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WNBA Announces Historic News After Valkyries Defeat Caitlin Clark, Fever

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Paolo Songco | Last updated Jun 20, 2025 7:04 AM ET

It has been quite a run for the Golden State Valkyries thus far in their inaugural season in the WNBA. On Thursday, they marked arguably their biggest win of the campaign after taking down Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever at Chase Center, 88-77.

The Valkyries were coming off a disappointing 80-71 loss against Paige Bueckers and the Dallas Wings on Tuesday, and they needed a bounce-back win on Thursday. They did just that by defeating the Fever, who entered the matchup on a two-game winning streak.

It was veteran guard Kayla Thornton who led the way for Golden State in this one with 16 points and six rebounds. Clark, on the other hand, was held to just 11 points after shooting 3-of-14 from the field.

Golden State improved to 6-6 after Thursday's victory, which prompted a historic announcement from the WNBA via social media.

"Now 6-6... matching the Detroit Shock for 2nd best expansion team start " the league posted on Instagram.

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The 1998 Detroit Shock no longer stand alone as the record holders for the best start by an expansion team in WNBA history. They now share this title with the Valkyries, who have an opportunity to set a new record in their next game.

The Golden State Valkyries can rewrite the history books again by going 7-6 if they are able to defeat the 2-10 Connecticut Sun on Sunday. It's going to be another home game for the Valkyries, too, which means that they will get a chance to make history in front of their passionate home fans.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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