Coming off two energizing wins over Korea Republic during the June International Window, the U.S. Women’s National Team players returned to action for their clubs, all eager to continue their momentum from the matches in Denver and St. Paul as they make their respective cases for inclusion on the always-competitive Olympic roster.
The weekend slate of games kicked off on Friday night as Racing Louisville FC defeated the Houston Dash 2-0 at Lynn Family Stadium behind a pair of second-half goals. Midfielder Savannah DeMelo opened the scoring for the hosts in the 62nd minute and Louisville doubled its lead in the 85th to make it back-to-back wins for the first time this season.
Later that night, the Orlando Pride saw its record-setting eight game win streak come to an end with a 1-1 draw on the road against San Diego Wave FC. Boasting the longest win streak in league history, the Pride took the lead in the 36th minute before San Diego equalized in the 62nd to knot things up at 1-1. Despite a combined 19 shots on goal on the night – 13 for the Wave – neither side was able to break the deadlock in the final half hour and the teams earned one point each. While the win streak has come to a close, the Pride remain unbeaten through 12 games this season.
Defending champions NJ/NY Gotham FC extended their unbeaten streak to seven games and earned their third consecutive victory with a 2-1 win over Angel City FC on Saturday afternoon at Red Bull Arena. Four days after scoring her first goal in nearly six years for the USWNT, Crystal Dunn scored her first goal for Gotham after joining the club as a free agent over the offseason. Dunn ended the 0-0 deadlock in the 26th minute as she collected the ball outside of the penalty box and cut into the area before unleashing a right-footed strike into the bottom left corner. It was her 39th career NWSL regular season goal and first of 2024.
WATCH: DUNN OPENS ACCOUNT WITH GOTHAM
Angel City equalized shortly after halftime before Rose Lavelle, who earned her 100th cap on June in the USA’s 3-0 win over Korea Republic, put Gotham back in front in the 62nd minute with her second goal of the season. The innovative attacker collected the ball on the right wing and combined with midfielder Delany Sheehan for a give-and-go inside the box, finishing with a left-footed blast just inside the near post to lift the East Coast club to its fifth win in the last six games.
WATCH: LAVELLE TALLIES GAME-WINNING GOAL
Expansion club Bay FC was also a 2-1 winner on Saturday, defeating the Chicago Red Stars on the road in front of a record-setting crowd of 35,038 at famed Wrigley Field. In the first professional women’s sporting event in over 80 years to be played at the Chicago Cubs’ ballpark, the visitors from the Bay Area scored in each half to take a 2-0 lead before the Red Stars pulled one back late in second-half stoppage time.
The Washington Spirit earned their league-leading ninth win of the regular season on Saturday night in Sandy, Utah, beating Utah Royals FC 1-0 courtesy of a first-half goal from rookie Kate Wiesner. Wiesner, who earned her first call-up to the U.S. Women’s National Team as a training player heading into the matches against Korea Republic, scored her first professional goal in the 26th minute and the Spirit defense recorded its second clean sheet of the season to preserve the victory.
The 2023 NWSL Golden Boot Winner, Sophia Smith bolstered her pursuit of a second consecutive title by scoring her league-leading ninth goal of the regular season as the Portland Thorns topped the visiting North Carolina Courage 1-0 on Saturday night. Following a VAR review after an apparent foul in the penalty area, the Thorns were awarded a penalty kick and Smith stepped up to the spot, burying her attempt in the 79th minute past her USA teammate Casey Murphy. Smith, who scored in the USA’s June 4 win over Korea Republic in St. Paul and added an assist in the June 1 victory in her home state of Colorado, has 13 goals and eight assists in 21 matches for club and country across all competitions in 2024.
WATCH: SMITH SEALS VICTORY FOR THORNS
In the lone match on Sunday afternoon, the Kansas City Current kept pace with the Orlando Pride and extended their unbeaten streak to 12 matches with a 5-2 victory over Seattle Reign FC. Trailing 2-1 at halftime, the Current scored four answered goals to earn their eighth win of the season, already matching their win total from 2023. Kansas City has scored 31 goals so far this season, five more than any other team in the league.
Broadcast information on upcoming matches featuring U.S. Women’s National Team players can be found below. All times listed are ET.
| Friday, June 14 |
| NWSL: Kansas City Current vs. Chicago Red Stars |
7:00 p.m. |
Prime Video |
| Saturday, June 15
|
| NWSL: Racing Louisville FC vs. NJ/NY Gotham FC |
11:00 a.m. |
ESPN; ESPN+; ESPN Deportes |
| NWSL: North Carolina Courage vs. Orlando Pride |
6:30 p.m. |
NWSL+ |
| NWSL: Washington Spirit vs. San Diego Wave |
6:30 p.m. |
ION |
| NWSL: Houston Dash vs. Angel City FC |
8:30 p.m. |
ION |
| Sunday, June 16
|
| NWSL: Seattle Reign FC vs. Portland Thorns |
3:00 p.m. |
CBS; Paramount+ |
| NWSL: Bay FC vs. Utah Royals FC |
9:00 p.m. |
CBS Sports Network |
