Washington Spirit and U.S. women’s national team forward Ashley Hatch has announced the birth of her son Leo.

Hatch and her husband Jeff Van Buren welcomed their first child after originally announcing they were expecting last summer.

‘Leo is here and we are loving every minute with him. We could not be happier to be a family of 3. Our hearts are so full,’ Hatch said on Instagram.

Hatch most recently played in May, leaving the Spirit without their all-time leading scorer for the remainder of the 2025 season.

The 30-year-old has been one of the most consistent scorers in the NWSL since beginning her pro career in 2017. With 59 career regular-season goals, Hatch ranks fifth in the league’s history.

Hatch has 23 caps with the USWNT, earning call-ups for January camp last year and for the team’s two April friendlies against Brazil.

The striker appeared in one of the two matches against Brazil, making her first USWNT appearance since 2023.

MIAMI GARDENS, FL – All Carson Beck could do was raise both hands and place them on either side of his helmet.

The journey that brought the quarterback to South Florida, united him with Mario Cristobal and the Miami Hurricanes, died with one inexplicable, puzzling pass that came no where near its intended target and fell into the hands of Indiana’s Jamari Sharpe.

The Hurricanes ran into a buzzsaw, one of the greatest stories, not just in college football, but all of sports, and did something no other team could do in this playoff … take the Indiana Hoosiers down to the wire.

But, still, falling short 27-21 in the college football championship game in their home stadium will sting.

And sting bad.

Miami’s heroics in a season in which it was able to overcome two midseason losses and catch lightning in a bottle in the playoffs fell one game short.

‘For it to end like that, it’s hard, it’s really tough,’ Beck said. ‘For a group that has faced so much adversity throughout the season. To face adversity early on (in the championship game) and battle our way back to even have that opportunity to have a chance to win the game at the end says a lot about this team and about us.’

Beck will take heat for that last pass, a heave that came on first down from the Indiana 41-yard line and was intercepted six yards short of the goal line with 44 seconds to play.

Miami never lead and fell behind by 10 points three times, the last two in the second half on backbreaking, demoralizing plays.

But even after Isaiah Jones recovered Mikail Kamara’s blocked punt in the end zone to make the score 17-7, and after Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza’s 12-yard touchdown run on fourth down in which he pinballed off Hurricanes defenders and flew into the end zone to make it 24-14, Miami never wavered.

And there the Hurricanes were, 75 yards from a national championship with 102 seconds remaining.

Red and white confetti falls as Indiana fans celebrate

And about a minute later, Hard Rock Stadium turned into Memorial Stadium South, with red-clad Hoosiers — who by the way outnumbered the fans from the team playing in its home stadium — soaking up the red and white confetti and partying like they were at a John Mellencamp concert.

While Indiana (16-0) became the first team to win 16 games in a college football season since Yale did in 1894, Miami (13-3) is the first Hurricanes team to win 13 games in a season.

And although those numbers are skewed because of the expanded playoffs, it still says something about what the Hurricanes, a proud program with five national championships, accomplished after more than two decades of irrelevance.

Cristobal isn’t one to pay attention to the ‘The U is Back’ chatter that started during Miami’s greatest season since the early 2000s.

Miami’s coach has first-hand knowledge as a player of the program’s heyday in 1980s and early 1990s when it won four titles in an eight-year span. When this program was as good as it gets in college football.

Those days are gone. Never to be replicated.

And Cristobal understands the landscape is so different now. The blueprint to building a program in the 2020s in nothing like it was four decades, or even two decades, or a decade, ago.

Not even close.

Now, it takes money, first and foremost. And more money means more talent. And Cristobal has been able to parlay his ability to recruit and a collective that invested more than $20 million into the 2025 roster to build a team with enough talent to overcame any adversity or coaching shortcomings.

The challenge now for Miami is not to become a one-hit wonder. Not be like 2023 Florida State that followed its 13-1 season with a stunning nose dive that has resulted in two losing seasons since.

So, is The U Back?

It takes more than one magical run to the national title game. Consistency can be fleeting now more than ever with open free agency, every year.

College football truly is a fluid business.

‘I think that’s the biggest misconception in sports; well, they almost got there, they’ll be back next year,’ Cristobal said. ‘That’s a bunch of bull. You’ve got to improve from a roster standpoint, a regimen standpoint, discipline, everything, and move forward, and these guys have set the standard to help us get there.’

We will find out soon if this was a fluke. Or if The U is Back.

