Lithuania’s Monika Paulikiene and Aine Raupelyte and Australians Thomas Hodges and Ben Hood rule their respective divisions in the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Nuvali Challenge. –PNVF PHOTO

SANTA ROSA, Laguna — Lithuanian Olympians Monika Paulikiene and Aine Raupelyte captured the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Nuvali Challenge title after dominating Americans Alaina Chacon and Madelyn Anderson, 21-12, 21-11, on Sunday night at the Nuvali Sands Courts here.

Raupelyte controlled the net throughout the match, especially in the second set, where the 6-foot-6 Lithuanian anchored a decisive run that turned into an 18-8 advantage after a lucky dig conversion by Paulikiene.

The Americans managed to trim the deficit to 19-11 before Paulikiene pushed Lithuania to championship point. Raupelyte then sealed the victory with an attack off a floater to clinch the pair’s first championship together.

READ: US, Lithuania dispute women’s crown; Aussies vs Swiss in men’s final

Australia and Lithuania are Kings and Queens of #BeachProTour Nuvali Challenge. @inquirersports pic.twitter.com/RapOEGjHmW

— Lance Agcaoili (@LanceAgcaoilINQ) May 24, 2026

“Like always, just to do the best as I can and be aggressive on the block,” Raupelyte said after scoring 23 points built on 16 kills and seven blocks.

Raupelyte also credited her chemistry with Paulikiene, who added 10 points on eight attacks and two aces.

“She makes my job easier by putting the ball by one touch,” Raupelyte said. “I think that we made it because we had a great atmosphere. We’re supporting each other.”

The title was a breakthrough for the Lithuanian duo after settling for silver medals in the Tlaxcala Challenge in Mexico last March and the Xiamen Challenge in China earlier this month.

“It’s amazing after playing three years in the Challenger events. It’s our first gold,” Raupelyte said. “This is history for Lithuanians, the first time for Lithuanians to take a gold medal.”

Anderson scored 11 points in the loss, while Chacon finished with eight, as the gold remained elusive for the American pair.

In the men’s division, Australians Thomas Hodges and Ben Hood rallied from a slow start to defeat Swiss pair Adrian Heidrich and Yves Haussener, 14-21, 21-16, 15-8, and capture their first title together in the Nuvali Challenge.

READ: Ukraine duo ousts Aussies, reaches Beach Pro Tour Nuvali semis

Lithuanian Olympians Monika Paulikiene and Aine Raupelyte relish their first championship together in the #BeachProTour Nuvali Challenge. @inquirersports pic.twitter.com/YlFlhr9hZK

— Lance Agcaoili (@LanceAgcaoilINQ) May 24, 2026

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After dropping the opening set, Hodges and Hood carried their momentum from the second frame into the decider, racing to a commanding 10-4 lead.

Hood later scored off the block to extend Australia’s cushion to 13-7 before Hodges delivered a huge block for championship point.

Carrying the momentum from a strong second set win, Hodges ignited a 10-4 start in the decider before Hood scored off the block to stretch it to 13-7.

Hodges nailed a big block to reach championship point, followed by a strong hit by Hood to win it all.

“We just had to stick together,” said Hodges, who finished with 23 points.

“We had a few moments where, I mean, this morning we lost a set, but we managed to maintain a good head. First set here, they came out and played really, really well. And all full credit to the team to stay composed and to continue to go back to what we do.”

“Awesome. It’s just been really fun and I’ve really enjoyed just the battles we’ve had,” added Hood, who tallied 11.

Earlier, Dutch pair Emi van Driel and Mila Konink claimed the bronze medal after defeating Ukrainians Valentyna Davidova and Anhelina Khmil, 22-20, 21-18.

Konink exploded for 23 points as the Dutch tandem bounced back from a semifinal loss to the eventual champions earlier in the day.

In the men’s division, Swiss duo Julian Friedli and Jonathan Jordan secured the bronze medal after rallying past Germans Philipp Huster and Sven Winter, 18-21, 21-13, 15-13.

