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JWS Player of the Year: Amelia White, a game-changing soccer talent

Amelia White finished her senior season with 25 goals and 15 assists, leading Homestead to its first-ever state championship. (Photo provided)

There’s a moment from last fall that sticks with coach Rick Link the most when he reflects on Amelia White’s career at Homestead High School.

The Spartans were in the regional semifinals of Indiana’s Class 3A bracket, and their opponent was two-time defending state champion Noblesville, a program that hadn’t lost a match in over two and a half years. On top of that, Noblesville hadn’t allowed more than three goals in a game in over four years.

But with White on the pitch, this year was different.

In front of a jubilant home crowd, Homestead faced a 1-0 deficit before one touch to White changed everything.

“We touched the ball to her to kick it back off, and she dribbled straight to the goal past five of their defenders and scored within six seconds to tie it back up,” Link says. “She had a hat trick, plus she was tripped in the box. Another girl took the PK, and we won 4-2.

“I saw their coach later at the state voting that we do together down in Indianapolis. He said people were asking, ‘Well, why didn’t you do something different to stop her?’ And he goes, ‘There was nothing you could do to stop her.’ She’s flying by his best defenders, and that was the most dominating performance I’ve ever seen on the offensive end.”

White hasn’t slowed down since then.

Homestead went on to finish the season 22-0 and claim its first state championship in program history. White was named Miss Indiana by the Indiana Soccer Coaches Association and the Gatorade Indiana Girls Soccer Player of the Year, and now she can add one more accolade to the list — Just Women’s Sports High School Soccer Player of the Year.

After racking up 25 goals and 15 assists in her senior season, she’s headed to the Division I ranks to compete for Penn State.

While the future is certainly bright for White, her beginnings warrant their own story. It all began when she and her twin sister discovered their passion for soccer a little more than a decade ago.

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Amelia White, left, competes in a match for Fort Wayne United FC. (Photo provided)

Growing up in Fort Wayne, Amelia and Sophia both began playing soccer when they were 6 years old. Inspired by their older brother, they discovered their own love of the game and played on a recreational team, but it didn’t last very long.

“I would just score goals,” Amelia says. “Me and my sister would only pass to each other, so they actually kicked us off the rec team because we wouldn’t pass to anyone and we’d just score goals.”

Shortly thereafter, they joined Fort Wayne United FC and the journey started to get more serious. Amelia was about 13 years old when she began training with the boys, and by the time she was 14, she was playing with FWUFC’s oldest age group for girls.

It was around that time that Link watched Amelia play for the first time.

“I was just amazed,” Link says. “The ball sticks to her foot. Her speed with the ball, I mean, I’ve never seen anyone that fast with the ball at her foot. She’s racing past people, dribbling past people, and they don’t have the ball. And they can’t keep up.

“You could watch her play for five minutes and realize she’s a once-in-a-lifetime type of player.”

The experience of getting to share the pitch with her sister throughout the years is one that Amelia cherishes, but she admits it wasn’t easy to navigate the comparisons that always seemed to surface between the two. While Amelia was busy attending national team camps, Sophia was settling into her role as a stalwart defender and wasn’t drawing the same level of hype. It was hard on Sophia, but as time passed, they learned to handle it better.

“I think now it’s really good that we recognize we’re on different sides of the field,” Amelia says. “We both have different jobs. She’s really good at what she does, and I’m good at what I do. We’re pretty competitive still, but I think that helps us a lot.”

As freshmen, they made an immediate impact on Link’s squad. The Spartans advanced to the state championship game but lost to perennial powerhouse Carmel in a 2-1 decision.

Sophia went on to start at center back all four years at Homestead, but Amelia’s eyes were fixed on competing internationally. In 2019, Amelia was invited to play for the U.S. U-17 women’s national team at a friendly tournament in Sweden, and the obligation forced her to miss a large chunk of her sophomore season at Homestead.

Then, a year later, Amelia was upfront with her coach early on that she had planned to compete for the U.S. at the U-17 World Cup and would have to miss the season due to training in the fall. The World Cup was eventually canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It was pretty much the first time that I’d ever been away from home for a long amount of time at a pretty young age, but it was a really good experience and a really big learning experience, just going to other countries and learning about other cultures,” she says. “It was awesome. Trainings were super intense. It definitely helped me develop as a player, but it was mainly the stuff they would tell me and I took back home that really made a difference.”

