A6 The BulleTin • Wednesday, March 31, 2021 ON THE AIR SCOREBOARD WEDNESDAY SOCCER UEFA U-21 Euro Championship, Croatia vs. England Men’s college, Penn St. at Maryland World Cup 2022 qualifying, England vs. Poland Men’s college, Ohio St. at Michigan TENNIS ATP/WTA, Miami Open WATER SPORTS World Surf League, Championship Tour: Newcastle Cup BASKETBALL NBA, Portland at Detroit NBA, Dallas at Boston NBA, Milwaukee at L.A. Lakers GOLF Women’s ANA Inspiration Charity Match for the ANNIKA Foundation HOCKEY NHL, Philadelphia at Buffalo NHL, Los Angeles at Vegas Time 8:50 a.m. 9 a.m. 11:30 a.m. noon TV ESPNU Big Ten ESPN2 Big Ten 10 a.m. Tennis 2 p.m. 4 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 7 p.m. FS2 NBCSNW ESPN ESPN 4 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 7 p.m. Golf NBCSN NBCSN THURSDAY BASKETBALL High school, Milton (GA) vs. IMG Academy (FL) NBA, Charlotte at Brooklyn Men’s college, Slam Dunk & 3-Point Championships NBA, Denver at L.A. Clippers GOLF Women’s, ANA Inspiration PGA Tour, Valero Texas Open Women’s, ANA Inspiration BASEBALL MLB, Toronto at N.Y. Yankees MLB, L.A. Dodgers at Colorado MLB, N.Y. Mets at Washington College, Kentucky at Mississippi St. College, Ole Miss at Florida College, Washington at UCLA MLB, Houston at Oakland HORSE RACING America’s Day at the Races TENNIS ATP/WTA, Miami Open SOFTBALL College, Texas A&M at Alabama College, Oregon at Oregon St. WATER SPORTS World Surf League, Championship Tour: Newcastle Cup HOCKEY NHL, Carolina at Chicago NHL, Minnesota at Vegas 9 a.m. 4:30 p.m. 6 p.m. 7 p.m. ESPNU TNT ESPN2 TNT 9 a.m. 1 p.m. 4 p.m. 10 a.m. 1 p.m. 4 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 5 p.m. 6 p.m. 7 p.m. Golf Golf Golf ESPN ESPN ESPN ESPNU SEC Pac-12 ESPN 10 a.m. FS2 10 a.m. Tennis 3 p.m. 4 p.m. SEC Pac-12 4:30 p.m. FS2 5 p.m. 7:30 p.m. NBCSN NBCSN Listings are the most accurate available. SPORTS BRIEFING FOOTBALL Hamilcar Rashed Jr., Jermar Jefferson among 4 Bea- vers who will perform Thursday at pro day — Oregon State’s four NFL draft-eligible players will participate in the school’s pro day at 1 p.m. Thursday. OSU is playing host to representatives from 32 NFL teams as they watch running back Jermar Jefferson, outside linebacker Hamilcar Rashed Jr. and cornerbacks Nahshon Wright and Isaiah Dunn go through a series of agility, strength and speed drills. Ore- gon State is one of eight schools holding a pro day Thursday. Without a traditional NFL Combine this year, NFL teams are heavily relying on pro days throughout the country. Oregon’s pro day is on Friday. Oregon State’s pro day is not televised live, though there will be video of some drills shown at a later day on NFL Network and Pac-12 Network. ON DECK WEDNESDAY Volleyball: Bend at Mountain View, 6:30 p.m.; sis- ters at sweet home, 6:30 p.m.; santiam at culver, 4:30 p.m.; rogue Valley adventist at Trinity lutheran, 4 p.m.; rogue Trinity lutheran at Gilchrist, 7 p.m. Boys soccer: Mountain View at summit, 6 p.m.; Ma- dras at Gladstone, 6:30 p.m. Girls soccer: ridgeview at crook county, 4:30 p.m.; Gladstone at Madras, 4 p.m. Cross-country: crook county at hood river Valley; redmond at The dalles. THURSDAY Football: culver at regis, 5 p.m. Volleyball: crook county at ridgeview, 6:30 p.m.; Madras at Gladstone, 6 p.m. Boys soccer: ridgeview at Pendleton, 4:30 p.m.; newport at sisters, 6 p.m. Girls soccer: summit at Bend, 4 p.m.; Pendleton at ridgeview, 4:30 p.m.; crook county at redmond, 4 p.m.; sisters at newport, 4 p.m. PREPS Volleyball Monday’s Late Games sisters 3, stayton 0 (25-11, 25-13, 25-12) salem