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.

After a dramatic 3-0 win over crosstown rival Manchester United on Saturday, Manchester City is now leading the WSL, sitting three points clear atop the 2025/26 league table while notably extending their advantage over second-place powerhouse Chelsea FC.

The home side scored all three of their goals in the first half, with defender Rebecca Knaak putting City ahead in the 26th minute before attacker Khadija "Bunny" Shaw added to the lead in the 43rd minute.

Returning from injury with a vengeance, forward Lauren Hemp sealed the deal for the Citizens with the final goal in first-half stoppage time.

"It's so nice to be back," Hemp said postgame. "Today we showed the mentality that I said at the start we needed to show."

While reigning six-time WSL champions Chelsea have yet to lose a match this WSL season, a trio of 2025/26 draws has the Blues now trailing the current eight-win, one-loss record held by Manchester City.

As for United, the WSL third-place Red Devils were without star goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce in Saturday's loss, after the USWNT net-minder suffered a fractured eye socket in November 8th's 1-0 loss to Aston Villa.

"She should be fine, it's just trying to make sure she doesn't get another knock in that area," said United manager Marc Skinner, noting that Tullis-Joyce could return as soon as the club's 2025/26 Champions League match against VfL Wolfsburg on Wednesday.

One of this season's NWSL Coach of the Year finalists is moving on up, with Kansas City manager Vlatko Andonovski leaving his position as the Current's head coach to become the club's full-time global sporting director.

Andonovski has been juggling both jobs since joining the Current in October 2023, with the 49-year-old coming off what was arguably his most successful managerial season, leading Kansas City to a first-ever NWSL Shield amidst a record-shattering 2025 campaign.

In his new role, Andonovski will "implement the long-term vision for the club's technical and athletic success, as well as be responsible for player recruitment, roster strategy and scouting."

"It's vital to move into this role to keep growing this club with the aim of being a perennial contender on the global stage and a top developer of talent," Andonovski said in Friday's club announcement.

With the administrative switch in the works prior to last weekend's playoff upset, Andonovski will now join the hiring committee tasked with appointing his successor, while continuing his head coaching duties until Kansas City secures its new manager.

In another front office shift, the Current's head of soccer operations Ryan Dell will immediately take over as the club's GM, with former GM Caitlin Carducci departing the club after one year at the helm.

Michigan women's basketball is on the rise, as the then-No. 14 Wolverines avenged their early 2025 NCAA tournament exit with a stunning 93-54 blowout win over then-No. 18 Notre Dame on Saturday.

Michigan sophomore guard Olivia Olson led the game in scoring with 20 points as the Wolverines put together a true team effort, with six bench players combining for 38 points in the win.

The Big Ten team also dominated defensively, limiting the Fighting Irish bench to just two points while keeping Notre Dame star guard Hannah Hidalgo to a mere 12-point performance.

"We knew exactly what Michigan was going to do," said Notre Dame basketball head coach Niele Ivey afterwards. "We did not have any type of fight defensively, and that's where we have to start."

The Wolverines' victory was especially sweet after Notre Dame ousted Michigan from last season's national tournament with a 76-55 second-round Irish win.

Saturday's fallout also affected this week's AP Top 25 poll, with Notre Dame falling six ranks to No. 24 while Michigan earned an eight-spot bump to No. 6.

After quietly recruiting five-star talents like Olson and Syla Swords in 2024, Michigan — a program that has yet to earn a title at the NCAA or conference level — proved over the weekend that they are entering the 2025/26 season with added depth and experience.

"That's why I committed to Michigan," Swords told JWS at October's Big Ten Media Day. "That's why so many of us came there, because we wanted to be part of something new, part of something that's never been done."

Washington Spirit star Trinity Rodman is back in action, subbing into her team's 2025 NWSL semifinal win in Saturday's 90th minute as she continues to rehab a sprained MCL — with questions still remaining surrounding her future with the club.

"It felt amazing," she said afterwards. "If I get 30 seconds, or if I get 90 minutes, it feels great to be out there."

Rodman will hope for more involvement in next weekend's NWSL Championship game, taking the pitch for the Spirit in her final match under contact before becoming an unrestricted free agent.

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The USWNT standout's extension negotiations have apparently made it all the way up to the NWSL commissioner, with Rodman garnering interest from multiple UK clubs willing to outspend the US league's salary cap restrictions.

The NWSL's most recent collective bargaining agreement sets each club's current salary cap at $3.3 million, which will titrate up to $5.1 million by 2030.

"Right now, my head's completely down. It's been so distracting being injured, and that's all I can really think about," Rodman said on Saturday, addressing the reports. "Once we get this championship, then I can start making decisions and figuring out what next year looks like for me."

With rumors swirling around Rodman and her future with the Spirit, NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman defended the salary cap this week, telling CBS Sports that the parity the cap fosters is "the reason our league is the most competitive league in the world."