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Little Eyes, Big Voices: Why Young Girls Need the Women of the Orlando Pride

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7 years ago

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It’s June 7, and the women of the Orlando Pride have yet to win a match this season, drawing only once while on the road visiting Reign FC. Fans are disappointed, but the support doesn’t waiver. This city stands behind the females that make up the team.

Listen, I’m a grown woman who grew up hating soccer and found inspiration watching the 99ers when I was 12. I wish I’d had local role models I could watch during my formative years. I’m so thankful that little girls today have Malala Yousafzai, Bana Alabed, Amariyanna Copeny, Emma Gonzalez, and so many more girls leading the way for the next generation. They’ve used their platforms to evoke change.

Little girls also need local heroes to inspire them, so why are the women of the Pride some of the role models little girls need?

Dedication

Despite their (so far) winless season, the women don’t stop. They’re working to learn a new system under a new coach who understands change takes time and must be implemented carefully. When seemingly half of your roster heads out for international duties and Sydney Leroux is home awaiting the arrival of her little girl, you have to figure it out and just keep going. It can’t be easy to take the pitch week in and week out knowing everyone is watching and waiting for them to bring home some points, especially when players who don’t typically start are playing more minutes than they otherwise would have seen. There’s a lesson in dedication and perseverance to be had for anyone paying attention.

Pride

The team name may be Pride, but these ladies are the pride of their countries. Little girls can read about these badass women making headlines and think it could be them one day.

They get to see Marta not only as Brazil’s treasure, but as the six-time, FIFA World Player of the Year. Not only does she leave everything she has on the field for Brazil and the Pride, but she’s using her opportunities to advocate for dogs. If you follow her on social media, you know she loves her dogs, but is also working to build a rescue and a call to action for fans to be part of the solution to help the helpless animals.

They get to see Alex Morgan larger than life on streets all over the United States — celebrities like Natalie Portman wearing kits with her name across the back. They get to see her in Maroon 5’s Girls like You video, which aims to celebrate the women of the world. More importantly, little girls get to see a talented woman make a living out of the sport she loves. They get to see her spend her vacations sharing the love of soccer with children around the world who have nothing more than a ball made from old t-shirts and be inspired.

I could keep going about the women making their countries proud with call-ups for the World Cup 2019, but here’s where I’ll let you share your who and why in the comments!

Resistance

Women are a lot of things and I think it’s pivotal that little girls know there is no mold. None of the women mentioned so far are the same or are even being recognized on this list for the same reason. Lereoux is resisting societal standards on what makes a female athlete, and even more so resisting the expectations of motherhood. She’s resisting the men on social media who hide behind screens and tell her what she should or shouldn’t be doing with her body. When a photo of Leroux went viral of her practicing while pregnant the internet had a field day. The one thing she didn’t do? She didn’t resist her doctor, the medical professional in charge of her and little girl’s well being. She knew her limits, she played it safe, and as seen in episode two of Bad as a Mother, she knew when it was time to take off her boots.

Not just in pregnancy, but Sydney is resisting the classical image of motherhood. She’s a model for girls to realize they can have careers, be it in sports or elsewhere, and be great mothers. Through her sharing on social media we see a woman and mom who jokes, laughs, and makes mistakes, and yet the world keeps spinning. I want to be Sydney when I grow up, or in my next life, and I want little girls to know they can clap back at the men and boys that have anything to say about them.

Perseverance

Carson Pickett was born without her left forearm and hand. By any and all accounts, she has a disability, but you wouldn’t know it to watch her play or listen to her talk about life as a professional soccer player. She knows that people are watching. She knows she has a platform to inspire others, not just in playing soccer, but in living a happy and successful life. She’s sharing her message that she has to control what she can control — a message any girl needs to hear regularly.

Equality and Self-Worth

Ali Krieger and Ashlyn Harris fall into multiple categories here, but I’m going with equality and self-worth. These two women are already role models for little girls playing soccer on small fields or in their backyards. As a couple that is playing together, engaged, and focused on their futures, how can you not be proud to have them for your little girls to look up to? They are unapologetically themselves, and work hard to make sure boundaries are in place for themselves as a couple that also has to work together.

