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Orlando Pride vs. Angel City FC: Final Score 2-2 as Pride Claim Point on Late Equalizer

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4 years ago

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The Orlando Pride (3-5-6, 15 points) had to come back twice, but managed to pull out a 2-2 draw against Angel City FC (5-5-3, 18 points) at Exploria Stadium. Former Orlando fullback Ali Riley gave the visitors the lead just before the half but Julie Doyle came off the bench to score her second goal in as many games in the second half. Angel City responded with a goal off a set piece by Cari Roccaro, but an own goal by Paige Nielsen in second-half injury time caused the game to end in a draw.

Pride Interim Head Coach Seb Hines made only two changes to the team that drew 2-2 with the Kansas City Current last weekend. Starting center back Megan Montefusco was suspended due to yellow card accumulation and replaced by Toni Pressley. Additionally, Darian Jenkins returned to the lineup, replacing Doyle. As a result, the back four behind Erin McLeod consisted of Celia, Pressley, Carrie Lawrence, and Kylie Strom. The midfield was made up of Meggie Dougherty Howard, Jordyn Listro, Erika Tymrak, Viviana Villacorta, and Kerry Abello, with Jenkins up top.

The first chance of the game was for the Pride in the fourth minute. A quick pass by Villacorta allowed Strom to find Abello in the box. The midfielder attempted a shot from the left of goal, but it skipped across the six-yard box and out for a goal kick.

In the 24th minute, Tymrak found Dougherty Howard near the box. The Pride midfielder attempted to curl the ball around Angel City goalkeeper Didi Haracic, but it was deflected out of play.

Three minutes later, Strom nearly found Tymrak in the box. It was a good run by Tymrak and a good ball through by Strom, but it was a bit too far and Haracic was able to beat the Pride midfielder to it.

Tymrak had a great chance in the 29th minute when Strom gave her the ball inside the Angel City box. The midfielder should’ve been able to put the shot on target, but it somehow managed to flick up onto her arm. The referee didn’t call a handball, but it provided Angel City with an opportunity to clear.

After messing up her first golden opportunity, Tymrak was given a chance to redeem herself in the 39th minute. She received the ball in nearly the exact position as her 29th-minute chance. This shot was hit towards the goal but was well over the crossbar.

Angel City didn’t have many great chances in the first half, but made the Pride pay for missing theirs. In the 40th minute, Riley received the ball on the left. It appeared as though she would attempt a cross, but instead went for goal and beat McLeod to the far post.

After failing to score in her 24 appearances with the Pride, the right back has now scored twice in her last three games with Angel City.

The Pride did have one last chance to equalize before the end of the half. Jenkins cut inside from the right and into the box, creating enough space to get a shot off. But it was blocked and the Pride went into the break down 1-0.

The visitors had slightly more possession in the first half (50.9%-49.1%) but the Pride had more shots (7-4), crosses (8-2), and corners (2-0) in the first 45 minutes.

“Seb just told us to play with courage,” Abello said about the halftime talk. “You know, we need to want the ball. Everyone needs to want to get on the ball and turn and go forward. And not that we weren’t playing with courage, but I think we needed even more of a drive and Seb, he believed in us.”

The visitors nearly doubled their lead right after the break. Coming on as a halftime substitute, Simone Charley was one-on-one with Lawrence heading into the Pride box after a long ball by Megan Reid. The center back fell, allowing Charley to be free in on goal. However, she lost control of the ball, allowing the Pride to escape the dangerous situation.

The Pride should’ve had the equalizer in the 49th minute when some nice moves by Abello created enough space to send the ball into the box. The cross sailed over the head of Haracic to Jenkins at the back post with a wide open goal in front of her. She headed the ball down, but it was straight down, resulting in it bouncing over the crossbar instead of into the open net from just a few feet in front of the goal line.