Tom D’Angelo is a senior sports columnist and reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at tdangelo@pbpost.com.

It could be time for a sequel to “Cool Runnings,’’ the movie inspired by the 1998 Winter Olympic debut of the Jamaican bobsled team..

The Jamaicans have become more than a feel-good Olympics story.

They have qualified for three bobsled spots at the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina, Italy, the Jamaican Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation announced Jan. 19. Jamaicans qualified three sleds for the first time at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing,

The contigent qualified to compete in Italy are the two-man team, four-man team and women’s monobob, according to the Jamaican federation, which announced the two-woman team is ranked as first alternate should another country withdraw from competiton.

“This achievement reflects sustained excellence, commitment and international competitiveness on the world stage,’’ the federation said.

The Jamaicans failed to qualify for the Olympics in 2006, 2010 and 2018 before getting back on track in 2022. And in November 2025, Jamaica won a gold medal at an international bobsled competition for the first time ever.

Jamaican beat Canada in the four-man competition to win at the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation’s North American Cup in Whistler, British Columbia.

“It’s just a great feeling, honestly,’’ Jamaican team member Junior Harris said, according to a CBC report after that victory. “I can’t find words to explain it.

“It just feels real good because our families are proud and the whole island of Jamaica is proud.”

Fellow team member Shane Pitter said he couldn’t believe it when the Jamaicans crossed the finish line and saw they were in first place.

“Like, is this possible? Is this what I’m really seeing, first place?” Pitter said, according to the CBC report. “I was just standing there speechless.”

It would be far more shocking if the Jamaicans won a medal at the Olympics.

“Follow our race schedule, cheer us on, and ride with us on this Olympic journey,’’ the federation wrote on its Instagram account a day after the Jamaicans won their first international gold medal. “Let’s show the world that Jamaican ice is still very real.’’

Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III noticed a certain demeanor from the San Francisco 49ers amid his stellar performance in the NFL playoffs’ divisional round.

Walker rushed for a playoff-best and season-high 116 yards and three touchdowns against a 49ers team that had little to no answers for the running back during a 41-6 rout.  

“You can see it when they’re breathing, they’re tired. They’re slow to get up. You can see it being demoralizing to them,” Walker explained. “We just got to keep doing that.”

Keep doing that is exactly what Seattle’s offense needs to get through the Los Angeles Rams on Jan. 25 and advance to Super Bowl 60. The Seahawks have won eight consecutive games. Seattle’s last loss, coincidentally, came against the Rams in Week 11.

Seattle’s rushing attack has been revitalized during its hot streak. The Seahawks have gained more than 160 rushing yards in four straight games, including 175 yards against San Francisco.

The Seahawks have particularly found success on outside runs of late. They averaged more than six yards on runs toward the left end and on carries directed toward the right tackle against the 49ers.  

“A lot of it is coming on wide zone, you know that’s something that we’ve been having to work all year and that’s where we hang our hat on,” Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said. “So, it’s great to see it come to life.”

Kenneth Walker III fuels Seahawks’ resurgent rushing attack

Walker’s been the predominant figure in the resurgence of the Seahawks’ rushing attack. He’s rushed for at least 97 yards in three of the past four contests and compiled no fewer than 133 yards from scrimmage in three of the last four games, including 145 yards from scrimmage against the 49ers.   

“It’s really just details and execution,” Walker said. “We go over it, we watch film, and then we go execute it at practice and it shows in the game.” 

Walker has averaged more than six yards a carry in three of the past four contests – two games against the 49ers and one against the Rams.

“For him to have the success that he’s having, it’s super cool. Nobody is more deserving and excited to continue to block for him for another week. He’s a dynamic back, and it’s one of those deals where you just got to give him a chance and he’s going to make you right,” Seahawks rookie guard Grey Zabel told USA TODAY Sports. “It’s one of those deals where you just got to give him a hole just kind of block your guy, and he’s going to make you right 99% of the time. It’s unbelievable to block for a guy like that, and we have a lot of fun doing it.”

Walker is imperative for Seattle’s offense going forward. Zach Charbonnet suffered a season-ending knee injury in the divisional round and Sam Darnold is playing through an oblique injury in which he admitted he’s going to have to manage throughout the postseason.

Walker’s success on the ground eases the pressure on Darnold, who just recorded his first postseason win, and makes life easier for the entire offense.

“It opens (the offense) up,” Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba said. “You got to respect it, all areas of our offense.”

