Mallory Pugh burst onto the women’s soccer scene as a teen sensation, receiving her first call up to the senior USWNT at 17 years old. Since then, her career has taken plenty of twists and turns as a veteran of the game at just 23.

A promising start in Colorado

Pugh was born into a family of athletes, raised alongside her older sister Brianna in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. The star forward credits her sister for introducing her to the game of soccer at a young age.

“When I was younger, I always looked up to her and I always wanted to be just like my sister,” Pugh told Kelley O’Hara on the Just Women’s Sports podcast. “So she was playing soccer and I was like ‘well I want to play soccer too.’”

The early introduction to the sport paid off, with Pugh quickly becoming a soccer wunderkind. Pugh remembers being called into a U-14 national team camp when she was still just in seventh grade. By high school, Pugh was a mainstay in the youth national team system, with a USWNT senior roster spot on the horizon.

In her final two years of high school, the young star captured the Golden Boot award at the U-20 World Cup qualifying tournament, as well as the Gatorade National Player of the Year and U.S. Soccer Young Female Player of the Year awards.

Pugh’s early success earned her a call up to the senior USWNT team at just 17 years old, an experience she recalls to O’Hara as being “so weird.” Her first camp with the team, however, ended in success, with Pugh remembering feeling as though she had nothing to lose and playing with freedom. While the hype was palpable, Pugh says she learned not to overthink things and block out external pressure at a young age.

Going pro

Much was made about Pugh’s decision to forgo collegiate soccer and pursue a professional soccer career. At first, the 17-year-old couldn’t see herself in a pro league and decided to join UCLA’s team. After three months, however, Pugh knew it was time to leave the Bruins and forward her career, without ever stepping on the pitch for UCLA. The decision was one she didn’t make lightly, agonizing over whether to join the NWSL for over a year before finally making a move.

“I’ve always told myself I want to be able to inspire younger generations,” Pugh told O’Hara. “I do feel like me stepping out and kind of having to be bold and courageous with that, it did maybe send that signal or send that message that females and people in women’s sports… can leave school early and go professional.”

Pugh joined the Washington Spirit in 2017, notching six goals in her debut season and ending the season as a finalist for Rookie of the Year.

Here's some nifty 1v1 footwork by Mal Pugh to shake her defender. pic.twitter.com/sy5B2tzVg0

— Washington Spirit (@WashSpirit) July 1, 2017

USWNT career

Pugh made her mark on the world stage when she clinched a spot on the 2016 Rio Olympics roster, becoming the youngest U.S. player to ever score during the Games at 18 years old. Though the United States were bounced in the tournament’s quarterfinals, Rio served as a turning point in Pugh’s career, solidifying her place in the USWNT conversation.

Receiving consistent call-ups in the lead-up to the 2019 World Cup, Pugh made the 23-player France roster. For any 21-year-old, simply making the USWNT World Cup team would’ve been a career-defining moment, but for Pugh, the major tournament presented a new challenge for the soccer prodigy. Playing fewer minutes than she expected, Pugh had to embrace her role as a support player rather than a starter.

“Obviously, I wanted to play more, but it wasn’t my time to,” Pugh told O’Hara. “I definitely had to change my mindset and look at it a different way.”

Alongside her teammates, Pugh earned a World Cup title, her first senior major tournament championship.

The year following her run in France, Pugh’s career entered unchartered territory, with the forward left off a USWNT roster for the first time since initially being called into the USWNT. Pugh did not make then new coach Vlatko Andonovski’s Olympic qualifying roster, telling O’Hara, “It was pretty rough, but I am a strong, strong believer in everything happens for a reason.”

After a bronze-medal run in Tokyo, Andonovski started bringing in a range of non-Olympic players into USWNT camps, including Pugh. The Chicago forward was invited to a series of National Team friendlies in Australia but opted out of the Matildas’ matchup. Andonovski did, however, say her decision not to participate would not impact her invitation to the team’s first camp of 2022 in January.

NWSL comeback

While Pugh dealt with falling out of the USWNT ranks, the young star also battled a series of nagging injuries and a handful of trades, playing with three different NWSL teams in the course of three years. In January 2020, Pugh was traded to Gotham FC (formally Sky Blue FC) before landing in Chicago for the 2021 season.

The moving around certainly impacted Pugh’s rhythm before she found her footing with the Red Stars. The 2021 NWSL season served as a renaissance for Pugh, who notched four goals and four assists, ending the year as MVP runner-up. Pugh also led the Red Stars to a surprise NWSL Championship game appearance, where they fell to the Washington Spirit in a closely contested battle.

Although Pugh missed the team’s semifinal match against Portland due to COVID-19 protocols and left the final early with an injury, Pugh’s season was a resounding success.

Still just 23 years old, Pugh has plenty of time to get back on track and continue her rise as one of the world’s best young talents.

