Just one minute after entering the Portland Thorns’ match Sunday in her return from the World Cup, Sophia Smith found the back of the net.

The 23-year-old forward scored two goals in the U.S. women’s national team’s World Cup opener, but she was held scoreless through the rest of the tournament. After kicking off the tournament with a 3-0 win against Vietnam, the USWNT managed just one goal in its next three games, contributing to its historically early exit.

So in her first game back with the Thorns, the NWSL scoring leader and reigning MVP wanted to get back into form.

“Honestly, I miss scoring goals,” Smith said after the game. “So I was just really hungry for a goal.”

Smith’s goal in the 69th minute ended up being the game-winner for Portland in a 2-1 victory over the North Carolina Courage. She had come off the bench in the 68th minute, and her quick strike echoed that of USWNT teammate Ashley Sanchez, who scored less than one minute into her NWSL return.

A Sunday stunner for @sophsssmith! 😱

🎥 » @NWSL

pic.twitter.com/SwVZmrahJ1

— U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (@USWNT) August 21, 2023

With Sunday’s win, the Thorns leapfrogged the Courage, jumping into first place in the NWSL standings with 28 points. The Courage sit in second place with 26 points and six matches remaining in the regular season.

Portland played one player down for most of the match after defender Kelli Hubly received a red card in the 17th minute. North Carolina took the lead on a Tyler Lussi goal off the ensuing free kick, but Portland’s Hannah Betfort tied the score later in the first half off an assist from Olivia Moultrie.

“I knew how important it was to get this win, and the team had put in so much work before I came in,” Smith said. “Hannah (Betfort) scoring a sick f–king goal, excuse my language, but we don’t want that to not be a difference-maker in a game. We want that goal to be remembered and stand out at all times. And that’s what happens when you win. So that was important to me.

“I watched my teammates work their butts off the whole game, and I knew that I wanted to come in and help put the game away to reward everyone for the work that they did.”

First reaction: sheeeeesh 🔥
Second reaction: hey SportsCenter 👀 pic.twitter.com/ufsrjqzDIL

— Portland Thorns FC (@ThornsFC) August 21, 2023

Welcome back to Fast Friends with Kelley O'Hara and Lisa Leslie!

In today's episode, our hosts kick things off by chatting through last weekend's NWSL quarterfinals, with the top four teams proving their dominance in four heated battles. O'Hara then shouts out the two center backs who notched their first goals of the year this postseason: Washington's Tara McKeown and Gotham's Tierna Davidson.

Later turning to the NWSL semifinals, Leslie zeroes in on this weekend's bout between No. 1 Orlando and No. 4 Kansas City — a game that pits leading goalscorers Temwa Chawinga and Barbra Banda against one another. "Is the matchup that we've been waiting for?" she asks.

O'Hara agrees with her co-host. While she dubs the semifinal between No. 2 Washington and No. 3 Gotham more of a "chess match," O'Hara predicts the Current and Pride's clash to be "end line to end line soccer."

"Orlando was able to stay top of the table [while] Kansas City is fourth, so in reality you would think Orlando should walk into this game feeling very confident and know what you need to do to be successful," says O'Hara. "But it's playoffs, so anything can happen."

"I'm just gonna be sat on the couch, locked in," she adds. "Get the popcorn out, get ready."

Fast Friends discusses NWSL awards

Before moving on from the pitch, Leslie and O'Hara discuss the NWSL's end-of-season awards frontrunners. The hosts gamble that Chawinga will take MVP honors while Spirit midfielder Croix Bethune will walk away as the 2024 Rookie of the Year — despite only playing 17 matches before a post-Olympics knee injury limited her to the sidelines.

Then, the legendary athletes turn to the tennis courts to celebrate Coco Gauff's recent WTA Finals win before chatting through the top teams and players headlining NCAA basketball's early season action.

And last but not least, O'Hara and Leslie reveal a few of the special guests joining them onstage at their upcoming NWSL Championship Weekend Live Show.

About Fast Friends with Kelley O'Hara and Lisa Leslie

Coming off the success of JWS's Olympic commentary show The Gold Standard, Fast Friends features two legendary athletes serving up insider insights and unique takes on the biggest stories in women's sports every week.

Subscribe to Just Women's Sports on YouTube to never miss an episode.

The NWSL announced the finalists for the 2024 end-of-year awards on Tuesday, with lists showcasing heavy-hitters around the league.

