Alyssa Naeher and her young back line earned their second 1-0 shut out in a row as the Chicago Red Stars held the Orlando Pride to a scant six shots. Red Stars rookie Katie Naughton earned her first start at center back in place of the injured Julie Johnston. Naughton rose to the challenge, helping the team shut down an offense featuring the speed of Alex Morgan.
Naughton passed her first big test in the tenth minute. The rookie tracked Alex Morgan as Morgan sprinted into Chicago’s penalty area. Naughton positioned herself to easily block Morgan’s cross. This kind of defensive effort was the order of the evening as Chicago shut down every deep run Morgan and her colleagues made.
The first good scoring chance for the Red Stars came in the twelfth minute. Strong defense from Jen Hoy forced the Pride to play the ball to their back line. Sofia Huerta intercepted the back pass and found Christen Press cutting toward goal. Press dribbled past three Pride defenders only to have her shot blocked by Pride goalkeeper, Ashlyn Harris. Chicago couldn’t get control of the ensuing rebound and the Pride finally cleared the ball up field over the touchline.
Minutes later, the Red Stars young defense made another big stop. Chicago earned a corner kick, but Orlando easily cleared and raced down the field on the counter attack.This time, Arin Gilliland matched Morgan step for step and blocked Morgan’s attempted cross over the goal line for a corner kick. In the fifteenth minute, Naughton stopped Morgan again. This time Naughton slid over to cover a pass that beat Gilliland and blocked Morgan’s attempted cross.
Frustrated on the left flank, Orlando tried attacking the right. Casey Short and Sam Johnson both got in on the action shielding forwards off the ball and blocking shots. Johnson made an especially nice block in the 58th minute, stopping Lianne Sanderson’s shot from eight yards out with a sliding tackle.
Not to be outdone, Naeher made several tough saves, expertly handled crosses, and cleared many attempted through balls with her feet. She grabbed a long, hard blast out of the upper corner in the fifteenth minute. In the 47th minute, she held a tricky, close-range header from Sarah Hagen.
Amanda Da Costa made her debut for the Red Stars, coming in for Hoy in the 51st minute. This pushed Press from the midfield into a fully attacking role. Da Costa quickly made her presence known with hard shot from the top of the penalty area that forced Harris into a diving save.
In the 65th minute, Press broke the deadlock for the Red Stars. Chicago earned a free kick just inside of their offensive half. Danielle Colaprico sent a long, flighted ball to Press in the penalty area. Press’ second touch put the ball over a diving Harris into the near upper 90.
The Red Stars almost found a second goal in the 79th minute but for a stellar Harris save. Chicago’s corner kick found Short’s head on the far side. Harris dove to her right, just getting her palm behind Short’s header.
An exciting match right to the end, Orlando substitute Jasmine Spencer narrowly missed getting the equalizer in the 91st minute. Her shot went inches wide of the far lower corner. Finally, Orlando put a last-gasp free kick high and wide of the Red Stars’ goal.
It is necessary for the Red Stars to improve their linking play through the midfield. The offense needs to look to play wide sooner when entering the final third. This will allow their flank players the space and time to make good decisions.
Chicago’s defense is coming together nicely. Their communication is much improved on the previous two weeks and their work resulted in better group defending. It was rare that a Red Star had to face an opponent alone, having good defensive cover and balance in most situations. As Orlando’s forwards made runs through Chicago’s defense, the defenders switched their marks effectively and didn’t lose the forwards.
Next Match:
Chicago will attempt to extend their winning streak when they travel to Boston to face the Breakers on Saturday, 7 May. The game starts 6pm CDT.
Orlando host the Seattle Reign at 5pm EDT on Sunday, 8 May.
Lineups:
Chicago Red Stars 4-4-2 (Flat back with diamond midfield)
Naeher; Gilliland, Naughton, Johnson, Short; Mautz, Colaprico, DiBernardo, Huerta; Press(C), Hoy
Substitutes:
52’ Da Costa for Hoy
90’ Comeau for DiBernardo
Orlando Pride 4-4-2 (Flat back with diamond midfield)
Harris; Catley, Monica, Alleway, Belanger; Evans, Kyle, Edmonds, Sanderson; Morgan(C), Hagen
Substitutes:
63’ Witteman for Evans
73’ Spencer for Hagen
82’ Edwards for Sanderson
Goals:
65’ Chicago – Press (Colaprico)
Misconduct:
41’ Yellow Evans (ORL)
