Orlando Pride
Orlando Pride vs. Bay FC: Final Score 1-1 as Pride’s Winless Streak Reaches Eight Games
The Pride again failed to take advantage of a team lower down the standings, drawing with Bay FC at home.
The Orlando Pride (8-7-5, 29 points) played to a 1-1 draw with Bay FC (4-10-6, 18 points) at Inter&Co Stadium this evening, extending their winless run in the league to eight games. Racheal Kundananji gave the visitors the lead just before halftime and Ally Watt equalized in the 70th minute. The Pride tried to find a late winner, but they weren’t able to ripple the back of the net a second time.
The draw was Bay FC’s first result in the series and the visitors scored their first-ever goal against Orlando in this match.
Pride Head Coach Seb Hines made five changes to the starting lineup that lost 5-2 to the Chicago Stars on Sunday. Kylie Nadaner and Carson Pickett had excused absences, and Emily Sams was questionable with an arm injury. Anna Moorhouse, Cori Dyke, and Simone Charley were all on the bench. McKinley Crone, Zara Chavoshi, Oihane, Jacquie Ovalle, and Watt entered the starting lineup.
The back line in front of Crone in goal was Kerry Abello, Rafaelle, Chavoshi, and Oihane. Haley McCutcheon and Angelina were in the defensive midfield behind Ovalle, Ally Lemos, and Marta, with Watt up top.
The Pride were much better in this game than in Chicago, especially defensively. They were able to hold Kundananji relatively quiet, other than her goal just before halftime. Attacking-wise, the Pride were the aggressors in the second half as Bay FC tried to hold onto its 1-0 lead. Orlando hit the post multiple times and had two goals called back — one for offside and one for a handball on Marta before her shot went in. As a result, the Pride were unfortunate not to get the win but claimed a potentially valuable point.
Bay FC created the first chance in the fourth minute when Karlie Lema was sent down the left. The forward entered the box and was looking for teammates making runs into the six, but her cross was blocked out by Rafaelle for a corner kick. The ensuing set piece found Taylor Huff on the left, who played the ball to former Pride attacker Rachel Hill making a run. Hill volleyed the ball on target, but Crone was there to tip it wide.
Kundananji made a run into the box in the eighth minute before finding Hill, who made another run. Again, Hill ended up with the ball from an advantageous position. However, she hit this one over the crossbar.
The Pride had their first chance in the 10th minute when Oihane played a long ball across the field for Ovalle. In her first start with the Pride, the high-priced signing created space for a shot, but she hit it right at Bay goalkeeper Jordan Silkowitz.
In the 12th minute, Ovalle sent a cross that was too long, just missing Watt at the far post. Oihane collected the ball before it went out of play, sending it towards the top of the box where McCutcheon was arriving. The defensive midfielder fired, but she sent her attempt well off target.
The Pride nearly opened the scoring in the 23rd minute when an Ovalle cross to the far side of the box found Marta. The captain’s first touch was a shot that was past Silkowitz, bouncing off the post and traveling across the face of the goal.
Marta received a pass at the top of the box in the 30th minute and the Brazilian created some space from the defender before firing from the top of the box. However, it took a deflection over the top, giving the Pride a corner kick. The Pride created a chance right after the restart when Abello received the ball with enough space to take a shot on target. Unfortunately, her shot was right at Silkowitz, who made the stop.
Kundananji was sent down the left in the 36th minute, using her speed to get behind the back line. The striker beat Crone, but her shot hit the far post, keeping the game scoreless.
On the other end, Marta played a great ball into the box in the 38th minute that skipped over the foot of Ovalle right in front of the goal. It would’ve been a tap-in if she’d gotten a foot to it but it went out of play instead.
The Pride thought they’d scored in the 39th minute when Marta found Watt right in front of the goal and the attacker put it in. But the flag went up for offside. Bay FC quickly restarted, sending Kundananji long and behind the Pride back line. This time the striker converted, placing the ball past Crone, however, the referee had been holding up play for video review to look at the offside call.
In the fourth minute of first-half stoppage time, Crone tried to play the ball out of back, but her pass was off line, giving it right to Caprice Dydasco in the Pride third of the field. After taking a couple of dribbles forward, the right back played a long ball to Kundananji approaching the goal. The Zambian attacker headed it past Crone to give the visitors a 1-0 lead.
The Pride went the other way, looking to find an equalizer before the break, but it wasn’t to be. Marta’s last shot in the dying seconds was right to Silkowitz, who made an easy save.
At halftime, the Pride had the advantage in possession (53%-47%), shots (11-7), and crosses (10-9). Bay FC had the edge in shots on target (4-3), corner kicks (5-3), and passing accuracy (80%-77%).
“It was all positive stuff. You know, we didn’t want to dwell too much on the goal conceded,” Hines said about his halftime talk. “It (the goal) happened. We moved on. It wasn’t a theme of the game. It’s just a moment in the game. And there was just a couple of things that we wanted to talk about, you know, switching the play, getting numbers in the box when we’re in crossing positions, be mindful of the transition because they’re very good in transition with the likes of Kundananji. And just continue to do what you’re doing. You know, first half wasn’t a bad performance. I know it looks bad because you’re 1-0 down, but I felt we were very structured in our press. I thought we caused some problems with Bay’s press as well, getting in some really good, threatening positions. And it was all very positive things, outlooks of the first half. And just keep going.”
“I know it was definitely a positive locker room,” Watt added. “It was just, they capitalized on one opportunity. But we just knew that we were dominating most of the game. We were getting really good chances. We kept hitting freaking posts. We got those goals called back. So, it was just good energy in the locker room, and we knew that we could get back into this. And we did. So it was just very positive, and we knew we just had to fight every minute. That’s what we’re gonna have to do for the rest of the season.”
