Orlando Pride
Orlando Pride vs. Kansas City Current: A Tactical Deep Dive
How two of the NWSL’s best teams stymied each other en route to a critical draw.
Friday night, nearly 10,000 fans packed Inter&Co Stadium to watch the much-anticipated rematch of two of the top teams in the NWSL. After a red card, a road win, and exuberant celebrations by the Orlando Pride at the Kansas City Current, the latter hoped for revenge in Orlando. Instead, the match played out more like a finely balanced chess match before the points were shared.
So, just how did a match featuring the two golden boot leaders in the NWSL, sitting on a combined 27 goals, end scoreless?
Slowing the Current
As it had been for most of the previous 19 matches of the season, defense was the star of the show for Orlando once again. This had to be the case for Orlando, considering the firepower Kansas City has on its roster. Below are the up-to-date goal contribution tallies for the Current, showing just how many players can hurt the opposition. Despite the potency of the Kansas City attack, the Pride were able to extend their clean sheet streak to four consecutive matches, with only one goal against in the past eight games, which was scored by the Current in Kansas City.
| Player | Goals | Assists |
| Temwa Chawinga | 15 | 6 |
| Bia Zaneratto | 5 | 4 |
| Lo’eau LaBonta | 5 | 1 |
| Vanessa DiBernardo | 4 | 5 |
| Debinha | 1 | 4 |
While Temwa Chawinga would have been top of mind for Orlando’s coaches while preparing for this matchup, they designed a comprehensive game plan for limiting the opportunities of the NWSL’s most potent attack that included all 11 positions on the pitch.
As Player of the Match Cori Dyke put it, “She’s obviously a player that demands a lot of respect. [She is] a really talented player. We did a lot of preparation this week, watched a lot of film, and went through a lot of defensive strategies.”
First among these defensive strategies was the high press that Head Coach Seb Hines employs against many opponents. Against the Current, the Pride began each defensive sequence from the front, engaging the Kansas City back line in a 4-2-4 pressing structure. In this formation, Summer Yates, Barbra Banda, Marta, and Adriana were each responsible for covering a counterpart in the opposition back line, limiting their options for easy passes. Then, when a defender played a ball back towards the keeper, Marta or Banda would trigger a more aggressive press and attempt to close down the ball and generate turnovers.
This high-press strategy often disrupted the flow of the game for Kansas City, but it can be a high-risk, high-reward strategy. If the Pride forced the Current to turn the ball over near their goal, it would create a dangerous chance for Orlando. On the other hand, if the press was unsuccessful, Kansas City could have numerical advantages on the other end of the pitch.
When Kansas City was able to play out from the back and around the Orlando press, the Current more often than not played it towards Chawinga on their left wing to drive towards the Orlando goal. In this match, she received the ball and carried it forward more often than an average match for her, but this is where the Pride had another strategy for limiting her chances. To slow Chawinga, they used Dyke as the primary defender, tasked with marking the golden boot pace-setter closely and had Emily Sams as secondary cover.
Dyke’s job was to push tight to Chawinga when she received the ball, enough to slow her down and give additional defenders time to engage. For Sams, the job was to cheat several yards back towards her own net when the Current possessed the ball, so as to not get beaten by Chawinga’s pace. When the ball did reach Chawinga, Sams would rush to double-team Chawinga and force the turnover or get the ball away from the Current’s most dangerous player. This tactic ensured that while Chawinga could not be completely prevented from influencing the play, it would be difficult for her to keep an attack headed towards Anna Moorhouse’s net.
The last key defensive tactic for the Pride in this match had just as much to do with Kansas City’s lack of endeavor as it did the Pride’s play. Kansas City knew coming into the match that it would be difficult to get a result in Orlando, so the visitors did not attack with the same conviction as they’ve become known for, instead focusing on transition and counterattacks to generate chances without opening the match up for the Pride to do the same.
Because of Kansas City’s offensive setup, the Pride were able to keep much of the game inside the Current’s half. With the distances reduced, the Pride front line and midfield were able to cover more players and passing lanes. So, when the Current progressed the ball initially, they were quickly covered again by an onrushing Angelina, Marta, or Banda, making life more difficult.
