Fort Lauderdale Drops Road Matchup at DC Power
GSL Fort Lauderdale United FC

Fort Lauderdale Drops Road Matchup at DC Power

Published on April 22, 2026 under Gainbridge Super League (GSL)
Fort Lauderdale United FC News Release


WASHINGTON, D.C. - Fort Lauderdale United FC (5-11-8, 23 PTS) dropped its matchup with DC Power FC (8-9-8, 32 PTS), 4-0, on Wednesday evening in a mid-week matchup in the Nation's capital. Goalkeeper Haley Craig set a club single-game record with 10 saves, while Laveni Vaka was shown her first red card of the season in the match. With the result, Fort Lauderdale has dropped back-to-back matches but will have an opportunity to return to the win column in the finale of its two-match road trip on Sunday evening.

Fort Lauderdale United faces a quick turnaround as it returns to the pitch on Sunday, April 26 to take on Spokane Zephyr FC and close out a two-match road trip. The clubs met twice during the Fall portion of the 2025/26 campaign, with Fort Lauderdale earning a road win on September 6 before Spokane levelled the season series with a victory at Beyond Bancard Field on December 20. With just four matches remaining in the Super League season, Sunday's clash carries major playoff implications for both sides.

Fort Lauderdale nearly opened the match in ideal fashion, as Kiara Locklear slipped a perfect pass to Sh'nia Gordon inside the box in the 2nd minute, but her shot was saved. The match shifted in the 10th minute when Vaka was shown a red card as the last defender, forcing Fort Lauderdale to play down a player for the remaining 80 minutes of the match. The club was forced into an early change in the 16th minute after Julia Grosso exited with an injury, with Kate Colvin entering in her place. Craig, continuing her strong run of form, delivered key saves in the 22nd and 29th minutes to keep the match level. Despite being down a player, Fort Lauderdale remained aggressive in attack, highlighted by a powerful left-footed effort from Emily Thompson in the 23rd minute that sailed just over the bar. DC broke through in the 39th minute, while Craig came up with another impressive save in stoppage time to keep the deficit at one heading into the halftime break.

Craig opened the second half with another strong save, but DC extended its lead to 2-0 in the 54th minute. Interim Head Coach Paul Jennison made his second change in the 64th minute, bringing on Kat González in her return from international duty for Thompson. Colvin remained active in the attacking third, making dangerous runs in the 65th and 74th minutes, but was unable to find the back of the net. DC added a third in the 72nd minute before Jennison made additional changes in the 82nd, introducing Daniela Todd and Jules Cagle for Kelli Van Treeck and Taylor Smith. Just moments later, DC found a fourth to extend the deficit for Fort Lauderdale. Todd nearly pulled one back late with a shot on target that was saved, but Fort Lauderdale ultimately fell on the road to DC Power FC after 90 minutes.

Scoring Summary

DC: Walker, 39'

DC: Abera, 54'

DC: Abera, 72'

DC: Bedoya, 83'

Back in Action

Fort Lauderdale United returns to action on Sunday, April 26 when it travels across the country to take on Spokane Zephyr FC to close out a two-match week and road trip. The clubs have met twice during the 2025/26 season, with Fort Lauderdale winning the first meeting at ONE Spokane Stadium (Sep. 6) before Spokane evened the series at Beyond Bancard Field (Dec. 20).

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