Connect with us

Orlando Pride

Orlando Pride vs. Chicago Red Stars: Final Score 1-0 as Pride Lose Second Straight

Published

3 years ago

on

The Orlando Pride (2-4-2, 8 points) fell 1-0 to the Chicago Red Stars (4-1-3, 15 points) in Bridgeview, IL, on Mallory Pugh’s 10th-minute goal. The strike, which came off a Pride turnover in their own defensive half, held up for 80 minutes as the Pride suffered their second straight loss and third in the last four games.

Pride interim head coach Seb Hines was forced to make a few changes to the starting lineup in this game due to injury. Mikayla Cluff (left foot), Sydney Leroux (right ankle), and Leah Pruitt (right knee) were all out or questionable. Additionally, Kerry Abello and Jordyn Listro were on the bench after starting in the 5-0 loss last weekend.

The back four in front of Erin McLeod included Kylie Strom, Megan Montefusco, Toni Pressley, and Courtney Petersen. Gunny Jonsdottir moved up to defensive midfield with Viviana Villacorta after playing defense in Houston. Angharad James, Julie Doyle, and Abi Kim made up the attacking midfield behind Darian Jenkins.

The game started evenly, with both teams having trouble maintaining possession. The first chance of the game didn’t come until the ninth minute when Pugh sent a cross into the box from the left, looking for the head of Sarah Luebbert. The ball was a little high and behind the forward, so she wasn’t able to get much on it. As a result, the ball rolled slowly wide of the far post and out of play.

A minute later, Luebbert got behind the Pride back line, chasing a ball sent through by Pugh. However, McLeod did well to come off her line and beat Luebbert to the ball.

The Red Stars opened the scoring in the 10th minute from the best player on the field. It started with a bad giveaway by Strom to Bianca St. Georges on the Pride half of the field. Receiving the ball from the defender, Pugh took a couple of steps toward the Pride box. But neither Montefusco nor Pressley closed down the dangerous attacker, so the U.S. international took a shot on goal. It was perfectly placed into the top right corner, beyond the reach of McLeod, to give the hosts a 1-0 lead.

The Red Stars almost doubled their lead in the 12th minute with a nearly identical play, but from Vanessa DiBernardo. Another giveaway provided an opportunity for a quick give-and-go between DiBernardo and Chelsie Dawber. Like Pugh two minutes earlier, DiBernardo took a shot on goal. But fortunately for the Pride, this one was off the crossbar.

“Obviously, the goal came from a turnover. And then I think the other shot that hit the crossbar came from a turnover,” Hines said after the game. “I mean, we’ve had a couple of sessions and it’s something that we need to work on.”

“Great goal from Mal Pugh,” Strom said. “But the main focus of this game was to stay tight defensively, not let them play through the middle. And for the most part we were successful in that. Yeah, great goal by her and we just need to, you know, step up and make sure we get pressure on the ball and don’t give the ball away.”

The Pride didn’t get their first chance until the 14th minute and it wasn’t a very good one. Montefusco received the ball from outside the box and took a shot towards goal but it was blocked.

The best first-half chance for the Pride came in the 35th minute. Montefusco sent a long ball up the right side for Jonsdottir. The midfielder quickly sent a cross in for Kim, who was darting towards the near post. However, Tatumn Milazzo did well to track the run and blocked the ball out of play. The ensuing corner was caught by Chicago goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher, her first real action of the day, ending the attack.

The final chance of the half was for the hosts a minute into injury time. In her first NWSL game, Dawber sent a dangerous ball through the Pride back line for St. Georges. As the defender reached the end line, McLeod came out to block it out of play.

While the Pride had a couple of chances in the first half, it was a dominant 45 minutes for Chicago. They ended the first period of play with more possession (58.7%-41.3%), shots (6-2), shots on goal (2-0), corners (2-1), crosses (3-2), and more accurate passing (83.2%-76.5%).

The Pride got off to a much better start to the second half and created their first chance inside two minutes. Jonsdottir got the first shot of the half, but it was blocked out of play by Amanda Kowalski.

The Pride continued to pressure the Red Stars back line, creating three corner kicks inside the first five minutes. The third corner by Strom found the head of Pressley at the near post. The Orlando captain redirected the ball towards goal but sent it just wide.

“You can see that we started the second half more aggressive,” Hine said. “Won some corners and set pieces and created more turnovers from Chicago. It’s just the final piece of making them turnovers into goal-scoring opportunities.”

