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Orlando Pride vs. North Carolina Courage: Final Score 3-0 as Pride Shut Out for Third Straight Game

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2 years ago

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The Orlando Pride (5-9-6, 21 points) fell 3-0 to the North Carolina Courage (8-8-4, 28 points) in their penultimate home game of the season, continuing their free fall with a fourth consecutive loss and the third straight without scoring. The visitors were led by their Brazilian star, Debinha, who scored a brace and assisted Tess Boade’s late first-half goal.

Pride Interim Head Coach Seb Hines made seven changes from the team that lost 2-0 to Racing Louisville over the weekend. Erin McLeod returned to the lineup for the first time in three games after sitting out due to concussion protocol. Mikayla Cluff had been starting in place of the injured Viviana Villacorta but was out for this game with an ankle injury. Ally Watt received her first start as a member of the Pride and Carrie Lawrence returned to the starting lineup in place of Toni Pressley.

The back line in front of McLeod consisted of Kylie Strom, Lawrence, Megan Montefusco, and Celia. Haley Hanson played as the six with Leah Pruitt, Gunny Jonsdottir, and Jordyn Listro in front of her. The team went with two up top in this game in Kerry Abello and Watt.

While there were noticeable changes in the lineup, the biggest move was Hanson playing in the midfield. She’s played that position before, but has spent her NWSL career as an outside back.

“We knew that she (Hanson) was capable of playing that position and she was more than willing to do it,” Hines said about playing Hanson further up field. “We were short on midfield options. Viviana’s been out and then Mikayla picked up an injury, so we had to get someone to fill that hole.”

While the Pride were already eliminated from playoff contention coming into this game, the Courage are still fighting for a playoff spot. The two teams played to their situations as the Pride looked defeated for most of the game and the Courage played with hunger.

The Pride got the first chance of the game inside the first minute off a North Carolina mistake. Merritt Mathias tried to make a simple pass to Kaleigh Kurtz but it was off target, allowing Pruitt to take control. Instead of going for goal, the forward played it across for Watt, who sent a low cross through the box. However, nobody could get on the end of it.

“It’s a moment where Haley Hanson gets the ball, she gets a cross, it deflects, and Ally’s there,” Hines said about the early chance. “It was a tap-in moment.”

Just a minute later, the Courage opened the scoring. Kurtz played a long ball forward looking for Debinha. Montefusco had a bead on the ball and it looked like she would clear. But the header went to where Debinha was running through instead of outside. McLeod was caught on the right side of the six-yard box, expecting the header to come her way. Instead, it continued on for Debinha who tapped it in, giving the visitors a 1-0 lead.

“Obviously, unlucky to start,” Hanson said about conceding so early. “And that’s kind of been the theme of, I would say the last couple games. Just unlucky.”

The Courage had another chance in the fifth minute when Debinha attempted to send Boade through. It looked like the midfielder would get a shot on goal, but Lawrence did well to get in the way and block it out of play.

In the 12th minute, Debinha played a nice ball down the right for Rikke Madsen. It appeared that the forward’s ball into the box was behind everyone, but Boade came back for it and got a shot off from near the penalty spot. It didn’t look as though Lawrence was aware of the situation, but she was in the right place at the right time as the ball bounced off her, allowing the Pride to clear.

As the half continued, the rains came in, soaking the field. It rained hard for a good period of the first half before lightening up as the game approached halftime. Once the rain arrived, the chances became fewer for both teams.

In the 28th minute, Watt had a chance to the left of goal but her shot hit the side netting and the assistant raised the flag for offside anyway. Eight minutes later, a turnover by Meredith Speck created a chance for the hosts. Jonsdottir played the ball forward for Pruitt, providing a chance in the box, but the shot was wide of the near post.

There was only one minute of first-half stoppage time but that was enough for the Courage to double their lead. Abello carried the ball across the field and looked to pass to Jonsdottir, but the ball was behind her and was taken away by Boade. The midfielder immediately played it forward to Debinha, who flicked it on for Boade, who continued her run into the box. The midfielder slipped the ball past McLeod, giving the Courage a 2-0 lead with almost the last touch of the first half.

