Sports
Carli Lloyd in 5-member National Soccer Hall of Fame induction class
Jun 25, 2023; Harrison, New Jersey, USA; Carli Lloyd before the game between the Chicago Red Stars and NJ/NY Gotham FC at Red Bull Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Schneidler-Imagn Images Former United States women’s national team star Carli Lloyd headlined the National Soccer Hall of Fame’s 2025 class inducted in a ceremony Saturday in Frisco, Texas.
The five-member class also included former men’s players Chris Armas and Nick Rimando, women’s player Mary Harvey and former executive Mark Abbott.
“We’re proud to recognize this year’s inductees as true champions of the game whose passion and dedication have helped soccer flourish in the U.S.,” said Djorn Buchholz, executive director of the National Soccer Hall of Fame. “They’ve made their mark at every level, from the world and national stages to the building blocks of our professional leagues, and their contributions perfectly capture the spirit of the Hall of Fame.”
Lloyd, 42, played on two Women’s World Cup championship teams (2015, 2019) with the United States women’s national team and also won Olympic gold medals in 2008 and 2012.
“There was no greater honor than wearing the red, white and blue,” said Lloyd, who won the Golden Ball as the best player at the 2015 Women’s World Cup. “Yes, it was extremely hard. There were countless sacrifices along the way, but every bit of it was worth it, because I loved the game, the lessons I learned, the relationships that I forged and the experiences I gained were more than I ever could imagine.”
Lloyd played internationally for 17 years (2005-21) and scored 134 goals with 64 assists in 316 matches.
Armas, 52, coaches the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer. As a player, he earned 66 caps for the United States men’s national team and had two goals.
He also was a six-time All-Star midfielder while recording 12 goals and 48 assists in 264 MLS matches with the Los Angeles Galaxy (1996-97) and Chicago Fire (1998-2007). He also won four U.S. Open Cups and an MLS Cup with the Fire.
“People say, ‘Do you love to win or hate to lose?'” Armas said. “I’m not so sure. All I know is that the fire is burning bright, and I learned at a young age that I had to empty my tank in pursuit of that victory.”
Rimando, 45, holds the MLS records for appearances (553), victories (223) and shutouts (154) while playing 20 seasons (2000-19).
“I stand here today, not because of the games or the records, but because I never stopped believing through the setbacks, the noise and the rejection,” Rimando said. “If my story says anything, that would be this: You’re always more than what they say you are.”
The six-time All-Star was MVP of the MLS Cup in 2009 when Real Salt Lake beat the Galaxy to win the title. Rimando, who retired in 2019, played in 22 matches for the USMNT.
Harvey, 59, was the goalkeeper when the USWNT won the inaugural Women’s World Cup in 1991. She also won a gold medal at the 1996 Olympics, the first including women’s soccer.
“I learned that the national team is about excellence,” Harvey said. “It’s about being the best you can be, the best teammate you can be, and about doing incredible things together. Today, I challenge people on the teams that I manage to develop an awareness about how what they say and what they do impacts everyone around them and their ability to perform.”
Abbott served as president and deputy commissioner of MLS from 2013-22. In 1993, he was hired as the league’s first employee, three years before the MLS began play.
“I had a cool job, and I got to do a lot of cool things, but the thing I always appreciated the most was being a part of a community,” Abbott said. “That community had a common objective of trying to make our league as accessible as it could be.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Cody Bellinger homers twice, as Yankees eclipse Royals
Apr 18, 2026; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees center fielder Cody Bellinger (35) hits a two run home run against the Kansas City Royals during the third inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images Cody Bellinger homered twice and collected five RBIs Saturday afternoon, and the New York Yankees easily recorded a 13-4 victory over the visiting Kansas City Royals on Saturday afternoon.
The Yankees notched their most lopsided win this season after their previous five victories were decided in the final at-bat.
Amed Rosario hit a two-run homer, and Ben Rice hit a solo shot during a five-run third off Kansas City left-hander Noah Cameron. (1-1).
Rosario started the scoring with his two-run blast to left after a three-base error by Kansas City center fielder Kyle Isbel.
J.C. Escarra hit a fly ball to the warning track in center field, and the ball was not caught when Isbel and right fielder Jac Caglianone converged. Isbel knocked the ball out of Caglianone’s glove and was charged with a three-base error.
After Rosario’s homer, Aaron Judge walked, then Bellinger sent a first-pitch slider into the second deck in right. Rice homered two batters later when he hit a fastball into the right field seats for his third straight game with a homer.
Bellinger homered again in the sixth off Mitch Spence for a 10-0 lead. It was Bellinger’s 20th career multi-homer game and his eighth game with at least five RBIs.
Bellinger also had an RBI single in between homers. Rosario added a run-scoring single in the sixth and Escarra contributed an RBI double in the fourth.
Escarra also drove in two with his first career triple in the seventh as the Yankees collected 11 hits. Randal Grichuk added a sacrifice fly in the eighth for his first RBI with New York.
New York’s Will Warren (2-0) allowed two runs on five hits in seven innings. The right-hander matched a career-high with 11 strikeouts and walked none.
The Royals dropped their sixth straight. Kansas City was blanked until Carter Jensen hit a two-run homer in the seventh and got a two-run double from Michael Massey in the ninth.
Cameron was shelled for a career-worst seven runs (five earned) on seven hits in four innings.
