All Scores

NWSL Power Rankings: Houston Dash move into the top three

The Dash have now scored four goals or more in four games this season. (Maria Lysaker/USA TODAY Sports)

After two weeks off, Just Women’s Sports‘ NWSL weekly power rankings are back and, in typical NWSL fashion, are full of chaos.

Most notably, the Chicago Red Stars move out of the top three for the first time since May as the Houston Dash surge into their spot. The Kansas City Current slide down for reasons outside of their control, while the North Carolina Courage rise despite playing to a 3-3 draw on Friday.

The full season is taken into account in these rankings, but teams’ recent performances are also heavily weighted, which means some squads might be two or three places off of where they sit in the league standings. (For the last installment of JWS’ power rankings, click here.)

Here we go.

12. Racing Louisville FC (2-6-5) -1

Since June 11, all of Louisville’s results have had a maximum one-goal difference, and none of those seven games have been a win. They dominated the beginning of the second half against the Portland Thorns on Friday, before giving up a second goal in the 2-1 loss. Louisville has a lot of promising pieces, but in a league as competitive as the NWSL, they need to put them all together on a consistent basis. The six losses they’ve recorded in their last nine games are the most of any team in the league in that stretch.

11. NJ/NY Gotham FC (4-7-0) -1

Gotham continues to lead the league in losses after falling 4-2 to the Houston Dash, their fifth defeat in the last nine games. Gotham controlled the tempo at the beginning of the first and second halves against Houston, and even scored a goal just four minutes in. But as both teams settled into their possession, the Dash quickly assumed the upper hand and outdid Gotham in all areas except for blocks (2-1), clearances (24-11) and ground duels won (52 percent).

10. North Carolina Courage (2-5-3) +2

The Courage’s two-spot rise up the power rankings is generous, considering their last game was a draw. It would have been one spot if Gotham and Louisville hadn’t both moved down. North Carolina also suffered in the last power rankings after they had to postpone their match due to COVID-19 protocols. Currently 12th in the league standings, they’ve played four fewer games than the Spirit and Wave and three fewer than most teams, so the team’s situation is not just about poor results. They’re the best at possession in the league and are lethal in transition. They were particularly relentless against Washington on Friday, refusing to let them walk away with the win and answering every goal the Spirit scored to complete the 3-3 draw.

9. Washington Spirit (1-5-8) —

The Washington Spirit have found success creating and finishing their chances, and that’s partly where the momentum ends. They scored three times against the Courage on Friday, but they also conceded three, and it cost them what could have been their first win since the season opener. The Spirit did well in possession, recording an 83.7 percent passing accuracy, but they also allowed the Courage to connect on 83 percent of their passes. Needless to say, The offense is there for Washington, especially with Trinity Rodman back in the mix, but they need the same energy on the other side of the ball.

8. Orlando Pride (3-5-5) —

The Pride found their stride in the first half against the Current on Sunday, scoring the opening goal in the 25th minute and doubling their lead just seconds into the second half. They couldn’t adjust to the pressure that Kansas City piled on afterwards, however, ultimately conceding two goals for a 2-2 draw. Orlando’s lack of hunger in the second half was concerning, since the Current are a lower-ranked playoff contender that Orlando should set their sights on chasing down.

7. Angel City FC (5-5-2) —

Angel City came out flying against OL Reign on Saturday, with Cari Roccaro scoring the opening goal nine minutes into the game and Savannah McCaskill putting them up 2-0 in the 28th. ACFC didn’t carry the momentum into the second half, however, giving up three goals to fall 3-2. Despite having less possession than the Reign, they connected on 76.5 percent of their passes and effectively used their space on the dribble. Overall, a loss like that should result in a drop in the rankings. But after Angel City fell two spots in the last power rankings due to a postponed game, they deserve a second chance.

