There hasn’t been too much love for Bay FC lately. You can check here for some of the gory details. And while they did not finish the job in Portland last Saturday, they did take the lead through a solid team goal in which Karlie Lema earned the assist. Her greater contribution though, came during the buildup.

For starters, this was an exceedingly patient sequence. Below the ball has been played back to the goalkeeper, Jordan Silkowitz. In a season, and in an era, during which so many goals are conceded by force feeding balls through the keeper, this was a fine time to use Silkowitz. The Thorns were not in a press and this gave Bay an opportunity to survey the scene.

Three weeks to go in the National Women’s Soccer League regular season, and things are as tight as they’ve ever been at this point in the season. Ten teams are mathematically alive for the final six playoff spots. Nine teams remain in the running to join the Kansas City Current as quarterfinal hosts. And the roster freeze date is not until Thursday (October 9).

Here’s how the clubs shape up after most of Week 23.

Cream of the Crop

z-Kansas City Current (19-2-2, 56 pts; @ Angel City, 1-0): Even the B-team doesn’t lose or concede goals. Mary Long made her first NWSL start, Katie Scott her second and Alex Pfeiffer her first of the season. Temwa Chawinga did not dress. No matter. The Current’s 1-0 win away to Angel City was their 19th, establishing a new single-season standard for the NWSL. The shutout brought the goals against average back under 0.50 with 11 goals conceded in 23 matches. Lorena now has 13 shutouts to tie a league record.

Title contenders

x-Washington Spirit (12-4-7, 43 pts; vs Wave, 2-1): They had it. And then they didn’t. And then they did. On an afternoon when finishing was not in vogue for the Spirit, they didn’t let a stoppage time equalizer deter them. They pushed forward after that and stole the win back on Rose Kouassi’s looping shot from distance that went over Kailen Sheridan’s head into the far corner. They appear

Gotham was already leading the Thorns 1-0 and well on their way to a 3-0 beat down, when a midfield takeaway and then some sublime passing doubled the lead near halftime.

It started with Emily Sonnett stepping up to challenge an outlet pass from behind. This was not a great outlet pass, and you can see that even unchallenged, Samantha Coffey would have had limited options. The ball wound up squiring loose and Coffey lost her feet, allowing Gotham to take possession.

Josefine Hasbo (above, facing the ball) was first to it and she wasted no time, redirecting the ball up field with a single touch. Hasbo’s touch began a sequence in which four players took a total of five touches in working it into an attacking position.

Hasbo’s first ball went to Rose Lavelle who immediately played it back. Below is Hasbo between touches with Lavelle upfied and almost hidden between two Thorns defenders.

Notice how Lavelle is angled toward the Thorns goal while both defenders appear fixated on the ball. Meanwhile, Jaedyn Shaw is running free in space in the middle of the park. The next touch is directed toward Shaw, but take note of two things. One is how Lavelle has broken free and is bursting into space, looking for a seem to run into. The second is, there is no way Shaw can do anything with this pass, right?

Words could never do justice to the touch Shaw put on the ball to unlock Lavelle. So just watch the full clip and enjoy poetry in motion.

And here is a quick look at all three Gift Monday goals Sunday, the first Spirit regular season hat trick in a decade.

Here’s how the clubs shape up after most of Week 22:

Cream of the Crop

z-Kansas City Current (18-2-2, 56 pts; vs Stars, 3-1): The Current actually conceded a goal over the weekend, ending their remarkable shutout streak at 870 minutes which included nine full games. No worries, though. They were without Hailie Mace and Kayla Sharples, and they never trailed in the game. And even with the goal allowed, Lorena has more clean sheets (12) than goals given up (11). Can they win 20 games?

Title contenders

NJ/NY Gotham FC (9-6-7, 34 pts; vs Thorns, 3-0): It is no longer speculative. Last week I said the Thorns match was an opportunity, and it was an opportunity taken. Aided by a sublime, one-touch, Jaedyn Shaw assist to Rose Lavelle, Gotham ran circles around the Thorns and announced themselves as legitimate title contenders. Wednesday’s Concacaf showdown against the Spirit could be a semifinal preview (and rematch) and the October 11 visit to Kansas City is one to circle.

x-Washington Spirit (11-4-7, 40 pts; vs Houston Dash, 4-0): Booked a playoff spot with a 4-0 beatdown of the Dash that was all but in the bag at halftime. Gift Monday was the star of the show with the fourth first-half hat trick in NWSL history. The first was Crystal Dunn, for the Spirit against the Dash, and this was the club’s first regular season hat trick of any kind in the decade since.