“It’s a punch in the face, really,” Hines said about conceding so late in the first half. “Because I felt like we were growing into that, let’s say, second half of the first half of the game. And we had good momentum. We started to have more courage and bravery on the ball and it just came at such a bad time for us. You go into halftime 1-0 down you go, ‘We can go. We can get after them,’ and that was our message as well. It’s only 2-0. Stranger things have happened. We’ve been here where we were 2-0 down in the 90th minute and managed to get a tie. So yeah, it was disappointing to concede so late on, but like I said, it’s a game, it happens, and you get to recognize who we are in that moment as well.”

After 45 minutes, the Courage had more possession (61%-39%), shots (5-4), shots on target (3-0), and corners (1-0). Both teams had five crosses in the first half of play.

The start of the second half was similar to the start of the first half with a flurry of chances taking place. In the 50th minute, Darian Jenkins, who came on at halftime for Abello, found Watt in the box. The forward turned and shot but it was right at Courage goalkeeper Casey Murphy.

Three minutes later, Montefusco knocked a Courage cross out of play for a corner kick. The ensuing corner was cleared to the far side by Celia, but fell to Debinha. The first-half goal scorer had Speck and Boade at the far post and sent the ball in that direction. Whether it was a cross or a shot, the ball sailed over the defensive players and landed inside the far post for her second goal of the game, giving North Carolina a commanding 3-0 lead.

Hines made an attacking pair of changes in the 60th minute, looking for a spark to get the team back into the game. Erika Tymrak came on for Watt and Meggie Dougherty Howard entered the game for Celia.

Just after the substitutions, North Carolina nearly made it four. Jaelene Daniels sent a long ball down the left for Boade but Montefusco beat her to it. However, Montefusco sent a weak pass for either McLeod or Lawrence, allowing Boade to win it back. She shot for the far post from close distance, but McLeod stuck her foot out and knocked it away.

On the other end, Jenkins found enough space to take shots for herself. After the Pride only took two shots in the first 45 minutes, Jenkins took three in her first 20 minutes on the field. However, only one of those three shots was on target and it was right at Murphy.

In the 71st minute, the Pride brought on 18-year-old striker Haley Bugeja. The teenager was signed by the club on July 1 but this was her first appearance for the team. Her debut made her the fourth-youngest player to enter a game in NWSL history.

“I’m just happy to get my first game out of the way obviously,” Bugeja said about her debut. “It’s quite a surreal moment for me and I’m sure my family back home are watching, even though it’s like two in the morning for them. I’m just super happy and hopefully now we can kick on and obviously I’m very grateful for the faith that Seb has showed in me.”

The Pride nearly got one back in the 72nd minute when Tymrak found space from the right side of the box and shot on goal. The shot forced Murphy to tip it over the bar, giving the Pride their first corner kick of the night. The ensuing corner resulted in a chance for Dougherty Howard, but her attempt was off target, allowing the Courage to clear.

The Courage nearly got a fourth goal in the 84th minute when a good buildup set up substitute Brittany Ratcliffe for a chance. Brianna Pinto’s pass to Boade was quickly flicked forward for Ratcliffe. The substitute timed her run perfectly, getting behind the Pride defense for a shot. She aimed for the far post but missed just wide.

The Pride had some chances in the final minutes but were unable to get anything on target. Meanwhile, the Courage played to see out the game, holding onto possession in the dominating win.

In the end, the Courage had more possession (60%-40%), shots on target (5-4), and corners (5-2). The Pride had more shots (16-8), but only four of those shots were on target. The number of off-target shots was a big factor in this game as the Pride had nine shots off target and the Courage only had one off frame.

“Defined by three moments really,” Hines said after the game. “It’s always difficult when you go down a goal so early on, but I felt like we didn’t really get out of control. I didn’t think the game really got away from us. I mean, it was defined by a couple of moments that North Carolina took. And we had chances. We had chances to attack and get something on frame and could be a completely different result if we take them moments.”

After their seven-game unbeaten run, the Pride have now lost four consecutive games and three of those games were at Exploria Stadium. They’ve been outscored in those four games 8-1, failing to get on the scoreboard in the last three.

The Pride will look to end their losing streak on Sunday night when they welcome San Diego Wave FC to Exploria Stadium for their final home game of the 2022 NWSL season.

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Orlando Pride

Orlando Pride Announce 2025 Preseason Camp Roster

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2 days ago

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January 20, 2025

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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 

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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.

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4 days ago

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January 18, 2025

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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.

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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

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January 16, 2025

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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.

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