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Angel City fell 2–1 at home tonight against NJ/NY Gotham FC following first-half goals for the visitors by forward Crystal Dunn and midfielder Delaney Sheehan, and a second-half penalty goal by ACFC forward Claire Emslie.
Goalkeeper DiDi Haračić saw action early in the game when in the third minutes, Dunn slipped a short forward pass into the box as midfielder Rose Lavelle made a run. Lavelle took a short-range stop that Haračić blocked; Lavelle took another crack at the rebounded ball, which Haračić saved.
ACFC had a good chance in the sixth minute when defender Gisele Thompson sent a cross to the top of the penalty arc from the left wing. Midfielder Rocky Rodríguez took a touch to settle the ball before making a left-footed attempt that a Gotham defender blocked at close range. The deflected ball fell to forward Alyssa Thompson, whose angled shot went just wide of the far post.
Play was back and forth for the next few minutes, with the two teams trading control of the ball and each getting a few half looks. In the 16th minute, Gotham opened the scoring when Dunn tapped a through ball to Lavelle as she made a slashing run into the box. The midfielder hit Dunn’s service first time, and the ball hit the inside of the post and bounced into the net.
The visitors had another look in the 36th minute when midfielder Delaney Sheehan sent a diagonal pass to Dunn at the top of the box. Dunn and Lavelle exchanged the ball as Dunn sprinted into the box and took a shot with the outside of her foot, which Haračić easily saved.
Gotham’s second goal came in the 40th minute. Lavelle sent a long through ball into the box for forward Ella Stevens, who sent a pass across the top of the six-yard box to Sheehan, who put her shot away from point-blank range.
ACFC started off the second half pushing for goal, with Alyssa Thompson taking a shot from the top of the box in the 49th minute that went just wide of the right post.
The hosts kept their foot on the gas and broke through in the 69th minute. Gotham defender Mandy Freeman fouled Gisele Thompson in the box, and after a video review the center referee pointed to the spot. Emslie stepped up to take the kick and buried it to the left, with keeper Ann-Katrin Berger guessing the correct direction, but her reaction wasn’t quick enough to stop Emslie’s low, driven shot.
Angel City had a final attempt in the 84th minute following a long throw-in by defender Megan Reid initially falling to midfielder Clarisse Le Bihan before bouncing around in the box a few times. It finally landed back at Le Bihan’s feet, who took a sharply angled left-footed shot, but Berger dove to make the save.
In the 89th minute, New Jersey had a near miss when forward Lynn Williams beat her mark to fire off a shot from inside the box, but it hit the crossbar.
Angel City plays next on July 20 against Club América at Cal State Fullerton in the inaugural NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup. Tickets for that match are available here. The club’s next regular-season game is on August 24 away at San Diego.
