From draft day to opening day, it has been quite the journey for Pride Forward Danica Evans.
Selected by the Pride in the third round from the University of Colorado at the NWSL Draft, Evans scored her first NWSL goal in the 86th minute of her team’s home opener. Going one-on-one with Washington Spirit Goalkeeper Stephanie Labbé, Evans dribbled the ball around the keeper and kicked into an open net.
“Once the ball got through, I looked up and I saw the goalkeeper. I debated whether to shoot it first time or dribble,” Evans said after the match. “For me, personally, I’d rather dribble so I took the extra touch and next thing I know the goal is wide open and the fans were screaming. It was honestly amazing and I’m so happy I got to score today. It was pretty exciting for me.”
“It was a fantastic goal. It was a great effort, an individual effort inside the box,” Marta said. The five time FIFA Player of the Year made her NWSL debut in the match, coming on fifteen minutes before Evans. “It was a golazo, a great goal. I was really happy, it was her instinct and the way she developed the play. Equalizing was really important.”
“Thanks Marta,” Evans said, laughing at her inability to respond to the veteran’s comments. “It means a lot. For me to be able to play with these players that I’m playing with is a lifetime dream that I’ve had… It’s literally a dream come true and it’s so amazing and I’m so grateful that I can get the opportunity.”
Tom Sermanni and his coaching staff knew that Evans had it in her. They drafted her to finish plays and today she did exactly that.
“One of the reasons that we drafted her was when we looked at her we felt like she had an ability to finish, and an ability to finish in a composed way,” Sermanni said. “And I feel like that was highlighted today.”
Earning the equalizer and scoring the team’s first goal of the year is a pretty good start to your rookie season. Evans said that is only the beginning.
“This is just a starting point,” Evans said. “I think I can only get better from here.”