Aside from the ultimate goal of a Super Bowl, Walker has another looming incentive to keep playing at a high level. The fourth-year running back is an impending free agent. Walker’s performance to close the season could seemingly have a financial impact on the running back.

There’s no better time for Walker to prove his worth than now. His career night in the divisional round showed his importance to Seattle’s offense. Yet he’ll underscore his value with another superb outing in the NFC championship game.

Follow USA TODAY Sports’ Tyler Dragon on X @TheTylerDragon.

Manny Ramirez’s candidacy is over.

Alex Rodriguez’s realistic chance remains on life-support.

Andy Pettitte’s voting uptick remains confusing.

Welcome to the 2026 Baseball Hall of Fame election where there will be precious little suspense when the election results are announced Tuesday at 6 p.m. on the MLB Network.

Beltrán, after being snubbed his first three years on the ballot for being part of the 2017 Houston Astros’ cheating scandal, looks to be a lock. One of the greatest switch-hitters of all time, Beltrán has received 89.2% of nearly half of the ballots already made public according to Ryan Thibodeaux’s Hall of Fame tracker.

Andruw Jones, the 10-time Gold Glove center fielder who hit 434 homers and was one of the greatest defensive outfielders in history – saving 265.9 more runs than the average defender – could also join Beltrán. Jones, whose spectacular career plummeted at the age of 30, has garnering 83% of the early public votes entering Tuesday.

The two should be joining second baseman Jeff Kent, who was elected by the contemporary era committee in December, on center stage July 26 in Cooperstown, N.Y.

The most fascinating aspect of this election is not who’s getting in, but who’s gaining momentum, thanks to advance analytics, a new round of voters, and a heavy dose of sentimentalism.

No one’s candidacy is more baffling than starter Andy Pettitte. His chances for election looked dead two years ago. Suddenly, he’s flourishing. He received just 13.5% of the vote two years ago, but in his eighth year of eligibility this year, he is now receiving 57.4% of the votes, according to Thibodaux’s tracking.

Pettitte was never the best pitcher on his own team, but was one of the steadiest in the game. He was a postseason fixture, helping lead the Yankees to five World Series championships and three pennants. He pitched in an MLB-record 44 postseason games, winning 19 of them, including eight series-clinching games. He won 256 regular season games, but also had a 3.85 ERA, which would be the highest of any pitcher elected on a BBWAA ballot.

Pettitte’s candidacy gained momentum when Yankees starter CC Sabathia was elected a year ago with eerily similar numbers, with the exception of Sabathia striking out 3,093 batters compared to Pettitte’s 2,448 total.

Still, the elephant in the room is that Pettitte was an admitted PED user, and the Baseball Writers’ Association of America has made it quite clear how it views steroid users.

Barry Bonds, who hit the most homers in history and was easily the greatest player of his generation with his seven MVPs, never got close to being voted into the Hall of Fame on the BBWAA ballot. Bonds also has since been snubbed twice by his peers and executives on the contemporary era committee. He must wait six years to be included on the next contemporary era ballot, and if he again receives five or fewer votes, he’ll be permanently off the ballot.

Roger Clemens, who won 354 games and was a seven-time Cy Young winner, also is in the same Hall of Fame doghouse for his links to PEDs. He’s also ineligible to be on the ballot again for six years.

So, why in the world would Pettitte, who was outed in the Mitchell report on PEDs in baseball, and confessed to using HGH once his name surfaced, suddenly receive a huge bump of voting support.

No player in baseball history has ever admitted to PED use and been elected to the Hall of Fame.

Not one.

If Pettitte were somehow elected, how hypocritical would it be to keep Clemens, Bonds, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, and everyone else out who was linked to PEDs?

And if voters are forgiving Pettitte, who has apologized for using HGH, does that mean that Alex Rodriguez should be too? He has been profusely apologizing at every opportunity for using PEDs, receiving the longest drug suspension in baseball history.

Why are we forgiving Pettitte, because he says he used only HGH to recover for injuries? Or is it because he’s a genuinely good guy, model teammate, was popular with the media, and is the pitching coach for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic?

If Pettitte is elected one day, will we suddenly stop caring who cheated, who was clean, and simply elect whoever had the best numbers, no matter how long they played?

Please, make it make sense.