💥 CUE MAL PUGH 💥

First playoff game, first playoff goal 🤌#CHIvNJNY | https://t.co/bONPZnnmCJ | #NWSL21 pic.twitter.com/uyuHikPPz2

— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) November 7, 2021

What’s Next

Pugh ended 2021 announcing her engagement to partner Dansby Swanson, shortstop for the Atlanta Braves.

The soccer star’s future with the USWNT is still very much a topic of conversation, with the World Cup cycle about to get underway. Pugh will have to compete against a deep forward pool to stamp her mark on the roster after missing an exciting Australian series in late 2021.

All 14 NWSL teams issued final​ end-of-year roster decisions on Tuesday, as the 2025 free agency period shifts into full gear.

Athletes who are currently out-of-contract are now technically on the chopping block, faced with either negotiating new terms to return to their teams or taking the leap and brokering a fresh deal elsewhere.

Standouts listed as out-of-contact include 2024 NWSL champion and Orlando Pride captain Marta as well as NC Courage striker and the league's 2023 MVP Kerolin. Several current and former USWNT stars also face offseason negotiations, like Gotham FC forward Midge Purce, Portland Thorns center back Becky Sauerbrunn, and Angel City forward Christen Press.

Multiple teams have already acknowledged an intent to retain top players by announcing ongoing negotiations in their final 2024 roster announcements, with Press, Marta, and Kerolin in talks to stay with their clubs.

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New CBA means more NWSL movement

Under the league's new CBA, when a team declines a player's contract option, that player automatically becomes an unrestricted free agent, guaranteeing roster shakeups despite this year's lack of expansion and college drafts.

Both athletes whose contracts have expired and those whose options have been declined are considered out-of-contract. While those players will be weighing their options on the open market, teams will be doing the same, deciding who to try to retain and who to officially waive.

Clubs will make many of those decisions imminently, as the waiver wire will open and close this week, before the trade window opens again on December 13th.

The league will take a transaction moratorium from December 20th to 27th, after which teams can resume signings.

Between the CBA-induced influx of free agents and the lack of drafts forcing front offices into what could be lengthy recruiting and negotiating processes to attract young talent, the business of building an NWSL roster has become more complicated.

That said, some clubs seem to be capitalizing on the shake-up. After finishing the season in last place, the Houston Dash have already seen significant roster action — including nabbing defender Christen Westphal from San Diego and signing ex-Gotham free agent Delanie Sheehan — setting an aggressive rebuilding example as the NWSL embraces a new era.

Thanks to her impact on and off the court, Indiana Fever superstar Caitlin Clark was named Time Magazine's Athlete of the Year on Tuesday. Clark is the first WNBA player to receive the award and just the second individual woman athlete, joining 2021 honoree Simone Biles.

The 22-year-old's 2024 resume is extraordinary. Clark wrapped up her NCAA career as Division I's all-time leading scorer, helping Iowa reach a second-straight national championship game.

Since becoming the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft, Clark's pro debut included claiming the league's single-season assist record and fueling the Fever to their first playoff berth since 2016. Along the way, she picked up both All-Star honors and the WNBA's Rookie of the Year award.

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All eyes on Clark

Clark's on-court skills built a massive following, drawing record viewership and attendance at both the college and professional level. Her ascent into the league helped the WNBA record its most-watched regular season in 24 years.

That surge in fandom has directly contributed to the sport's growth, something venerated South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley acknowledged on the 2024 NCAA Championship podium, saying, "I want to personally thank Caitlin Clark for lifting up our sport."

More eyes, however, have made the fan-favorite a lightning rod for online discourse, with even minor on-court moments sparking intense national debates.

"I tell people I feel like the most controversial person," Clark says in Time magazine's detailed interview. "But I am not. It's just because of all the storylines that surround me."

While Clark's talent certainly warrants attention, she also acknowledges the role her race plays in commanding the national spotlight.

"I want to say I’ve earned every single thing, but as a white person, there is privilege," she explains. "A lot of those players in the league that have been really good have been Black players. This league has kind of been built on them. The more we can appreciate that, highlight that, talk about that, and then continue to have brands and companies invest in those players that have made this league incredible, I think it’s very important.

"I have to continue to try to change that. The more we can elevate Black women, that’s going to be a beautiful thing."

Ultimately, Clark's 2024 will be remembered as a watershed moment for women's basketball — and women's sports at large. But, as she tells Time, it will also hopefully mark the start of a long and accomplished career. 

On today's episode of The Late Sub, host Claire Watkins dives into basketball. She kicks things off with a look at the first WNBA expansion draft since 2008, when the Golden State Valkyries selected 11 players from around the league to build their inaugural 2025 roster.

