NWSL Power Rankings: Washington Spirit Looks Sharp With Young Talent; Houston Dash hit rock bottom

1.

North Carolina Courage

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You’ve had a road loss, but it’s hard to be too upset when you’ve outscored an opponent 15-5 and have an expected goals average of 2.26 to 0.36 thanks to Tyler Lussi and Ashley Sanchez. Sometimes even good teams get beaten in matches when they have more chances.

2.

Kansas City Stream

+2

In last week’s rankings we said that Temwa Chawinga and Bia Zaneratto are looking almost unstoppable at the moment. After scoring four more goals together in a win in Kansas City, the duo has now transcended to instant goal-scoring status.

3.

Orlando proud

+2

Marta is quietly enjoying a career renaissance and Summer Yates is in good form in her second season at the club. The Pride got their first win of the season and it finally feels like Orlando’s jukebox of rebuilds has finally gotten on track with the arrival of Barbra Banda.

4.

Washington spirit

+3

Outside defender Casey Krueger was the slingshot for the Spirit’s attacking runs this week in a 2-0 win over Gotham. Trinity Rodman and Ouleymata Sarr have kept the backlines honest, and it continues to create space for newcomer Croix Bethune to expose.

5.

Chicago red stars

+1

Mallory Swanson couldn’t be back if she had access to a time machine. The team took a blow in practice by losing Ava Cook to an ACL injury and bounced back with a win over the Seattle Reign and a superstar performance from Swanson with a goal and an assist.

6.

San Diego Wave FC

-4

Lately they haven’t been able to show much in front of goal. The fact that Alex Morgan leaves the game with an ankle injury doesn’t help, but the club is recent move for winger Maria Sánchez could finally shake things up for them on offense.

7.

NJ/NY Gotham FC

-4

The superteam era is still on pause for Gotham. Head coach Juan Carlos Amoros and the team are still trying to figure out how to win while dealing with a slew of injuries.

8.

Angel City FC

+2

It’s not easy to take down one of today’s most in-form teams, and yet Angel City did just that this week. A great performance from Claire Emslie with two goals and an organized defensive effort to secure three points.

9.

Portland Thorns FC

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Mike Norris is out and promoted to technical director and assistant Rob Gale is interim head coach. Whether it’s the shock of the personnel change or going up against a Houston team with issues of its own, Portland finally looks like a team that can deliver a killing blow — against other struggling teams.

10.

Seattle Reign FC

-2

They are no strangers to slow starts, but they are showing no improvement and the transfer window has just closed. They look non-threatening to the goal and are separate from other lines.

11.

Racing Louisville FC

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Uchenna Kanu enters the early NWSL Golden Boot race and leads the team in goals scored, while Taylor Flint and Savanah DeMelo control the midfield. They got their first win by beating the Utah Royals after four consecutive draws, but they will have to put it all together consistently and against non-expansive sides.

12.

Bay F.C

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The expansion side has already been involved in some wild games, but is quickly turning into a streaky side that struggles on the road. The team will have to regroup after Alex Loera confirmed that she tore her cruciate ligament.

13.

Utah Royals FC

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The franchise was active during the transfer window and made moves on deadline day. With good reason, as the expansion franchise has four losses in five weeks. Head coach Amy Rodriguez needs quick solutions for her squad as the next phase of the season arrives.

14.

Houston Dash

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The club faced bad headlines after their former franchise player requested a trade. They were busy during the transfer window and Sanchez was shipped to San Diego and goalkeeper Emily Alvarado to Portland. The team leads the league in goals conceded and head coach Fran Alonso probably can’t wait for his defensive reinforcements to arrive soon enough.