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3 Stocks to Watch While Everyone’s Staring at NVIDIA

Stock 4 Mins Read

This week, while everyone else is focused on NVIDIA Corp. (NVDA), we will focus our attention on stocks with earnings that may get overlooked.

We’re watching a different group of stocks heading into earnings: Okta, Inc. (OKTA), AutoZone, Inc. (AZO), and Salesforce.com, Inc. (CRM). OKTA and AZO are making new highs as they head into their earnings call, while CRM is struggling.

Let’s break down the best risk/reward set-ups as we kick off the week.

Okta, Inc. (OKTA): Volatility Now, Potential Later

Okta’s stock price broke out to new 52-week highs a week before it posts its quarterly numbers. The cybersecurity company has experienced extreme volatility after posting earnings. In the last three quarters, the stock saw some pretty big swings—up 24.3%, up 5.4%, and down 17.6%. Its average price change post-earnings is +/-10.2%.

Technically, I love this setup. Let’s look at a five-year daily chart.

Shares have broken out ahead of earnings and have a lot to reverse. If we see weakness after results, there are several support areas where we would want to enter the stock with favorable risk/reward. The first strong support area is between $115/$118, an old resistance level that the stock just eclipsed. Old resistance could act as new support and provide an opportunity.

Outside of recent weakness due to “Liberation Day,” OKTA’s stock price has outperformed its peers and held key moving averages. Use levels just below the 50-day moving average around $110 as a near-term stop if $115 doesn’t hold.

To the upside, there is much to reverse and targets of $150 to $160 are attainable. If you’re a longer-term investor, the downtrend is broken and the bulls are back in charge.

AutoZone, Inc. (AZO): Riding Steady 

The retail leader in automotive replacement parts and accessories, AutoZone, Inc. (AZO), continues to rise, slowly and steadily, despite market volatility. The stock price is up 20% year-to-date, and we hope to add to those gains when they report on Tuesday morning.

One thing that has helped AZO’s continued growth is that the average car is roughly 12 years old. Consumers are investing more in maintenance and repairs instead of purchasing new vehicles. And with tariffs, buying a new car becomes more expensive, which benefits the car repair and maintenance business.

Let’s look at that long-term uptrend on a weekly chart going back five years.

The stock is a juggernaut. It has ridden the 50-week moving average consistently since Covid. It is in a beautiful uptrend and made new highs again just last week.

While the trend itself appears a tad extended above its averages, any trip back towards its recent uptrend line gives investors a strong entry point, with downside risk towards its 50-week moving average.

It’s also the best in class when compared to its top competitors, such as O’Reilly Automotive (ORLY) and Advanced Auto Parts (AAP). When looking at strong uptrends in a challenging environment, it’s best to find the best in class, and AZO continues to be just that. The trend continues to be the investor’s best friend.

Salesforce (CRM) Hits a Crossroads

A year ago, Salesforce (CRM) shocked investors with a revenue miss for the first time since 2006. This resulted in the stock price dropping 20% (red box in the chart below). It marked the stock’s low point, as it rallied as much as 74% over the next seven months. It now sits in the middle of a wide year-long range and is poised to move again.

Which way will it go? To examine that question, let’s look at the daily chart of CRM.

Technically, shares are at a crossroads. Shares dropped 37% from their December peak after forming a double top. It just broke its near-term downtrend from its post-Liberation Day lows, experiencing a 28% rally, but paused right at its 200-day moving average.

Momentum appears to be negative. The Moving Average Convergence/Divergence (MACD) has formed a bearish crossover, and shares failed to eclipse the 200-day. Shares are down -18% for 2025, underperforming the tech sector and the S&P 500. CRM sold off late Friday, hitting its 50-day moving average, on news that it’s in talks to acquire Informatica.

If you’re thinking of buying CRM, you may want to hold your horses. Watch the 50-day moving average around $270 to see if it can hold. On strength, look for confirmation and a close above the $295 level for an all clear that momentum has finally shifted in favor of the bulls.

Final Thoughts

OKTA, AZO, and CRM are thoughtful plays based on technical trends and real-world fundamentals. OKTA and AZO could have favorable risk/reward setups. As for CRM, add it to your ChartLists and monitor it regularly.

