The SheBelieves Cup has two different purposes for the U.S. women’s national team: Prepare the core group for a round-robin format against top competition and continue to hone the team’s depth.

With top women’s soccer nations Brazil, Japan and Canada taking part in this year’s tournament, the balance between building confidence and evaluating talent will be as delicate as ever. With a middling finish to 2022, the U.S. could use a few wins to go into the World Cup with the confidence that they can come out on top against the world’s best.

With a few key roster decisions looming at certain positions, there are at least four players head coach Vlatko Andonovski should consider giving more playing time this tournament.

Adrianna Franch, goalkeeper

To give them both tournament experience and to keep competition fresh, all three U.S. goalkeepers should see time during the SheBelieves Cup. Franch has been called into three consecutive camps off the strength of an excellent NWSL season with Kansas City, but she has yet to see the field for the USWNT for the first time since 2021.

Franch is an excellent shot-stopper at the club level and went to the Tokyo Olympics as the team’s No. 2 goalkeeper, closing out the tournament for the U.S. after Alyssa Naeher suffered a knee injury. North Carolina’s Casey Murphy has moved into a more consistent role with the team after the Olympics, and Andonovski has given very little game time to the goalkeepers pushing for the third spot. I believe Franch has the ability to compete for more than the third goalkeeping spot and should get a chance to prove what she can do against top competition in 2023.

Taylor Kornieck, midfielder

Kornieck appears to have an inside lane to making the World Cup roster as defensive midfield depth and a set piece aerial specialist. The 24-year-old is getting up to speed quickly in a position she doesn’t regularly play. For her club team, the San Diego Wave, Kornieck usually plays in more of a connecting midfield role. If Andonovski is truly committed to having Kornieck prepared to step into an unfamiliar role in New Zealand, time against top competition will be crucial.

Kornieck seeing time as the No. 6 is also part of Andonovski’s plans to tweak the midfield structure since the U.S. lost three games in a row at the end of 2022 for the first time in almost 30 years. Kornieck as a defensive midfielder requires something closer to a double pivot 4-2-3-1 formation, where either Lindsey Horan or Rose Lavelle sits further back to provide defensive cover and help in distribution. Those roles are likely just as essential as whoever plays the No. 6 (Andi Sullivan is the preferred starter), and forging that midfield chemistry will be key during the SheBelieves Cup.

Sofia Huerta, defender

The USWNT defense hasn’t felt completely settled going into 2023, with outside backs coming in and out of camp due to injury and availability. Huerta played a lion’s share of the team’s right-back minutes in 2022, but her role could become even more nuanced as other players return.

Huerta is a converted winger who is one of the best crossers in the women’s game, with an attacker’s approach to her position on defense. When the U.S. midfield tries to draw their opponents in centrally by holding the ball, Huerta is there to receive passes out wide and send the ball in quickly to set up goal-scoring opportunities.

Huerta’s progression as a 1v1 defender has been a longer process, and with Crystal Dunn back in the mix at left back, Andonovski might choose to craft his starting XI with more tactical awareness in mind. He has opted for a defensive system with Dunn at left back and Emily Fox at right back while the team awaits the return of Kelley O’Hara from injury. Huerta has the ability to hurt any team on the counter-attack and can shine when tactical priorities are clear.

Alana Cook, defender

It’s impossible to know exactly where Cook sits on the current U.S. center-back depth chart. She played the most minutes of anyone on the USWNT in 2022, but she has rotated more with Becky Sauerbrunn and Naomi Girma since the U.S. defense struggled against top attacking teams late last year. Cook’s counterparts appear to be locks for the World Cup roster, with Sauerbrunn as the veteran presence and Girma the young natural at the position.

Cook herself frequently looks like a natural, but she isn’t immune to being a step too slow in reacting to dangerous moments, leading to goals conceded. She’s joined on the SheBelieves roster by Emily Sonnett, who has been used as a hybrid center back/outside back in the past. Tierna Davidson is likely one camp away from returning to game minutes.

The U.S. can’t bring Cook, Davidson and Sonnett to the World Cup, and these games are as much about working out defensive communication as they are about looking for individual moments of brilliance. Cook has earned Andonovski’s trust as a steady contributor and deserves a chance to solidify her place with the team this week with an all-around performance.

Claire Watkins is a Staff Writer at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @ScoutRipley.

Cameron Brink already has her rookie of the year pick for the upcoming WNBA season, and it’s Indiana-bound star Caitlin Clark. 

In the latest edition of Kelley on the Street, host Kelley O'Hara caught up with Brink in New York hours before the Stanford phenom went No. 2 overall to the Los Angeles Sparks at the 2024 WNBA Draft. When O’Hara asked who would win the WNBA's rookie of the year, she answered without pause.

"Caitlin Clark," she said, while a fan commented that she thought Brink would take home the award. Brink later added that the extra foul granted to WNBA players will be "good for me."

"I hope it’s me," Charisma Osborne, who was later drafted by the Phoenix Mercury, said when asked her ROY prediction. "But, I don’t know — we’ll see."

