NWSL Angel City FC

Angel City Football Club Draws Houston in Front of Sold out Crowd

Published on June 26, 2023 under National Women's Soccer League (NWSL)
Angel City FC News Release


LOS ANGELES - Angel City Football drew the Houston Dash 0-0 tonight in a chippy game that saw Houston go down to 10 players but hold on for the draw. The game marked Angel City's second shutout of the season as the club celebrated its Pride Night presented by Heineken Silver.

Angel City dominated the early minutes of the game and had the first quality chance of the match in the 10th minute. Defender Ali Riley played a pass up the wing to forward Alyssa Thompson. She sprinted forward and sent a through ball into the box for forward Sydney Leroux, who took a one-time shot that keeper Jane Campbell blocked out for a corner kick.

In the 15th minute, the Dash had a chance in transition when forward Diana Ordóñez stole the ball in the midfield and charged into the box with keeper DiDi Haračić off her line. Haračić sprinted back quickly enough to cut down Ordóñez's angle, and the striker's shot went wide of the far post.

The final chance of the half came in the 41st minute when McCaskill played a ball over the top for Ertz on the six-yard line, who headed it across the face of goal to Leroux, whose sliding attempt on goal bounced well over the bar. After more than seven minutes of stoppage time, the half came to a close with zero shots on goal for either team.

That changed early in the second half as Ertz intercepted a Houston pass and played a short diagonal pass to Leroux as she made a run into the box. Leroux took a touch to control the ball and took a hard shot that Campbell jumped and tipped over the bar.

In the 58th minute, Houston defender Katie Lind was awarded a red card following a video review of a foul against Leroux that was initially called a yellow, with the center official ruling the foul a denial of an obvious goalscoring opportunity.

Defender Jasmyne Spencer, who had subbed into the game in the 61st minute as a forward, put a shot on frame in the 69th minute. Midfielder Dani Weatherholt took a hard shot from just outside the box that was initially blocked; Spencer ran onto the loose ball and took a shot from inside the 18 that went over the bar.

Thompson had a near miss in the 77th minute when she received a diagonal ball by Weatherholt, dribbled into the box, and shot between several defenders, hitting the post.

Houston came close in the 81st minute when forward Ebony Salmon made a steal and sprinted into space in the box- but her shot also hit the crossbar.

Tonight's match marked the first of three in a week as they prepare to face SoCal rivals San Diego Wave FC in a UKG NWSL Challenge Cup home match on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. on CBS Sports Network followed by a regular season matchup away at NJ/NY Gotham on Saturday, July 2 at 2:30pm PT on Paramount+.

GAME NOTES:

Angel City FC sold out BMO Stadium for the 7th time in club history.

Savannah McCaskill is now at 99 match appearances in her NWSL career.

POST-MATCH QUOTES

ACFC Forward, Alyssa Thompson

On the most difficult part about playing Houston:

"They're pretty physical, so just winning your battles and then continuing to play and not let that get you. It was difficult for us to get a goal in."

On leaving for the World Cup and what she has learned from Julie Ertz and others:

"Definitely being confident in myself and knowing I made it for a reason."

"Also with packing, I asked Julie [Ertz] a lot about what to pack - what's essential. Give me some tips and tricks about camp and the World Cup, because it's a long time. I've never done it, and she's very experienced. She's been very helpful."

On message to the fans:

"Thank you so much for your support. Whether we are down or up a goal, we hear you throughout the game. It's really amazing and always brings us up and continues our energy."

"To our teammates, you've helped us come this far this season and we really appreciate that. Thank you. We really appreciate what you've done, helping us get ready for the World Cup."

ACFC Midfielder, Julie Ertz

On thoughts on shutout tonight:

"A shutout is great. This is the game that we wanted three points, especially when they went down to 10 players. It's huge, and shows a lot of resiliency for keeping a shutout. Also, there is a lot of room to grow on the offensive side."

On difference in defending when down one player:

"When you are down a player you just naturally kind of have to sit in defensively. On the other end, that means that we send more numbers and are a lot more aggressive, which is good, so that you can get a goal. Also, it opens you up, which happened on the one that I believe, hit the post, you're setting numbers in and want to be the one that doesn't get transitioned on, but it does open up for the transition."

On what she has learned from Angel City in the short time she's had to prepare for World Cup:

"Incredible. I don't think I can thank Angel City and just my teammates in general. Day in and day out, it's been competitive, which is what you need. It's been an environment to be able to thrive and we've done something different each game, which is incredible for me to learn."

"I actually learned from a lot of the players as well. My time with Angel City was really condensed in my timeline. I'm just unbelievably grateful for each player to bring it every single practice and let me learn different formations."

"Unfortunately we didn't get to leave with three points, but we're super proud of the team and excited for them going forward."

ACFC Interim Head Coach Becki Tweed

On the match overall against Houston:

"It's good for us to keep a clean sheet. We had opportunities to win the game and sometimes when you play against 10 players, it can become a little slippery, but we've prepared for it. We created opportunities to win the game. We just have to be more ruthless in the final third."

"Houston is just a really gritty team and hard to break down. They pride themselves defensively. They went down to 10 players last week as well. We attempted to see how we could try to counter that if it happened again, and we executed well. It's that end product piece for us, and once that clicks, we're in a good spot. We have to keep growing. For us to continue to grow, we have to keep pushing through these moments."

"We can't decide when we want to compete. We must compete for the entire duration of the game, from the minute we show up until the minute we leave."

On how to prepare for the three game week:

"This is where, as coaching as a coaching staff, you have to decide what this week looks like. If you take the physical load down, you can increase the cognitive load and a lot of teaching can be done in the classroom and in film. We just need to be efficient about getting the best that we can from the time that we have with the players. Tomorrow is going to be physically challenging for the players. They wake up after a game like this where the atmosphere is incredible, emotional, and draining. We need to focus on how we can best prepare them in the two days that we have to get them ready for Wednesday."

On the Pride Match celebration and atmosphere:

"The atmosphere of the fans is incredible. What we're able to put on as a club is so inspirational. You have to take a minute to look around and see how far women's sports have come and see what this club is doing to keep growing."

On ACFC players participating in the 2023 World Cup:

"It's crazy when you look back at Alyssa in her first World Cup as a teenager and you have JJ [Julie Ertz] going into her third World Cup and how amazing that they can share the experience together. It's going to be incredible for them both. I know that the team is going to have full support. It's going to be a really exciting time. We have other players going as well, and I'm really excited for all of them."

"It's a chance for Alyssa to play on the biggest stage, and she deserves it. She went straight from high school into the program and you never know what that's going to look like, but she grabbed it with two hands and embraced it."

"What a story from JJ coming back from having a baby. She's 90 minutes fit again and back to who we all know she can be. She's going to be an influential role on and off the field for us."

Check out the Angel City FC Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



National Women's Soccer League Stories from June 26, 2023


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central