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My Durable Advantage as an Investor is My Experience: Here are Seven Examples

Stock 3 Mins Read

It scares me to admit I’ve been investing for over 50 years. It’s been a great ride, and fortunately I’m still going strong. One of my investment mantras thru all these years has been Charlie Munger’s quintessential advice: “try to be consistently not stupid.”

We all make investing mistakes, but not all of us learn the appropriate lessons from those mistakes. This blog is less about mistakes and more about lessons. If the investment genie were to offer me a redo on my portfolio management execution from these past decades, here are seven things I would do differently next time around.

  1. More USA, less international. I know what you’re thinking—what about diversification? But I believe that William O’Neil had it right all along. American ingenuity is where you want to invest. Besides, great American companies do business all over the globe. Microsoft is doing your diversification for you.
  2. Hot money managers are not worth chasing. I’ve been guilty of this. Sometimes it works, but only if you get in early and don’t overstay to the point when their hot hand inevitably cools — and it will. I have a long list of managers who can claim this crown.
  3. Keep it simple. Adding complexity or asset classes or different methodologies to your portfolio mix seldom results in outperformance, but we investors will continue to be tempted. Something about human nature wants to seek out complexity. Fight the urge.
  4. Private equity and hedge funds. Recently, the number of new funds and new money has swollen significantly. I never liked the high fees, long terms and lack of liquidity. There are just too many other sensational stock market options (albeit less sexy for cocktail party discussions.)
  5. Fees matter. Even small differences matter and will add up over time. Too often, investors pay for the Los Angeles Dodgers and end up getting the Wichita Mudcats.
  6. Ride those winners! I’ve had five long term holdings that have paid a lot of bills. Hold tight when you find an AMZN, MSFT, COST, V, or MA.
  7. Investing is the art of man versus markets. The voodoo within investing is how best to control your Investor Self. If you memorize only one of the 10 Essential Stages of Stock Market Mastery from our book, let it be Stage 3—The Investor Self.

Trade well; trade with discipline!

Gatis Roze, MBA, CMT

StockMarketMastery.com

P.S. If you would like to be notified when I post a new Traders Journal blog, please submit your preference via the tile in the right column titled FOLLOW THIS BLOG.

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Forte Minerals Announces Private Placement of up to C$2.4 Million

Investing 5 Mins Read

‘Not for distribution to United States newswire services or for dissemination in the United States.’

Forte Minerals Corp . ( ‘ Forte ‘ or the ‘ Company ‘ ) ( CSE: CUAU ) ( OTCQB: FOMNF ) ( Frankfurt: 2OA ), intends to complete a non-brokered private placement (the ‘Offering’) to raise up to C$2,400,000 for drilling and exploration programs on the Company’s Peruvian projects and for general working capital, all as further outlined below.

The Offering involves the sale of up to 6,000,000 units (each a ‘Unit’) at a price of $0.40 per Unit.

Unit Terms:

  • Each Unit: one common share and one-half of one common share purchase warrant
  • Warrant: each whole warrant exercisable for one common share at C$0.60 until the date that is 24 months from the closing of the Offering, provided the warrants are subject to accelerated exercise such that if the closing price of the Company’s common shares exceeds C$0.90 per share for a period of 20 consecutive trading days, the Company may give notice of the acceleration of the warrants’ term to a period of 30 days following such notice.

All securities issued will be subject to a statutory four-month-plus-one-day hold period in accordance with applicable Canadian securities laws. Additional restrictions may apply pursuant to the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, to U.S. investors, if any.

Use of Proceeds:

  • Pucarini: Inaugural five-hole drill program for total of 1750m scheduled to start this July 2025.
  • Esperanza : MT Survey
  • Alto Ruri : DIA Drill Permitting and Community Agreements, surface exploration work including follow-up alteration and geological mapping, geochemical sampling, spectral analysis, IP and CSMAT.
  • General working capital

Finder’s fees may be paid to eligible persons in connection with the Offering, subject to the policies of the CSE.

The Company, at its discretion, reserves the right to increase the size of the Offering by up to $300,000.00 through the sale of 750,000 additional Units, for an aggregate Offering not exceeding $2,700,000.

