Australia in the round of 32. Australia finished as the runner up in Group D, finishing the group stage with one win, one draw and one loss.
Shop Egypt vs. Australia tickets
Egypt World Cup schedule
- June 15 – Egypt vs. Belgium at Lumen Field in Seattle – DRAW 1-1
- June 21 – Egypt vs. New Zealand at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver – WIN 3-1
- June 26 – Egypt vs. Iran at Lumen Field in Seattle – DRAW 1-1
- Friday, July 3 – Australia vs. Group G runner up at AT&T Stadium in Dallas (round of 32) – Shop tickets
World Cup Group G Standings
| TEAM | POINTS | RECORD |
| Belgium | 5 | 1-2-0 |
| Egypt | 5 | 1-2-0 |
| Iran | 3 | 0-3-0 |
| New Zealand | 1 | 0-1-2 |
Shop Egypt vs. Australia World Cup tickets
Australia World Cup schedule
- Australia vs. Turkey – WIN 2-0
- Australia vs. United States – LOSS 2-0
- Australia vs. Paraguay – DRAW 1-1
- Friday, July 3 – Australia vs. Group G runner up at AT&T Stadium in Dallas (round of 32) – Shop tickets
World Cup Group D Standings
Shop Egypt vs. Australia tickets
-
New York27 minutes agoMetropolitan Diary Challenge Day 1: What Is Your N.Y. Story?
-
Los Angeles, Ca34 minutes agoLASD releases video of man shot by deputy after allegedly charging them with knife
-
Detroit, MI52 minutes agoRick Mahorn returns to coaching Detroit basketball with BIG3 Amps
-
San Francisco, CA1 hour agoSuspect arrested after shooting near San Francisco Pride events, police say
-
Dallas, TX1 hour agoDallas shooting injures 2 as police search for suspect
-
Miami, FL1 hour agoColombia wins Group K after 0-0 draw with Portugal in Miami Stadium; both teams advance to World Cup knockouts
-
Boston, MA1 hour agoBeyond the frame: ‘Where’s Boston?’ revisited through new oral histories – Boston News, Weather, Sports | WHDH 7News
-
Denver, CO1 hour agoArizona Cardinals will face Denver Broncos QB Bo Nix for 1st time