Utah Royals (photo by Jose Castellanos).
Sandy, U.T- The Utah Royals made history in their second consecutive home game with a 2-0 victory over the Washington Spirit in front of 7,551 fans who filled the stadium with excitement.
Last weekend the Royals earned their first home point and came out hopeful to see a better result. Early on midfielder Diana Matheson gained possession from a slide tackle after the Spirit worked the passes and chipped the ball to forward Amy Rodriguez, who then put it in the center of the run where Kelley O’Hara finished the ball.
Goalkeeper Aubrey Bledsoe couldn’t get a handle on the O’Hara’s shot and Utah took a 1-0 lead in the seventh minute.
Throughout the first half, Washington had to work diligently to get back in the game. The Royals were confident in their play and remained in the lead at the half.
“I think Laura has an expectation that this team defends hard and that starts at the front with us,” Matheson said. “I definitely want to be the type of player who sets the example for others out there so I just try and go up there and do that.”
Mallory Pugh during last seasons match against the Portland Thorns (Photo by John Rudoff 7-22-2017)
In the 66th minute, Matheson won the ball from another slide tackle. Taking possession from the last Washington defender Estelle Johnson she guided the ball to the back of the net, scoring her first goal since 2016, which advanced the Royal’s lead to 2-0.
Washington only had one shot on goal in the 91st minute from Francisca Ordega, who had scored in three consecutive games, but Utah goalkeeper Abby Smith held to the final whistle and put an end to Ordega’s streak.
The outcome of this match was the first time a team has shut out the Spirit thus far this season. The Royals gained six points and now have a total of seven in sixth place with the Spirit right below them in seventh place.
The third consecutive home game for the Utah Royals will take place this Wednesday against the Orlando Pride with kickoff at 9:00 p.m. ET in Sandy, Utah.
SCORING SUMMARY:
UTA-Kelley O’Hara, 7’ (Assisted by Amy Rodriguez)
UTA-Diana Matheson, 66’
BOOKING SUMMARY:
UTA-Becky Sauerbrunn, yellow card, 15’
WAS-Taylor Smith, yellow card, 72’
UTA-Desiree Scott, yellow card, 85’
UTAH ROYALS FC: #1-Abby Smith, #2-Rachel Corsie, #3-Rebecca Moros, #4-Becky Sauerbrunn, #5-Kelley O’Hara (#6-Katie Bowen, 85’), #8-Amy Rodriguez (#24-Katie Stengel, 69’), #10-Diana Matheson (#15-Eryka Tymrak, 88’), #11-Desiree Scott, #13-Brooke Elby, #19-Katrina Gorry, #23-Gunnhildur Yrsa Jónsdóttir
Subs not used: #18-Nicole Barnhart, #9-Lo’eau Labonta, #17-Sydney Miramontez, #25-Brittany Ratcliffe
WASHINGTON SPIRIT: #1-Aubrey Bledsoe, #3-Caprice Dydasco (#10-Cali Farquharson, 81’), #5-Whitney Church, #6-Andi Sullivan, #7-Taylor Smith, #8-Maggie Dougherty Howard (#10-Estefanía Romina Banini Ruiz, 63’), #11-Mallory Pugh, #14-Francisca Ordega, #23-Tori Huster (#4-Rebecca Quinn, 37’), #24-Estelle Johnson, #33-Ashley Hatch
Subs not used: #15-Joanna Lohman, #12-Morgan Proffitt, #9-Havana Solaun, #19-Kelsey Wys
TOTAL SHOTS: UTA 10-12 WAS
SHOTS ON GOAL: UTA 5-1 WAS
FOULS: UTA 14-8 WAS
OFFSIDES: UTA 4-0 WAS
CORNER KICKS: UTA 3-5 WAS
SAVES: UTA 1-3 WAS
Washington Spirit