The Ever-Growing Sphere of Mediocrity

Seattle Reign FC (9-7-6, 33 pts; vs Courage, 2-1): Nice rally to beat the Courage and jump into a hosting position. Maddie Dahlien is gradually emerging as one of the most important players in the league. She hit the winner in this one after having the would-be opener called back for being narrowly offside.

Orlando Pride (9-8-5, 32 pts; @ Wave, 2-1): The player reactions after the final whistle blew in San Diego showed just how much the nine-game winless streak — that stretched to June — was weighing on them. And they may have gotten away with this one. Anna Moorhouse was a stone wall down the stretch, atoning for her giveaway that allowed the Wave to tie the match. Tough to get a read on how good this year’s version of the Pride can be, but they now have at least a little insulation in the Top 8.

Utah Royals FC (5-11-6, 21 pts; @ Bay, 2-0): The current version of the Royals has a three-game winning streak for the first time after taking it to Bay FC. It was a stark contrast to the season opener when a dodgy performance was the first early red flag that 2025 may not go quite according to plan in the Wasatch Valley. Mia Justus is now 2-for-2 in terms of looking capable in goal.

Portland Thorns FC (8-7-7, 31 pts; @ Gotham, 0-3): If we’re measuring the Thorns by comparing the weekend trip to Gotham with last year’s playoff game, it is not a pretty comparison. As much as the Thorns have gotten out of their sans-Sophia Wilson roster this season, they seem to be losing ground to the top sides.

San Diego Wave FC (8-7-7, 31 pts; vs Pride, 1-2): You can argue the Wave have outplayed the Thorns and Pride over the last two weeks, yet they only have a single point to show for the two matches. Looking into the future, the Wave are desperately in need of a finisher in order to get more out of their best soccer moments. In the short-term, they are three points clear of the playoff line and two points out of a quarterfinal hosting position, and which way they go over the last four matches is one of the more intriguing storylines around the league.

North Carolina Courage (7-8-7, 28 pts; @ Reign, 1-2): When you get a fortuitous offside call to keep you scoreless, and then a nice-looking header from Hannah Betfort to take the lead on the road, you’d better get on the plane with something to show for it. The Courage were unable to capitalize though, falling 2-1 at Lumen to not only leave empty handed but on the wrong side of the playoff line. The game-winner was also a must-save for Marisa Jordan, her first significant mistake since wrestling the starting nod away from Casey Murphy.

Racing Louisville FC (8-9-5, 29 pts; vs Angel City, 1-0): Probably the most important win of the weekend moves the battered Racing side from last week’s ‘teetering on the brink’ status to the coveted eighth place position on the table. Just closing out the match with a one-goal lead must have been satisfying considering the amount of points they have dropped from the 90th minute onward since the dawn of August. Emma Sears, who assisted on the goal, is a dark horse MVP candidate.

Houston Dash (7-10-5, 26 pts; @ Spirit, 0-4): Abby Smith got the start for injured Jane Campbell and the defense was a hot mess against the Spirit. The Dash are clearly getting better but this was one to forget at Audi Field. And yes, they are just three points adrift of the playoff line (with an inferior goal differential) and two teams to pass.

The trouble at the bottom

Angel City FC (6-10-6, 24 pts; @ Louisville, 0-1): The glut of teams making the playoffs is essentially the only thing keeping Angel City’s season from being stamped a disaster. Evelyn Shores and Sveindís Jónsdóttir are recent additions that appear poised to contribute in the future. Sara Doorsoun-Khajeh has not quite shown it yet. And is it time to ask if we’re ever going to see Sydney Leroux play soccer again?

e-Chicago Stars FC (2-11-9, 15 pts; @ Current, 1-3): The Stars snapped the Current’s record shutout streak and should have snapped it sooner but for a phantom foul call against Ludmila. But for much of the 90 minutes they had absolutely no answer for the league’s top team. That hardly makes them unique. But being officially eliminated from playoff contention does, at least for this week.

Bay FC (4-11-7, 19 pts; vs Royals, 0-2): Complaints about the officiating last weekend may have some validity, but so is the notion that this is now the bottom team in the NWSL. And with reported changes at the top of the organization on the way, not to mention Albertin Montoya’s lame-duck status as head coach, the list of questions ahead of 2026 is plentiful.

The Kansas City Current locked up the NWSL Shield over the weekend.

Before anyone else officially clinched a playoff berth. Before anyone has been officially eliminated from playoff contention. That makes them pretty good, right? Let’s examine.