The first second-half chance for Chicago came via a free kick after Pressley fouled Ava Cook just outside the box. Pugh sent a dangerous ball in for Yuki Nagasato. The former Japan international was unmarked at the top of the six, but couldn’t get her head on the cross as it went through the box.

In the 64th minute, the Pride escaped a dangerous situation when Zoe Morse found Pugh on the right side. The midfielder sent a cross to the back post where Milazzo was left completely unmarked. With McLeod covering the other side of the goal, Milazzo had a wide open net but couldn’t get her foot on the ball.

After the early second half flurry of chances, the Pride had trouble finding a rhythm offensively. They did get a chance in the 73rd minute through substitute Abello. Receiving the ball on the right side, the attacker did well to turn Rachel Hill and create some space for a shot. It was an ambitious attempt, but just missed a little high.

Chicago had another great chance in the 76th minute when St. Georges beat Petersen to a long ball by Hill at the end line. The defender’s first touch was back for Pugh, who was charging into the box. But Pressley did really well to get in front of the shot and block it.

Each team had chances to add to the scoring near the end. Pugh had an opportunity in the 89th minute, but the Pride defense did well to stay in front of her, forcing her into an off-balance shot that was easily collected by McLeod.

The Pride sprinted the other way, looking for an equalizer. The attack ended with Erika Tymrak taking a long-distance shot, but she didn’t get anything on it and it caused no trouble for Naeher, who easily caught it. It was Orlando’s first, and only, shot on target in the match.

It was a much better second half for the Pride, but they didn’t scare the hosts after the header by Pressley. The visitors had more shots in the second half (7-4) but only managed to get one of those shots on target. 

“During halftime, we made a few adjustments. Talked about how to exploit them, what was working, what was not,” Strom said. “So yeah, we had a clear idea going into the second half of how we could expose them and get the equalizer. Especially in the last minutes, we created a few opportunities.”

Despite a better second 45 minutes by the Pride, the Red Stars ended the game with more possession (56.6%-43.4%), shots (10-9), shots on goal (4-1), and passing accuracy (79.3%-75.8%).

“I feel like it’s come down to one moment of brilliance from a brilliant player,” Hines said. “That goal is whatever you’re putting in any game and it’s very apparent that she’s on form right now and she’s playing well. And it’s come down to the fine margins. You know, we stuck to the game plan, we didn’t want to give anything up early in the game. The way that Chicago play, they like to play through the lines so we kind of clogged the middle up and were really disciplined with our pressing to win the ball in transition with the speed of Abi Kim and Julie Doyle. So the game plan was there, but like I said, it came to a moment of brilliance to find the result.”

Defensively, it was the first time that the Pride haven’t conceded multiple goals in five games. Only giving up an excellent goal after conceding five last weekend against the Houston Dash was something the team focused on coming into this one.

“Obviously, after what happened in Houston, we knew we had to come in and make a point and let everybody know that that will never ever happen again,” Strom said. “We put up a good fight. We came in really prepared. It’s unfortunate always to lose but I think we definitely made some steps forward.”

While there were obvious defensive improvements in this game, the lack of finishing or even generating clear-cut chances remained a problem. It was the second straight game that the Pride were held scoreless and the third straight game they were held scoreless before injury time.

“It’s the hardest part of the game, right? Putting the ball in the goal,” Hines said. “We’ve struggled of late to score goals, but I think the main focus was not to concede. We’ve conceded way too many goals this season. And that was the main focus going into the game.”

With the defense seemingly on the right path, the Pride will now work on the other end. That starts next Sunday when the team ends its three-game road trip in Portland.

Related Topics:
Continue Reading

Orlando Pride

Orlando Pride Announce 2025 Preseason Camp Roster

Published

1 day ago

on

January 20, 2025

By

Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

The Orlando Pride have announced the club’s 2025 preseason roster consisting of 30 players, with one of those (Mariana Larroquette) currently out on loan in Argentina. Another player, forward Amanda Allen, was formerly on loan with the USL Super League’s Lexington Sporting Club, but that loan was terminated when Allen was placed on the Season Ending Injury list on Dec. 9, 2024, with a torn labrum.