‘ We appreciate our shareholders’ continued confidence,’ stated Patrick Elliott, President and CE O. ‘This financing positions us to drill test a high sulphidation system that’s never been drilled and to unlock the value of Alto Ruri, Esperanza and Miscanthus .’

The Offering is expected to close on or before June 15, 2025, subject to customary conditions, including the receipt of all required regulatory approvals .

ABOUT Forte Minerals CORP.

Forte Minerals Corp. is an exploration company with a strong portfolio of high-quality copper (‘ Cu ‘) and gold (‘ Au ‘) assets in Perú. Our strategic partnership with GlobeTrotters Resources Perú S.A.C. (‘ GTR ‘) grants us access to a comprehensive project pipeline, enabling us to target the most promising opportunities. This collaboration focuses on historically discovered, drill-ready targets, driving significant value in Cu and Au resource development.

On behalf of  Forte Minerals CORP.
(signed) ‘ Patrick Elliott’
Chief Executive Officer

For further information, please contact:
Forte Minerals Corp.
office: (604) 983-8847
info@forteminerals.co m
www.forteminerals.com

Certain statements included in this press release constitute forward-looking information or statements (collectively, ‘forward-looking statements’), including those identified by the expressions ‘anticipate’, ‘believe’, ‘plan’, ‘estimate’, ‘expect’, ‘intend’, ‘may’, ‘should’ and similar expressions to the extent they relate to the Company or its management. The forward-looking statements are not historical facts but reflect current expectations regarding future results or events. This press release contains forward looking statements. These forward-looking statements and information reflect management’s current beliefs and are based on assumptions made by and information currently available to the company with respect to the matter described in this new release. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, which are based on current expectations as of the date of this release and subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. Additional information about these assumptions and risks and uncertainties is contained under ‘Risk Factors and Uncertainties’ in the Company’s latest management’s discussion and analysis, which is available under the Company’s SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca, and in other filings that the Company has made and may make with applicable securities authorities in the future.

Forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions which are difficult to predict. Factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include the continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. Forward-looking statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. These statements should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those implied by such statements. Although such statements are based on management’s reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that the statements will prove to be accurate or that management’s expectations or estimates of future developments, circumstances or results will materialize. The Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise forward-looking information to reflect new events or circumstances unless required by law. Readers should not place undue reliance on the Company’s forward-looking statements.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange (the ‘CSE’) nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

News Provided by GlobeNewswire via QuoteMedia

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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Precious Metals & Critical Minerals Hybrid Investor Conference: Presentations Now Available for Online Viewing

Investing 2 Mins Read

Virtual Investor Conferences, the leading proprietary investor conference series, today announced the presentations from Precious Metals & Critical Minerals Hybrid Virtual Investor Conference held May 22 nd are now available for online viewing.

VIEW PRESENTATIONS HERE

The company presentations will be available 24/7 for 90 days. Investors, advisors, and analysts may download
investor materials from the company’s resource section.

May 22 nd

Presentation Ticker(s)
Keynote Presentation: ‘What’s next for precious metals?’
-Jeff Christian, Managing Partner of CPM Group
Viva Gold Corp. (OTCQB: VAUCF | TSXV: VAU)
StrikePoint Gold, Inc. (OTCQB: STKXF | TSXV: SKP)
Honey Badger Silver Inc. (OTCQB: HBEIF | TSXV: TUF)
Relevant Gold Corp. (OTCQB: RGCCF | TSXV: RGC)
Keynote Presentation: ‘Surveying the Critical Metals Landscape,’
–Jack Lifton, Senior Advisor, Energy Fuels, Inc.
Azimut Exploration Inc. (OTCQX: AZMTF | TSXV: AZM)
Energy Fuels Inc. (NYSE American: UUUU | TSX: EFR)
Lion Copper & Gold Corp. (OTCQB: LCGMF | CSE: LEO)
Alaska Silver Corp. (Pink: WAMFF |TSXV: WAM)
Cygnus Metals Ltd. (OTCQB: CYGGF |TSXV: CYG |ASX: CY5)
Power Metallic Mines, Inc. (OTCQB: PNPNF |TSXV: PNPN)

To facilitate investor relations scheduling and to view a complete calendar of Virtual Investor Conferences, please visit www.virtualinvestorconferences.com .

