MLS Midweek: September 20, 2017

Two games on today besides the US Open Cup, which is not covered on this blog. We begin in...

Georgia, as Atlanta United FC hosts the Los Angeles Galaxy. Jon Kempin and Brad Guzan are in goal. Atlanta opened in the thirteenth minute with a Josef Martinez goal, via Yamil Asad. Atlanta added on with a sixteenth minute goal by Asad. Atlanta extended the lead in the twentieth minute as Asad scored again, thanks to Hector Villalba and Miguel Almiron. In the thirty-ninth minute, Atlanta's Villalba took a yellow card for a foul and Los Angeles went down to ten men as Jermaine Jones took a straight red card for violent conduct. Atlanta padded the lead with an Almiron goal in the forty-third minute, via Asad. Leandro Gonzalez Pirez of Atlanta had a yellow card for a foul in first half stoppage time. Romain Alessandrini of the Galaxy took a yellow card for his fifty-eighth minute foul. Atlanta brought things back to even strength in the eighty-second minute as Brandon Vazquez took a straight red card for violent conduct. The final held at 4-0, with Asad the man of the match.

Up in Canada, Toronto FC hosts the Montreal Impact. Evan Bush and Alexander Bono protect the nets. Montreal started in the tenth minute with an Ignacio Piatti goal. The Impact added on in the twelfth minute with a Marco Donadel goal, via Piatti. Montreal extended the lead in the twenty-fourth minute on a Piatti goal, made possible by Anthony Jackson-Hamel. Deian Boldor of the Impact put Toronto on the board in the forty-second minute with his own goal. Montreal got back on track with a Jackson-Hamel goal in the forty-seventh minute. The Impact padded the lead with a fifty-first minute Jackson-Hamel goal, coming off of Blerim Dzemaili. Toronto pulled one back in the seventy-seventh minute with a Tosaint Ricketts goal, assisted by Raheem Edwards. Toronto got closer with another Ricketts goal in the seventy-ninth minute, helped along by Armando Cooper. The final stood at 5-3, with Piatti named man of the match.

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MLS 2017: Week 28

All teams are in action this weekend, beginning with ten Saturday games. The first is in...

Georgia, as Atlanta United FC hosts Orlando City SC. Joe Bendik and Brad Guzan are the goalies. Orlando City started in the tenth minute with a Dominic Dwyer goal, passed from Donny Toia. Atlanta tied it in the thirty-sixth minute on a Josef Martinez goal, assisted by Julian Gressel and Hector Villalba. Orlando City retook the lead in the thirty-ninth minute with a Dwyer goal, coming off of Scott Sutter. Atlanta tied it again in the fifty-fifth minute with a Martinez goal, helped along by Chris McCann. Orlando City regained the lead in the fifty-eighth minute with a Cyle Larin goal, made possible by Dwyer. Atlanta tied it once again as Martinez completed his hat trick with the help of Villalba. The final stood at 3-3, with the man of the match being Martinez.

Up in Canada, the Vancouver Whitecaps FC welcomes the Columbus Crew SC. Zack Steffen and David Ousted play in goal. Vancouver opened in the fifteenth minute with a Fredy Montero goal, courtesy of Yordy Reyna and Cristian Techera. Columbus tied it on a nineteenth minute Ola Kamara goal, passed from Kekuta Manneh. The Crew had yellow cards for fouls by Josh Williams in the twenty-sixth minute and Mohammed Abu in the thirty-third minute. The Whitecaps' Kendall Waston had a yellow card for his fifty-sixth minute foul. Columbus pulled ahead in the sixty-third minute on a Manneh goal, made possible by Wil Trapp. Justin Meram of the Crew took a yellow card for a foul in stoppage time. Vancouver tied it on a Tony Tchani goal, helped along by Montero and Jakob Nerwinski. The final stood at 2-2, with Montero named man of the match.

Back east, the Montreal Impact bring in Minnesota United FC. Bobby Shuttleworth and Evan Bush are set to start in goal. Collin Martin of Minnesota had a yellow card for a second minute foul. Montreal led off in the ninth minute with a Patrice Bernier goal, assisted by Blerim Dzemaili. Minnesota tied it in the twentieth minute on a Kevin Molino penalty kick goal. The Impact had a yellow card for dissent by Dzemaili in the fifty-third minute. Montreal took the lead back in the fifty-fifth minute with a Dzemaili goal, fueled by Michael Salazar and Daniel Lovitz. Minnesota retied it in the sixtieth minute with a Christian Ramirez goal, courtesy of Ibson. Samuel Piette of the Impact had a yellow card for a sixty-second minute yellow card. Minnesota took the lead in the eighty-ninth minute on an Abu Danladi goal, passed from Ethan Finlay. Victor Cabrera of Montreal received a yellow card for a stoppage time foul. Minnesota won 3-2, with Dzemaili earning man of the match honors in a loss.