6. Kansas City Current (5-4-4) -2

It took 45 minutes for the Current to wake up on Sunday, but once they hit their stride, they came back from a 2-0 deficit to draw 2-2 with the Pride and extend their unbeaten streak to eight games. By the second half, they cleaned up their passing and increased the tempo to put pressure on Orlando. As coach Matt Potter said Sunday, “You can see that we haven’t come away from too many games in the second half where we haven’t played in a manner that fits our identity.” They could have easily stayed at fourth in the power rankings, but with Houston moving up, the Reign or the Current had to get bumped down.

5. OL Reign (5-3-5) —

The Reign have so much potential, and yet they’ve only won once in their last four games. With a dynamic attack outshooting Angel City 25-9 and registering an 81.6 percent passing accuracy on Sunday, OL Reign showed what their capable of in the 3-2 comeback win. They’re second in the league in shots on target per match, but their six draws this season indicate they need to be more clinical in the final third. That’s what happened Tuesday in a 1-1 draw with Racing Louisville, where the Reign outshot their opponents 25-6 — with 11 of them on target — but were unable to get around goalkeeper Katie Lund, who made a league-record 12 saves in the game.

4. Chicago Red Stars (5-3-5) -2

The Red Stars haven’t won a game since July 2. With a 1-0 loss to San Diego on Saturday, Chicago dropped to fifth place in the standings. They put up a fight, though, maintaining 59 percent of the possession and a 77.6 passing accuracy. Even though they outshot the Wave 20-9, only four of their shots were on target, tying them with the Wave for shots on goal.

3. Houston Dash (6-4-3) +3

With a 70.6 percent passing accuracy and 51 percent of the possession against Gotham on Sunday, the Dash stuck to their high-press game plan and it paid off. An early mistake in the opening four minutes cost the Dash a goal against, but they didn’t let it get to them as they went on to bury four straight, including two within four minutes of each other. They’ve now scored four goals or more in four games this season, picking up enough points to take the Red Stars’ place in the top three of the NWSL standings and these power rankings.

2. San Diego Wave FC (7-3-4) +1

The Wave were lucky not to come away with a draw against the Red Stars on Saturday after sustaining 20 shots against. Thanks to Naomi Girma making goal-line saves and 17-year-old Jaedyn Shaw scoring her debut goal, the Wave came out on top, 1-0. Chicago had the majority of possession, but San Diego did well defensively to hold onto the lead, winning 54 duels, 10 tackles and 38 clearances.

1. Portland Thorns FC (6-1-6) —

With their 2-1 victory over Racing Louisville on Friday, the Thorns extended their unbeaten streak to nine games. They’ve scored two or more goals in nine of their last 10 matches, and they were missing seven of their star players in half of those games due to overlapping international tournaments. Over the last four games, 10 different Thorns players have scored. Meanwhile, Portland’s leading scorer, Sophia Smith, returned from the U.S. women’s national team Friday to record her ninth goal of the season. The club was on a tear in July, and now that world-class players like Smith are back on the pitch, the Thorns’ chances are looking better than ever.

Jessa Braun is a contributing writer at Just Women’s Sports covering the NWSL and USWNT. Follow her on Twitter @jessabraun.

USC’s McKenzie Forbes: From Gap Year to the NCAA Tournament

As part of our 1-v-1 video series, USC’s India Otto sat down to interview her teammate McKenzie Forbes. 

Here are five things to know from our conversation with the graduate transfer from Folsom, California.

#1 Inspired by USC’s Head Coach, Lindsay Gottlieb, McKenzie wants to be a basketball coach or work in the front office in the future.

When weighing in on what makes a good coach, McKenzie said x’s and o’s are important but “Coaching is a lot of relationship managing and people managing. I think you have to be a good people person and be able to build those relationships, but also in that same breath, you can’t be afraid to have people dislike you in moments. I think that’s a big part of leadership.”

#2 McKenzie says the trajectory of her career changed when she made the decision to transfer from Cal to Harvard.

 In order to transfer, she was forced to take a gap year and spend a lot of time in the gym. “I completely transformed my body and, going into the Harvard season, felt like I was a completely different player. Going to Harvard and playing in a more mid-major conference, I had the ball in my hands a lot more than I might have if I transferred to another Power 5. It really developed other parts of my game.”