From the moment it began, Amelia knew her senior season was going to be special. For one, it was an opportunity to get to take the field with her sister one more time. But beyond that, she had developed a unique bond with her entire team that made their cohesion as a unit that much stronger.

“Even though everyone was really close and best friends, we took the training pretty serious. I think that’s what made a difference. I love those girls,” Amelia says. “Once we did get to the tournament, we played at such a high level against older girls, so I think the seniors did a really good job of showing and leading how to deal with that.”

Link believes Amelia’s experience with the national team brought along an entirely new element to her game. She was much more focused on elevating the players around her, demonstrating a sense of maturity he’d yet to see from her.

“She set a lot of other girls up,” Link says. “She could’ve taken over every game we played. She took over at times if she needed to, but she really involved her teammates more her senior year and was just out there to have fun.”

Following the momentous win over Noblesville, Homestead went on to claim the region crown with a 2-0 victory over Harrison before Amelia was forced to miss the state semifinal match due to a training obligation with the national team. The Spartans escaped that game with a win over Saint Joseph, in which they tied 0-0 in regulation before advancing in penalty kicks.

A week later, Amelia was back on the pitch with her sister in the state final. She scored a goal and led the Spartans to a 2-1 win over Carmel, avenging their loss from three years prior and clinching the first state soccer title in school history.

“It didn’t even feel real,” Amelia says. “Coming off of hard games before, like the Noblesville game, we were already on a high, but we knew that was going to be a really tough game. Once the final whistle blew, it was just really surreal.”

Although she only played two full seasons at the high school level, Amelia finished her career at Homestead with 52 goals and 31 assists. She’s ranked as the No. 2 recruit in the Class of 2022 by Top Drawer Soccer, which earned her attention from a handful of Division I schools.

In November, Amelia and Sophia sat next to each other in front of family, friends, coaches and media as they each signed national letters of intent to continue their careers at the college level — Sophia with IUPUI and Amelia with Penn State.

Amelia chose the Nittany Lions over the likes of Georgetown, USC and Notre Dame, impressed by the relationship she’d built with head coach Erica Dambach.

“It’s very family-oriented, which I really liked to see when I was on my visit,” says Amelia, who currently plans to major in political science but is still undeclared. “The campus is also just gorgeous, and it was the only place where I really felt at home and secure. I could just envision myself being here, and I think that was the really big difference that separated Penn State from the other schools because I just didn’t really feel that when talking to other coaches or visiting campuses.

“Penn State is just such a big school. There’s so many degrees and opportunities to explore here, so I really enjoyed that, too.”

As she heads to the college level, Amelia is bound to run into competition unlike anything she’s seen before, and Link is fascinated by how her game will translate at the next level.

“She’s always been the best player on her team by far, even when she’s playing up. Obviously when she came in as a freshman in high school, she was playing against seniors, but she was used to that because she was always playing up in club level, too,” he says. “I think she’ll need to continue to work really hard because I think it’ll be the first time where there might be some girls who will be able to match her skills and speed, and that typically has not been the case.”

Amelia is already training with her teammates at Penn State and is enrolled in summer classes. She has goals of getting back in the mix with the national team and wants to make an impact right away at Penn State, but she understands her role while learning behind players like Ally Schlegel, who led the Nittany Lions with 10 goals last season.

Amelia credits her coaches at FWUFC as some of her greatest mentors over the years — people like Bobby Poursanidis and Claire Ward.

For Amelia, it always seems to come back to Fort Wayne, a town that has produced soccer stars like Sarah Killion, DaMarcus Beasley and Akil Amen-Diop Watts.

Amelia wants to be the next name on that list, and if her senior season at Homestead is any indication, she’s well on her way.

“It was just one of those years where things came together, and we didn’t have any serious injuries,” Link says. “We won in PKs twice in the tournament, so there’s obviously luck involved there.

“It doesn’t hurt to have players like Amelia and Sophia as well.”

Trent Singer is the High School Editor at Just Women’s Sports. Follow him on Twitter @trentsinger.