In the 63rd minute, Tymrak played a ball into the box, looking for Abello at the near post. The ball was a bit too far for the midfielder and Tyler Lussi knocked it out of play. The ensuing corner was to the near post where Celia and Lussi came together. However, the ball bounced out of play and Angel City was able to clear.

The Pride got their equalizer a minute later. It started with a Doyle cross that was headed on towards goal by Tymrak. The shot was blocked and ended up with Savannah McCaskill at the top of the box facing the goal. Pressured by Villacorta, McCaskill played it back to Nielsen. However, Doyle beat her to the ball and shot into the roof of the net.

It was Doyle’s second goal of the season and her second in two games. She also scored the second goal last week in the Pride’s 2-2 draw with the Current.

“She’s been terrific,” Hines said about Doyle’s current goal streak. “She was fortunate enough to start off having given a really good performance against Kansas, but these are the decisions you have to make as a head coach. So she made an immediate impact and that’s all we can ask. When players come onto the field as a substitute, can you make an impact in a game? And she certainly did that today. With getting a goal and making difficult runs, finding the spaces.

“We’re talking about a rookie. We’re improving her, developing her. You know, going through a slight bit of adversity, how are you going to react not starting? And she showed today, her reaction was brilliant.”

Angel City didn’t wait long to answer, doing so in the 72nd minute. First, Charley got her head to a Lussi cross, putting it on target. McLeod did well to get down and knock it out of play for a corner kick.

The ensuing corner kick was flicked on by the head of Nielsen. It landed at the feet of Villacorta and Roccaro. Villacorta was unable to get her foot to the ball and Roccaro quickly shot on target, putting it past McLeod and giving the visitors a 2-1 lead.

The Pride nearly found another equalizer in the 79th minute when Strom played Abello behind the Angel City defense. The midfielder shot with her second touch, but sent it just wide of the post.

The hosts had another good opportunity in the 87th minute when Mikayla Cluff was fouled by Jun Endo. Thais Reiss stepped up to take the free kick but sent it straight into the wall. The ball bounced right back to Reiss, who sent a second shot into the wall, allowing Angel City to clear.

The Pride continued to pressure, looking for a second equalizer. They were given a boost when the fourth official held up five minutes in injury time. They didn’t need much of those five minutes as they found a second equalizer inside the first minute of added time.

The team worked the ball out to Abello on the left, with the final ball coming from Reiss. Abello quickly sent a hard cross into the box, where Doyle was making a run and Cluff was heading towards the back post. Nielsen got to the ball before either Pride attacker, but knocked the ball into her own net, evening the game at 2-2.

“I was just so thankful,” Abello said about having a part in the equalizer. “I was definitely a little disappointed at some of my chances missed earlier in the game. So my one goal is just to make a difference, make something happen. You know, it’s not always going to be pretty and at the end of the day, it was a deflection but I was happy with the chance I took to just drive across the goal.”

After the equalizer, the Pride continued on the attack. Two minutes into injury time, Doyle made a good run toward the end line and won a corner. The ensuing set piece was knocked out of play for a second corner, but that one was cleared away.

The final chance of the game for the Pride came in the fourth minute of added time when Jasmyne Spencer fouled Reiss at the top of the box. Tymrak took the free kick but sent it wide.

Despite barely hanging on to a draw in the final minutes, it was Angel City that had the last chance of the game. Endo found former Pride player Dani Weatherholt in the box and the midfielder shot on goal. But it was right at McLeod who made the save and ended the game.

Other than the scoreline, it was a dominant performance by the Pride. They ended the game with more possession (52.6%-47.4%), shots (16-9), corners (7-4), and crosses (28-9). The difference in the game was the lack of shooting precision as the Pride only put one shot on target and Angel City put four on frame.

