NOTES TO KNOW

**NOTES TO KNOW

PLAYOFF SCHEDULE SET**

With a 2-0 Decision Day victory against Racing Louisville FC, San Diego Wave FC won its first NWSL Shield, presented to the club with the best record at the conclusion of the regular season, to earn the No. 1 seed in addition to a first-round bye in the NWSL Playoffs, presented by Bud Light. The reigning NWSL Champion Portland Thorns FC earned the No. 2 seed to also secure a first-round bye. With the playoff bracket set following Sunday's matchday, No. 4 seed OL Reign will host No. 5 seed Angel City FC in the first of two quarterfinal contests on Friday, October 20 with a 10 p.m. ET kickoff on Paramount+. The winner of that matchup will head to Snapdragon Stadium to face the Wave in the semifinals on Sunday, November 5 at 9:30 p.m. ET. Meanwhile, the No. 3 seed North Carolina Courage will host No. 6 seed NJ/NY Gotham FC at WakeMed Soccer Park in the second quarterfinal match at 7 p.m. ET on Sunday, October 22, airing live on CBS Sports Network. The winner of that contest will travel to Providence Park to take on the Thorns in the other semifinal matchup at 7 p.m. ET on Sunday, November 5. Both semifinal matches will air live on CBS Sports Network.

The 2023 Ally NWSL Championship will air live in primetime at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday, November 11 on the CBS Television Network and Paramount+. Additional coverage details will be announced at a later date. Tickets for the match are available here.

All playoff matches, including the Championship match, will stream internationally outside the U.S. on Watch.NWSLSoccer.com.

GOLDEN BOOT

Finishing the regular season with 11 goals across 17 matches, Portland Thorns forward Sophia Smith won the 2023 NWSL Golden Boot, the first top-scoring honor of her NWSL career. Smith, the 2022 NWSL MVP, is the first Golden Boot winner for the Thorns, beating out fellow NWSL attackers in North Carolina Courage forward Kerolin, who finished second with a career-high 10 goals in 19 matches, and Kansas City Current midfielder Debinha and Washington Spirit forward Ashley Hatch who each finished with nine tallies, for the crown.

IRONWOMEN

For the second straight season, the NWSL has seven ironwomen, a distinction earned by playing every minute of the regular season. Three 2022 ironwomen earned the honor once again this season, including Racing Louisville goalkeeper Katie Lund, North Carolina Courage defender Kaleigh Kurtz and Washington Spirit defender Sam Staab, who also recorded an ironwoman season in 2021. This year’s list of ironwomen also includes three past recipients, as Racing Louisville defender Abby Erceg recorded an ironwoman season in 2018 with the Courage while Angel City FC defender Sarah Gorden becomes the second ironman in club history (Megan Reid, 2022) after recording the first ironwoman season for the Chicago Red Stars in 2021. Houston Dash keeper Jane Campbell is the second keeper with three ironwoman seasons - joining Nicole Barnhart in achieving the feat - and the first keeper to record three with one club, as she also played every regular season minute in 2018 and 2019. Campbell and Staab join Barnhart and Amber Brooks as the only players to record three ironwoman seasons. Racing Louisville defender Lauren Milliet is the lone first-time ironwoman this season after appearing in all but 33 minutes in the 2022 regular season.

**DECISION DAY MATCH RECAPS AND MILESTONES

Washington Spirit vs. North Carolina Courage | 0 – 1 | Match Recap**

Momentum swung in favor of the Courage early on as Spirit forward Trinity Rodman received a red card in the 23rd minute for a tackle to North Carolina captain Denise O’Sullivan, leaving Washington with 10 field players for the remainder of the game. The Courage quickly capitalized, with forward Tyler Lussi scoring the lone goal of the match in the 25th minute on an assist from 19-year-old midfielder Manaka Matsukubo. With her fifth game-winning goal of the season, Lussi broke Lynn Williams’ club record for most game winners in a single season (4, 2019). The Spirit struggled to create offense without one of their best playmakers, recording just 301 passes to North Carolina’s 604, but still managed to apply pressure, forcing Courage keeper Casey Murphy to make three saves. Murphy recorded her ninth shutout to tie San Diego Wave keeper Kailen Sheridan for the league lead. With the win, the Courage became the fourth club to reach 75 regular season wins.