While Chawinga was able to create some threat for the Current — to the tune of five shots with two on target — the rest of the Kansas City squad only managed one shot on target. Vanessa DiBernardo, Lo’eau LaBonta, and Debinha all ended the match well below their season averages for shots, touches, and take-ons, a statistic showing how many times a player attempts to beat the opposition off the dribble. Beyond that, Kansas City only generated two corner kicks and four free kicks, resulting in minimal opportunities to commit bodies forward and create more than half chances. As the match progressed, it often seemed Kansas City wouldn’t be too bothered to play out a scoreless draw.
Pride Attack Stifled
Despite the fact that Orlando and Kansas City met as recently as July, a lot has changed in defense for the Current. Since that match, they have added center backs Alana Cook and Kayla Sharples and goalkeeper Almath Schult. These acquisitions were made to shore up several positions of weakness with an eye towards the NWSL championship. In just their second match as a new defensive unit, they played well, limiting Orlando’s chances. The Pride attack has experienced a bit of a drought in recent weeks, as analyzed by The Mane Land’s Andrew DeSalvo in a recent article. So, it is worth looking at what the Current did to stifle the Pride, and how the Pride could have found a way to win the match.
The Current’s defensive game plan against Orlando was simple, but it was effective. For the full 90 minutes of the match, when the Pride possessed the ball, the Current played a high defensive line and didn’t press the Orlando defenders, trying instead to create a congested middle of the pitch. This can be seen in the passing numbers for the Pride defenders, which were well above average in both number and accuracy of passes since there was absolutely no pressure on these players from the opposition.
On the other end of the pitch, Kansas City doubled up against Banda, with the goal of taking her influence out of the game. As a result, Banda had arguably her quietest night in a Pride jersey so far. On average, the Pride are able to find a pass to Banda 22 times per 90 minutes. Against Kansas City, this number was down to just 14 times. When Banda did receive a pass, she was hounded by defenders and unable to progress the ball into dangerous areas. While she averages an astounding six progressive carries per match, she only completed two against the Current. Without the ball, and unable to progress it into dangerous areas, Banda only took three shots versus her usual 5.5, and one was a speculative long-range effort that could’ve been better as a pass to Adriana.
In response to Kansas City’s defensive setup, the opportunities for Orlando came from the wide areas of the pitch. Because of the attention paid to clogging up the middle and double-teaming Banda, Orlando created many one-on-one matchups for Adriana against the opponent. Unfortunately, Hailie Mace defended superbly from the left back position and Adriana could not get anything going. While Adriana possessed the ball roughly twice as much as Banda, she was unable to create opportunities to score. She attempted eight take-ons against Mace, but beat her once, and by the end of the match she had only managed one shot on target and was largely ineffective.
On the other wing, Yates did not have much more success, despite receiving the ball about as many times as Adriana in only 59 minutes. Off the left wing, she similarly only beat her opponent once out of five attempts. Yates was replaced by Evelina Duljan without registering a shot. Duljan, for her part, was quite lively after her introduction. In her 31 minutes, she was able to beat her opponent three times in one-on-one situations, and her progressive carries led to several dangerous situations for the attack in the closing minutes.
In addition to Duljan, the other offensive standout for the Pride was Marta. Of all Orlando’s players, she looked the most likely to create the chance that would’ve won the game. Despite the Current’s tactic of compressing the pitch and clogging the middle, Marta’s movement off the ball and exceptional footwork meant she was able to find pockets of space to receive a pass, turn out of trouble, and transition into attack. As a result, Marta received 51 passes in the match, more than double the next highest tally from front-line players, often because she dropped deep to receive. From there, her 43 completed passes also doubled the tally of any other attacker. Each of the two times she took on a defender, she was able to beat them. Finally, Marta accounted for three of Orlando’s five shots on target, all of which were taken outside the box and required diving saves from Schult.
In the end, Hines said it best, “Kansas were a tough nut to crack at times. You know, they got a lot of bodies behind the ball. They made it very difficult for us to try and create anything. I also think there was quite some good opportunities to score as well.”
Missed Opportunities
As Hines said, despite the solid defending by the opposition, there were a few ways that the Pride weren’t as effective in their attacking play as the coaching staff has come to expect. Some of these missed opportunities were mentioned above, like the wingers not winning their individual matchups against the opposing defense. Another way the Pride could have created chances for themselves, but didn’t, was the high pressing discussed above. While the Current showed a solid game plan for preventing chances when Orlando built from the back, turnovers created in the defensive third can shred a game plan and yield scoring chances. Unfortunately, Orlando was not able to generate a killer turnover in this match.