“Entertaining. Happening more often than not,” Hines said about the game. “I said in pregame that what you’ll find today is two teams that are both wanting to win, needing to win to get three points. We’re obviously chasing Angel City. Obviously chasing the playoffs as well. So I felt that we dominated the game in possession. Even out of possession I think we’re in controlled spaces, that they were patient in trying to pull us out of positions. But you know, we’re allowing the right people to have time and space on the ball. And there was a few little adjustments that we had to make at halftime. We had to increase the energy on our shifts across to keep them spaces tight and the players did that. But the game is all down to goals and we created a lot of good opportunities to score. We have to take them and when we do take them, we’re going to be even more of a threat than we showed today.”

This draw is another point for a team pushing for the sixth and last playoff spot. And while the team will be happy to extend its unbeaten run to five games, they’ll also look back at several missed opportunities that could have resulted in the Pride claiming all three points. 

“It’s the hardest part of the game, right? Putting the ball in the goal,” Hines said about the missed chances. “And I don’t know if it’s repetition in training. The players have showed that they can put the ball in the goal in training. We created them sort of opportunities in training as well.”

This is the third game this season that the Pride have come back to score an equalizer in second-half injury time. They previously did it on May 14 against the Current and on May 27 against the Washington Spirit — both at Exploria Stadium.

“I think it’s our leaders,” Abello said about the team’s ability to come back. “You know, I think it’s players that really step up and our leaders, not just our older players, but our younger players coming on. Thais came on today and brought so much energy and a voice and arrangement and I think that’s what really drives us late in the game. I wish it wasn’t always coming down to an equalizer at the end of the day. But I think it says so much about our team and our identity and the work we put in at training.”

The draw keeps the Pride in playoff contention, six points behind OL Reign for the final playoff spot. However, the Pride have a game in hand.

They’ll look to extend their unbeaten run to six games next Saturday night when they travel out west to face expansion side San Diego Wave FC for the first time.

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Orlando Pride

World Cup Break Offers Orlando Pride Chance to Stabilize Rebuilt Back Line

After a season of injuries, position shifts, and defensive reshuffling, the Pride have a chance to settle their back line.

Published

7 days ago

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June 15, 2026

By

Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Seb Hines has spent much of the 2026 NWSL season rebuilding the Orlando Pride back line. The FIFA World Cup break now provides the first extended opportunity for the team to settle a defensive unit that has undergone significant personnel and positional changes.

Defense has been one of the team’s defining strengths in recent seasons. The Pride built much of their success on consistency at the back with a settled group of players who understood their roles and rarely needed adjustments. This year, however, that stability has been tested.

The departure of center back Emily Sams, Kylie Nadaner’s pregnancy, and an early-season injury to Kerry Abello forced Hines into changes before the team had the chance to establish continuity. Rather than working from a fixed defensive base, the team has been forced to adjust.

At the start of the season, Hines paired Rafaelle with Hailie Mace in central defense. Mace has experience at center back from her time in Kansas City, but the position isn’t her natural role. On the outside, Cori Dyke began the season at left back, while Oihane started on the right.

As the season progressed, Hines continued to adjust his back line. In early May, Mace moved back into her natural right back position. Dyke shifted into central defense alongside Rafaelle, and Oihane moved to the left side. The changes provided more comfort for Mace, but also required players to adjust to new roles with games coming quick and fast.

Making things more difficult were injuries to Rafaelle that forced Hannah Anderson into the lineup. While the veteran played well, it was yet another change the back line had to get used to while trying to stay in a playoff position.

Between late April and mid May, the Pride lost four of five matches, conceding multiple goals in each defeat. That run included a 4–2 home loss to the Washington Spirit, as well as back-to-back defeats to expansion sides Boston Legacy FC and Denver Summit FC.

The performances showed a back line still searching for consistency and chemistry in its defensive setup. With different combinations being used across the back line, the Pride had little time to get used to their new positions and partnerships before the next game arrived.

Following the loss in Denver, the Pride opted to remain on the road rather than return to Orlando before facing San Diego Wave FC on the West Coast. The decision appeared to pay off. The Pride earned a 1–0 win over San Diego before returning home to close the first half of the season with a 3–1 victory over Bay FC.

