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Orlando Pride vs. Chicago Red Stars: Final Score 4-2 as the Pride End a Busy Week With Defeat

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3 years ago

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The Orlando Pride (2-2-1, 7 points) were dominated by the Chicago Red Stars (2-1-0, 6 points), falling 4-2 at Exploria Stadium. The Pride didn’t get their first shot until the 61st minute, at which point they were trailing 2-0. A late flurry saw three goals and two penalty saves in six minutes before the game ended.

Pride Head Coach Amanda Cromwell displayed a much different team tonight compared to the one that played Wednesday night against the North Carolina Courage. The Courage were missing several key players due to COVID protocol, which allowed the Pride to come away with a 2-1 win earlier this week. Tonight, the team was similar to the one that beat Angel City FC and drew the Kansas City Current last weekend. The only difference was that Viviana Villacorta returned to the lineup, replacing Mikayla Cluff.

After claiming an unlikely point in North Carolina, the Pride were expected to have a great showing in front of their home crowd. But they were flat from the jump and were never a threat in the game, even when they scored two late goals.

“I think there’s some chemistry issues with the lineup,” Cromwell said after the game. “Actually, Michelle Akers turned to me right before the game and was like ‘I really liked this lineup.’ But it didn’t come to fruition. So I think we had a look at some of the partnerships and why they don’t work. Because clearly there was a partnership that didn’t work.”

Despite deploying a more experienced lineup, the Pride found themselves defending from the start. The game’s first attempt came in the second minute when a giveaway by Megan Montefusco allowed Yuki Nagasato to send Ava Cook into the box with a chip. The forward had the time to get a shot on goal, but it was well off target.

While Chicago played with high pressure early in the game, it was the poor passing by the Pride that created the most trouble. Rather than sending balls into spaces where a teammate could reach it, most balls went directly to the opposition. It was a problem that plagued the team all night.

After failing to convert on their first chance, the visitors opened the scoring in the 11th minute. For the second time, Chicago got behind the Pride defense as Zoe Morse played a through ball for Vanessa DiBernardo. The Red Stars captain played Sarah Griffith into the box right in front of goal. Carrie Lawrence blocked the initial shot, but it went right back to the midfielder and she put it in, giving the Red Stars the early lead.

Griffith got behind the Pride defense again in the 16th minute, sent through by Danielle Colaprico. She had a decent angle to shoot on Erin McLeod, but the shot wasn’t taken very well and she sent the ball well wide of the far post.

In the 22nd minute, Sydney Leroux turned the ball over on her own side of the field, resulting in a break by Chicago. Griffith’s shot from outside the box was on target, but McLeod did well to block it over the crossbar for a corner kick.

Former Pride forward Rachel Hill got in on the action for Chicago in the 25th minute, taking a shot from just outside the box. However, Lawrence was there again to make the block.

A minute later, DiBernardo took a shot that was blocked before regaining control of the ball and heading towards the end line. As a result, the midfielder’s second shot was from a very difficult angle and McLeod made the relatively easy save.

The Pride finally got a chance in the 29th minute when Courtney Petersen received the ball on the left and sent in a low cross. She had teammates in the box, but the cross wasn’t hit well and went straight to Red Stars goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher. Leroux and Jenkins also had crosses in the 37th and 38th minutes, but both were easily cleared away.

A poor clearance by Celia just outside the box in the 42nd minute traveled into the middle of the field and Griffith took over directly in front of goal. Fortunately, Lawrence was there again to make a good challenge and Griffith was unable to get a shot off.

It was a dominant first-half performance by the Red Stars. At the break, they had more shots (7-0), shots on target (3-0), corners (1-0), passes (303-219), and better passing accuracy (85.8%-78.5%). The only stat led by the Pride were crosses (5-4) and duels won (20-19).

“The possession to me was the number one thing that caused the chaos in the first half,” Cromwell said after the game. “But I thought we were lucky to get out of there. One nil, I mean, right off the bat. I think they had a chance in the first five minutes.”

“I feel like we did come out a little slow,” forward Leah Pruitt added. “I don’t know if it’s like a lack of chemistry, because I think we all wanted to work for each other.”

Chicago started the second half where they left off the first, dominating possession and the chances. In the 53rd minute, halftime substitute Mallory Pugh dribbled through the Pride back line, finding enough space for a shot on goal. McLeod blocked the shot away, but it was right at Hill, who fired from close range and hit the post.

Just a minute later, the visitors did get their second goal. Bianca St. Georges was left with plenty of space on the right side of the Pride box and Pugh fed her the ball. The right back quickly shot on goal with no defenders near her, beating McLeod to her far post from a narrow angle.

