Sophia Smith is a goal scorer.

She was as she was growing up in Windsor, Colo., when she helped Stanford to a national championship in 2019, and when the Portland Thorns drafted her in 2020.

She’s been a goal scorer in her 25 appearances for the U.S. women’s national team, and during her MVP campaign for the Thorns this season.

And Sophia Smith was a goal scorer on Saturday, when her club claimed a historic third NWSL championship in a 2-0 victory over Kansas City.

With less than four minutes gone by in the first half, Yazmeen Ryan fielded the ball in the center circle. She took one touch and sent a smooth pass through the Kansas City defenders. Elizabeth Ball slid in a last-ditch effort to make contact with the ball but instead left Smith in a one-on-one situation with keeper AD Franch.

As Smith advanced, Franch dove. Smith moved the ball from her right foot to her left, and with an open goal ahead of her, she watched as her shot sailed into the back of the net.

It gave Portland an early 1-0 lead, which ended up being the game-winning goal as the Thorns held the Current scoreless. It also allowed Smith to shrug off the haters.

Everything is coming up roses 🌹 pic.twitter.com/bM1B6dBLxj

— Portland Thorns FC (@ThornsFC) October 30, 2022

As Smith’s teammates mobbed her, the forward raised her shoulders and put up her hands, in a celebration reminiscent of Michael Jordan’s iconic shrug. But Smith wasn’t making a nod to Jordan — she was letting everyone know that she had the goods. The MVP goods.

“There’s been a lot of people who don’t think I deserved to win MVP,” Smith said after the match, with a new MVP trophy, one for the best player in the championship game, sitting in front of her. “So that (celebration) was a little bit of, ‘That’s that.’”

Smith has been in the NWSL for three years, and during that time, the 22-year-old has gained a reputation for her speed and skill in the open field. She was second in the league in scoring this year with 14 goals, just one behind San Diego’s Alex Morgan, who finished as the Golden Boot winner with 15.

When she knocked in Portland’s first score of the contest, Smith put those qualities on display for the Washington, D.C. crowd.

“Her pace is lethal,” KC midfielder Desiree Scott said. “You can’t grow that. That is just natural talent.”

And Scott isn’t the only one who has noticed Smith’s natural skills. Her potential at a young age helped her become the first player born in the 2000s to appear for the senior national team. It’s also the reason the Thorns drafted her first overall earlier that year. And it’s something coach Rhian Wilkinson noticed as soon as she came aboard to coach the club this season.

What Smith is doing right now is remarkable, Wilkinson said, but the conversation around the young star could hold even more weight in a few years’ time.

“She can stop pushing now, and she will still be a very good player, one of the best players this country has ever produced,” Wilkinson said about the MVP. “And my job is to keep pushing her, and to make sure she is the best player this country has ever produced because she has that in her right now.”

Wilkinson went on to praise Smith’s abilities to take on multiple defenders and to “create something out of nothing.”

“It is a gift to have her on your team.” Wilkinson said.

Smith feels similarly about her coach.

She announced in the post-match press conference that she thought it was “bulls–t” that Wilkinson wasn’t nominated for NWSL Coach of the Year. Despite coming into an already talented squad, Smith said the way Wilkinson handled the controversy surrounding the Thorns after the release of the Yates report and managed to implement her own style of play is being undervalued.

Smith went on to say that Wilkinson pushes her to reach her full potential, something the MVP both wants and needs.

“I feel like I can be (the best), but I need to be pushed and I need to be held to high standards every single day,” Smith said. “And she does a really good job of that. So I really can’t ask for much more than that.”

Sophia Smith might be on her way to becoming the best player this country has ever seen. And for those who don’t believe, well, she’s shrugging off the haters one goal at a time.

Eden Laase is a Staff Writer at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @eden_laase.

Two key upsets headlined Thursday's WNBA bill, sending the Phoenix Mercury soaring into third place in the league standings while the No. 6 Golden State Valkyries continued to outwit opponents.

The red-hot Mercury snagged their fourth straight win by taking down the No. 2 New York Liberty 89-81 on Thursday night, overcoming an 35-point performance from two-time MVP Breanna Stewart with five double-digit Phoenix scorers.

Meanwhile out West, the Valkyries stifled a surging No. 7 Fever, downing Indiana 88-77 in part by holding star guard Caitlin Clark to just 3-for-14 from the field — and 0-for-7 from behind the arc.

"We were being disruptive, we know that she doesn't like physicality, we know that she wants to get to that left step-back," Golden State head coach Natalie Nakase said about the Valkyries' strategy to effectively contain Clark.

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Though the No. 1 Minnesota Lynx and 2024 WNBA champions New York still hold court atop the table, Thursday's actions proves that other squads are making some unexpected in-roads.