Watch more of Kelley on the Street:

Maria Sanchez issued a statement on Thursday, confirming recent reports that she has requested a trade from the Houston Dash. 

In it, she revealed that the club has been aware of the request "since late March."

"This has all taken a toll and isn’t an easy thing to talk about, but I want to confirm that I’ve requested an immediate trade," she wrote. "My expectations and reasons have been clear. I trust that my current club’s management will honor my decision in a timely manner and proceed with accepting a trade."

"I’m eager to refocus and dive back into what I love most: playing football," she concluded.

Thank you, everyone, for the outpouring of kindness and support. pic.twitter.com/gcnN7dhCJU

— Maria Sanchez (@Maria17_7) April 19, 2024

Reports of Sanchez's trade request first surfaced on ESPN last week, and were later confirmed by multiple sources. 

In December of last year, Sanchez signed a three-year contract with the Dash valued at $1.5 million including bonuses and an option year. It was the largest contract in NWSL history at the time — a figure that would be eclipsed by multiple contracts in the following months. 

Sanchez spent the offseason as a restricted free agent, meaning that Houston could match any other team's offer to retain her rights. Should the Dash trade Sanchez, her current contract terms would remain intact, limiting potential buyers to teams able to afford to take on an inking of that size.

The Dash has yet to address the trade, instead reiterating to ESPN that Sanchez is "under contract, a choice she made in free agency at the end of 2023." 

Both the NWSL trade window and transfer window close tonight, April 19th, at 12 a.m. ET. The window will stay closed through the next 11 regular season games, reopening on August 1st, 2024.

The four-time league champion Seattle Storm unveiled their new practice facility on Thursday, with Storm co-owner Lisa Brummel dubbing Interbay's Seattle Storm Center for Basketball Performance the team’s "new home."

"It's just such a special space," Brummel told Fox 13 Seattle. "I think when the players get here, it's gonna be overwhelming."

The sprawling 50,000-square-foot, $64 million property is just the second designated practice facility to be designed and built expressly for a WNBA team, with the Storm further noting that 85% of all design and engineering team members involved in the project's construction were women and people of color. The finished product holds two professional indoor courts, two 3x3 outdoor courts, a state-of-the-art locker room, and players' lounge, plus designated areas for strength and conditioning, kitchen, dining, and nutrition, and recovery. 

"This facility reflects our commitment to providing our athletes an exceptional environment that supports their growth, health, and performance," said Storm co-owner Ginny Gilder in an official team release. "It’s built for women, by women, embodying our dedication to leading the way in professional women’s sports."

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For their part, the team can't wait to make the faciilty their own.

"It's amazing," Storm guard Jewell Loyd told Fox 13. "Not having to drive everywhere around, knowing you have access anytime of the day to get into the gym, to workout." 

Head coach Noelle Quinn said she predicts the team is "never going to leave this building."

"Which is a good thing for me," she continued. "You talk about having an edge in performance. We want our athletes to not only perform on the court, but get whatever they need."

All of the Storm's staff and operations will now live under one roof, and the team also has plans to launch a youth basketball program operating out of the building.

The Caitlin Clark effect is quickly making its mark on the big leagues, as WNBA host teams around the country rush to upgrade their Fever games to larger arenas in order to accommodate surging ticket sales.

With Clark mere weeks away from her Indiana Fever debut, both the Las Vegas Aces and Washington Mystics have officially relocated their scheduled home games with head coach Christie Sides' squad. On Thursday, the Mystics became the latest to adjust their plans, moving their June 7th matchup from Entertainment & Sports Arena in Southwest DC to the more centrally located — and much larger — Capital One Arena "due to unprecedented demand."

The Mystics home court's capacity taps out at 4,200, while Capital One Arena — home to the Wizards, Capitals, and Georgetown Hoya's Men's Basketball — can fit nearly five times that crowd at some 20,000 spectators.

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"The move to Capital One Arena will allow for additional fans in the stands as well as premium hospitality options, including Suites and the all-new all-inclusive courtside Hennessy Lofts," the team announced via Thursday's press release.

The Aces were one of the first teams to switch venues, aiming to take on the Indiana Fever in front of as many as 20,000 fans inside T-Mobile Arena on July 2nd. That’s a sizable a boost from their home venue, which holds just 12,000.

For those still planning to face the Fever in their home arenas, ticket prices have skyrocketed. Previously scheduled construction has already forced the LA Sparks to relocate their first five games — including their May 24th clash with the Fever — to Long Beach State's Walter Pyramid. The temporary venue is quite the downsize, holding just 4,000 in comparison to Crypto.com Arena's near-19,000. As of Friday, the get-in price for that game started around $400.

Despite fans launching a Change.org petition urging relocation, the Chicago Sky say they're unable to move their June 23rd Fever meeting from Wintrust Arena's 10,000-seat facility to the 23,500-seat United Center due to a concert. Tickets for that game start around $325 as of Friday.