It took 61 minutes before the Pride were finally able to get a shot off. Pruitt had space from long distance and decided to take a shot on goal. The shot wasn’t very close to the target, sailing well to the left, but it was the first attempt of the game for the home team.

The Red Stars got their third goal in the 64th minute. It started from an innocuous situation, with Amy Turner playing the ball out of the back. However, like many of the Pride’s passes in this game, the ball went straight to a Red Star. Pugh tipped the pass to Cook, who immediately gave it right back to her. Pugh’s accurate shot beat McLeod, making it 3-0 Chicago.

Pugh nearly scored another goal in the 69th minute. She found some space to the left of goal and fired on target, but McLeod did well to tip it over the crossbar.

It appeared as though the Pride might get one back in the 81st minute when Amanda Kowalski pulled Leroux down as she entered the box. The referee pointed to the spot and the Pride had the game’s first penalty.

Leroux stepped up to take the kick herself and appeared confident in her approach. However, it was a poorly taken penalty and didn’t take much for Naeher to make the stop. The goalkeeper guessed the right way and was able to block the kick with her leg, keeping the three-goal advantage.

The Pride were able to get one back two minutes later when Morse fouled Leroux just outside the box. Petersen stepped up to take the kick, sending it toward the far post. Turner was first to get her head to the ball, putting it past Naeher and making it 3-1.

The comeback didn’t last long as the Red Stars got their own penalty in the 85th minute. Receiving the ball in the box. Ella Stevens got behind the Pride defense and Petersen tripped her up near the corner of the box. The referee pointed to the spot and Chicago was issued a spot kick.

Pugh stepped up to the spot to take the kick. It was down the middle, allowing McLeod to block it away. Unfortunately, the ball went right back to Pugh, who quickly closed in and put it past her for her second goal of the game.

The wild sequence of events continued two minutes later when the Pride got its second goal. Abi Kim dribbled into the box near the end line, finding Pruitt between two defenders. The forward had a tough angle, but beat Naeher for her first Pride goal to cut the deficit to two.

“I’m a forward so I really want to score goals,” Pruitt said about the goal. “So it was nice to get my first one under my belt and hopefully there’s a lot more to come.”

The Pride continued to press in an attempt to score another goal before full time, but the attempted comeback was too late. That would be the last of the scoring as the Pride fell 4-2.

In the end, it was a dominant performance by the Red Stars. They had more possession (55.9%-44.1%), shots (14-5), shots on goal (9-3), corners (3-0), passes (492-376), and better passing accuracy (84.6%-78.2%). The Pride only ended the game with more crosses (11-8).

“Our passing percentage was poor, our pressure covered defense was poor, our ability to track. Obviously we had tired legs. We had three games this week, they did not, but there’s still no excuse for that at halftime,” Cromwell said after the game. “We rested players so we would be ready for this game. We had multiple players get minutes on the Wednesday game so the lack of energy is inexcusable.”

“We were watching the first 20 minutes and we’re like what is going on?” she continued. “It wasn’t even that we were under that much pressure. Some of the balls we were giving away. There was lack of movement for each other. It was very stagnant, very predictable, in the play. So it wasn’t just the player on the ball that was having an issue. I think our movement off the ball was poor. We didn’t work for each other, which is what we’ve been doing. The last three games we’ve been working really hard for each other. So that was lacking.”

“Tonight, we were really spread,” Montefusco added. “We didn’t have enough numbers around the ball defensively and offensively. So I think that it starts there. We need to work together. We can’t do this all individually and I think we kind of had some individual performances tonight and you can’t win in this league with just one or two people. You got to have numbers around the ball at all times.”

The Pride will now have to put this tough loss behind them and bounce back quickly. After playing three games in nine days, the team will have a short week as they host the Washington Spirit Friday night at Exploria Stadium. Cromwell says fans can expect a different lineup than the one that started tonight.

“We have to play a lot better for Friday, that’s for sure,” Cromwell said. “And the lineup will look different for sure.”

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Orlando Pride Offense through the Lens of Goal-Creating Actions

Can an analysis of the Pride’s offense in 2024 using goal-creating actions help project how they will perform in 2025?

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1 week ago

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February 15, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

We are one week away from the season opener for Orlando City and three weeks away from the season opener for the Orlando Pride, wrapping up what has felt like a long off-season. Oddly enough, both off-seasons were the shortest in club history, but they have felt extra long, probably because of the elongated conversations around several players and whether these players would stay in Orlando, leave Orlando, or come to Orlando.