academy 3, culver 0 (25-21, 25-16, 25-11) Tuesday’s Games ridgeview 3, hood river Valley 0 (26-24, 25-15, 25-8) crook county vs. Pendleton, late redmond vs. The dalles, late Madras vs. Gladstone, late la Pine vs. Pleasant hill, late hosanna-Triad 3, Gilchrist 0 (25-15, 25-5, 25-7) Boys soccer Tuesday’s Game ridgeview vs. crook county, late The dalles 6, redmond 4 sisters 1, cascade 1 central christian/Trinity lutheran 1, Willamette Val- ley christian 1 Wednesday’s Games Miami at indiana, 4 p.m. Portland at detroit, 4 p.m. dallas at Boston, 4:30 p.m. houston at Brooklyn, 4:30 p.m. new york at Minnesota, 5 p.m. Toronto at Oklahoma city, 5 p.m. utah at Memphis, 5 p.m. sacramento at san antonio, 5:30 p.m. chicago at Phoenix, 7 p.m. Milwaukee at l.a. lakers, 7 p.m. Men’s college NCAA TOURNAMENT ELITE 8 All Games in Indianapolis Monday’s Late Game SOUTH REGION Baylor 81, arkansas 72 Tuesday’s Games WEST REGION Gonzaga 85, southern cal 66 EAST REGION ucla vs. Michigan, late FINAL FOUR Saturday’s Games houston vs. Baylor, Time TBd (cBs) TBd vs. Gonzaga, Time TBd (cBs) Women’s college NCAA TOURNAMENT ELITE 8 All Games in San Antonio, Tex. Tuesday’s Games HEMISFAIR REGION south carolina 62, Texas 34 ALAMO REGION stanford 78, louisville 63 FINAL FOUR Friday’s Games south carolina vs. stanford, 3 p.m. (esPn) arizona vs. connecticut, 6:30 p.m. (esPn) HOCKEY Girls soccer NHL Monday’s Late Game Gladstone 8, Madras 0 Tuesday’s Games Bend 5, Mountain View 0 redmond vs. The dalles, late sisters vs. cascade, late BASKETBALL NBA EASTERN CONFERENCE W L Pct Phila. 32 15 .681 Brooklyn 32 15 .681 Milwaukee 29 17 .630 charlotte 24 22 .522 new york 24 23 .511 atlanta 23 23 .500 Boston 23 24 .489 Miami 23 24 .489 indiana 21 24 .467 chicago 19 26 .422 Toronto 18 29 .383 Washington 17 29 .370 cleveland 17 30 .362 Orlando 15 31 .326 detroit 13 33 .283 WESTERN CONFERENCE W L Pct utah 35 11 .761 Phoenix 31 14 .689 l.a. clippers 32 16 .667 l.a. lakers 30 17 .638 denver 29 18 .617 Portland 28 18 .609 dallas 24 21 .533 san antonio 23 21 .523 Memphis 22 22 .500 Golden state 23 24 .489 sacramento 22 25 .468 new Orleans 21 25 .457 Oklahoma city 19 27 .413 houston 13 33 .283 Minnesota 11 36 .234 Monday’s Late Games utah 114, cleveland 75 l.a. clippers 129, Milwaukee 105 Golden state 116, chicago 102 Tuesday’s Games charlotte 114, Washington 104 denver 104, Phila. 95 atlanta at Phoenix, late Orlando at l.a. clippers, late GB — — 2½ 7½ 8 8½ 9 9 10 12 14 14½ 15 16½ 18½ GB — 3½ 4 5½ 6½ 7 10½ 11 12 12½ 13½ 14 16 22 24½ East GP W L OT Pts GF GA Washington 35 23 8 4 50 121 104 n.y. islanders 36 22 10 4 48 106 84 Pittsburgh 36 23 11 2 48 117 94 Boston 32 18 9 5 41 88 77 Philadelphia 34 17 13 4 38 106 123 n.y. rangers 35 16 15 4 36 112 94 new Jersey 34 13 16 5 31 83 106 Buffalo 34 6 23 5 17 71 122 Central GP W L OT Pts GF GA Tampa Bay 35 24 9 2 50 124 85 Florida 36 23 9 4 50 119 99 carolina 34 23 8 3 49 113 86 nashville 37 19 17 1 39 95 109 chicago 37 17 15 5 39 106 115 columbus 37 14 15 8 36 94 118 dallas 33 11 12 10 32 91 91 detroit 37 12 21 4 28 80 119 West GP W L OT Pts GF GA Vegas 33 24 8 1 49 108 75 colorado 34 22 8 4 48 118 77 Minnesota 33 21 10 2 44 97 82 st. louis 35 16 13 6 38 100 113 arizona 35 16 14 5 37 92 103 los angeles 33 13 14 6 32 92 94 san Jose 34 14 16 4 32 95 118 anaheim 37 11 20 6 28 83 123 North GP W L OT Pts GF GA Toronto 35 22 10 3 47 116 91 Winnipeg 36 22 12 2 46 119 99 edmonton 37 22 14 1 45 122 107 Montreal 32 15 8 9 39 104 87 calgary 37 16 18 3 35 96 112 Vancouver 37 16 18 3 35 100 120 Ottawa 36 12 20 4 28 94 135 NOTE: Two points for a