For the first time since the inaugural season the Orlando Pride embarked on a three-game road series. Having just played to a win and a draw at home, the Pride attacked this series head-on, finishing with seven points between the three matches.
On Saturday afternoon, the Pride completed their road trip with the Club’s first-ever victory over Portland Thorns FC.
“An absolutely unbelievable performance away from home at the toughest play to come and get points against a team we’ve never beaten before,” Head Coach Tom Sermanni said of the most recent result.
Leading up to the match, the Pride defeated the Red Stars 2-0 in Chicago before earning their third clean sheet of the season at Utah on Wednesday.
And then, on Saturday, Orlando capped off the road series with a 2-1 victory over the Thorns at Providence Park, the Club’s first multi-goal game against Portland.
The last of the three matches proved to be a hard-fought battle, pitting the two teams tied for fourth place against one another.
The Pride were able to capitalize on some open opportunities early in the match with a goal from Alex Morgan in the 11th minute and a SportsCenter Top 10 strike from Christine Nairn in the 21st minute (watch).
For the remainder of the 90 minutes, the Pride were put to the test, facing 24 shots from the Thorns, but the team was able to buckle down and limit Portland to just one goal in order to return home triumphant.
“I think what we showed today were all the elements required to win games like this,” Sermanni said. “I think the level of concentration, our work ethic and the way we were switched on was fantastic.”
Now with two more victories and another draw in hand, the Pride will look to build off the success they had while traveling.
“Obviously we’ve had three games on the road now with two wins and a draw, which is a terrific result,” Sermanni said. “So it’s now making sure we maintain our home form.”
The Pride have been in decent home form already this season and have earned points in every match. Orlando has played three games this season at Orlando City Stadium, with one resulting in a victory for the Club and the other two ending in a draw.
With the success from the team’s undefeated three-game road series, the Pride return home, looking to gain more victories in Orlando City Stadium.
“I think we’ve got a ways to go still,” Sermanni said. “I think we’ve got some things to do, but we’re getting better.”
Orlando will have 11 days off before facing the league-leading and currently, undefeated North Carolina Courage on Wednesday, May 23, allowing the team time to look back and capitalize on the momentum gained while on the road.
Wednesday’s match will be the lone game at home this month before the Pride hit the road again for a second opportunity to make a statement, traveling to the Chicago Red Stars on May 26 and Seattle Reign FC on June 3.
