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When 18-year-old Caroline Harvey showed up to the U.S. women’s national team selection camp in June, she was the youngest player there. And she had no idea what her next few months would look like.

If Harvey didn’t make the national hockey team, she was set to enroll for her freshman year at the University of Wisconsin the following week. She already had an English 100 class picked out.

And if she made the roster? Harvey would defer, joining her much older teammates for the 2021 IIHF Women’s World Championship in Calgary, a months-long residency program in Minnesota, and ultimately the 2022 Olympic Games in Beijing.

“It was a little nerve-racking,” Harvey said, “not knowing how things would play out.”

Harvey, a defenseman who grew up in Massachusetts, stood out during the tryouts. She was too good not to put on the roster.

“She’s so skilled,” veteran U.S. defenseman Megan Keller said. “I just enjoy watching her in practice. She’s so fun to watch, especially at her age, the things she can do with the puck, her skating ability. She’s a little Energizer bunny out there too.”

Harvey will join the Badgers next spring. By the time she gets there, she might be a household name.

U.S. women’s hockey sits atop the international throne right now. The team got over its Olympic hump by beating rival Canada in 2018 for its first Olympic gold medal in 20 years. Before they get the chance to defend in Beijing, the women will compete in the world championship, which begins Friday and runs through Aug. 31. The Americans have won the past five tournaments, and eight of the past nine.

But the stop-and-go nature of the pandemic has been challenging — a cruel gambit of cancellations, decreased ice time and decreased visibility. When the U.S. opens worlds with a game against Switzerland on Friday, it will have been 859 days since the team last played in a major international tournament.

In that time, there has been significant turnover on the roster. Captain Meghan Duggan, twins Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson and Monique Lamoureux-Morando (who scored the winning and tying goals in the 2018 Olympic gold-medal game) and 15-year veteran Kacey Bellamy all have hung up their skates in the past year.

“We’ve had a lot of veterans, and girls that have made this program what it is, retire,” Keller said. “Especially in these past two years with worlds being canceled twice, you have more new faces, new teammates and some new blood mixed in. It’s exciting to get this new group together finally. I think we have a really good mix.”

Enter Harvey, who ushers in a youth movement. She’s one of four Americans born in the 2000s playing at the world championship — joining forwards Britta Curl, Lacey Eden and Abbey Murphy — and one of seven rookies overall.

As Keller said, “One of the coolest things about being on the national team is being able to play with your role models,” and Harvey already is experiencing that. Growing up, Harvey said she always looked up to Bellamy.

“We were at a couple camps together before she retired; I got to learn a lot from her,” Harvey said. “It was cool to hear what she had to say, but also just see the way she handled herself. She was really fun to be around, but when it was time to be serious, when we were practicing, or even warming up, or cooling down, you could see how locked in she was. She was funny, and let that side of herself out when it was appropriate, but she changed and could be so locked in when she needed to be.”

Harvey will get to play with some players she looked up to — like Hilary Knight, who enrolled at Wisconsin 14 years before Harvey — but she’s trying to soak up as much wisdom from as many sources as she can.

For her five-day quarantine in Calgary, Harvey brought along the Lamoureux twins’ book, “Dare to Make History.”

She also has some experience with her new teammates, though not a typical relationship. One of the Americans’ alternate captains, Brianna Decker, was an assistant coach with the U-18 team Harvey played on. And Keller’s roommate at Boston College was one of Harvey’s coaches in club hockey, who revealed that Harvey is rarely called Caroline by anyone.

“When I was young, my sister couldn’t pronounce Caroline, so she called me KK instead,” Harvey said. “We were really young, but it stuck.”

Harvey hasn’t found it too hard to mesh with the senior team. She and Keller have been plotting a TikTok dance for their teammates. Harvey has similar interests as her older teammates, including Netflix shows such as “Outer Banks” and “All-American.” Music in the locker room is a different story.

“When the music gets going, we’re constantly asking, ‘OK, who knows this one,’ whether it’s a new one or old one,” Keller said.

Adds Harvey: “I know of the songs from my parents. They’re not my parents’ age, but I know some of the songs, just in a different way.”

For Harvey, it has been a transition to level up with the top competition.