Another missed opportunity was the lack of threat from set plays. Orlando generated many set pieces, including eight corners and 11 free kicks in total, but these also did not yield a goal. Many times, corners were lofted into an area where the keeper was always favored to reach the ball. Better delivery could have seen a winning goal from Banda, who is already the all-time leader in headed goals for the Pride. Other times, the ball just did not bounce the right way for a rebound. A few of the chances that did come from these set plays fell to Haley McCutcheon, but the defensive midfielder was not able to put any of her four shots on frame.
Holding a talented opponent scoreless is always an accomplishment that requires a good plan, good execution, and sometimes a bit of luck. Fans in Inter&Co stadium didn’t get to see a goal, but they did see interesting tactics and great defense. While this may be biased towards the team in purple, the Pride generally seemed the more likely to come out victorious in this matchup as they had more possession, shots, shots on target, and set-piece opportunities than the opposing Kansas City Current.
At the end of the day, the points were split, and this too may lean in the favor of the Pride. For the Current, one point meant falling behind Gotham in the standings. They may also be running out of time to catch back up to the NWSL shield leaders after leading the league for much of the first half of the season. For Orlando, a point means a continuing undefeated run that now stretches to 21 matches. However, after the Spirit defeated the Houston Dash, Orlando’s lead at the top of the table now sits at four points, and a match between the top two teams is just a few weeks away.
Orlando Pride
Orlando Pride vs. Bay FC: Final Score 3-1 as Banda Brace Leads Pride to Victory
Barbra Banda bags a brace and an assist but goes down injured late in the victory.
After dropping two games to expansion teams and stealing a win in San Diego, the Orlando Pride looked to enter the summer break on a good note. The Pride (5-5-2, 17 points) had never lost to Bay FC (3-6-2, 11 points) and used a second-half burst to maintain that winning record and won 3-1 at Inter&Co Stadium.
Barbra Banda opened the scoring in the fourth minute and followed it up in the 51st minute with her second. She added an assist to Cori Dyke in the 55th minute to close out the Pride scoring. Caroline Conti scored the lone Bay FC goal at the seven-minute mark.
“No better gift than a 3-1 victory at home in front of our fans,” Pride Head Coach (and birthday boy) Seb Hines said after the game. “It feels good that we’re ending this period on a high. I think it’s the first time this season we’ve got back-to-back victories.”
The Pride made one change in the lineup, giving Kerry Abello her first start of the season over Julie Doyle. Anna Moorhouse started in goal with Abello, Rafaelle, Cori Dyke, and Oihane on defense. Haley McCutcheon and Ally Lemos played midfield in front of them with Mace, Luana, and Nicole Payne attacking from the midfield. Banda and her leading-leading nine goals played alone up top.
After an hour weather delay, the Pride went with the in-vogue start these days by kicking the ball straight out of bounds deep on the start and pressing high. It led to an opening three minutes of play in which the Pride kept the pressure up and forced the ball to stay on the Bay FC side. In the fourth minute, Luana headed a ball towards the center which Banda controlled, bodied Bay FC’s Joelle Anderson off the ball, and slotted the opening goal with her left foot.
Bay FC fought right back in the seventh minute as the visitors didn’t have to fight through the press off their kickoff. Claire Hutton crossed the ball into the box, Abello deflected it wide but there was no Pride defender there and it fell to Caroline Conti. Abello tried to fight all the way over but Conti was able to put it past Moorhouse before any help arrived.
The entire back line got pulled to the right on the play and Mace could not get back to help out wide.
“Hailie Mace came into NWSL as a winger. She’s got some tendencies that fit a winger profile. We knew Bay FC had a high back line. How do we get behind that back line? Having someone to support Barbra and not just Nicole but add in another player who can get into the attack,” Hines said regarding the switch.
In the 16th minute, Rachael Kundananji beat Oihane and crossed the ball to Hannah Bebar, who headed it into the net, but Cristiana Girelli was in an offside position threatening the goal, so the assistant referee ruled that it put Moorhouse off enough to interfere with the play.
The teams settled down a bit and traded possession until the 27th minute when Oihane centered the ball to Payne, who scuffed the shot high. One minute later, Luana sent a through ball for Banda to run onto and she went down in the box in a collision with Brooklyn Courtnall. It was fairly evident, however, that Banda got her leg into Courtnall’s to either try to control the ball or draw a foul, and the referee, Jaclyn Metz, saw it the same way.
In the 33rd minute, Oihane was subbed out for Hannah Anderson. Oihane had been laboring a little and may have picked up a knock somewhere.
