The U.S. Women’s National Team will return to action in less than a week as 26 players have been called in for training camp beginning on June 19 in preparation for the USA’s upcoming friendlies against Colombia and the ensuing 2022 Concacaf W Championship in Mexico.
The group heading into camp features the three leading scorers in NWSL this season in Alex Morgan, Sophia Smith and Mallory Pugh, all of whom helped power their club teams to victory over the weekend.
Morgan and San Diego Wave FC went unbeaten on the week, opening the action with a 2-2 draw on Wednesday evening against Portland Thorns FC. Smith gave the visiting Thorns the lead in the 22nd minute when she converted from the penalty spot and Portland doubled its lead in the opening minute of the second half off a goal from Canadian international Christine Sinclair that was assisted by first-time U.S. Women’s National Team call-up Sam Coffey. Despite the two-goal deficit, the Wave mounted a furious comeback and scored in the 81st and 88th minutes to earn the draw. Both goals were scored by midfielder Taylor Kornieck, who was named to the USA’s roster for the upcoming June matches against Colombia as well as the 2022 Concacaf W Championship. The 6-1 Kornieck tallied her first career NWSL brace.
On Sunday, the Wave played to another draw, this time against visiting OL Reign. Morgan scored her league-leading ninth goal of the regular season in the eighth minute, getting in beyond the Reign backline after a ball played over the top and finishing her run with a classic left-footed finish. Morgan’s nine goals for the Wave are tied for her most ever in a single NWSL season. She previously scored nine times for the Orlando Pride during the entire 2017 campaign.
While San Diego jumped out to the early lead, OL Reign tied the match in the 38th off a brilliant team goal assisted by Rose Lavelle.
After scoring once from the spot midweek against San Diego, Smith upped the ante on Sunday, scoring twice and adding and assist in Portland’s 4-0 road victory over the Houston Dash. Smith’s production started in the 23rd minute as she converted once again from the penalty spot. She added her second assist of the season in the 74th minute and bagged her second goal of the game in the 82nd minute, turning and finishing from close range. Smith now has six goals this regular season, good for second in the league in scoring, and is just one shy of the seven goals scored during her first full NWSL season in 2021.
Pugh continued her stellar run of form, scoring the game’s only goal in the Chicago Red Stars’ 1-0 win over the Orlando Pride on Sunday. Her fifth goal in just six games this season came off a brilliant strike in the 10th minute, rifling a right-footed blast into the upper 90 from outside the penalty area. Pugh, who finished second in NWSL MVP voting in 2022, is just one shy of matching her career best for goals in a club season, having scored six goals for the Washington Spirit during her rookie campaign in 2017.
The win over Orlando, coupled with a 0-0 draw midweek against the Washington Spirit, extends the Red Stars’ unbeaten streak to six consecutive games, the longest active unbeaten streak in the league.
Angel City FC made it back-to-back games unbeaten, following up a scoreless midweek draw against the Houston Dash with a 3-2 victory over Racing Louisville on Saturday night. Christen Press scored and tallied an assist for Angel City on the night, before having to leave the match in the 66th minute with what was later revealed to be a torn ACL. She will miss the rest of the NWSL season.
The North Carolina Courage also prevailed in a 3-2 thriller, scoring in second-half stoppage time to thwart a comeback attempt from the Washington Spirit. North Carolina jumped out to a 2-0 lead after goals in the sixth and 50th minutes, the latter coming off a corner kick served in by defender Carson Pickett, who earned her first USWNT call-up. The Spirit cut the deficit in half with a goal by Ashley Sanchez in the 74th minute as the midfielder skillfully brought the ball down in the box and combined with teammate Bayley Feist before burying the return pass into the back of the net.
Ashely Hatch drew the Spirit level in the 79th minute as she converted from the penalty spot for her fourth goal of the season. However, North Carolina scored in the second minute of second-half stoppage time to stymie the Spirit at home.
Rounding out the weekend action, the Kansas City Current extended their unbeaten run to three consecutive matches with a 1-0 victory over NJ/NY Gotham FC on Saturday at Children’s Mercy Park.
Information on upcoming matches featuring U.S. Women’s National Team players can be found below. All times listed are ET.
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Friday, June 17 |
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NWSL: Washington Spirit vs. Racing Louisville FC |
7:30 p.m. |
Paramount+ |
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Saturday, June 18 |
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NWSL: Kansas City Current vs. Chicago Red Stars |
8:30 p.m. |
Paramount+ |
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NWSL: OL Reign vs. Angel City FC |
10:00 p.m. |
Twitch |
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Sunday, June 19 |
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NWSL: Portland Thorns FC vs. Orlando Pride |
3:00 p.m. |
Paramount+ |
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NWSL: NJ/NY Gotham FC vs. San Diego Wave FC |
4:00 p.m. |
CBS; Paramount+ |
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NWSL: North Carolina Courage vs. Houston Dash |
5:00 p.m. |
Paramount+ |
