If the North Carolina Courage are to win their fourth consecutive NWSL Shield, coach Paul Riley says they need to work on their midfield play.

On Sunday, the Courage lost to rivals Portland Thorns FC for the first time this season. The 1-0 defeat ended North Carolina’s five-game shutout streak and marked its third straight game without a goal.

Riley critiqued the Courage’s performance as soon as he got on the post-game media call.

“The 10s is where we’re really struggling,” he said. “We’re getting no production out of our [attacking midfield] at the moment. Not only from a goal perspective or assist perspective, but just passing a final ball, creative perspective.”

The missing piece is United States national team player Sam Mewis, who is on the injury list for another four to six weeks as she recovers from knee surgery.

Mewis started in the Courage’s 2-0 win over the Thorns earlier this season, while Portland played without Mewis’ U.S. teammate, Lindsey Horan. It was vice versa on Sunday. The rest of North Carolina’s lineup remained the same.

“I think it just shows what a big difference Horan can make and how not having Sam plays into it,” Riley said.

Starting in the Courage midfield on Sunday were Cari Roccaro, Debinha, Havana Solaun, Denise O’Sullivan and Jessica McDonald, playing two wide, two defensive and one attacking, respectively.

Match Stats presented by @iqoniq!#NCvPOR | #NoFinishLine pic.twitter.com/XLezhAUm19

— NC Courage (@TheNCCourage) September 12, 2021

While the Courage are still adjusting to Mewis’ absence in the midfield, they’ve improved in other areas of the field.

“I think we’ve been defending really well, and that’s not just the defenders — that’s the team in general,” said left fullback Carson Pickett. “I think it starts from the front, and being able to defend as a team is really important.”

The game against the Thorns, who lead the league in shots and goals, was a test for the Courage with just six games to go in the regular season.

“It totally felt like a playoff game,” Roccaro said. “I was like, ‘It feels like a final,’ because the weather — I just think of the final here two years ago — playing against such a big opponent, top of the table. Portland’s our rival. It just felt very much like a playoff game, which is good. I think it’s good practice.”

📼 Rivalry Re-Run 📼#NCvPOR | @Nationwide pic.twitter.com/EQmGSmUdkG

— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) September 12, 2021

If there are two teams in the NWSL used to playing big matches against each other, it’s the Courage and Thorns, who faced off in the 2017 and 2018 finals. That script might repeat itself this season, with the Thorns running away with the top spot in the league and North Carolina fighting with OL Reign for No. 2.

“If you’re going to win this thing, you’ve got to go through Portland,” Riley said. “There’s no question they’re the best team in the league this year.”

The teams will meet one more time in the regular season, with the Courage traveling to Providence Park on Oct. 30 for the season finale.

“It’s going to be a huge battle,” Roccaro said. “I think we’ll be really up for it though, because [tonight’s] going to leave a sour taste in our mouths.”

With many players now heading home to compete with their national teams in friendlies and FIFA World Cup qualifiers, the Courage will enjoy a two-week break from NWSL matches.

Riley said he’d “rather play tomorrow” than have an extended pause, but his players welcome the opportunity to recharge.

“Our trainings are just as hard as games, so it’s nice to have a couple days of break and everyone gets healthy and relaxed, and hopefully everyone comes back fresh for the last part of the season,” Pickett said.

The Courage next play Sept. 25 against eighth-place NJ/NY Gotham FC, who have allowed nine of their 15 goals against this season in the last seven games. The matchup provides the Courage with an opportunity to work on the offense they weren’t able to execute against Portland.

The USWNT is getting the band back together this October, as manager Emma Hayes tapped a number of veteran faces in a 26-player roster for the team's upcoming three international friendlies on Wednesday morning.

The team's European-based players are stepping back into the spotlight, after Hayes chose to rest stars Lindsey Heaps, Lily Yohannes, Emily Fox, Phallon Tullis-Joyce, and Catarina Macario during the summer.

However, sidelined Chelsea defender Naomi Girma will sit this one out as she continues to recover from a calf injury.

The roster also highlights the return of favorites Trinity Rodman, Rose Lavelle, and Jaedyn Shaw, as Hayes also calls up 24-year-old San Diego Wave defender Kennedy Wesley for the first time.

As next fall's qualifiers for the 2027 World Cup quickly approach, Hayes is narrowing the field from her previous developmentally focused roster-building strategy.

"I think this was the one camp I had to make some really hard decisions, and that's the place I wanted to be in," Hayes told reporters on Wednesday morning. "It's the build for [World Cup] qualification for next year."

With an average age of 24.6, the latest squad reflects the US's youth movement, though Lavelle's return helps boost the average international experience from 18.4 caps in this summer's USWNT roster to 27.3 appearances on Hayes's October lineup.