In her story in the 23 Stories series for the USWNT social media campaign, Harris shared that she had to work hard to get where she is and how soccer saved her life. She recognized a group of people who felt unwanted, recognizing those feelings in herself, so she’s using her platform to work with those who struggle with their mental health and addiction. She wants people all over to know that their stories matter, they’re not alone, and that who they are is beautiful. Her message is simply, “Stay.” Life is hard, but it gets better. She encourages today’s youth to undeniably be themselves.

Representation matters.

It’s my motto when I’m searching for books for some of our youngest readers, and I think it’s only fitting in sports as well. It matters in the books we read, the movies we watch, the games we play, and the leadership roles that fill our lives. It especially matters for little girls, who start life loving bugs, loving soccer, loving STEM. It matters that little girls have strong role models to watch regularly so they don’t lose their loves because some YouTube video and a girl on the playground said they only need to worry about the latest makeup palette, when they can love both.

Little girls need to know they can do and be anything. Little girls need to know that they have voices that are worthy. Little girls need powerful women leading the way, and how lucky our city girls are to have these women in their backyard. 

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Orlando Pride

Orlando Pride vs. Bay FC: Final Score 3-1 as Banda Brace Leads Pride to Victory

Barbra Banda bags a brace and an assist but goes down injured late in the victory.

Published

3 days ago

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May 29, 2026

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Image of Barbra Banda celebrating her goal against Bay FC.
Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Justin Glatt

After dropping two games to expansion teams and stealing a win in San Diego, the Orlando Pride looked to enter the summer break on a good note. The Pride (5-5-2, 17 points) had never lost to Bay FC (3-6-2, 11 points) and used a second-half burst to maintain that winning record and won 3-1 at Inter&Co Stadium.

Barbra Banda opened the scoring in the fourth minute and followed it up in the 51st minute with her second. She added an assist to Cori Dyke in the 55th minute to close out the Pride scoring. Caroline Conti scored the lone Bay FC goal at the seven-minute mark.

“No better gift than a 3-1 victory at home in front of our fans,” Pride Head Coach (and birthday boy) Seb Hines said after the game. “It feels good that we’re ending this period on a high. I think it’s the first time this season we’ve got back-to-back victories.”

The Pride made one change in the lineup, giving Kerry Abello her first start of the season over Julie Doyle. Anna Moorhouse started in goal with Abello, Rafaelle, Cori Dyke, and Oihane on defense. Haley McCutcheon and Ally Lemos played midfield in front of them with Mace, Luana, and Nicole Payne attacking from the midfield. Banda and her leading-leading nine goals played alone up top.

After an hour weather delay, the Pride went with the in-vogue start these days by kicking the ball straight out of bounds deep on the start and pressing high. It led to an opening three minutes of play in which the Pride kept the pressure up and forced the ball to stay on the Bay FC side. In the fourth minute, Luana headed a ball towards the center which Banda controlled, bodied Bay FC’s Joelle Anderson off the ball, and slotted the opening goal with her left foot.

Bay FC fought right back in the seventh minute as the visitors didn’t have to fight through the press off their kickoff. Claire Hutton crossed the ball into the box, Abello deflected it wide but there was no Pride defender there and it fell to Caroline Conti. Abello tried to fight all the way over but Conti was able to put it past Moorhouse before any help arrived.

The entire back line got pulled to the right on the play and Mace could not get back to help out wide.

“Hailie Mace came into NWSL as a winger. She’s got some tendencies that fit a winger profile. We knew Bay FC had a high back line. How do we get behind that back line? Having someone to support Barbra and not just Nicole but add in another player who can get into the attack,” Hines said regarding the switch.

In the 16th minute, Rachael Kundananji beat Oihane and crossed the ball to Hannah Bebar, who headed it into the net, but Cristiana Girelli was in an offside position threatening the goal, so the assistant referee ruled that it put Moorhouse off enough to interfere with the play.

The teams settled down a bit and traded possession until the 27th minute when Oihane centered the ball to Payne, who scuffed the shot high. One minute later, Luana sent a through ball for Banda to run onto and she went down in the box in a collision with Brooklyn Courtnall. It was fairly evident, however, that Banda got her leg into Courtnall’s to either try to control the ball or draw a foul, and the referee, Jaclyn Metz, saw it the same way.

In the 33rd minute, Oihane was subbed out for Hannah Anderson. Oihane had been laboring a little and may have picked up a knock somewhere.

