The Houston Dash once again miss the National Women’s Soccer League playoffs after finishing in seventh place out of nine teams.
Since their founding in 2014, the team has never made the postseason. Things looked promising though after the first month of the 2019 season. Sitting on top of the league, the team was poised to continue their winning ways. However, a losing skid and losing forward Veronica Latsko in May to an ACL injury derailed any hopes of a bright future. The team never recovered and stumbled the rest of the season.
A series of losses and ties did not help as the team struggled to stay in playoff contention. It seemed that wins were few and far between and nothing seemed to go right during the rest of the season.
The home finale against the Washington Spirit on September 25 sent fans home on a high note as the game ended in a scoreless draw. With both teams having multiple chances to score, nothing found the back of the net. The Spirit would have won if the first goal had not been ruled offside.
After going 2-0 against the Utah Royals FC, the Dash traveled to Utah to conclude the season. This game proved to be the last chance for Houston to finish on a high note. This did not happen as the Dash lost 2-1 to wrap up the season.
Current head coach James Clarkson and many of the players are optimistic that next season will be better. Latsko will be back and there should be plenty of fresh talent as well. Will the Dash finally taste the postseason, or will another mediocre season come in 2020? Only time will tell.