#3 How does McKenzie think USC will do in the Women’s College Basketball Tournament?

“I’m not going to give a typical interview answer. I want a Final Four. We have that potential and capability. Like why not? Why not us? I think we have all the pieces.”

#4 Her older brother, Marcus, was her biggest mentor growing up.

“He was basically my trainer from Elementary school on until he went to college.”

#5 Fun facts about Forbes:

She can juggle and she was the quarterback of her Pop Warner football team. “I was slow but I could throw it!”

Watch the full conversation on the Just Women’s Sports YouTube channel.

Christen Press back training with Angel City FC

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 15: Christen Press #23 of Angel City FC waves to fans following a game between the Portland Thorns and Angel City FC at BMO Stadium on October 15, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Katharine Lotze/Getty Images)

Christen Press continues to inch her way back to a return, having returned to training with her club team Angel City. 

Angel City FC coach Becki Tweed said on Wednesday that Press is back with the team full-time as she continues to make her way back from an ACL injury. While she’s still working on rehab, her being back with the team gives staff a better picture of her progress. 

"Christen [Press] is back with us full time which is amazing,” she said. “Having her in and around the team every day, continuing to work hard on rehab ... she's in a space where being in with the team is really important to her and her progression as well.”

The status update comes days after Press posted videos to social media that featured her doing lateral movement in cleats on grass. 

“Look out world she’s on the move !” Press captioned it. 

Press has been sidelined with an ACL injury since 2022, which caused her to miss the 2023 World Cup. She’s since had four separate surgeries to help repair her ACL.

Press told The Athletic a month ago that she’s been “relentless” in her optimism with her recovery despite it being a “slow process.”

“I have a bit of relentless optimism,” she told The Athletic. “I never, ever doubted that I would make it back on any of the timelines I’ve been on."

"Every single time I’ve heard, ‘You have to have surgery,’ I’m completely shocked,” she said. “When somebody asks me how it’s going, I’m like, ‘It’s going great. And it was going great every time. So I don’t know what to tell you anymore!’”

Sophia Smith re-signs with Portland on record deal

(Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports)

Sophia Smith is now the NWSL’s highest-paid player. 

The Portland Thorns announced on Wednesday that they have signed Smith to a new contract through the 2025 season, with an option for 2026. While the terms of the deal were not disclosed, the team did reveal that Smith is now the highest-paid player in the league on an annual basis.

It’s the latest in what has been a series of record-breaking contracts in the NWSL offseason. 

Chicago Red Stars forward Mallory Swanson, Bay FC forward Racheal Kundananji, and Orlando Pride forward Barbra Banda all signed multi-year deals worth between $2 million and $2.5 million in total. While Smith’s contract is shorter and not worth as much over the long-term, the annual worth is higher. 

“We are over the moon to have Soph commit again to the Thorns. She is a proven, world-class talent and one that we are excited to have contribute to the team’s continued success,” said head coach Mike Norris in a statement. “We look forward to working with her in a Thorns jersey as she continues to shine as one of the top strikers in the world.”

In just four seasons in the NWSL, Smith has led the Thorns to five trophies – including the 2022 NWSL championship – while winning league and championship MVP in 2022. In 61 appearances with Portland, she has 34 goals – including a brace to start this season against Kansas City. 

She’s also a member of the USWNT, having scored 16 goals in 44 international appearances.  Set to become a free agent at the end of this season, she told ESPN she “thought of all the options” but ultimately Portland felt like the right decision.

"There is no place like Portland," Smith said in a small roundtable interview that included ESPN. "I don't believe there's an environment like Portland to play in and it's a city that's so special to me and a city that I feel like I've grown up in almost and become who I am."

She also told ESPN that the team’s new ownership “changes everything.” The club is now led by the Bhathal family, who bought the club after Merritt Paulson was forced to sell it following his part in the NWSL’s abuse scandal. 