It’s the final matchday of the 2025/26 Premier League season and Manchester United will end their campaign with a trip to Brighton.

Michael Carrick has named his first XI as permanent boss. Here are the teams for today’s game:

United: Lammens, Mazraoui, Maguire, Martinez, Shaw, Mount, Mainoo, Fernandes, Mbeumo, Dorgu, Amad.

Brighton: Verbruggen, De Cuyper, Dunk, Van Hecke, Kadioglu, Gross, Milner, Gomez, Hinshelwood, Wieffer, Welbeck.

We’ll have updates, analysis and reaction from the Amex Stadium in the blog below:

Sunday is the final day of the 2025-26 English Premier League season, with every team kicking off at 11 a.m. ET as part of EPL Matchday 38. The EPL title has been secured, with Arsenal clinching when Man City drew with Bournemouth on Tuesday. Even with the title race over, Sunday’s matchday features plenty of storylines, with many of these matches having serious implications across the league. Tottenham is facing relegation for the first time in club history, and there are Europe League spots up for grabs, while Manchester City is playing its final match under longtime manager Pep Guardiola.

Those interested in soccer betting can take a look at the latest EPL predictions from the SportsLine Projection Model for information on all of the Matchday 38 contests. You’ll also really want to see what SportsLine expert Jon Eimer is betting before locking in your wagers for the last day of the Premier League season.

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Eimer finished 2023 as SportsLine’s No. 1 soccer expert, posting a 248-234-12 record (+25.93 units) on SportsLine article picks. Eimer has been red-hot in 2026, posting a profit in multiple leagues, including the Premier League, Champions League, La Liga and more. Anyone following his soccer betting picks could have seen huge returns at sportsbooks and on betting apps. 

Here are Eimer’s best bets and analysis for Premier League Matchday 38.

EPL Matchday 38 best bets

• Bruno Fernandes to score or assist vs. Brighton (-105)
• Crystal Palace-Arsenal Under 2.5 goals (+115)
• Tottenham Over 1.5 goals team total vs. Everton (-127)
• West Ham Over 1.5 goals team total vs. Leeds (-153)

Bruno Fernandes to score or assist vs. Brighton

Brighton have much more motivation going into this match as a win here would solidify their spot in a UEFA competition next season. While I expect Brighton to press hard here, Fernandes is currently one assist away from breaking the all-time single-season Premier League record. He’s currently tied with Kevin de Bruyne and Thierry Henry, and even though this game doesn’t matter to Manchester United, I expect the captain to go for glory and find an assist in this match.

Crystal Palace-Arsenal Under 2.5 goals

This game is a bit of a weird one. Arsenal have already won the league and won’t risk a single injury with their Champions League final still on the horizon. Crystal Palace also have no need to risk injuries in this game with a Europa Conference Final early next week. Expect both teams to rotate, sit back and just play a risk-free match with neither side wanting to do anything to hurt their chances in their respective upcoming finals. I expect this to be an absolute snoozer with maybe, just maybe, one goal being found by the final whistle.

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Tottenham Over 1.5 goals team total vs. Everton

A win or a draw is all Tottenham needs to avoid the dreaded drop down to Championship. The problem with Spurs is their defense is truly horrendous. It’s going to take more than one goal to get the win to guarantee that safety, so I expect Spurs to be pushing like mad against an Everton side who has been abysmal defensively on the road all season long.

West Ham Over 1.5 goals team total vs. Leeds

While West Ham need to rely on the Spurs match in regards to relegation, nothing matters if they don’t get the win and three points themselves. It’s most likely going to be too little too late, but there’s still a chance of survival, only if they win. Leeds are already done with their season as winning or losing won’t affect them in any way. I expect West Ham to go down swinging as they press for the multiple goals they’ll need to make up for their appalling defense.