At this point, the rosters are probably pretty close to being locked in to what they will be when the seasons open, but there still may be some final changes, and if there are, hopefully they will be positive ones for the teams in purple.

Several weeks ago, I wrote about how the Pride were bringing back all of their goals and nearly all of their minutes played from 2024, and while that has changed now with Adriana’s departure to Al Qadsiah FC in Saudi Arabia, the Pride are still bringing back most of their goals and minutes and will likely be among the favorites, if not the favorite, when sportsbooks start posting their NWSL futures odds. As of this moment, I cannot find anyone who has odds posted, and very few sites have released their season previews and power rankings, but I have a hunch that the defending champions, bringing back nearly every key contributor, will be near the top of those lists. And they should be because, and let’s revel in this once again, they are the defending champions!

The Pride are bringing back two players who combined for 28 goals in NWSL play last season. If we include the playoffs, then Barbra Banda scored 17 goals and Marta added 11, and they ranked second and fourth, respectively, for most goals scored. What interested me, however, was that they only combined together to create four of those goals as a partnership.

Using Opta’s tracking and fbref.com’s database of goals, I was able to create a ranking of the most prolific partnerships during the 2024 NWSL season. For every goal scored, Opta tracks what they call goal-creating actions, which are the two plays immediately preceding a goal that led to a player scoring a goal. For example, let’s flash back to the playoff semifinal when Banda gave the Pride a 3-1 lead against the Current by smashing a ball into the net harder than a home run off the bat of Elly De La Cruz (my son’s favorite baseball player). In related news, I am also excited for baseball season.

In the video below, Banda is the goal scorer, and the prior two plays are a completed pass by Haley McCutcheon to Kylie Strom and then the assist on a completed pass from Strom to Banda. Opta tracks those as the two goal-creating actions for Banda’s goals, with Strom’s pass being the final action preceding the goal.

Staying in that same game, I am sure you remember Marta’s wondergoal (wondergoal is still underselling how great of a goal this was — this was an all-time great run down the field) that made the score 3-1. On that play, Banda received the assist, as she passed the ball to Marta, but the two goal-creating actions were actually both by Marta as she beat multiple defenders and the goalkeeper off the dribble to get herself into shooting position. Opta’s tracking shows this goal as scored by Marta, from two consecutive goal-creating actions of Marta take-ons. Yes Banda passed the ball to Marta, but this goal was created by Marta’s magic, and the GOAT taking on and beating multiple defenders.

Opta tracks the following seven different types of goal-creating actions:

  • Fouled
  • Interception (stealing a pass)
  • Pass (live-ball)
  • Pass (dead-ball)
  • Shot
  • Tackle (stealing the ball directly from the other team’s player)
  • Take-On (beating a defender off the dribble)

During the 2024 NWSL season there were 502 total goals scored, including the playoffs and including own goals. Opta’s tracking does not have an assist for every goal, nor does it have a goal-creating action for every goal, and that makes sense for how soccer is played. Sometimes goals happen unassisted, as a player, usually a striker, makes a tackle or interception themselves and then is in on goal and scores unassisted, or a player wins a loose ball in the box and slots it home, or a player finishes a rebound and the official scorer does not give the asisst to the player who took the original shot.

Opta’s tracking shows 481 non-own goals in 2024, with 312 of those goals (approximately 65%) having an assist. Of those 481 non-own goals, 447 (approximately 93%) had a primary goal-creating action, and this also makes sense, as it is much more likely, based on the list of goal-creating actions, that there was one of those than there was a true assist. I am much more interested in the goal-creating actions than I am the assists, as I believe they are better descriptors of how goals happened.

Looking at the Pride, which I know is really why you are here, the following table lists the player combinations that led to more than two goals during 2024:

Player CombinationGoals
Adriana and Barbra Banda5
Barbra Banda and Marta4
Ally Watt and Barbra Banda4
Adriana and Marta3
Barbra Banda and Julie Doyle3

For these counts it does not matter who created the goal and who scored it, these were the two Pride players involved in the final product. It may be a bit of a surprise to see that the top combination was Adriana and Banda, but Adriana scored three goals in 2024 that came directly from a foul on Banda (5/11 vs. Bay FC), a rebound from a Banda shot (6/30 vs. Angel City), and a foul on Banda (10/20 vs. Gotham). Banda scored two goals that resulted from an Adriana live-ball pass (5/19 vs. Seattle) and a rebound from an Adriana shot (7/6 vs. Kansas City). Adriana and Banda’s five goal combinations tied them for fourth in all of NWSL in 2024, with the combination of Esther González and Yazmeen Ryan of Gotham FC leading the league with seven.

