WNBA Reporter Describes Pregnancy Complications While Covering 2025 Championship Season

A sports reporter for USA Today described her experience covering the Las Vegas Aces during their 2025 WNBA championship season while pregnant from start to finish. She said she began hiding her pregnancy in group photos and professional settings out of concern that it would affect perceptions of her dedication to her career in a competitive journalism environment.

The reporter had started writing for her college newspaper in 2019.

During her pregnancy she was diagnosed with preeclampsia, a high blood pressure disorder that can endanger both mother and baby. She received the diagnosis a few hours before the Aces' exit interviews after reporting swelling and elevated blood pressure readings that had previously been dismissed. Doctors scheduled an induction for the same day after tests showed protein in her urine.

The initial hospital said it had no space available, leading to a wait of around 12 hours as her symptoms including headaches and vision problems worsened. Family members with medical backgrounds intervened and arranged for her to be admitted to the emergency wing for monitoring until a delivery room became available. The reporter said the group narrowly avoided a more serious crisis.

She noted that the United States has the highest rate of maternal deaths of any high-income country according to a 2024 Commonwealth Fund study. Black women are three times more likely than white and Hispanic women to die from pregnancy-related complications according to March CDC data.

Black women are also 60 percent more likely to suffer from preeclampsia and to develop severe cases compared with white women according to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.