The Kansas City Current (16-3-7, 55pts., No. 4 Seed) fell 3-2 against the Orlando Pride (18-2-6, 60pts., 1st place) Sunday afternoon in the NWSL semifinal round at Inter&Co Stadium in Orlando, Fla. Midfielder Debinha opened the scoring for the Current in the 33rd minute, set up by an assist from forward Michelle Cooper that was threaded just behind the Orlando defense. Orlando scored the next three goals of the contest to take a two-goal advantage. The Current made a late rally and found a goal from the penalty spot through midfielder Vanessa DiBernardo in the 13th minute of second-half stoppage time, but the Current’s comeback fell short despite a flurry of late chances.
Sunday’s victory snapped the Current’s 10-match unbeaten streak and brought Kansas City’s 2024 season to a close. Despite the defeat, the club had a historic campaign both on and off the pitch. The club opened the first stadium in the world purpose-built for a women’s professional sports team in March, set franchise single-season records in wins (16), total points (55) and shutouts (9), broke a NWSL record for total goals in a season (57) and took home both the NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup and The Women’s Cup.
“Obviously we lost this game, and it’s hard, but we cannot allow this game to define who we are or to define our season as well,” said head coach Vlatko Andonovski. “Because I thought we did some incredible things and I’m proud of [the team] for all the successes they’ve had, whether it was winning games, tournaments and successes on the field but also for everything they’ve done off the field. I think [this team] has definitely changed the face of the organization, they’ve connected with the fans, they’ve created something. They’ve really brought joy to the city, and that’s what I’m proud of them for.”
Kansas City started Sunday’s epic semifinal showdown on the front foot. Cooper sent a shot just wide of goal in the 10th minute and, eight minutes later, midfielder Claire Hutton fizzed a shot just high of Orlando goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse’s net. Seconds after Hutton’s opportunity, Orlando recorded the first shot on target of the match. Pride forward Barbra Banda fired a shot from a difficult angle that Current goalkeeper Almuth Schult punched over the crossbar.
The Current opened the scoring in the 33rd minute with a brilliant team goal. DiBernardo started the move in midfield, pushing the ball forward and dishing the ball out wide for Cooper on the right wing. Cooper drove down to the endline and slid a perfectly weighted cross to Debinha at the back post, and Debinha fired the ball into the back of the net to give Kansas City a one-goal lead.
Orlando found an equalizer eight minutes later. Pride midfielder Haley McCutcheon capitalized on a similar move to the Current’s opening goal, finishing a low cross across Kansas City’s penalty area from midfielder Ally Watt. McCutcheon’s finish brought the match level, and neither side could find a go-ahead goal as the first half drew to a close.
The Pride took a lead with a goal from forward Barbra Banda in the 53rd minute. Facing a one-goal deficit, the Current began sending numbers forward in an attempt to draw the match level. In the 65th minute, Kansas City nearly leveled the contest following a chaotic sequence in the Pride’s penalty area. Defender Hailie Mace looped a cross to the back post for Cooper, who rolled a ball across goal for second-half substitute Nichelle Prince. Prince’s effort was blocked but the ball fell perfectly for forward Temwa Chawinga, but her effort sailed just high of goal. In the 71st minute, Chawinga went on a brilliant solo run and weaved through multiple Pride defenders enroute to goal, but her effort fell off-target.
As the Current continued to push for an equalizer, the Pride found what ultimately stood as the game-winning goal in the 82nd minute. Banda won the ball near midfield and played a forward ball for forward Marta for a breakaway opportunity, ultimately evading Schult and the Current’s defense to put the ball into the back of the net. The goal gave the hosts a 3-1 advantage with less than 10 minutes of normal time remaining.
However, the Current received a lifeline when, thanks to a plethora of injuries, substitutions and stoppages in the second half, the fourth official indicated a minimum of 12 minutes of second-half stoppage time. The Current continued to pepper the Pride goal and, in the 10th minute of second-half stoppage time, Mace fired a shot from inside the penalty area that Orlando defender Kerry Abello stopped with her hand. After a video review, the referee correctly awarded a penalty kick to the Current.
DiBernardo stepped up to take the spot kick and buried it, halving the Pride’s advantage with time remaining in the contest. Defender Ellie Wheeler had a shot from a difficult angle sail wide of Moorhouse’s goal. In the 16th minute of second-half stoppage time, Chawinga beat Moorhouse to a loose ball on the right side of the penalty area and lofted a cross towards goal. Defender Kayla Sharples stretched to meet Chawinga’s cross with her head but could not quite steer the attempt on frame.
The Current could not complete its comeback as Sharples’ effort marked the last action of the match. DiBernardo scored the final tally of the 2024 season for the Current, meaning the midfielder scored both the first and last goals for the club in the 2024 NWSL season.
“I think this year, this one hurts even more because we had all the tools right, we just didn’t fully execute in this game,” said LaBonta. “But it gives us so much hope and fire for next year because we have those tools, we know everybody who walks into that building wants to win and is gonna give their all. So, when you see it from the people on the sideline, the people on the field, the people in the front office, it gives you hope and some support to win next year.”
Orlando ultimately took home a 3-2 victory and will advance to next weekend’s NWSL Championship at CPKC Stadium to face the Washington Spirit. Tickets for next weekend’s match can be found at nwslsoccer.com.
NWSL Match Report
Match: Orlando Pride vs. Kansas City Current
Date: November 17, 2024
Venue: Inter&Co Stadium, Orlando, FL
Kickoff: 2:00 p.m. CT/3:00 p.m. ET
Weather: 78 degrees, partly cloudy
Attendance: 14,524
Discipline
28’ Orlando – Angelina (Yellow)
55’ Kansas City – Mace (Yellow)
81’ Orlando – Moorhouse (Yellow)
90+9’ Orlando – Bench (Yellow)
90+9’ Kansas City – Sharples (Yellow)
Scoring
33’ Kansas City – Debinha (Cooper)
41’ Orlando – McCutcheon (Watt)
53’ Orlando – Banda (Strom)
82’ Orlando – Marta (Banda)
90 +13’ Kansas City – DiBernardo (Penalty)
Scoring Summary
| Goals | 1 | 2 | F |
| Orlando | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Kansas City | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Orlando Pride Lineup: Moorhouse, Abello, Strom, Sams, Dyke, (90+7’ Delgado) McCutcheon, Angelina, Adriana (79’ Doyle), Watt (79’ Yates), Banda (87’ Pickett), Marta ©
Unused Substitutes: Crone, Delgado, Lawrence, Gautrat, Lemos, Villacorta
Kansas City Current Lineup: Schult, Wheeler, Sharples, Cook, Mace, Hutton (86’ Feist), LaBonta © (45’ Prince), DiBernardo, Chawinga, Debinha (86’ Hamilton), Cooper (76’ Rodriguez)
Unused Substitutes: Franch, Steigleder, Ball, Scott, Ballisager