Those results suggested that Hines may have finally found the back line he’ll go with as the season continues. Dyke has grown more comfortable alongside Rafaelle in central defense, Mace’s return to right back has added stability on the flank, and Oihane has shown quality when playing on either side.

In the team’s most recent game against Bay FC, Hines was able to make adjustments that didn’t hinder the team’s performance. Abello started at left back and Oihane moved back to her natural role at right back. Meanwhile, Dyke and Rafaelle remained the center back pairing and continued to look more comfortable together.

Despite the recent successes, the group has still had limited time to build consistency together. Most of the changes were made during the season rather than in preseason, meaning relationships and understanding across the back line have had to develop in real time.

That’s what makes the World Cup break particularly valuable.

Instead of focusing entirely on match preparation from week to week, the break gives Hines and his staff a rare stretch of time to work on organization and consistency across the back line. It also allows players to become more familiar with one another in their current roles, rather than constantly adjusting to new combinations.

For a team that has made several midseason changes, that kind of continuity can’t be built in games alone. Training time becomes especially important for communication, spacing, and defensive coordination — the small details that often decide whether a back line is stable or exposed.

The Pride entered the break with some momentum, having won two of their last three games and showing signs of improvement defensively. But the first half of the season has also made clear how long it can take to get used to positional changes, even if the personnel remain the same.

If the Pride are going to climb up the NWSL standings, it will largely depend on how well this current group can settle during the break.

For a team that has spent months adapting on the move, the timing of the pause may prove to be exactly what the defense needs.

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Orlando Pride So Far in 2026: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

A look back at some key elements of the season at the break.

Published

2 weeks ago

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June 11, 2026

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

With the NWSL on a break, this is a good time to take a look at a few key components of the club so far this season. It might turn out that this break is exactly what the Orlando Pride need to get healthy and climb back up to the top of the table. Let’s look at the good, the bad, and the ugly so far this season.

The Good

Was there any doubt that this section would be about Barbra Banda? The Pride’s striker has 11 goals and an assist in 12 matches. A goal contribution per match is pretty darn good. Actually, it’s good enough lead the league in goals, shots, and shots on target. The Pride have scored 18 goals total in that time, meaning Banda has contributed to two-thirds of all goals the team has scored.

Most impressively, she’s done it without having Jacquie Ovalle and Marta out there with her at the same time. Both have dealt with injuries, leaving Banda to do most of it herself. Once the season resumes, both Ovalle and Marta will be available and healthy. That should open up even more opportunities for Banda to add goals to an already outstanding season. The caveat to this is that we don’t know the exact severity of the injury that forced Banda off the pitch in the last game.

The Bad

The Orlando Pride have conceded 17 goals so far this season. That is a rate of 1.42 goals per match. For context, the team allowed 27 goals during the 2025 regular season for a rate of 1.04 goals per match. In 2024, the team only allowed 20 goals for a rate of 0.77 goals per match. The Pride are allowing goals at almost double the rate of the championship season, which is why they are sitting in eighth place.

I see two main reasons for the relatively leaky defense. The first is that the back line is still looking for an identity. The departure of Emily Sams threw things into flux and the team has not been able to stabilize the back line. Rafaelle has been the anchor, while there’s been a rotating crew by her side. I still believe that Hailie Mace was brought in to be the other center back. Seb Hines has mostly abandoned that experiment. Surprisingly, Cori Dyke has stepped in and done a serviceable job. Still, what could have been the best center back pairing in the league is a position of concern.

The other issue is the lack of attitude. As I’ve said numerous times on SkoPurp Soccer: An Orlando Pride PawedCast, the Pride don’t have the same chip on their shoulder when it comes to defending. In 2024, the Pride took it personally if an opposing team scored. The players hated it with a fiery rage. That’s mostly been missing this season. I did see some of it during the Pride’s 1-0 win over the San Diego Wave, but one match isn’t enough to win a trophy.

