Each month in the leadup to the World Cup, Just Women’s Sports will make the case for one player as most essential to the success of the USWNT in 2023.

Sophia Smith can’t stop scoring.

Since she scored her first goal for the U.S. women’s national team at the tail end of 2021, Smith has gone on a tear. She kicked off the year with a hat trick against Uzbekistan, then followed that up with braces against Colombia, Jamaica and Nigeria.

She also notched the team’s lone goal against England in October. In all, she’s scored 10 goals in 2022 to lead the team this year.

Smith has become a critical piece of the team’s forward group, establishing herself as both the present and the future. And she knows it.

“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 [Thorns’ coach Rhian Wilkinson] does a really good job of that. So I really can’t ask for much more than that.”

What a season for Sophia Smith 🔥

- NWSL MVP
- NWSL Final MVP
- NWSL Champion pic.twitter.com/mhFDJJwkZq

— Just Women’s Sports (@justwsports) October 30, 2022

On the domestic side, Smith has shown what she’s capable of accomplishing in the NWSL. She finished second in the league in goals scored this season with 14. That total also broke the Portland Thorns’ single-season record.

Not only did she become the youngest MVP in NWSL history, she also became the youngest player to win NWSL Championship MVP after becoming the youngest player to score in a title game.

And all that comes at just 22 years old.

“Her pace is lethal,” Kansas City Current midfielder Desiree Scott said following the NWSL final. “You can’t grow that. That is just natural talent.”

Thorns head coach Rhian Wilkinson has said that Smith has the potential to be the best player in the history of the USWNT.

“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 of 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.”

Smith’s pace – and her ability to get crafty with defenders – makes her difficult to defend. She’s also got deadly accuracy and has been able to link up with midfielder Rose Lavelle on multiple occasions while with the USWNT.

The USWNT scored twice in six minutes.

Rose Lavelle assisted Sophia Smith on both of ‘em 🔑

(via @FOXSoccer) pic.twitter.com/EGEzZMIOyW

— B/R Football (@brfootball) June 26, 2022

Everything about Smith screams upside as she continues to get her feet under her with the USWNT. Despite having just 25 caps, she plays like a veteran.

But if you ask USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski, Smith hasn’t hit her stride yet.

“To come into an environment like this and to be a difference-maker, to score a goal, and I thought she had another incredible assist for another goal that was called back, just shows the potential that she has,” Andonovski said following the team’s loss to England. “I think we haven’t seen the best of her.”

Who is the most essential USWNT player?

• The case for… Mallory Swanson
• The case for… Rose Lavelle
• The case for… Catarina Macario
• The case for… Alex Morgan
• The case for… Becky Sauerbrunn
• The case for… Lynn Williams
• The case for… Julie Ertz
• The case for… Naomi Girma
• The case for… Crystal Dunn

The 2026 LPGA Tour officially teed off on Thursday, when 39 top-ranked golfers began competing for a piece of this year's $2.1 million HGV Tournament of Champions purse.

Following Thursday's first round, No. 17 Nasa Hataoka (Japan) led the field with a 6-under 66 performance, with world No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul (Thailand), No. 11 Lottie Woad (England), No. 24 Linn Grant (Sweden), and No. 53 Chanettee Wannasaen (Thailand) chasing her just one shot behind.

Defending Tournament of Champions winner No. 27 A Lim Kim (South Korea) enters Friday's second round three strokes back.

Leading a US contingent that includes No. 13 Angel Yin, No. 25 Lauren Coughlin, and No. 49 Lilia Vu is 2025 Tournament of Champions runner-up No. 2 Nelly Korda, who capped Thursday trailing Hataoka by two shots.

"Overall, I'm happy with my round. [It's only] Thursday, so hopefully, I can continue building momentum going into the next three days," said the 27-year-old US star. "But [I] can't complain."

Featuring 16 of the Top 25 golfers, including 2024 champion No. 6 Lydia Ko (New Zealand) and 2023 winner No. 23 Brooke Henderson (Canada), the 2026 LPGA season-opening tournament pairs pros with amateur celebrities including USWNT legend Brandi Chastain and golf icon Annika Sörenstam.

How to watch the 2026 HGV Tournament of Champions

Live coverage of the 2026 HGV Tournament of Champions airs at 11:30 AM ET on Friday and 3 PM ET on Saturday on the Golf Channel, before NBC broadcasts the LPGA season opener's final round at 2 PM ET on Sunday.