The Pride couldn’t re-establish the high press so they turned into a lot of possession by Bay FC. Any attack by the Pride ended in a turnover off a bad pass or ill-conceived long shots as Orlando’s attackers were impatient in building play. Turnover after turnover plagued the Pride for the remainder of the half as they did not threaten at all until the 45th minute, when Banda took on Maddie Moreau and Kundananji, shook them both loose, and then crossed the ball into an empty area at the back post with no one to finish.
It was a fitting final piece of sound and fury, signifying nothing, as the half wrapped without any plays of interest. The Pride weren’t able to lead any of the statistics, tying Bay FC in shots (4-4), while Bay FC led in shots on target (3-1), possession (53%-47%), and passing accuracy (85%-83%). Neither team was able to force a corner in the first half.
To start the second half, Hines subbed in Summer Yates for Abello, which pushed Mace back to the back line. In the 48th minute, Kundananji got behind when Anderson got caught out and was sizing up a one-on-one with Moorhouse. Dyke hustled back and blocked the shot.
“We started the game super strong, super intense, but I think we fell off towards the end of that first half,” Dyke said. “We got a little too stretched between the lines and weren’t getting enough pressure on the ball and we talked about that at halftime. We needed to stay more compact and then pick our moments to go.”
Go they did. Three minutes later, Yates sent a through ball angled behind Banda which allowed her to run onto the ball unopposed. She beat goalkeeper Emmie Allen, who came out of the box aggressively to defend, and then passed the ball into the net in the 51st minute.
Four minutes later, Banda pressured Allen, forcing the goalkeeper into a clearance out of play. On the ensuing throw-in, Banda held off Bebar in the box, spun, and crossed the ball to Dyke, who put the ball in off the crossbar. The ability of the Pride to retain possession and work the ball in against a lesser opponent opened up the scoring and turned the game on its head.
Bay FC didn’t have a lot to do over the next stretch of time and Taylor Huff went down with an injury in the 61st minute, prompting a change as she was subbed out for Karlie Lema. Dorian Bailey came on for Joelle Anderson in the same stoppage but at the 62nd minute.
The teams went back and forth for a bit until the Pride drew a corner in the 71st minute. It deflected off a Bay FC defender and fell to Rafaelle at the far post, who headed it just wide. Three minutes later, Jacquie Ovalle and Zara Chavoshi wrapped up the Pride substitutions by coming in for Payne and Mace. Bay FC also took the stoppage in the 74th minute to sub two players in, bringing on Keria Barry and Onyeka Gamero for Kundananji and Girelli.
Unfortunately, in the 81st minute, Banda was dribbling down the left side when she pulled up lame and went to the ground off the pitch. She stayed there until tended to and was obviously upset. We’ll have to wait for any injury news on her. Bay FC made its final substitution in the ensuing stoppage in the 82nd minute, bringing on Kelli Hubly for Conti.
The injury to Banda left the Pride playing with only 10 players for the remaining 15 minutes (including added time) due to using up all three substitution windows. They stayed fairly solid in defense and played a lot of keep-away ball to see out the victory while playing short.
“A great way to finish this part of the season with a win at home. I think we were consistent today and we took the chances we created,” Luana said. “We’ve been having highs and lows in this part of the season but we bounced back in these two wins and it brought us a lot of confidence.”
Orlando City was ahead in the only stat that matters, goals, but trailed in every other major stat. Bay FC finished ahead in shots (14-8), shots on target (5-4), possession (54%-46%), passing accuracy (85%-84%), and corners (4-1).
The Orlando Pride now will be off until early July for the NWSL World Cup break. The next match is scheduled for July 3 in Los Angeles against Angel City FC.
Orlando Pride
Orlando Pride vs. Bay FC: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More
The Pride return home to face Bay FC in their final game before the FIFA World Cup break.
Welcome to your preview and match thread as the Orlando Pride (4-5-2, 14 points) return home from a three-game road trip to take on Bay FC (3-5-2, 11 points). This is the first of two meetings between the two teams with the return game scheduled for Sept. 27 in San Jose.
Here’s everything you need to know about tonight’s game.
History
Bay FC is one of two expansion teams that entered the NWSL for the 2024 season. The teams have met four times, with the Pride holding a 3-0-1 record and a 1-0-1 mark at home in the series.
