“We Are L.A. Strong!”

East Los Angeles, CA) [From The Editor’s Desk]: The 2925 National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) regular season is drawing to a rapid close for the teams that do not qualify for the postseason playoffs. In a probable “50/50” chance of succeeding to be in the playoff hunt, included in that grouping of six teams is our Angel City Football Club. But anything can happen in a close and tightly bunched grouping, and we’ll have to wait and see how everything plays out after the regular season’s 26th and final match on Sunday, November 2nd. So stay tuned for the final two weeks of the season.

Even with a “win-out” closing by the “Birdies” in their final two matches —next Sunday on 10/19 in their final home match vs. Portland, and then the Chicago Stars on the road —they may or may not reach the qualifying Top 8 teams due to the calculations of other involved teams in the playoff picture. Everything depends on the outcomes of the schedule’s matchups.

This matchday theme was a “Celebration of Native-American Heritage,” and it came with a special salute to one of the few NWSL players of that proud heritage, the highly popular fan favorite, midfielder #99 Madison Hammond.

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[PHOTO GALLERY]: East L.A. Sports Scene Productions / Photos By: Frankli Robles, Lead Photographer

[PRE-MATCH NOTES]: Houston and its Head Coach, Fabrice Gautrat, came to town with a (7W-10L-6D = 27 points, good for a current 10th place in the standings, while Angel City was showing a (6W-11L-6D = 24 points) overall record. Going into this match, they trailed Houston in the standings by a single winning match of 3 points and were in 11th place out of the 14 teams in the National Women’s Soccer League.

[ANGEL CITY FC STARTING XI]: #19 Angelina Anderson, Goalkeeper, #20 Gisele Thompson; #11 Sarah Gorden (C); #29 Miyabi; #30 Sara Doorsoun; #7 Hina Sugita, #33 RileyTiernan; #32 Sveindis Jonsdottir; #14 Nealy Martin; #17 Kennedy Fuller; and #15 Evelyn Shores.

[MATCH SUMMARY]

[REFEREE]: Matthew Corrigan

[1st HALF]: At barely the second minute of the match, Angel City went on the attack and forward, #33 Riley Tiernan took a good, clean shot, but Houston’s goalkeeper, #35 Abby Smith, made a great block on it. Then at the 8th minute, ACFC’s #17 Kennedy Fuller took her best calculated shot on goal, but it sailed wide left, still leaving the crowd with some of those very disappointing groans of “ooohs and ahhhs” as they longed for a scored goal and the first lead of the match.

The first “carded” penalty of the match was a “yellow” one, issued by Referee Corrigan at the 38th minute when ACFC’s forward, Sveindis Jónsdottir, was tackled in attack mode by the Dash’s #22 Michelle Alozie on her breakaway for a clean, but probable shot.

For time of possession, Angel City held a very big advantage but couldn’t find a way to manufacture a goal. The first-half stats heavily favored Angel City with the following numbers logged in these four categories: Shots (ACFC 8/Dash 0); Shots-on-Goal (ACFC 2/Dash 0); Corner Kicks (ACFC 5/Dash 3); and Saves (ACFC 0/Dash 4).

[HALF-TIME SCORE]: Angel City FC  0   Houston Dash  0

[2nd HALF]: Fans were just getting back to their seats for the start of the 2nd half when at minute (54:00), #17 Kennedy Fuller made a significant lead pass heading towards the Northern goal. But that wasn’t the end of her role in the play, as she kept moving toward the goal unmarked. She would then pick up the deflected ball, which was still in play near the goal. She found it and then quickly blasted it past the unsuspecting Dash goalkeeper, #35 Abby Smith, for the first goal of the match. The crowd erupted into a tremendous ovation as it rewarded Fuller for her accomplishment in putting the team into a good position to win the match.

Houston, playing more aggressively and desperately, nearly tied the match in minute (63:00) when there was a gathering of players from both teams on the front-door steps of the ACFC goalkeeper, #19 Angelina Anderson. A long clearing boot by a teammate was made to save the day, as it landed far away from where she was.

Play continued on an even keel until at the (86:00) mark and, clearing a corner kick rebound up the left flank, ACFC Midfielder, #12 Maiara Neihaus, received an excellent “kick-out” pass to the pitch’s open field by #18 Jun Endo, and had one defender in her sights to beat. But the Dash’s goalkeeper, Smith, came out to challenge her way too high, and Neihaus then cleanly rocketed the sphere into the unattended goal for the second goal of the match and a comfortable lead for the home team.

Although “stoppage time” of (8:00) minutes was given by Referee Corrigan, the match went back and forth until the end, but Angel City’s defense held it all together and clamped down one last time to preserve the win. Then, the referee’s whistle blew loudly one last time and yet strongly enough to end the match, with ACFC raising its arms in complete victory for its hard-fought earning of those three significant points, a slight but positive boost in the standings, and the potential hopes of making the playoffs.

[FULL-TIME SCORE]: Angel City  FC  2   Houston Dash  0

[NEXT UP]: Portland Thorns, 10/19 @ BMO Stadium, 2:00 pm in “Fan Appreciation Day”