Here’s how the clubs shape up after most of National Women’s Soccer League Week 21 action:

Cream of the Crop

z-Kansas City Current (17-2-2, 53 pts; vs Reign, 2-0): Once the Spirit dropped points on Thursday, the Shield was in reach for the Current, and they took a firm hold of it with a 2-0 win over the Reign. All that’s left now is the record book and the playoffs. The Current are a win away from matching last year’s Pride and Spirit with 18 wins, and the shutout was their ninth straight (812 minutes in all), far and away a league record. Lorena skipped two of those so her personal mark is 632 which breaks Nicole Barnhart’s record of 588 that stood for more than a decade.

Best of the Rest

Washington Spirit (10-4-7, 37 pts; @ Angel City, 2-2): It wasn’t perfect but they got out of Los Angeles with a draw and get a 10-day break before hosting the Houston Dash on Sunday afternoon. Defensively, the match highlighted how important Hal Hershfelt is to the operation as she missed the match after a red card in Kansas City. Offensively, the re-emergence of Croix Bethune as a threat to score or create something dangerous every time she hits the attacking third adds an element that makes them a threat to win any kind of match.

“I can say we’ve never been more focused than we are right now on the things that we think matter most when the world is watching,” Berman said from league headquarters in Manhattan. “In particular when the world’s eyes are on this country and the sport of soccer.”

Berman spoke following a week of NWSL owners’ meetings which she deemed “a really important moment,” with owners coming together in support of the league’s long-term strategy.

As for the four areas of focus, Berman said: “Our four key focus areas are making sure we have the most exciting games, that we are driving the soccer narrative, that we are trusted as a league, and that we are building the talent pipeline. Everything that we are going to be working on in the coming years is going to be focused on those four areas.

“We are future-proofing our league. We are positioning our league for sustained success. We’re in it for the long game. Our owners are investing in the things that demonstrate that they’re here to ensure that our league achieves our mission of being the best league in the world.”

NWSL’s position as the best league on the planet has rarely been challenged — at least not in terms of top to bottom. But that status has never been more tenuous. Alyssa Thompson’s recent transfer to Chelsea at age 20 set off alarm bells around the soccer world. Less than three years after orchestrating her way into Angel City, Thompson orchestrated her way out. Those alarm bells came with suggestions that the league’s salary cap, despite its guaranteed increases through the end of the decade, could be a hindrance as more women’s clubs in Europe and elsewhere open up their pocketbooks.

“While I could understand the focus on the salary cap,” Berman said, “the way that players make decisions about where to play is a complex set of considerations. We will always look at that, not in a myopic way but holistically. We are quite confident that the value proposition that we offer to players is compelling and will continue to attract and retain the best players. Particularly as we look at the focal point in this country over the coming years on the sport of soccer and the Olympics and the World Cup. And the level of investment and infrastructure from media partners and brands that only this country could offer.”

Berman added that the league is consistently analyzing all aspects of its business and is open to pivoting as necessary.

On expansion and emergency procedures

Berman said it would be “anticlimactic” to say that expansion process is ongoing, but did say she had news to share, which is that expansion will now be handled on a rolling basis. This means that, instead of announcing a process with deadlines for proposals and decisions, interested groups are encouraged to make their pitch. Boston Legacy FC and Denver Summit FC will join in 2026 to bring the club membership up to 16, and Berman reiterated that there is no reason NWSL can’t one day reach the 30-team heights enjoyed by all five major men’s leagues over North America. She did stop short of stating that as a goal.

“We pretty much know the universe of people — there’s more than a dozen of them. Those conversations are ongoing. Each of them have a different perspective on how much time they need to launch, the investments they need to make in order to be successful, and we want to not force a a square peg into a round hole. We want to be more flexible so we can get to the best possible result for the next round.

“It is open,” she added of the process. “And we will communicate decisions when we’ve made decisions.”

When asked about the situation last weekend in Seattle — Berman did not bring it up in opening remarks — the commissioner said she was pleased with how everyone involved handled Savannah DeMelo’s medical emergency. The decision to discontinue the match, she said, was “a no-brainer.”

DeMelo fell to the turf near halftime of Sunday’s Reign match against Racing Louisville and was transported from the field via ambulance. It was eerily similar to an incident earlier this year involving Savy King. That match was not stopped but the league said shortly after that it should have been, and would be in the future.

