The NWSL Challenge Cup resumes on Thursday after an international break that lasted a week and a half.

Kicking off with OL Reign versus San Diego Wave FC on Thursday night, the tournament will continue to serve as an opportunity for coaches to evaluate their rosters in game action before the regular season begins April 29. About two thirds of the way through their Challenge Cup schedules, teams are still signing and rotating in new players.

In that spirit, we look at five of the NWSL’s most notable additions who recently made, or will soon make, their league debuts.

Kerolin Nicoli, F, North Carolina Courage

Nicoli officially joined the Courage at the beginning of the month, arriving from Brazil for an away game against NY/NJ Gotham FC on April 3. Subbing into the game in the second half for her NWSL debut, she showcased her creativity, comfort on the ball and ability to draw opponents in and create spaces. Her most dangerous play came in the 80th minute, when she received a through ball from Brazilian teammate Debinha and took on three Gotham defenders before hitting the top left post with her shot.

“Really, really happy with her, and she’s obviously only going to get better,” Courage head coach Sean Nahas said.

Despite a 1-1 draw with Gotham, North Carolina remains undefeated and at the top of the East Division standings with a 2-0-2 record.

Before signing with North Carolina on Jan. 10, Kerolin played two seasons with Madrid Club de Fútbol Femenin of the Spanish Primera División, scoring five goals in 24 appearances and logging 1,588 minutes of playing time.

🚨SIGNING NEWS🚨

The North Carolina Courage have signed Brazilian forward Kerolin!

Welcome to the squad, @kerolinnicolii!

📰: https://t.co/b7zvU0Pcc5 pic.twitter.com/DKhfjYeB75

— NC Courage (@TheNCCourage) January 10, 2022

Amirah Ali, F, San Diego Wave FC

Ali scored her first professional goal in her NWSL debut on April 2 after subbing on in the 68th minute. In an impressive individual effort, she dribbled through Angel City FC’s half, beating center back Vanessa Gilles into the box and placing the ball in the bottom right corner.

The 4-2 win was the Wave’s first in franchise history, lifting them to third place in the West Division standings, ahead of Angel City. 

San Diego head coach Casey Stoney wasn’t surprised at all by Ali’s standout debut.

“If we can get her fit, she can light this league up,” said Stoney, who’s been impressed with Ali’s intelligence.

Ali is coming off of her senior year at Rutgers University, where she was a MAC Hermann Trophy candidate as well as a member of the All-Big Ten First Team and the All-Region First Team.

.@amirahali07 with the cool finish for her first pro goal! @sandiegowavefc | #WaveFC pic.twitter.com/AGnRqHsVbH

— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) April 2, 2022

Amanda Kowalski, D, Chicago Red Stars

The Red Stars signed Kowalski after center back Tierna Davidson went down with a season-ending torn ACL last month. The defender made her first start in a 2-0 shutout of the Houston Dash on April 2, and two days later, the club announced it had signed her to a three-year contract with a fourth-year option. Playing all 90 minutes for her hometown club, she recorded two key blocked shots and completed 80 percent of her passes, making her one of the Red Stars’ top facilitators of the game with 44 completed passes.

With the clean-sheet victory, Chicago rose to the top of the Central Division standings, tied with the Kansas City Current at 2-1-1.

Before joining the Red Stars this preseason as a non-roster invitee, Kowalski played in 72 matches at Butler University, scoring four goals and recording 11 assists.

Playing 90 minutes + making a couple of big defensive stops, @akowalski_05 was the latest rookie to make her Red Stars debut. pic.twitter.com/J0cnhHyJeJ

— Chicago Red Stars (@chicagoredstars) April 3, 2022

Alex Chidiac, M, Racing Louisville FC

Though just 23 years old, Chidiac has been a star for a while. The midfielder received her first senior national team call-up with Australia at the age of 16, and at 15 she made her debut with Adelaide United FC in the A-League.

