The Professional Fighters League’s annual championship event went down on Wednesday night in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and it was a huge night for women’s combat sports.

The card was topped by a 155-pound lightweight fight between unbeaten juggernaut Kayla Harrison (12-0) and a massive underdog in Taylor Guardado (3-2). The PFL lightweight title hung in the balance, as did the million-dollar prize the league awards the champion of each weight class at the end of each year.

As the pre-fight odds suggested, Harrison made it look easy, grounding and battering the outmatched Guardado en route to a second-round submission via armbar.

The fight marked the final obligation on Harrison’s latest PFL contract, making her arguably the hottest free agent in MMA today. She will undoubtedly field offers from other promotions like the UFC and Bellator, but could certainly be coaxed back to the PFL cage by the prospect of more million-dollar paydays.

“I have a lot to think about,” she said at the event’s post-fight press conference. “I have a family now. I still want to be the best in the world. I still want to continue to challenge myself. I feel like I can do that no matter where I go, but I got two mouths to feed and a family to take care of. We’ll see what happens.”

Congratulations Kayla Harrison!#PFLChampionship pic.twitter.com/cTORWGUllw

— PFL (@PFLMMA) October 28, 2021

While Harrison’s latest domination was deserving of its headlining spot, it certainly wasn’t the only big-ticket women’s bout on the bill. Earlier on the main card, three-division boxing world champion Claressa Shields (11-0 boxing, 1-1 MMA) competed in her second MMA bout, taking on Mexico’s Abigail Montes (3-0) in a 155-pound scrap.

Shields had her moments in the fight, landing plenty of her Olympic-caliber punches and even competing her lone takedown attempt of the fight. Unfortunately for the boxing champ, Montes proved a little too much, too soon. The Mexican prospect completed two of four takedown attempts and controlled her foe against the cage for the vast majority of the fight—enough, in sum, to sway two of three cage-side judges and earn a split decision victory. The win will more than likely earn her a spot in the 2022 PFL season.

Abigail gets the takedown midway through the 3rd round!#PFLChampionship LIVE NOW
🇺🇸 ESPN2 & ESPN
🌍 https://t.co/WfOt9XBfzk pic.twitter.com/ZkGCHR8WxI

— PFL (@PFLMMA) October 28, 2021

“I was always very confident in the work I put in and all that I did in my camp,” Montes said at the event’s post-fight press conference. “That’s why I looked very confident inside the cage.”

Shields, meanwhile, will have to return to the drawing board if she intends to continue her quest to become a two-sport world champion. Before she gets back to training at Jackson-Wink MMA in Albuquerque, New Mexico, of course, she’ll need to prepare for her December boxing match with Ema Kozin.

The first women’s bout of the night, also contested at 155 pounds, pitted Minnesota’s Kaitlin Young against Canada’s Julia Budd. Young, a striking specialist, gave Budd some interesting looks on the feet, particularly in the first round, but Budd was able to ply her wrestling to secure multiple takedowns en route to a well-deserved unanimous decision victory.

Successful Debut for Julia Budd! Congratulations Julia!#PFLChampionship LIVE NOW
🇺🇸 ESPN+
🌍 https://t.co/WfOt9XBfzk pic.twitter.com/9w0aOaz9TX

— PFL (@PFLMMA) October 27, 2021

The win marks a successful PFL debut for Budd, who recently ended a lengthy stint with Bellator, one that included an impressive reign as the promotion’s featherweight champion. With Wednesday’s victory, she can look forward to a spot in the 2022 PFL season and a potential fight with Harrison. Budd is easily the stiffest challenge for Harrison in the PFL at present.

Young may also be invited to compete in the 2022 PFL season, but after going 1-2 in the PFL cage in 2021, it’s also possible she’ll lose her spot on the roster.

The road to the College Cup begins this weekend, as the 2025 NCAA Division I women's soccer tournament kicks off with a stacked first-round field on Friday.

The strength of the ACC again leads the charge with three of the 64-team bracket's four top seeds hailing from the conference.

Snagging the overall No. 1 seed is Stanford, with the Cardinal outlasting fellow NCAA top-seed Notre Dame in a penalty shootout to claim their first-ever ACC tournament title last weekend.

Joining the Cardinal and Fighting Irish in the remaining No. 1 spots are the ACC's Virginia Cavaliers and the SEC-leading Vanderbilt Commodores.

Meanwhile, the 2025 tournament's No. 2 seeds — Michigan State, TCU, Duke, and Georgetown — are gearing up to play spoiler, with other underdogs also lurking throughout the bracket.