Down in Texas, FC Dallas hosts the Seattle Sounders FC. Stefan Frei and Jesse Gonzalez are the goalies. Matt Hedges of Dallas had a yellow card for his fifty-third minute foul. Seattle saw yellow cards for dissent by Clint Dempsey in the sixtieth minute and fouls from Kelvin Leerdam in the sixty-seventh minute, Nicolas Lodeiro in the eighty-ninth minute, and Lamar Neagle in stoppage time. The game ended at 0-0, with the man of the match being Frei for a three-save clean sheet.

North to Chicago, as the Fire welcome DC United. Bill Hamid and Matt Lampson protect the nets. Brandon Vincent of Chicago had a yellow card for a fifteenth minute foul. The Fire cracked the scoresheet in the twenty-third minute as DC's Ian Harkes committed an own goal. Chicago added on in the sixty-second minute with a Vincent goal, set up by Arturo Alvarez and Drew Conner. The Fire iced it at 3-0 with a Nemanja Nikolic penalty kick goal in the ninetieth minute. Vincent was the man of the match.

Backtracking to Kansas City, where Sporting brings in the New England Revolution. Brad Knighton and Tim Melia are in the six-yard boxes. New England drew first blood in fourth minute with a Teal Bunbury goal. The Revolution went down to ten men in the eleventh minute as Krisztian Nemeth took a straight red card for violent conduct. Kansas City tied it in the sixteenth minute on a Gerso Fernandes goal. Sporting took yellow cards for fouls by Diego Rubio in the twenty-third minute and Jimmy Mendranda in the twenty-sixth minute. Kansas City took the lead in the forty-fifth minute on a Rubio goal, set up by Fernandes and Graham Zusi. Sporting added on in the fifty-seventh minute with a Rubio goal. New England saw yellow cards for Claude Dielna in the eighty-sixth minute and Diego Fagundez in stoppage time, both for fouls. The final held at 3-1, with Rubio named man of the match.

West to Colorado, where the Rapids host New York City FC. Sean Johnson and Tim Howard guard the woodwork. New York City began in the nineteenth minute with a Thomas McNamara goal, helped along by Andrea Pirlo. Colorado saw a yellow card for dissent by Joshua Gatt in the fifty-eighth minute. New York City's Johnson took a yellow card for time wasting in the sixty-third minute. The Rapids tied it in the eighty-eighth minute with a Dominique Badji goal. New York City's McNamara took a yellow card for time wasting in stoppage time. The final was a 1-1 draw, with Badji the man of the match.

Over in Utah, Real Salt Lake welcomes the Portland Timbers. Jeff Attinella faces former mentor Nick Rimando in goal. Salt Lake struck first in the fourteenth minute with an Albert Rusnak goal, helped along by Luis Silva. Portland tied it in the forty-seventh minute with a Diego Valeri goal, assisted by Dairon Asprilla. Real took the lead back with a sixty-first minute goal by Jefferson Savarino, made possible by Rusnak. Kyle Beckerman of Salt Lake had a yellow card for a sixty-eighth minute foul. Darlington Nagbe of the Timbers received a yellow card for his seventieth minute foul. Real's Yura Movsisyan took a yellow card for an eighty-seventh minute foul. Real won 2-1, with Rusnak the man of the match.

In California, the Los Angeles Galaxy bring in Toronto FC. Alexander Bono and Jon Kempin are the less-experienced goalies. Toronto was first to score in the twenty-fourth minute with a Drew Moor goal. Los Angeles had a yellow card for a Bradford Jamieson foul in the twenty-ninth minute. Toronto added on in the thirty-seventh minute with a Tosaint Ricketts goal, helped along by Nicolas Hasler. Toronto extended the lead in the seventy-sixth minute with another Ricketts goal, passed from Victor Vazquez and Jonathan Osorio. Toronto padded the lead as Vazquez scored in the seventy-eighth minute, thanks to the keeper Bono. Nathan Smith of the Galaxy had a yellow card for an eightieth minute foul. The final remained at 4-0, with Ricketts honored as man of the match for his brace.

