Charlotte North didn’t have much time to reflect on her storied college career this summer. One month after North and Boston College fell to UNC in the NCAA lacrosse championship, a 12-11 thriller, the attacker was suiting up for Team USA at the World Championships in Maryland. And 12 days after winning a gold medal in that tournament, she started her pro career with Athletes Unlimited Lacrosse.

To North, the past few months have flown by. But she’s also tried her best to enjoy the “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” to play on the biggest stages of her career so far.

“I’ve tried to soak in every moment I could,” North told Just Women’s Sports this week. “I’m very fortunate that I’ve had an opportunity to continue to play with Athletes Unlimited and with the national team.”

It’s no surprise to see North getting this much exposure so soon after leaving Boston College.

In three seasons with the Eagles, she put together a resume that can be considered one of the greatest of all time. In 2021, she led BC to its first-ever NCAA title, tied the championship game record with six goals against Syracuse, was named Most Outstanding Player of the tournament and won the Tewaaraton Award as the nation’s best lacrosse player.

Then, North came back this year and did nearly all of it again. With 92 goals on the season, North reached 358 for her career and surpassed Stony Brook’s Courtney Murphy as the NCAA’s all-time goals leader. She also became the fifth women’s player to win the Tewaaraton Award more than once.

The challenge of stepping right from the collegiate season into training camp with Team USA for the World Lacrosse Championships was not lost on North. But rather than get caught up in it, she embraced the experience head on.

At the World Championships, North led Team USA with 23 goals, which included five hat tricks and four games with four plus goals. She also finished the tournament tied for second on the team with 28 points.

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From there, like many playing Athletes Unlimited this season, North’s campaign has extended into August. As a rookie, she’s had to adjust to the league’s individual points system and rule quirks that make the game “super fast” and “very physical,” as she calls it.

“It’s a really fun format,” she said. “It is an adjustment, just because you’re hitting the highest level of lacrosse that could be played. And so it is physical, and you’ve got to prepare for that.”

A highlight for North has been getting to play alongside Boston College alums Sam Apuzzo and Kenzie Kent in different weeks. Both graduated before North joined the Eagles on a transfer from Duke.

“I looked up to them both for so long,” she said. “I got to play with them with the U.S., but also just being on their team here has been so much fun. It’s just been an incredible experience.”

As North matures as a player this summer, she’s also been a part of a broader shift in the sport. Lacrosse has been right at the forefront of viewership increases in women’s sports. This year’s NCAA final on ESPN peaked at 590,000 viewers, with an average audience of 428,000, making it the most-watched women’s college lacrosse game in history. The World Lacrosse Championships, fresh off a brand new deal, aired on ESPN’s networks, as has this season of Athletes Unlimited.

It’s that kind of exposure that North believes will continue to grow the game.

“When I was growing up, I mean, I would do anything to get my hands on college games and film and YouTube highlights. It wasn’t as easily accessible as it is now, which is amazing, especially on the women’s side,” she said.

“It’s just showing that once given the chance, there are so many people who are fans of the game, and it’s just growing exponentially.”

There is also hope that the growth of the sport at the collegiate, professional and international levels will spur lacrosse’s inclusion in the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

“So many people are working extremely hard to get lacrosse to where it deserves to be, which is in the Olympics,” said North, noting that the Sixes format used internationally aligns more with the men’s game and gets everyone involved.

“I think a lot of people will turn their eyes to sport and become fans of it,” she added.

🚨CHARLOTTE NORTH WITH THE STEP-DOWN OT WINNER🚨@charlotteocho8 gets the winning OT goal AND a hat-trick🥶#AULax | 📺 : ESPNU pic.twitter.com/P9FhMQK5Hm

— Athletes Unlimited (@AUProSports) August 6, 2022

But before that potential opportunity rolls around, and before she returns to Boston this fall to finish her Master’s in Sports Administration and host a few lacrosse camps, North is focused on her final two Athletes Unlimited games this weekend.

Currently 13th on the AU leaderboard with 954 points, North leads the league with 25 goals. She is one of multiple rookies from the 2022 draft class to grace the top half of the leaderboard, led by Apuzzo (1,483 points) with two game days remaining before a champion is crowned. Lauren Gilbert, a rookie out of Northwestern, sits just ahead of North in the player standings but trails her on the scoring leaderboard by one goal.

“Ally Mastroianni (10th) and Emma Trenchard (20th) have both been just dominating,” North said when asked about her fellow rookies. “For them to continue to up their game and play at every level has been awesome. There are so many talented players. The Northwestern girls are very talented and Taylor Moreno has been crushing it. It’s been really fun playing with all of them.”

She also has her sights set on those coming after, with NCAA stars like Northwestern’s Izzy Scane and Syracuse’s Meaghan Tyrrell soon to enter the pro ranks. For the sake of the sport, North welcomes the competition.

“It’s so exciting for our game,” North said. “There’s so much talent here, there’s so much talent at the collegiate level. It’s awesome.”

Emma Hruby is an Associate Editor at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @EHruby.

Las Vegas Aces star forward A'ja Wilson is teaming up with Nike and Danish toymaker LEGO as part of the two brands' new multi-year collaboration, the apparel giant announced on Thursday morning.

According to the release, the partnership aims to "inspire kids everywhere to play both on and off the court."

