Tag: NWSL

Photo Courtesy of BDZ Sports

NWSL Players of the Week: September 16th – 29th

The first player of the week, or double week really is Sam Kerr who plays for the Chicago Red Stars. On Saturday September 21st, Kerr tallied two goals against the Washington Spirit in an important 3-1 win for the Red Stars. The two goals were Kerr’s 17th and 18th of the season which breaks the season goal-scoring record. Kerr’s 17th goal tied her own record and then her second of the game broke it. The Australian attacker has scored five goals over her last five matches.

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It only took Kerr nine minutes to tie her record after she chipped a delightful finish over the Spirit goalkeeper and into the far corner from a tight angle. Katlyn Johnson was credited with the assist. Kerr then broke her record in the 49th minute when Yuki Nagasato used the outside of her foot to deliver a through ball down the left side right into the path of Kerr who then cut in and fired back into the near post beating the goalkeeper easily. The 3-1 win was Chicago’s fourth in a row before they went on to make the streak five in a 2-1 win over the Utah Royals. The five-game winning streak has slingshotted the Red Stars into second place only two points back of the first place North Carolina Courage. The Red Stars have finished all of their regular season matches and have secured a second-place seeding for the postseason.

Due to the recent play of Kerr she was awarded the NWSL Player of the Month, league officials announced on Wednesday.

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The second player of the week comes in the form of goalkeeping greatness from Aubrey Bledsoe who plays for the Washington Spirit. The Spirit goalkeeper was up to the task when she tallied seven saves against the offensive powerhouse and first placed North Carolina Courage. The Courage have been on a tear lately scoring sixteen goals in their four previous games. Bledsoe came up big, time and time again in the Spirit’s 2-1 win over the visiting North Carolina Courage on Saturday September 28th. The win gave the sixth placed Spirit a chance to still make the playoffs. Other results around the league have since ended that possibility, but the performance from Bledsoe could not be discredited. The win ended a six game winning streak for the Courage.

In the 21st minute Bledsoe was called into action when a Courage corner kick fell to Debinha on the far side. Bledsoe reacted quickly to Debinha’s shot and was able to direct the rebound out of danger.

In the 38th minute it was Lynn Williams this time that was denied by Bledsoe from close range as she did a tremendous job to close down on Williams and keep the score knotted at 0-0. Bledsoe denied Williams again in the 65th minute when she got her angles just right in order to keep the ball out of the net. Over the course of 22 games Bledsoe has been able to tally eight clean sheets. The Washington Spirit are next in action on Saturday, October 5th when they travel to Orlando to take on the Pride.

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The last player of the week is rookie Bethany Balcer who scored in yet another game for the Seattle Reign. Balcer has now scored six goals on the season, but has been on fire lately with three goals in her last four matches. Her goal was the second of two as the Reign picked up an impressive 2-0 win against the Portland Thorns who have been out of form as of late. The victory for the Reign has secured them the last remaining postseason spot and gives them the opportunity to finish as high as third considering they win their final match and Portland loses or draws. The victory was an important one as it ensures the Reign a place in the postseason. Jodie Taylor tallied the other goal on the day.

In the 81st minute of play Balcer received a pass with her back to goal from about 14 yards away. The defender was not tight, which allowed Balcer time to turn, cut in quickly onto her left foot and rifle a low dipping shot into the right corner catching the Thorns goalkeeper out at her near post. The swiftness with which Balcer snapped the shot on frame seem to cause a late reaction from the Thorns goalkeeper and Balcer wheeled away to celebrate. Balcer will be a player to watch as the Reign move forward into their last game of the season and into the postseason. The Reign are next in action on Saturday, October 12th when they travel to Orlando to take on the Pride in their last regular season match-up.

All remaining matches can be seen on the YAHOO! Sports Network.

Photo Courtesy of Jamie Smed

NWSL Players of the Week: Sept 9th – 15th

Lynn Williams who plays for the first-placed North Carolina Courage is the first player who highlights this week’s edition of NWSL Players of the Week.