The most recent meeting took place on Sept. 13, 2025, in Orlando. The visitors took the lead just before halftime when Racheal Kundananji headed in a long pass by Caprice Dydasco. The Pride equalized in the second half, when Ally Watt headed a Jacquie Ovalle cross past Jordan Silkowitz to claim a 1-1 draw.
On June 13 of last year in San Jose, CA, Bay FC led almost every statistical category, but the Pride defense held strong until Barbra Banda scored shortly after halftime. The Pride withstood attack after attack, coming away with a hard-fought 1-0 win.
The teams met twice in 2024, with the first-ever game between the clubs occurring on May 11. Just prior to the half-hour mark, Banda dribbled inside and Deyna Castellanos attempted an ill-advised challenge, resulting in a foul in the box and a Pride penalty. Adriana put the ball into the bottom left corner for the only goal, lifting the Pride to a 1-0 win. It was the sixth win in an NWSL-record, eight-game win streak.
The teams met for the second time on Sept. 20, 2024. It looked like the game might be headed for a scoreless draw until Banda got her head on the end of a Carson Pickett cross, redirecting it past Katelyn Rowland to give the Pride the 1-0 win.
Overview
The Pride return home tonight after a difficult road trip that saw the team fall 2-1 to Boston Legacy FC and 3-1 to Denver Summit FC. Having already lost to both expansion teams, they headed west to face San Diego Wave FC, a team near the top of the standings. But Nicole Payne’s first professional goal lifted Orlando to a 1-0 win.
Despite not scoring in two of the last three games, Banda still leads the league with nine goals in 10 games this season. She has a two-goal lead on Ashley Sanchez, who is second in the league. Haley McCutcheon is the only other Pride player with multiple goals, scoring twice in the same game. Ovalle, Marta, and Hannah Anderson have the team’s other three goals. The assists have been spread out much more evenly with Ovalle, McCutcheon, and Rafaelle all sharing the team lead with two.
The clean sheet against San Diego was big for the back line as the team has conceded too many goals recently. Dating back to their 3-2 loss to Racing Louisville FC on April 24, the Pride have conceded multiple goals in four of the last six games. The only other game in which they didn’t concede at least twice was a 1-0 win over the North Carolina Courage on May 8, their last home game.
Tonight is the Pride’s last game before the league breaks for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. After the game, they won’t play again until July 3 and won’t play at home until July 10. That makes getting a quality result tonight essential for momentum going through the remainder of the season.
If you’re looking for a team to win against, Bay FC is one of the most likely candidates. The Bay -area side sits 13th in the NWSL on 11 points, just four points ahead of Louisville for last place. Tonight’s visitors are currently on a four-game winless run (0-2-2) and a two-game losing streak. Their last win was a 1-0 victory against San Diego on May 3. The club’s most recent games are a 2-0 loss to Portland Thorns FC on May 20 and a 1-0 loss to Chicago Stars FC on May 24.
Bay FC has struggled this year on both ends of the field. Its eight goals are second fewest in the league and Bay is one of three teams with single-digit goals this year. Meanwhile, the team’s 14 goals conceded are sixth in the league. The California side has been better defensively overall than the Pride, who have conceded 16 goals, but worse offensively, as the Pride have scored 15 goals so far this year.
Bay FC has been led in the attack by Alex Pfeiffer and Dorian Bailey with two goals each. Kundananji, Taylor Huff, Keira Barry, and Joelle Anderson have one apiece. Pfeiffer also leads the team in assists with two, tied with Cristina Girelli. Huff and Sydney Collins are the only other players with assists this season.
It should help the Pride tonight that Bay FC will be missing two key players. Silkowitz and starting center back Aldana Cometti were sent off against Chicago Sunday, meaning they’ll miss tonight’s game.
However, the Pride have their own key absences. In addition to injuries that have accumulated this season, Angelina was handed an additional game’s suspension after being sent off on May 16 for pulling Delanie Sheehan’s hair.
“We’re looking forward to it. Looking forward to being back home,” Pride Head Coach Seb Hines said about tonight’s game. “It’s been a long road trip. Excited to get in front of our own fans. Want to create that atmosphere, make it hostile for Bay FC. We know it’s a quick turnaround for both teams as well, so we want to make sure that we start off on the front foot, build on what we achieved last Sunday in San Diego, and finish this part of the season on a high.”