NJ/NY Gotham FC vs. Kansas City Current | 2 – 2 | Match Recap

Gotham FC looked to control early, scoring twice in the first 15 minutes, with forward Midge Purce scoring the first goal of Decision Day in the sixth minute, tying Carli Lloyd for the second most regular season goals in club history (16). Purce’s goal also makes her the 31st player in league history to record 25 regular season goals. Midfielder Yazmeen Ryan scored in the 15th minute, giving Gotham FC a 2-0 lead. However, a goal in the 26th minute by Kansas City Current rookie forward Alexa Spaanstra brought the Current back into the game, and an own goal by defender Jenna Nighswonger tied the score before halftime. With neither team scoring in the second half, a draw was enough to send Gotham FC to the playoffs as the No. 6 seed.

Orlando Pride vs. Houston Dash | 1 – 0 | Match Recap

With a scoreless match through 86 minutes, it looked like goalkeeper Jane Campbell would record her ninth shutout of the season to bring the Dash to a tie for the fewest goals allowed in a season (17). Unfortunately for Campbell and Houston, Orlando Pride forward Marta had other plans, capitalizing on a penalty kick in the 87th minute to give her club a 1-0 win in their regular season finale. With her successful penalty kick, Marta set a new club record for game winning goals (7). With two saves in the win, Pride keeper Anna Moorhouse set a new single season club saves record (72). Although the Pride tied Gotham FC in points with the win, they narrowly missed the playoffs due to a lower goal differential. Despite the loss for Houston, Campbell still made history, becoming the first keeper to play in and start 125 regular season matches for a single club.

Chicago Red Stars vs. OL Reign | 0 – 3 | Match Recap

The OGs showed out in OL Reign’s 3-0 win against the Chicago Red Stars. Determined to extend her career, forward Megan Rapinoe recorded her ninth career regular season brace, the second most in league history behind Sam Kerr (10). With her 50th and 51st career regular season goals, Rapinoe is just the sixth player to eclipse 50, joining Portland Thorns captain Christine Sinclair as the only other player to reach the milestone with one club. Assisting on Rapinoe’s second goal, midfielder Jess Fishlock joined teammates Rapinoe and Sofia Huerta on the list of just seven players to record 25 assists. Fishlock scored a goal of her own in the 59th minute, tying her with Lynn Williams (42) for the third most goals with a single club in league history.

Angel City FC vs. Portland Thorns FC | 5 – 1 | Match Recap

Angel City put on a show in front of a sold-out BMO Stadium, scoring five goals, the most in club history. They scored four consecutive goals, starting with defender M.A Vignola’s shot from the left side of the box in the 36th minute, with forward Sydney Leroux picking up the assist. Angel City doubled their lead two minutes later with a goal from forward Scarlett Camberos to take a 2-0 lead into halftime. Midfielder Savannah McCaskill scored in the 47th minute with an assist from Vignola, followed by a goal from Leroux in the 51st minute. Thorns midfielder Hina Sugita scored in the 79th minute, but her Japanese National Team teammate Jun Endo scored for Angel City just a minute later, bringing the match to a 5-1 final.

San Diego Wave FC vs. Racing Louisville FC | 2 – 0 | Match Recap

In just its second NWSL season, San Diego Wave FC clinched its first NWSL Shield, presented by CarMax, in front of their home crowd at Snapdragon Stadium. The team’s top scorers, captain Alex Morgan and 18-year-old forward Jaedyn Shaw led the way for the club, each finding the back of the net. Shaw tallied the ninth goal of her career in the win, breaking Mallory Swanson’s record for most regular season goals by a teenager (8). Morgan recorded her fifth assist of the season on Shaw’s goal before notching her seventh goal of the season in the 47th minute to take a 2-0 lead. Recording three saves, keeper Kailen Sheridan earned her ninth clean sheet of the season, setting a new single season club record and tying Courage keeper Casey Murphy for the league lead.