Riley Gaines reacts as Sophie Cunningham slams WNBA for not protecting Caitlin Clark after viral tackle against Suns player

Riley Gaines recently issued her opinion on the Indiana Fever player Sophie Cunningham calling out the WNBA referees for not protecting Caitlin Clark. Cunningham slammed the association by saying that she has to defend Clark since the WNBA failed to do so.

The Indiana Fever and Connecticut Sun locked horns with each other on June 18, 2025, where the former bagged the victory with a score of 88-71. During the match, Clark was shoved to the ground while dribbling the ball in the offensive end of the court during the third quarter of the match. The WNBA star was poked in the eye by Jacy Sheldon and was eventually pushed to the floor by Marina Mabrey.

This fierce competition led to the ejection of Cunningham, Sheldon, and Allen after several assessments. Following this incident, Sophie Cunningham slammed the WNBA for being unable to protect Clark during the incident. A video of her stating that she will always protect her teammates was uploaded on X, where she said:

"You know what, during that it was just part of the game. I think the refs had a lot to do with that. It was a build up for a couple years now of them just not protecting, you know, the star player of the WNBA. And so at the end of the day, I'm going to protect my teammates. That's what I do and I'm a team player," said Cunningham.

This garnered the attention of the former swimmer and women's sports advocate, Riley Gaines, who lauded Cunningham's team spirit and posted on X:

"This is the kind of teammate you want on your team👑👑👑"

Along with being an advocate of women's sports, Riley Gaines also became an author by publishing her book, 'Swimming against the Current,' on May 21, 2024.

---

Riley Gaines made her feelings known about celebrating the first anniversary of her book

On May 21, 2025, Riley Gaines celebrated the first anniversary of her book, 'Swimming against the Current,' which is about the struggles she has faced while protecting women's sports in America. She opened up about the success of her book on its first anniversary by sharing a picture of her posing with the book on Instagram and penned a long, heartfelt caption that read:

"One year ago today, I released a book that became a national best-seller within weeks. Because of YOU — your support, the continued demand, and the ongoing cultural conversation — we’re releasing a brand-new paperback edition of Swimming Against the Current TODAY!"

Extending gratitude toward her readers, she said that their love means a lot to her and spoke about the letters and emails she has received in the past.

"To the thousands who have reached out and shared how this book gave you the courage to do the hard or unpopular thing: you can’t begin to know how much that means to me. That was the exact reason I wrote it. Several times over the past year I have found myself overwhelmed by the emails, letters, and conversations — people stepping away from comfort, choosing conviction over convenience, and finding strength in standing alone."

Here is the full caption:

A few days ago, Riley Gaines reacted to Nebraska's legal restriction on transgender athletes' participation in women's sports.