Christen Press back training with Angel City FC

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 15: Christen Press #23 of Angel City FC waves to fans following a game between the Portland Thorns and Angel City FC at BMO Stadium on October 15, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Katharine Lotze/Getty Images)

Christen Press continues to inch her way back to a return, having returned to training with her club team Angel City. 

Angel City FC coach Becki Tweed said on Wednesday that Press is back with the team full-time as she continues to make her way back from an ACL injury. While she’s still working on rehab, her being back with the team gives staff a better picture of her progress. 

"Christen [Press] is back with us full time which is amazing,” she said. “Having her in and around the team every day, continuing to work hard on rehab ... she's in a space where being in with the team is really important to her and her progression as well.”

The status update comes days after Press posted videos to social media that featured her doing lateral movement in cleats on grass. 

“Look out world she’s on the move !” Press captioned it. 

Press has been sidelined with an ACL injury since 2022, which caused her to miss the 2023 World Cup. She’s since had four separate surgeries to help repair her ACL.

Press told The Athletic a month ago that she’s been “relentless” in her optimism with her recovery despite it being a “slow process.”

“I have a bit of relentless optimism,” she told The Athletic. “I never, ever doubted that I would make it back on any of the timelines I’ve been on."

"Every single time I’ve heard, ‘You have to have surgery,’ I’m completely shocked,” she said. “When somebody asks me how it’s going, I’m like, ‘It’s going great. And it was going great every time. So I don’t know what to tell you anymore!’”

Sophia Smith re-signs with Portland on record deal

(Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports)

Sophia Smith is now the NWSL’s highest-paid player. 

The Portland Thorns announced on Wednesday that they have signed Smith to a new contract through the 2025 season, with an option for 2026. While the terms of the deal were not disclosed, the team did reveal that Smith is now the highest-paid player in the league on an annual basis.

It’s the latest in what has been a series of record-breaking contracts in the NWSL offseason. 

Chicago Red Stars forward Mallory Swanson, Bay FC forward Racheal Kundananji, and Orlando Pride forward Barbra Banda all signed multi-year deals worth between $2 million and $2.5 million in total. While Smith’s contract is shorter and not worth as much over the long-term, the annual worth is higher. 

“We are over the moon to have Soph commit again to the Thorns. She is a proven, world-class talent and one that we are excited to have contribute to the team’s continued success,” said head coach Mike Norris in a statement. “We look forward to working with her in a Thorns jersey as she continues to shine as one of the top strikers in the world.”

In just four seasons in the NWSL, Smith has led the Thorns to five trophies – including the 2022 NWSL championship – while winning league and championship MVP in 2022. In 61 appearances with Portland, she has 34 goals – including a brace to start this season against Kansas City. 

She’s also a member of the USWNT, having scored 16 goals in 44 international appearances.  Set to become a free agent at the end of this season, she told ESPN she “thought of all the options” but ultimately Portland felt like the right decision.

"There is no place like Portland," Smith said in a small roundtable interview that included ESPN. "I don't believe there's an environment like Portland to play in and it's a city that's so special to me and a city that I feel like I've grown up in almost and become who I am."

She also told ESPN that the team’s new ownership “changes everything.” The club is now led by the Bhathal family, who bought the club after Merritt Paulson was forced to sell it following his part in the NWSL’s abuse scandal. 

"Since I've been here there has been a lot of things going on with this club -- a lot of not-great things going on with this club -- and I have just been waiting for some stability and some reassurance that this club is headed in the right direction, and the Bhathal family coming in is doing exactly that, if not more,” Smith said. 

"Their vision for this club is so exciting, and you can just tell how passionate they are about making this what it should be and continuing to push the standard in women's soccer globally.”

Caitlin Clark offered $5 million to compete in Ice Cube’s league

IOWA CITY, IOWA- MARCH 25: Guard Caitlin Clark #22 of the Iowa Hawkeyes celebrates as time runs out in the second half against the West Virginia Mountaineers during their second round match-up in the 2024 NCAA Division 1 Women's Basketball Championship at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on March 25, 2024 in Iowa City, Iowa. (Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images)

Caitlin Clark has been offered $5 million to play in Ice Cube's Big3 league, he confirmed on social media Wednesday after the offer leaked.

"We intended the offer to remain private while Caitlin Clark plays for the championship," Ice Cube wrote on social media. "But I won't deny what's now already out there: BIG3 made a historic offer to Caitlin Clark. Why wouldn't we? Caitlin is a generational athlete who can achieve tremendous success in the BIG3."