The Ugly

The midfield has been ugly in 2026. Marta has mostly been missing, and as Michael Citro pointed out in his recent article, she is a difficult player to replace. Most of the team has regressed since the high of 2024, and Angelina is no different. She was arguably one of the best players on the team in 2024 but hasn’t contributed as much in 2026. She’s also been booked more, including an ill-advised red card against the Denver Summit. Ally Lemos has plenty of minutes, but she gives the ball away almost as often as she makes a good pass. Summer Yates has seemingly fallen off a cliff.

All of those factors and more have made it more difficult to produce offensive chances, and that has contributed to the leaky defense. The lack of control in the midfield is a large factor in the Pride’s struggles this season. I’m not entirely certain what needs to happen to fix it, but I’m hoping the team can figure it out before the season resumes.

This is obviously not a complete list, so I encourage you to contribute your own thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!

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An Early Look at Orlando Pride’s Contract Decisions

Let’s look ahead to roster decisions that Caitlin Carducci and the Pride will need to make either at or before the end of the 2026 NWSL season.

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2 weeks ago

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June 6, 2026

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Image of Marta and Angelina being honored before a game.
Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

Now that the monthlong NWSL break is upon us, we’ve got a little time to take a breath and look ahead. As we did with Orlando City a week ago, let’s look forward at the roster decisions Caitlin Carducci and the Orlando Pride will have coming up at season’s end. Unlike the MLS side, we don’t have the luxury of the salaries for the players, but we still know which contracts will expire and which ones will have contract options available to exercise at the end of 2026.

Kerry Abello — Defender/Midfielder

Abello arrived via the 2021 NWSL Draft, in which the Pride selected her in the third round (No. 24 overall), but she opted to return to Penn State for one more year of eligibility. Orlando signed Abello in January of 2022 through the 2023 season. The Pride ripped up that deal in February of 2023, signing Abello to a new contract through 2024 with an option for 2025. Abello then signed another new deal in March of 2024 that runs through the end of this year.

Just 26, Abello is an intriguing player still in her prime years who has shown flashes of being a top-notch starter. However, she still has defensive lapses in games, turns the ball over far too frequently in others, provides little in terms of goal-scoring contributions (three goals, five assists in all competitions since the start of 2022), and hasn’t settled into the kind of consistency you’d hope for in a veteran player who has been in the league since 2022.

She started the 2026 season on the injured list but started to see game action just before the break, including her first start of the 2026 season. The versatile defender/midfielder can play a variety of positions in both the defense and the attack and is only two years removed from MLS Bext XI Second Team honors, when she played primarily left back for the double-winning Pride. That makes her worth keeping around, even if it’s as a depth player on a strong, deep team.

Angelina — Midfielder

The Brazilian international signed a three-year deal on Dec. 13, 2023, running through the end of 2026. That’s set to expire later this year, so there is some work to do in keeping the midfielder around. So far this season, Angelina has registered one assist. Over her three-year NWSL career with the Pride, the Brazilian has scored two goals (both in 2024) and added four assists in the regular season, contributing sparingly from her often deep-lying position. She has also been a solid, if unspectacular, set-piece taker.

Angelina was one of the best players on the Pride in 2024. Like many others, her game took a step back in 2025 (no goals, one assist), and she hasn’t been her best self yet in 2026 yet either. The recent hair-pulling incident that cost her a red card and an additional game suspension was a costly mistake that veteran leaders shouldn’t make. Still, when she’s on her game, Angelina is one of the best deep-lying midfielders in the NWSL. She can unlock a defense with a single through ball or long ball, as she did in the 2024 NWSL Championship, when she set up Barbra Banda’s game-winning goal. Angelina is a good player who the Pride will likely want to bring back, as long as the cost isn’t too high.