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The October 2025 USWNT roster

• Goalkeepers: Claudia Dickey (Seattle Reign) Mandy McGlynn (Utah Royals), Phallon Tullis-Joyce (Manchester United)

• Defenders: Jordyn Bugg (Seattle Reign), Emily Fox (Arsenal), Lilly Reale (Gotham), Tara McKeown (Washington Spirit), Avery Patterson (Houston Dash), Emily Sams (Orlando Pride), Emily Sonnett (Gotham), Kennedy Wesley (San Diego Wave)

• Midfielders: Sam Coffey (Portland Thorns), Lindsey Heaps (OL Lyonnes), Claire Hutton (Kansas City Current), Rose Lavelle (Gotham), Sam Meza (Seattle Reign), Olivia Moultrie (Portland Thorns), Jaedyn Shaw (Gotham), Lily Yohannes (OL Lyonnes)

• Forwards: Michelle Cooper (Kansas City Current), Catarina Macario (Chelsea), Trinity Rodman (Washington Spirit), Yazmeen Ryan (Houston Dash), Emma Sears (Racing Louisville), Ally Sentnor (Kansas City Current), Alyssa Thompson (Chelsea)

How to watch the October USWNT friendlies

The world No. 2 USWNT will first take on No. 23 Portugal at 7 PM ET on October 23rd and at 4 PM ET on the 26th, before closing out the international window against No. 33 New Zealand at 8 PM ET on October 29th.

All three friendlies will air live on TNT.

The 2025/26 UEFA Women's Champions League action returns on Wednesday, kicking off another week of league-phase play as WSL titans Chelsea search for their first UWCL win of the season.

The Blues settled for a disappointing 1-1 draw with FC Twente last week, despite outshooting the Dutch club 20-9 while holding 65% of possession.

"When I analyze the games, I think we are creating a lot, which is the most important thing," said Chelsea head coach Sonia Bompastor. "But the most difficult thing in football is to score goals. We need to stay confident and keep trying."

"Sometimes, when you're able to be clinical, you kill the opposition’s hope a bit sooner," Bompastor continued, hoping to supercharge the Blues' offense ahead of their Wednesday afternoon clash with French side Paris FC.

Other UWCL heavy hitters will also feature on Wednesday's pitch, as Barcelona, Wolfsburg and OL Lyonnes all look to continue their winning ways after major victories in last week's opening slate.

The rest of the 18-club league phase will conclude the second matchday on Thursday, when fellow WSL powerhouses Manchester United and defending Champions League winners Arsenal return to the UWCL pitch.

How to watch Chelsea vs. Paris FC in Champions League play

Chelsea will host Paris FC in London for their second league phase match at 3 PM ET on Wednesday.

All 2025/26 Champions League matches will air live on Paramount+.

South Carolina basketball head coach Dawn Staley isn't sure about the NBA, as the venerated NCAA sideline leader told media this week that, after taking an interview with the New York Knicks earlier this year, she doesn't see the men's pro league hiring a woman coach anytime soon.

"No, I don't," the 55-year-old responded when asked on Tuesday if she thought there'd be a woman NBA coach in her lifetime. "And I hope I'm wrong."

"If the Knicks have a five-game losing streak, it's not going to be about the losing streak, it's going to be about being a female coach," she explained. "So you as an organization, a franchise, you have to be prepared for and strong enough to ignore those types of instances when you're going to look to hire a female coach."

Earlier this year, Staley — who also interviewed with the Portland Trail Blazers in 2021 — admitted that she would have taken the Knicks job if New York offered it to her.

"I would have had to do it. Not just for me. For women. To break [that door] open," Staley told Indiana Fever center Aliyah Boston and retired WNBA icon Candace Parker on their "Post Moves" podcast in August.

As it stands, Staley remains open to using her NBA interview experiences to help any future woman coach — or men's team — navigate the pitfalls of breaking that glass ceiling.

"It's not just about hiring the first female NBA coach," explained the South Carolina boss. "[There will be] questions that you don't have to answer if you're a male coach."

"I've got all the information," Staley offered. "Come see me, because I'll [prepare you] for the interview."

Incoming 2026 WNBA expansion side Portland sprung a leak this week, prematurely introducing NBA assistant Alex Sarama of the Cleveland Cavaliers as the inaugural head coach for the Fire on LinkedIn early Tuesday morning before pulling the post.

Shortly following the retracted news, the Fire did official announce that WNBA veteran Ashley Battle will join the team as VP of basketball operations, strategy, and innovation.

Per a Front Office Sports report, Portland is currently on track to announce Sarama's hiring in the coming days, though the parties are still working to finalize a contract.

Sarama falls in line with the WNBA's recent turn to the NBA pipeline, with the Phoenix Mercury bringing on head coach Nate Tibbetts from the Orlando Magic in 2023, the Las Vegas Aces tapping Becky Hammon from the San Antonio Spurs in 2021, and Hammon herself hiring now-Golden State Valkyries boss Natalie Nakase from the LA Clippers in 2022.

Sarama also has experience with Portland Fire GM Vanja Černivec, after both spent time working for the British Basketball League's London Lions.

While the rollout might have come early, Portland now has their basketball staff in place as the WNBA enters an uncertain offseason dictated by tense CBA negotiations.