The first round of the NWSL College Draft can serve as a tipping point in the league. Look no further than the Washington Spirit, who relied on two top-10 picks in the 2021 draft to win the NWSL title this past season. On the flip side, as we saw in the weeks leading up to this year’s draft, teams can use first-round picks as leverage to build out their rosters with more experienced talent.

The success of the first 12 players selected in the NWSL draft on Saturday won’t be realized until next year and beyond. That doesn’t mean we can’t give our immediate evaluations of the picks and how they fit with their new teams.

Below, we hand out grades for each of the 12 picks in the first round of the 2022 NWSL Draft.

1. San Diego Wave FC

Naomi Girma, D/M, Stanford – B+

The center back is a quality prospect who brings plenty of experience to the expansion team, between winning a national championship at Stanford and being named the 2020 U.S. Soccer Young Female Player of the Year. It will be interesting to see if San Diego tries Girma as a defensive midfielder since building out the spine was certainly a team need heading into the draft. It’s safe to assume the Wave will look to stock their midfield in other ways. Still, going with Girma over Howell with the No. 1 pick was a bit of a surprise.

2. Racing Louisville FC

Jaelin Howell, M, Florida State – A

From both a team fit and player quality perspective, once Howell fell to Racing Louisville here, selecting her was a no-brainer. Howell adds steel to the second-year club’s midfield and can be a high-impact player if her development continues in a positive direction.

3. North Carolina Courage

Emily Gray, M, Virginia Tech – A

Outside of the top two, how teams drafted was always going to be a bit of a mystery. The Courage are going through a bit of a rebuild and have two top picks to try to kick-start the next era. Gray thrived on a solid Virginia Tech team and can hit the ground running in North Carolina.

4. Racing Louisville FC

Savannah DeMelo, M, USC – B

The attacking midfielder played all over the field in her final season, moving between forward, the wing and the No. 10 role. There’s little doubt about the soccer quality DeMelo brings from a passing and finishing perspective. The question is how she will fit into a league that often emphasizes the physical side of the game. If she can make the necessary adjustments to the NWSL’s speed of play and figure out ways to beat faster defenders, DeMelo should at least get minutes for Louisville this year as she continues to develop.

5. Orlando Pride

Mia Fishel, F, UCLA – A+

Fishel and former UCLA head coach Amanda Cromwell get a reunion in Central Florida. Fishel has arguably the highest upside in the draft pool, leaving school early to start her professional career. The familiarity between the two should help Fishel make a smooth transition to the next level. She’s a young player the Pride can build around as they launch a rebuild in 2022.

There's no feeling like it ✨

📹: @diana0rdonez pic.twitter.com/T4rv0foTQa

— NC Courage (@TheNCCourage) December 18, 2021

6. North Carolina Courage

Diana Ordoñez, F, Virginia – B+

Pairing Gray and Ordoñez within the first six picks is tidy work from the Courage. Ordoñez needs teammates around her to maximize her potential, as she’s more effective getting on the end of chances in the penalty area rather than creating them for herself. She’ll have that in the form of Lynn Williams out wide and Gray pulling the strings a bit deeper, among others.

7. Kansas City Current

Elyse Bennett, F, Washington State – B-

There’s no doubt that athletic forwards have a successful track record of making the jump from college to the NWSL. Bennett has that in spades, and if she can continue to improve her efficiency and be more consistent in front of goal, the rest should fall into place for Kansas City.

8. OL Reign

Zsani Kajan, F, St. John’s – C

International players have plenty to offer in the NWSL, though evaluating them in the context of the draft is always difficult. Kajan’s goal-scoring record in the Big East speaks for itself: The Hungarian scored 17 goals in 23 games during her final season this fall. It was all but certain she would get drafted on Saturday, but it feels like the Reign reached a little bit to draft her here. Of course, Rachel Daly, an English standout who also played at St. John’s, has proven her worth in the NWSL, and Kajan has the potential to follow in her footsteps.

Draft reactions = priceless. 🤩#LopesInThePros x @sandiegowavefc pic.twitter.com/DohqoVblQh

— GCU Women's Soccer (@GCU_WSoccer) December 18, 2021

9. San Diego Wave FC

Marleen Schimmer, M/F, Grand Canyon – B-

Before Schimmer was outclassing opponents in the Western Athletic Conference, the German attacker played two seasons at Arizona State. That past experience likely played a role in San Diego scooping her up here, though there’s always the risk that she elects to turn pro back home. Schimmer is a wide attacker who can also play through the middle, and her ability to show she’s worth an international roster spot will determine the success of this pick.