“No one wants to have had to have experience practicing these policies,” Berman said. “But having had the opportunity to play it out earlier this year, assess and learn the things we can do better, and then actually have the chance to do it better the second time around, was a moment that allowed us to show what we’re capable of. The decision-making tree was streamlined. We knew exactly what was happening, and we knew exactly who need to make decisions. And we facilitated them immediately. The decision to not continue the game was a no-brainer and did not require contemplation.”

Last Friday’s match at Snapdragon Stadium between the San Diego Wave and Gotham FC was a classic meeting of two teams passing each other on opposite sides of the street. The Wave’s surprising start has blown up into a 1-3-4 stretch during which they have scored twice — both in the same match. Gotham’s win in the match was their third in a row, and their first since making the bold investment to acquire Jaedyn Shaw.

Shaw scored the backbreaking goal on Friday, highlighting both the impact she is capable of having on a club and the degree to which the Wave appear to be lost.

It started with a throw-in near midfield. This should never lead directly to a scoring chance. Something needs to go wrong on the other end for that to happen. Here, Esther González was the target of the throw, surrounded by multiple Wave players. Four of them have a direct line to Esther and a fifth is just behind another Gotham player. Shaw was just off the play as well, jogging toward the Wave goal.

The National Women’s Soccer League weekend ended on a down note when Savannah DeMelo was loaded into an ambulance following a medical even near halftime of Racing Louisville’s match in Seattle. The good news is that DeMelo was reported to be awake and alert at a local hospital late Sunday evening. The clubs agreed not to continue the match, and it will be picked up from the point of suspension later in the season.

Here’s how the clubs shape up after most of Week 20:

Cream of the Crop

x-Kansas City Current (16-2-2, 50 pts; vs Spirit, 0-0): A minor injury kept Temwa Chawinga out of the lineup against the Spirit —for only the second time ever — and the Current failed to score a goal at CPKC Stadium. The lack of goals belied the attacking excitement of the match as the Current were still able to create without the MVP. At the same time there were a few sequences that you couldn’t help but think, ‘they probably score there if Chawinga was out there.’ Already assured o

Kaleigh Kurtz made her National Women’s Soccer League debut on April 18, 2018, as a fill-in for Abby Dahlkemper. At the time, Dahlkemper held the league record for most consecutive games played, games started, and minutes played. Her absence that night against the Reign ended those streaks.

“I remember that whole week I was with the opposition scout [team], so I was pretending to be Seattle,” Kurtz said in a recent interview with The Equalizer. “The day before the game, Paul [Riley, Courage head coach] made anyone who wasn’t rostered do extra running on the side while the starters and a few others on the side did set pieces.”

It was a normal week for the then 23-year-old, undrafted free agent who was sitting behind two of the best central defenders in the world, Dahlkemper and Abby Erceg. Little did she know that Dahlkemper was going to miss the Reign match due to a clerical mistake involving use of a therapeutic drug. Riley called Kurtz at 3 o’clock on game day.

“He said, ‘Hey KK, how are you feeling?’ I said, ‘I’m feeling okay. A little tired from the sprints yesterday, but not too bad.’ He said, ‘Okay, good, because you’re in the starting lineup in four hours.’ So that was how I found out about my debut.”

The Courage beat the Reign 1-0 that night, and Riley named Kurtz the player of the match.

The Chicago Stars were the team of the week. They shocked their fan base back to life with a new venue and a goal explosion to boot. Meanwhile, Vlatko Andonovski won his 100th game and his current may well clinch the National Women’s Soccer League Shield before anyone else gets in the playoffs.

Here’s how they shape up after most of Week 19:

Cream of the Crop

x-Kansas City Current (16-2-1, 49 pts; @ Bay, 2-0): Vlatko Andonovski held Laurel Ivory, Claire Hutton and Ellie Wheeler out of the lineup — only Hutton appeared — and still collected his 100th regular season win when the Current rolled Bay FC. Andonovski joined his old rival Laura Harvey (110) as the only members of the coaching century club. The team has now kept clean sheets in a league-record seven consecutive games and lead the Shield race by 14 points with seven games to play. They will head to the playoffs under as much pressure as any team ever has been to take home the title.

Best of the Rest

Washington Spirit (10-4-5, 35 pts; vs Reign, 2-0): For this week at least, the Spirit have separated themselves from the rest of the chasing pack. A week after new concerns about her back were raised, Trinity Rodman took just her second 90-minute spin since the Olympics, and looked pretty good doing it, netting both goals in the one-sided victory. Adrián González is still searching for his best — and healthiest — lineup, which makes it all the more impressive that they keep grinding out results.