Aryna Sabalenka is one match away from her third Australian Open title after the world No. 1 tennis star took down Ukraine's No. 12 Elina Svitolina in straight sets (6-2, 6-3) in the 2026 tournament's semifinals on Thursday.

Entering her fourth straight Australian Open final, the 27-year-old Belarusian initially won the Melbourne Grand Slam in 2023 and 2024 before dropping the 2025 final to US star No. 9 Madison Keys.

"The job is not done yet," Sabalenka said following her Thursday semifinal win.

Now hunting a fifth career Grand Slam victory after claiming a second consecutive US Open title last September, Sabalenka will face Kazakhstan's No. 5 Elena Rybakina in Saturday's final, after the 2022 Wimbledon champ downed No. 6 Jessica Pegula 6-3, 7-6(7) in Thursday's first match.

"It got very tight. I stayed there," the 26-year-old said after defeating the last-standing US star. "I was fighting for each point."

Notably, Saturday's final will also be a rematch of the 2023 Australian Open championship clash in which Sabalenka staged a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 comeback victory.

Even more, though Sabalenka holds the all-time edge with an 8-6 career record against Rybakina, the Kazakhstani star has won six of the pair's last 10 meetings — including a dominant 6-3, 7-6(0) upset victory to take the 2025 WTA Finals title in November.

How to watch the 2026 Australian Open final

The 2026 Australian Open final between No. 1 Sabalenka and No. 5 Rybakina kicks off at 3:30 AM ET on Saturday, airing live on ESPN.

Unrivaled 3×3 is taking over Philadelphia on Friday, when the Miami-based league brings pro women's basketball back to the City of Brotherly Love the first time since 1998.

As the league's its first-ever tour stop, Friday's one-off doubleheader — dubbed "Philly is Unrivaled" — is already shaping up to be a success, with Unrivaled selling out the 21,000-seat Xfinity Mobile Arena with tickets averaging $165 each on the secondary market — nearly double the price to see the NBA's Sixers at the same venue.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Just Women’s Sports (@justwomenssports)

"I'm just excited for the love from the city. People can really see this as a basketball city. One of the best cities in the world," said Philadelphia product and Rose BC star Kahleah Copper, as her hometown gears up to launch its own WNBA expansion team in 2030.

Friday's Unrivaled event promises a star-studded bill, with Paige Bueckers's Breeze BC first taking on Philly's own Natasha Cloud and the Phantom before Copper and the Rose square off against Marina Mabrey's Lunar Owls.

How to watch the "Philly is Unrivaled" doubleheader

Unrivaled tips off from Philadelphia on Friday when Breeze BC takes on Phantom BC at 7:30 PM ET, before Rose BC faces the Lunar Owls at 8:45 PM ET.

Both "Philly is Unrivaled" clashes will air live on TNT.

Riding high near the top of the SEC standings, No. 15 Tennessee will face an age-old rival on Sunday, when the Lady Vols visit the 2025/26 NCAA basketball season's last-standing undefeated Division I team, No. 1 UConn.

Tennessee previously led the SEC title race with a 6-0 conference record until a 77-62 upset loss to unranked Mississippi State on Thursday sent the Vols' tumbling to third on the conference table.

While claiming nearly double the rebounds as Tennessee, the Bulldog defense kept Tennessee's field goal rate under 32%, paving the way for senior forward Kharyssa Richardson to lead the charge to the Mississippi State victory with 21 points on the night.

"They outworked us, they out-toughed us, start to finish," Tennessee head coach Kim Caldwell said postgame.

For Big East basketball leaders UConn, Sunday's matchup against Tennessee likely stands as the Huskies' final ranked test before kicking off the postseason — and their national title defense.

However, UConn is currently managing a lengthy injury report, with six players sidelined from their dominant Wednesday win over unranked Xavier.

Even so, the Huskies' depth never wavered, as sophomore guard Allie Ziebell sunk a program record-tying 10 three-pointers to secure the 97-39 victory on a career-high 34 points.

How to watch Tennessee vs. UConn this weekend

The top-ranked Huskies will host the No. 15 Vols at 12 PM ET on Sunday, with live coverage airing on FOX.