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Argentina’s Lionel Messi (AP Photo/Gustavo Garello, file)

Lionel Messi has reportedly crossed the billion-dollar mark in net worth, becoming only the second footballer ever to enter the billionaire club after long-time rival Cristiano Ronaldo. As per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, cited by Goal.com, Messi’s fortune has now surpassed $1 billion following years of massive earnings through salaries, bonuses, endorsements and investments. The Argentine superstar is estimated to have earned more than $700 million in wages and performance-related payments since 2007 alone. Unlike Ronaldo, whose financial empire expanded rapidly through an aggressive global branding strategy and his blockbuster move to Al-Nassr in 2023, Messi’s wealth growth has reportedly been more measured and carefully managed through long-term partnerships and family-led business decisions across Europe and the United States. The 38-year-old’s commercial influence has exploded further since joining Inter Miami CF in 2023. His arrival transformed football’s popularity in the United States, driving huge attendance numbers, worldwide attention towards MLS and increased interest from several European stars considering moves to North America. Messi’s cultural impact in the USA has now reached another level ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. A township in New Jersey has officially named part of Sherman Avenue as “Leo Messi Way” in honour of the Argentine icon. The tribute comes from Berkeley Heights, a small town in Union County with a population of just over 13,000 residents. The initiative was approved through the BH FIFA World Cup 26 Task Force, a local group formed to build excitement and community engagement before the World Cup arrives in the United States, Canada and Mexico next year. Messi, who captained Argentina to World Cup glory in Qatar in 2022, will once again lead his country into the tournament in 2026. Argentina have been placed in Group J alongside Austria, Jordan and Algeria, with their opening match scheduled against Algeria in Kansas City on June 16.

Rangers chairman Andrew Cavenagh spoke last Sunday about the club’s need for leaders, ideally Scottish leaders and gnarled professionals.

He never mentioned Lawrence Shankland but almost didn’t need to. The striker is everything he was describing. Rangers are not particularly lacking for goals – they outscored Celtic and Hearts in the Premiership in the season just gone – but they need steel and presence and Shankland provides that.

It was evident on Friday that things were moving quickly. It’s still not definite – as of now he has not signed and there’s still a medical to complete – but everything is heading rapidly in the right direction from a Rangers’ perspective, if not from a Hearts point of view.

Shankland is returning from holiday and final agreement would appear to be imminent. Pending any departures he would join Youssef Chermiti, Ryan Naderi, Bojan Miovski and Danilo as Danny Rohl’s options up front. It’s unlikely that all of those will be Rangers players come the start of the season. Shankland, if it gets done, would be the main man.

People with knowledge of the negotiations are being coy about what Rangers are paying Hearts for Shankland. Both sides are not comfortable talking about a supposed break clause in Shankland’s Hearts contract that would allow him to leave for nothing, a scenario that would, no doubt, infuriate Hearts fans even further.

Losing their captain and principal scorer is bad enough but losing him for little or no money might be deemed insult added to injury. Right now, the phrases being used are ‘undisclosed fee’ and ‘Rangers paid the required amount’.

Shankland has a prolific record for Hearts against Rangers, scoring both in a 2-0 win at Ibrox in September, getting what turned out to be the winner against them in December and in May, both times at Tynecastle.

He scored against Rangers in a 3-3 draw in May, 2024 and scored in a 3-1 loss and a 2-1 loss in November and October 2023. He’s the most prolific scorer Hearts have had since the great John Robertson.

Shankland netted 20 goals for Derek McInnes’ team in their near-glory season, part of which he missed through injury. He’s pushing hard to start for Scotland against Haiti in the opening game of the World Cup.

For McInnes, this will come as a bitter blow. Shankland and Hearts were at a bit of a stand-off at the end of season 2024-25, a long-running dispute over salary between the club and the player’s representatives threatening to see an end of him at Tynecastle.

When McInnes was appointed manager, one of the main items on his list was to keep Shankland. He was insistent he needed the striker and a deal was done. McInnes and Shankland have worked excellently together. Those days would appear to be over. Shankland to Rangers will take a lot of beating as the signing of the summer.