The Pride will be without Angelina (suspension), Cosette Morche (ankle), Kylie Nadaner (maternity leave), Viviana Villacorta (knee), and Solai Washington (knee). Marta (thigh) and Ovalle (thigh) are listed as questionable. Bay FC will be without Cornetti (suspension), Abby Dahlkemper (maternity leave), Anouk Denton (lower leg), Dydasco (maternity leave), Heather Gilchrist (knee), Alyssa Malonson (knee), Emily Menges (maternity leave), Pfeiffer (knee), and Silkowitz (suspension).
Official Lineups
Orlando Pride (4-2-3-1)
Goalkeeper: Anna Moorhouse.
Defenders: Oihane, Rafaelle, Cori Dyke, Hailie Mace.
Defensive Midfielders: Ally Lemos, Haley McCutcheon.
Attacking Midfielders: Kerry Abello, Luana, Nicole Payne.
Forward: Barbra Banda.
Bench: McKinley Crone, Zara Chavoshi, Hannah Anderson, Julie Doyle, Marta, Jacquie Ovalle, Summer Yates, Seven Castain, Simone Jackson.
Bay FC (4-2-3-1)
Goalkeeper: Emmie Allen.
Defenders: Sydney Collins, Joelle Anderson, Brooklyn Courtnall, Maddie Moreau.
Defensive Midfielders: Hannah Bebar, Claire Hutton.
Attacking Midfielders: Racheal Kundananji, Caroline Conti, Taylor Huff.
Forward: Cristiana Girelli.
Bench: Camryn Miller, Kelli Hubly, Jamie Shepherd, Dorian Bailey, Karlie Lema, Onyeka Gamero, Tess Boade, Keira Barry.
Referees
REF: Jaclyn Metz.
AR1: Art Arustamyan.
AR2: Adam Cook.
4TH: Edson Carvajal.
VAR: Anya Voigt.
AVAR: Katarzyna Wasiak.
How to Watch
Match Time: 7 p.m.
Venue: Inter&Co Stadium — Orlando.
TV: None.
Streaming: NWSL+.
Social Media: For live updates and rapid reaction, follow @themaneland.bsky.social on Bluesky and the Orlando Pride’s official Twitter (@ORLPride) or Bluesky (@orlpride.com) feed.
Enjoy the game. Go Pride!
Orlando Pride
Orlando Pride vs. Bay FC: Three Keys to Victory
What do the Pride need to do to earn all three points against Bay FC?
The Orlando Pride welcome Bay FC to Inter&Co Stadium this Friday night for the last match before the World Cup break. This is an opportunity to get a win over a team lower in the table and move up in the standings. What must the Pride do to earn all three points against Bay FC this weekend?
Keep the Chip
I have been asking all season on SkoPurp Soccer: An Orlando Pride PawedCast for the Pride to play with the chip on their shoulder that they had when they won the double in 2024. We saw that against the San Diego Wave. My hope is that the players have now remembered what that feels like and will execute with the same level of intensity going forward.
The task is potentially a little easier against Bay FC, as the California-based side has scored less than half the number of goals that the Wave have this season. Of course, that is the trap. The Pride cannot slack off against Bay FC. Having Rafaelle anchoring the defense is a big help, and moving Hailie Mace out to right back has proven effective. In 2024, this team hated — with a capital “H” — conceding goals. They took it personally. That is the passion I want again. The chip on the shoulder.
Overwhelm and Outscore
As I mentioned above, Bay FC is not a prolific scoring team. Friday’s visitors have also given up 14 goals this season. That’s not the best or the worst in the league, but they haven’t faced Barbra Banda yet. The Orlando Pride don’t have any trouble creating chances, but they have had trouble getting anyone other than Banda to finish them this season. Banda leads the league in goals, and she has an opportunity to maintain or extend that lead against Bay FC.
What will truly make the difference for the Pride against Bay FC is if any of the other players can contribute a goal. We saw the space that Banda can provide her teammates when Nicole Payne scored her first goal against San Diego. Now I want other players to take advantage of that space to provide some goals for the Pride.
More Luana
Luana got her first start since coming back to the squad cancer-free. I think we’ve forgotten that she was a starter on the 2024 squad before her Hodgkin’s lymphoma diagnosis. She was a starter on a team that won the double. Now she is back and she is a leader and an inspiration for her fellow players.
Given Marta’s limited minutes, having Luana out there as a stabilizing presence is important. Obviously, she brings a different skill set than Marta but still a critical one. Much like the defense, the midfield was better last match, and I feel she was a big part of that.
That is what I will be looking for on Friday night. The Pride can head into the World Cup break on a high with a victory. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!
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