10. NICHELLE PRINCE IS ROYALTY

What a ball by @sophieschmidt13 and what a finish from @nichelleprince7 ???? ???????? #HoldItDown pic.twitter.com/fXJvIN0l0D

— Houston Dash (@HoustonDash) September 27, 2020

The Houston Dash’s Sophie Schmidt pings a long-ball from midfield to Nichelle Prince, her fellow Dash and Canadian national team teammate. In a footrace, Prince beats the Orlando Pride defender to the ball, smashing a half-volley over the goalkeeper and into the back of the net. Prince’s clinical finish gave her team an early lead in a 3-1 victory over Orlando. After winning the Challenge Cup, Houston came in second in the Fall Series thanks to the efforts of Prince and her teammates.

 

9. KUMI YOKOYAMA’S BANGER

A thing of beauty from @yoko10_official ????

0-1 | #NJvWAS

Tune in now on @Twitch. #NWSLFallSeries | #VerizonCommunityShield pic.twitter.com/XzrpNmZzRH

— National Women's Soccer League (@NWSL) October 3, 2020

A deflected shot sends the ball flying through to the air, landing just outside the box at the feet of Kumi Yokoyama. The Washington Spirit forward tracks the ball down before losing her defender, curling a shot that deflects off the back post and into the net. Yokoyama’s absolutely wicked spin helped Washington walk away with the 1-0 win and a third place finish in the series overall.

 

8. DEBINHA: A CLASS ACT

.@TheNCCourage are just rolling. @Debinha7 grabs a second just before the halftime whistle.

0-3 | #ORLvNC

Tune in now on @CBS and @Twitch. #NWSLFallSeries | #VerizonCommunityShield pic.twitter.com/QjfzQbCmJl

— National Women's Soccer League (@NWSL) October 17, 2020

Another NWSL season comes to a close, and Debinha is still underrated. Here, teammate Meredith Speck reads Orlando’s defense perfectly, stealing the ball and driving toward goal, patiently waiting for Debinha to get into position. The Brazilian superstar takes the beautifully weighted pass on a full-sprint before placing the ball back corner. Debinha’s smooth finish gave the North Carolina Courage a 3-0 lead before a second half comeback from the Orlando Pride ended the match in a 3-3 draw.

 

7. BETHANY BALCER GOT TEKKERS

The dummy and then the goal *chef's kiss* ????‍????@bethanybalcer pulls a goal back for @OLReign!

2-1 | #UTAvRGN

Tune in now on @CBSAllAccess and @Twitch. #NWSLFallSeries | #VerizonCommunityShield pic.twitter.com/4eQDONRI9F

— National Women's Soccer League (@NWSL) September 26, 2020

‘Tis spooky season folks, and OL Reign looked scary good in this play. Steph Cox plays it in to teammate Sofia Huerta, who cheekily dummies the pass, allowing it to run into Bethany Balcer’s tracks. Behind Utah’s defensive line, Balcer hits a beautiful curler into the far post’s side panel, boosting her team to an eventual 2-2 draw with the Royals.

 

6. TZIARRA KING DOESN’T NEED REDBULL

.@tziarra has W I N G S ????

2-0 | #UTAvRGN

Tune in now on @CBSAllAccess and @Twitch.#NWSLFallSeries | #VerizonCommunityShield pic.twitter.com/i1WI6vojtw

— National Women's Soccer League (@NWSL) September 26, 2020

She’s already got wings. The height Utah Royals’ Tziarra King got off this header goal is inhuman. Open on the right flank, Brittany Ratcliffe plays a cross into the box near the six. King flexes her hops, flying far above Reign’s defenders, and heads the ball back into the front post corner. Throughout the Fall Series, the rookie King was a consistent bright spot for Utah. We don’t expect this is the last time we’ll be singing her praises.

 

5. CHRISTINE SINCLAIR: STILL THE GOAT

The Great Horan sets up the GOAT and it's perfect.#PORvRGN | #BAONPDX pic.twitter.com/2yd3OQxV7u

— Portland Thorns FC (@ThornsFC) October 1, 2020

The Portland Thorns’ Lindsey Horan and Christine Sinclair are the epitome of a dynamic duo. In typical fashion, Horan plays some tiki-taka on the left flank before playing a dangerous diagonal ball back to Sinclair. The Canadian superstar drills the ball into the far corner, putting it completely out of reach of OL Reign’s goalkeeper. Sinclair led the league with six goals in the Fall Series, double the amount of the next highest scorer. What are we supposed to do for the rest of the year if we can’t watch Sinclair dominate the NWSL?