Kat Asman — Goalkeeper

Another player signed through 2026 but not beyond, Asman has spent a good chunk of her time with the Pride while on loan with Lexington FC in the USL Super League since signing with Orlando on Dec. 11, 2024. Asman has been a good goalkeeper in that league, winning the 2025-2026 USL Super League Golden Glove award. It seems unlikely the Pride will prioritize signing Asman, although she’s played well in competitive action and may have shown more than McKinley Crone and Cosette Morche have combined.

Seven Castain — Forward

Castain signed a one-year deal through the end of 2026 back on Jan. 16. The TCU product has shown flashes of promise in her first year with Orlando, but she has also looked overmatched and not ready for the NWSL at times as well. She seems to have fallen down the depth chart as other young players emerge and other Pride players have come off the injury list. It’s unclear if the club thinks highly enough of Castain at this point to re-sign her, but she still has time in 2026 to make an impact and give Carducci something to think about.

McKinley Crone — Goalkeeper

Orlando’s current backup to Anna Moorhouse will see her deal expire at the end of the season as well. Crone signed a short-term deal in late September of 2023 through the end of that season and earned a new contract. She signed through the 2024 season on March 11, 2024, and must have impressed everyone, because the club signed her through 2026 just six months later in a new deal announced on Sept. 6, 2024.

It remains to be seen who will emerge as the primary backup when Morche returns from injury. Crone has looked good in her infrequent matches, but has primarily been used outside of NWSL competition since her arrival.

Image of Julie Doyle playing agaainst Boston Legacy.

Julie Doyle — Midfielder/Forward

Doyle was Orlando’s third selection in the first round (No. 11 overall) in the 2022 NWSL Draft. The Santa Clara product signed her first pro contract on Jan. 27, 2022, through that season with an option year for 2023, which the club exercised in November following her rookie season. Doyle then signed a new two-year contract through the 2024 season on May 8, 2023. The Pride signed her to another new contract on Oct. 1, 2024, a two-year deal through the 2026 season, meaning she’s out of contract at the end of this year.

During her time in Orlando, Doyle has been a decent bench option and spot starter, but she hasn’t exactly broken out and has struggled to get into the starting lineup at times. Given her position, one might reasonably expect a former first-round pick to contribute more offensively, but Doyle has never exceeded two goals in league play in any season despite getting herself into some good scoring positions. Now 27, Doyle has shown the Pride who she is over the course of the last four-and-a-half seasons. It will be interesting if she’s shown enough to stick around on another new contract.

Luana — Midfielder

The first player we’ll discuss who has a contract option year after 2026 is the Brazilian international midfielder, who has battled back from a scary Hodgkins lymphoma diagnosis during her first year with the Pride in 2024. Luana signed with Orlando on Dec. 14, 2023, but played only a few games before showing up on the availability report as an excused absence. The Pride announced on April 29, 2024, that the Brazilian would miss the rest of the season to undergo treatment. She battled her illness while her teammates won the NWSL Shield and the NWSL Championship, inspired largely by her courage. Luana beat the disease, but it took a while to come back. She returned to the pitch in the second half of 2025 and did enough to earn herself a new contract, which she signed on Nov. 13, 2025. Her contract runs through this season but there is a mutual option year on the deal for 2027.

Luana has looked fantastic at times, and it’s easy to forget that she started the 2024 campaign as a starter for a team that went on to shatter club and league records en route to winning the double. She scored her first goal with the Pride in Orlando’s 2-0 home playoff win over the Seattle Reign on Nov. 7, 2025 (actually, it was her first goal contribution of any kind with Orlando). She was a big part of the buildup for the Pride’s winning goal at San Diego on May 24, although she did not get an assist because a defender touched the ball. Luana finally notched her first NWSL assist in the Pride’s most recent match — the 3-1 win on May 29, which sent the team into the break on a two-game winning streak. If her trajectory continues, it’s not hard to imagine her returning as a regular starter when all players are available, and she could once again play for the Brazilian Women’s National Team. On the other hand, at 33 years of age, time is not on her side in terms of her remaining career.

