New Mom Alex Morgan Scores First FA WSL Goal

⚽️Soccer: U.S. women’s national team striker Alex Morgan is back in superstar form. Morgan scored her first FA WSL goal yesterday on a penalty, helping her Tottenham Hotspur notch their first win of the season 3–1. That’s what you call #momgoals.

• On this side of the pond, the MLS Cup is almost set. The Columbus Crew SC ended the New England Revolution’s underdog journey with a 1–0 win yesterday to take the Eastern Conference Final. The Seattle Sounders FC and Minnesota United FC face off tonight at 9:30 p.m. ET for the Western Conference spot.

🏒Hockey: The NBA will have to fill our winter-sports void for a little bit longer, because the NHL is still dragging their skates. The original New Year’s Day start to the season has been pushed to a more realistic January 15th, with the league now aiming for a 52 or 56-game season instead of the regular 82. Just get it in writing and start the Zambonis already!

📖Sports Illustrated: As we near the end of 2020 (finally!), Sports Illustrated has shaken up their annual “Sportsperson of the Year” by naming five athletes instead of just one. This year’s edition, called “The Activist Athlete,” announced tennis star Naomi Osaka, basketball players Breanna Stewart and LeBron James (for a record third time) and the NFL’s Laurent Duvernay-Tardif and Patrick Mahomes as recipients.

• While we love the theme, winners and overall sentiment, we can’t help but question a major misstep in overlooking the many incredible Black women in the WNBA.
  

• Not to take anything away from Stewart, but the decision to limit the award to champions and pick a white athlete in a year powered by strong Black leaders like Natasha Cloud and Maya Moore (who opted out of their seasons to fight for justice), seems a bit tone-deaf to us.