Already eyeing future upsets are four-time national champions and No. 3-seed Florida State, No. 4-seed and Big Ten champion Washington, and undefeated mid-major dark horse Memphis, who enters the 2025 field as a No. 7 seed.

The ACC's on-pitch dominance also sees defending champion North Carolina in an unfamiliar position, entering the 2025 NCAA tournament unseeded after the 22-time title-winners finished seventh in the conference behind a 12-6 overall and 6-4 ACC season record.

How to watch the 2025 NCAA soccer tournament

The 2025 NCAA women's soccer tournament kicks off with 32 first-round matches across Friday and Saturday, all on ESPN+.

The action begins with unseeded Ohio State taking on No. 8-seed Georgia at 3 PM ET, live on ESPN+.

Two USWNT legends are seeing their legacies cemented, as the National Soccer Hall of Fame announced on Thursday that retired forwards Tobin Heath and Heather O'Reilly are first-ballot inductees as members of the Class of 2026.

Both Heath and O'Reilly retired as World Cup champions and Olympic medalists, winning their 2008 and 2012 Olympic golds as well as their 2015 World Cup title as teammates.

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The USWNT icons led all voting on the Hall of Fame's Player Ballot of 20 finalists, which only allots two to three athletes per annual class for induction.

O'Reilly snagged 47 of the 48-person selection committee's votes, with Heath earning 45 nods for inclusion.

Fellow former USWNT star Sam Mewis finished fifth on the ballot with 32 votes in her first year of eligibility, while longtime NWSL and USWNT player Amy Rodriguez came in seventh with 28 votes.

Longtime Seattle Reign defender Stephanie Cox — a 2008 Olympic gold medalist with the USWNT — also snagged votes, ranking 15th on the Class of 2026 Player Ballot.

Though they fell short of making the cut, a trio of former USWNT stars also earned votes on the 10-finalist Veteran Ballot, with longtime midfielder-turned-broadcaster Aly Wagner as well as legendary '99ers Tiffany Roberts and Lorrie Fair all snagging tallies.

The National Soccer Hall of Fame will induct Heath and O'Reilly as part of its six-person Class of 2026 in a ceremony at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas, on May 1st.

Orlando Pride captain and Brazil legend Marta is back in the spotlight, topping the 2025 shortlist for the second-annual FIFA Marta Award — the women's goal-of-the-year prize established in her honor in 2024.

The 39-year-old attacking midfielder took home the inaugural trophy at the Best FIFA Football Awards ceremony last December, earning the title for a stellar long-range shot that helped lift Brazil over Jamaica 4-0 in a June 2024 friendly.

Marta's 2025 nomination, however, comes from an iconic goal in club play, with the FIFA Award spotlighting the Orlando game-winner against Kansas City in the 2024 NWSL semifinals — a goal that saw the Pride star force four Current players to the ground with her footwork.

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Marta has steep competition for this year's trophy, however, with 10 other goal nominees including a viral scorpion kick by former Tigres UANL star Lizbeth Ovalle, Seattle Reign defender Jordyn Bugg's long-range missile against the North Carolina Courage, forward Ally Sentnor's first-ever USWNT goal at the 2025 SheBelieves Cup, and more.

How to vote for the 2025 FIFA Marta Award

Holding 50% of the vote, fans can view and rank their top three goals of 2025 until voting closes on December 3rd.

Voting for the second-ever Marta Award winner is now open at FIFA.com.

South Carolina and USC are bringing fireworks to the 2025/26 NCAA basketball court this weekend, as the No. 2 Gamecocks take on the No. 8 Trojans in "The Real SC" showdown on Saturday.

Both standout programs enter the matchup undefeated in early-season play, with the Trojans touting a Top-10 win after narrowly edging out No. 10 NC State 69-68 last weekend.

"You don't know exactly what you have until you're put in these situations, which is why we schedule them," USC head coach Lindsay Gottlieb said about the upcoming clash. "And I think it's a chance for us to redefine our identity a little bit."

South Carolina's depth will likely test the new-look Trojans, as USC aims to solidify their identity with star JuJu Watkins sidelined with injury for the season.

That said, freshman Jazzy Davidson is giving the Trojans new life, with the No. 1 high school recruit co-leading the team in scoring with 17.5 points per game.

South Carolina, however, has seen early dividends from familiar faces, as sophomore Joyce Edwards leads the Gamecocks in scoring at 18.3 points per game, with high-profile transfer Ta'Niya Latson close behind with a 16.3 point average.

How to watch USC vs. South Carolina in the "The Real SC" NCAA game

No. 8 USC will welcome No. 2 South Carolina to LA's Crypto.com Arena for the inaugural "Real SC" game on Saturday.

The clash will tip off at 9 PM ET, with live coverage airing on FOX.