Week 6: NWSL Pitch Notes | National Women's Soccer League Official Site

05 May 2023By: NWSL Editor

Week 6: NWSL Pitch Notes

A selection of moments to watch for and notes to know entering Week 6 of NWSL regular-season action

Below is a selection of moments to watch for and notes to know entering Week 6 of NWSL regular-season action. Week 6 match coverage begins Saturday, May 6 at 1 p.m. ET as the Washington Spirit play host to San Diego Wave FC at Audi Field.

WEST COAST REPRESENT

OL Reign and Portland Thorns FC players dominated the opening Best XI of the Month roster for the 2023 season. Led by Player of the Month Sophia Smith, six players from the two squads made up the Best XI roster, combining for 12 goals, five assists and over 2000 minutes on the field. Reign goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce registered 15 saves and a 1.00 goals against average through five matches en route to her first team of the month selection of the year. San Diego Wave FC defender Naomi Girma was also named to the league’s top 11 for March/April, recording 27 clearances, six blocks and six interceptions for Wave FC across the five-match slate.

IRONWOMEN

Thirty-eight players have competed in every minute of the regular season in 2023, including 10 goalkeepers, 19 defenders, seven midfielders and two forwards. Of the 38 players, four achieved ironwoman status in the 2022 season, including Chicago centerback Kaleigh Kurtz, Washington defender Sam Staab – who broke the league’s consecutive regular season starts record with her 73rd straight appearance last weekend – and goalkeepers Katie Lund (LOU) and Phallon Tullis-Joyce (WAS). Orlando defender Emily Madril, the only draftee from the 2023 NWSL Draft to appear in every minute of play so far this season, is expected to start in the Pride’s match against Racing Louisville FC Saturday at Exploria Stadium.

NAEHER SAVES THE DAY

Chicago Red Stars goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher is eight saves away from becoming just the second player in NWSL history to amass 500 regular season stops. Heading into this weekend’s match against NJ/NY Gotham FC, Naeher is 26 saves away from tying former goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris for the league saves record of 518. During her journey to 500, the Stratford, Connecticut native has earned 40 shutouts and in 2014 won the NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year award after making a record 106 saves in 24 games. In addition to her standout career in the league, the veteran has also enjoyed an illustrious career as a member of the U.S. Women’s National Team, earning 90 caps and appearing on the grandest stages in soccer, including both the Olympics and the Women’s World Cup.

YOUTHS STILL SHINING

Both Angel City FC newcomer Alyssa Thompson and San Diego Wave FC striker Jaedyn Shaw, two of the league’s prominent youth corps, scored for their respective squads in last weekend’s matches. Shaw’s goal in San Diego’s 3-1 loss marked her third tally of the regular season, already matching her scoring totals from the 2022 campaign. Thompson, who was named the league’s Rookie of the Month for March/April on Wednesday, enters Week 6 with two goals in five regular-season matches, tied for the lead among first-year players. Other youngsters poised to continue making waves this season include 17-year-old Portland Thorns midfielder Olivia Moultrie, who registered an assist in her club’s 3-3 draw with Angel City last Saturday, and Wave FC forward Melanie Barcenas, who in making her NWSL debut against the Pride became the youngest player to enter the pitch for a league match.

INTERNATIONAL LINEUP

Racing Louisville FC is the first club in NWSL history to feature players from six different continents on its roster. The Louisvillians already had an international flare last year, with four continents represented. The additions of Brazilian midfielder Ary Borges as well as Nigerian forward Uchenna Kanu and South African forward Thembi Kgatlana nudged Racing to six continents. Abby Erceg, New Zealand’s all-time caps leader, reinforced Australian midfielder Alex Chidiac as a second representative from Oceania.

STELLAR FROM THE SPOT

OL Reign forward Megan Rapinoe notched her 13th regular-season penalty kick goal in the Reign’s 2-2 draw against Racing Louisville FC last weekend, setting a new mark for career PK goals in the regular season. The veteran, whose goal from the spot kick-started the Reign’s comeback against Racing, had previously been tied with former Reign teammate Kim Little for the record.

BACK ON THE BIG SCREEN

The Washington Spirit’s Saturday matinee against San Diego Wave FC marks the NWSL’s return to the CBS Television Network. The league’s first CBS match of the season, a rematch of the 2022 NWSL Championship between Kansas City and Portland on April 1, garnered 475,000 viewers, becoming the most-watched regular season match in NWSL history. Coverage on CBS begins at 1 p.m. ET. Fans can also stream the match live on Paramount+.

WEEK 6 MATCH SCHEDULE

May 6, 2023

May 7, 2023

NWSL Pitch Notes