Vasiliy Lomachenko could land an immediate world title shot, but only if he chooses to campaign at 130lbs.

Either way, the 38-year-old is set to return to action later this year, having allowed his deal with Top Rank to expire earlier this month.

As a promotional free agent, ‘Loma’ is now expected to fight for the first time since May 2024, back when he scored an 11th-round stoppage victory over George Kambosos Jr.

In doing so, Lomachenko claimed the IBF lightweight title after having previously become a three-division world champion, with his last 10 professional outings all being fought at 135lbs.

But while many are expecting him to return to lightweight, perhaps in pursuit of an eventual clash with Gervonta Davis, the Ukrainian could potentially be tempted by an opportunity at 130lbs.

In other words, he is set to be offered an immediate world title shot against unified champion Emanuel Navarrete, who comes off a dominant 11th-round finish over Eduardo ‘Sugar’ Nunez.

This, in turn, saw him unify the WBO and IBF titles, though it remains unclear what options the Mexican is exploring for his next outing.

One of them, however, could be a showdown against Lomachenko, with WBO president Gustavo Olivieri sharing his thoughts on the matter via social media.

“Lomachenko is back, and if he wants to fight at 130lbs against Navarrete, I’m sure that the WBO Executive Committee [will approve their fight].

“In light of his professional merits – [two-time] Olympic [gold] medallist, champion in multiple divisions, WBO super champion, a future Hall of Famer – I’m sure the approval will be unanimous.”

WBO President Gustavo Olivieri reiterated that, should Team Loma formally seek a direct shot at Emanuel “Vaquero” Navarrete, the matter would receive serious consideration from the Executive Committee given Lomachenko’s legacy as a 3-Division WBO World Champion and one of the… pic.twitter.com/ZJy3qTcU3P

— WBO (@WorldBoxingOrg) May 21, 2026

While the Lomachenko fight could make sense for both parties, super-featherweight contender Charly Suarez will be demanding a mandatory shot at Navarrete if he comes through his next outing, against Manuel Avila, on July 11.

One-half of the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions, Paige, has finally shut all doubters who, upon her return at WrestleMania 42, thought she would also go for a part-time run similar to AJ Lee’s. But the Anti-Diva and Brie Bella have proved everyone wrong, as they have already completed multiple title defenses so far and have been on a full-time schedule.

Bella and Paige once again defended their titles successfully at 2026 Saturday Night’s Main Event, beating former title holders The Irresistible Forces (Lash Legend and Nia Jax).

Before their match, the Anti-Diva and Brie Mode were interviewed in their locker room by Cathy Kelley. A fan took a screenshot of Paige staring at the camera and posted it on X/Twitter, writing that the star was “mugging” for the camera. The post caught The Diva of Tomorrow’s attention, and she quoted it with a cheeky comment.

“That’s me flirting,” Paige wrote.

Check out her official tweet below:

WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions tease a heel turn

While fans are happy about Paige and Brie Bella retaining their Women’s Tag Team Championship after beating Nia Jax and Lash Legend at the 2026 Saturday Night’s Main Event, experts and critics cannot unsee what the Stamford-based promotion has been teasing.

The ending sequence of the match saw Brie Bella pressing her legs against her tag team partner’s back to even put her entire weight on her, who was pinning Nia Jax, and the two retained their straps. The antics that Daniel Bryan’s wife used are generally pulled by a heel character, and as of now, two are babyface tag team champions.

However, their pinning of Jax using heel tactics could be a subtle hint by World Wrestling Entertainment, prepping fans for The Anti-Diva and Brie Mode’s heel turn in the near future. The veteran team turning bad guys would indeed be a thrilling move and a great change in the WWE women’s tag team division.

That being said, it will be interesting to see what plans Triple H and his WWE creative team have in store for the Women’s Tag Team Champions in the coming weeks.