The 2024 MVP award is an all-attacker affair, as the league's top scorers all earned nominations. The Orlando Pride's Barbra Banda and Marta both snagged nods, with Kansas City's Golden Boot-winner Temwa Chawinga, Washington's Trinity Rodman, and Portland's Sophia Smith rounding out the shortlist.

The Rookie of the Year category is similarly stacked, as injured Washington rookie Croix Bethune and her record-tying 10 assists goes up against Utah standout Ally Sentnor and KC Current star Claire Hutton for top honors.

Position players snag share of NWSL awards spotlight

The NWSL's top position players are also vying for solo hardware this season.

In the league's first-ever Midfielder of the Year category, Kansas City's Vanessa DiBernardo and celly queen Lo LaBonta earned nominations, as did Orlando's Marta and North Carolina's Ashley Sanchez. Washington rookie Croix Bethune's short but impressive season also scored her a nod.

Battling in the backline for Defender of the Year are North Carolina's Kaleigh Kurtz and Washington's forward-turned-center back Tara McKeown. Both Iron Women are in the running alongside San Diego’s Naomi Girma and Orlando’s Emily Sams and Kylie Strom.

As the new NWSL single-season shutout leader, Orlando's Anna Moorhouse headlines the Goalkeeper of the Year race, with Gotham's Ann-Katrin Berger and Utah's Mandy Haught in hot pursuit.

Top sideline leaders earn NWSL Coach of the Year nominations

After flipping Orlando from a non-playoff team into 2024’s Shield-winners with a record-setting 23-match undefeated streak, Pride boss Seb Hines is the frontrunner for Coach of the Year (COTY).

However, Hines faces tough competition from Gotham's Juan Carlos Amorós and Kansas City's Vlatko Andonovski.

Andonovski took the Current from a second-to-last 2023 finish to fourth-place on this season's table, while 2023 COTY winner Amorós is one of just two coaches to defeat Orlando this year.

How to vote for the 2024 NWSL individual awards

Fan ballots account for 10% of the final tally, so weigh in by voting online for this season's individual awards, as well as the Best XI First Team and Best XI Second Team. Ballots are due by 3 PM ET on Friday.

After a quarterfinal round that was all chalk, this weekend's NWSL semifinals have massive nail-biter potential, with the league's top four teams facing off in two highly anticipated pairings.

Will Gotham get rowdy at Audi?

The stakes couldn't be higher as No. 2 Washington kicks off ​the tightly contended​ 2024 semis against No. 3 Gotham FC in front of another raucous sellout crowd in DC on Saturday — the East Coast powerhouses' first-ever postseason clash.

Having both having advanced from strikingly similar quarterfinal matchups last weekend, the teams enter the match with a split 5-5-4 record against each other over the last four seasons. Even more, the squads finished the regular season tied at 56 points apiece.

The Spirit remain the only team to defeat Gotham twice this year, though both those meetings occurred early in the season. Since their second loss to Washington in June, the NJ/NY squad has fallen just once in NWSL play — to No. 1 Orlando on September 1st. Along with the Pride, Gotham leads the league as the toughest team on the road, a claim that will be tested by a Spirit side that hasn't lost at home since July.

Saturday's semifinal will be a battle between one of the league’s most prolific offenses against one of the NWSL’s stingiest defenses. With the league's second-highest goal tally under their belt, Washington is arguably the most dangerous NWSL team in transition. But if Gotham's backline can stifle the Spirit's attack, their unmatched depth could keep their back-to-back championship dreams alive. 

Budding rivals set for NWSL semifinal fight night in Florida

Orlando and Kansas City's freshly minted rivalry will come to a head on Sunday, when the NWSL's No. 1 squad hosts this season's top goal-scorers in Sunday's semifinal showdown.

Both teams began the year on impressive unbeaten runs, until the Pride snapped KC's 17-match streak just before the Olympic break in early July.

The Current then became the only team to hold Orlando scoreless at home in the pair's September 13th draw — the only home match the Pride failed to win since opening the year with three draws in March.

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The Pride's league-leading defense and the Current's ultra-organized midfield make Sunday's semi a guaranteed thriller, with the winner likely decided by the NWSL's most prolific scorers, KC's Golden Boot winner Temwa Chawinga and star Orlando striker Barbra Banda.