The Pride couldn’t re-establish the high press so they turned into a lot of possession by Bay FC. Any attack by the Pride ended in a turnover off a bad pass or ill-conceived long shots as Orlando’s attackers were impatient in building play. Turnover after turnover plagued the Pride for the remainder of the half as they did not threaten at all until the 45th minute, when Banda took on Maddie Moreau and Kundananji, shook them both loose, and then crossed the ball into an empty area at the back post with no one to finish.

It was a fitting final piece of sound and fury, signifying nothing, as the half wrapped without any plays of interest. The Pride weren’t able to lead any of the statistics, tying Bay FC in shots (4-4), while Bay FC led in shots on target (3-1), possession (53%-47%), and passing accuracy (85%-83%). Neither team was able to force a corner in the first half.

To start the second half, Hines subbed in Summer Yates for Abello, which pushed Mace back to the back line. In the 48th minute, Kundananji got behind when Anderson got caught out and was sizing up a one-on-one with Moorhouse. Dyke hustled back and blocked the shot.

“We started the game super strong, super intense, but I think we fell off towards the end of that first half,” Dyke said. “We got a little too stretched between the lines and weren’t getting enough pressure on the ball and we talked about that at halftime. We needed to stay more compact and then pick our moments to go.”

Go they did. Three minutes later, Yates sent a through ball angled behind Banda which allowed her to run onto the ball unopposed. She beat goalkeeper Emmie Allen, who came out of the box aggressively to defend, and then passed the ball into the net in the 51st minute.

Four minutes later, Banda pressured Allen, forcing the goalkeeper into a clearance out of play. On the ensuing throw-in, Banda held off Bebar in the box, spun, and crossed the ball to Dyke, who put the ball in off the crossbar. The ability of the Pride to retain possession and work the ball in against a lesser opponent opened up the scoring and turned the game on its head.

Bay FC didn’t have a lot to do over the next stretch of time and Taylor Huff went down with an injury in the 61st minute, prompting a change as she was subbed out for Karlie Lema. Dorian Bailey came on for Joelle Anderson in the same stoppage but at the 62nd minute.

The teams went back and forth for a bit until the Pride drew a corner in the 71st minute. It deflected off a Bay FC defender and fell to Rafaelle at the far post, who headed it just wide. Three minutes later, Jacquie Ovalle and Zara Chavoshi wrapped up the Pride substitutions by coming in for Payne and Mace. Bay FC also took the stoppage in the 74th minute to sub two players in, bringing on Keria Barry and Onyeka Gamero for Kundananji and Girelli.

Unfortunately, in the 81st minute, Banda was dribbling down the left side when she pulled up lame and went to the ground off the pitch. She stayed there until tended to and was obviously upset. We’ll have to wait for any injury news on her. Bay FC made its final substitution in the ensuing stoppage in the 82nd minute, bringing on Kelli Hubly for Conti.

The injury to Banda left the Pride playing with only 10 players for the remaining 15 minutes (including added time) due to using up all three substitution windows. They stayed fairly solid in defense and played a lot of keep-away ball to see out the victory while playing short.

“A great way to finish this part of the season with a win at home. I think we were consistent today and we took the chances we created,” Luana said. “We’ve been having highs and lows in this part of the season but we bounced back in these two wins and it brought us a lot of confidence.”

Orlando City was ahead in the only stat that matters, goals, but trailed in every other major stat. Bay FC finished ahead in shots (14-8), shots on target (5-4), possession (54%-46%), passing accuracy (85%-84%), and corners (4-1).

The Orlando Pride now will be off until early July for the NWSL World Cup break. The next match is scheduled for July 3 in Los Angeles against Angel City FC.

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Orlando Pride vs. Bay FC: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

The Pride return home to face Bay FC in their final game before the FIFA World Cup break.

Published

3 days ago

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May 29, 2026

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

Welcome to your preview and match thread as the Orlando Pride (4-5-2, 14 points) return home from a three-game road trip to take on Bay FC (3-5-2, 11 points). This is the first of two meetings between the two teams with the return game scheduled for Sept. 27 in San Jose.

Here’s everything you need to know about tonight’s game.

History

Bay FC is one of two expansion teams that entered the NWSL for the 2024 season. The teams have met four times, with the Pride holding a 3-0-1 record and a 1-0-1 mark at home in the series.

The most recent meeting took place on Sept. 13, 2025, in Orlando. The visitors took the lead just before halftime when Racheal Kundananji headed in a long pass by Caprice Dydasco. The Pride equalized in the second half, when Ally Watt headed a Jacquie Ovalle cross past Jordan Silkowitz to claim a 1-1 draw.