It is a fair criticism of this statistic to say something along the lines of, “Well, Adriana did not intend to miss her shot and for Banda to score the rebound, so who really cares if it was an Adriana shot or someone else’s shot that Banda rebounded?”. Conversely, Adriana had to put a shot on target and have struck it well enough that it could not be saved and held, and Banda had to beat other players to the ball to score it, and both players had to have earned the right to be on the field at the same time.

I do not think goal-creating actions are the be-all, end-all, but I do think they tell more of a story than just assists. As another example, the action that immediately preceded five of Banda’s 17 goals was her winning a take-on against her defender. That total led the league in 2024, and she and Portland’s Sophia Smith were the only two players with more than three take-ons that led directly to goals in 2024. Two of those five goals for Banda had teammates credited with assists, but just as with the Marta goal against Kansas City when Banda was credited with the assist, the goals really came more from the effort by Banda as the goal scorer rather than from the pass that gave her the ball initially.

On a different note, those top combinations I showed tally up to 19 of the 54 goals scored by the Pride in 2024. The Pride benefitted from three own goals, meaning they scored 51 goals themselves, so those top combinations did not even account for half (37%) of the team’s goals last season. That is the sign of a team that is diverse in its attack, and even though Adriana is gone, they bring back everyone else who was involved in all of their goals, plus they will have Grace Chanda, Simone Charley, and Prisca Chilufya as additional offensive options in 2025. Losing Adriana will hurt, but I think the Pride will have her departure covered.

Goals are exciting, and of course are how teams win games, so as watchers and analyzers of soccer, we spend a lot of time thinking about how they happened. I like goal-creating actions as a statistic but I know on many goals there are different plays that happened in succession that led to the goal, and the goal-creating action stat only shows the final two plays. Those final two plays are critical though, so I think it is a good statistic to analyze, just in conjunction with others as well.

It is no accident that Banda was all over that list of top Pride combinations, she led the league in goal-creating actions and goal-creating actions plus goals, and with her available for the full season in 2025 I expect that she is going to be right near the top again this season, if not the league leader for the second consecutive season.

I cannot wait to watch the Pride’s offense this year. I think they are going to be creating goals and goal-creating actions at an even higher rate than last season.

Vamos Orlando!

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Orlando Pride Acquires Spanish International Oihane Hernandez

The Pride have acquired Spanish right back Oihane Hernandez from Real Madrid Femenil, signing her to a two-year deal.

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1 week ago

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February 14, 2025

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Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

The Orlando Pride defensive signings continue, but this time it’s a new player instead of a new contract. The club announced the signing of Spanish international defender Oihane Hernández this afternoon to a two-year contract through the 2026 season with a mutual option for 2027.

“Oihane is a technically gifted defender who excels in both defensive organization and distribution from the back,” Pride Vice President of Soccer Operations and Sporting Director Haley Carter said in a club press release. “She brings world-class experience and a championship mindset from her time with Spain’s national team. Oihane’s ability to perform in high-pressure situations and her tactical understanding and ability to read the game will be invaluable assets as we continue building a championship-caliber roster. We’re delighted to bring her to the City Beautiful.”

The 24-year-old has been a regular for the Spanish Women’s National Team and was a member of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup champions.

“I’m excited to join the Orlando Pride and begin this new chapter in my career,” Hernández said in the club’s release. “The club’s vision and ambition really influenced me to make the move to Orlando. “I am impressed by the professional environment and the enthusiasm of the staff, teammates, and passionate fanbase. I am ready to give everything for the badge and build on the team’s success.”

Hernández joins the Pride from Real Madrid Femenino for an undisclosed fee. The right back spent the last two seasons at Real Madrid, making 31 appearances and recorded a pair of assists. Prior to moving to the Spanish capital, she played for Athletic Club Femenino in Bilbao, representing the club from 2019 to 2023. She made 109 appearances for the club, scoring three times.

Internationally, Hernandez came up through the youth ranks with Spain, playing in the 2016 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup, the 2017 UEFA Women’s Under-17 Championship, and the 2018 UEFA Women’s Under-19 Championship. That led to her making her senior team debut on Sept. 2, 2022 in a World Cup qualifier against Hungary.

During the 2023 World Cup run, Hernandez played in six games for the eventual champions. She started in the round of 16 and quarterfinals before coming off the bench in the World Cup Final against England.