Nike and LEGO's collaboration will include experiential activations in the US, UK, and China this summer in conjunction with the United Nations' International Day of Play on June 11th.

The companies are also releasing product collections, beginning with the 1,180-piece LEGO Nike Dunk set, which features an iconic Nike Dunk sneaker, a brick basketball, and the "Dunk" slogan.

Three-time WNBA MVP Wilson will support the project "by helping engage kids through a reimagined world of play that will come to life across digital channels," with more information on her involvement to come.

Fresh off the launch her smash-hit A'One signature shoe, Wilson has become one of Nike's most prominent athletes. Her addition to the Nike x LEGO team comes on the heels of a lucrative six-year contract extension between Wilson and the sportswear brand late last year.

"I have loved playing with LEGO bricks since I was a kid and know that my creativity and play helped me not only in sports but also at school and in life," said Wilson.

How to buy drops from the Nike x LEGO collection

The LEGO Nike Dunk set will hit shelves on July 1st, though it's currently available to preorder online.

The first Nike footwear, apparel, and accessories products from the collaboration will drop in the brand's retail locations and online on August 1st.

The WNBA is dominating the air waves in its 2025 season, with last weekend's slate of games blowing past yet another TV viewership record.

The New York Liberty's 90-88 win over the Indiana Fever averaged 2.22 million viewers on CBS, with the Saturday showdown marking the second-highest WNBA viewership in network history.

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That clash follows a record-setting 2025 season tip-off, in which ABC's May 17th doubleheader became the most-watched WNBA opening weekend ever on ESPN's platforms, earning a 115% viewership increase over last year's regular-season coverage.

Notably, both New York and Indiana contributed to that record-setting initial Saturday slate. A 92-78 Liberty win over the Las Vegas Aces averaged 1.3 million viewers, before the Fever's 93-58 defeat of the Chicago Sky claimed an average audience of 2.7 million fans.

The closing matchup between Indiana and Chicago made even more history, peaking at 3.1 million viewers to become the most-watched regular-season WNBA game in 25 years.

The Midwest rivals also tallied the second-largest audience in league history, surpassed only by the 2024 WNBA All-Star Game's 3.44 million viewers.

With Fever star Caitlin Clark set to miss at least four games with a quad strain, concerns over lags in attendance and viewership have started to crop up this week.

Those fears, however, might be overblown, as 11,183 fans packed Baltimore's CFG Bank Arena to watch the Washington Mystics take on the Fever on Wednesday night — while Clark looked on from the bench.

The Washington Mystics have continued to impress in the early 2025 WNBA season, earning another big win on Wednesday with an 83-77 victory over a Caitlin Clark-less Indiana Fever.

As the star guard watched from the sidelines, the Mystics leaned into their depth, securing the win behind a 21-point, nine-rebound performance from guard Brittney Sykes.

Now sitting sixth in the league with a 3-3 record, Washington's rebuild appears to be moving ahead of schedule, with rookie duo Kiki Iriafen and Sonia Citron looking pro-ready from the jump.

Seizing their opportunity as day-one starters, the pair put up a collective 29 points against Indiana on Wednesday, joining Sykes and forward Shakira Austin as the only Mystics to finish in double digits.

Indiana, on the other hand, looked shaky without their injured young superstar.

Despite veteran forward DeWanna Bonner coming off the bench to lead the Fever with 21 points on Wednesday night, Indiana dropped to 2-3 on the season with Clark out for at least three more games.

"We weren't sharp enough to be a contender for anything tonight," Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell, who led Indiana's starters with 14 points, told reporters after the loss. "I think getting punched in the mouth early is humbling, because it shows where we need to be."

How to watch the Mystics and Fever in this week's WNBA action

Both Washington and Indiana will be back in action on Friday night, when the Mystics will test their form against the surging New York Liberty while the Fever tip off against the still-winless Connecticut Sun at 7:30 PM ET.

Both games will air live on ION.

With the 16-team UEFA Euro 2025 set to kick off in Switzerland in less than five weeks, UEFA is seizing the opportunity to expand its global footprint following a breakout 2022 tournament.

The continental governing body is starting stateside, with Fox Sports announcing Wednesday that its platforms will air 20 matches from the upcoming 31-game European Championship live — marking the women's side's largest US media deal on record.

With no major events scheduled for the USWNT, international women's soccer will take center stage this summer, as the Euro, Copa América, and Africa Cup of Nations all return in July.

Fox Sports will also bring Copa América action to US viewers for the first time ever this summer, with broadcast details still to come.

England raises prize money for Lionesses

England is also upping its investment, with the FA agreeing to pay the Lionesses a record £1.7 million bonus package — nearly $2.3 million — should they successfully defend their 2022 title.

This year's total more than doubles the amount England players received for reaching the 2023 World Cup final.

While exact sums will vary, player payouts would average £73,000 each (over $98,000) — up some £18,000 ($24,000) from the Lionesses' 2022 earnings.

The move follows UEFA's earlier decision to double its own prize pool in 2025, raising the total purse to £34 million (almost $46 million), including an extra £4.3 million ($5.8 million) for the winner.

How to watch the 2025 Euros this summer

The 2025 European Championship kicks off on July 2nd when Iceland faces Finland at 12 PM ET before Switzerland takes on Norway at 3 PM ET, live on Fox.