WASHINGTON, D.C. (July 17, 2022) - Orlando Pride (3-5-4, 13 points) traveled to the nation’s capital on Sunday night, walking away with a 0-0 draw against defending NWSL Champion Washington Spirit (1-5-7, 10 points). With the draw, the Pride secured a positive result for the third-straight match, also picking up a second-straight shutout after defeating the Houston Dash 1-0 last week.
Goalkeeper Erin McLeod made five saves in the match to earn the clean sheet, her third across all competitions this season.
The match was a back-and-forth affair for all 90 minutes, with the Pride having some opportunities through its attack, including a 16th-minute chance from Darian Jenkins and late pressure from second-half substitute Julie Doyle.
Acting Orlando Pride Head Coach Seb Hines:
“Tough game today. Washington caused a lot of problems. Some of their tactics and styles of play…they tried to pin our wingers back and they were more direct than I’ve ever seen them. So we had to be switched on at the back. I thought we dealt with the first ball really well but then it was anticipating the second balls and I thought it was something that we addressed at halftime. And then can we pick up more second balls and be more directional with our first contact to find a pass? But, I’m very happy with the result. We’ve grown over the last couple of games. This is another clean sheet so we’ll take a positive with that and, you know what, it’s fine margins. We could have gone a couple of goals up in the first half. We’ll review it and we’ll move on and prepare for Kansas.”
Scoring Recap:
No goals
Match Notes:
- Acting Head Coach Seb Hines made just one change to his starting lineup from last week, with Toni Pressley earning the nod on the back line in place of Carrie Lawrence.
- The start was Pressley’s ninth of the season, wearing the captain’s armband for the fourth time this campaign.
- With the start, Meggie Dougherty Howard made her 94th regular season appearance, now just six away from 100.
Next Match: The Pride will see a week off, next returning to play on Sunday, July 31, traveling to face the Kansas City Current at Children’s Mercy Park. Kickoff for that match is set for a 7 p.m. ET kickoff.
