Utah and a goal a game seemed a sure thing. That's some faith in the Royals, no matter how depleted Orlando's defense is.
I figured A-Rod seems to be in good form right now. Wasn't expecting Doniak to score, but I'll take it.
In fact, LaBonta took the quick restart just before the stream cut away to the replay, so the ball was already in the air. The stream showed Pickett and the clock, but not the free kick: First goal back from injury. 💪 First goal for @UtahRoyalsFC. 👑 Well played, @makenzy_allyson!2-0 | #UTAvORL pic.twitter.com/nGnwbKhvdE— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) May 26, 2019 The highlights show the kick, but no clock #Highlights: @UtahRoyalsFC 2 - @ORLPride 0----------@AmyRodriquez8 💪@nbarnhart 🙅♀️@makenzy_allyson 😀#UTAvORL pic.twitter.com/61YfXuZbza— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) May 26, 2019 At 88:16, Pickett looks over her left shoulder and sees LaBonta starting her approach, does a double-take. At 88:17 (not shown), LaBonta strikes the ball, Pickett leans forward and begins jogging past Callahan. At 88:18, Pickett overtakes Callahan, but the ball is already 10m+ beyond circle top by this point, so they're looking up at it from behind. NWSL cuts away from a live ball Notice how Doniak had 10m+ of lateral separation from Pressley, who isn't catching her in a straight line anyways. Where was Orlando's LB? Oh noes -- it was Pickett
And Charley almost scored! That post made her (almost litterally) tear her own hair out in despair. Eh eh, I perfectly nailed the 2-0 score instead. I missed the Sky Blue-Portland one. Oh, well, I at least salvaged 1 point by correctly guessing Portland's only goal. I have faith we will end beating the robot once again.
In the boxscore for Utah-Orlando there is no mention of the yellow card given to Ubogagu at 29:16. I saw Abt show the card and write it in her book; Gilmoy caught it in his play-by-play. So, what happened to it?
Speaking about cards: If this is the foul you were referring to, in fact I can't see how on earth Labonta hasn't been directly sent off. The ball was miles away and she deliberatedly kicked the opponent's ankle!!! How thuggish is that? 😳 pic.twitter.com/0bMkR4mnCw— David Copeland Smith (@BeastModeSoccer) May 26, 2019
Yep, that's the one. I don't know what the ref was looking at at that moment, but it must not have been anywhere near the ball...
[CHI-WAS] Elby for Colaprico; K.Johnson for Kerr. Our starting XI for #CHIvWAS, presented by @MagellanCorp. More | https://t.co/uVcmNdR4Fo pic.twitter.com/xUVMO51SEI— Chicago Red Stars (@chicagoredstars) May 26, 2019 Ship for Matthews; Farquharson for Logarzo; McGrady for Harrison. The XI for our away day in Chicago against the Red Stars! Sullivan wears the armband.#WASvCHI // #SpiritFam pic.twitter.com/jjzqNEhR6Q— Washington Spirit (@WashSpirit) May 26, 2019 Chicago: (OK => Q) Colaprico / OUT (=) Mautz / INTL (USA) Brian Davidson Ertz Naeher (AUS) Kerr Washington: (OK, starting <= Q) McGrady / (OK => Q, starting) Sullivan / (OK => OUT) McCarty / MAT (=) Eubanks / INTL (USA) Lavelle Pugh (AUS) Harrison Logarzo (JAM) Matthews
07' 0-0 Short crosses from 22m wide right to 10m 3-left, Huster backheads away through box left. Wright collects to 6m wide left, shross floats toward right post high. Bledsoe backpedals and squints into the sun, pushes ball out to 2m 6-right. DiBernardo arrives first, shoots one-touch right roundhouse past Bledsoe at near post, to 0.5m 1/3 left, P.Nielsen bends over at own goalline and heads ball down and away, Dougherty Howard volleys clear. 🚫Goal-line clearance by @WashSpirit! #CHIvWAS pic.twitter.com/INGW1ILBSa— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) May 26, 2019 09' 0-1 DiBiasi left ck, high inswing dives to 7m right post. Staab outjumps Naughton, heads down to right post low. Nagasato, holding right post, blocks ball along goalline with right outstep -- directly into Boyd's back as she sprawls and rolls, rattles between them and leaks out rolling slightly goalward. Nagasato reflex-pokes it again, but it was already half-over goalline and her right outstep is pointing toward own back right low. Probably an o.g. off Boyd, because it was already on-frame before Nagasato touched it last. .@WashSpirit with a clearance at the goal line at one end, but @chiredstarsPR can't do the same at the other. The visitors have a one-goal lead after an own goal.0-1 | #CHIvWAS pic.twitter.com/OOj1Dkc0qA— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) May 26, 2019
36' 0-1 McGrady blasts ball upfield as Nagasato jumps to block, ball socks Nagasato in the stomach. Brief stoppage. 37' 0-1 Nagasato leaves field, promptly returns. 39' 0-1 Vasconcelos passes to K.Johnson at 15m mid-left. Johnson touches away to 18m 6-left, shoots right instep bend juuust over right 90. Chicago are dominating possession, but that might be part of Washington's plan. 1132780829535547392 is not a valid tweet id 41' 0-1 Chicago backpass, longball from behind midfield is too fast for Vasconcelos, over endline left.
