THE EVE EDITION
AFTERGLOW | SUN OCT 18
Maja Chwalińska lost the first set of the Wuhan final 6-2 and dropped serve early in the second, and for a while Sonay Kartal looked like the one who would leave China with a career-changing title. Chwalińska held on, took the second set from 4-all and ran away with the third, winning its last four games and saving three break points as she served for the championship. Her first WTA title came at the WTA 1000 level, and on Monday she will be ranked #11, a career high.
Sunday was hard on unbeaten records. Barcelona lost a league match for the first time this season, at Real Sociedad, while promoted Como 1907 won at Juventus and Wolfsburg went top in Germany with five goals at Mainz. Chelsea put six past Tottenham and still finished the day behind Manchester City, and Maryland stayed perfect in field hockey at 14-0. By night #1 North Carolina had lost at Wake Forest in soccer, and Florida had won in five sets at Texas, where the Longhorns had not lost all season.
Chwalińska Comes Back to Win Wuhan
Maja Chwalińska beat Sonay Kartal 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 in 2 hours and 43 minutes to win the Wuhan Open, her first WTA title. Kartal controlled the opening set and broke early in the second, and Chwalińska, a left-hander, stayed close until 4-all, then took the next two games to force a decider. Kartal had little left in the third. Chwalińska won its last four games and saved three break points while serving for the title. The #16 seed came through qualifying to reach the Roland Garros final in June, and she is the fourth player since 2009 to make a WTA 1000 event the site of her first tour title.
Kartal, ranked #170 and back from a six-month injury layoff, beat three seeds on the way, including #5 Elina Svitolina, and she is the lowest-ranked finalist at this level since 1990. Top seeds Gabriela Dabrowski and Luisa Stefani won the doubles for their third straight title.
Real Sociedad Hand Barcelona Their First Loss
Barcelona arrived at Zubieta with six wins from six and 28 goals, and Real Sociedad, 15th with five points, came from behind to beat them 2-1. Patri Guijarro scored inside the first minute, but Cecilia Marcos leveled in the 13th, and in first-half stoppage time Nerea Eizagirre sent Ainhoa Marín through to round Cata Coll and roll the winner into an empty net. Alazne Estensoro made the saves that mattered in the second half, a Barcelona penalty was overturned on video review, and Ewa Pajor went close late. Barcelona have lost this fixture two seasons running.
Barcelona lead Real Madrid by two points, 18 to 16, with both on seven matches. Atlético de Madrid beat Madrid CFF 4-0, with two goals from Synne Jensen, and Rosa Otermín kept the clean sheet in goal after Lola Gallardo was sent off. Deportivo Abanca won 3-2 at Eibar, and Alavés and Sevilla drew 1-1.
Promoted Como Win at Juventus
Como 1907, in its first Serie A Women season, beat Juventus 4-2 in Biella to join Roma and Inter on nine points from three matches. Giusy Moraca scored in the 12th minute, and Alba Redondo leveled after halftime, but Tessa Wullaert restored the lead from the edge of the box in the 61st, and Agnese Bonfantini, a former Juventus forward, came off the bench to score twice against her old club. Como is only the second promoted side in 20 seasons to win its first three matches, after Juventus in 2017-18.
Roma came from 2-1 down to beat Milan 4-2, with two goals from Giada Pellegrino Cimò and the winner from Manuela Giugliano, and Inter beat Parma 3-0 to stay the only team yet to concede. Roma visit Juventus on Saturday.
Chelsea Score Six, City Stay Perfect
Chelsea broke open a 1-1 game against Tottenham at Stamford Bridge with three goals in nine minutes early in the second half and won 6-2. Lauren James scored twice on her own, Ellie Carpenter scored twice, Sjoeke Nüsken added one from a Keira Walsh pass, and Maika Hamano curled one in from almost 30 yards against the club where she spent last season on loan. Erin Cuthbert, the new club captain, made her first appearance of the season off the bench.
Manchester City answered by beating Brighton 3-2 for a sixth straight win and kept a two-point lead. Khadija Shaw scored twice, her sixth and seventh league goals, as City led 3-0 inside 17 minutes. London City Lionesses moved third by beating Everton 2-1, Manchester United won 3-1 at Charlton for a third straight league win, and Aston Villa beat Liverpool 2-1 for their first.
Louise Fleury Saves Marseille Late
Olympique de Marseille were seconds from their first league defeat of the season when substitute Louise Fleury scored four minutes into stoppage time for a 2-2 draw with FC Fleury 91 in Martigues. Shana Chossenotte put Fleury ahead in the 54th minute, Naomie Bamenga headed Marseille level in the 77th, and Cindy Caputo converted a penalty four minutes later. Marseille are fourth and unbeaten after five matches, but still without a win in seven top-flight meetings with Fleury.
OL Lyonnes lead with 15 points from 15 after Saturday’s 4-0 win at Paris Saint-Germain, three clear of PSG, and Marseille visit Lyon on Saturday.
