Dash routed by Thorns to end unbeaten run

On June 12, the Portland Thorns came to town to take on the Houston Dash for the annual Pride Night match at PNC Stadium. From the opening minute, nothing went in Houston’s favor as the Thorns walked away with a 4-0 victory.

Portland went ahead in the first minute of the match. Katie Naughton got her leg on a cross into the Houston box but could only redirect it past Jane Campbell and in her own net. This turned out to be an omen for how the whole match would go.

Abby Smith doubled the lead from the penalty spot in the 23rd minute. Portland would take their lead in to halftime, looking comfortable on a very hot Houston evening.

The Thorns would add another goal in the 75th minute when 16-year-old Olivia Moultrie became the youngest player in NWSL history to find the back of the net. Moultrie got the start after Christine Sinclair was a late scratch from the lineup. The teenager made the most of her opportunity with a goal and an assist.

Moultrie’s assist came on Portland’s fourth and final goal of the evening, Sophia Smith’s second of the contest. Smith was able to score off a scramble in the box, just sneaking her shot over the line. The USWNT striker is in fine form, taking home player of the match honors with her brace and an assist on Moultrie’s assist.

The result was very disappointing for a team that has been in such great form and on a long unbeaten run. Midfielder Bri Visalli spoke after the match about the disappointment. “Initial reactions are just disappointing, we were on a great roll, this is not ideally how we want to come off it either,” Visalli said in the post-match press conference. “We don’t want to stop the streak that we are on, obviously, it is bound to happen at some point, but this definitely wasn’t our night. Quite frankly, very disappointing, a lot of people dug deep, we can reflect on that and figure that out moving forward.”

Acting head coach Sarah Lowdon was very straight forward with her thoughts on the performance after the match. “We can always be better, and tonight is a humbling experience and credit to Portland, tough days happen and it’s how you respond.” Lowdown also spoke about how this loss can be a humbling experience and how the team will respond. “It’s a humbling experience, but I know the character of this team and I’m confident that they will respond accordingly and positively,” Lowdon said. “That’s the main thing I think again like you know the season isn’t decided on one loss, so there is a long way to go, and we learn from this. You got to see a lot of players that potentially haven’t seen many minutes and it was a great opportunity for them tonight.”

Next up for the Dash is an away trip to take on the North Carolina Courage on Sunday, June 19. The next home match is July 1st against the Kansas City Current. That match is a 713 night so make sure you get out to PNC Stadium.

Dash smash Pride

On Friday, June 2, the Houston Dash took on the Orlando Pride at PNC Stadium. The Dash came into this match riding a lengthy unbeaten streak, looking to stay near the top of the table in the National Women’s Soccer League. Everything went the way of Houston on the night as the team romped to a 5-0 victory.

Nichelle Prince got the party started in the 28th minute. Captain Rachel Daly played Prince through on goal and after beating Pride keeper Erin McLeod, Prince’s shot was deflected into the net by former Dash defender Megan Montefusco.

Daly would continue the scoring with a goal in the 32nd minute off a fantastic feed from Maria Sanchez. The Mexican international whipped a ball in from long range on the left to a sprinting Daly. The Englishwoman got her head on the ball perfectly to get her shot on frame and over a helpless McLeod to give Houston a 2-0 lead.

Prince would take over the game from there to leave no doubt about the result. Her second goal, and the Dash’s third, came just before halftime. She darted down the left side, cut back in on her right foot and again sent a shot that Montefusco could only help into her own net.

The Canadian international finished off her hat trick, the first in club history in the 49th minute. Sanchez and Shea Groom worked the ball once again down the left side. Groom took a heavy challenge on the end line but was able to find Prince. The heroine of the evening chipped McLeod with a perfectly weighted effort to make the score line 4-0.

Michelle Aloize would end the party with a goal in the 87th minute, the first of her NWSL career. The Nigerian international was in on goal moments before and missed the net, but she made no doubt this time of asking. Groom played Alozie through from her own half and she was able to hold off the defender and then calmly slot her shot past McLeod to make the final score 5-0.

