⚽️ The NWSL playoffs are here and the quarterfinals are stacked. No. 2 San Diego kicks things off Friday night riding a club-record seven-match unbeaten streak, while No. 7 Utah makes its playoff debut without a goal in three straight matches. I can’t believe I’m watching women’s sports over breakfast again, but Angel City takes on Kansas City Saturday at 12 p.m. ET, aka my 9 a.m. here in Los Angeles. ACFC carries a 10-match unbeaten streak into one of the toughest environments in pro soccer, where the Current haven’t lost a regular-season home match in an NWSL-record 32 games straight. Sunday is a doubleheader, and another round of breakfast tacos for me. At 12:30 p.m. ET, Gotham FC brings its first-ever Shield and the No. 1 seed, but can No. 8 Seattle flip the script with a little Laura Harvey playoff mojo in Jess Fishlock’s farewell season? Gotham, of all teams, knows what a No. 8 seed can do. Then at 3 p.m. ET, the Washington Spirit will need some Rowdy Audi magic against a dangerous, unpredictable Portland Thorns team. And with midfield enforcer Hal Hershfelt out for the season, can the Thorns take advantage? Eggs over easy, soccer over everything. Full schedule and times HERE.
🏀 Are you face down in a bowl of mac and cheese because the WNBA season is over? Put down the ladle, because college basketball is back and it’s throwing you a lifeline. The season tipped off Monday in Paris, where No. 1 South Carolina jumped out to a 31-point lead and then had to hold off a furious No. 20 Maryland comeback to win 101-93. Nobody is easing in this year. On Sunday, No. 2 UConn hosts No. 10 Iowa at 2 p.m. ET, and Charlotte serves up the Ally Tipoff doubleheader: No. 14 Kentucky against NC State at 3 p.m. ET, and then Dawn Staley’s Gamecocks take on No. 12 North Carolina. It’s week one and it already feels like March. Full slate HERE.
🏑 Sticks in, everybody. It’s championship weekend in college field hockey, and ten conferences are handing out automatic bids before the NCAA bracket drops Sunday night. Let’s start with the two powerhouses. The ACC just went FULL CHAOS! Duke and Wake Forest, two of the three regular-season co-champs, got bounced in the quarterfinals. Then Syracuse knocked off North Carolina in a penalty shootout on the Tar Heels’ home field, ending North Carolina’s streak of nine straight ACC titles. For the first time since 2016, there will be a new ACC champion, and whether it’s Syracuse or Boston College, it’ll be the program’s first-ever title. Chills. Over in the Big Ten, No. 1 Northwestern and No. 2 Maryland split the regular-season title and could meet in Sunday’s final. Northwestern has the Player of the Year in Ashley Sessa. Maryland has the Goalkeeper of the Year in Alyssa Klebasko. May the best stick win. Full schedule for all ten conferences here.