While Pettite’s candidacy has new life, we’re seeing a rise with other players, too, with second baseman Chase Utley picking up 20 new voters, and trending at 67.9%. Utley’s popularity has grow thanks in part to advanced metrics. His career WAR, according to Baseball Reference, is the 15th highest of all second basemen, and 10 of the top 14 have all been enshrined in Cooperstown. Utley was always respected as a tenacious winning player, and was integral part of the Phillies’ glorious postseason run, but he still ended up with just 1,855 hits.

If Utley gets in, how can his double-play partner, Jimmy Rollins, the former MVP and four-time Gold Glove winner be left out? If you vote for one, shouldn’t both be in? Besides, Rollins is the only shortstop in history with more than 2,400 hits, 200 homers, 400 steals and 800 extra-base hits, according to Jayson Stark of The Athletic.

And if Utley is in, shouldn’t former Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia follow? Pedroia looked to be on the way to Cooperstown – winning an MVP award, four Gold Gloves and two World Series rings – but he suffered a left knee injury that all but officially ended his career after 12 full seasons. He wound up with 1,805 hits, but has picked up 19 new votes since a year ago.

If Pedroia gets in with his shortened career, do we look closer at Mets third baseman David Wright, who picked up 14 new votes? He had a sensational 10-year start of his career, but his career prematurely ended after dealing with spinal stenosis, winding up with just 1,777 hits.

There could be a trickle-down effect for the pitchers, too.

If Felix Hernandez – who is receiving 56.6% of the balloting after picking up 43 voters from a year ago – gets into Cooperstown, will pitchers with nothing-burger Hall of Fame candidacies suddenly look as appealing as prime cuts?

Hernandez was dominant from 2009-2015, winning a Cy Young award with four top-four finishes, but his career cratered when he turned 30. He ended up with 169 victories and never pitched in the postseason in his career. And the only starters voted into the Hall of Fame on the BBWAA ballot with fewer than 170 victories and 2,800 innings are Sandy Koufax and Dizzy Dean.

If Hernandez (169-136, 3.42 ERA) finds his way in, how can you keep out Cole Hamels (163-122, 3.43 ERA, along with eight postseasons)? How about Mark Buehrle (214-160, 3.81, three postseasons)?

How are we going to view Jon Lester and Adam Wainwright in the future? They each had 200 victories, and unlike Hernandez, actually led their teams to World Series championships and pennants.

So, where does it end?

Look, everyone who appears on the Hall of Fame ballot had an outstanding career, but entrance into Cooperstown is supposed to be reserved for the elite of the elite.

It shouldn’t be a popularity contest.

It shouldn’t be sympathy votes because of shortened careers.

We shouldn’t lower our standards.

Come on, if former outfielder Bobby Abreu received only 5.5% of the vote in his first year on the ballot in 2020, there’s no reason to suddenly believe he’s a Hall of Famer because his .395 career on-base percentage is illuminated by analytics. He made only two All-Star teams and never once finished in the top 10 of the MVP voting in any of his 18 years.

It’s perfectly fine to maintain lofty standards and help assure that only the best of the best receive the game’s ultimate honor.

It doesn’t mean that a player must produce 3,000 hits, a slugger has to hit 500 homers, a starter has to win 300 games or a closer obtain 600 saves. The Hall of Fame will have cobwebs waiting for new inductees if we don’t recognize that the traditional benchmarks  have changed.

But we don’t have to squeeze in as many players as possible through the Hall of Fame doors while waiting for Albert Pujols, Clayton Kershaw and Miguel Cabrera to arrive.

The Hall of Fame deserves to maintain a membership confined to the greatest who ever played the game.

If it’s no trouble, let’s keep it that way.

Follow Nightengale on X: @Bnightengale

As Indiana celebrated winning a national championship at Hard Rock Stadium, an incident unfolded on the field.

ESPN cameras caught Miami running back Mark Fletcher Jr. throwing a punch at Indiana defensive lineman Tyrique Tucker postgame. Fletcher can be seen taking a swipe at Tucker as and appearing to try and grab him while yelling at him before a Miami staff member intervened. The staff member prevented the incident from escalating further as he guided Fletcher away from the field.

It is unknown what started the scuffle. During the postgame aftermath, ESPN reporter Holly Rowe posted a picture of Fletcher embracing with Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, adding he ‘waited a long time’ to meet with the Heisman Trophy winner.

Fletcher had a big game in his hometown for the Hurricanes, as they fell just short of winning their first national championship since 2001. He had 17 carriers for a game-high 112 yards and two touchdowns in the losing effort, including a 57-yard touchdown run that got Miami on the board.