From Trinity Rodman’s first preseason practice with the Washington Spirit in February, her teammates noticed there was something different about the forward from Newport Beach, Calif. The youngest player ever drafted into the professional soccer league at 18 years old, Rodman garnered their attention for reasons other than the reputation that preceded her NWSL debut.

“When we drafted Trinity, I’d heard that she was an insane athlete, but thought she’d be more of a pick for the future,” Spirit goalkeeper Aubrey Bledsoe said. “When I saw her play during preseason, she was even faster than expected, but her strength was what amazed me.”

“I still remember the first practice that week that I had with her back in preseason and I just remember being like, ‘This girl is really good,’” said defender Kelley O’Hara. “Like I just got that feeling from her.”

It wasn’t until the Spirit started their Challenge Cup schedule and were playing against other opponents on a full field that the rookie’s talent crystallized for her teammates.

“It was, like, next-level Trinity,” said Spirit co-captain Tori Huster.

Just minutes into her NWSL debut on April 10, in the second half against the North Carolina Courage, Rodman expertly controlled a long ball at the top of the box and slid it past the keeper for her first professional goal. The league, and U.S. women’s national team coach Vlatko Andonovski, took notice.

💥 @trinity_rodman is here, and she is not. messing. around. pic.twitter.com/OY6i28k3ct

— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) April 10, 2021

Before that goal, Rodman was perhaps best known in the public sphere as being the daughter of NBA legend Dennis Rodman. After it, she began to forge her own path, confounding some of the best defenders in the world with her speed, playmaking and finishing ability and producing arguably the greatest rookie season in NWSL history.

“We have many great athletes in this league, but what separates Trinity is not only her athleticism but her technical ability,” said Courage defender Carson Pickett, who was playing left fullback for Rodman’s first goal. “She’s dangerous with and without the ball and is efficient with her chances.”

Finishing the season with seven goals and six assists, Rodman led all rookies in scoring despite trailing them in both age and college soccer experience. The 19-year-old was committed to play soccer at Washington State in 2020, but opted to turn pro out of high school when COVID-19 pushed the season back to the spring.

At the beginning of the Spirit’s season, Rodman mentioned O’Hara as one of her biggest mentors on the team. It was fitting, then, that Rodman assisted on O’Hara’s game-winning goal in the NWSL championship game to close out the Spirit’s 2-1 win over the Chicago Red Stars and bring home the first title in franchise history.

Picture-perfect first goal of the season from @kelleymohara 🔥#WASvCHI | @CBS | #NWSL21 pic.twitter.com/89ohWFr9Dl

— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) November 20, 2021

After the game, the two stars sat side-by-side at the podium to speak with the media.

“The more I got to play with [Trinity] and just see — she says amateur, but she is so mature for her age — the player that she is impressed me all season,” O’Hara said as Rodman looked on.

“She does have that killer instinct, that never-say-die attitude, and the fact that I know she’s in front of me and I get to play with her gives me a lot of confidence on the field. She’s obviously done amazing this season, and it being a rookie season, I couldn’t be more proud. And I know that she has a lot ahead of her and I’m excited to watch her shine.”

The final against the Red Stars encompassed everything that made Rodman the 2021 Rookie of the Year. She set the bar for the Spirit’s energy in the second half, leading by example when Washington needed to step up its game. In the 61st minute, she carried the ball out of pressure in the midfield, found space just outside of Chicago’s box and shook the goalpost with the best shot the Spirit had taken up to that point in the game.

The Rook rocks the bar 👀#WASvCHI | @CBS | #NWSL21 pic.twitter.com/JbWH3LzQGi

— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) November 20, 2021

“That’s actually where they came into the game,” former Red Stars coach Rory Dames said after the final. “I don’t think they were ever really in the game prior to that where I felt they were dangerous, but that kind of rattled the group and they got us on the back foot.”

