Match Recap: Angel City 2, Bay FC 0 (Summer Cup) | 7.26.24

Angel City beat Bay FC 2–0 on the road tonight following a goal by forward Claire Emslie and a Bay own goal forced by defender Megan Reid. The win put ACFC in first place in Group B in the Summer Cup heading into the final group-stage game of the tournament.

After some back-and-forth over the first 15 or so minutes—including a third-minute attempt by Bay forward Rachel Hill that goalkeeper Angelina Anderson stopped—ACFC gained control of the match and dominated possession for the remainder of the half.

ACFC had their first look of the night in the fifth minute, when forward Claire Emslie sent a long ball into the box for forward Alyssa Thompson. Thompson held up play long enough to tap the ball to defender Jasmyne Spencer as she arrived in the box, but Spencer’s shot was high.

Angel City opened the scoring in the 18th minute. Defender Megan Reid got her foot on a ball that Emslie floated in behind Bay’s back line on a free kick. The ball pinged off the inside of the post, collided with midfielder Dorian Bailey as she attempted a clearance off the line, and rolled into the goal. 

In the 25th minute, Bay had what would be their last chance until close to the end of the half. Bailey won the ball and sent a forward pass to midfielder Caroline Conti, who took it to the edge of the 18 and fired off a hard shot, which Anderson saved.

Emslie had a look in the 29th minute following a buildup that moved through four players, starting with a ball in from the wing by Spencer to midfielder Kennedy Fuller at the edge of the box. Fuller sent a pass sideways to forward Messiah Bright, who had her back to goal and tapped it back to the onrushing Emslie—but the Scottish international’s shot was wide.

Angel City had a pair of chances in the 37th and 38th minutes, first when Thompson ran onto a lofted ball into the box by Emslie and sent an angled shot wide of the far post, then with defender M.A. Vignola sending an inside-the-box attempt high after a service from midfielder Meggie Dougherty-Howard.

Bay had their final chance before the break in stoppage time when a corner kick fell to midfielder Maya Doms, who hit a looping header into the crossbar and out.

ACFC started the second half swinging with a 46th-minute play that saw Emslie collide with Rowland inside the six-yard box as the latter went to ground to claim a cross by Spencer.

Emslie made good on her next look, in the 54th minute. After taking the ball endline on the left side, Thompson cut back and split two defenders with a short pass to Bright. The Texas native tapped the ball laterally to Emslie, who nutmegged defender Savy King as she sent a shot into the back of the net to double ACFC’s lead. The goal marked Bright’s first assist in an Angel City jersey.

The game opened up as both teams started to make substitutions in the last 30 minutes, with Bay succeeding in controlling more of the ball and threatening on goal repeatedly. In the 64th minute, Bay forward Princess beat her mark to send a low cross into the six-yard box, which defender Madison Curry cleared; she set up a chance for Bailey in the 73rd minute, which deflected off Reid’s leg before being caught by Anderson.

The Ghanaian international made her own attempt in the 77th minute from close to point-blank range at the near post, but Anderson blocked it out for a corner.

The last 10 minutes of the game saw few real chances for both sides, and after four minutes of stoppage time, Angel City closed out the match with the clean sheet intact.

This game saw the professional debut of forward Casey Phair, who subbed in for Bright in the 66th minute.

Angel City wraps up the group stage of the Summer Cup this Thursday, August 1 at 7:00 p.m. against San Diego Wave FC. That match will take place at Titan Stadium at Cal State Fullerton. Tickets are available here.