Watt was sent long in the 48th minute, turning halftime substitute Kelli Hubly. The defender pulled Watt’s arm back, resulting in a foul and a booking for Hubly. Lemos and Ovalle stood over the set piece with the latter taking the free kick. The Mexican international went for goal, but Silkowitz was there to knock it wide with a great save.
The Pride thought they’d found their equalizer in the 55th minute when Oihane sent a cross to the back post. Marta attempted to head the ball, missing it. However, it went off of her body as she stumbled into it and knocked it over the goal line. The play went to video review for a potential handball, and it did hit the Brazilian’s arm., so the goal was overturned.
The Pride had a great chance to equalize again in the 60th minute when McCutcheon’s cross found Ovalle near the far post. Ovalle’s first shot was saved by Silkowitz and she hit the second off the post. The ball was eventually cleared over the end line for a corner kick. Lemos sent the set piece to the back side of the post, where Chavoshi was called for a foul, ending the threat.
Bay FC had its first decent chance of the second half in the 68th minute when Dydasco found Dorian Bailey open in front of the goal. Fortunately, the ball was a little behind her. Bailey tried to backheel it on frame, but she couldn’t get anything on it, and Crone made the save.
A McCutcheon blocked cross in the 70th minute gave the Pride a throw-in that resulted in the equalizing goal. Ovalle received the ball, sending it into the box. Watt outjumped her defenders to get her head on it, placing it past Silkowitz and into the corner to even the game at 1-1.
“She (Ovalle) just has a gorgeous service all the time. So, I think I kept cheating near post on some of her service,” Watt said. “So that time, I knew I needed to stay more central and just put anything I could on it, always prepping for me to get demolished by a goalkeeper or something. But, no, just a gorgeous ball in. Our services the last couple games have been really good, so we just know that we’ve been needing to finish it.”
“It’s very easy in those moments to feel like it’s not your day. But they carried on. They carried on pushing,” Hines said. “We scored the equalizer, which was, again, a really good goal from a crossing position, well taken by Ally putting herself in that position to score.”
In the 73rd minute, the ball popped out where Lemos was making a run. The ball landed perfectly on the foot of the midfielder, who volleyed it towards goal. However, it was straight into Silkowitz’s arms.
Bay FC created a chance when Huff received a pass at the top of the Pride box. However, the attacker’s shot went wide.
In the 89th minute, Bailey won a corner that Bay played short to Dydasco. The fullback found Bailey near the top of the box, and she sent a curling shot towards goal, but Rafaelle got in front to head it away.
The fourth official showed 10 minutes of second-half stoppage time and the Pride created a chance in the fifth extra minute when second-half sub Simone Charley played the ball wide for Ovalle. The Mexican attempted a cross into the box but it was off of Dydasco’s head and out for a corner kick. The ensuing set piece by Ovalle found the head of Rafaelle, but her redirection was over the crossbar.
Two minutes later, Caroline Conti sent a cross into the Pride box that Chavoshi got her head to. Unfortunately, the header went straight to Huff in space. The attacker tried to turn the ball on target but was unable to get around it, sending her attempt over the target.
In the 10th minute of stoppage time, Charley used some nifty footwork to create some space for a cross. But Maddie Moreau got back to block the attempt out of play for a corner kick. The ensuing set piece found Chavoshi at the far post. The center back tried to head the ball on goal, but she didn’t get much on it. As it bounced around the six-yard box, Yates attempted an acrobatic shot that was Silkowitz saved. Eventually, the ball was cleared over the line for another corner kick.
There was a brief delay for an injury before Luana took the final set piece of the game. However, she sent the attempt over everyone and to the far side of the field.
At full time, the Pride led all major statistical categories with the advantage in possession (51.7%-48.3%), shots (22-14), shots on target (8-5), crosses (18-9), corner kicks (9-7), and passing accuracy (75.1%-74.3%). But they couldn’t find a second goal and only came away with one point.
“Similar story, really. You know, going down one goal in a really pivotal moment in the match, Hines said. “But the players showed a lot of heart to come back. Never (lost) their attitude, their desire, their passion. They were relentless in that second half of the game. We were unfortunate on a couple of the calls as well. You know, we felt there was moments where the ball went in, but that’s kind of where we’re at. But we were persistent. And we took our goal really well. And I felt as the game went on, we created more opportunities, but it wasn’t meant to be.”
“We just had a lot of fire and a lot of fight out there today,” Watt added. “Unfortunately, you can’t control some of the stuff that the refs do in this league, like always, but just proud of this team. We’ve been in a hole, we’re getting out of it, and we’re doing it together, and that’s all that matters.”
This draw extends the Pride’s winless run in NWSL action to eight games, dating back to the team’s 2-0 loss to Racing Louisville on June 20. The last Orlando win was the game before, a 1-0 victory away against this very same Bay FC team. However, they had Barbra Banda in that one.
On the positive side, the Pride ended a three-game losing streak in the league. While they beat LD Alajuelense 3-0 on Sept. 2 in the Concacaf W Champions Cup, they had lost their last three games against NWSL competition.
The draw sees the Pride sit in sixth in the NWSL standings as they continue to slide down towards the playoff line. They’re now only three points above the eighth and final playoff spot and four points ahead of the North Carolina Courage for ninth. However, they’re only one point behind the San Diego Wave and NJ/NY Gotham FC for third, having played the same number of games. So they can still end the season in a good spot if they can find a way to win games.
It will be a short turnaround for the Pride as they head back out on the road Tuesday night for their second Concacaf W Champions Cup game against Chorrillo FC in Panama.