Most recently, she was named Melbourne Victory’s best player in 2021 after helping the club win last month’s Aussie Grand Final. On loan from WE League’s JEF United Chiba, she scored one goal and added two assists in 14 starts for Melbourne.

The Sydney native, who signed with Racing Louisville earlier this month, is known to be strong on the ball and to play with a lot of energy.

“I think Alex and Racing will be a perfect match,” Louisville head coach Kim Björkegren said.

Welcome to the group, @alexchidiac10. 👋

We'll see you soon. pic.twitter.com/zKe4Lw0UOo

— Racing Louisville FC (@RacingLouFC) April 4, 2022

Jimena López, D, OL Reign

López had a standout first start with the OL Reign in a 1-0 win over the Portland Thorns on April 2, making some key tackles on the wing. A member of the Mexican national team, the fullback joins U.S. women’s national team defenders Sofia Huerta and Alana Cook — as well as Lu Barnes and Sam Hiatt — to form one of the strongest backlines in the league.

López was selected 28th overall in the 2021 NWSL Draft by the Reign before signing with Eibar in the Spanish Primera División the same month. In Spain, the 23-year-old started and played in 16 matches, scoring one goal across 1,361 minutes of play.

Before going pro, López starred at Texas A&M. With 17 goals and 23 assists in her NCAA career, she was named 2019 SEC Midfielder of the Year and 2020 Co-Defender of the Year, and she was a two-time All-SEC First Team selection.

JIMENA LÓPEZ!!! 😱 What a goal for Mexico! 🇲🇽#AIAvMEX | 0-8 | #ConcacafW pic.twitter.com/ThI3H8Y1qS

— The Equalizer (@EqualizerSoccer) April 9, 2022

Jessa Braun is a contributing writer at Just Women’s Sports covering the NWSL and USWNT. Follow her on Twitter @jessabraun.

The USA Women's Eagles still have a shot at a 2025 Rugby World Cup knockouts run thanks to a dramatic 31-31 draw against Australia on Saturday — putting all the pressure on next weekend's group-stage finale.

After falling to host nation — and world No. 1 — England in the tournament's record-breaking opener, the now-No. 8 US squad kept their World Cup dreams alive by pulling level with the No. 7 Wallaroos.

Saturday's thrilling draw brought drama to the competition's mostly lopsided pool-play results so far, and spoiled what would have been a guaranteed spot in the quarterfinals for Australia.

"The mood is disappointment because we were so close [to a win]," said US star Ilona Maher following the game. "But also excitement because there is more to play for in that we're not going home just yet. We're definitely proud of the fight."

With England officially clinching the top spot in Pool A, Team USA now needs a blowout win over No. 15 Samoa with at least four tries scored (called a bonus point), as well as an Australian loss to England without a bonus point — plus a positive score differential over the Wallaroos — to advance.

How to watch Team USA at the 2025 Women's Rugby World Cup

The No. 8 USA will close out their group-stage run by taking on No. 15 Samoa at 8:30 AM ET on Saturday, before awaiting their fate when No. 7 Australia plays No. 1 England at 12 PM ET.

Live coverage of all 2025 Women's Rugby World Cup games streams on Paramount+.

The Naomi Osaka comeback tour continued on Monday, as the world No. 24 tennis star took down No. 3 Coco Gauff 6-3, 6-2 in the pair's Round of 16 match at the 2025 US Open — booking her first Grand Slam quarterfinal since 2021 in the process.

"I'm a little sensitive and I don't want to cry, but honestly, I just had so much fun out here," Osaka said following the upset victory. "I was in the stands like two months after I gave birth to my daughter, watching Coco. I just really wanted an opportunity to come out here and play."

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Already a two-time US Open champion, Osaka has been eyeing a deep tournament run since returning from maternity leave in January 2024 — and she managed to take advantage of Gauff's fluctuating form to achieve her goal.