Saturday ends with the San Jose Earthquakes hosting the Houston Dynamo. Tyler Deric and Andrew Tarbell draw the starts in goal. San Jose dented the scoreboard in the thirty-third minute with a Danny Hoesen goal, made possible by Kofi Sarkodie and Marco Urena. Sarkodie took a yellow card in the thirty-sixth minute foul the Earthquakes for his foul. Houston's Tomas Martinez had a yellow card for a fifty-third minute foul. The Dynamo had a yellow card for an eighty-first minute foul by Alberth Elis. Andres Imperiale of San Jose took a yellow card for an eighty-sixth minute foul. In stoppage time, Houston's A.J. DeLaGarza took a yellow card for his foul. The final remained at 1-0, with Hoesen the man of the match.

On Sunday, the games end with the New York Red Bulls hosting the Philadelphia Union. Andre Blake and Luis Robles are the keepers. New York saw a yellow card for a thirty-fifth minute foul by Michael Murillo. The Red Bulls had a yellow card for a Gonzalo Veron foul in the sixty-ninth minute. Fabinho of Philadelphia received a yellow card for his seventieth minute foul. The final was 0-0, with Blake named man of the match for his eight-save clean sheet.

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MLS Midweek: September 13, 2017

Two games on tonight for midweek action in soccer. We begin in...

Georgia, as Atlanta United FC welcomes the New England Revolution. Cody Cropper and Brad Guzan are the keepers. Atlanta led off in the second minute with a Josef Martinez goal, made possible by Miguel Almiron. New England had yellow cards for fouls by Andrew Farrell in the sixth minute and Gershon Koffie in the eighth minute. The Revolution went down to ten men in the sixteenth minute as Xavier Kouassi took a straight red card for a foul. Leandro Gonzalez Pirez of Atlanta had a yellow card for his twenty-third minute foul. Atlanta added on with a Martinez penalty kick goal in the thirty-first minute. In the thirty-eighth minute, New England found themselves at nine men when Antonio Mlinar Delamea took a straight red card for denying a goal scoring opportunity with his hand in the penalty area. Atlanta extended their lead as Martinez completed his hat trick on another penalty kick goal. Atlanta padded the lead in first half stoppage time as Anton Walkes scored, thanks to Greg Garza. Atlanta kept going in the seventieth minute with a Kevin Kratz goal. Atlanta continued with a Yamil Asad goal in the seventy-third minute, made possible by Chris McCann. Atlanta iced it at 7-0 with a Hector Villalba goal in the ninetieth minute. Martinez was named man of the match.

Over in Vancouver, the Whitecaps FC bring in Minnesota United FC. Bobby Shuttleworth and David Ousted protect the nets. Vancouver began in the fifth minute with a Yordy Reyna goal, via Marcel de Jong. The Whitecaps added on in the thirty-first minute with an Erik Hurtado goal, coming off of Brek Shea and Reyna. Michael Boxall of Minnesota had a yellow card for a forty-fifth minute foul. Minnesota saw a yellow card for Collen Warner in the fifty-second minute for a foul. Vancouver extended the lead in the eighty-eighth minute as Shea scored, thanks to Fredy Montero. The final was 3-0, with Shea named man of the match.

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NWSL 2017: Week 21

We're back for another week of games, beginning on Thursday due to Hurricane Irma. First up...

The Orlando Pride host the Seattle Reign FC. Lydia Williams and Ashlyn Harris protect the nets. In the thirty-seventh minute, Seattle's Carson Pickett took a yellow card for fouling Orlando's Camila. The Reign's Merritt Mathias had a yellow card for delay of game in the fifty-seventh minute. Seattle saw a yellow card for Lauren Barnes in stoppage time against the Pride's Alanna Kennedy. Orlando got going in stoppage time with an Alex Morgan goal, via Dani Weatherholt. The Reign tied it a minute later with a Jess Fishlock goal, coming off of Nahomi Kawasumi. The final held at 1-1, with the player of the match being Morgan. Other Pride stars were Ali Krieger, Camila, and Rachel Hill, while the Reign's best were Rebekah Stott, Rachel Corsie, Rumi Utsugi, Fishlock, and Megan Rapinoe.

