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With Thanksgiving creeping up, it feels like the time to give thanks for an incredible year of women's sports (with a couple more weeks to go). This year, we watched a dynasty reach its peak, legends go out on top, a team seek and earn redemption, and so much more.
Before we dive into the moments we loved watching this year, Thanksgiving won't feel right without Brittney Griner back home in America. For nearly 300 days, Griner has been detained in Russia, and, most recently, sent to a penal colony. President Biden, please do more to bring BG home.
Here are the moments we're thankful for (in no particular order).
1. The Las Vegas Aces winning their first-ever championship!
The first step was bringing a team to the desert, the second was giving them some hardware. At long last, after back-to-back-to-back No. 1 picks, a coaching change, and A'ja Wilson's rise to GOAT status, the Aces earned the franchise's first ring.
And the championship parade was as legendary as we'd hoped.
2. South Carolina basketball winning a championship
Big year for the Gamecocks. Then-junior Aliyah Boston avenged a sophomore-year Final Four blunder to cap off a remarkable season as the best player in the country by cutting down the nets. That's a second win for Dawn Staley, too.
3. Crystal Dunn's game-winning semifinals goal
Less than four months after giving birth to her first child, son Marcel, Dunn returned to the pitch. One month later, she kicked the stoppage time goal that allowed her Portland Thorns team to reach, and inevitably win, the 2022 NWSL championship.
4. Jocelyn Alo's softball destruction
En route to another College World Series Championship, we got to witness the greatness of Alo, who set and continued to break the all-time D1 softball home run record at 122 in her career. That's 27 more than the next-most prolific hitter.
5. Sue Bird and Sylvia Fowles going out on their own terms
It wasn't perfect, but it was their choice. Two of the best in women's basketball got to hang it up when they were ready, even though we'll miss them.
6. Sydney McLaughlin's unreal 400m hurdles
Unfreakingstoppable. At 50.68 seconds during the World Athletics Championship, Sydney McLaughlin beat Sydney McLaughlin's record of 51.41 seconds. In third place is Sydney McLaughlin, while in fourth place overall is... Sydney McLaughlin.
7. We got to witness Serena's greatness one last time
We'll forever be thankful for this, which included an upset of 2-seed Anett Kontaveit. Serena went out looking every bit like the Serena we've been in awe of for decades.