About Virtual Investor Conferences ®

Virtual Investor Conferences (VIC) is the leading proprietary investor conference series that provides an interactive forum for publicly traded companies to seamlessly present directly to investors.

Providing a real-time investor engagement solution, VIC is specifically designed to offer companies more efficient investor access. Replicating the components of an on-site investor conference, VIC offers companies enhanced capabilities to connect with investors, schedule targeted one-on-one meetings and enhance their presentations with dynamic video content. Accelerating the next level of investor engagement, Virtual Investor Conferences delivers leading investor communications to a global network of retail and institutional investors.

Media Contact:  
OTC Markets Group Inc. +1 (212) 896-4428, media@otcmarkets.com

Virtual Investor Conferences Contact:
John M. Viglotti
SVP Corporate Services, Investor Access
OTC Markets Group
(212) 220-2221
johnv@otcmarkets.com

News Provided by GlobeNewswire via QuoteMedia

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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Crypto Market Recap: Bitcoin Breaks US$111,000, Trump Courts Memecoin Mega Donors

Investing 4 Mins Read

Here’s a quick recap of the crypto landscape for Friday (May 23) as of 9:00 a.m. UTC.

Get the latest insights on Bitcoin, Ethereum and altcoins, along with a round-up of key cryptocurrency market news.

Bitcoin and Ethereum price update

Bitcoin (BTC) was priced at US$110,637 as markets closed, down 2.4 percent in 24 hours. The day’s range for the cryptocurrency brought a low of US$108,334 and a new all-time high of US$111,814.

Bitcoin performance, May 23, 2025.

Chart via TradingView.

Ethereum (ETH) finished the trading day at US$2,659.55, a 3.5 percent decrease over the past 24 hours. The cryptocurrency reached an intraday low of US$2,541.09 and saw a daily high of US$2,720.92.

Altcoin price update

  • Solana (SOL) closed at US$179.09, down 0.5 percent over 24 hours. SOL experienced a low of US$176.13 and a high of US$186.92.
  • XRP is trading at US$2.43, reflecting a 3.0 percent decrease over 24 hours. The cryptocurrency reached a daily low of US$2.34 and a high of US$2.47.
  • Sui (SUI) is priced at US$3.83, showing a decreaseof 5.0 percent over the past 24 hours. It achieved a daily low of US$3.62 and a high of US$3.96.
  • Cardano (ADA) is trading at US$0.7973, down 3.2 percent over the past 24 hours. Its lowest price of the day was US$0.7717, and it reached a high of US$0.8341.

Today’s crypto news to know

Bitcoin price blasts past US$111,000

Bitcoin soared to a new all-time high of US$111,980 this week, extending its bull run on the back of rising institutional demand and increasingly vocal political support from Donald Trump.

The rally came as Trump hosted a private dinner at his Virginia golf club for top holders of his $TRUMP memecoin, an event that underscored his pivot to becoming crypto’s most visible political backer.

Analysts pointed to surging interest from entities like Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy), which just filed to sell US$2.1 billion in stock to buy more Bitcoin, as a key driver.

The rally is also fueled by expectations of clearer crypto regulation, with the Senate advancing a pro-stablecoin bill that Trump allies have framed as a pro-growth measure.

Major US banks bill unified Stablecoin

Several of the biggest US banks — including JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, and Citigroup — are in early discussions to jointly launch a stablecoin, according to a new Wall Street Journal report.

The goal: to create a financial instrument that can keep pace with crypto-native payment systems and prevent a further shift away from traditional finance.

Industry insiders say payment infrastructure arms like Zelle’s operator, Early Warning Services, and The Clearing House are also involved in talks. The stablecoin would likely be dollar-pegged and open to broader banking adoption beyond the founding consortium, reflecting a desire to modernize settlement rails and attract fintech interest.

The move comes as the GENIUS Act gains momentum in the US Senate, laying the groundwork for a formal regulatory framework around stablecoins.

Sun praises Trump at dinner, calls memecoins ‘underrated’

Justin Sun, once under legal siege during the Biden administration, was front and center at Donald Trump’s exclusive dinner for TRUMP memecoin whales — using the moment to declare a new era for crypto in the US.