“When you’re invited to a national team camp, it’s the best of the best,” she said. “It’s pretty intimidating to see who you are going up against. I was really nervous at first, I was just getting used to these girls, and the pace. It was definitely a scary thing at first to be the youngest and be here, but now I’m feeling comfortable around them.”

Harvey has been comfortable around the rink her entire life. Her dad used to take her to her older brother’s practices, and would turn the stroller around to let Harvey watch. By 3, she was on skates. Aside from a brief cameo at goalie, Harvey has played defense her entire life.

“I like being able to see the whole ice, and seeing plays develop,” she said. “I also like being offensive at times, and having that aspect to my game.”

Keller said besides Harvey’s skill, the best aspects of her game are her speed and offensive knack, “but she’s not afraid to be physical.”

Harvey is off to a good start. In the first exhibition against Russia this week, Harvey took a penalty. Shortly after, she collected a pass from Knight, took a shot, then scored on her own rebound to give the U.S. a 3-0 lead. It fits into the advice she received from Decker: Play free. Don’t think too much. Let your instincts take over.

Harvey knew she wanted to play at this stage eventually. She never thought it would come this soon.

“I didn’t really think much of it a year ago,” she said. “Looking at it now, thinking about the position I’m in, it’s crazy how things happen sometimes.”

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OU shakes up SEC, CFP with upset of No. 4 Tide

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44 mins ago

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November 16, 2025

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OU shakes up SEC, CFP with upset of No. 4 Tide

  • Adam RittenbergNov 15, 2025, 07:14 PM ET

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      College football reporter; joined ESPN in 2008. Graduate of Northwestern University.

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Oklahoma players and coaches gathered in different spots around Saban Field at Bryant-Denny Stadium, posing for pictures and savoring every second of the team’s best win as an SEC member and its best under fourth-year coach Brent Venables.

When the 11th-ranked Sooners finally retreated to their locker room, their victory playlist began with “Dixieland Delight,” Alabama’s cherished late-game anthem, and then, of course, “Sweet Home Alabama.” Written off in most College Football Playoff projections after its home loss to Ole Miss on Oct. 25, Oklahoma responded with consecutive road wins against Tennessee and Saturday at No. 4 Alabama, holding off the Tide 23-21.

The Sooners recorded their first road win against a top-five opponent since their victory over Ohio State in 2017, featuring another famous postgame celebration with quarterback Baker Mayfield’s flag-plant at Ohio Stadium. OU ended Alabama’s 17-game home winning streak and became the first team to beat the Tide in consecutive seasons since Ole Miss in 2014 and 2015. The Sooners also registered their fourth win against an AP-ranked opponent this season, tying Alabama for the most in the FBS.

“I’m not a boastful or braggadocious kind of guy, but, man, I’m going to brag on our guys, and they deserve it,” Venables said. “They put a lot into this opportunity, and we’ve created vision for that, so I got to follow through. I’m like, ‘Hey, man, this is what victory looks like. This is how we’re going to do it. And I want to see you guys dancing, carrying on, just having some joy in the moment.'”

Oklahoma won despite generating only 212 yards of offense, its fewest since 2022 and OU’s fewest in a win since 2001 against No. 5 Texas. The Sooners rode their defense, which forced three Alabama turnovers, half of the Tide’s season total entering Saturday, and scored on Eli Bowen‘s 87-yard interception return in the first quarter.

The defense needed one final stop as Alabama took possession with 7:14 play, needing only a field goal to win. Even after “Dixieland Delight” sent the crowd into a frenzy and Alabama converted a key fourth down, an Oklahoma defense playing without top pass rusher R Mason Thomas and others clamped down on the Tide, who were held scoreless for the final 22:27.

“It was all red, and the lights were on, but we fed off the energy,” Oklahoma defensive lineman Taylor Wein, who had a strip-sack fumble and two quarterback hurries, said of hearing “Dixieland Delight” in the closing minutes. “Little do they know, they think that they’re feeling their team, they’re feeling us, they’re getting us ready to go.”

Wein was one of many Oklahoma players wearing a T-shirt that read “Hard to Kill” on the front and “Enough is Enough” on the back after the game. The Sooners stressed those themes after the loss to Ole Miss, recognizing that a third defeat would probably end their CFP hopes.

“How much is enough?” said kicker Tate Sandell, who went 3-for-3 on field goal attempts, including a 52-yarder. “It’s just having that mindset of staying alive, blue collar, roll your sleeves up and just find a way, and being hard to kill in the process.”