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Williams scored four goals over two games in the past week. On Wednesday, September 11,Williams played a big role by scoring a hat-trick in a 6-0 statement win, on the road, against the second-placed Portland Thorns who have sat atop the NWSL table for much of the season. After already being up 1-0, it only took Williams 21 minutes to get on the board when she tapped home a Debinha shot turned cross. After only a minute Williams got her second in similar fashion when she used her left foot to tap home a low cross from the right wing. In both of her first two goals the close proximity gave Thorns goalkeeper Adrianna Franch no chance. Williams secured her hat-trick in the 67th minute when a Courage counter-attack set up a 3v2 advantage. Debinha drew in the defense and slipped a pass to Williams who made no mistake and fired a shot past Franch at her near post. The goal increased the lead to 5-0. On Saturday, Williams tallied one goal in another demolition job when the Courage beat the Orlando Pride 6-1. Williams grabbed her goal early in this one after she guided a Kristen Hamilton cross out of the air past the Pride goalkeeper from a few yards out. The last four goals has brought Williams total to 11 on the season. The Courage are riding a wave right now after beating their last two opponents by a combined score of 12-1. The Courage sit in first place with 40 points which is four clear of the second-place Thorns. The Courage also have a game in hand. Lynn Williams and the Courage are next in action Tuesday, September 17 when they take on the Houston Dash.

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The next player of the week is Sofia Huerta who plays for the Houston Dash and scored two goals to propel the Orange past the fourth-placed Utah Royals. The luck was with Huerta and the Dash on this Friday the 13 as they slipped past the visiting Royals for a final score of 2-1. Huerta gave the Dash the lead in the 27 minute after an intelligent backheel pass from Kristie Mewis fooled the Royals defense and allowed Huerta to place a finish in the bottom left corner from close range. Huerta struck again in the 62 minute when Daly sent a ball into space down the right wing. Huerta used her pace and intelligence to slip in behind the Royals defense. She then controlled the pass and went for power as she fired a shot that flew past the Royals goalkeeper off the crossbar, down and into the net for 2-0. The pair of goals brings Huerta’s tally to five on the season. The second goal was vital as it proved to be the winner and give the Dash a much-needed cushion to avoid losing three straight games. The win leaves the Dash in seventh place only a point behind the Washington Spirit in sixth. The Houston Dash are next in action when they take on the North Carolina Courage on Tuesday.  

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The third and final player of the week is Casey Short a defender who plays for the Chicago Red Stars. On Wednesday, September 11, Short scored the game winning goal for her side in dramatic fashion against the Orlando Pride. Her goal came in the fifth minute of stoppage time to give the Red Stars all three points in the competition. On top of that, the Red Stars played the remaining 30 minutes of the competition with only ten players after Katie Johnson was issued a second yellow. Short was involved in the initial attack that won the game as her first shot attempt was blocked. The ball was then redistributed to Sam Kerr on the right wing who floated a ball in which was to be the last action of the game. Short showed determination as she came from no where to rise above her marker and power a header through the Pride goalkeeper. The header which was close to Orlando Pride goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris was too powerful as it skipped off her gloves into the back of the net for the winner. The goal which was only the defender’s second of the season, but was a monumental one as it brought the third-placed Red Stars within one point of second place. The Red Stars would go on to win their next matchup against Sky Blue FC handily by a score of 3-0. That win is the third in a row for the Red Stars who now sit in second place behind the North Carolina Courage. The Chicago Red Stars are next in action against the Washington Spirit on Saturday, September 21.

NWSL coverage continues on YAHOO! Sports and ESPN2.   

Photo Courtesy of Roscoe Myrick

NWSL Players of the Week: Aug 12th – 18th

A weekly series where we break down the top performances of players in the NWSL.

The first player of the week comes from an unlikely source, the struggling New Jersey side, Sky Blue FC. It was rookie forward Paige Monaghan who scored a brace for Sky Blue to lift them over a hot Chicago Red Stars team.

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Monaghan first impacted the game in the 71st minute when she received the ball near the end line before cutting it back and firing a rocket into the top right corner among three enclosing defenders. The goal was truly sensational, and it was the first of Monaghan’s career. There could not have been a better way to open her scoring account in the NWSL. Monaghan struck again in the dying moments of the game with a 93rd minute winner. This time, the rookie latched onto a through ball and used her left foot to beat the Red Stars keeper to her near post with well-placed curling effort. The win was only Sky Blue’s third of the season, but their second against the Red Stars.

