Once again, the Washington Spirit were able to largely contain an opponent, but once again they couldn’t get their attack going as they fell 1-0 to the Orlando Pride. A game of few chances was settled by Alanna Kennedy, who scored from over 50 yards in the early going. Washington threatened sporadically, but ultimately couldn’t get a goal for their efforts.
Washington offered one surprise in an injury-hit lineup, as Joanna Lohman started at left forward in Jim Gabarra’s 4-3-3. Between players leaving for deals in Europe and a long list of players out hurt, the Spirit carried only six of the allowed seven players on their bench, and that included two goalkeepers and two injured players (Estefania Banini and Rose Lavelle, who per Gabarra are expected to return next week).