Wolfsburg Go Top With Five at Mainz
VfL Wolfsburg beat Mainz 05 5-0 and moved past Bayern Munich on goal difference, though Bayern have a match in hand. Promoted Mainz, still without a point, held out until Ella Peddemors scored in the 36th minute, and she added a second in first-half stoppage time. Anny Kerim-Lindland and Svenja Huth scored within five minutes of the restart, and Kessya Bussy finished it in the 77th. It was Wolfsburg’s sixth win in seven league matches.
Union Berlin beat Nürnberg 2-1 before 7,042 at the Alte Försterei for a third straight win, with Eileen Campbell and Nele Bauereisen scoring either side of Lara Meroni’s equalizer. Werder Bremen called off their home match with Hoffenheim after an illness outbreak left them short of healthy players.
Brazil Pull Away From Canada
Canada scored in the fourth minute and drew level again early in the second half, and Brazil still won their U-17 Women’s World Cup opener 6-2 in Rabat. Reed Tingley put Canada ahead, Helena equalized in first-half stoppage time and Nicolly Manuel scored a minute after the restart. Chloe Scicchitano made it 2-2 in the 50th minute, and Brazil scored four more, two of them from Greise Kelly.
Norway beat Ghana 3-0 in the other Group C match, with two goals from Maia Melgård. Japan opened Group D by beating Zambia 5-0, and France beat Venezuela 2-0. Canada play Norway on Wednesday, and Japan meet France.
Jeruto Breaks Through in Toronto
Leah Jeruto of Kenya pulled away over the final five kilometers to win the Toronto Waterfront Marathon in 2:21:19, more than three minutes faster than she had ever run. The leaders went through halfway in 1:10:58 into a cold wind off Lake Ontario, and Jeruto was the only one able to stay with the last pacer, who took her to 41 kilometers. Ethiopia’s Nigsti Haftu finished 15 seconds back, and Ayinadis Teshome was third in 2:22:51.
Dayna Pidhoresky won the Canadian title in 2:26:02, a personal best that makes her the third-fastest Canadian woman ever, seven years after her first national title on the same course. Florence Caron took silver in her marathon debut.
Maryland Reaches 14-0
#1 Maryland beat Ohio State 4-0 in College Park to stay perfect at 14-0 and 5-0 in the Big Ten. Francisca Eschoyez and Babs van Hest scored in the first half, Feliz Kuhne struck twice in 81 seconds of the fourth quarter, and Alyssa Klebasko made seven saves for the shutout.
All six Top 10 teams in action won. #4 UMass won 11-0 at Bellarmine, outshooting the Knights 46-0, and freshman Amber Fairon set a program freshman record with her 14th goal. #5 Harvard won its 10th straight, #3 UConn its ninth, #6 Wake Forest beat Davidson 5-0, and #10 North Carolina beat Syracuse 2-1 on Charly Bruder’s late goal. Maryland plays at #2 Northwestern on Thursday.
Wake Forest Topples #1 North Carolina
Wake Forest beat #1 North Carolina 3-1 at Spry Stadium, only the second win over a top-ranked team in program history. Bella Devey put the Tar Heels ahead with her 15th goal of the season, and the #4 Demon Deacons answered with two goals 81 seconds apart, from Henley Tippins in the 21st minute and Allie Flanagan a minute later, both set up by Riley Cross. Kylie Maxwell made it 3-1 less than a minute into the second half. North Carolina had most of the ball after that, outshooting Wake 23-5 and winning 13 corners to three, but Valentina Amaral made six saves.
#2 Vanderbilt stayed unbeaten at 14-0-1 with a 2-1 win at #8 Alabama, where Courtney Jones leveled from the penalty spot and Megan Hinnenkamp won it with a 65th-minute shot into the upper corner. #6 South Carolina drew 1-1 at Texas, so Vanderbilt can clinch its first SEC regular-season title since 2018 with one win in its last two matches. #3 Ohio State won 2-1 at #20 Purdue, where freshman Lizzie Rozmajzl saved a penalty in her first career start, and #24 Florida State won 2-1 at Pitt.
Ottawa Scores Five to Close In on Montreal
Ottawa Rapid FC fell two goals behind Vancouver Rise FC inside 17 minutes at TD Place and answered with five straight to win 5-2 in their last home match of the regular season. Anna Bout and Latifah Abdu scored a minute apart for Vancouver before Delaney Baie Pridham pulled one back. Halftime substitute Florence Belzile tied it in the 53rd minute and put Ottawa ahead in the 68th, Elise Bell added a fourth off the bench and Pridham scored again in stoppage time. The Rapid moved second with 40 points, two behind Montreal Roses FC, where they play on Friday.
Calgary Wild FC beat AFC Toronto for the first time, 1-0 at BMO Field, on Jorian Baucom’s fifth-minute goal, and Sarah Keilty-Dilling stopped all seven Toronto shots on target for a second straight clean sheet. Toronto stay third and are already safe in the playoffs. Halifax Tides FC and Vancouver, level on 28 points, will settle the last playoff place in the final round.
