Summer is officially over (in the soccer sense), and NWSL players who represented their countries in summer tournaments have returned to their clubs to resume their seasons or are returning soon. On to the second part of the season!
Week 14 marked the start of the playoff push, and teams wasted no time picking up where they left off. From dramatic returns and rookie breakthroughs to dramatic late winners and a ton of dogs, it was a weekend full of energy and intensity. Here’s what you might have missed in Week 14 if you weren’t glued to your TV!
Racing Louisville FC 0, Kansas City Current 2
Kansas City Current opened the second half of the season with a 2-0 road win over Racing Louisville, extending their lead atop the standings to 11 points. After a scoreless first half, Temwa Chawinga netted her ninth goal of the season in the 65th minute before Elizabeth Ball added a second with a header in her 100th regular-season appearance.
Laurel Ivory earned a clean sheet in her NWSL regular-season debut, taking the place of Lorena who would win the Copa America Feménina with Brazil the very next day, while Debinha made her 150th career appearance, becoming the first Brazilian in the NWSL to reach the milestone. The win marked Kansas City’s seventh straight and league-best seventh shutout of the season. And to think: this was all without incoming young star Ally Sentnor, who joined them in Kansas City after the blockbuster trade announced hours earlier.
In a stadium filled with dogs (it was Chicago’s bark in the park game), Gotham FC and the Chicago Stars played to a 1-1 draw at SeatGeek Stadium, with both sides trading goals. Rookie Khyah Harper opened the scoring for Gotham with a diving header in her first professional start, assisted by fellow rookie Sarah Schupansky, who recorded her fifth assist of the season—a club rookie record. Chicago equalized in the 68th minute through Ally Schlegel, and both sides had chances late but settled for a point apiece. Ann-Katrin Berger made four saves in her return from international duty to preserve the result for Gotham, who ended the weekend just above the playoff line
Seattle Reign FC 2, Angel City FC 0
Seattle Reign FC returned from the summer break with a 2-0 home win over Angel City FC, powered by a second-half strike from Jess Fishlock and a late own goal. Second-half sub Fishlock scored in the 66th minute after her initial header was saved, volleying in the rebound to break the deadlock. A Sofia Huerta corner kick in the 86th minute deflected off a defender to seal the win.
The result marked a strong restart for Seattle, who ended the weekend fifth in the standings and saw the return of Huerta from a loan in France and the debut of Mia Fishel. For Angel City, although returning home with a loss, they saw the debuts of two summer signings: UNC rookie midfielder Evelyn Shores and Icelandic international Sveindis Jónsdóttir.
North Carolina Courage 0, San Diego Wave FC 0
San Diego Wave FC and North Carolina Courage battled to a scoreless draw at WakeMed Soccer Park in their return to league action. Despite a flurry of late chances and an 18-6 shot advantage for the Wave, neither side could break through.With the result, San Diego extended its road unbeaten streak to a club-record five games and ended the weekend fourth in the standings.
Bay FC and Houston Dash shared the spoils in a 2-2 draw at PayPal Park following a back-and-forth second half. Penelope Hocking, now leading her team in goals, put Bay in front in the 16th minute, and at halftime, Bay FC fans were treated to the second-annual corgi race.
In the second half, Houston equalized through Kiki Van Zanten in the 72nd, her first NWSL goal. Rookie Taylor Huff responded just two minutes later with her first professional goal, only for Sophie Schmidt to level the match again in the 88th minute off a header from a corner. Racheal Kundananji threatened throughout for Bay, hitting the woodwork twice, while Caprice Dydasco surpassed 15,000 career NWSL minutes, becoming the 14th player in league history to reach the milestone.
Washington Spirit 2, Portland Thorns FC 1
The Washington Spirit earned a dramatic 2-1 win over the Portland Thorns at Audi Field, with Trinity Rodman netting the game-winner in stoppage time. Gift Monday opened the scoring in the 17th minute off a cross from Rosemonde Kouassi, with the duo now the second in the league for 2025 assist-to-goals with (Gotham’s Sarah Schupansky to Esther González lead with five), before Olivia Moultrie equalized for Portland just before halftime with a strike from outside the box.
Rodman, returning from injury, entered in the 72nd minute to loud fanfare and delivered her third career stoppage-time game-winner in regular-season play – the first in league history to reach three – finishing off a Croix Bethune deflected assist. The Spirit ended the weekend tied for second with Orlando with the tiebreaker being goal differential (3 to Orlando’s 10).
Orlando Pride 1, Utah Royals FC 1
Utah Royals FC earned a hard-fought point on the road with a 1-1 draw against a second-place Orlando Pride, who were without Marta and Angelina, two key Pride players who lifted the Copa América Femenina trophy with Brazil. Mina Tanaka put Utah ahead in the fifth minute with a long-range strike, her second goal of the season. Orlando pushed for an equalizer and found it in the 73rd minute through Prisca Chilufya, who finished a Simone Jackson cross just minutes after both players entered as substitutes. It was Chilufya’s second goal of the season and Jackson’s home debut. Utah rookie goalkeeper Mia Justus made her professional debut, replacing Mandy McGlynn who was out with injury, and delivered a clutch save late to preserve the result. Orlando held on to their second place spot in the standings thanks to a goal differential but will need to find more points in games going forward if they want to catch up to the Current in the NWSL Shield race.