The Pride return all of their core players from the 2024 team that won the NWSL Shield and NWSL Championship, including 98% of the player-minutes from last season and all of the team’s goal-scoring from a year ago. Almost all of the players who competed in the team’s incredible season are back from a team that broke league records for points, wins, clean sheets, consecutive shutout minutes, consecutive wins, and consecutive games unbeaten.

New faces for 2025 include two off-season signees — goalkeeper Kat Asman and defender Zara Chavoshi, the first player the Pride signed directly out of college since the league’s removal of the NWSL Draft. 

The roster is made up of four goalkeepers, just eight defenders (compared to 12 a year ago), nine midfielders, and nine forwards. One of those forwards, Larroquette, is on loan with Newell’s Old Boys Women of the Campeonato de Fútbol Femenino in Argentina’s top flight. 

The 30-player roster includes three non-roster invitees: goalkeeper DeAira Jackson, midfielder Aryssa Mahrt, and forward Simone Jackson.

DeAira Jackson was the 2024 WAC Goalkeeper of the Year and a member of the All-WAC first team following her last collegiate season. After playing two seasons at Cal State Fullerton, she transferred to Grand Canyon University and became the school’s all-time shutout leader with 16 in just two seasons. Nine of those came in her senior campaign, which set the school record for most clean sheets in a season. She was also the Outrigger No Ka Oi Tournament MVP and a two-time WAC Player of the Week in 2024. The Fontana, CA native appeared in 43 matches for Grand Canyon across two seasons, compiling a record of 25-11-7, the aforementioned 16 shutouts, a 0.89 goals-against average and a save percentage of .781, facing 415 shots in 3,754 minutes.

Mahrt played three seasons at the University of Wisconsin, appearing in 62 games (61 starts) and playing 4,503 minutes. The Milwaukee, WI native scored 21 goals and added 15 assists, putting 78 of her 114 shots on target. Eight of her goals were game winners. Mahrt started all 21 games in her senior season, leading the Badgers in goals (10) and assists (4). She has represented the United States at the youth level with both the U-14 and U-16 sides. Her soccer lineage includes a great grandfather who played for the Malaysian National Team.

Simone Jackson is a Redondo Beach, CA native who played four seasons at USC, appearing in 73 games (51 starts), scoring 22 goals, and adding 13 assists. In 4,204 career minutes, she fired 192 shots, putting 88 on target and scoring six game winners. She was a member of the All-Big Ten third team following the 2024 campaign, a first-team All-Pac-12 selection in 2022, a third-team All-Pac-12 selection in 2023 and 2021, and a 2021 Pac 12 All-Freshman Team honoree. She has represented the U.S. at multiple youth levels, including at the 2022 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup, in which she scored for the United States in a 3-1 loss to Japan. Jackson has also participated at every level starting at U-14.

Simone comes from a family with a tremendous athletic pedigree. Her grandfather, John Jackson, was USC football’s running backs coach and offensive coordinator from 1976-81; her father, John Jackson Jr., played both football and baseball at USC from 1986-89 before brief stints with four NFL teams in the 1990s and playing minor league baseball. Her brother, John Jackson III, played wide receiver at USC and is currently with the Chicago Bears organization.

The club’s two Zambian players — Barbra Banda and Grace Chanda — are the only ones listed as internationals. Unlike previous years, no players are listed as not yet reported.

The Pride will kick off their 2025 campaign with a rematch of the 2024 NWSL Championship as they face the Washington Spirit in the 2025 NWSL Challenge Cup on March 7.

2025 Orlando Pride Preseason Roster (as of Jan. 20, 2025):

Goalkeepers (4): Kat Asman, McKinley Crone, Anna Moorhouse, DeAira Jackson (NRI).

Defenders (8): Kerry Abello, Zara Chavoshi, Cori Dyke, Brianna Martinez, Carson Pickett, Rafaelle (SEI), Emily Sams, Kylie Strom.

Midfielders (9): Angelina, Grace Chanda (INTL – Zambia, SEI), Morgan Gautrat, Ally Lemos, Luana (SEI), Aryssa Mahrt (NRI), Marta, Haley McCutcheon, Viviana Villacorta.

Forwards (9): Adriana, Amanda Allen (SEI), Barbra Banda (INTL – Zambia), Simone Charley (SEI), Julie Doyle, Simone Jackson (NRI), Mariana Larroquette (LOAN), Ally Watt, Summer Yates.