win, one point for overtime loss. Monday’s Late Games Vegas 4, los angeles 1 Winnipeg 5, calgary 1 san Jose 4, Minnesota 3, sO colorado 5, anaheim 2 Tuesday’s Games Florida 4, detroit 1 n.y. rangers 5, Washington 2 Montreal 4, edmonton 0 columbus 3, Tampa Bay 1 Boston 5, new Jersey 4, sO chicago 2, carolina 1 nashville 3, dallas 2, OT Wednesday’s Games Philadelphia at Buffalo, 4:30 p.m. Toronto at Winnipeg, 4:30 p.m. arizona at colorado, 6:30 p.m. los angeles at Vegas, 7 p.m. calgary at Vancouver, 7:30 p.m. Minnesota at san Jose, 7:30 p.m. Continued from A5 San Francisco 49ers have signed wide receiver Mohamed Sanu for a second stint with the team. The Niners said Tues- day they reached a one-year deal with Sanu. Sanu played three games for San Francisco last season with one catch for nine yards. Sanu was originally drafted by Cincinnati in the third round of the 2012 draft. He spent four seasons with Cincin- nati and then three-plus seasons with Atlanta before being traded to New England during the 2019 season. He played with San Francisco and Detroit in 2020. Sanu has experience in coach Kyle Shanahan’s system after having played for him on the Falcons in 2016. “Knowing what it feels like to lose in a final and have that sort of gutted feeling, it’s terrible,” Rapinoe said during a phone interview Friday. “So, I always want to win championships and win trophies. That’s the reason I play and the ultimate goal in playing sport. … I’m looking forward to trying that again this year.” Rapinoe, who helped the Reign win the 2014 and 2015 NWSL Shield for best regu- lar-season record, last played for the Reign in a semifinal defeat against eventual NWSL champion North Carolina Courage in October 2019. Soccer became secondary in March 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic mo- mentarily shut down all sports. Rapinoe was with her USWNT, wearing her jersey inside-out in protest of USSF as the team won the SheBelieves Cup final against Ja- pan at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas. “We were thinking out loud that we can’t believe we have fans in the stadium,” Rapinoe said of the 19,096 in attendance. She had a goal and assist in the match, stating Washington was at the forefront of her mind since it was the epicenter of the virus at that time. “We pretty much knew after leaving that tournament that we were not going to be in normal life,” Rapinoe said. “I even said to people ‘Go wherever you want to go and be for a long time. If that’s not to your NWSL market and you want to go home or wherever it is, you should go there in- stead of back to where you’re supposed to go.’” Rapinoe headed to Connecticut with fiancé Sue Bird, a four-time WNBA cham- pion and gold medalist. The couple strictly followed CDC and local government health guidelines to guard against the dis- ease, while Rapinoe opted out of all soccer competitions and trainings. “(Opting out was) difficult in terms of not being able to be there with my team and not being able to participate,” said Rapinoe, who’s still judicious in her activ- ity amid the pandemic. “I didn’t feel com- fortable at all. ... I took that time to work on other things physically and be able to come back for 2021 where I feel like I know a lot more about how to keep my- self safe. We learned a lot about bubbling Raised fists, kneeling during anthem OK at U.S. Olym- pic trials — The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee will not sanction athletes for raising their fists or kneeling during the national anthem at Olympic trials, previewing a contentious policy