Sports

Angel Reese announces her season is over as Caitlin Clark Rookie of the Year race may now be decided

Published

2 years ago

September 8, 2024

Angel Reese announces her season is over as Caitlin Clark Rookie of the Year race may now be decided

Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese announced on X that her season is over due to an injury on Saturday night after being declared questionable for the team’s upcoming game against the Dallas Wings with a wrist issue.

“I’m filled with emotions right now that I have a season-ending injury, but also filled with so much gratitude for what is next. Although this is God’s timing and not mine, I am finally able to give myself a physical and mental break. ‘God gives his hardest battles to his strongest soldiers,’” Reese wrote.

Reese finishes her rookie year with an unprecedented number of rebounds. In just her first year, without even finishing the full season, Reese broke the record for most rebounds in a single WNBA season and the record for most rebounds per game with 13.1.

Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese grabs a rebound. (Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports)

Reese broke the single-season record in the Sky’s 79-74 loss at Minnesota on Sept. 1, when she surpassed Sylvia Fowles’ record of 404 set in 2018. Fowles beat the record by one just a year after Jonquel Jones recorded 403. Reese accomplished the feat in just 23 games.

Reese was considered the biggest challenger to fellow rookie star Caitlin Clark for the WNBA’s Rookie of the Year award. Former NBA All-Star Joakim Noah even told Fox News Digital he would vote for Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese over Clark for Rookie of the Year if he had a say.

“When I look at her play, she reminds me a lot of myself,” Noah said.

Clark has put up the better averages in terms of points, assists, steals, blocks and every major shooting percentage category. Clark broke the Fever’s single-season record for assists in a loss to Minnesota on Friday.

But Reese did have a drastic advantage in terms of rebounds. With 13.1 rebounds per game, Reese more than doubled Clark’s current 5.8 per game.

In head-to-head matchups this year, the Fever have beaten the Sky three out of four times. In two of those matchups, Reese put up more points than Clark while putting up more rebounds than Clark in all four meetings. Clark put up more assists in all four meetings.

EX-NBA ALL-STAR ON WHY HE PICKS ANGEL REESE OVER CAITLIN CLARK FOR ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark look on during the second half against the Chicago Sky on June 23, 2024, at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. (Melissa Tamez/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Prior to her season-ending injury, Reese spoke about her rivalry with Clark in the first episode of her podcast on Thursday. Reese expressed tremendous respect for Clark and that they have no ill-will toward each other despite a heated rivalry that dates back to their college careers, when Clark was at Iowa and Reese was at LSU.

However, Reese spoke out against Clark’s passionate fans and claimed they have harassed her.

“I think it’s really just the fans, her fans, the Iowa fans, now the Indiana fans, that are really just, they ride for her, and I respect that, respectfully. But sometimes it’s very disrespectful. I think there’s a lot of racism when it comes to it,” Reese said.

Reese went on to list death threats and people coming right to her home as an alleged example of a measure Clark’s fans have taken in response to their rivalry.

Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever and Angel Reese of the Chicago Sky look on during the game on June 1, 2024, at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. (Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images)

“People have come down to my address, followed me home, it’s come down to that,” Reese said.

Reese even alleges that some fans have made AI-generated images of her, depicting her without clothes on, and sent them to her family members.

“Multiple occasions, people have made AI-images of me naked. They have sent it to my family members. My family members are like uncles, sending it to me like, ‘Are you naked on Instagram?’” Reese said. “It sucks having to go through that and see other players have to go through that.”

After Clark was drafted with the first pick in the WNBA Draft this past year by the Indiana Fever, Reese was selected seventh overall by Chicago. Reese and Clark were the only rookies to be named to the WNBA All-Star Game in July.

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Jackson Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital. He previously worked for ESPN and Business Insider. Jackson has covered the Super Bowl and NBA Finals, and has interviewed iconic figures Usain Bolt, Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, Troy Aikman, Mike Trout, David Ortiz and Roger Clemens.

Sports

Loyola wins Southern Section Division 1 lacrosse championship

Published

7 minutes ago

May 17, 2026

Press Room

Loyola wins Southern Section Division 1 lacrosse championship

There’s no denying that Loyola’s lacrosse program is best in Southern California and could be that way for years to come with the number of elite young players participating.