Kansas City manager Matt Quatraro was tossed by second base umpire Nestor Ceja before Cameron threw a pitch after the Royals batted in the first.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Blazers face Victor Wembanyama, Spurs to open playoffs
Apr 8, 2026; San Antonio, Texas, USA; Portland Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija (8) drives to the basket against San Antonio Spurs forward Carter Bryant (11) during the second half at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images The Portland Trail Blazers will get their first look of the season at erstwhile league MVP candidate Victor Wembanyama when they travel to San Antonio to play the Spurs on Sunday in their opening game of the first round playoff series.
The Trail Blazers (42-40) clinched the seventh seed and a meeting with the second-seeded Spurs with a 114-110 road win over Phoenix on Tuesday in the West’s 7 vs. 8 matchup in the play-in tournament. That victory allowed Portland to earn its first trip to the playoffs since 2021.
San Antonio has won two of the three games with the Trail Blazers this year — most recently a 112-101 decision at home on April 8 — but Wembanyama missed all three contests with injuries. That doesn’t bode well for Portland’s chances to upset the Spurs, who lost just four times in their 34 games since March 1.
“He will play in the fourth game,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said about Wembanyama. “That feels good.”
Wembanyama’s numbers this season — 1,600 points, 736 rebounds, 199 assists, 197 blocked shots, 122 3-pointers –are a combination never before produced in the NBA. Portland acting head coach Tiago Splitter said his team will employ a combined effort to try to slow the Spurs’ star center.
“Of course Wembanyama is a big emphasis for us both offensively and defensively,” Splitter explained. “He’s a 7-foot-5 guy that can handle the ball, shoot, guard the rim, guard the perimeter and brings something different that other teams don’t have.
“Every game is a team effort,” Splitter added. “Stay connected on offense. Share the ball, play together. It’s a big team effort on both ends of the court.”
Deni Avdija led the way for Portland in Tuesday’s win, scoring 41 points that included his three-point play with 16.1 seconds remaining that capped the Blazers’ comeback from an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit.
San Antonio had the second-best record in the NBA this season at 62-20, trailing only defending champion Oklahoma City. The Spurs are on the hunt for their sixth NBA title in franchise history and are one of the favorites to lift the Larry O’Brien Trophy in June.
But this is lofty company for San Antonio, which hasn’t earned a spot in the playoffs since 2019. The Spurs are just the fourth team in league history to win 60 games in a season a year after they won less than 35.
“I can’t really help but dream about it, of course,” Wembanyama said about the team’s quest for a championship. “But we have to stay grounded, stay in the moment. And before even thinking about Game 1, I have to think about showing up the right way. Practice, doing all my stuff, preparing, being locked in on the scouts.”
San Antonio is far from a one-man team. The Spurs had seven players average in double-figure scoring, with Wembanyama leading the way at 25 points per game in 65 contests. De’Aaron Fox was second at 18.6 points, and Stephon Castle (who had five triple doubles) racking up 16.7 points.
“We know where we are,” Johnson said this week. “We will be ourselves. We’ll be excited to play. If that means we come out in the first three minutes and there’s some nerves, I think that’s excitement. But I think we’ll get back to being ourselves. That’s what I expect.
“As soon as we can get back to making it the basketball game we’ve been playing all year, we’ll be in a good spot.”
Game 2 will be Tuesday night in the Alamo City before switching to Portland for Games 3 and 4 on Friday and April 26, respectively.
–Field Level Media
Sports
CF Montreal wins first game under Philippe Eullaffroy, beat Red Bulls
Apr 18, 2026; Montreal, Province of Quebec, CAN; CF Montreal forward Prince Owusu (9) celebrates with teammate midfielder Victor Loturi (22) after scoring a goal against the Red Bull New York during the first half at Saputo Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images Prince Owusu recorded a goal and three assists as CF Montreal bested the visiting New York Red Bulls 4-1 in the home side’s first match under interim head coach Philippe Eullaffroy.
Owusu scored his fifth goal of the season, as Montreal (2-6-0, 6 points) claimed their 100th win all-time at Stade Saputo.
Montreal strode past the visitors’ backline with relative ease in the early going. Red Bulls (3-3-2, 11 points) captain Emil Forsberg failed to control a hurried pass from his goalkeeper, allowing Owusu to play in Victor Loturi, who blasted it past Ethan Horvath in the fifth minute to make it 1-0.
Owusu nearly extended their lead soon after when Ivan Jaime played him through on a one-on-one. The towering center forward opted to hold the ball up before sending it wide of goal.
Owusu made no mistake on his 39th-minute penalty, catching out Horvath with a sly stutter step and slotting it into the left corner to make it 2-0. The penalty came as a result of Dylan Nealis’s handball.
Montreal’s Matty Longstaff knocked balls into both nets at the start of the second half. Longstaff met Owusu’s perfectly threaded through ball to make it 3-0 in the 49th minute. The English midfielder then overhit an attempted backpass to goalkeeper Thomas Gillier four minutes later and inadvertently brought the Red Bulls back within two.
More than the flurry of goals, the single biggest change in Montreal’s approach was in their defensive setup. Eullaffroy’s zonal marking stood in stark contrast to Marco Donadel’s aggressive man-marking, the Red Bulls managing just one shot on goal all game long. Eullaffroy also started Samuel Piette in the midfield after the Montreal captain remained on the bench in their last two outings.
Owusu chipped the ball over Matthew Dos Santos and into the path of Kwadwo Opoku, who guided it into the open net to restore Montreal’s three-goal lead.
The victory marked Montreal’s first at home since August of last year. Both of Montreal’s wins this season have come against the Red Bulls. New York, meanwhile, has won just one of its last six league matches.
–Field Level Media
Cody Bellinger homers twice, as Yankees eclipse Royals
NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for April 19, 2026