Marta — Midfielder/Forward

Look, at some point Marta has to retire, right? The 40-year-old legend has earned the right to go out on her own terms, but the two-year contract she signed on Jan. 9, 2025, seems likely to be her last. That contract concludes after this season, and this could be the Pride’s most important off-season decision.

Marta turned back the clock in 2024, playing at one of the highest levels of her illustrious career. That was an encouraging sign, and even though it would have been a storybook ending to a glorious career for the Brazilian icon to exit the world stage as a player after winning the double, Pride fans understandably celebrated her announcement that she signed a new contract with Orlando.

Her performances fell off in 2025 — something that plagued the entire team — but her availability in 2026 has been an even bigger issue. The Marta problem is that despite her age and lack of availability, she’s still hard to replace, because even in limited minutes, she’s performing better and helping the team win and retain possession more than most of her teammates and better than most potential replacements could do in her place. The goal production has tailed off, however, and that’s having an impact in the standings, because if Marta isn’t producing, the Pride have little offense outside of Banda (though Jacquie Ovalle’s return from injury should help).

The Pride would likely offer Marta a new one-year contract if she wants to keep playing. Few could blame them, and it’s hard to fault an athlete who loves the game so much that they don’t mind the diminishing returns they bring to their club as they extend their career. However, Orlando is in a transition phase, and using Marta’s salary elsewhere could help the club get younger, faster, and more threatening. Ultimately, this may be more Marta’s decision than Orlando’s, because the club will want Marta to end her career in purple. And while it seems the bell is tolling on a legendary career, it would surprise almost no one if she has another surge left in her.

Cara Martin — Goalkeeper

Pride fans could be forgiven for thinking Martin is an AI construct, because when have we seen proof of life? (OK, she’s made the substitutes’ bench a few times. Allegedly.) Martin signed Jan. 16 along with Castain and Nicole Payne. The former Big East Goalkeeper of the Year with Georgetown has not appeared for Orlando and her bio isn’t in the team’s game notes. Martin’s contract is up at the end of the season, and with Orlando collecting backup goalkeepers to work with the team in training and wait in line behind Moorhouse, the question is whether she’ll do enough to remain in the Pride’s stable of backup netminders.

Image of Kylie Nadaner making a headed clearance against the Houston Dash while Barbra Banda looks on.

Kylie Nadaner — Defender

The club’s vice captain has been away on what has seemed more like eternity leave than maternity leave. Nadaner had her baby in May, and the long process of getting back into playing shape lies ahead. Meanwhile, she’s in the final season of a three-year deal she signed on Dec. 7, 2023. Nadaner began her time in Orlando as a struggling left back who worked her way into becoming one of the team’s most dependable center backs.

Nadaner will be 35 early next season as her birthday is in March. While it’s difficult for players to return to playing shape after giving birth to a brand-new human, doing it in your mid-30s is even tougher, though it’s doable. Whether Nadaner is offered a new contract may depend on her ability to get back on the field in the second half of 2026 and show she can still perform.

Oihane – Defender

The Spanish fullback is in the last guaranteed season of a two-year deal she signed on Feb. 14, 2025. However, that contract includes a 2027 option year. Oihane has looked strong at times, although some minor knocks here and there have disrupted her continuity. She’s been one of the team’s better crossers in open play, posting three assists in just under a year and a half with Orlando.

The problem for Oihane is she’s in the Pride’s deepest position group. Cori Dyke, Hailie Mace, Haley McCutcheon, Nicole Payne, and Reagan Raabe can all play right back. Oihane has also filled in at left back, but there is coverage there, too. We may not know until the postseason roster decisions whether the Spanish international will remain in the club’s plans.