Nichelle Prince spoke after the match about just how big the win was for the team. “It’s huge,” Prince told the media in the postgame press conference. “We are going into every game fighting for a win and not taking anything for granted or letting teams get into the game. I think we know that we are a really good team when we are playing our best and fighting for each other and when we are following the game plan. When we don’t do that then the game can be different - we are trying to be consistent and bring our game every week.”

Captain Rachel Daly was extremely proud of her teammate and her performance. “Yeah, she needs her name in lights tonight,” Daly said after the match. “She was absolutely brilliant. I’ve said before she’s so underrated and she’s such a phenomenal player. She works so hard and she’s a true professional — everyday she comes in she grinds. She works her ass off, sorry excuse my French, but she is an angel on and off the field and she was absolutely fantastic tonight. I couldn’t be more proud and happy for her.”

With the win, Houston now sits tied for second place with the Chicago Red Stars, two points behind first place San Diego Wave FC. The top six teams make the playoffs. The Dash are back in action tomorrow night, looking to go top of the table if they can beat newcomers Angel City FC. The match kicks off at 9:00 PM central time and can be watched on Paramount+.

The top six teams make the playoffs.

 

Dash pick up a point in draw with North Carolina Courage

The Houston Dash returned to PNC Stadium on Sunday night to face the reigning NWSL Challenge Cup Champion. North Carolina Courage. The Dash returned home for the first time since going 2-0-1 on a three-game road trip. The 7-point road trip looked to give Houston some momentum as they returned to the Bayou City against a formidable opponent.

The Dash went behind early when a mix-up in the back allowed the visitors to pounce. Rookie Diana Ordonez put the Courage in front in the 25th minute.

Houston had several chances to score in the first half and North Carolina looked to be on the verge of taking their lead to the locker room. Dash captain Rachel Daly, in her 100th NWSL appearance had other plans. Daly got on the end of a nicely weighted pass from Nichelle Prince and was able to push the ball past Courage keeper Casey Murphy. Daly kept her composure and smashed her shot through the retreating defenders to equalize in first half stoppage time.

Daly spoke about her goal after the match with the media. “Nichelle (Prince) and I have played together for a really long time now, Daly said. “I think there was a great pickup by, I’m pretty sure, it was Sophie (Schmidt) in the midfield. Yeah, we’ve got good chemistry now, me and Nichelle, and the thing you know, we’ve been working on a lot during the week — the last few weeks. Obviously, she assisted me quite similarly in Portland last week. I think we’re kind of getting on the same page now. We’ve played together for a long time now. So, it was a great, great ball from her. The keeper is a great keeper, she’s big. She’s obviously, she covers the goal really well. She’s tall, very tall. And I thought, you know, maybe I would have dinked over in another game. But I know how tall she is. She got a great hand to my volley, right before that. So, I thought the only option was to go around her. And then yeah, I think on the finish, I just needed to hit it high.”

Both teams came out firing in the second half, but could not find the back of the net. North Carolina finished the match with a 60/40 possession advantage but the Dash had 15 shots to the Courage’s 5. The match would end in a 1-1 draw with both teams picking up a point.

Acting head coach Sarah Lowdon spoke about the performance after the match. “I’m very proud of how the club honored the victims of Uvalde, and we will continue to help support that community moving forward, Lowdon said to the media in her press conference. “So that’s the first thing I’d like to say. We don’t take any points for granted in this league. There’s so much parity whether you’re 4-0 or 0-4. We value wins at home, I thought the first half we struggled, we give the ball away way too much, especially in central areas, lots of turnovers. Second half, we were better. Again, we’re better than the first half. In the first like 10 minutes, we had chances, I thought that we on another day put away. It’s those chances that kind of haunt us later in the game. We have obviously had a couple of games where we’ve conceded late goals. Overall, obviously, to come up with a point at home, obviously, we want to get three points. We have to make sure we pick up points and we will take a point as well. When we’re at home, we’re always looking for those three points.”

Houston returns to PNC Stadium on Friday night to face the Orlando Pride. The Dash will host a pregame ceremony before the match to commemorate Daly’s 100 appearances.