 

4. SHEA GROOM CATCHES AIR

✈️ @sheabayy2 you are cleared for takeoff#HoldItDown pic.twitter.com/xMv8tp9mjO

— Houston Dash (@HoustonDash) October 9, 2020

Shea Groom first took flight on a spectacular goal during the Challenge Cup. And surprise, surprise, she did it again. The Houston Dash’s Brianna Visalli jumpstarts the counterattack by winning a critical tackle in her defensive end before slotting the ball ahead to Kristie Mewis, who chips it into the box. Groom comes flying in and heads the ball with major conviction. Groom’s strike helped her finish the Fall Series as the second-leading goal scorer while Mewis was first in assists.

 

3. ECKERSTROM READS FORWARDS LIKE THEIR BOOKS

This save deserves a ????@Breck28 takes home the @Verizon Save of the Week. #NWSLFallSeries | #VerizonCommunityShield pic.twitter.com/NIXlS0NZrN

— National Women's Soccer League (@NWSL) October 7, 2020

Portland Thorns’ keeper Britt Eckerstrom was an absolute beast throughout the Fall Series. She led the league in saves, denying what could have been 19 goals while only allowing 3 to get past her all tournament. In the early moments of this match against OL Reign, midfielder Shirley Cruz floats a bomb into the box, finding Bethany Balcer, who heads the ball toward the top-shelf. But Eckerstrom makes an incredible leap to push the ball over the crossbar with her left hand. Needless to say, Eckerstrom played a vital role in helping Portland walk away with the Fall Series Community Shield.

 

2. A STAR IS BORN: SOPHIE SMITH

???? Debut goal for @sophsssmith ????

And what a class finish it was from the 2020 No. 1 college draft pick!

2-0 | #PORvUTA

Tune in now on @Twitch.#NWSLFallSeries | #VerizonCommunityShield pic.twitter.com/1EXeO1n4Bf

— National Women's Soccer League (@NWSL) September 20, 2020

How could we forget Smith’s brilliant header, which she scored within just three minutes of entering her first professional career match? Meghan Klingenberg of the Portland Thorns initiates the action by picking off a pass before playing a line-drive into the penalty area. Smith connects with the pass, heading it into the far corner for a spectacular start to her NWSL career. The number one draft pick has Portland fans walking away from the Fall Series with a new trophy on their shelves and sky high expectations for the years to come.

 

1. ONE WORD: DEBINHA

Safe to say we'll be watching this Debinha goal on repeat for the foreseeable future ????#NoFinishLine pic.twitter.com/tO8v8HkE70

— NC Courage (@TheNCCourage) September 12, 2020

The title says it all. Debinha’s goal made SportsCenter’s Top 10 plays for a reason. There’s a chance the net is still smoking after this bullet from the North Carolina midfielder. After receiving the ball back from her teammate Lynn Williams, Debinha turns inside and dummies her defender before immediately lifting her head to smash a shot from outside the 18. The ball carries to the back post upper 90, popping the back of the net. Once again Debinha has left fans wondering if she isn’t, in fact, the most dangerous player in the league.

U.S. Soccer announced Tuesday that the USWNT will play their last home game on July 16th in the lead-up to the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris.

The 2024 Send-Off Match against Costa Rica will take place at Washington, DC’s Audi Field — home to both the Washington Spirit and DC United — at 7:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, July 16th. The friendly rounds out a four-game Olympic run-up campaign under incoming head coach Emma Hayes’ side, with the last two set to feature the finalized 2024 U.S. Olympic Women’s Soccer Team roster.

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Hayes will appear on the USWNT sideline for the first time this June, helming the team as they embark on a two-game series against Korea Republic hosted by Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado on June 1st followed by Allianz Stadium in St. Paul, Minnesota on June 4th. 

The team is then scheduled to meet a talented Mexico squad on July 13th at Gotham FC’s Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey, where the Olympic-bound lineup will attempt to rewrite February’s shocking 2-0 loss to El Tri Femenil in the group stages of this year’s Concacaf W Gold Cup. And while clear roster favorites have emerged from both of this year’s Gold Cup and SheBelives Cup rosters, a spate of recent and recurring injuries means making it to the Olympics is still largely anyone’s game.

Broadcast and streaming channels for the USWNT's final July 16th friendly at Audi Field include TNT, truTV, Universo, Max, and Peacock.

The USA Basketball Women's National Team is still considering Caitlin Clark for a spot on the Paris Olympics squad, says selection committee chair Jennifer Rizzotti. 

On Monday, Rizzotti told the AP that the committee will be evaluating the college phenom’s Olympic prospects by keeping a close eye on her first few weeks of WNBA play with Indiana.

The move is somewhat unconventional. While Clark was invited to participate in the 14-player national team training camp held earlier this month — the last camp before Team USA’s roster drops — she was unable to attend due to it coinciding with Iowa’s trip to the NCAA Women’s Final Four.