On Saturday night, the Cubs (16-3) won their latest Southern Section Division 1 championship with a 14-6 win over Santa Margarita. The Cubs have won three title since the sport was adopted as a championship event in the Southern Section. Defense has been Loyola’s strength all season.

Senior defenders Chase Hellie and Everett Rolph and junior goalkeeper William Russo led one of the best defenses in program history under coach Jimmy Borell.

Senior Cash Ginsberg finished with five goals and junior North Carolina commit Tripp King finished with two goals.

In girls Division 1, Mira Costa upset top-seeded Santa Margarita 12-6.

Sports

Napoleon Solo wins 151st Preakness Stakes

Published

12 hours ago

May 17, 2026

Press Room

Napoleon Solo wins 151st Preakness Stakes

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Napoleon Solo took home the 2026 Preakness Stakes on Saturday, the 151st running of the race.

The favorite in Taj Mahal, the 1 horse, was in the lead from the start until the final turn until Napoleon Solo made his move on the outside and took the lead at the top of the stretch. As Taj Mahal fell off, Iron Honor, the 9 horse, snuck up, but the effort ultimately was not enough.

Napoleon Solo opened at 8-1 and closed at 7-1. Iron Honor, at 8-1, finished second, with Chip Honcho fishing third after closing at 11-1. Ocelli, one of just three horses to run both the Kentucky Derby two weeks ago and Saturday’s Preakness, finished fourth at 8-1.

A Preakness branded starting gate is seen on track prior to the 151st Preakness Stakes at Laurel Park on May 16, 2026 in Laurel, Maryland. For the first and only time, Laurel Park is hosting the Preakness Stakes which is the second race of the Triple Crown jewel due to the traditional home of the race of the Pimlico Race Course undergoing complete renovations. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

A $1 exacta paid out $53.60, while a $1 trifecta brought in $597.10. But someone out there is very lucky, as a $1 superhighfive – picking the top-five finishers in order – paid out $12,015.70.

Even moreso, a 20-cent Pick 6 – picking the winners of the six consecutive races, with the final being the Preakness, paid out $33,842.34.

The race was run without the Kentucky Derby winner for the second year in a row. After Sovereignty did not run the Preakness last year – and wound up winning the Belmont Stakes – the training team of Golden Tempo opted to skip the Maryland race.

From 1960 to 2018, only three Derby winners did not run in the Preakness. Three Derby winners have skipped the Preakness in the last five years, and for the sixth time in eight years, for various reasons, the Triple Crown had already been impossible to accomplish by the time the Preakness even rolled around.

“I understand that fans of the sport or fans of the Triple Crown are disappointed, but the horse is not a machine,” Golden Tempo’s trainer, Cherie DeVaux, told Fox News Digital earlier this week.

Paco Lopez, right, atop Napoleon Solo, edges out Iron Honor, ridden by Flavien Prat, to win the 151st running of the Preakness Stakes horse race, Friday, May 15, 2026, at Laurel Park in Laurel, Maryland. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

CHERIE DEVAUX REFLECTS ON MAKING KENTUCKY DERBY HISTORY AS FIRST FEMALE TRAINER TO WIN THE RACE

Only three horses from two weeks ago – Ocelli, Robusta, and Incredibolt, were back at the Preakness. Corona de Oro, the 11 horse on Saturday, was scratched well ahead of the Derby, and Great White, who reared up and fell on his back after becoming startled shortly before entering the Derby gate, took the 13 post on Saturday.

The Preakness went off roughly 24 hours after a horse died following the completion of his very first race.

Hit Zero, trained by Brittany Russell, came into the race as the favorite. However, he finished last in the race, which was won by another one of Russell’s horses, Bold Fact — and upon crossing the finish line, Hit Zero reportedly began coughing, dropped to his knees, then put his head down and died.

The Preakness took place at Laurel Park as Pimlico undergoes renovations. It was the first time ever that Pimlico did not host the race, moving roughly 20 miles south.

Paco Lopez, atop Napoleon Solo, wins the 151st running of the Preakness Stakes horse race, Friday, May 15, 2026, at Laurel Park in Laurel, Maryland. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

The Belmont Stakes, the final Triple Crown race, will take place on June 6. The race will return to Saratoga for a third year in a row as Belmont Park continues to be renovated.

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