it expects to stick to when many of those same athletes head to Tokyo this summer. The USOPC re- leased a nine-page document Tuesday to offer guidance about the sort of “racial and social demonstrations” that will and won’t be allowed by the hundreds who will compete in com- ing months for spots on the U.S. team. The document comes three months after the federation, heeding calls from its ath- letes, determined it would not enforce longstanding rules that ban protests at the Olympics. SPORTS BUSINESS Dapper Labs, creators of NBA Top Shot, get $305M in funding — Canadian blockchain technology company Dap- per Labs has secured $305 million in private funding — some of it from current and former NBA players, including Michael Jordan — to scale up its virtual NBA trading card site, the company said Tuesday. Vancouver, British Columbia-based Dapper says NBA Top Shot has rung up $500 million in sales and registered more than 800,000 accounts since its public beta testing phase began in October. The virtual cards come in the form of a floating digital cube that includes a video highlight of an NBA player and come with a non-fungible token, backed by blockchain technology, certifying its authenticity and scarcity. — Bulletin wire reports MEGA MILLIONS The numbers drawn Tuesday night are: 11 37 47 53 56 15 x 3 Oregon Lottery results The estimated jackpot is now $152 million. As listed at www.oregonlottery.org and individual lottery websites MLB 2021 Seattle Mariners Schedule april 1 vs. san Francisco 7:10 p.m. april 2 vs. san Francisco 7:10 p.m. april 3 vs. san Francisco 6:10 p.m. april 5 vs. chicago White sox 7:10 p.m. april 6 vs. chicago White sox 7:10 p.m. april 7 vs. chicago White sox 1:10 p.m. april 8 at Minneapolis 1:10 p.m. april 10 at Minneapolis 11:10 a.m. april 11 at Minneapolis 11:10 a.m. april 12 at Baltimore 3:35 p.m. april 13 at Baltimore 3:35 p.m. april 14 at Baltimore 3:35 p.m. april 15 at Baltimore 10:05 a.m. april 16 vs. houston 7:10 p.m. april 17 vs. houston 6:10 p.m. april 18 vs. houston 1:10 p.m. april 19 vs. l.a. dodgers 7:10 p.m. april 20 vs. l.a. dodgers 1:10 p.m. april 22 at Boston 4:10 p.m. april 23 at Boston 4:10 p.m. april 24 at Boston 10:10 a.m. april 25 at Boston 10:10 a.m. april 26 at houston 5:10 p.m. april 27 at houston 5:10 p.m. april 28 at houston 5:10 p.m. april 29 at houston 11:10 a.m. april 30 vs. l.a. angels 7:10 p.m. May 1 vs. l.a. angels 6:10 p.m. May 2 vs. l.a. angels 1:10 p.m. May 3 vs. Baltimore 7:10 p.m. May 4 vs. Baltimore 7:10 p.m. May 5 vs. Baltimore 12:40 p.m. May 7 at Texas 5:05 p.m. May 8 at Texas 4:05 p.m. May 9 at Texas 11:35 p.m. May 11 at l.a. dodgers 7:10 p.m. May 12 at l.a. dodgers 7:10 p.m. May 13 vs. cleveland 7:10 p.m. May 14 vs. cleveland 7:10 p.m. May 15 vs. cleveland 6:10 p.m. May 16 vs. cleveland 1:10 p.m. May 17 vs. detroit 7:10 p.m. May 18 vs. detroit 7:10 p.m. May 19 vs. detroit 7:10 p.m. May 21 at san diego 7:10 p.m. May 22 at san diego 5:40 p.m. May 23 at san diego 1:10 p.m. May 24 at Oakland 6:40 p.m. May 25 at Oakland 6:40 p.m. May 26 at Oakland 12:37 p.m. May 27 vs. Texas 7:10 p.m. May 28 vs. Texas 7:10 p.m. May 29 vs. Texas 7:10 p.m. May 30 vs. Texas 1:10 p.m. May 31 vs. Oakland 1:10 p.m. June 1 vs. Oakland 7:10 p.m. June 2 vs. Oakland 7:10 p.m. June 3 at l.a. angels 6:38 p.m. June 4 at l.a. angels 6:38 p.m. June 5 at l.a. angels 7:07 p.m. June 6 at l.a. angels 1:07 p.m. June 8 at detroit 4:10 p.m. June 9 at detroit 4:10 p.m. June 10 at detroit 10:10 a.m. June 11 at cleveland 4:10 p.m. June 12 at cleveland 1:10 p.m. June 13 at cleveland 10:10 a.m. June 14 