In an interview after the event, Sun pushed back against critics who accused the memecoin gathering of being a crypto-access-for-cash scheme, saying skeptics are missing the big picture.

Sun has been a key figure in Trump’s crypto orbit since late last year, reportedly investing up to US$75 million in Trump-affiliated crypto projects, including World Liberty Financial tokens.

Legal issues still follow Sun — including an ongoing DOJ investigation — but his comments make clear that the crypto industry sees Trump’s administration as a major opening.

Ember Sword becomes latest Web3 game casualty amid market slump

Ethereum-based MMORPG Ember Sword has shut down its development, citing an inability to raise sufficient funding despite a previously strong start and multimillion-dollar NFT land sales.

The studio behind the game posted a farewell note to supporters, saying that even with early access launched and high-profile advisors onboard, current market conditions were too harsh to sustain the project.

The team had switched platforms multiple times — from Polygon to Immutable X and later to Mantle — in search of better scalability, but the moves weren’t enough to keep the dream alive.

Ember Sword joins a growing list of web3 gaming failures this year, including Deadrop and Tatsumeeko, as investor appetite for blockchain games cools significantly. The game’s token, EMBER, has lost over 99 percent of its value from its peak, now trading at a mere US$0.00047.

Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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Josef Schachter: Oil to US$80 by Q4? Plus When to Buy the Dip in Stocks

Investing 1 Min Read

Josef Schachter of the Schachter Energy Report shares his updated outlook for oil and natural gas.

He sees a buy window potentially opening for stocks in June, and also believes oil prices are due to rise.

Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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Editor’s Picks: ECB Issues Gold Warning, Uranium Stocks Jump on Trump Executive Orders

Investing 4 Mins Read

It was a slow start to the week for gold, but it didn’t take long for the price to pick up.

The yellow metal began the period at the US$3,220 per ounce level, but was gaining steam by Tuesday (May 20), briefly breaking US$3,300. Gold continued higher the next day, and after pulling back briefly on Thursday (May 22) was able to finish the week strong, changing hands at the US$3,360 level.

Bond market turmoil is one factor that’s been influencing gold’s price movements.

A Wednesday (May 21) auction of 20-year bonds was poorly received, with yields surging past 5.1 percent to reach the highest level seen since November 2023. Yields for 10-year and 30-year bonds were also on the rise, with the latter nearing a two-decade high as stocks and the dollar took hits.

The upheaval in bonds came on the back of US President Donald Trump’s efforts to get the One Big Beautiful Bill through the House. Slowing the passage of the wide-ranging domestic policy package were concerns that Trump’s plan to cut taxes would significantly increase US debt.

‘Make no mistake, the bond market will have its own vote on the terms of the budget bill. It doesn’t seem this president or this Congress is actually going to meaningfully reduce the deficit’ — George Catrambone, DWS Americas

Last week’s downgrade of US debt from Moody’s (NYSE:MCO) also didn’t help bonds. The agency bumped its rating down from AAA, its highest ranking, to AA1, which is one step lower. It expects even larger deficits in the US in the coming decade as government revenue stays flat and entitlement spending rises.

The One Big Beautiful Bill ultimately passed on Thursday by a very slim margin, receiving 215 votes in favor and 214 against. It will now proceed to the Senate, where it may face further obstacles.

Contained in the bill are tax cut extensions for both individuals and corporations, as well as provisions for removing taxes on tips and overtime. Among other points, it also allows for tax deductions on American-made vehicles, and offers ‘Trump savings accounts’ for newborns. It cuts funding to initiatives like Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, better known as SNAP.

Preliminary analysis from the Congressional Budget Office, which is a nonpartisan organization, suggests that the bill will increase the federal deficit by US$3.8 trillion during the 2026 to 2034 period.

Bullet briefing — Trump signs nuclear orders, ECB issues gold warning

Trump executive orders boost uranium stocks

The uranium sector got a boost on Friday (May 23) after Trump signed several executive orders geared at overhauling the country’s Nuclear Regulatory Commission and speeding up nuclear reactor deployment.

‘It’s a hot industry. It’s a brilliant industry. You have to do it right,’ Trump told reporters about the nuclear energy sector. The executive orders also focus on power up US uranium mining and enrichment, and will allow nuclear reactors to be built on federal land.