On Saturday, FC Kansas City welcome the Chicago Red Stars. Alyssa Naeher and Nicole Barnhart tend the nets. Kansas City saw a yellow card to Lo'eau LaBonta for a sixty-sixth minute foul. The game didn't feature a lot of opportunities, and ended in a 0-0 draw, with Barnhart the woman of the match for her three-save clean sheet. Also strong for the hosts were Sydney Miramontez, Becky Sauerbrunn, and Desiree Scott. Chicago's best were Casey Short, Katie Naughton, Julie Ertz, and Christen Press.

The other Saturday game has the North Carolina Courage hosting the Houston Dash. Jane Campbell and Katelyn Rowland are in goal. North Carolina opened in the twenty-sixth minute with a Kristen Hamilton goal, via Abby Erceg and Jessica McDonald on the long throw-in play. In the sixty-third minute, Abby Dahlkemper of the Courage fouled Houston's Kristie Mewis to earn a yellow card. In the sixty-fourth minute, Cari Roccaro of the Dash pulled down North Carolina's Ashley Hatch, receiving a yellow card for her efforts. In stoppage time, Janine Van Wyk of Houston took a yellow card for a foul. The game ended 1-0, with Hamilton the woman of the match. Also starring for the Courage were Denise O'Sullivan, McDonald, and Lynn Williams, while the Dash's best were Amber Brooks, Cami Levin, Andressinha, and Kristie Mewis.

On Sunday, the Boston Breakers bring in the Portland Thorns FC. Adrianna Franch and Abby Smith are set to start in goal. Portland dented the scoreboard in the seventy-second minute with a Christine Sinclair goal, after Boston's Julie King stalled Hayley Raso's progress, with the clearance falling to Sinclair for the goal. The Breakers' Megan Oyster had a yellow card for a foul on Raso in the eighty-second minute. The final stood at 1-0, with the woman of the match being Raso. Also strong for the Thorns were Sinclair, Franch (four-save clean sheet), and Meghan Klingenberg. Boston's best were Midge Purce, Allysha Chapman, Rosie White, and Natasha Dowie.

Finally, Sky Blue FC hosts the Washington Spirit. Didi Haracic and Kailen Sheridan are the young goalies. Sky Blue started in the forty-third minute with a Maya Hayes goal, after Sam Kerr's shot was deflected by Washington's Shelina Zadorsky. The keeper, Haracic, was down after contact with Hayes. The Spirit tied it on a Whitney Church goal, set up by Zadorsky on a seventy-fifth minute corner kick. Washington took the lead in the eighty-fifth minute with a Mallory Pugh goal, made possible by Lindsay Agnew. The final held at 2-1, with the woman of the match being Church. Zadorsky, Haracic, Kleiner, and Agnew excelled for the Spirit, while Sky Blue's best were Domi Richardson, Nikki Stanton, Taylor Lytle, and Hayes.

NWSL Team of the Week
GK Adrianna Franch
RB Rebekah Stott
CB Whitney Church
CB Amber Brooks
LB Allysha Chapman
DM Jess Fishlock
AM Kristen Hamilton
AM Hayley Raso
AM Christine Sinclair
FW Maya Hayes
FW Alex Morgan

MLS 2017: Week 27

All teams are in action this weekend, beginning with eight games on Saturday. The first is in...

Chicago, as the Fire host the New York Red Bulls. Luis Robles and Matt Lampson draw the starts in goal. New York began in the seventh minute with a Bradley Wright-Phillips goal, assisted by Sacha Kljestan and Fidel Escobar. Sal Zizzo of the Red Bulls had a yellow card for a thirty-first minute foul. Jonathan Campbell of Chicago took a yellow card for his fifty-seventh minute foul. The Fire tied it in the sixty-sixth minute with a Nemanja Nikolic goal, passed from Michael de Leeuw and Johan Kappelhof. Chicago saw yellow cards given to Arturo Alvarez in the seventy-third minute and de Leeuw in the seventy-sixth minutes, both for fouls. The game ended in a 1-1 draw, with the man of the match being Nikolic for the equalizer.

Up in Canada, Toronto FC welcomes the San Jose Earthquakes. Andrew Tarbell and Alexander Bono are the goalies. Toronto led off in the twenty-sixth minute with a Victor Vazquez goal, via Steven Beitashour. Anibal Godoy of San Jose had a yellow card for his forty-third minute foul. Toronto added on in the forty-eighth minute with a Jozy Altidore goal, assisted by Vazquez. Marco Urena of the Earthquakes took a yellow card for his fifty-seventh minute foul. Toronto extended the lead as Altidore scored again in the sixty-fourth minute, thanks to Beitashour. Toronto padded the lead in the sixty-sixth minute as Jonathan Osorio scored, with the help of Chris Mavinga. San Jose went down to ten men in the seventy-second minute when Darwin Ceren took a straight red card for a foul. The game ended 4-0, with Altidore the man of the match.