10. Orlando Pride

Caitlin Cosme, D, Duke – B

The Pride traded up to this spot to grab Cosme, a 5-foot-5 central defender with plenty of promise in the back. Still, her size is a concern and the context of the move is an interesting one: While other players also came over in the package deal, Orlando traded away Phoebe McClernon, another center back who played well at times. Of course, there is a new regime in charge in Orlando, and adding a first-round talent is a positive development for a rebuilding club.

11. Orlando Pride

Julie Doyle, F, Santa Clara – A

One of a handful of players on the list who didn’t play college soccer in the fall, Doyle showed plenty of potential in the spring season when she won a national title with Santa Clara. A wide attacker who can combine well through the middle or take defenders on out on the flanks, Doyle adds to Orlando’s depth as another young player with upside. If anything, the time she spent training in England could mean she’s more prepared to contribute right away.

12. North Carolina Courage

Kaitlin Fregulia, D, Long Beach State – B-

Fregulia ended her decorated career at Long Beach State as a two-time Big West Defensive Player of the Year, and she has the size, quality and ability to make an impact as a center back. It was still a curious pick for the Courage since they could have gone in a number of other directions that might have made more sense from a team-building perspective, such as taking South Florida forward Sydny Nasello. The Courage, however, can give Fregulia the time to develop and not press her into minutes right away, which could help ease her transition into the NWSL.

Travis Clark is a contributing writer at Just Women’s Sports, covering college soccer and the NWSL Draft. He is also the Director of Content at Top Drawer Soccer. Follow him on Twitter @travismclark.

The 2025 Wimbledon Championships wrapped its second round on Thursday, with the grass court Grand Slam seeing just 15 of the tournament's 32 seeded players advance to the Friday and Saturday's third round.

A full half of the WTA's Top 10 players did not survive the week, with 2024 Wimbledon finalist and world No. 5 Jasmine Paolini joining four first-round star exits by falling to unseeded Kamilla Rakhimova in a three-set, second-round battle on Wednesday.

At the same time, unseeded fan favorites like Japan's No. 53 Naomi Osaka and England's own No. 40 Emma Raducanu secured third-round spots at the London Slam, joining top surviving contenders like No. 4 Iga Świątek and defending Wimbledon champion No. 16 Barbora Krejčíková.

Notably, a full five US players managed to move ahead, tied for the largest national contingent still standing at the tournament.

Led by 2025 Australian Open champion No. 8 Madison Keys, the US group also includes No. 10 Emma Navarro and No. 12 Amanda Anisimova, as well as unseeded players No. 54 Danielle Collins and No. 55 Hailey Baptiste.

With matches against Świątek and No. 7 Mirra Andreeva, respectively, Collins and Baptiste have a tough third round ahead — though Navarro's battle against the 2024 champ Krejčíková arguably headlines Saturday's slate.

How to watch Wimbledon this weekend

While world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka is still holding strong in the dwindling field, this year's Wimbledon play is proving that the London Slam is anyone's to take, as the grass court humbles even the sport's top stars.

Expect the twists and turns to continue as tennis's best battle for spots in Sunday's Round of 16.

Round-of-32 Wimbledon play kicks off at 6 AM ET on Friday, with live continuous coverage of the tournament airing on ESPN.

The 2025 European Championship is officially underway, as Euro action kicked off with a group-stage upset on Wednesday.

Though the 2025 UEFA tournament's opener was a sweltering affair amid a European heat wave, world No. 26 Finland prevailed, earning a 1-0 upset win over No. 14 Iceland in Group A.

Finnish winger Katariina Kosola played hero, curling in the winning goal in the match's 70th minute — just 12 minutes after Iceland midfielder Hildur Antonsdóttir picked up the competition's first red card.

"The result is important for our confidence," Kosola said after Finland's first major tournament win since the 2009 Euro. "It was the kind of goal I have been practicing a lot."

"It's terrible to lose and we feel frustrated," said Iceland head coach Thorsteinn Halldórsson. "It is an even group and we knew Finland were good, but our first half wasn't good enough."

