Orlando Pride vs. Houston Dash: Photo Gallery

With key players returning from the international break, a different Orlando Pride starting lineup was called to action Saturday, and the Pride did just enough to slip by the Houston Dash at the death. After a sleepy first half, Orlando dominated the second period, but still somehow let it go to the last second, when Summer Yates and Cori Dyke found a way to combine to put the last kick of the game past Houston goalkeeper Abby Smith, sealing all three points at Inter&Co Stadium.

Head Coach Seb Hines kept a lot in reserve off the start, resting Marta, Barba Banda, Angelina, and others. Julie Doyle returned to the starting lineup up top with Ally Watt. Both teams spent a lot of time shuttling the ball across the midfield, but neither could create many clear-cut chances.

Once Hines started making substitutions after the intermission the Pride largely controlled the game however. Banda and Dyke came on at halftime, and immediately the Pride became the more assertive team. Banda herself attempted five shots, and most of them were dangerous looks, although only two were on target. Dyke provided six shot-creating actions. As Hines proceeded to send on Marta and Prisca Chilufya down the stretch, the field continued to tilt further in the Pride’s favor, and Houston seemed prepared to bunker in an try for the scoreless draw.

The hot and heavy atmosphere (even by Orlando standards) created a lot of stoppage time, and when the fourth official put eight minutes up for the second half, the team seemed to find just a bit more. Eventually, Yates recognized that Houston had left her enough space to get to the endline and pulled back one of her trademark crosses. The Houston defense got a foot to it — not enough to keep it from Dyke, but enough to make it hard to handle. Dyke took a difficult touch and smashed it off a Dash player and into net for her first goal with the Pride. After the celebratory smoke cleared, the referee allowed only a kickoff to occur, ending the game immediately.

We hope you enjoy these images from a dramatic and hard-fought victory. The Pride are on the road for the next two weekends, followed by the extended summer break, so it will be August before our next opportunity to get out and take photos at a Pride game again.