Carrying the fate of the Canadian women’s national soccer team on her shoulders, 20-year-old Julia Grosso made the long walk across the pitch and into the 18-yard box for the last penalty kick of the Tokyo Olympic final in August.

With Canada and Sweden deadlocked 2-2 in the shootout, Grosso set the ball down on the penalty spot with the chance to send Canada to a historic title. The midfielder later admitted she was pretending it was merely a training session.

Four-and-a-half million Canadians held their breath as Grosso released a long exhale from the top of the box and stared at the spot. Barely a second later, she charged at the ball and struck it low and hard with her left foot.

Swedish goalkeeper Hedvig Lindahl got her fingertips on it before deflecting the ball into the top corner of the net.

Olympic Gold. Canada’s first ever in women’s soccer.

And now, Grosso is a household name.

The heroic goal concluded a revolutionary chapter in Grosso’s soccer career, one that head coach Bev Priestman is eager to see her build on as Canada heads into its Celebration Tour starting Oct. 23.

“Julia, for me, is the player over the past six months I’ve seen the most growth in,” Priestman said Monday.

At the 2021 SheBelieves Cup in February, Grosso didn’t see the pitch during the three-game tournament. It was a difficult decision for Priestman, who had coached Grosso on the U-17 and U-20 national teams from 2016 to 2018 and knew what the young star was capable of.

Five months later, the Vancouver native showed up to Tokyo more ready than ever for her Olympic debut. Through Canada’s six unbeaten matches on the path to gold, the center midfielder showed improvements in her passing, her ability to play forward and her level of physicality.

“She went away, she worked hard, she turned over to the Olympics ready, and was a pivotal player in the whole Olympic campaign,” Priestman said.

“To go and do what she did speaks massive amounts for her character. So, if she continues with that mindset, she’s got a great future.”

Grosso’s defense has also improved, making her case to share the holding midfield position with Desiree Scott even stronger.

Scott, a 34-year-old veteran, was one to take Grosso under her wing after Grosso debuted with the senior team in 2017.

“She’s really building that confidence, really settling into what the squad is, what it looks like, what our tactics are, and really developing that soccer brain and bringing her individual identity through it all,” Scott said.

Grosso, who was also on Canada’s roster for the 2019 World Cup, wasn’t a part of the regular starting lineup in Tokyo, but the team fed off of her energy every time she subbed in.

“I think Julia now has to establish herself as a starter for Canada, and that’s the challenge I’d set her,” Priestman said.

Another task for Grosso is figuring out what her plans are after college. The Texas senior ranks fifth in Big 12 points this season with three goals and two assists.

Grosso hasn’t announced anything yet, but Priestman says she’s been on the phone with “many, many” people inquiring about her. Grosso is one of two players on Canada’s gold-medal winning squad still playing college soccer, with the other being defender Jayde Riviere.

After the summer Grosso has had, it’s fair to think this is only the beginning of a long and prosperous career for her on the professional and international stage. Canada’s two exhibition games against New Zealand on Saturday, Oct. 23 and Tuesday, Oct. 26 will serve as another proving ground.

Jessa Braun is an editorial intern for Just Women’s Sports. She is also the Head of North American Content for the Women’s Sports Alliance. You can find her on Twitter @jessabraun.

Cameron Brink already has her rookie of the year pick for the upcoming WNBA season, and it’s Indiana-bound star Caitlin Clark. 

In the latest edition of Kelley on the Street, host Kelley O'Hara caught up with Brink in New York hours before the Stanford phenom went No. 2 overall to the Los Angeles Sparks at the 2024 WNBA Draft. When O’Hara asked who would win the WNBA's rookie of the year, she answered without pause.

"Caitlin Clark," she said, while a fan commented that she thought Brink would take home the award. Brink later added that the extra foul granted to WNBA players will be "good for me."

"I hope it’s me," Charisma Osborne, who was later drafted by the Phoenix Mercury, said when asked her ROY prediction. "But, I don’t know — we’ll see."

Watch more of Kelley on the Street:

Maria Sanchez issued a statement on Thursday, confirming recent reports that she has requested a trade from the Houston Dash. 

In it, she revealed that the club has been aware of the request "since late March."

"This has all taken a toll and isn’t an easy thing to talk about, but I want to confirm that I’ve requested an immediate trade," she wrote. "My expectations and reasons have been clear. I trust that my current club’s management will honor my decision in a timely manner and proceed with accepting a trade."

