By Amelia Hirtle
With their final regular season matchup in Orlando, Florida, there was a lot on the line for the Chicago Red Stars. A win or a draw guaranteed them a spot in the playoffs. A loss would leave their playoff chances in the hands of other teams depending on their results. Luckily, for the visiting team, a goal by Kealia Watt in the 65th minute sealed it for the Red Stars. The last matchup against Orlando came just 2 weeks ago. A 6th minute goal by Kealia Watt was enough in that game as Chicago was able to hold on for a 1-0 win at home.
The Orlando Pride were missing some key players in Marta, Ali Krieger, and Ashlyn Harris due to injuries. Chicago was missing starting defender Casey Krueger. Chicago controlled the game from the opening whistle. The Pride struggled to clear the ball from their own half and Chicago kept the pressure up. In the 8th minute, Mallory Pugh had found an opening at the top of the box and took a shot, but it went wide of the goal. Kealia Watt got in on the action by sending in a ball from the end line, but there were no Red Stars teammates in the area.
The best chance of the night for the Pride came in the closing minutes of the first half. Orlando defender Kylie Strom sent a ball to Jodie Taylor who backheeled it to Gunny Jonsdottir. The shot from Jonsdottir was just wide of the net by inches. Two minutes after that, Chicago keeper Cassie Miller misplayed a Courtney Peterson cross. Alex Morgan got a piece of it, but Arin Wright was there to defend. Even though the Red Stars dominated the stat sheet, it was still a draw heading into the second half.
When Rachel Hill came on for Chicago, she had an immediate impact. She had a header in the 63rd minute that went just wide of the post. In the 65th minute, Morgan Gautrat found Kealia Watt on the left-hand side who cut back in and fired a shot that the Pride keeper had no chance of getting to. The goal by Watt clinched Chicago a spot in the postseason. The Pride had a chance to equalize on a shot from van Egmond late, but it went right to Miller.
The Red Stars announced that Sarah Gorden earned the very first Iron Woman title for playing every minute of the regular season.
For Orlando, it was a disappointing end to their season. They were a team that was at the top of the table in the first half of the season, but they finished in 8th place. For the Red Stars, they have now made the playoffs for the sixth consecutive season. They will return home for the NWSL Quarterfinals on Sunday November 7th. Time and opponent are TBD.