The win for Sky Blue snapped the Red Stars five game winning streak. With the victory Sky Blue was able to pull themselves out of last place in the table. The Red Stars missed out on a crucial opportunity to propel themselves into first place and sit in second still four points back of the leaders. Sky Blue faces off next against the Houston Dash on Saturday, August 24th at 8:30 pm ET on Yahoo! Sports.

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The second player of the week is a repeat offender in Amy Rodriguez. Rodriguez scored a 77th minute winner in a 2-1 victory over the Orlando Pride. It was the intelligent diagonal run of Rodriguez that allowed her to find a perfect pass and dispatch a calm finish over the Pride goalkeeper.

Rodriquez who plays for the Utah Royals has now scored three goals in her last three games. Rodriguez continues to prove her ability to show up in the big moments as this goal was defined as the winner. All of them have been crucial in the Royal’s recent success as they have won three straight and moved up the league table into fourth place just six points off the top spot. The goal was Rodriguez’s eight of the season. The Royals have scored eight in their last three games and only given up one over the past three games. Utah’s next match will be against the Washington Spirit today at 7:30 pm ET on Yahoo! Sports.

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The third and final player of the week is the league leader’s Tobin Heath who plays for the Portland Thorns. Heath played a very complete game and recorded an assist on the Thorns 3-1 victory over the Washington Spirit. The assist came from Heath in the 19th minute when she swung a dangerous ball into the box off a corner which was met by the head of Emily Sonnett. The goal doubled the lead of the Thorns and gave them a comfortable cushion over the Spirit.

While Heath will not be credited with the assist on the third goal, it was her delivery again from a corner kick that caused a scramble in the box and ultimately resulted in the Thorns third and final goal.

With the assist, Heath has hit 25 career assists which is the most of any NWSL player. The victory pushes the Thorns four points clear of second place and puts them in good position to remain atop the league table. The next match for the Portland Thorns will be against the second place Chicago Red Stars on Sunday, August 25th at 3 pm ET on ESPNEWS.  

Photo Courtesy of Reign FC

NWSL Player Spotlight: Megan Oyster

The World Cup is over which leaves all the focus turned to the NWSL. The players from the UWSNT and other World Cup teams are on various clubs all throughout the league. But just because Alex Morgan, Carli Lloyd or Rose Lavelle might not be playing that night or for a specific team does not mean you should not still tune in. The NWSL is flooded with talent and we have created a weekly series that looks at players in the NWSL who did not go to France this summer, but could very well turn into your new favorite player. Next up in our series is Megan Oyster.

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When looking at top players people often turn to statistics and specifically score sheets. But that really favors the offensive players who contribute goals and assists. So what about the defenders who make bruising tackles, goal saving stops and the initial passes for goal sequences? The stat sheet does not tell their full story, but players like Megan Oyster deserve a lot of the credit for their team’s success.

She has been a part of the NWSL since 2015 when she was drafted by the Washington Spirit. She played every match for the Spirit in her first year and was named Newcomer of the Year and Defender of the Year for the club. However, after her second season Oyster was traded to the Boston Breakers. She played two seasons for the Breakers before the team folded and Oyster was selected by Reign FC in the Breakers Dispersal Draft.

Since joining the Reign, Oyster has started all but three games and only been subbed off twice. Last season the Reign, with the help of Oyster, had a league tying record of 12 clean sheets and only gave up 21 goals.

Defenders have to be precise with their tackles and clear the ball out of the defense without harming the offensive player. For the Reign, Oyster has averaged a 76.1% success rate for her tackles and only committed 28 fouls with zero yellow cards. When Oyster goes in for a tackle she ensures she is going to get the ball.

Not only does Oyster tackle efficiently she also has key clearances to keep the offense from even getting close to scoring a goal. She is instrumental on set pieces and can knock the ball out of harm with a quick touch.

The month of June meant no national team members in the NWSL with the World Cup going on. Oyster shined for the Reign and earned herself on the NWSL Team of the Month for June.

Oyster has played in all of the games this season for the Reign and has played a full 90 minutes in 13 straight matches. She is the team’s workhorse intercepting 31 passes this year with 12 blocks. Oyster is a true defender who understands her main role is to guard the goal and not attack the other team’s net. She has only scored four goals in her NWSL career, but has certainly stopped plenty of others from going in.