vs. Minneapolis 7:10 p.m. June 15 vs. Minneapolis 7:10 p.m. June 16 vs. Minneapolis 7:10 p.m. June 17 vs. Tampa Bay 7:10 p.m. June 18 vs. Tampa Bay 7:10 p.m. June 19 vs. Tampa Bay 7:10 p.m. June 20 vs. Tampa Bay 1:10 p.m. June 22 vs. colorado 7:10 p.m. June 23 vs. colorado 1:10 p.m. June 25 at chicago White sox 5:10 p.m. June 26 at chicago White sox 11:10 a.m. June 27 at chicago White sox 11:10 a.m. June 29 at Toronto 4:07 p.m. June 30 at Toronto 4:07 p.m. July 1 at Toronto 10:07 a.m. July 2 vs. Texas 7:10 p.m. July 3 vs. Texas 7:10 p.m. July 4 vs. Texas 1:10 p.m. July 6 vs. n.y. yankees 7:10 p.m. July 7 vs. n.y. yankees 7:10 p.m. July 8 vs. n.y. yankees 1:10 p.m. July 9 vs. l.a. angels 7:10 p.m. July 10 vs. l.a. angels 7:10 p.m. July 11 vs. l.a. angels 1:10 p.m. July 16 at l.a. angels 6:38 p.m. July 17 at l.a. angels 6:07 p.m. July 18 at l.a. angels 1:07 p.m. July 20 at colorado 5:40 p.m. July 21 at colorado 12:10 p.m. July 22 vs. Oakland 7:10 p.m. July 23 vs. Oakland 7:10 p.m. July 24 vs. Oakland 7:10 p.m. July 25 vs. Oakland 1:10 p.m. July 26 vs. houston 7:10 p.m. July 27 vs. houston 7:10 p.m. July 28 vs. houston July 30 at Texas July 31 at Texas aug. 1 at Texas aug. 2 at Tampa Bay aug. 3 at Tampa Bay aug. 4 at Tampa Bay aug. 5 at n.y. yankees aug. 6 at n.y. yankees aug. 7 at n.y. yankees aug. 8 at n.y. yankees aug. 10 vs. Texas aug. 11 vs. Texas aug. 12 vs. Texas aug. 13 vs. Toronto aug. 14 vs. Toronto aug. 15 vs. Toronto aug. 17 at Texas aug. 18 at Texas aug. 19 at Texas aug. 20 at houston aug. 21 at houston aug. 22 at houston aug. 23 at Oakland aug. 24 at Oakland aug. 26 vs. Kansas city aug. 27 vs. Kansas city aug. 28 vs. Kansas city aug. 29 vs. Kansas city aug. 30 vs. houston aug. 31 vs. houston sept. 1 vs. houston sept. 3 at arizona sept. 4 at arizona sept. 5 at arizona sept. 6 at houston sept. 7 at houston sept. 8 at houston sept. 10 vs. arizona sept. 11 vs. arizona sept. 12 vs. arizona sept. 13 vs. Boston sept. 14 vs. Boston sept. 15 vs. Boston sept. 17 at Kansas city sept. 18 at Kansas city sept. 19 at Kansas city sept. 20 at Oakland sept. 21 at Oakland sept. 22 at Oakland sept. 23 at Oakland sept. 24 at l.a. angels sept. 25 at l.a. angels sept. 26 at l.a. angels sept. 27 vs. Oakland sept. 28 vs. Oakland sept. 29 vs. Oakland Oct. 1 vs. l.a. angels Oct. 2 vs. l.a. angels Oct. 3 vs. l.a. angels 12:40 p.m. 5:05 p.m. 4:05 p.m. 11:35 a.m. 4:10 p.m. 4:10 p.m. 10:10 a.m. 4:05 p.m. 4:05 p.m. TBd TBd 7:10 p.m. 7:10 p.m. 1:10 p.m. 7:10 p.m. 7:10 p.m. 1:10 p.m. 5:05 p.m. 5:05 p.m. 11:05 a.m. 5:10 p.m. 4:10 p.m. 11:10 a.m. 6:40 p.m. 12:37 p.m. 7:10 p.m. 7:10 p.m. 7:10 p.m. 1:10 p.m. 7:10 p.m. 7:10 p.m. 1:10 p.m. 6:40 p.m. 5:10 p.m. 1:10 p.m. 4:10 p.m. 5:10 p.m. 11:10 a.m. 7:10 p.m. 6:10 p.m. 1:10 p.m. 7:10 p.m. 7:10 p.m. 1:10 p.m. 5:10 p.m. 4:10 p.m. 11:10 a.m. 6:40 p.m. 6:40 p.m. 6:40 p.m. 12:37 p.m. 6:38 p.m. 6:07 p.m. 1:07 p.m. 7:10 p.m. 7:10 p.m. 7:10 p.m. 7:10 p.m. 6:10 p.m. 12:10 p.m. DEALS Transactions BASEBALL MLB — National League san FranciscO GianTs — reassigned rhPs Trevor Gott, dominic leone, Zack littell and nick Tropeano to the minor league camp. FOOTBALL National Football League ariZOna cardinals — signed cB Malcolm Butler. signed QB colt Mccoy to a one-year contract. BuFFalO Bills — signed OT Bobby hart to a one- year contract. cincinnaTi BenGals — signed G Quinton spain to a one-year contract. re-signed dl Mike daniels to a one- year contract. dallas cOWBOys — signed s Jayron Kearse. Green Bay PacKers — re-signed Te Marcedes lewis and dl Tyler lancaster. hOusTOn TeXans — signed rB Phillip lindsay, dB desmond King, P