Orlando Pride
Orlando Pride vs. Portland Thorns FC: Final Score 1-0 as Pride Win It Late
A second-half stoppage time goal saw the Pride claim all three points against the Portland Thorns.
The Orlando Pride (10-8-6, 36 points) used a late own goal to defeat the Portland Thorns (9-8-7, 34 points) 1-0 at Inter&Co Stadium tonight in Orlando. The win ended a five-game winless run in home league games and gave the team a chance to finish top four and host in the playoffs.
Pride Head Coach Seb Hines used the same starting lineup that drew 1-1 with the Houston Dash a week ago. Anna Moorhouse was the goalkeeper behind a back line of Kerry Abello, Rafaelle, Emily Sams, and Oihane. Haley McCutcheon and Angelina were the defensive midfielders behind Carson Pickett, Ally Lemos, and Jacquie Ovalle, with Ally Watt up top.
This was a six-pointer for the Pride and Thorns, with the winner inching closer to clinching a playoff spot and potentially hosting a playoff game. The Thorns held more possession and created enough opportunities to score, but the Pride had the better chances. In the end, a bit of luck saw the Pride claim all three points, making it possible to clinch a playoff berth this weekend if other results go their way.
The Pride had the first chance of the game in the fourth minute when McCutcheon’s cross found Watt. However, the forward headed the ball straight down. Ovalle took possession and laid it back for Pickett, but her shot was blocked by Isabella Obaze.
Sams sent a long ball out of the back in the eighth minute that McCutcheon flicked forward with her head. It sent Watt behind the back line, and the striker did well to beat Thorns goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold. However, the flag went up for offside, and it wouldn’t be the last time in this game.
The visitors got their first decent attack in the 10th minute when Abello blocked Olivia Moultrie’s cross out of play for a corner kick. They couldn’t create anything from the set piece, but Oihane knocked the ball out of play while shielding Reilyn Turner, who was sent towards the end line. Rafaelle headed out Moultrie’s set piece to Alexa Spaanstra at the top of the box. Spaanstra attempted to volley the ball but mishit it. After Moultrie’s shot from distance was blocked, the Pride were able to clear.
Moultrie sent Turner down the right in the 14th minute with Abello on her back. Turner sent a low cross into the box that Sams cleared but only to the top of the 18. Jessie Fleming collected the ball and shot, but Rafaelle deflected it, allowing Moorhouse to catch it.
On the other end, McCutcheon played the ball to Lemos in the box. Unable to shake her defender, Lemos laid the ball back for Angelina, who fired a shot from distance, sending her attempt well over the goal.
Moultrie found Turner on her right again in the 17th minute. The attacker’s cross was too close to goal, but it went over Moorhouse’s hand and hit the crossbar. The ball ended up with Sam Coffey, who sent her shot over the target. Turner then got onto a long ball across the field in the 21st minute. As she approached the end line, Turner played it to Moultrie making a run to the top of the box. Moultrie had space, but sent her shot over the goal.
Watt dribbled down the right in the 24th minute before sending a pass behind Oihane. It went through to the far side to McCutcheon, whose shot was blocked. After a short header by Moultrie, Pickett played the ball back for Angelina approaching the Portland third. The Brazilian’s shot was close enough to force Arnold into a dive, but the ball sailed just wide of the left post.
The Pride nearly took the lead in the 34th minute when Abello and Lemos combined to get the ball to Ovalle on the right side. Oihane made a run inside and Ovalle played her forward toward the end line. Watt couldn’t get a touch on Oihane’s low cross, which found McCutcheon at the back post. Reyna Reyes got there first and nearly put it in her own net, but Arnold jumped on it before it crossed the line.
Moultrie played Spaanstra behind the Pride back line in the 41st minute, creating a good chance. Spaanstra found Pietra Tordin in the box, but the forward missed just wide of the near post. The flag went up for offside on the initial ball over the top anyway.