Back stateside. New York City FC brings in the Portland Timbers. Jeff Attinella and Sean Johnson are in the six-yard boxes. Portland had yellow cards for fouls by David Guzman in the twenty-second minute and Sebastian Blanco in the twenty-seventh minute. The Timbers struck first in the forty-fourth minute with a Diego Valeri goal, made possible by Darren Mattocks. In the seventy-first minute, Ben Sweat of New York City had a yellow card for his foul. Portland saw a yellow card for a seventy-sixth minute foul by Diego Chara. Maximiliano Moralez of New York City had a yellow card for an eighty-eighth minute foul. The Timbers saw a yellow card in stoppage time assessed to Valeri for his dissent, but it wouldn't prevent him from being the man of the match in the 1-0 win.

On to DC, where United hosts Orlando City SC. Joe Bendik and Bill Hamid are the keepers. Orlando City opened in the nineteenth minute with a Cyle Larin goal, via Dominic Dwyer. Luciano Acosta of DC had a yellow card for a twenty-fourth minute foul. Orlando City added on in the twenty-eighth minute with a Giles Barnes goal. Scott Sutter of Orlando City took a yellow card for a foul in the thirty-second minute. In the thirty-third minute, Paul Arriola of DC had a yellow card for his foul. Servando Carrasco of Orlando City received a yellow card for time wasting in the seventy-sixth minute. Sean Franklin of DC had a yellow card for his seventy-eighth minute foul. Orlando City went down to ten men in the seventy-ninth minute with a second yellow card to Carrasco for his foul. DC got on the board in the eighty-ninth minute with a Kofi Opare goal, helped along by Deshorn Brown and Marcelo Sarvas. Orlando City went down to nine men in stoppage time as Seb Hines took a straight red card for violent conduct. Lloyd Sam of DC had a yellow card a minute later for a foul. Orlando City's Kaka took a yellow card three minutes after that for dissent. Orlando City held on to win 2-1, with Barnes the man of the match.

Up in New England, the Revolution welcome the Montreal Impact. Evan Bush and Cody Cropper are set to start in goal. Louis Beland-Goyette of Montreal had a yellow card for his thirty-fifth minute foul. New England got going in the sixty-eighth minute with a Lee Nguyen goal, assisted by Teal Bunbury. The Revolution's Nguyen had a yellow card for a handball in stoppage time. The final held at 1-0, with Nguyen the man of the match.

West to Minnesota, where United FC bring in the Philadelphia Union. Andre Blake and Bobby Shuttleworth are in goal. Philadelphia started in the fifth minute with a C.J. Sapong goal, via Fabrice-Jean Picault. Giliano Wijnaldum of the Union had a yellow card for a thirty-eighth minute foul. Minnesota tied it in the fortieth minute on an Ethan Finlay goal. The Union saw yellow cards for fouls by Oguchi Onyewu in the fifty-fifth minute and Ilsinho in the sixtieth minute. The final stood at 1-1, with Finlay the man of the match.

Down in Texas, the Houston Dynamo host the Colorado Rapids. Tim Howard and Tyler Deric are the goalies. Colorado's Kortne Ford had a yellow card for his fifty-second minute foul. Houston saw yellow cards for persistent infringement in the fifty-fifth minute by Ricardo Clark and a fifty-seventh minute Alex foul. The Rapids had yellow cards for Dominique Badji not retreating in the eightieth minute and Mekeil Williams' eighty-second minute foul. Colorado dented the scoreboard in stoppage time with a Badji goal, coming off of Stefan Aigner. The final held at 1-0, with Badji the man of the match.