Key

INTL: International Player
NRI: Non-Roster Invitee
NYR: Not Yet Reported
SEI: Finished 2024 on the Season-Ending Injury list
LOAN: On loan 

Continue Reading

Orlando Pride

Pride Ready to Make a Run for the 2025 Title with a Core from 2024

Comparing and analyzing the percentage of returning minutes and goals for the Pride to those of previous NWSL playoff champions.

Published

4 days ago

on

January 18, 2025

By

Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

During my son’s soccer practice earlier this week I was walking around the park and came upon a basketball court where there was a game going on. One team made a basket to win the game, and a player from the losing team immediately yelled out a phrase that is familiar to anyone who has ever played pickup. “Run that back,” the player said, indicating that they wanted to play another game right away with the same players. The winning team acquiesced, and off they went. Off I went as well, as I did not want to make it awkward by standing there continuing to watch 10 people I did not even know playing pickup hoops in Winter Park.

It was probably already awkward. Oh well.

It was fitting, however, that those players were talking about running it back while I was around a soccer practice, because just a few miles away — in Sylvan Lake Park — the Orlando Pride are preparing for their 2025 NWSL season. And now that Marta has re-signed with the club for two more seasons, the Pride are bringing back nearly every player from the 2024 season. It is not everyone, but the Pride are bringing back a cool 98% of all the minutes played during the 2024 NWSL regular season.

Only four players who played any minutes during that season have departed — Carrie Lawrence (288 minutes), Evelina Duljan (174), Celia (74), and Mariana Larroquette (52), though she is only on loan and is scheduled to be back in the summer, taking their combined five starts and 593 minutes with them — but that leaves more than 25,000 of the 2024 minutes played returning to the Pride for 2025.

Throughout the 2024 season we received indications that the front office really liked the makeup of the group already on hand, as during the year they signed McKinley Crone, Julie Doyle, Cori Dyke, Morgan Gautrat, Brianna Martinez, Viviana Villacorta, Ally Watt, and Summer Yates to new contracts. Most of these were completed in the early to middle part of the season, so even before the team had clinched the regular-reason title and entered the playoffs it was clear that the club felt like it had a good mix of players for the present and the future.

All of these players already being under contract through at least 2025 have made for a very quiet off-season for the Pride so far, and then when Marta made her announcement last week, it cemented the incredibly high percentage of returning minutes. “How high,” you ask in your best Redman or Method Man voice? I already mentioned it was 98%, but of all the NWSL teams who have ever won a championship, that 98% ranks first for returning minutes and represents one of only two seasons when the champion brought back more than 90% of the team’s minutes played from its championship season.

Because the Pride brought back nearly all of their minutes played, it should not be a surprise that they also brought back nearly all of the goals they scored. Except they did not bring back nearly all of the goals they scored, they brought back all 43 of the goals (excluding own goals) they scored during the 2024 season. All of them! The Pride are the first playoff champion in NWSL history to return 100% of the goals scored during their championship season, as you can see from this chart below, which details each playoff champion and the percentage of minutes and goals that returned for the subsequent season. It also shows what place the team finished during the subsequent regular season and playoffs:

The 2018 Courage are clearly the closest proxy to the 2024 Pride, and I like what I see when I look off to the right in that chart, because that team brought back almost all of its minutes and goals and then went ahead and finished first during the subsequent regular season and won it all during the playoffs. I am not saying that the Pride will do the same in 2025, but I am not not saying it either. Give me a few weeks to get my preseason predictions in order and I may actually say it loudly and (being that they are the Pride) proudly.

There are counterexamples as well, as the 2016 Western New York Flash (who became the North Carolina Courage in 2017), 2021 Washington Spirit, and 2022 Portland Thorns all brought back more than 80% of their minutes and 90% of their goals and did not win the playoffs, but both teams were highly successful during the subsequent regular season and won playoff games, though they did not repeat as champions.

One of the more interesting things about the 2025 Pride will be that they will have tremendous continuity with all of their returning minutes and goals, but they will also have continuity with four players who were with the club in 2024 but did not play or barely played due to injury/illness. Neither Simone Charley nor Grace Chanda suited up for the Pride at all last season, but both are experienced players who had been expected to contribute to the team before their injuries. Luana and Viviana Villacorta both did play a little bit — Luana in the beginning of the season and Villacorta at the end. Luana had been starting before her diagnosis of Hodgkin’s Lymphoma ended her 2024 season, and Villacorta played more than 1,000 minutes during each of the 2022 and 2023 seasons before an injury kept her out for most of 2024.