"It's disappointing," Gauff said after Monday's loss. "For sure it was not the level that I wanted to bring, but it is a step in the right direction, I feel. I maybe was a little bit empty — she forced me to earn every point out there today."

Japan's four-time Grand Slam winner will next face No. 13 Karolína Muchová in a Wednesday quarterfinal, with Osaka most recently ousting the Czechia national from the 2025 Australian Open's Round of 64.

How to watch the US Open quarterfinals

The 2025 US Open quarterfinals kicked off on Tuesday, with US star and world No. 4 Jessica Pegula booking her second straight semifinals berth at the New York Slam by defeating Czechia's No. 62 Barbora Krejčíková in straight sets.

The quarterfinals will continue when defending champion No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka faces another Czech contender, No. 60 Markéta Vondroušová, at 7 PM ET on Tuesday.

Wednesday will cap the round, with Osaka battling Muchová and Poland's No. 2 Iga Świątek taking on No. 9 US star Amanda Anisimova in a rematch of the 2025 Wimbledon final.

Live coverage of the 2025 US Open airs across ESPN platforms.

Despite a season spent at the bottom of the table, the No. 13 Chicago Stars have quietly become the NWSL team to beat, racking up a five-game undefeated streak behind a slate of dramatic draws — including Sunday's 1-1 result against the No. 2 Washington Spirit.

Come-from-behind draws fueled all five of the Stars' most recent points, with striker Ludmila having a particularly impressive star turn as of late.

The Brazilian national scored five times across Chicago's last three matches, including Sunday's lone team goal as well as a sub-10 minute hat trick that pulled the Stars level with the No. 10 North Carolina Courage on August 22nd.

"I think we'd be doing a disservice to the league if we laid down just because we're in last place and felt sorry for ourselves," quipped Stars defender Sam Staab.

Chicago will continue trying to extend their unbeaten streak under new interim manager Anders Jacobson, who oversaw his first NWSL match on Sunday while the Stars await the arrival of incoming permanent boss Martin Sjögren.

"It'll be a lot of him getting to know us, and us getting to know him in this next week or so," Staab said of the team's temporary head coach. "This league moves fast. Everything happens fast."

The No. 1 Kansas City Current tightened their grip atop the league on Saturday, claiming a 2-0 victory over the No. 10 North Carolina Courage to become the first NWSL team to clinch a spot in the 2025 playoffs.

Still undefeated at home on the year, Saturday's win marked the Current's sixth straight regular-season shutout and extended their lead in the NWSL standings to a massive 14 points.

"Our goal is to come out as a group and be the best that we can possibly be every game we play," said KC head coach Vlatko Andonovski afterwards. "We celebrate tonight, we rest tomorrow, and we get ready for the next one."

Though Kansas City is reaching historic heights, the rest of the league is sparking more questions than answers: The No. 4 Orlando Pride and No. 5 Seattle Reign are now on multiple-game winless streaks, and the No. 6 Portland Thorns have managed just one win in their last five matches.

On the flip side, No. 9 Angel City is making a concerted effort, extending their unbeaten run to four games with Monday's 2-1 win over No. 12 Bay FC — all while star winger Alyssa Thompson sat out amid mounting midseason transfer rumors.

"This group, the way they play and how they can grow together, I'm so proud of them today," said LA head coach Alexander Straus. "It's not been easy with all these things, the speculation and stuff."

2025 NWSL standings: Week 18

1. Kansas City Current (15-2-1)
2. Washington Spirit (9-4-5)
3. San Diego Wave FC (8-4-6)
4. Orlando Pride (8-6-4)
5. Seattle Reign FC (7-5-6)
6. Portland Thorns FC (7-6-5)
7. Racing Louisville FC (7-6-5)
8. Gotham FC (6-6-6)
9. Angel City FC (6-7-5)
10. North Carolina Courage (5-7-6)
11. Houston Dash (5-8-5)
12. Bay FC (4-9-5)
13. Chicago Stars FC (1-9-8)
14. Utah Royals (2-11-5)