Saturday ends in Canada, with the Vancouver Whitecaps FC welcoming Real Salt Lake. Nick Rimando and David Ousted are between the posts. Vancouver's Tim Parker took a yellow card for his twenty-first minute foul. The Whitecaps were first to score in the twenty-ninth minute with a Cristian Techera goal, passed from Jakob Nerwinski and Bernie Ibini-Isei. Salt Lake tied it in the thirty-seventh minute on a Chris Wingert goal, made possible by Sunny. Vancouver retook the lead with a fifty-second minute Kendall Waston goal. Nerwinski of the Whitecaps had a yellow card for a foul in the fifty-seventh minute. Vancouver added on in the sixty-fourth minute with a Yordy Reyna goal, helped along by Ibini-Isei and Nerwinski. Real pulled one back in the eighty-third minute with a Tony Beltran goal, courtesy of Jefferson Savarino. Salt Lake's Joao Plata had a yellow card for dissent in stoppage time. The final stood at 3-2, with the man of the match being Ibini-Isei.

On Sunday, the games begin with the Columbus Crew SC bringing in Sporting Kansas City. Tim Melia and Zack Steffen are in goal. Columbus' Jonathan Mensah took a yellow card for persistent infringement in the thirteenth minute. Kansas City had a yellow card for a fifteenth minute Roger Espinoza foul. Sporting cracked the scoresheet with a Cristian Lobato goal, via Matt Besler in the nineteenth minute. The Crew tied it in first half stoppage time on an Ola Kamara goal, coming off of Pedro Santos. Kansas City's Benny Feilhaber had a yellow card for his fifty-third minute foul. Columbus saw yellow cards for fouls by Josh Williams in the fifty-ninth minute and Mohammed Abu in the eighty-fifth minute. The final held at 1-1, with the man of the match being Lobato.

Down in Atlanta, United FC hosts FC Dallas. Jesse Gonzalez and Brad Guzan are the gloved men. Dallas had a yellow card for a second minute foul by Carlos Gruezo. Atlanta drew first blood in the fourteenth minute with a Leandro Gonzalez Pirez goal, helped along by Hector Villalba and Miguel Almiron. Atlanta added on in the forty-sixth minute with a Josef Martinez goal, courtesy of Almiron and Carlos Carmona. Pirez took a yellow card for a fiftieth minute foul. Atlanta extended the lead as Greg Garza scored in the sixty-eighth minute, with the help of Villalba. This produced the 3-0 final, with Villalba named man of the match.

Finally, the Seattle Sounders FC host the Los Angeles Galaxy. Jon Kempin and Stefan Frei make the starts in goal. Los Angeles created an early lead with a twenty-fifth minute Gyasi Zardes goal, coming off of Romain Alessandrini and Jonathan dos Santos. Kempin had to come out in the thirtieth minute with injury, and Brian Rowe took over in goal. The Galaxy saw yellow cards for fouls by Jermaine Jones and Bradley Diallo in the thirty-third and forty-second minutes, respectively. Los Angeles' Alessandrini had a yellow card for his fifty-fifth minute foul. Seattle had yellow cards for fouls by Oniel Fisher in the seventy-third minute and Osvaldo Alonso in the seventy-fifth minute. The Galaxy saw yellow cards given to Giovani dos Santos in the eightieth minute for dissent and Zardes in the eighty-first minute for time wasting. The Sounders tied it in the eighty-fifth minute with a Lamar Neagle goal, set up by Roman Torres and Alonso. Seattle went down to ten men in the eighty-ninth minute as Torres denied an obvious goal-scoring opportunity and earned a straight red card. The final held at 1-1, with Zardes named man of the match.

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New York City FC v. Sporting Kansas City: September 6, 2017

Today's only game sees New York City FC host Sporting Kansas City. Tim Melia and Sean Johnson are in goal. Roger Espinoza of Kansas City took a twenty-fourth minute foul that earned a yellow card. In the twenty-eighth minute, Maximiliano Moralez received a yellow card for his foul. New York City got going in the eighty-fourth minute with a Jack Harrison goal, via RJ Allen. New York City's Allen took a yellow card for his eighty-ninth minute foul. Diego Rubio of Sporting had a yellow card for his foul in stoppage time. The man of the 1-0 match was Harrison.

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NWSL 2017: Week 20

We're ready to go on another full weekend of games. We begin in...

Portland, as the Thorns FC host the Washington Spirit. Didi Haracic is mismatched with Adrianna Franch in goal. Washington's keeper Haracic took a yellow card for a foul in the twenty-first minute. Portland's Nadia Nadim took the penalty kick, which Haracic saved, but Nadim scored on the rebound. The Thorns added on in the twenty-fifth minute with a Christine Sinclair goal, via Nadim. Katherine Reynolds of Portland had a yellow card for a thirty-sixth minute foul. The Thorns extended the lead as Emily Sonnett scored on a free kick goal in the fortieth minute, set up by Meghan Klingenberg. Portland padded the lead in the eighty-first minute with a Sinclair goal, her second of the game, made possible by Sonnett. The final stood at 4-0, with the woman of the match being Sinclair. Other strong performances for the Thorns came from Sonnett, Klingenberg, and Nadim, while the Spirit's best were Cheyna Williams, Mallory Pugh, and Tori Huster.