The Reign have been riddled with injuries this season. They currently have six players with season ending injuries and five more players listed as out for their upcoming game. Even with the injuries the Reign are in fourth place and just four points out from first place. Thanks large in part to Oyster the Reign have given up the fourth fewest goals all season, but their offense has scored the second fewest amount of goals.

Their next game happens to be against Sky Blue, the NWSL team with fewest amount of goals scored. This game will most likely not be high scoring, but Oyster and company will ensure the fans see plenty of defensive stops.

All eyes should be peeled to the match that had to be moved to Red Bull Arena, home of the MLS team, the New York Red Bulls, to accommodate all of the fans. Sky Blue is hoping for a lower bowl sellout and quite possibly their highest fan attendance in club history. The two teams will kickoff on Sunday at 1 pm ET on ESPNEWS

Photo Courtesy of Jamie Smed

NWSL Players of the Week: Aug 4th – Aug 11th

A weekly series where we break down the top performances of players in the NWSL.

The first player of the week is 23-year old goalkeeper Casey Murphy who currently plays for Reign FC. Murphy bolsters an impressive five clean sheets on the season through the eleven games she has played.

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Murphy came up big in back to back games picking up two clean sheets and recording seven saves between the two matches. Murphy made five saves in a shutout win against the Houston Dash on the second of August.

Then, Murphy came up big again with two saves against the first place Portland Thorns in a 1-0 home victory for the Reign. While, it might seem as if the Dash game was more impressive any goalkeeper will tell you that it is the games where there is less action that prove to be more difficult. This is because goalkeepers in these games must stay focused and might need to only make one or two big saves to propel their team to victory.

This win help the fourth place Reign trim the deficit in the standings between them and the first place Thorns. The Reign’s next match will be against the last placed Sky Blue FC on Sunday, August 18.  

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The second player of the week is really going to go to the entire defense of the Chicago Red Stars. The Red Stars who saw a shaky start to their season have heated up as of late propelling them to five straight victories. The victories have been a direct result of their much-improved defensive play as they have tallied four clean sheets in their last five matches.

On the second of August the Red Stars held the Utah Royals scoreless despite the relentless attack. The Royals put in 25 crosses, won six corners and finished the game with 16 shots. The Red Stars defense stood tall. Most recently the Red Stars squeaked by the Washington Spirit by a score of 1-0. Again, the defense did its job as it was able to safely repel the Spirit’s nine shot attempts, two corners, and 18 crosses. The Red Stars fantastic defensive play as of late has earned them the second spot in the league table right behind the Portland Thorns. With a game in hand The Red Stars sit in second just one point behind the Thorns. Their next match comes against the Orlando Pride on Wednesday, August 21.

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The third and final player of the week is the Utah Royals attacker Amy Rodriguez whose goal capped off a 3-1 win against the Reign on Sunday. Rodriquez struck in the 68th minute of the match to give the Royals a two-goal cushion and see out an important victory against the Reign, who sit two points ahead of them in the league table. Both teams have played 16 games each.

The win against the Reign makes it two in a row for the Royals who are trying to improve their position in the table. The goal for Rodriguez makes it her second goal in three games. On Wednesday, August 7, Rodriguez found the back of the net in the 48th minute to finish off a 3-0 victory over Sky Blue FC. The latest two goals bring her tally up to seven goals on the year.

Rodriguez has shown her versatility as well since she has scored four goals with her right foot and three with her left foot. After the latest victory the Royals will look to grab their third win in a row when they face off against the second to last-placed Orlando Pride on Saturday, August 17th.

Coverage of the NWSL can be followed on Yahoo! Sports and the ESPN networks. Check back in for next round’s Players of the Week.        

Photo Courtesy of James Smed

NWSL Player Spotlight: Aubrey Bledsoe

The World Cup is over which leaves all the focus turned to the NWSL. The players from the UWSNT and other World Cup teams are on various clubs all throughout the league. But just because Alex Morgan, Carli Lloyd or Rose Lavelle might not be playing that night or for a specific team does not mean you should not still tune in. The NWSL is flooded with talent and we have created a weekly series that looks at players in the NWSL who did not go to France this summer, but could very well turn into your new favorite player. Next up in our series is Aubrey Bledsoe.

