This young NWSL season has been wild.

It really feels like on any given day, anyone can beat anyone. It also feels like any team at their best can beat anyone 5-0. What that says about teams’ internal consistency is probably not great, but it is certainly making life fun for the fans. 

Now with the year’s first international break upon us, it only felt right to look back at the most surprising results so far, knowing we’re probably in for a few more shockers before season’s end. 

4. KC ties Houston 2-2 (May 23)

So it’s not an upset exactly since it ended in a draw, but this most certainly felt like a surprise win for Kansas City. 

With the score 2-1 in favor of the Dash, Elizabeth Ball received her second yellow in the 69’, leaving KC with ten players for the remainder of the match. They certainly didn’t dominate, but they did enough to keep the Dash from padding their lead, and in the 92’, Kansas City floated a ball into the box that found the head of a soaring Taylor Leach.

Goal, final whistle, celebration.

TAYLOR. LEACH.#HOUvKC | #WePlayForKC pic.twitter.com/Lw5wCIfhOC

— KC NWSL (@KCWoSo) May 24, 2021

3. Chicago beats North Carolina 1-0 (June 5)

Chicago opened the season with a brutal 5-0 loss to Portland. They continued to struggle to find the back of the next through their next couple performances, and things only got worse when Julie Ertz went down with an injury. 

North Carolina had a slow start themselves, but were fresh off a 5-0 win over Louisville when they traveled to the Windy City. With Sam Mewis back, Lynn Williams healthy, and the Courage line up looking more like the one which won back-to-back NWSL Champions, few would have expected a struggling Chicago side to pull off a win. But Rachel Hill got her head on a 29’ corner kick and Alyssa Neaher handled the rest as the Red Stars pulled off the upset.

K̶i̶n̶g̶ 𝙌𝙪𝙚𝙚𝙣 of the Hill 💥#CHIvNC | https://t.co/0LtSAUK1Jw | #NWSL21 pic.twitter.com/4h0QN5a1Y2

— National Women's Soccer League (@NWSL) June 5, 2021

2. Louisville beats the Spirit 2-0 (May 21)

How could you not love this story? The Spirit dominated most of the match but were unable to find the back of the net. Then the hometown kid, Emina Ekic, subbed on late and scored the game winner in front of the Louisville fan section, leading her side to their first-ever win in club history.

Louisville native Emina Ekic scored the first regular season goal in @RacingLouFC history and it was a beauty 🎯 pic.twitter.com/55DcYyW0JY

— Goal (@goal) May 22, 2021

CeCe Kizer sealed the deal moments later. 

This upset has aged well for Louisville, given that the Spirit currently sit second in the NWSL table — their only loss being to the upstart Kentucky club.

1. OL Reign goes in to Portland and wins 2-1 (May 23)

Portland was fresh off a Challenge Cup victory AND a 5-0 (5-0!) win over the Chicago Red Stars. Even though the Reign drew North Carolina the game before, few expected them to storm into Oregon and win in front of the Thorns’ home crowd. They did just that, with all three goals of the game happening in the first 15 minutes. 

The Thorns opened the game early with a Christine Sinclair stunner only to be matched by a Megan Rapinoe free kick and subsequent celebration in front of the Portland fans.

1,047 days since her last regular season goal, @mPinoe is back in style 🤯#PORvRGN | https://t.co/bONPZnnmCJ | #NWSL21 pic.twitter.com/PQ8cco2pnn

— National Women's Soccer League (@NWSL) May 23, 2021

Shirley Cruz scored the winner moments later and the Reign held on. 

The icing on top of the cake? Rapinoe taunting Portland fans after the fact for loving her too much. 

Rivalry = officially renewed.

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.