"I’m eager to refocus and dive back into what I love most: playing football," she concluded.

Thank you, everyone, for the outpouring of kindness and support. pic.twitter.com/gcnN7dhCJU

— Maria Sanchez (@Maria17_7) April 19, 2024

Reports of Sanchez's trade request first surfaced on ESPN last week, and were later confirmed by multiple sources. 

In December of last year, Sanchez signed a three-year contract with the Dash valued at $1.5 million including bonuses and an option year. It was the largest contract in NWSL history at the time — a figure that would be eclipsed by multiple contracts in the following months. 

Sanchez spent the offseason as a restricted free agent, meaning that Houston could match any other team's offer to retain her rights. Should the Dash trade Sanchez, her current contract terms would remain intact, limiting potential buyers to teams able to afford to take on an inking of that size.

The Dash has yet to address the trade, instead reiterating to ESPN that Sanchez is "under contract, a choice she made in free agency at the end of 2023." 

Both the NWSL trade window and transfer window close tonight, April 19th, at 12 a.m. ET. The window will stay closed through the next 11 regular season games, reopening on August 1st, 2024.

The four-time league champion Seattle Storm unveiled their new practice facility on Thursday, with Storm co-owner Lisa Brummel dubbing Interbay's Seattle Storm Center for Basketball Performance the team’s "new home."

"It's just such a special space," Brummel told Fox 13 Seattle. "I think when the players get here, it's gonna be overwhelming."

The sprawling 50,000-square-foot, $64 million property is just the second designated practice facility to be designed and built expressly for a WNBA team, with the Storm further noting that 85% of all design and engineering team members involved in the project's construction were women and people of color. The finished product holds two professional indoor courts, two 3x3 outdoor courts, a state-of-the-art locker room, and players' lounge, plus designated areas for strength and conditioning, kitchen, dining, and nutrition, and recovery. 

"This facility reflects our commitment to providing our athletes an exceptional environment that supports their growth, health, and performance," said Storm co-owner Ginny Gilder in an official team release. "It’s built for women, by women, embodying our dedication to leading the way in professional women’s sports."

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For their part, the team can't wait to make the faciilty their own.

"It's amazing," Storm guard Jewell Loyd told Fox 13. "Not having to drive everywhere around, knowing you have access anytime of the day to get into the gym, to workout." 

Head coach Noelle Quinn said she predicts the team is "never going to leave this building."

"Which is a good thing for me," she continued. "You talk about having an edge in performance. We want our athletes to not only perform on the court, but get whatever they need."

All of the Storm's staff and operations will now live under one roof, and the team also has plans to launch a youth basketball program operating out of the building.

The Caitlin Clark effect is quickly making its mark on the big leagues, as WNBA host teams around the country rush to upgrade their Fever games to larger arenas in order to accommodate surging ticket sales.

With Clark mere weeks away from her Indiana Fever debut, both the Las Vegas Aces and Washington Mystics have officially relocated their scheduled home games with head coach Christie Sides' squad. On Thursday, the Mystics became the latest to adjust their plans, moving their June 7th matchup from Entertainment & Sports Arena in Southwest DC to the more centrally located — and much larger — Capital One Arena "due to unprecedented demand."

The Mystics home court's capacity taps out at 4,200, while Capital One Arena — home to the Wizards, Capitals, and Georgetown Hoya's Men's Basketball — can fit nearly five times that crowd at some 20,000 spectators.

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"The move to Capital One Arena will allow for additional fans in the stands as well as premium hospitality options, including Suites and the all-new all-inclusive courtside Hennessy Lofts," the team announced via Thursday's press release.

The Aces were one of the first teams to switch venues, aiming to take on the Indiana Fever in front of as many as 20,000 fans inside T-Mobile Arena on July 2nd. That’s a sizable a boost from their home venue, which holds just 12,000.

For those still planning to face the Fever in their home arenas, ticket prices have skyrocketed. Previously scheduled construction has already forced the LA Sparks to relocate their first five games — including their May 24th clash with the Fever — to Long Beach State's Walter Pyramid. The temporary venue is quite the downsize, holding just 4,000 in comparison to Crypto.com Arena's near-19,000. As of Friday, the get-in price for that game started around $400.

Despite fans launching a Change.org petition urging relocation, the Chicago Sky say they're unable to move their June 23rd Fever meeting from Wintrust Arena's 10,000-seat facility to the 23,500-seat United Center due to a concert. Tickets for that game start around $325 as of Friday.