Angel City defeated the Houston Dash 2–1 on the road tonight to keep their playoff hopes alive in a tight contest for the top six slots in the table. Forward Alyssa Thompson and midfielder Savannah McCaskill were the scorers for Angel City, with midfielder Andressa recording Houston’s lone goal.
The first 15 minutes of the match saw Angel City heavily dominate possession, including several stretches spent in and around Houston’s 18, but those attacks yielded few dangerous chances. Midway through the half, the home team began to see more of the ball and started stringing together attacks.
The Dash had a near miss in the 40th minute when midfielder Sophie Schmidt received a short sideways pass from defender Caprice Dydasco and lobbed it toward goal. The ball bounced off the crossbar and fell to forward María Sánchez in the six-yard box, but she sent her shot just wide of the near post.
Houston didn’t waste their next opportunity. In the 44th minute, Sánchez beat defender Jasmyne Spencer on the left wing to find midfielder Marisa Viggiano, who split two defenders with a through ball to forward Nichelle Prince. With midfielder Andressa making a central run into the box, Prince sent a sideways ball on the ground to the edge of the 18, which Andressa received and sent into the back of the net with a low, driven shot.
The Dash stayed on the front foot to start the second half, getting a handful of chances within the first five minutes. Prince had two attempts in the 46th and 48th minutes from near the edge of the 18, missing the first one and sending the second to keeper Angelina Anderson.
In the 51st minute, Angel City got their first look of the half when McCaskill made a central run up the midfield into space and found forward Claire Emslie on the right. Emslie dribbled up the wing and sent a cross into the six-yard box, which Campbell parried. McCaskill, continuing her run, took a crack at the rebounded ball, but it fell straight to Campbell as the keeper was still on the ground from her initial block.
LA continued to find chances as the half went on, but none looked particularly threatening until the 64th minute, when defender Sarah Gorden sent a long ball over the top into the box, which Houston defender Katie Lind initially blocked. McCaskill again pounced on the rebound and sent a powerful headed shot to the upper 90, which Campbell made an impressive leaping block to stop.
Angel City got back in the game when forward Alyssa Thompson, who had subbed in for forward Scarlett Camberos in the 65th minute, equalized in the 68th minute. With Houston’s defense stretched in a moment of transition, the LA native ran onto a central through pass from midfielder Savannah McCaskill, sprinted into the box, and easily beat Campbell as she came off her line.
The two teams traded chances over the final 20 minutes of the game, with a 90th minute attempt by forward Diana Ordoñez, which Anderson made an impressive diving save against, coming closest for Houston. Forward Katie Johnson, who had subbed in for forward Sydney Leroux in the 86th minute, had a 91st minute header from just outside the six-yard box that came close.
The visitors sealed the deal in the first minute of stoppage time. Anderson booted a long ball forward to forward Clarisse Le Bihan, who sent a flicked header into the path of Thompson. Thompson dribbled a few steps to create space and found Johnson ahead of her to the right. Johnson sent a square ball into the center of the box, where McCaskill was making a run and one-timed the ball past Campbell.
The win puts Angel City in eighth place heading into the final week of the season, just one point out of playoff position. Their final match is a home game against Portland next Sunday, October 15 at 2:00 p.m. That game will stream live on Paramount+. Tickets are available here.
