Storm Fall to the Valkyries 91-80 in Season Opener

Dominique Malonga finished with 21 points and eight rebounds.

(Seattle, WA) - The Golden State Valkyries (1-0) proved to be too much for the new look Seattle Storm (0-1) in the 2026 season opener. The Valkyries used a barrage of three-pointers to separate themselves from Seattle in the 2nd half. Golden State outscored the Storm 46-29 over the middle two periods (2nd and 3rd). The Storm rallied late, but it was too little, too late as the Valkyries secured their first win of the season 91-80.

The Storm were led by 20-year-old Dominique Malonga who finished with a game-high 21 points on 8-15 FG shooting. She also had a team-high eight rebounds in the game. Zia Cooke (15 points) and Jade Melbourne (13) gave the Storm a large boost off the bench scoring 28 points total. It was a career-high for Cooke. Rookie Flau’jae Johnson added 12 points, two rebounds, and two assists in her WNBA debut.

Seattle out-rebounded Golden State 41-35. They had a slight advantage in second-chance points 18-15. They also had a 30-28 edge with points in the paint and a 9-2 advantage in fast break points. The Valkyries held a 17-6 advantage on free throw attempts in the first half, but the game evened out over the final two quarters. Seattle had a 27-22 edge in free throw attempts by the end of the game.

Golden State Valkyries

Three-pointers, three-pointers, and more three-pointers. The Golden State Valkyries shot them early and often throughout the game. When Seattle was outplaying them in the first half, the three-pointers kept the Valkyries within striking distance. As the three-pointers continued to rain down in the second half, it allowed Golden State to open 20-point lead in the 2nd half of the game.

Veronica Burton led the way early on scoring 14 of her 16 points in the first half. She also dished out a game-high six assists. Janelle Salaün did her damage late, scoring 11 of her 20 points in the 4th quarter, including three 3-PT shots in a row. Kaitlyn Chen scored all 14 of her points in the second half. Last year’s All-Star, Kayla Thornton, contributed with 13 points and eight rebounds.

Gabby Williams was solid in her return to Seattle. She finished the game with seven points, six rebounds, and four assists. She was one of the few Valkyries players that didn’t shoot particularly well, going 2-9 FG from the floor.

Golden State outshot the Storm 42% to 41%, but it was their three-point shooting that allowed them to distance themselves from the Storm. They outshot Seattle 41% to 35% from beyond the arc, and were a +18 points from beyond the arc.

I spoke with Jade Melbourne after the game about the challenges when a team is shooting and making that many three-pointers.

“When that happens, it’s a tough night to be completely honest, so that’s probably on us. We need to adjust more. I think Salaün got, I think five off in the second half and really killed us there. I think that’s a thing for a young group just adapting to things quicker. OK, she’s hit two, we don’t allow that anymore. Okay, maybe we have to step up a little bit in the gaps and not sink off as much. So, like I said, it’s a learning process. We had people out there playing their 1st game tonight, people that haven’t had much experience in this league. So we’ll continue to talk to that.” Melbourne said.

“The cool thing about this group is the character is super high and everyone wants to learn and be a sponge. So people will go in tonight disappointed, wanting to review. All the coaches will be under the pump to show us clips. We’ll learn individuals and personnel about the league and we’ll continue to get better because, you know, 15 made 3s on 40%, you’re probably not going to beat that.” Jade added.

The Valkyries were also excellent in limiting their turnovers. They committed just nine turnovers total, and only allowed Seattle to score five points off of those mistakes.

Game Breakdown

Flau’jae Johnson knocked down a three-pointer to score the game’s first basket and the first official points of her Seattle Storm career. Natisha Hiedeman fouled Gabby Williams on a three-point attempt, sending the former Storm player to the free throw line. The foul was upgraded to a Flagrant 1 (reckless closeout). Williams made two out of the three foul shots. After a couple of empty possessions by both sides, the Storm got out in transition, and Natisha Hiedeman found Stefanie Dolson open from beyond the arc, and she cashed in. Tiffany Hayes was fouled and split the free throws. Kayla Thornton knocked down a three ball to tie the game at 6-6.

Natisha Hiedeman scored an AND1 with a strong drive to the rim. Lexie Brown got the ball up to Dominique Malonga for the layup. Malonga was fouled and split the pair. Cecilia Zandalasini ended the Storm’s 6-0 run. Laeticia Amihere then scored to cut the Valkyries’ deficit down to four. Zia Cooke hit a pull-up triple. The two teams continued to swap three-point baskets. Veronica Burton knocked one down. Jade Melbourne connected on a triple, but Zandalasini added another one. Janelle Salaün hit one more to cut the Storm’s lead down to three at 22-19.

Zia Cooke countered with an aggressive drive where she was fouled and made both free throws. Salaün hit another three-pointer, the Valkyries 5th of the first quarter. At the end of the first quarter, the Seattle Storm led 24-23.

The Valkyries scored the first points of the second period to take a two-point lead. Jade Melbourne completed an AND1 on a drive to the rim. Kaila Charles and Veronica Burton hit back-to-back three-pointers. Then Thornton hit a corner three to push the Valkyries’ lead to seven at 37-30.

Gabby Williams used the pick-and-roll to get Kiah Stokes a wide-open layup. Hiedeman scored on a drive down the lane. Veronica Burton countered with an AND1 layup to put the Valkyries ahead by eight. The Storm hustled for an offensive rebound that led to a Malonga midrange jumper. Jade Melbourne knocked down a three-pointer, while the Valkyries countered with free throws. Thornton made another one from beyond the arc. Seattle had a late turnover that led to another free throw for Burton.

At the end of the first half, the Golden State Valkyries led 49-41. The Valkyries had made 45% (9-20 FG) of their shots from beyond the arc. GSV also had a 17-6 advantage in free throw attempts. Veronica Burton led Golden State with 14 poionts. Jade Melbourne led Seattle with 11 points off the bench.

Stefanie Dolson scored an off-balanced shot to begin the third period. Gabby Williams answered with a smooth turnaround jumper. After a Malonga basket, Williams knocked down a corner three to put the Valkyries ahead by 10 at 56-46. Kaitlyn Chen checked in off the bench and scored on two consecutive possessions to extend the Valkyries lead to 13. They pushed their lead to 64-47 with more free throws and a layup by Janelle Salaün.

Seattle attempted to rally. Flau’jae knocked down a corner three. Jade Melbourne drew a foul and made both foul shots. Kaitlyn Chen responded with another Valkyries three-pointer. The Valkyries outscored the Storm 20-12 in the third quarter and led 69-53 entering the fourth.

Kaitlyn Chen drove down the lane and scored past Dominique Malonga. After a Zia Cooke three-pointer, Chen answered with one of her own pushing the Valkyries lead to 18 points. Grace VanSlooten scored the first points of her WNBA career at the free throw line. She then added a three-pointer. While the Storm used a smaller lineup, the Valkyries got the ball inside to Kiah Stokes who scored easily.

Flau’jae was able to draw a foul from beyond the arc and made all three-point attempts. Janella Salaün answered back with two more three-pointers. Salaün scored 11 points in the final period to secure the win by the Valkyries. Seattle outscored Golden State 27-22 over the final 10 minutes, but it wasn’t enough. They fell in the opener 91-80.

Final Box Score

Up Next

The Seattle Storm (0-1) travel to Connecticut (0-1) to face the Sun on Sunday, May 10th, at 10:00 AM PT.

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