Often times goalkeepers can be an afterthought since they are not a field player, but for arguably the best goalkeeper in the league it seemed fitting she would be one of the first player spotlights. Bledsoe is only one of three goalkeepers to play every minute so far in this NWSL season for her club. Most teams have rotated keepers whether it’s because of injury or World Cup duty, but the Washington Spirit are selfishly happy Bledsoe is not on a national team roster.

Bledsoe has been with the Spirit since she was traded ahead of the 2018 season by the Orlando Pride. She was limited in her time with the Pride since they had USWNT keeper, Ashlyn Harris. The move to the Spirit gave Bledsoe the starting role and the ability to prove she is one of the bests. Bledsoe broke the single season save record in 2018 with 108 saves. She also only conceded 30 goals in the 21 games she was in net for Washington.

2018 saw Bledsoe rise as a top goalkeeper and 2019 has proven she can stay at the top for years to come. She has been awarded Player of the Week twice this season, and understand that is not keeper of the week that is Player of the Week honors. The month of June was the month for players who did not go over to the World Cup to showcase they are elite and deserve to be in this league when the national team players return. What better way to demonstrate that than being named the best in your position for the month? Bledsoe did just that as the goalkeeper for the June NWSL Team of the Month, voted on by the NWSL Media Association.

Point blank saves seem to be a specialty of Bledsoe. She has minimal time to react and the percentage of scoring greatly increases for the attacker, but her relentless pursuit to keep the ball out of her net defies the odds over and over again.

In case a single point blank save is not enough here is one more that earned her Save of the Week just last week.

It might seem like an overstatement, but Bledsoe is the reason the Spirit are still in the hunt for the playoffs. Their offense has been lackluster at times only scoring 19 goals compared to the top three teams in the league with 30, 31 and 26 respectively. Take those low amount of goals and put them next to just the 14 goals Bledsoe has conceded all season and you can see why. Those 14 goals given up is tied for least allowed with the Utah Royals and when stacked up against the top three teams they have allowed 15, 20 and 19 respectively.

The Spirit’s 6-5-3 record is good enough for fifth place and seven points out of first place. In their five losses all but one has been decided by one goal, the exception was only a two goal difference. Bledsoe keeps the Spirit in the game.

She has a league best 55 saves and is only allowing an average of one goal a game. That average is third among goalkeepers who have played at least 10 games this season.

It is hard to imagine the Washington Spirit without Bledsoe in goal and supporters of the club do not want to think about what their record and goals against would look like without her. Luckily, Bledsoe looks in top form and is not slowing down anytime soon.

If you want to see Bledsoe for yourself you can watch the Washington Spirit host the Chicago Red Stars later today at 7pm ET on Yahoo! Sports. Today might be her greatest test since the Red Stars have the league leading goal scorer in Sam Kerr. The best offensive player vs the best goalkeeper, what more could you want?

Photo Courtesy of BDZ Sports

NWSL Player Spotlight: Yuki Nagasato

The World Cup is over which leaves all the focus turned to the NWSL. The players from the UWSNT and other World Cup teams are on various clubs all throughout the league. But just because Alex Morgan, Carli Lloyd or Rose Lavelle might not be playing that night or for a specific team does not mean you should not still tune in. The NWSL is flooded with talent and we have created a weekly series that looks at players in the NWSL who did not go to France this summer, but could very well turn into your new favorite player. Second up on our series is Yuki Nagasato.

The USWNT start their Victory Tour today which will give fans the opportunity to see how competitive the NWSL is without their stars.

Not only is the NWSL flooded with American talent but also international stars who kept the league going during the World Cup. Nagasato, who is from Japan, has played with the Chicago Red Stars since 2017. However, she saw limited action in 2017 due to an injury, but was still able to give the Red Stars a goal in just six appearances. Her appearances doubled to 12 in 2018 as well as her goals doubling to two and adding an assist. So far in 2019 she has 14 appearances but has doubled her 2018 goals to four and added four assists to her impressive resume.

Nagasato’s four goals has her ranked eighth in the NWSL and her four assists as her tied for second, only behind last week’s Player Spotlight, Lynn Williams.