On June 13 of last year in San Jose, CA, Bay FC led almost every statistical category, but the Pride defense held strong until Barbra Banda scored shortly after halftime. The Pride withstood attack after attack, coming away with a hard-fought 1-0 win.

The teams met twice in 2024, with the first-ever game between the clubs occurring on May 11. Just prior to the half-hour mark, Banda dribbled inside and Deyna Castellanos attempted an ill-advised challenge, resulting in a foul in the box and a Pride penalty. Adriana put the ball into the bottom left corner for the only goal, lifting the Pride to a 1-0 win. It was the sixth win in an NWSL-record, eight-game win streak.

The teams met for the second time on Sept. 20, 2024. It looked like the game might be headed for a scoreless draw until Banda got her head on the end of a Carson Pickett cross, redirecting it past Katelyn Rowland to give the Pride the 1-0 win.

Overview

The Pride return home tonight after a difficult road trip that saw the team fall 2-1 to Boston Legacy FC and 3-1 to Denver Summit FC. Having already lost to both expansion teams, they headed west to face San Diego Wave FC, a team near the top of the standings. But Nicole Payne’s first professional goal lifted Orlando to a 1-0 win.

Despite not scoring in two of the last three games, Banda still leads the league with nine goals in 10 games this season. She has a two-goal lead on Ashley Sanchez, who is second in the league. Haley McCutcheon is the only other Pride player with multiple goals, scoring twice in the same game. Ovalle, Marta, and Hannah Anderson have the team’s other three goals. The assists have been spread out much more evenly with Ovalle, McCutcheon, and Rafaelle all sharing the team lead with two.

The clean sheet against San Diego was big for the back line as the team has conceded too many goals recently. Dating back to their 3-2 loss to Racing Louisville FC on April 24, the Pride have conceded multiple goals in four of the last six games. The only other game in which they didn’t concede at least twice was a 1-0 win over the North Carolina Courage on May 8, their last home game.

Tonight is the Pride’s last game before the league breaks for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. After the game, they won’t play again until July 3 and won’t play at home until July 10. That makes getting a quality result tonight essential for momentum going through the remainder of the season.

If you’re looking for a team to win against, Bay FC is one of the most likely candidates. The Bay -area side sits 13th in the NWSL on 11 points, just four points ahead of Louisville for last place. Tonight’s visitors are currently on a four-game winless run (0-2-2) and a two-game losing streak. Their last win was a 1-0 victory against San Diego on May 3. The club’s most recent games are a 2-0 loss to Portland Thorns FC on May 20 and a 1-0 loss to Chicago Stars FC on May 24.

Bay FC has struggled this year on both ends of the field. Its eight goals are second fewest in the league and Bay is one of three teams with single-digit goals this year. Meanwhile, the team’s 14 goals conceded are sixth in the league. The California side has been better defensively overall than the Pride, who have conceded 16 goals, but worse offensively, as the Pride have scored 15 goals so far this year.

Bay FC has been led in the attack by Alex Pfeiffer and Dorian Bailey with two goals each. Kundananji, Taylor Huff, Keira Barry, and Joelle Anderson have one apiece. Pfeiffer also leads the team in assists with two, tied with Cristina Girelli. Huff and Sydney Collins are the only other players with assists this season.

It should help the Pride tonight that Bay FC will be missing two key players. Silkowitz and starting center back Aldana Cometti were sent off against Chicago Sunday, meaning they’ll miss tonight’s game.

However, the Pride have their own key absences. In addition to injuries that have accumulated this season, Angelina was handed an additional game’s suspension after being sent off on May 16 for pulling Delanie Sheehan’s hair.

“We’re looking forward to it. Looking forward to being back home,” Pride Head Coach Seb Hines said about tonight’s game. “It’s been a long road trip. Excited to get in front of our own fans. Want to create that atmosphere, make it hostile for Bay FC. We know it’s a quick turnaround for both teams as well, so we want to make sure that we start off on the front foot, build on what we achieved last Sunday in San Diego, and finish this part of the season on a high.”