Pivoting to the college court, Watson chats through No. 3 South Carolina's winning week, zeroing in on how the defending national champions dominated two Top-10 teams.

Finally, Watkins takes a trip around the sports world, discussing NWSL free agency, NCAA soccer's College Cup, NCAA volleyball, PWHL hockey, and more.

The Late Sub with Claire Watkins brings you the latest news and freshest takes in women’s sports. This is the weekly rundown you’ve been missing, covering the USWNT, NWSL, WNBA, college hoops, and whatever else is popping off in women’s sports each week. Special guest appearances with the biggest names in women’s sports make The Late Sub a must-listen for every fan. Follow Claire on X/Twitter @ScoutRipley and subscribe to the Just Women’s Sports newsletter for more.

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With Saturday's 78-68 upset win over then-No. 17 Iowa, Tennessee ​earned their first NCAA basketball AP Top 25 nod since November 2023, slotting in at No. 19 and putting an end to the historic powerhouse's longest-ever unranked streak.

The still-undefeated Vols have featured in nearly 90% of the 870 total AP polls since the list's 1976 beginnings, but this week's Top 25 return is a triumphant one.

"The beauty of it is we earned it," head coach Kim Caldwell told reporters after the rankings dropped on Monday. "Not because the name is Tennessee. We didn’t start (ranked)."

Minor shifts pervade updated AP basketball rankings

While No. 1 UCLA, No. 2 UConn, and No. 3 South Carolina held steady atop Monday's poll, last week's elite​ NCAA basketball schedule caused minor shifts throughout much of the Top 25. Behind losses to the defending champion Gamecocks, Duke dropped one spot to No. 9 and TCU slid three to No. 12.

After suffering their season's first loss on Thursday, an 80-70 overtime thriller against Notre Dame, the Texas Longhorns fell two poll positions to No. 6.

The Irish used their momentum to tack on a second victory on Sunday, routing Syracuse 93-62 behind a trio of 20+ point double-doubles from Hannah Hidalgo, Olivia Miles, and Sonia Citron. Those big wins lifted Notre Dame two spots to No. 8 this week.

Behind respective losses to aforementioned Tennessee and then-unranked NC State, Iowa and Ole Miss fell the farthest, tumbling four spots each to Nos. 21 and 22.

On the other hand, undefeated Michigan State's best start in program history saw the Spartans leap seven spots to No. 17 in the poll's biggest bump.

AP basketball poll exits and newcomers

Joining Tennessee in making their 2024 AP poll debut this week is No. 25 Georgia Tech, whose 9-0 record marks the Yellow Jackets' best season start since 1977. NC State is also back, tying Ole Miss at No. 22 after a week out of the rankings.

Meanwhile, Louisville's fourth season loss by way of UConn's 85-52 Champions Classic smackdown on Saturday sent the now-unranked Cardinals packing. Joining them in leaving this week's poll are Illinois, who logged their third season loss against No. 11 Ohio State on Sunday, and Alabama, who succumbed to unranked Cal last week.

How to watch midweek Top 25 NCAA basketball

Under the new rankings, NCAA basketball has two ranked matchups on deck this week. First, No. 18 Iowa State will battle state rivals No. 21 Iowa at 9 PM ET on Wednesday, airing live on FS1.

The marquee midweek matchup, however, hits the court at 7 PM ET on Thursday, when preseason All-Americans Paige Bueckers and Hannah Hidalgo will meet when No. 8 Notre Dame hosts No. 2 UConn.

The battle between two of the nation's best guards will be broadcast on ESPN.

Week 6 AP college basketball rankings

1. 1. UCLA (9-0, Big Ten)
2. 2. UConn (8-0, Big East)
3. 3. South Carolina (9-1, SEC)
4. 4. LSU (11-0, SEC)
5. 5. USC (8-1, Big Ten)
6. 6. Texas (8-1, SEC)
7. 7. Maryland (10-0, Big Ten)
8. 8. Notre Dame (7-2, ACC)
9. 9. Duke (9-2, ACC)
10. 10. Oklahoma (8-1, SEC)
11. 11. Ohio State (8-0, Big Ten)
12. 12. TCU (9-1, Big 12)
13. 13. Kansas State (10-1, Big 12)
14. 14. UNC (9-1, ACC)
15. 15. West Virginia (9-1, Big 12)
16. 16. Kentucky (8-1, SEC)
17. 17. Michigan State (9-0, Big Ten)
18. 18. Iowa State (8-2, Big 12)
19. 19. Tennessee (7-0, SEC)
20. 20. Michigan (8-1, Big Ten)
21. 21. Iowa (8-1, Big Ten)
22. 22. Ole Miss (6-3, SEC)
23. 22. NC State (6-3, ACC)
24. 24. Nebraska (8-1, Big Ten)
25. 25. Georgia Tech (9-0, ACC)