cameron Johnston and Wr alex er- ickson. Kansas ciTy chieFs — signed c austin Blythe to a one-year contract. las VeGas raiders — signed lT Kolton Miller to a three-year contract extension. MinnesOTa ViKinGs — re-signed G dakota dozier an Fs Xavier Woods. Placed Te hale hentges on the re- serve/retired list. neW enGland PaTriOTs — re-signed dl lawrence Guy. neW Orleans sainTs — signed Te nick Vannett and lB Tanoh Kpassagnon. PhiladelPhia eaGles — signed Wr Greg Ward to a one-year contract. PiTTsBurGh sTeelers — signed Ol rashaad coward and rB Kalen Ballage to one-year contracts. san FranciscO 49ers — signed Wr Mohamed sanu to a one-year contract. seaTTle seahaWKs — signed de carlos dunlap. TaMPa Bay Buccaneers — re-signed T Josh Wells. Tennessee TiTans — agreed to terms with s Matthias Farley on a one-year contract. Rapinoe 49ers sign WR Mohamed Sanu to 1-year deal — The OLYMPIC SPORTS BASEBALL Steve Luciano/AP file Megan Rapinoe during a SheBelieves Cup match against Spain, in Harrison, New Jersey, last year. our secure environments and how to keep people safe in those environments.” But, while she was away from the pitch in 2020, Rapinoe didn’t disappear. She used the time away from sports to pro- mote social justice, encourage voter turn- out, fight for gender equality and civil rights for the LGBTQIA+ community. And there was no better year for Rapi- noe to use her megawatt platform than 2020. She was a host for the ESPYs with Bird and Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson in June and also was part of the #ShareTheMicNow campaign in June, where white women with star power such as Rapinoe turned their social media ac- counts over to Black women to amplify their voices. Rapinoe also filmed an HBO special that was released in August where she and a panel that included Rep. Alexan- dria Ocasio-Cortez dug into social injus- tices and the presidential election. In October, Rapinoe witnessed Bird win her fourth title, and the couple got engaged later that month. November was marked by more campaigning for people to vote and the release of her memoir, “One Life.” In January, Rapinoe was among the activ- ists helping to push Georgia blue in the Senate runoff. And earlier this month, Rapinoe joined Bird to volunteer at a vac- cination site at Lumen Field followed by the trip to the White House. While the Reign will begin its season April 16 at Cheney Stadium against the defending champion Houston Dash, Rapi- noe isn’t expected to make her return to NWSL action until April 21 for the Casca- dia derby against the Portland Thorns at Providence Park. But while she has returned to sports, the pandemic still weighs on Rapinoe. “It’s almost like the degree of how terri- ble it is, is not really fully hitting us,” Rapi- noe said of the approximately 549,000 COVID-19 deaths in America. “It’s be- come a way of life to have all of these peo- ple getting COVID, to have all of these people dying. To have the devastation that we have has almost become normal.” It’s another issue she hopes to fight — this time from the soccer field. “Last year, I was completely unessential in pretty much every way,” Rapinoe said. “It was like how can I be a contributing member in this society? I’m going to stay home and then I’m going to try to provide some fun, light entertainment for some people whether it’s ‘A Touch More’ (Insta- gram Live with Bird) or it’s talk to politi- cians about things that I was struggling to understand and I know other people were. “I like to do whatever I can to help (and now) playing will be extremely impactful.”