All four of these players are currently listed on the 2025 roster, and as they return to full fitness it will almost be like four brand new signings of players who are clearly NWSL quality players, providing not only depth but also pushing the starters to stay sharp, lest they lose their role to someone challenging for their minutes. Brand new signings often take time to settle in, but these four will be familiar with the club, the coaches, and their teammates, which a huge advantage for the Pride.

Former NBA coach and current front office executive Pat Riley coined the phrase “the disease of more” to reflect what often happens to championship teams during the year after they win their title, as players want more for themselves, be it credit, media coverage, playing time, money, status, etc. Riley said that “success is often the first step toward disaster,” and while I quibble with the word “often” in that quote, I do think it can be true in sports. The Pride will get everyone’s best shot (figuratively, and sometimes literally) in 2025, and to repeat as champions they will have to do a lot of what they did in 2024 while also evolving some as well.

Bringing back nearly all of the same players helps with the repeating of last season’s excellent form, and “adding” those injured players who did not play last season, plus rookie defender Zara Chavoshi and free agent goalkeeper Kat Asman, will bring some new vibes and claws-sharpening-claws energy to the 2025 squad.

The Pride’s season kicks off in early March, and while the roster could still change in the next seven weeks, I think that it is likely that who they have right now is who will be wearing purple in the opening match.

I am looking forward to seeing them run it back while going on a title run.

Continue Reading

Orlando Pride

Orlando Pride Loan Forward Mariana Larroquette to Newell’s Old Boys Women

The Argentine forward is going home to get some minutes until July 1.

Published

6 days ago

on

January 16, 2025

By

Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

The Orlando Pride announced today that forward Mariana Larroquette is going on loan to Newell’s Old Boys Women in her native Argentina until July 1. The move will keep the seldom-used attacker out of the Pride lineup until midseason, but she’ll be able to get some playing time that could prove beneficial to Orlando in the season’s second half.

“We’re excited to find an opportunity for ‘Larro’ to gain meaningful minutes while also being an ambassador for the women’s game in her home country Argentina, as they get set to host the CONMEBOL Championships this summer,” Orlando Pride Vice President of Soccer Operations and Sporting Director Haley Carter said in a club press release. “This will be a great move for her both professionally and personally, and we’re excited to see what she achieves while on loan.” 

The Pride signed Larroquette on July 6, 2023 — just prior to her involvement in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup — on a contract through 2025. The former Club León, Sporting CP, and Kansas City forward and Argentine international was expected to bolster an Orlando attack that was in need of more goals. It hasn’t worked out that way, even though she scored her first Pride goal and added an assist in her first appearance with Orlando in a 5-0 destruction of the Chicago Red Stars at home on Aug. 20, 2023. That remains her only NWSL goal since joining Orlando.

The 32-year-old made just four appearances during the 2024 regular season — all off the bench — logging 48 total minutes. She did not contribute a goal or an assist or even attempt a shot. Larroquette completed just 41.2% of her 17 passes. She started once in three appearances in the 2024 NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup, playing 107 minutes without a goal contribution and attempting three shots. Larroquette did not appear in the Pride’s postseason run to the NWSL Championship.

In her Pride career so far, Larroquette has made just 12 appearances in all competitions, starting just one time, scoring one goal, and contributing one assist.

What It Means for Orlando

Ultimately, this is a chance for Larroquette to get some minutes and perhaps improve her form. Although she provided depth last season, she was rarely used. Playing for the Lepers (seriously, that’s the team’s nickname, which is even stranger than Newell’s Old Boys Women) will get Larroquette playing time in the Campeonato de Fútbol Femenino close to home. This could be the precursor to her departing Orlando for good if she isn’t a good fit for Seb Hines’ tactical approach. At 32, Larroquette is unlikely to bring a windfall to the Pride in a transfer, but she has shown she can be a useful player off the bench when needed in recent years, and has been able to contribute on the international level for Argentina.

This is a move that can help Larroquette re-establish her game and show whether she is still capable of providing offense to her club — whether that ends up being the Pride or another team. As she has not been seeing the field much, there shouldn’t be a big impact to Orlando while she’s away, and it is possible we’ve seen the last of her in a Pride uniform.

Continue Reading

Trending