Putting together an impressive road record are the Mercury, who will ride a 4-2 away record into their Saturday matchup against the No. 11 Chicago Sky — the last stop on a four-game road trip that's been perfect for Phoenix thus far.

Already flipping the script on expectations is Golden State, with the 2025 expansion team rising despite relying on a hodgepodge roster as several players compete at EuroBasket 2025. The Valkyries will aim to keep their winning momentum in their Sunday clash with the No. 12 Connecticut Sun.

How to watch the Mercury, Valkyries this weekend

Both of Thursday's victors will be back in action this weekend, with Phoenix facing Chicago at 1 PM ET on Saturday, airing live on ABC.

Then on Sunday, Golden State will host Connecticut at 8:30 PM ET, with live coverage on WNBA League Pass.

In another weekend full of WNBA action, all eyes are on Las Vegas, as the No. 8 Aces will try to curb a two-game losing streak against two formidable opponents.

A successful weekend for Las Vegas could hinge on three-time WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson's potential return from injury, with the star forward recently upgraded to "questionable" after landing in concussion protocol last week.

Overall, the margin for error has narrowed in the middle of the WNBA pack, as talented teams continue to translate quality performances into consistency.

• No. 5 Seattle Storm vs. No. 8 Las Vegas Aces, Friday at 10 PM ET (ION): The Aces will try to end their free fall in Friday's head-to-head battle with a Seattle side that can beat anybody at their best.

• No. 7 Indiana Fever vs. No. 8 Las Vegas Aces, Sunday at 3 PM ET (ESPN): Las Vegas next faces a Fever team still smarting from Thursday's away loss to the Golden State Valkyries, with both teams narrowly clinging to positions above the playoff line.

• No. 2 New York Liberty vs. No. 5 Seattle Storm, Sunday at 7 PM ET (WNBA League Pass): The Liberty have a comfortable hold on second place, but with two losses in their last three games, New York is flirting with danger entering their Sunday game with Seattle — particularly if star big Jonquel Jones is out after suffering a knock to the ankle on Thursday.

Ultimately, there's no rest for the weary in the WNBA, as a series of difficult matchups can see a single error quickly slide into a losing streak.

The final NWSL weekend heading into the league's six-week summer break has arrived, giving teams one more chance to prove themselves before regular-season play pauses to make way for major international tournaments.

With a five-point gap separating No. 1 Kansas City from No. 2 Orlando in the NWSL standings, the Current will enter the break as the 2025 Shield frontrunners regardless of this weekend's results.

Despite Kansas City's grip atop the table, there's still plenty of room for movement both above and below the postseason cutoff line, as clubs across the NWSL look to wrap their midseason finales on a high note:

• No. 1 Kansas City Current vs. No. 10 Angel City FC, Friday at 8 PM ET (Prime): Angel City has a shot at launching themselves above the cutoff line on Friday, but they'll have to snap the Current's five-game winning streak to make it happen.

• No. 8 Gotham FC vs. No. 9 Bay FC, Saturday at 7:30 PM ET (ION): Gotham and Bay FC enter the weekend tied on points while staring at each other from on opposite sides of the playoff line — meaning a Saturday win for either club could set the tone for the rest of the 2025 season.

• No. 3 San Diego Wave FC vs. No. 4 Washington Spirit, Sunday at 10 PM ET (CBS Sports): The weekend's only top-table clash could see San Diego sprint back into second place — unless Washington leapfrogs the upstart Wave to claim the third-place spot.

The LPGA Tour has turned its attention to Texas, with the 2025 KPMG Women's PGA Championship — the third major of the pro golf season — teeing off in Frisco to a flurry of first-round action on Thursday.

All of the sport's Top 100 athletes are participating in this week's event, including No. 1 Nelly Korda, who sits in a 14th-place tie with an even-par first-round performance, and surging US dark horse No. 50 Lexi Thompson, who tied for 10th in her Thursday return from a brief retirement.

However, leading the pack heading into Friday's second round is Thailand's world No. 2 Jeeno Thitikul, who finished the first day of competition atop the leaderboard with a score of 4-under-par.

Australia's No. 24 Minjee Lee also posted a strong start, capping Thursday at 3-under to sit in second place.

While the sport's best chase victory on the links, the 2025 KPMG Women's PGA Championship is already making history off the green.

Not only is it the first-ever women's major to tee off at Frisco's Fields Ranch East, the tournament also increased its purse to $12 million on Tuesday — nearly tripling the $4.5 million prize pool from just four years ago and tying the US Women's Open for the LPGA Tour's highest payout in the process.

How to watch the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship

The third LPGA Grand Slam of 2025 continues through Sunday.

Friday's second round will air live on the Golf Channel, while coverage of Saturday and Sunday's final rounds will air across NBC and Peacock.