The Pride will be without Angelina (suspension), Cosette Morche (ankle), Kylie Nadaner (maternity leave), Viviana Villacorta (knee), and Solai Washington (knee). Marta (thigh) and Ovalle (thigh) are listed as questionable. Bay FC will be without Cornetti (suspension), Abby Dahlkemper (maternity leave), Anouk Denton (lower leg), Dydasco (maternity leave), Heather Gilchrist (knee), Alyssa Malonson (knee), Emily Menges (maternity leave), Pfeiffer (knee), and Silkowitz (suspension).

Official Lineups

Orlando Pride (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Anna Moorhouse.

Defenders: Oihane, Rafaelle, Cori Dyke, Hailie Mace.

Defensive Midfielders: Ally Lemos, Haley McCutcheon.

Attacking Midfielders: Kerry Abello, Luana, Nicole Payne.

Forward: Barbra Banda.

Bench: McKinley Crone, Zara Chavoshi, Hannah Anderson, Julie Doyle, Marta, Jacquie Ovalle, Summer Yates, Seven Castain, Simone Jackson.

Bay FC (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Emmie Allen.

Defenders: Sydney Collins, Joelle Anderson, Brooklyn Courtnall, Maddie Moreau.

Defensive Midfielders: Hannah Bebar, Claire Hutton.

Attacking Midfielders: Racheal Kundananji, Caroline Conti, Taylor Huff.

Forward: Cristiana Girelli.

Bench: Camryn Miller, Kelli Hubly, Jamie Shepherd, Dorian Bailey, Karlie Lema, Onyeka Gamero, Tess Boade, Keira Barry.

Referees

REF: Jaclyn Metz.
AR1: Art Arustamyan.
AR2: Adam Cook.
4TH: Edson Carvajal.
VAR: Anya Voigt.
AVAR: Katarzyna Wasiak.

How to Watch

Match Time: 7 p.m.

Venue: Inter&Co Stadium — Orlando.

TV: None.

Streaming: NWSL+.

Social Media: For live updates and rapid reaction, follow @themaneland.bsky.social on Bluesky and the Orlando Pride’s official Twitter (@ORLPride) or Bluesky (@orlpride.com) feed.

Enjoy the game. Go Pride!

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Orlando Pride vs. Bay FC: Three Keys to Victory

What do the Pride need to do to earn all three points against Bay FC?

Published

4 days ago

on

May 28, 2026

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

The Orlando Pride welcome Bay FC to Inter&Co Stadium this Friday night for the last match before the World Cup break. This is an opportunity to get a win over a team lower in the table and move up in the standings. What must the Pride do to earn all three points against Bay FC this weekend?

Keep the Chip

I have been asking all season on SkoPurp Soccer: An Orlando Pride PawedCast for the Pride to play with the chip on their shoulder that they had when they won the double in 2024. We saw that against the San Diego Wave. My hope is that the players have now remembered what that feels like and will execute with the same level of intensity going forward.

The task is potentially a little easier against Bay FC, as the California-based side has scored less than half the number of goals that the Wave have this season. Of course, that is the trap. The Pride cannot slack off against Bay FC. Having Rafaelle anchoring the defense is a big help, and moving Hailie Mace out to right back has proven effective. In 2024, this team hated — with a capital “H” — conceding goals. They took it personally. That is the passion I want again. The chip on the shoulder.

Overwhelm and Outscore

As I mentioned above, Bay FC is not a prolific scoring team. Friday’s visitors have also given up 14 goals this season. That’s not the best or the worst in the league, but they haven’t faced Barbra Banda yet. The Orlando Pride don’t have any trouble creating chances, but they have had trouble getting anyone other than Banda to finish them this season. Banda leads the league in goals, and she has an opportunity to maintain or extend that lead against Bay FC.

What will truly make the difference for the Pride against Bay FC is if any of the other players can contribute a goal. We saw the space that Banda can provide her teammates when Nicole Payne scored her first goal against San Diego. Now I want other players to take advantage of that space to provide some goals for the Pride.

More Luana

Luana got her first start since coming back to the squad cancer-free. I think we’ve forgotten that she was a starter on the 2024 squad before her Hodgkin’s lymphoma diagnosis. She was a starter on a team that won the double. Now she is back and she is a leader and an inspiration for her fellow players.

Given Marta’s limited minutes, having Luana out there as a stabilizing presence is important. Obviously, she brings a different skill set than Marta but still a critical one. Much like the defense, the midfield was better last match, and I feel she was a big part of that.

That is what I will be looking for on Friday night. The Pride can head into the World Cup break on a high with a victory. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!

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