Venables thought the Sooners could “separate ourselves” on special teams, and they delivered, not only with Sandell’s field goals but forcing a Ryan Williams fumble on an Alabama punt return and partially blocking a Conor Talty field goal attempt at the end of the first half to preserve a 17-14 lead. The Sooners had 10 points off turnovers and overcame the massive yards differential by limiting major mistakes and doing the little things to win.

“Who’s it not pretty for? What does that mean?” a smiling Venables asked. “I happen to like it.”

Oklahoma had a more dominant defensive effort last year against Alabama, keeping the Tide out of the end zone. But the 2024 Sooners lost their final two games to finish 6-7 and raised questions about the trajectory under Venables, a first-time head coach.

But this season’s OU team has responded to both of its losses and key injuries, including to quarterback John Mateer, to be in position for a return to the CFP.

“They haven’t flinched,” Venables said. “When the fire is raging and things are looking a little desolate, they have responded several times this year, and they certainly have the last couple of weeks, when it mattered the most. They put respect on our brand again this week.”

Oklahoma must refocus for home games against Missouri and LSU, but the magnitude of Saturday’s win will resonate.

“The pictures after the game, you love the moments, the memories you create,” defensive tackle David Stone said. “We’ll have that for a lifetime.”

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Oklahoma DE Thomas unlikely to play vs. Bama

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12 hours ago

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November 15, 2025

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Oklahoma DE Thomas unlikely to play vs. Bama
Nov 15, 2025, 08:56 AM ET

Oklahoma defensive end R Mason Thomas is unlikely to play against Alabama on Saturday because of a quad injury.

A final decision on Thomas’ availability isn’t expected until game time, sources told ESPN’s Pete Thamel, but he is listed as doubtful on the SEC availability report.

Thomas suffered the injury while returning a fumble 71 yards for a touchdown during the Sooners’ Nov. 1 win over Tennessee.

Oklahoma’s best defensive player, Thomas has a team-leading 6.5 sacks this season along with two forced fumbles and the scoop-and-score fumble recovery.

Starting cornerback Gentry Williams is also doubtful to play against the Crimson Tide. He is set to miss a third straight game with a shoulder injury suffered Oct. 18 against South Carolina.

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Sources: Wisconsin turns to freshman QB vs. IU

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12 hours ago

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November 15, 2025

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Sources: Wisconsin turns to freshman QB vs. IU

  • ESPN News Services

Nov 15, 2025, 08:35 AM ET

Wisconsin will start true freshman quarterback Carter Smith at No. 2 Indiana on Saturday, sources told ESPN’s Pete Thamel, replacing Danny O’Neil after the sophomore was carted off the field with a right leg injury last week.

O’Neil was injured on a 21-yard keeper during the first quarter of last Saturday’s 13-10 win over then-No. 23 Washington. He had a towel over his head as he was carted to the locker room.

Smith made his season debut following O’Neil’s injury, completing 3 of 12 passes for 8 yards while rushing for 47 yards and a touchdown.

Also available to the Badgers at quarterback is senior Hunter Simmons, who is 48-for-95 for 485 yards with two touchdowns and five interceptions this season.

For Indiana, wide receiver Elijah Sarratt is doubtful to play, sources said. Sarratt, who is tied for the Big Ten lead with 10 touchdown receptions, injured his hamstring against Maryland on Nov. 1 and missed the Penn State game last week.

With Indiana having a bye next week, Sarratt is on track to return against Purdue on Nov. 28.

Quarterback issues have hindered Wisconsin all season and throughout coach Luke Fickell’s three-year tenure.

Billy Edwards Jr. was Wisconsin’s first-team quarterback at the start of the season, but he sprained his knee in the second quarter of the Badgers’ opener and has played only one full series since.

Tanner Mordecai missed 3½ games with a broken hand in 2023. Miami transfer Tyler Van Dyke tore his ACL in the third game of the 2024 season.

Wisconsin’s intended season-opening starting quarterback has been available for the entirety of only 11 of the 34 games the Badgers have played since the beginning of the 2023 season. The last time Fickell had his season-opening starting quarterback healthy for a full game was in a 27-13 victory over South Dakota on Sept. 7, 2024.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

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