Mercado Scores Twice as Seattle Win in Chicago
Maddie Mercado scored twice as Seattle Reign FC beat the Chicago Stars FC 3-1 at Martin Stadium and climbed back into eighth place, above the playoff line. Mercado finished a move that ran through Jess Fishlock in the 38th minute, Nerilia Mondesir doubled the lead less than six minutes after coming off the bench, and Mercado headed in Brittany Ratcliffe’s cross four minutes later for her 10th goal of the season. Simone Charley’s first goal for Chicago came in the closing minutes. Seattle have 43 points, three behind sixth-place Utah Royals FC, where they play on Friday.
Rookie Solai Washington won the penalty Luana converted and then scored her first professional goal from a Marta pass as the Orlando Pride won 2-1 at Houston. The assist was Marta’s 20th for Orlando, making her the fourth player in league history with 40 goals and 20 assists for one club. In San Jose, Caiya Hanks scored in the 86th minute to give the Portland Thorns a 2-2 draw with Bay FC before 14,451.
Tigres Clinch a Quarterfinal Place
Tigres beat Querétaro 2-0 in Monterrey to clinch a place in the Apertura 2026 quarterfinals, joining Rayadas and América as the first three clubs through. Alison González scored before halftime, and Querétaro, last in Group A with six points all season, stayed within a goal until Deiry Ramírez settled it deep in stoppage time. Tigres have 28 points, two behind Rayadas, and under this season’s new format only the top four in each group go through.
América beat Pachuca 2-1 on goals from Irene Guerrero and Geyse to lead Group B by seven points over Chivas, who play later this round. Wendy Toledo saved a penalty and the rebound as Pumas beat Atlas 1-0 on Stephanie Ribeiro’s 18th-minute goal and moved into fourth, and Farlyn Caicedo scored twice as FC Juárez won 2-1 at Atlético de San Luis.
Florida Hands Texas Its First Home Loss
#7 Florida beat #12 Texas 21-25, 25-16, 24-26, 25-23, 15-11 before a sold-out Gregory Gymnasium, the Longhorns’ first home loss of the season. The Gators lost the third set after leading 24-23, came back from 20-18 down in the fourth and won it on two straight Texas errors, and Kamryn Chaney ended the fifth with a kill. Four Gators reached double-digit kills for the first time this season, led by middle blocker Alec Rothe with career highs of 17 kills and eight blocks, and setter Taylor Parks had a career-high 59 assists. Florida is 15-2 with its sixth ranked win.
Unranked Baylor swept #10 TCU in Fort Worth behind 23 kills from Ksenia Rakhmanchik, who saved three set points in the third, and #8 Arizona State came back from two sets down to win at #17 Kansas, with 25 kills from Noemie Glover. #3 Louisville swept #23 North Carolina to stay 8-0 in the ACC, #18 Indiana swept #20 Washington, and #2 Pitt, #4 Kentucky and #5 SMU all won in straight sets.
Bertone Wins the Last Boulder Stop
Oriane Bertone of France won the final Boulder event of the World Climbing Series season in Salt Lake City with 84.6 points, nearly 15 clear of the field, for her third career series gold. She was the only woman to top all four boulders in the semifinal and the only finalist to top the first problem, and she closed the night by topping the fourth. Erin McNeice of Great Britain took silver with 69.7, a tenth of a point ahead of Japan’s Mao Nakamura.
McNeice’s silver clinched the 2026 Boulder Series title with 4,545 points, ahead of Oce Mackenzie of Australia on 4,080 and Annie Sanders of the United States on 3,755. She opened the season 11th in Keqiao and then reached five podiums, one win and four second places. The series finishes in Santiago, Chile, next week with the last Lead and Speed rounds.
Fernandez Beats Mertens From 5-3 Down
Leylah Fernandez came from 5-3 down in the third set to beat #7 Elise Mertens 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 on the opening day of the Ningbo Open. Mertens, a Beijing semifinalist this month with a win over Iga Świątek, took the first set as easily as she had won their only previous meeting, in Dubai last year. The second set turned on return games, with Mertens broken three times, and in the third the Belgian did not win another game after reaching 5-3, one game from the match.
#8 Sorana Cîrstea beat qualifier Han Shi 6-3, 6-2, a week after Han knocked Alexandra Eala out of Wuhan. Elena Rybakina, Świątek, Marta Kostyuk and Iva Jović have first-round byes, and Fernandez is in Kostyuk’s quarter.
LAST LIGHT
Maja Chwalińska gets one morning with the Wuhan trophy. The new champion is already in the Ningbo draw, where she meets qualifier Katarzyna Kawa in an all-Polish first round at a tournament that has already lost a seed.
Wolfsburg’s place at the top of Germany may last only a day, since Bayern Munich play their match in hand at noon. Later in the week Maryland takes its unbeaten season to #2 Northwestern on Thursday, and Ottawa go to Montreal on Friday with first place in the Northern Super League in reach.