More recently, Hernandez played for Spain in four games of the 2024 Summer Olympics. She won a bronze medal in that tournament.

What It Means For Orlando

Hernandez comes in to be the starting right back for the Pride. It’s interesting that the signing comes on the same day that the club awarded Cori Dyke a new contract. During her 2024 rookie season, Dyke became the Pride’s starting right back, taking over when Brianna Martinez was injured and playing well in the stretch run and postseason.

This move creates more depth at a position that was already well stocked. Prior to this move, the players that would likely play right back other than Dyke were Martinez, Haley McCutcheon, and Emily Sams. However, this move allows McCutcheon to remain in the defensive midfield and Sams to remain at center back, where she won the NWSL Defender of the Year last season.

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Orlando Pride Extend Contract of Defender Cori Dyke through 2027

The Pride extend a second defender through 2027 in as many days with a new deal for Cori Dyke.

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1 week ago

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February 14, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

Just a day after locking down defender Emily Sams through 2027, the Orlando Pride have done the same with defender Cori Dyke. The Pride announced this morning that Dyke’s contract has been extended through the 2027 season. This extension comes on the heels of an outstanding rookie season, in which she stepped into the starting right back role down the stretch, helping Orlando win the NWSL Shield and NWSL Championship in 2024.

“Cori has consistently demonstrated her value both on and off the field since joining the Pride, and we’re thrilled to secure her future with the club,” Orlando Pride Vice President and Sporting Director Haley Carter said in a club press release. “Her tactical intelligence, versatility, and leadership qualities make her an integral part of what we’re building here in Orlando. Beyond her technical abilities, Cori embodies the culture and commitment to excellence that we strive for. This extension is a reflection of the hard work and dedication she brings to this organization every day and we’re excited to see her continue to grow and contribute to our team’s success.”  

The Pride selected Dyke in the second round (No. 22 overall) in the 2024 NWSL Draft out of Penn State. She signed a one-year contract on March 11, 2024. However, she impressed enough to inked a new deal through 2025 with an option for 2026 on July 10, 2024. Dyke has impressed the club in her short time with Orlando, earning yet another new deal.

The 24-year-old native of San Jose, CA made 21 appearances (11 starts) in the Pride’s 26 NWSL regular-season games during her rookie campaign, logging 1,095 minutes. She didn’t score a goal, but she notched one assist. Dyke attempted one (off-target) shot and completed 425 of her 542 pass attempts (78%) in her first professional season. Defensively, she finished with 20 tackles, 11 interceptions, and 23 headed duels. In the Pride’s playoff run, Dyke started all three games, playing 254 minutes, helping Orlando lift its second trophy of the season.

Dyke also appeared in two of the Pride’s three matches in the NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup last year, starting both and recording 180 minutes.

The Pride recorded a clean sheet in 12 of Dyke’s 26 appearances a year ago, including in the NWSL Championship match against Washington.

Dyke played in 108 games (all starts) for the Penn State Nittany Lions in her college career, recording 9,069 minutes, nine goals, and nine assists. She played as a central midfielder for the first four years in college, but moved to center back for her final season. Despite moving to the back line, the 2023 season was her most productive offensively, as she recorded five goals and six assists.

Dyke received several accolades during her five collegiate seasons. As a freshman, she was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team and Freshman Best XI First Team by Top Drawer Soccer. During her final season in the midfield, she was named to the 2022 Big Ten Women’s All-Tournament Team. Dyke moved to center back for her senior season and was named Big Ten Defender of the Year. She was also named All-Big Ten First Team and the United Soccer Coaches named her a second-team All-American and first-team All-North Region.

On the international stage, Dyke has represented the U.S. Women’s National Team from the U-14 through U-23 levels, helping the U-19 team win a CFA Tournament in 2017. 

What It Means for Orlando

Carter locking up players she believes will be part of the team’s core moving forward is nothing new. Dyke was thrown into a difficult position as a rookie and helped keep some of the league’s best attacking players quiet in the second half of the 2024 season and throughout the playoffs. She provides plenty of versatility with major college experience in central midfield and at center back in addition to having shown her ability to play fullback at the professional level last season.

Any time you can extend the contract of a young, talented player, it can only be seen as a positive. Dyke’s role in 2025 remains to be seen, as the team is getting players healthy again and defender Carson Pickett is going through a full training camp under Seb Hines. The back line would be just fine if it remained as it was at the end of 2024, but there is some belief that it can be even better in 2025. Where Dyke fits in will be revealed when the season starts, but she is an excellent option whether starting or providing depth and pushing her teammates to be better.

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