The news sent uranium stocks powering higher, with sector major Cameco (TSX:CCO,NYSE:CCJ) closing the day up 10.04 percent at C$80.55. Denison Mines (TSX:DML,NYSEAMERICAN:DNN) and Uranium Energy (NYSEAMERICAN:UEC) saw even larger gains of 13.49 percent and 25 percent, respectively.

The Sprott Uranium Miners ETF (ARCA:URNM) finished up 12.14 percent.

Gold a threat to financial stability?

A note from the European Central Bank (ECB) turned heads this week with the suggestion that certain dynamics could make the gold market a threat to financial stability. Here’s a key excerpt from the report:

While gold prices are driven by many factors, investors showed high demand for gold as a safe haven asset and, at the beginning of 2025, a notable preference for gold futures contracts to be settled physically. These dynamics hint at investors’ expectations that geopolitical risks and policy uncertainty could remain elevated or even intensify in the foreseeable future. Should extreme events materialise, there could be adverse effects on financial stability arising from gold markets.

The full ECB report is definitely worth a read if you have the time.

China’s April gold imports surge

Gold’s high price hasn’t deterred buyers in China — new customs data from the country shows that April imports clocked in at 127.5 metric tons, an 11 month high.

That’s also a 73 percent increase from the previous month, according to Bloomberg. The news outlet notes that China’s central bank controls the flow of gold in and out of the country, so the strong increase is likely the result of fresh quotas given to some commercial banks.

Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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WCWS teams: NCAA softball bracket, super regional scores, schedule

Sport 4 Mins Read

The picture of the coveted Oklahoma City Eight of the NCAA softball tournament bracket is starting to become clearer.

Behind star pitcher NiJaree Canady, No. 12 Texas Tech on May 23 became the first team to advance to the Women’s College World Series. The Red Raiders upset No. 5 national seed Florida State in a clean two-game sweep.

There remain seven more tickets around the country to be claimed. The next team that can join that can join Texas Tech in the WCWS could be No. 11 Clemson, who took Game 1 of the Austin Super Regional in an upset against No. 6 Texas on May 22.

All spots in the WCWS can be all locked up by the end of Saturday. No. 2 Oklahoma looks to punch its ticket to the WCWS for the ninth consecutive season, in which Patty Gasso’s Sooners will look to win their fifth straight national championship.

Action in Oklahoma City gets underway on Thursday, May 29 with a quadruple header of first-round games at Devon Park.

Here’s what you need to know about who is advancing to the Women’s College World Series, including a first look at the matchups in Oklahoma City and more:

Watch the Women’s College World Series live with Fubo (free trial)

Who’s in Women’s College World Series? Updated NCAA softball bracket

This section will be updated as teams secure their spot in the WCWS after winning their super regional

  • No. 5 Texas Tech (Won Tallahassee Super Regional)

Super Regional scores

Norman Super Regional

  • Game 1: No. 2 Oklahoma 3, No. 15 Alabama 0

Gainesville Super Regional

  • Game 1: No. 3 Florida 6, Georgia 1

Fayetteville Super Regional

  • Game 1: Ole Miss 9, No. 4 Arkansas 7

Tallahassee Super Regional

  • Game 1: No. 12 Texas Tech 3, No. 5 Florida State 0 (Texas Tech leads 1-0)
  • Game 2: No. 12 Texas Tech 2, No. 5 Florida State 1 (Texas Tech wins)

Austin Super Regional

  • Game 1: No. 11 Clemson 7, No. 6 Texas 4 (Clemson leads 1-0)
  • Game 2: No. 6 Texas 7, No. 11 Clemson 5 (10 innings) (series tied 1-1)

Knoxville Super Regional

  • Game 1: Nebraska 5, No. 7 Tennessee 2 (Nebraska leads 1-0)

Greenville Super Regional

  • Game 1: No. 8 South Carolina 9, No. 9 UCLA 2

When is the Women’s College World Series?

  • Women’s College World Series start date: Thursday, May 29
  • Women’s College World Series end date: Thursday, June 5/Friday, June 6

The Women’s College World Series will start on Thursday, May 29 at Devon Park in Oklahoma City and run through either Thursday, June 5 or Friday, June 6, depending on whether the WCWS championship series needs the ‘if necessary’ Game 3 to be played or not.

