Angel City takes on the Portland Thorns at 6:00 p.m. PST on Sunday, April 24 at Titan Stadium at Cal State Fullerton. The match will stream live on Paramount+.
Last week, Angel City lost narrowly to OL Reign on the road, going down 0–1 in the first half, then equalizing in the 83rd minute with a skillfully placed header by forward Simone Charley. LA held the Reign off until the last minute of extra time, when the home team got one back to end the game 1–2. ACFC are 0–4–1 so far in the Challenge Cup.
The Thorns are currently ranked second in the West division, with a 3–1–1 record. Their most recent result was a 3–2 win over San Diego Wave FC; forward Sophia Smith scored in the 4th minute, and midfielder Hina Sugita had a brace.
Smith also scored in the Thorns' previous meeting with Angel City, on March 30, which the Portland side won 3–0. Forward Morgan Weaver and midfielder Yazmeen Ryan rounded out the scoring for the Thorns in that match. Smith has been Portland's most dangerous weapon so far, scoring 3 of her team's 8 goals in the Challenge Cup and registering 14 shots, including 9 on target—she is tied with Washington's Ashley Hatch and Ashley Sanchez, as well as ACFC's Christen Press, for third-most shots on goal league-wide. Press just outpaces Smith for total shots, with 16.
Angel City played without Press last week, as the forward sat out for Covid protocol. The Los Angeles club have only had played of Charley, Press, and attacking midfielder Savannah McCaskill at the same time for 45 minutes, in the second half of their first match against OL Reign on March 26. Charley was recovering from injury early in the tournament, while McCaskill had to sit out the March 30 game against the Thorns after she earned a red card in the previous game.