In the first minute of stoppage time, Ovalle played the ball back for Angelina, who sent it over the midfield stripe for Watt making a run. The striker did well to get space from Obaze and beat Arnold inside her far post. However, Watt was offside again.
“I think the evolution of this team is playing what the opponent gives you,” Hines said. “So if Portland want to press us high and be aggressive, you have to draw them out as well. There were moments where we wanted to exploit that space in behind. We wanted to get Ally facing forward through on goal. Obviously, she was offside, but she should take a lot of confidence from that. You know, there’s margins where the defender just takes an extra step. So, as long as she can continue to be a threat, she should still get opportunities to find the back of the net.”
At the half, the Thorns had the advantage in possession (58%-42%), shots (8-7), shots on target (1-0), crosses (10-3), corner kicks (3-1), and passing accuracy (84%-79%). However, if Watt could stay onside, the Pride would’ve been up 2-0 at the break.
“I think that it’s easy to fall into frustration when that happens, but we were just dead set on continuing to do what we were doing,” McCutcheon said. “Refine the little details that are going to get us the goals that we need. And I felt like we had them on the back foot for most of the game, and so that just gave us momentum. And we never shut off. We were locked into our details defensively, especially. And so, yeah, really proud of the group. And I think that at halftime, we just were like, Okay, we’ve got to dig in and keep doing what we’re doing.”
The Pride got the first chance of the second half when Fleming played a poor pass back for Jayden Perry at midfield. Ovalle took possession and carried the ball into the Portland third before firing from distance. However, her shot was right at Arnold.
Moorhouse attempted to play the ball to Oihane from inside her own box in the 51st minute, but it was intercepted by Vignola. The left back dribbled into the 18 and took a shot that was high and wide of the target.
Turner was sent towards the right corner flag in the 56th minute and Abello knocked the ball out of play as Turner attempted to cut back. Moultrie’s ensuing set piece found Turner on the far side of the box, but she redirected the ball into Moorhouse’s arms.
Lemos took possession from Watt in the 60th minute before shooting off the face of Obaze. The block went to the right side of the box for Watt, who went for the far post and forced Arnold into a kick save. The referee stopped play immediately after the save as Obaze remained down. The center back required attention but was able to continue.
Portland created a chance from a throw-in in the 65th minute. Fleming received the ball and quickly played it in for Deyna Castellanos, making a run between Rafaelle and Oihane. The substitute got her head to the ball, but sent it straight to Moorhouse, who made the easy catch.
In the 67th minute, Ovalle looked to make something happen at the top of the box, but her ball in was blocked. It went to Watt, who laid it back for Ovalle. The Mexican shot it, but it was right to Arnold.
A minute later, Hines made his first two changes. Marta and Simone Charley came into the game for Lemos and Watt. It was a return for Marta, who missed the last three games with a back injury.
“It’s massive. She’s a massive part of this team,” Hines said. “And, yeah, we’ve missed her. We’ve missed her leadership. We’ve missed what she brings on to the field.”
“She came on and she looked at me, and she said, ‘Feed me the ball.’ And I think when you have a player like Marta especially, who’s like, ‘Give me the ball, I’m feeling it,’ like that just gives me confidence in her,” McCutcheon added. “It gives me confidence in the group, and she just injects so much energy, and I know that when I get her the ball, she’s going to make something happen. She brings so much passion. And so we’re so lucky to have her.”
Ovalle created an opportunity for Charley in the 70th minute, sending a ball to the top of the six-yard box. With Obaze on her back, Charley got her head to the ball but put it wide.
Hines made his third substitution in the 71st minute, replacing Oihane with Zara Chavoshi, moving Sams to right back.
Turner made a run toward the top of the box in the 79th minute, before Moultrie took over. Moultrie shot from outside the box but McCutcheon cleared it out of play for a corner kick. Charley cleared the ensuing set piece while colliding with Turner, who went down and required attention but was able to continue.
