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NWSL Angel City FC

Angel City Football Club Earns First Point of the Season in Draw with Orlando

March 23, 2024 - National Women's Soccer League (NWSL)
Angel City FC News Release


ORLANDO - Angel City Football Club (ACFC) drew 1-1 on the road against the Orlando Pride tonight in their first away game of the season, following a penalty goal by forward Claire Emslie and a late equalizer by Orlando midfielder Marta.

The first half saw chances for both sides, starting with a sixth-minute effort by Orlando forward Julie Doyle that posed little trouble for goalkeeper Angelina Anderson.

The visitors answered with a chance in the 11th minute, with a free kick by Emslie that former Orlando forward Messiah Bright connected with but sent well over the bar. They followed up one minute later, ACFC forward Alyssa Thompson wrestled past defender Celia Jiménez Delgado and into the 18; Celia miscleared the ball to Bright, who sent the ball back to Thompson, but the winger's shot was wide.

The Pride had their best chance of the half in the 22nd minute, a powerful strike by forward Adriana from just outside the penalty arc- but Anderson dove to make the save.

After the break, ACFC started on their front foot. In the 47th minute, Bright received a long ball from midfielder Amandine Henry, dribbled into the box, and sent a sideways ball to midfielder Kennedy Fuller. Fuller dropped the ball back to midfielder Meggie Dougherty Howard, who sent it back to Bright- but once again her shot went over the bar.

Angel City finally broke through in the 53rd minute after Dougherty Howard drew a foul by Orlando forward Angelina just inside the 18. Emslie stepped up to the spot and calmly slotted the ball into the lower left-hand corner of the goal, with goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse diving right, to bring the score to 1-0.

ACFC was in control over most of the next half-hour, with most of Orlando's possession going nowhere. The visitors found attackers in and around the penalty box a handful of times, with several balls intended for forward Katie Johnson, but the Monrovia native couldn't quite connect.

In the 75th minute, the momentum took a swing back in Orlando's favor when midfielder Luana found an angled shot to the far post from just inside the penalty area, but Anderson did well to dive and claim it.

With regulation time ticking down, Orlando midfielder Marta- who had been the best player on her team throughout the game- salvaged a point. In the 88th minute, a corner kick by Adriana fell to Marta on the left side of the 18, and the six-time World Player of the Year sent a tapped volley past Anderson and into the net.

The game saw the professional debut of defender Madison Curry, who subbed in for defender Ali Riley in the 78th minute.

Angel City is on the road again next Saturday, March 30, at 12:30 p.m. Pacific against the Kansas City Current. That match will be available on ESPN and ESPN+

ACFC MILESTONES

Merritt Mathias is 3rd all-time in NWSL regular season appearances with 185...22 have been as a sub.

Sarah Gorden now has 97 NWSL regular season appearances.

Claire Emslie is now 2-for-3 in NWSL regular season penalty kicks, all vs ORL/Anna Moorhouse (ORL GK).

Angel City FC scored the first PK by an away team this season.

Rookie and defender Madison Curry made her NWSL debut tonight, entering the match in the 78.

POST-MATCH QUOTES

ACFC Defender Merritt Mathias

Thoughts on tonight's match:

"Orlando has a good side with great attacking players. The game, as you saw, got a bit chippy but that's what you're going to see in the NWSL. They're hard fought games. In the beginning, we dominated in the first 20 minutes and the game went a little back and forth in the first half.

"In the second half we lost a bit of momentum there. To come away with one point on the road is something, but we wanted three. To not drop points is good for us and hopefully we can keep the momentum moving forward."

On being mentally prepared to sub in early:

"It'sone of those things that I have a lot of trust and belief in, which is my ability to play and come in and mentally be prepared and that's what we did all week is prepare. I've done this for 12 years. I'm ready to step in when the team needs me. The only thing that I've been having to deal with is getting my lungs back from getting pneumonia. So I've been trying to phase that in while phasing in the rest of it from being out for a year with having diabetes."

"To have that moment and get called upon, you want to step up for a team and put in a good performance. It was nice to get a substantial amount of minutes and understand that my body's going to be able to do this, which is exciting. It's another box to check off and we keep going from here."

On the vibe in the locker room after tonight's match:

"The vibe amongst the group is a little bit disappointing for sure, as we should be. We wanted to come away with three points. We put in a good performance to allow ourselves to do that. Orlando had some chances, but not many."

"So the talk in the locker room is we got a point on the road, which is really hard to do in this league. It's not exactly what we wanted, but it's still a point and we have to carry on because we have another big game in Kansas City in a few days. The turnarounds are quick and we're going into a pretty hostile environment. We have to figure stuff out and keep it pushing."

ACFC Forward, Alyssa Thompson

Thoughts on tonight's match:

"In the first half we didn't really connect, but in the second half we did a lot better. We were able to get more chances and that's when we scored our goal. We can do a lot better in trying to keep the lead and keeping a clean sheet. Overall we did well, but there's a lot to work on."

On the team's mindset after get their first point with two more away games ahead:

"We just want to build from every game we play in. We learned a lot from last game and a lot from this game. We're just going to continue to grow and get better and hopefully get a win next game."

On what it was like to play against Marta tonight:

"She's such an amazing player on the field and I can't believe that I'm playing against her. She's insane and I'm so lucky that I get to be on the field with her."

On her mindset going into tonight's game:

"I just play my game and be confident. In the past game, I wasn't as confident on the ball and I know I could take people on more. I just try to use that going into this game."

ACFC Head Coach Becki Tweed

On her message to the players following the game:

"The message was, we have to do the work a little bit earlier. After we scored, we stopped playing a little but we needed to continue to push for a second goal and that cost us. We talked a lot about being more ruthless. I said it last week, we have to score on chances, we have to take opportunities and we have to be way more ruthless in the final third."

On her strategy measures around the counter press:

"You've got to manage the game. When you get an injury in the first half, that's something that you don't commonly prepare for. That makes a difference to how you can control the game and the moments that you have that you've prepared for potentially in the second half. We want to be able to counter press, but it has to be at the right moment. When you miss in those moments, you get really stretched."

"In the NWSL typically, we always say it, you get hurt in transition because you know that there's teams that do hurt you in transition. We just have to pick and choose our moments. When we commit to it, we're really good in those moments, and you see we can create those opportunities. However, it's picking and choosing them and being really smart around them."

On Madison Curry's NWSL debut tonight:

"Anytime you bring players in and sign them, there's no ideal moment. Madi showed why she is a professional player and why she plays for this club. The opportunity to come in with us being up one nil, she did a really good job. You put her in against Adriana and Marta in her first appearance, that's why she's a pro at the end of the day and she handled it really well. She has a lot of potential and giving people their debuts early on in the season is really important because you need to use your squad."

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National Women's Soccer League Stories from March 23, 2024


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