"Since I've been here there has been a lot of things going on with this club -- a lot of not-great things going on with this club -- and I have just been waiting for some stability and some reassurance that this club is headed in the right direction, and the Bhathal family coming in is doing exactly that, if not more,” Smith said. 

"Their vision for this club is so exciting, and you can just tell how passionate they are about making this what it should be and continuing to push the standard in women's soccer globally.”

Caitlin Clark offered $5 million to compete in Ice Cube’s league

IOWA CITY, IOWA- MARCH 25: Guard Caitlin Clark #22 of the Iowa Hawkeyes celebrates as time runs out in the second half against the West Virginia Mountaineers during their second round match-up in the 2024 NCAA Division 1 Women's Basketball Championship at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on March 25, 2024 in Iowa City, Iowa. (Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images)

Caitlin Clark has been offered $5 million to play in Ice Cube's Big3 league, he confirmed on social media Wednesday after the offer leaked.

"We intended the offer to remain private while Caitlin Clark plays for the championship," Ice Cube wrote on social media. "But I won't deny what's now already out there: BIG3 made a historic offer to Caitlin Clark. Why wouldn't we? Caitlin is a generational athlete who can achieve tremendous success in the BIG3."

While there has yet to be a women's player in the league, both Nancy Lieberman and Lisa Leslie have been part of the league as coaches and won championships.

"The skeptics laughed when we made Nancy Lieberman the first female coach of a men's pro team, and she won the championship in her first year," Ice Cube continued. "Then Lisa Leslie won it all in year two. With our offer, Caitlin Clark can make history and break down even more barriers for women athletes."

Ice Cube, whose name is O’Shea Jackson, says that the offer was made with the intention that Clark be able to compete in the WNBA “offseason.” Clark is largely expected to be the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA draft in April. But it’s unclear how the scheduling of the two leagues would work. 

The 2024 Big3 season is set to tip off on June 15, with 10 games spanning through mid-August. The WNBA regular season, meanwhile, begins on May 14 and ends on Sept. 19.

On “The Pat McAfee Show” on Wednesday, Jackson said that the league has yet to hear back from Clark. 

“We just need an answer, as soon as they are ready to give it to us,” he said. “It’s always 50-50 till we get a no. At the end of the day, it’s a generous offer.”

The offer – as well as the confusion on Jackson’s part about the timing of the WNBA season – caused some current WNBA players to react. 

"It's funny cause I be seeing his son at W games.. they don't talk?" wrote former No. 1 pick Rhyne Howard

"So no other women's basketball player has came to mind in the last 7 years?" wrote Lexie Brown, adding that she'd support if Ice Cube wanted to build a women's iteration of the league. She later discussed it on the Gils Arena Show, noting that his reasoning of wanting to “uplift and support WNBA players and women athletes” is a “cop out.”

Kalani Brown, meanwhile, told Clark to "take that money" and start a women's Big3.

WNBA salaries has been a talking point in recent months as more collegiate stars declare for the league. WNBA stars have often made more money playing abroad than they have in the WNBA. Clark is expected to be the No. 1 pick in the WNBA draft on April 15, with a rookie salary of $76,535 for lottery draft picks (Nos. 1-4) that rises to $97,582 by her fourth season. But she also has an NIL valuation of almost $3.5 million.

Diana Taurasi famously skipped the 2015 WNBA season at the request of her Russian club, who paid her more to sit out than she would have made in the W. Her contract with the club was reportedly near $1.5 million per year.

Jackson also seemed to suggest that his league could be an alternative to going abroad

“America’s women athletes should not be forced to spend their off seasons playing in often dismal and dubious foreign countries just to make ends meet,” he wrote. Although it’s unclear whether or not the rapper intends to make offers to additional WNBA players. 

While the league does hold prioritization rules in its CBA, those typically apply only to players playing in overseas leagues. It’s unclear whether or not that would prevent Clark’s participation in the Big3 league.

WNBA players that don’t want to go overseas currently have the option of playing in Athletes Unlimited, which competes in the WNBA offseason.

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