From then on, Rodman didn’t let up. She stole more balls in the midfield, fired shots on target and set up scoring opportunities. Even Chicago’s experienced backline, led by Sarah Gorden and Tierna Davidson, couldn’t figure out how to stop her.

“Trin has picked up the speed of play so quickly and to her advantage,” Huster said. “Her technical abilities really showcase during games as well as her ability to use her athleticism to her advantage in defending. Her willingness to press, sometimes all on her own, are an incredible asset to have. I think her decision-making at this level continues to improve and has certainly been a reason for her success this season.”

The Spirit found out early in Rodman’s rookie season that she has the motor to run endline to endline without hesitation. Interim head coach Kris Ward consciously planned formations to encourage her to stay in the attacking third and not spend entire games running around.

As the season progressed, Rodman became a smarter playmaker who could speed up and slow down the play, recognize open spaces and combine with teammates.

“She’s so good at relieving the pressure on us by herself sometimes, with her ability to break out into the other team’s half and hold up possession and then just gives all the rest of our players in it [time] to join but also to take a breath while they’re joining,” Ward said.

Bledsoe cited Rodman’s perfect through-ball to Ashley Hatch for the game-winning goal in the Spirit’s 1-0 win over Racing Louisville FC in October as evidence that she’s more than a scorer.

“Rookies don’t do that, but Trinity does,” Bledsoe said.

The combination of Rodman’s technical, defensive and playmaking skills have landed her high on Andonovski’s watch list for the USWNT. After she represented her country with the U17 and U20 squads, Andonovski called the 2020 U.S. Young Female Soccer Player of the Year into camp for the senior team’s November friendlies in Australia. Rodman declined for undisclosed reasons, but she’ll likely remain in consideration for the 2023 World Cup roster.

Whatever her future on the national team holds, Rodman has all the tools to write her own script.

Jessa Braun is an editorial intern for Just Women’s Sports. She is also the Head of North American Content for the Women’s Sports Alliance. You can find her on Twitter @jessabraun.

Hailey Van Lith is reportedly on her way to TCU, says Talia Goodman of The Next Hoops.

The former Louisville star joined LSU for the 2023-24 season, but a disappointing run in Baton Rouge saw her enter the transfer portal once again at the season’s end. Van Lith opted to use her fifth year of eligibility versus declaring for the WNBA draft.

Van Lith was admittedly less effective as a Tiger. Her field goal percentage decreased from .411 in 2022-23 with Louisville to .388 at LSU. She also went from averaging 19.7 points per game to just 11.6, due in part to a change of position from shooting guard to more of a point guard role.

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At an end-of-season banquet last week, LSU coach Kim Mulkey used her speech to wish Van Lith well, calling her "one of the hardest working players that I’ve ever coached."

"Her aspirations were to get drafted this year," Mulkey said, according to NOLA.com. "And she realized, 'I need another year, and I need to go back to a place where I can relax and get back to my normal position.'

"And what do you do? You hug her, and you wish her well."

The decision to commit to TCU may come as a surprise after Van Lith paid a visit to Mississippi State last weekend. The Horned Frogs finished out the 2023-24 season 21-12 overall, coming in 9th in the Big 12 and scoring an average of 69.5 points per game. The program also made headlines in January when they held mid-season open tryouts in response to an onslaught of sidelining injuries.

For the first time in the NWSL's 12-year history, fans can now buy their own goalkeeper jerseys. And while replica goalkeeper jerseys representing all 14 NWSL teams hit the market on Wednesday, some didn't stick around for long. 

Fans across women's soccer have long vocalized their discontent over the position's lack of availability on social media, often comparing the shortcoming to the widespread availability of men’s goalkeeper jerseys. And as the NWSL has grown, so has demand — and not just from those in the stands. 

