On Saturday night, the Orlando Pride returned home to Camping World Stadium to take on Sky Blue FC. The Pride scored a goal at the end of the first half, a zinger by Kristen Edmonds off a free kick.
This type of play has become typical of Kristen Edmonds. She has six goals on the season-- six goals that all seem to come at critical moments. Against Boston, she scored two goals in the final four minutes to win the match. Against Houston, she scored her first goal off Alex Morgan for the lone goal of the match. And even though the Pride lost the match against Sky Blue, her goal is just another high point in what has been an excellent season.
“She’s been our find of the season,” Head Coach Tom Sermanni said after the match. “She came as part of another trade so I didn’t know much about her. And she’s like one of these players that floated around the league and suddenly found a place here where her abilities have come to the fore...So, I think one of our projects for next year is to try and find more of those Kristen Edmonds players in the league.”
Edmonds summarized her goal nice and simple. “I said to Toni ‘I’m just gonna hit this one’ and I did.”
Edmonds has been a bright spot in an offense that has often struggled throughout the season. If Sermanni and the staff can find more players like her in the offseason, it might give them the spark they need to move forward next season.
“She’s been outstanding for us all season,” Sermanni said. “She’s the kind of player we want in the club.”