Hines made his final two changes, sending Simone Jackson and Luana in for Ovalle and Pickett.
In the 83rd minute, Marta curled a ball behind the back line for Jackson making a run down the right. Jackson got into the box and took a shot that Arnold spilled wide of the post for a corner kick. The ensuing set piece was too close to the goalkeeper, who made the catch.
Jackson intercepted a poor pass from Fleming to Perry in the 84th minute before entering the Thorns box. Perry put a shoulder into Jackson, who went down. The forward wanted a penalty, but referee Shawn Tehini didn’t see enough in it to award a spot kick.
In the 87th minute, Turner was sent long on the left before beating Chavoshi into the Pride box. She sent a shot on goal that Moorhouse saved, tipping it away.
The Pride nearly scored in the 88th minute when Marta played a ball for Charley in the six-yard box. However, McKenzie did well to get back and knock the ball off Charley to keep the game scoreless.
The fourth official showed nine minutes and the Pride found their goal in the second. Jackson tried to play Charley behind the back line but Obaze got there first. It looked like the center back might keep it in play, but she knocked it out for a corner kick instead.
Marta took the set piece, sending it to the near post. As Arnold came out to punch the ball away, it went off the back of McKenzie and in, giving the Pride a late lead.
Portland pushed hard in the final minutes, looking to get something out of the game. In the fifth minute of stoppage time, Chavoshi pushed Fleming over, giving the Thorns a free kick in the Pride third of the field. Coffey sent the set piece over everyone, but Moorhouse had come off her line. It looked like the ball might sneak inside the far post, but it bounced wide instead.
The final chance came in the seventh minute of stoppage time when Abello knocked the ball out of play for a throw-in. McKenzie threw it in to Mimi Alidou, who played it right back. McKenzie’s cross found Moultrie, but she couldn’t get much on her header and Moorhouse made the stop.
Portland ended the game with the edge in possession (52.5%-47.5%), corner kicks (5-4), and passing accuracy (81.1%-80.1%), but the Pride had more shots (16-14) and crosses (12-11). More importantly, they scored the game’s lone goal.
“I think we were brilliant from start to finish,” Hines said. “I thought the first half, the intensity of our press, the intensity of how we play, we created some good opportunities. We stayed in the game, which was important as well, because there’s been previous games where we’ve dominated but haven’t got the rewards and been punished, so as long as it stayed nil-nil, we always felt that we were going to score that first goal. And we left it late, but it doesn’t matter. We’re walking away with three points, a clean sheet, and a one-goal victory. So really happy.”
“I feel like our mindset just changed. After those two wins we had in the last three games, it’s big,” Rafaelle said. “It’s huge, especially this time of the season, getting those two wins is going to help us so much looking forward, getting a spot in the playoffs. I feel like everybody is giving everything. We feel the pressure, and we just showed we’re fine, even though there’s a lot of pressure on us. And we’re doing great, great things. Just like, every time we get in front of the goal, the ball is hitting the post and going away. Now I feel like the luck is in our favor. So getting three points here is huge. It was a hard match, but we deserve to win.”
The win gives the Pride three straight NWSL matches without a loss (2-0-1) but snaps a five-match home winless streak in the league.
The Pride moved from sixth to third in the NWSL standings, the highest place they can finish now. However, while they jump NJ/NY Gotham FC and The Seattle Reign, both have yet to play this weekend. While the win is important, the Pride are still just three points ahead of seventh-place Racing Louisville.
Tonight’s win means the Pride could clinch a playoff spot this weekend. If the North Carolina Courage lose Saturday to the Washington Spirit and the Dash drop points Sunday evening against Angel City, the Pride will be in the postseason for the second consecutive year.
The Pride won’t have long to enjoy this win as they host CF Pachuca Wednesday, in a Concacaf W Champions Cup game that will see who joins Club America from Group A in the semifinals.