"To have goalkeeper kits available for fans in the women’s game as they have been for so long in the men’s game is not only a long-awaited move in the right direction, it’s just good business," said Washington Spirit goalie Aubrey Kingsbury in an team press release. "I can’t wait to see fans representing me, Barnie [Barnhart], and Lyza in the stands at Audi!"

just went looking at #nwsl goalkeeper kit stock out of curiosity — Alyssa Naeher's $145 kit already sold out S-XL (league announced GK jerseys on sale 3 hours ago)https://t.co/8bYA7tlwcx

— Meg Linehan (@itsmeglinehan) April 17, 2024

Business does, in fact, appear to be booming. Alyssa Naeher’s Chicago Red Stars kit sold out less than three hours after the league's announcement. Jerseys for other keepers like DiDi Haračić, Abby Smith, Michelle Betos, Katelyn Rowland, and Bella Bixby aren’t currently available via the Official NWSL Shop, though blank goalkeeper jerseys can be customized through some individual team sites. Jerseys start at $110 each.

"This should be the benchmark," said Spirit Chief Operations Officer Theresa McDonnell. "The expectation is that all players’ jerseys are available to fans. Keepers are inspiring leaders and mentors with their own unique fan base who want to represent them... I can’t wait to see them all over the city."

Decorated gymnast Simone Biles took to the popular Call Her Daddy podcast this week to open up about her experience at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, revealing she thought she was going to be "banned from America" for her performance.

After Biles botched her vault routine due to a bout of the "twisties," she withdrew from the team final as well as the all-around final in order to focus on her mental health. She later reentered the competition to win bronze in the individual balance beam final.

In her interview with podcast host Alex Cooper, Biles admitted to feeling like she let the entire country down by failing her vault attempt.

"As soon as I landed I was like 'Oh, America hates me. The world is going to hate me. I can only see what they’re saying on Twitter right now,'" she recalled thinking. "I was like, ‘Holy s---, what are they gonna say about me?'"

"I thought I was going to be banned from America," she continued. "That’s what they tell you: Don’t come back if not gold. Gold or bust. Don’t come back."

Widely regarded as the greatest gymnast of all time, Biles has hinted at a desire to join her third Olympic team in Paris, though her participation won't be confirmed until after the gymnastics trials in late June. She holds over 30 medals from the Olympic Games and World Artistic Gymnastics Championships combined, and if qualified, would be a sure favorite heading into this summer’s games.

Caitlin Clark is reportedly close to cementing a hefty endorsement deal with Nike.

The Athletic was the first to break the news Wednesday evening, commenting that the deal would be worth "eight figures" and include her own signature shoe. On Thursday afternoon, the publication tweeted that the deal would top $20 million, according to lead NBA Insider Shams Charania. Both Under Armour and Adidas are said to have also made sizable offers to the college phenom and expected future WNBA star.

The new agreement comes after Clark's previous Nike partnership ended with the conclusion of the college basketball season. She was one of five NCAA athletes to sign an NIL deal with the brand back in October, 2022. 

Considering Clark's overwhelming popularity and Nike's deep pockets, the signing's purported value doesn't exactly come as a shock. New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu’s deal with the brand is reportedly worth $24 million, while NBA rookie and No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama’s deal is rumored to weigh in at $100 million. And in 2003, LeBron James famously earned $90 million off his own Nike deal. 

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Clark’s star power continues to skyrocket, with the NCAA championship averaging 18.9 million viewers and the 2024 WNBA Draft more than doubling its previous viewership record. Following the draft, Fanatics stated that Clark's Indiana Fever jersey — which sold out within an hour — was the top seller for any draft night pick in the company’s history, with droves of unlucky fans now being forced to wait until August to get their hands on some official No. 22 gear.

In Wednesday's Indiana Fever introductory press conference, the unfailingly cool, calm, and collected Clark said that turning pro hasn’t made a huge impact on how she’s conducting her deals.

"If I’m being completely honest, I feel like it doesn’t change a ton from how I lived my life over the course of the last year," she said. "Sponsorships stay the same. The people around me, agents and whatnot, have been able to help me and guide me through the course of the last year. I don’t know if I would be in this moment if it wasn’t for a lot of them."