May 19, 2024 – National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL)
NJ/NY Gotham FC News Release
HARRISON, NJ – NJ/NY Gotham FC and U.S. Women’s National Team forward Lynn Williams scored her 79th career goal on Sunday night to officially break the National Women’s Soccer League all-time record for most goals across all competitions. Williams takes over the previous record of 78 held by Sam Kerr for seven years until today.
Williams has scored 13 goals in all competitions since joining Gotham FC last season, including the club’s opening goal in the 2023 NWSL Championship win over Seattle Reign. She has been a star scorer throughout her career, netting double-digit scoring figures for three different NWSL clubs dating back to her debut in 2015.
“I think that when you’re in it, you don’t really get to reflect,” said Williams looking back on the achievement. “It is moments like this that I really cherish and value. I haven’t had a moment to debrief, but I’m sure I will go home and sit with (fiancé) Marley (Biyendolo) and just think about all ten years. Hopefully that is not my last goal. I’m not done yet. It is just a moment in my career that I get to reflect, and then we keep moving forward.”
Williams was drafted by the Western New York Flash in 2015, where she scored 18 goals, including three goals in the 2016 NWSL Playoffs. One of those postseason finishes became the stoppage-time, game-tying goal in overtime in the championship game to force a penalty kick shootout that the Flash ultimately won.
After the Western New York Flash relocated to become the North Carolina Courage in 2017, Williams’ goal-scoring prowess continued with a haul of 48 finishes in all competitions. In 2017, 2018, and 2019 she led the Courage to win the NWSL Shield – awarded to the top team in the standings at the end of the season – and she scored twice in the Shield-clinching victory in 2018. North Carolina also won the NWSL Championship in the 2018 and 2019 seasons.
Across regular season games, Williams has the second-most goals in league history with her 67 scores, ranking 10 away from the league record. She ranks tied for third in postseason goals with four, and her five Challenge Cup goals are tied for fifth-most in league history.
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