After needing medical attention late in KC’s quarterfinal, there are lingering concerns about Chawinga’s ongoing knee injury affecting her semifinal fitness. Meanwhile, Banda snapped a five-match scoring drought with a decisive brace last weekend, and if she can keep that momentum, Orlando will be tough to beat.

How to watch the 2024 NWSL semifinals this weekend

With the November 23rd NWSL Championship match on the line, Gotham and Washington will kick off the 2024 NWSL semifinals at 12 PM ET on Saturday, airing live on CBS.

The weekend's NWSL semifinal closer between Orlando and Kansas City will take the Pride's pitch at 3 PM ET on Sunday, with live coverage on ABC.

The 2024 NCAA DI Soccer Championship field is officially set, with 64 teams gearing up to battle for postseason glory in this weekend's first round.

All teams have their sights set on this year's College Cup — NCAA soccer's Final Four — which will take place in Cary, NC, with semifinals on December 6th before the December 9th championship match.

Along with the 30 conference tournament champions who automatically received postseason invites, the NCAA committee revealed its 34 selectees in Monday's bracket release. The top 32 teams are seeded one through eight in their respective bracket quadrants, and teams are guaranteed to only face non-conference opponents through the tournament's second round.

Tight race for top seeds reflect NCAA talent

In this 43rd edition of the NCAA championship, three of the four No. 1 seeds are already making history.

After finishing the the regular season atop the sport's rankings, Duke is the tournament's overall No. 1 team for the first time ever. The Blue Devils, who boast the nation's second-best scoring offense, are aiming for a program-first national title this year.

Joining Duke in the bracket's elite echelon are USC and Mississippi State, who claimed No. 1 seeds for the first time ever. The Trojans did so in their first season as a Big Ten team, while the SEC veteran Bulldogs put together their best year yet, finishing with a nationally unparalleled 16-1-0 regular-season record.

Rounding out the top quartet is defending champion Florida State, the lone consistent standby in the No. 1-seed club. The Seminoles have earned the honor 12 times, with this year marking their sixth straight NCAA tournament atop a quadrant.

Power Four squads lead NCAA Championship charge

Unsurprisingly, the Power Four conferences comprise over half the national bracket. The SEC and Big Ten lead the charge with 10 teams each, while the ACC has nine in the mix, and the Big 12 is sending seven.

Though the ACC didn't win the total team race, the tough conference is still arguably the one to beat in the bracket, as seven of their teams earned Top-4 seedings. Even more, a full half of the eight Nos. 1 and 2 teams hail from the ACC, with second-seeds North Carolina and Wake Forest joining top seeds Duke and Florida State.

UNC and Wake Forest represent two very different paths to the tournament: The Tar Heels — a dynasty who've won 21 of the 42 national trophies — extended their streak of appearing in every single NCAA tournament with Monday's bracket drop. Meanwhile, the Demon Deacons have shot to national acclaim after failing to garner an invite to last year's NCAA party.

Joining the ACC pair as No. 2 seeds are SEC standouts Arkansas and 2022 national champions and new Big Ten members UCLA. The Razorbacks claim their third No. 2 seed in four years, while the Bruins' defense is on a hunt to prove that defense wins championships.

Parity set to increase NCAA tournament chaos

Though the top contenders have certainly earned respect, this season's competition is particularly fierce, as the fallout of conference realignment and unrestricted transfers has meant increased parity on the NCAA pitch.

That parity isn't just reflected by new teams claiming top national seeds. This postseason has already proved that almost any team can emerge victorious from the college soccer pitch at any time.

In last week's Power Four conference tournaments, for example, only the Big 12 saw the top conference seed advance to the final, and none ultimately lifted hardware: UCLA claimed the Big Ten as the No. 2 seed, No. 3 seeds Florida State and Texas won the ACC and SEC tournaments, respectively, and Kansas absolutely stunned the Big 12 as the conference's No. 6 seed champions.

How to watch the NCAA Soccer Championship tournament

Those parity-fueled upsets will be increasingly likely in the tournament's later rounds, but several of the 32 first-round matchups have upset potential.

All will stream on ESPN+, starting with the NCAA's kickoff match between No. 8 Utah State and Washington on Friday at 4 PM ET.

Friday will see 25 matches, with six on Saturday. Wrapping up the tournament's first chapter will be No. 1 USC, who will host Sacramento State at 5 PM ET on Sunday.