Nicole Payne — Defender/Winger

A former Portland Thorns and (briefly) Paris Saint-Germain player, Payne signed a one-year contract with the Pride on Jan. 16 that expires after the season. She showed off her pace playing right back in her first appearance with Orlando, but she’s since seen time at right wing, scoring a big goal in a solid outing at San Diego in the final week before the break. She didn’t back up that performance well five days later against Bay FC, but you can see there’s talent, speed, and potential scoring punch from the USC product.

Whether Payne is brought back is likely still up in the air, but there has been some promise, and her potential has not been questioned. Staying healthy has been a challenge for Payne. If she can stay fit, she would at least make a good depth option if she can turn in consistent performances like the one she had against the Wave.

Reagan Raabe — Forward/Defender

Raabe arrived as a non-roster invitee in preseason camp and earned a short-term contract on March 5. She’s made a couple of appearances off the bench in different positions but hasn’t been able to show a lot in her limited action. Will it be enough for the 24-year-old Nebraska product to earn a fulltime contract? We’ll find out soon.

Viviana Villacorta — Midfielder

The Orlando Pride had high hopes for Villacorta after drafting her at No. 9 overall in the first round of the 2021 NWSL Draft. And while she’s shown flashes of the potential she had coming out of UCLA throughout her time in Orlando, injuries have plagued her career and have completely derailed multiple seasons. Even in 2026, Villacorta has been on the club’s availability list, most recently with a knee injury. She’s done enough to hang around and earn three different contracts with the Pride, who exercised her 2026 option on June 30, 2025, meaning she’ll be out of contract again at the end of the year.

Whether the club still values Villacorta as a good depth option or is ready to turn the page on the 27-year-old — or whether Villacorta even wants to continue her career — is a decision we’ll have to wait to find out.

Summer Yates — Midfielder

Yates was a highly regarded prospect out of the University of Washington who somehow fell to Orlando in the fourth round (No. 39 overall) in the 2023 NWSL Draft. She quickly earned a rookie contract on March 7, 2023, through 2024 with an option year for 2025. She played so well during the club’s 2024 run to the double that she earned a new contract on July 11, 2024, through 2025 with an option year for 2026. Unfortunately, Yates followed many other Pride players in regressing in 2025, but Orlando and Yates had already mutually exercised her 2026 option year in October of 2024. That means she’s out of contract after this season, like so many others.

The 25-year-old native of Pasco, Washington, is just entering her prime years, but her play since the start of 2025 has not shown many signs of the improvements we saw in 2024. Former general manager Haley Carter touted her off-season work on our podcast prior to the club’s 2024 double-winning campaign. Since then, Yates has not scored a league goal and has tallied only two assists in the regular season, although she notably notched a hat trick in a 5-0 win at Chorrillo FC in Panama a year ago. Her most recent game against Bay FC saw Yates thread the needle to set up Banda’s second goal of the night, which turned out to be the game-winner.

Yates does so many things well, but putting together consistent performances has been a struggle since the start of 2025. Some of that has been related to playing through some minor knocks. Every dribble into a blind alley or misplaced pass in the attacking third seems worthwhile when Yates sticks a gorgeous through ball into Banda’s path, but a return to her 2024 form, in which she scored five NWSL goals, would be her best path to a lucrative new deal with the Pride.

The Pride roster provides a lot of flexibility for Carducci. There are as many as 14 expiring contracts either, outright or with an option decision, and the competition for new deals will be stiff. Carducci can spend the rest of the 2026 season evaluating the squad, looking at the areas she wants to improve, and making informed choices about which players to re-sign and which to let go.

That, of course, is a double-edged sword, because letting things go too long can result in players becoming free agents and leaving for free. In the past, the Pride under Carter liked to lock players down before their deals expired. This year, we may yet see some signings before season’s end, but Carducci has the opportunity to overhaul the roster. At the very least, the bottom of the roster can (and should) be churned a bit.

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