Elsewhere, No. 16 Norway closed out Wednesday's slate on top of Group A, taking three points by defeating host No. 23 Switzerland in day's second match.

Led by captain and 2018 Ballon d'Or winner Ada Hegerberg — who pulled the match even with a second-half strike — Norway battled to a 2-1 comeback win, despite the Swiss side outshooting and out-possessing the Norwegians.

How to watch this week's 2025 Euro action

Group B steals the 2025 Euro spotlight on Thursday.

While No. 13 Italy snagged a 1-0 opening win over No. 20 Belgium to kick off the day, 2023 World Cup champions and tournament favorite No. 2 Spain will face No. 22 Portugal at 3 PM ET.

Friday's Group C slate will pit No. 12 Denmark against No. 6 Sweden at 12 PM ET, before No. 3 Germany contends with No. 27 Poland at 3 PM ET.

Closing out the first group-stage matches will be arguably the toughest draw of the 2025 Euro pool.

Saturday's Group D slate features major tournament debutants No. 30 Wales against the No. 11 Netherlands at 12 PM ET, with No. 10 France taking on defending champions No. 5 England to cap the day at 3 PM ET.

Live coverage of 2025 Euro matches will air across Fox Sports platforms.

The world No. 1 USWNT ruled the pitch on Wednesday night, shutting out North American rivals No. 8 Canada 3-0 to finish the international window on a high note.

Catching the Canada backline sleeping, US midfielder Sam Coffey opened the scoring at the 17-minute mark before 19-year-old Claire Hutton claimed her first-ever USWNT goal by heading in a Rose Lavelle corner kick in the game's 36th minute.

Houston Dash forward Yazmeen Ryan then padded the US tally in the waning minutes of the match, finding the back of the net just eight minutes after subbing onto the field.

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Despite fielding a young roster, the US overpowered a veteran-heavy Canada side in almost every category, topping their Northern neighbors in shots, shots on target, possession, and — most notably — set pieces.

Canada ultimately couldn't match the game's mental pace or physical battle, as the USWNT scored all three goals off dead ball situations — a free kick, a corner kick, and a throw-in.

"It's not about the opponent," US head coach Emma Hayes said after the match. "It's about what we do, and I felt that was extremely dominant."

With Wednesday's contributions, the USWNT finishes the summer window with 11 goals scored across the three friendlies — and zero goals conceded.

The US now enters an extended break before reconvening for another as-yet-unannounced friendly series in October — but players will be expected to perform in the meantime.

"I said to the players in the end in the huddle, if you want to compete to win the biggest things, it's not what you do here that matters," said Hayes. "It's what you do when you go back to your club."

The 2025 WNBA regular season returns on Thursday night, with teams at the top of the league standings looking to prove their mettle against close competition across the long holiday weekend.

The No. 5 Seattle Storm have arguably the toughest weekend assignments, taking on the No. 4 Atlanta Dream on Friday before tackling the No. 3 New York Liberty on Sunday.

Four middle-of-the-pack teams will look to close in on a double-digit season win tally while the league's frontrunners strive to maintain their advantage in this weekend's slate:

• No. 7 Las Vegas Aces vs. No. 8 Indiana Fever, Thursday at 7 PM ET (Prime): Though still without star Caitlin Clark, the Fever hope to harness their 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup victory momentum against an Aces side tied with Indiana with an 8-8 season record.

• No. 5 Seattle Storm vs. No. 4 Atlanta Dream, Thursday at 7:30 PM ET (WNBA League Pass): Seattle will look to make strides against a strong Atlanta side while putting last Sunday's stinging 84-57 loss to up-and-comer Golden State in their rearview.

• No. 6 Golden State Valkyries vs. No. 1 Minnesota Lynx, Saturday at 8 PM ET (WNBA League Pass): The rising Valkyries must face a Lynx side hunting redemption, as the league-leaders look to bounce back from their stifling Tuesday Commissioner's Cup upset loss.

• No. 5 Seattle Storm vs. No. 3 New York Liberty, Sunday at 1 PM ET (CBS): With injured Liberty center Jonquel Jones still sidelined, the Seattle Storm will have a chance to steal a weekend game against the reigning champs, as New York struggles to re-find their footing.

With the 2025 WNBA All-Star break looming, early top performers must keep standards high if they want to hold the line when the season crosses the midway point.