By Zach White<\/p>\n
The burgeoning buzz surrounding the Golden State Valkyries has led to an outpouring of fervent support, through a raucous in-person atmosphere at the Chase Center and through online spaces.<\/p>\n
In the 2025 season, the Valkyries became the first Women\u2019s National Basketball Association (WNBA) franchise to reach the playoffs in its first year in the league, led by Coach of the Year winner Natalie Nakase and the team\u2019s top-scorer, forward Kayla Thornton.<\/p>\n
Friends Vanessa Hutchinson-Szekely and Raina Mast, a duo of Richmond District educators, creators and parents, have captured the intrigue of San Francisco\u2019s newest professional sports franchise, covering the happenings of \u201cBallhalla\u201d on their podcast titled, \u201cValkyries, Say Less.\u201d<\/p>\n
The podcast, which was mentioned in a recent New York Times article, dates back to the beginning of the Valkyries\u2019 inaugural season, with its first episode being recorded after Hutchinson and Mast attended the team\u2019s home opener against the Los Angeles Sparks.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/valkyries-courtesy-pic3.jpeg\")
Richmond District residents and longtime teachers Raina Mast (left) and Vanessa Hutchinson-Szekely captured the intrigue of San Francisco\u2019s newest professional sports franchise, the Golden State Valkyries professional women\u2019s basketball team, with their podcast called \u201cValkyries, Say Less.\u201d Photo courtesy of Vanessa Hutchinson-Szekely and Raina Mast.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe recorded the first episode on Mother\u2019s Day in May,\u201d Hutchinson said. \u201cI\u2019m a mindfulness instructor and creator so I knew that it was very simple to get a podcast going, and I said, \u2018Raina, come over and let\u2019s do it.\u2019 We quickly realized that we have very different sounding voices, very complimentary exchanges, vibes and personalities. The first episode was mostly about us, and why we were doing this.\u201d<\/p>\n
Long-standing connections to the game of basketball drew the pair toward the Valkyries. Hutchinson was a high school player and now teaches physical education at Roosevelt Middle School. Mast played college basketball at both Dickinson College in Pennsylvania and the University of Queretaro in Mexico, and is the daughter of former NBA player Eddie Mast, who played for the New York Knicks and Atlanta Hawks.<\/p>\n
Though this appreciation for the sport itself intrigued the duo, it was the \u201cspecial\u201d togetherness of the gathered crowd that led them to pursue telling the team\u2019s story in podcast form, according to Mast.<\/p>\n
\u201cLast spring, I think the whole Bay Area needed something positive to rally around,\u201d Mast said. \u201c(Attending the Valkyries game) was a slap in the face of joyfulness. Some people there had never watched basketball before, but we all made this covenant to stay until the end of the game, even when we lose. I missed getting together with people around something we all believed in. So (Hutchinson and I) decided, \u2018Let\u2019s talk about this. Let\u2019s process it.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Recording sessions for the \u201cValkyries, Say Less\u201d podcast take place inside a bedroom studio in Hutchinson\u2019s Richmond District home, in a room the pair have dubbed \u201cBunk Bed Studio.\u201d In the cozy confines of a pink-colored and bedazzled bedroom, the duo records their podcast, with each episode\u2019s format being largely focused on a specific member of the Valkyries team.<\/p>\n
\u201cEach episode is about a different player,\u201d Mast said. \u201cIt\u2019s their backstory. Basically, giving praise to where they came from, how they got here and all the hard work and everything that they\u2019ve been through. It focuses on how this person is amazing at what they do. We are here to tell you the back stories and do the research so that when you\u2019re watching them, it\u2019s like you\u2019re watching your besties.\u201d<\/p>\n
While the content of the podcast focuses on the life and career of each Valkyrie player, both of the hosts are similarly focused on bringing awareness towards the players\u2019 ongoing fight for greater pay equity.<\/p>\n
\u201c(These players) are not getting paid enough,\u201d Hutchinson said, emphasizing the importance of the podcast in spreading awareness on the issue. \u201cWe discovered how incredible each individual athlete and coach on the team is, and how the contracts for the WNBA are up for negotiation. We ended up deciding another role for us is to amplify how incredible these women are and highlight how underpaid they are.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/valkyries-courtesy-pic4.jpeg\")
Raina Mast (left) and Vanessa Hutchinson-Szekely record their podcast about the Golden State Valkyries in \u201cBunk Bed Studio\u201d in Hutchinson\u2019s Richmond District home. Photo courtesy of Vanessa Hutchinson-Szekely and Raina Mast.<\/p>\n
Having produced a full season\u2019s worth of podcasts, the minds behind \u201cValkyries, Say Less\u201d are already looking forward to the next season full of insightful discussions, friendly podcast dialogue and fierce competition by their beloved team. Until the Valkyries return to action at the Chase Center, Hutchinson and Mast are planning on continuing their podcast, covering news around the WNBA and women\u2019s sports in general.<\/p>\n
\u201cWere trying to figure out where and how we want to continue in the WNBA offseason,\u201d Hutchinson said. \u201cSome Valkyries players are playing in the Unrivaled League. The podcast will probably be more focused on themes connected to (ongoing WNBA contract negotiations). I want to make sure that the players see that fans support them and their fight.\u201d<\/p>\n
Interested listeners can find \u201cValkyries, Say Less\u201d wherever they listen to podcasts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Zach White The burgeoning buzz surrounding the Golden State Valkyries has led to an outpouring of fervent…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":258429,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[629],"tags":[49,48,82,630],"class_list":{"0":"post-258428","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wnba","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-sports","11":"tag-wnba"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/258428","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=258428"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/258428\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/258429"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=258428"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=258428"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=258428"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}