The Red Stars are crowded with talent especially from World Cup players including Sam Kerr, Julie Ertz, Alyssa Naeher and Morgan Brian. Despite all of that talent on a roster Nagasato is still arguably one of the most integral pieces to the Red Stars success. Nagasato leads the team in assists but her passing all across the field has been able to lead to scoring chances that do not always put her on the stat sheet. She has the second highest pass success rate at 77.5% behind Brian (79.2%). Her second place standing is a little misleading since Nagasato has a total of 512 passes whereas Brian has 197 passes. Another impressive stat for Nagasato is that she does lead the team in the number of key passes with 33 and the next closest is Kerr with only 17.

Nagasato and Kerr find themselves in sentences together often and have created one of the most lethal offensive duos in the league. The very first goal of the 2019 NWSL season saw a signature threaded Nagasto pass to a clinical Kerr finish.

Nagasato has her stats show can provide her own offense and add goals for the Red Stars. Often times she is scoring while in the air showing she has a true aerial presence. Her latest goal was scored with a flying volley on the hip of the defender.

Nagasato is important to the Red Stars and will be key in helping them stay a top team in the league. Chicago is currently in third place, but just three points off from the lead. They have won four of their last five games and will look to continue their hunt for first place in their next match against the Utah Royals.

You can watch Nagasato and the Red Stars take on the Royals later today at 8:00 pm ET on YAHOO! Sports.

Photo Courtesy of BDZ Sports

NWSL Player Spotlight: Lynn Williams

The World Cup is over which leaves all the focus turned to the NWSL. The players from the UWSNT and other World Cup teams are on various clubs all throughout the league. But just because Alex Morgan, Carli Lloyd or Rose Lavelle might not be playing that night or for a specific team does not mean you should not still tune in. The NWSL is flooded with talent and we have created a weekly series that looks at players in the NWSL who did not go to France this summer, but could very well turn into your new favorite player. First up on our series is Lynn Williams.

She was the top American goal scorer in the NWSL last season with 14 goals. Williams even has the most combined goals in the league by any American for the past few seasons. This all includes the players who dawned the USA jersey this summer. You did read that correctly, the top American goal scorer was not on the World Cup roster. We can even take it a step further and let you know Williams has not been called into a USWNT camp since April of 2018. But this meant while the World Cup was going on with people scratching their heads at why she is got snubbed, Williams was knocking in goals for her club team, the North Carolina Courage.

The Courage are the defending NWSL Champions and back to back Shield winners (given to the top regular season finisher). Their success is due large in part to Williams who has been excelling at the club level since she entered the league in 2016. She had 14 goals not only last year but also in her rookie campaign. Williams least productive year so far was in 2017 when she still scored nine goals.

In just 13 games this season Williams has already scored six goals and added four assists. Those marks have her in fifth place overall for goals and first overall for assists. She is the only player in the league in the top five for both categories.

Williams likes to use her pace to get in behind back lines. Her teammates often play her through balls that she is able to run onto and just flat out beat defenders in a foot race. Her most recent goal shows this perfectly.

Not only is Williams fast with her feet but she is also fast with scoring in a match. All six of her goals this season have happened in the first half of games. Her earliest goal coming in at 22nd minute and her latest just before half at 45+1. All of her goals this year have come in different games, but the single goal she scores sets the tone for the Courage. For five of the six goals she was the first goalscorer for her team and the Courage are 4-2 when Williams scores in a match.

The NC Courage are currently in second place just behind the Portland Thorns by four points. The two teams will meet two more times this season and their first meeting ended in a 1-1 tie. If the Courage want to gain some ground on the Thorns they can start with their next game against the Utah Royals. In their last meeting Williams was pretty quiet with just one shot on goal. The Royals did well to stop Williams in the attack who at the time had to foot most of the offense since her teammates Crystal Dunn, Jess McDonald and Debhina were all playing in France. With more offensive weapons around her this time Williams might be able to find some more space and have a completely different game.

You can catch Williams and the Courage facing off against the Utah Royals on Saturday at 10 pm ET on ESPNews. Perhaps it will be the game Williams scores more than one goal and even jumps in first place as the overall top goal scorer.