The Washington Spirit hosted the first NWSL semifinal on a cloudy Saturday afternoon in the Nation’s Capital when they took on the Portland Thorns. It’s their fourth consecutive playoff sellout at Audi Field today with an official attendance of 19,365. This was also the Spirit’s sixth sellout in the last 17 months. Goals from Gift Monday and Croix Bethune sealed a spot in the championship for the club.
The Washington Spirit starting XI: GK Aubrey Kingsbury (c), D Rebeca Bernal, D Kate Wiesner, D Tara McKeown, D Rose Kouassi, D Esme Morgan, M Croix Bethune, M Leicy Santos, M Hal Hershfelt, F Gift Monday, F Sofia Cantore. Subs: Sandy MacIver, Trinity Rodman, Narumi Miura, Brittany Ratcliffe, Courtney Brown, Deb Abiodun, Heather Stainbrook, Kysha Sylla, Paige Metayer.
The Portland Thorns starting XI: GK Mackenzie Arnold, D Isabella Obaze, D Kaitlyn Torpey, D Reyna Reyes, D Sam Hiatt, M Sam Coffey (c), M Jessie Fleming, M Olivia Moultrie, F Alexa Spaanstra, F Deyna Castellanos, F Reilyn Turner. Subs: Bella Bixby, Laila Harbert, Pietra Tordin, Jayden Perry, M.A. Vignola, Mallie Mckenzie, Naomi Powell, Daiane, Val Loboa.
The Spirit were the first to break the deadlock in the first half against the visitors. Rosemonde Kouassi hit a full-on sprint on a counterattack, leaving three Thorn defenders in her wake. Once she penetrated the final third on the right side, she sent a low cross into Gift Monday, who was patiently waiting for the ball. With the keeper nowhere in sight, a quick one-time touch was all it took to best Portland’s defense and take the lead.
The second half was mostly Spirit as the Thorns were kept playing on their back foot. In the opening 15 minutes, the Thorns saw one chance in attack, and it fizzled before it began to take shape. If the Spirit continued playing like this, a 1-0 win would see them to the NWSL Championship for the second straight season.
The Thorns got a corner in the 78th minute. On the kick, bodies were flying all over the box, with one of them being Croix Bethune. The star midfielder left the pitch but was able to return moments later. In the 83rd minute, on a terrible back pass, Bethune intercepted the pass and dribbled around Portland’s keeper. With acres of space, she walked the ball into the box to increase the lead to 2-0.
In 90+5, Bethune passed the ball off to Trinity Rodman, who got her first shot on goal in weeks. The effort beat the keeper but went just wide of the far post. The U.S. Women’s National Team star was subbed in to a thunderous applause from the fans.
“It felt amazing. If I get 30 seconds or 90 minutes, it feels great to be out there,” said Rodman when I asked how it felt to get back on the pitch. “Especially coming back from my second injury… slash third (laughs), I don’t know. But it felt good to get minutes now before the final.”
The Spirit played a complete match today. From defending to possession and even their attack, the ladies played an incredible game and earned a clean sheet to show for it.
“It was just a cool moment seeing everyone with the brick wall signs and the t-shirts, and everything. It brought a big smile to my face,” said Aubrey Kingsbury when I asked her feelings about “the wall” nickname. “I’m just really happy that we could get a win for our supporters that they deserve, and yeah, just one more to go.”
It wasn’t just the goalkeeping, but the defending overall. The Thorns struggled to get shots off throughout the match, let alone on goal, but the synergy in the Spirit defense today was flawless. “I think, honestly, that goes to how much we learned last game,” said Hal Hershfelt. “Like giving up a late goal, and this game we were like, ‘that is absolutely not happening’. We’re keeping a clean sheet, we’re doing everything that we can, blocks left and right. I’m really proud of the girls for gutting that game out. So I feel like that honestly motivated us to put out the defensive performance that we did today.”
The Spirit will take on the winner of tomorrow’s Orlando Pride-Gotham FC semifinal match on Saturday, November 22, at PayPal Park in San Jose. Kicking off at 8 p.m. EST, the match will be broadcast nationally on CBS.
-Jon Jones
Photo: Eyoel Fassil