Women’s College World Series schedule

Here’s a breakdown of the Thursday and Friday schedule for the 2025 WCWS, including first pitch times and TV information:

All times Eastern

Thursday, May 29

  • Game 1: | Noon | ESPN
  • Game 2: 2:30 p.m. | ESPN
  • Game 3: 7 p.m. | ESPN2
  • Game 4: 9 p.m. | ESPN2

Friday, May 30

  • Game 5: 7 p.m. | ESPN2
  • Game 6: 9:30 p.m. | ESPN2

How to watch Women’s College World Series?

  • TV channels: ESPN | ESPN2 | ESPNU | ABC
  • Streaming: ESPN app | Fubo (free trial)

The entirety of the Women’s College World Series will be nationally televised across the ESPN family of networks: ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and ABC. Streaming options for the WCWS include the ESPN app (with a TV login) and Fubo, which carries the ESPN family of networks and offers a free trial to new subscribers.

When is the NCAA softball tournament?

Here’s the full 2025 NCAA softball tournament schedule:

  • Regionals: May 16-18
  • Super Regionals: May 22-25
  • Women’s College World Series: May 29-June 5/6
This post appeared first on USA TODAY

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How does New York Liberty improve on title season? Add Natasha Cloud

Sport 5 Mins Read

CHICAGO — It can take months, even multiple seasons, to determine whether a trade was worth it. Not so for the deal that sent Natasha Cloud to the New York Liberty in the offseason.

Two games in, it’s clear the Liberty are big winners. The rest of the league, not so much.

The addition of Cloud has made the Liberty even better. Which is a scary thought, considering they’re the defending WNBA champions and already had Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu and Jonquel Jones. But Cloud, with her size, versatility and ability to get to the rim, elevates New York’s offense while making the Liberty even more disruptive defensively.

“We’ve never really had someone quite like her,” coach Sandy Brondello said before Thursday night’s game against the Chicago Sky. “When you talk about shot profile and getting to the rim, we have someone now who can really get downhill.

“That certainly adds to what we’re trying to do,” Brondello added.

Cloud leads the Liberty in scoring (20 points) and assists (8.5) through the first two games, and is third in the WNBA in efficiency.

But what really stands out is that New York is shooting 51.5% from the floor and almost 42% from 3-point range while averaging 13 turnovers. The Liberty also lead the league in steals and blocks.

It is, admittedly, a small sample size, and one of New York’s victories was against the Sky, who very much remain a work in progress. But the Liberty opened the season with a thumping of A’ja Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces.

Cloud had 22 points in that one, including two consecutive three-point plays to spark an 8-0 run that broke the game open in the fourth quarter.

“Her home opener was great,” Stewart said. “Her energy is kind of contagious and infectious.”

Cloud makes no secret of how thrilled she is to be in New York. Drafted in the second round by the Mystics, she spent her first eight seasons in Washington. (She took the 2020 season off to advocate for social justice reform.) She won a title in 2019 and, in 2022, led the league in assists and was all-defensive first team.

She went to Phoenix as a free agent last year. But with Diana Taurasi retiring and the Mercury retooling, Cloud was shipped to the Connecticut Sun in February of this year.

The Sun are a perennial playoff contender, but the team has struggled to keep pace with the rest of the league in terms of facilities and amenities. Knowing Cloud had considered New York as a free agent previously and sensing an opportunity, Liberty general manager Jonathan Kolb spent weeks trying to wrest her away from the Sun.

“There was nowhere else that I wanted to be than New York,” said Cloud, who grew up in Philadelphia and played at Saint Joseph’s. “I called my agent and said, ‘If they’re ready for me, I’m really, really ready.’ So when I tell you I appreciate being here, there was a lot of work that went on behind the scenes.”

Cloud said she was grateful Jen Rizzotti and Morgan Tuck, the Sun’s president and GM, respectively, understood that she preferred to be in New York and didn’t try to stand in her way. Especially since the Sun had lost several key players in the off-season.

On March 16, Cloud was traded again, with the Liberty sending the Sun two first-round picks. Connecticut used the first of those to take Aneesah Morrow at No. 7 in the draft and will have the other for next year.

