Valkyries beat Dream in WNBA Finals opener behind Gabby Williams' 26 points

Christian Babcock, Bay Area News Group on Oct 17, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

SAN FRANCISCO — By a slim margin, the Golden State Valkyries are on the board in the WNBA Finals.

After trailing for nearly all of Game 1, the Valkyries mounted a late comeback to beat the Atlanta Dream, 68-64, and defend home court at Ballhalla to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven championship series, Golden State’s first in franchise history.

Gabby Williams hit two free throws with four seconds to play and Kiah Stokes and Kaila Charles had crucial rebounds of Atlanta’s missed 3-pointers down the stretch to seal the win.

Williams finished with 26 points to lead all scorers, including a historic outlay of 16 in the second quarter. Her second-period surge helped the Valkyries take a 42-39 lead into halftime after trailing most of the way in the first half, and she scored eight of Golden State’s final nine points, including all six free throws she attempted.

Stokes was next up for the Valkyries with nine points in the defensive slugfest, adding seven rebounds and four blocks. Charles had seven points and 10 rebounds.

Allisha Gray returned from a left hand injury to lead Atlanta with 19 points. Angel Reese, who scored 11 points in the first quarter, finished with 14 thanks to stellar post defense from Stokes and reserve big Laeticia Amihere, who made an unexpectedly large impact with five points and five rebounds in 14 minutes. Amihere had not played in the playoffs aside from Game 1 of the opening round against Dallas when the Valkyries already had a massive lead.

Williams was clearly uncomfortable late after getting tied up with Atlanta’s Jordin Canada on a boxout after Williams made two free throws with 2:15 remaining to make it 64-63. Williams limped back on defense and was limited on the Valkyries’ defensive possession as well as when they advanced the ball after Cecilia Zandasalini’s steal.

She recovered well enough to drive and draw a foul, then hit two free throws to put the Valkyries up 65-64 with 1:18 left. It was Golden State’s first lead of the quarter, although they kept it tight throughout.

Tiffany Hayes went to the floor after contesting a loose ball late in the fourth quarter and eventually got up slowly under her own power. She went to the locker room with 2:38 remaining, replaced by Zandalasini.

The Dream also controlled the majority of the action in the first half, as Golden State trailed continuously except for a few minutes at the end of each quarter. Reese’s 11 points in the first quarter gave Atlanta the early edge as the Valkyries scored just 14 as a team, but Williams helped Golden State to a 28-point second quarter.

Atlanta led by as many as nine points early in the period, but Williams’ 16 points in the frame carried the Valkyries to their first lead of the period on a 3-pointer with 1:52 left.

Williams joined Seimone Augustus, Angel McCoughtry, Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones and Jackie Young as the only six players to score 15 or more points in a WNBA Finals quarter.

The Dream quickly reasserted themselves in the third quarter too, going on a 5-0 run out of the break to retake the lead and once again leading most of the way. After trailing 40-37 at the half, they took a 56-51 advantage into the fourth.

In the end, though, it was Golden State’s composure, led by a limping Williams, that took the Valkyries over the top.

Game 2 will tip off at 5 p.m. Monday back at Chase Center.