While there has yet to be a women's player in the league, both Nancy Lieberman and Lisa Leslie have been part of the league as coaches and won championships.

"The skeptics laughed when we made Nancy Lieberman the first female coach of a men's pro team, and she won the championship in her first year," Ice Cube continued. "Then Lisa Leslie won it all in year two. With our offer, Caitlin Clark can make history and break down even more barriers for women athletes."

Ice Cube, whose name is O’Shea Jackson, says that the offer was made with the intention that Clark be able to compete in the WNBA “offseason.” Clark is largely expected to be the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA draft in April. But it’s unclear how the scheduling of the two leagues would work. 

The 2024 Big3 season is set to tip off on June 15, with 10 games spanning through mid-August. The WNBA regular season, meanwhile, begins on May 14 and ends on Sept. 19.

On “The Pat McAfee Show” on Wednesday, Jackson said that the league has yet to hear back from Clark. 

“We just need an answer, as soon as they are ready to give it to us,” he said. “It’s always 50-50 till we get a no. At the end of the day, it’s a generous offer.”

The offer – as well as the confusion on Jackson’s part about the timing of the WNBA season – caused some current WNBA players to react. 

"It's funny cause I be seeing his son at W games.. they don't talk?" wrote former No. 1 pick Rhyne Howard

"So no other women's basketball player has came to mind in the last 7 years?" wrote Lexie Brown, adding that she'd support if Ice Cube wanted to build a women's iteration of the league. She later discussed it on the Gils Arena Show, noting that his reasoning of wanting to “uplift and support WNBA players and women athletes” is a “cop out.”

Kalani Brown, meanwhile, told Clark to "take that money" and start a women's Big3.

WNBA salaries has been a talking point in recent months as more collegiate stars declare for the league. WNBA stars have often made more money playing abroad than they have in the WNBA. Clark is expected to be the No. 1 pick in the WNBA draft on April 15, with a rookie salary of $76,535 for lottery draft picks (Nos. 1-4) that rises to $97,582 by her fourth season. But she also has an NIL valuation of almost $3.5 million.

Diana Taurasi famously skipped the 2015 WNBA season at the request of her Russian club, who paid her more to sit out than she would have made in the W. Her contract with the club was reportedly near $1.5 million per year.

Jackson also seemed to suggest that his league could be an alternative to going abroad

“America’s women athletes should not be forced to spend their off seasons playing in often dismal and dubious foreign countries just to make ends meet,” he wrote. Although it’s unclear whether or not the rapper intends to make offers to additional WNBA players. 

While the league does hold prioritization rules in its CBA, those typically apply only to players playing in overseas leagues. It’s unclear whether or not that would prevent Clark’s participation in the Big3 league.

WNBA players that don’t want to go overseas currently have the option of playing in Athletes Unlimited, which competes in the WNBA offseason.

USC’s Aaliyah Gayles Opens Up About Her Journey Back to Basketball

USC Basketball - Aaliyah Gayles

As part of our 1-v-1 video series, USC’s India Otto sat down to interview her teammate Aaliyah Gayles. Here are five things to know from our conversation with the redshirt freshman guard from Las Vegas.

#1 Aaliyah suffered from a near-death act of violence in 2022.

The incident taught her a lot about herself and the support around her. “[USC] Coach Lindsay [Gottlieb] was one of the first people to fly out there and come see me. That means a lot to me off the court.” 

#2 Her favorite USC memory is when she surprised her teammates after getting out of the hospital.

She left her walker at the door to show she was on the road to returning to the court. “That was my favorite memory because it was family. It was my first time being able to walk to you guys and see you practice.”

#3 There's a reason she wears #3.

#3 was her grandpa’s favorite number and a golden number in her life. Plus, AG3 has a nice ring to it. 

#4 She has a list of basketball GOAT’s:

Candace Parker, Magic Johnson, Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, and Cason Wallace.

#5 There have been many celebrity appearances at USC’s games over the years, especially this season.

Aaliyah’s favorites include Will Ferrell, Kehlani, and Saweetie. And she hopes Lil Durk will come to watch a game soon.

Watch the full conversation on the Just Women’s Sports YouTube channel.

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