“I’m so happy to be where my feet are today. I’m with one of the top organizations, from off the court to on the court. With everything that happened in the off-season, to be where I am today, I’m just extremely grateful,” Cloud said.

The Liberty’s core is established — duh, they won a title last year — but Cloud quickly found her place within it. It helped that she was teammates with Sabrina Ionescu at Unrivaled, and Cloud fessed up that she’d tried to recruit Stewart to the Mystics.

But mostly it’s because Cloud knows her strengths and her role.

“The biggest thing for me was to just add something that was already a well-oiled machine. And how I do that is just being myself. I’m the dog of the team. I’m the energy,” said Cloud, who does tend to make the Energizer Bunny look like a sloth.

“I’m a big connecting piece,” she added. “They already had a really close environment and close chemistry, and I feel like I just kind of bear hug everybody in.”

It is, again, early. Really early. But if Cloud and the Liberty can be thriving this quickly, imagine what they’ll look like come September and October.

Or don’t if you’re a fan of another team.

‘I know my first game put high expectations,’ Cloud said. ‘I really am just trying to be better each day for this team.’

And in doing so, make the Liberty better.

Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour on social media: @nrarmour.

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Breaking down the men’s lacrosse semifinals full of storylines

Sport 3 Mins Read

The biggest event in lacrosse continues on Saturday, when it’s the men’s turn to take the field at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, for their NCAA tournament semifinal showdowns.

Like the women’s semis, both contests are rematches of regular season games. This year’s foursome includes a couple of teams with huge fan bases from Central New York hoping to end, by their lofty standards, lengthy title droughts. The other two are Big Ten squads, one of which is a long-time fixture in the sport while the other is hoping its third semifinal appearance will lead to its first-ever championship.

Here’s a look at the matchups, including the TV schedule and key participants.

No. 1 Cornell (16-1) vs. No. 5 Penn State (12-4)

Time/TV: noon ET, ESPN2

How they got here: Cornell – beat Albany 15-6, Richmond 13-12. Penn State – beat Colgate 13-11, Notre Dame 14-12.

National championships: Cornell three (last 1977), Penn State none.

Players to watch: Cornell – CJ Kirst (76 G, 32 A); Ryan Goldstein (38 G, 50 A); Michael Long (29 G, 38 A). Penn State – Matt Traynor (42 G, 17 A); Hunter Aquino (16 G, 21 A); Ethan Long (18 G, 17 A).

Quick sticks: Since emerging as one of the sport’s powerhouses in the ‘70’s, the Big Red are still trying to add to their three titles. They’ve been agonizingly close on a couple of occasions, most notably in 2009 when they led Syracuse in the final minute but fell in overtime. … Kirst already owns numerous scoring records and will likely add the Tewaaraton to his list of honors next weekend. … The Nittany Lions, however, are responsible for Cornell’s lone loss this season, a 13-12 overtime thriller on March 8. They’re also responsible for ending Notre Dame’s bid for a third consecutive title thanks to last week’s improbable comeback win in the quarterfinals.

No. 2 Maryland (13-3) vs. No. 6 Syracuse (13-5)

Time/TV: 2:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2

How they got here: Maryland – beat Air Force 13-5, Georgetown 9-6. Syracuse – beat Harvard 13-12, No. 3 Princeton 19-18.

National championships: Maryland four (last 2022), Syracuse 11 (last 2009).

Players to watch: Maryland – Eric Spanos (30 G, 16 A); Braden Erksa (30 G, 15 A); Daniel Kelly (32 G, 9 A). Syracuse – Joey Spallina (35 G, 53 A); Owen Hiltz (45 G, 27 A); Michael Leo (30 G, 12 A).

Quick sticks: The Terrapins are in their 30th NCAA semifinal, the most in Division I. The Orange haven’t reached championship weekend since 2013, an almost unthinkable absence for a program that was a fixture at the event for nearly two decades starting in the late 1980’s. … This figures to be a battle to control the pace of the game, which Maryland managed to do in an 11-7 victory in their encounter back on Feb. 15. But the Orange can win a single-digit game if needed, as they did in their 9-8 triumph against Duke in the ACC tournament.

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