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Judging by the immense talent spread throughout the league in what might be their most hyped season to date, competition for a piece of the Olympic pie could be fiercer than ever before.

"You always want to introduce new players into the pool whether it's for now or the future," said Rizzotti. "We stick to our principles of talent, obviously, positional fit, loyalty and experience. It's got to be a combination of an entire body of work. It's still not going to be fair to some people."

Of course, Clark isn’t the first rookie the committee has made exceptions for. Coming off an exceptional college season that saw her averaging 19.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 4 assists per game for UConn, Breanna Stewart was tapped to represent the U.S. at the 2016 Olympics in Brazil less than two weeks after being drafted No. 1 overall by the Seattle Storm. Eight years prior, fellow No. 1 pick Candace Parker punched her ticket to the 2008 Games in Beijing just two weeks after making her first appearance for the L.A. Sparks.

In the lead-up to Paris’ Opening Ceremony on July 26th, USA Basketball Women’s National Team is scheduled to play a pair of exhibition games. They'll first go up against the WNBA's finest at the July 20th WNBA All-Star Game in Phoenix before facing Germany in London on July 23rd.

While an official roster announcement date hasn’t yet been issued, players won’t find out if they’ve made this year’s Olympic cut until at least June 1st.

For the first time in history, three different WNBA teams have completely sold out of season ticket plans well before the league's May 14th kick-off.

Call it the Caitlin Clark effect, attribute it to this year’s tenacious rookie class, or look to the skyrocketing visibility of veteran players across the board. But no matter the cause, facts are facts: Tickets to the 2024 WNBA season are selling like never before. 

On Monday, the Dallas Wings became the third team to sell out of season ticket memberships in the league’s 27-year history. The announcement from Arlington came shortly after the Atlanta Dream issued their own season ticket sell-out statement, also on Monday, and almost seven weeks after the back-to-back WNBA Champion Las Vegas Aces made headlines by becoming the first-ever WNBA team to sell out their season ticket allotment.   

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According to the Wings, season ticket memberships will fill nearly 40% of the 6,251 seats inside their home arena, College Park Center. The club also said that their overall ticket revenue has ballooned to the tune of 220% this year, spanning not just season tickets but also a 1,200% increase in single ticket sales. There’s currently a waitlist to become a Dallas season ticket holder, a status that comes with extra incentives like playoff presale access and discounts on additional single-game tickets. 

In Atlanta, season tickets aren't the only thing flying off the shelves. The Dream also announced that they broke their own record for single-game ticket sales during a recent limited presale campaign. Sunday was reportedly their most lucrative day, with five different games totally selling out Gateway Center Arena. Individual tickets for all upcoming matchups will hit the market this Thursday at 8 a.m., while a waitlist for season ticket memberships will open up next Tuesday at 10 a.m.

"Excitement around women's sports, particularly basketball, is at an all-time high and nowhere is that felt more than here in Atlanta," Dream president and COO Morgan Shaw Parker said in the team’s statement. "We’ve continued a record-setting growth trajectory over the past three years under new ownership — both on and off the court — and 2024 is shaping up to be our best season yet."

As of Tuesday, season ticket sales revenue for Caitlin Clark’s hotly anticipated Indiana Fever debut haven’t yet been announced by the club. But if these numbers are any indication — not to mention the explosive demand for Fever away games felt by teams around the country — it won’t be long before we see some scale-tipping figures coming out of Indianapolis.

25-year-old American pro golfer Nelly Korda secured her spot in LPGA history on Sunday, notching her fifth-straight title at this weekend's Chevron Championship in The Woodlands, Texas.

Ranked No. 1 in the world by Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, Korda joins Nancy Lopez (1978) and Annika Sörenstam (2005) as just the third LPGA player to rack up five consecutive tour wins. She is also the third No. 1-ranked player to capture The Chevron Championship victory since the rankings debuted in 2006, accompanied by Lorena Ochoa and Lydia Ko.

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The Florida native shot three-under 69 in Sunday's final, besting Sweden's Maja Stark despite Stark's valiant come-from-behind attempt in the 18th. Korda finished with a four-day total of 13-under 275, celebrating her two-stroke win by cannonballing into Poppie's Pond, much to the crowd's delight. She left The Club at Carlton Woods with $1.2 million from an overall purse of $7.9 million.

It wasn't long ago that the two-time major champion's current winning streak seemed unimaginable. After maintaining her No. 1 position for 29 weeks, Korda underwent surgery to remove a blood clot from her left arm in 2022. She returned to the course not long after, but failed to win a single tournament in 2023 before seeing a surge in form during the first four months of 2024. As of today, she hasn't lost a tournament since January.

Korda will attempt a record sixth-straight win at next week's JM Eagle LA Championship at Wilshire Country Club in Los Angeles, where she'll vie for a cut of the $3.75 million purse.