This season, no team has come more prepared to play the Orlando Pride than the San Diego Wave FC. Yet the Pride remain undefeated, winning 2-1.
No one scored in the first half when the San Diego Wave FC came to play the Orlando Pride. If any NWSL club has the Pride’s number, it’s San Diego. They showed it in the first half.
In the second half, had the Wave not made changes in their defensive scheme, the match would have ended differently. Instead, the visitors elected to open up their formation to attempt a score.
But the game-changer here is that no one in the league is sharper at creating chances and cashing them in like the Pride. If the situation is the craziest-looking scramble near the goal, if an opportunity occurs, these players will score.
So in the 50th minute, the scramble started. Team Captain Marta hit a corner kick that Barbra Banda headed down. It deflected off a Wave player and was caught by Pride defender Haley McCutcheon. She tapped the ball to the back of the net with her right foot.
But the Wave wasn’t about to waste their halftime changes. Just 12 minutes later, forward Chiamaka Okwuchukwu caught a cross from midfielder Kenza Dali. She headed the ball in for the score.
From that moment, the Pride turned on their strongest defense. By the 76th minute, Barbra Banda was fouled in the box. That meant more league-record opportunities for Marta, resulting from just one penalty kick.
Of course, Marta scored. This is her second goal of the season, both from penalties. With her 13th penalty score, she holds second place in the NWSL for regular-season penalty goals. This is also her 14th game-winning goal, fourth-most in the league.
This was the chance another NWSL team had to take a win from the Orlando Pride. The players executed just as they needed to ensure that didn’t happen. Another three points for the team.