42' 0-1 Hatch turns upfield to 33m mid-left, gets sandwiched 1-v-3, tumbles down and takes Elby and Naughton down with her. Foul on Elby. Hatch pops up first, DiBiasi tries a quick restart that does catch Chicago not-ready -- but R1 disallows it, had not yet whistled ball live. Utah does it, everybody wants to do it 45+1' (of +1') 0-1 Huster right throw-in at circle back, to DiBiasi at midfield mid-right, she volleys upfield and promptly gets bumped down. Foul. 45+2' (of +1') 0-1 Washington switch left, miss a pass over endline left. HT 0-1. Chicago lead the stats 8(4)-(2)3 shots(sog), 1-3 corners, 8-5 crosses. Which team gets credit for a shot on own goal ?
46' 0-1 The o.g. has been reassigned to Nagasato 53' 0-1 Hatch fakes a backpass at 10m right touch, drives past Gorden and rounds her to 6m 7-right, shoots left instep rising into right side netting. 54' 0-1 DiBernardo through ball springs K.Johnson alone through arc right to 7m 5-right. Right foot shot blocked by Bledsoe's shins, high over goal. .@AubreyBledsoe doing her part to keep @chiredstarsPR off the scoresheet. 🙌0-1 | #CHIvWAS pic.twitter.com/kkysXC2nrF— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) May 26, 2019 55' 0-1 Chicago subs in (1 of 3) #15 Maria Guadalupe Sanchez Morales for #23 Brooke Elby.
59' 0-1 Short dribbles past DiBiasi through circle right, taps up centerline to DiBernardo, receives a backpass at 27m centerline(!), passes down box left for #_. Cross to 4m left post, Bledsoe bravely dives into traffic and catches, K.Johnson trips over her. Foul on K.Johnson. 60' 0-1 Washington subs in (1 of 3) #19 Dorian Bailey for #17 Cali Farquharson. 63' 0-2 Bailey passes to Ship at box top wide right. Ship creeps to 12m wide right, crosses to 6m right post off one bounce. Naughton boxes out Hatch perfectly, but has hips and both shoes planted low for leverage. Hatch reads the up-bounce better, stretches thigh-high right foot past Naughton's right leg, deflects ball down to goalline center past Boyd frozen, into 1/4 left back low. Tight marking, but no problem. @ash_hatch33 puts the ball into the net to double @WashSpirit's lead!0-2 | #CHIvWAS pic.twitter.com/2yWZH0Kfq2— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) May 26, 2019
74' 0-2 Washington subs in (2 of 3) #31 Crystal Elaine Thomas for #2 Arielle Ship. Weirdness: Washington's box score roster doesn't even list Thomas. 75' 0-2 Vasconcelos header from inside the 6-box(?), just wide left. 75' 0-2 Chicago subs in: - (2 of 3) #31 Jenna Szczesny for #5 Katie Naughton - (3 of 3) #32 Zoey Goralski for #7 Michele Vasconcelos. 76' 0-2 Washington subs in (3 of 3) #24 Carlin Hudson for #9 Tegan McGrady.
81' 0-2 Sullivan pinpoint pass to Hatch's foot through box top right post -- but Hatch clangs it to 7m and Boyd collects it first. 83' 0-2 Chicago left ck, to 12m 1/3 right. Wright heads across mouth to 6-top 1/5 left, Stanton lunges and stabs it to goalline 1/3 left. Bledsoe collects on knees, ball rolls up her torso and she hangs on. Brief stoppage: P.Nielsen is down, holding right lower shin, walks it off and resumes. 82' - Always there when you need her. Another solid stop by Bledsoe!#CHIvWAS // #SpiritFam pic.twitter.com/Z34sZIzGbR— Washington Spirit (@WashSpirit) May 26, 2019
90+3' (of +5') 0-2 Yellow card on K.Johnson. 90+3' (of +5') 0-2 Goralski drives to 3m wide right, crosses back to 11m 1/3 right. Short shoots one-touch right instep toward back left low, Bledsoe dives (her) right and catches with zero rebound. Still doin' work. @AubreyBledsoe with another 🔝 save. 0-2 | #CHIvWAS pic.twitter.com/exXOssnBaG— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) May 26, 2019 90+4' (of +5') 0-2 Nagasato passes to K.Johnson facing away at 15m left post, one-touch pass square right rattles through traffic, pops out at 14m right post. Szczesny steps to it, one-touch left instep shot to 1/4 right chest-high, Bledsoe is right there and blocks it down without trouble. FT 0-2. Washington leap to 1st on 13+6, over Utah on 13+4. Their only loss is to Utah, and they play each other next Saturday. Oddly, Washington themselves (and NWSL's standings) say they're only at #2, so maybe head-to-head supercedes GD?
Yeah, the NWSL decided that rather than being like pretty much every other league in the world and using GD, they would go with head-to-head
In theory, head-to-head over goal differential makes sense when you have an unbalanced schedule, which we have with the home/away setups. Whether it makes sense really ... who knows?