Also on Saturday, the Orlando Pride welcome the Boston Breakers. Abby Smtih and Ashlyn Harris protect the nets. Orlando led off in the eighth minute with a Rachel Hill goal, after Smith lightly patted away a cross from Chioma Ubogagu that Alex Morgan had turned toward goal. In the fifteenth minute, the Pride added on with a Hill goal, passed from Morgan. Boston got on the board in the forty-ninth minute with a Rosie White goal, coming off of Amanda Frisbie and Midge Purce. In the sixty-third minute, Brooke Elby of the Breakers had a yellow card for fouling Orlando's Camila. The Pride replied with a Marta goal in the sixty-seventh minute, set up by Ubogagu. Orlando extended the lead as Ubogagu scored in the seventy-seventh minute after a turnover by Boston. The Breakers pulled one back with an eighty-eighth minute Julie King goal, made possible by Adriana Leon on a corner kick. The final held at 4-2, with the woman of the match being Hill. Ubogagu, Morgan, Monica, and Steph Catley also impressed fro the Pride, while King, Angela Salem, Leon, and White were the best for the Breakers.

On Sunday, FC Kansas City hosts Sky Blue FC. Kailen Sheridan and Nicole Barnhart are in goal. In the thirty-ninth minute, Kansas City began with a Lo'eau LaBonta goal, set up by Shea Groom. Kansas City added on in the forty-fourth minute with a Groom goal, assisted by LaBonta with an overhead pass. Kansas City extended the lead in the sixty-fourth minute with another Groom goal, created by a Desiree Scott cross. The initial shot was saved, but the rebound went in. Sky Blue got on the board in the eighty-third minute with a corner kick goal by Madison Tiernan, via Taylor Lytle's service. Kansas City iced it at 4-1 with a Sydney Leroux goal in stoppage time, courtesy of Maegan Kelly. The woman of the match was Groom, while other stars for Kansas City were Becky Sauerbrunn, Becca Moros, LaBonta, and Scott. Sky Blue's best were Erica Skroski, Kelley O'Hara, and Lytle.

Up in Chicago, the Red Stars bring in the North Carolina Courage. Katelyn Rowland and Alyssa Naeher guard the nets. North Carolina opened in the fifteenth minute with a Lynn Williams goal, made possible by Jessica McDonald. In the fortieth minute, Danielle Colaprico of Chicago had a yellow card for her foul against McCall Zerboni. The Red Stars tied it in the fifty-second minute with a Yuki Nagasato goal, coming off of Christen Press. Chicago's Julie Ertz took a yellow card for a seventy-third minute foul. The Courage's Zerboni had a yellow card of her own in the seventy-seventh minute for a foul. The Red Stars took the lead in the eighty-fourth minute with an Ertz goal, set up by Nagasato. The final held at 2-1, with the woman of the match being Ertz. Also strong for the Red Stars were Arin Gilliland, Press, and Nagasato, while the Courage's best efforts came from Jaelene Hinkle, Zerboni, McDonald, and Williams.

Finally, the Seattle Reign FC host the Houston Dash. Jane Campbell faces her former mentor Lydia Williams in goal. Seattle started in the fiftieth minute on a Merritt Mathias goal, helped along by Beverly Yanez. The Reign saw yellow cards for fouls by Lauren Barnes in the seventy-seventh minute and Jess Fishlock in the eightieth minute. Houston's Bruna took a yellow card for her eighty-eighth minute foul. The final stood at 1-0, with the woman of the match being Mathias. Other strong performances for the Reign came from Williams (three-save clean sheet), Rebekah Stott, and Yanez, while the Dash got their best efforts from Kristie Mewis, Janine Beckie, and Nichelle Prince.

NWSL Team of the Week
GK Lydia Williams
RB Arin Gilliland
CB Emily Sonnett
CB Julie King
LB Meghan Klingenberg
DM Julie Ertz
AM Christine Sinclair
AM Shea Groom
AM Lo'eau LaBonta
FW Rachel Hill
FW Alex Morgan