July 16, 2026
photo by Lynelle Leinbach, WPSL 2026
By Andrew Mosier, WPSL Communications
Entering Saturday’s WPSL Championships semifinal, New York Athletic Club believes....
It believes it can win.
“There is a belief within the squad that there is still more to accomplish. We respect every team remaining in the competition, but you do not reach this stage without believing you can win it. The players have earned the chance to compete for a national championship, and they are determined to make the most of it,” Brian Simpson, New York Athletic Club head coach, said.
When the season kicked off in May, few gave NYAC much of a chance in the incredibly competitive Metropolitan Conference that features one of the most dominant teams in the entire league, Clarkstown Soccer Club, which came into 2026 with three straight conference titles and unbeaten streak that extended to 2024.
Now the entire country is paying particular attention to New York Athletic Club.
“This is one of the most successful seasons in recent NYAC history and a team that has already achieved something special. Along the way, we comfortably defeated several perennial powerhouses in our conference, which gave the group confidence that it possessed the quality required to compete on the national stage,” Simpson said.
NYAC is the third-longest WPSL tenure behind founding clubs San Francisco Nighthawks and 2026 WPSL Championships semifinalist, California Storm. Joining the league in 2006, NYAC has competed in every WPSL season since, winning four regular-season titles, advancing to the East Region Playoffs semifinal in 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2016, and the East Region Playoffs final in 2012, 2013, and 2014. Post-Covid, the highest NYAC finished was third in 2022 and 2023.
But going into the 2026 season everyone at NYAC knew there was something different about the squad from the Upper East Side of Manhattan.
After comfortable wins over New York Dutch Lions FC on the road and STA at home, NYAC caught the attention of the entire country with a stunning 3-2 upset win of everyone’s pick to win its fourth consecutive conference title, Clarkstown Soccer Club in front of NYAC faithful at Asphalt Green.
Dylan Jovanovic scored all three goals, to add to the three goals she had already scored in prior games, to put NYAC up 3-0. Clarkstown didn’t go down for the first time in three years without a fight, scoring twice to make it 3-2 before the final whistle.
Jovanovic finished with 13 regular-season goals to win the Metropolitan Conference Golden Boot race. Jovanovic’s goal in the East Region Playoffs final pushed her goal total to 14 on the season.
“Dylan Jovanovic has had an outstanding season and consistently delivered in important moments,” Simpson said.
The seismic win earned NYAC Week Six Team of the Week, and Jovanovic National Offensive Player of the Week honors.
Following the huge Clarkstown win, NYAC rolled to three consecutive shutout wins before traveling to Bardonia, for the return match with Clarkstown. The 2-0 loss is the only blemish on NYAC’s 9-0-1 record going into the Championships this weekend.
After a 3-0 win over SUSA FC to close out the regular season, NYAC traveled to Lancaster, Pa. to face Northeastern Conference winners CT Rush.
Kayla Wong bookended a penalty kick from Victoria Vinals to put NYAC up 3-1 in the first half in a rain-soaked East Region Playoffs semifinal to put NYAC through to the East Region Playoffs final for the fourth time in the club's 20-season WPSL history, where it ran away with the final, beating Mid-Atlantic Conference winners and tournament hosts Pennsylvania Classics 8-2. Wong scored her second brace in two games, and Abby Douglass, Caelan Bacon, Jovanovic, Rachel Rouse, Vinals, and Josie Tunney scored goals to make history for the historic New York City Club.
“What has driven this team all year is the balance between quality and character. The players enjoy competing. They work for each other. And they hold each other accountable,” Simpson said.
New York Athletic Club looks to continue to make history when it faces Southeast Conference and South Region winners, Georgia Impact on Saturday in the WPSL Championships semifinal.
“At this stage of the competition, every team is capable of winning,” Simpson said. “We have a lot of respect for Georgia Impact, but we also have confidence in what this group has achieved and what it is capable of achieving. It should be a fantastic game between two very good teams with a place in the national final at stake.”
New York Athletic Club takes on Georgia Impact Saturday at 9 a.m. CDT in the first of two WPSL Championships semifinal matches. California Storm and Kansas City Current II play at 11:30 a.m. CDT. Semifinal winners face off in the WPSL Championships Final at 7 p.m. on Sunday, July 19 at Riverside Stadium. Purchase tickets here. All three matches will be available live and on demand on WPSL.TV
