Utah Side Concedes Club-Record Four Goals in Second-Ever Loss at Thorns FC;
Critical Match Wednesday at Seattle in Second Leg of Pacific Northwest “Double”;
8:30 p.m. MT Kickoff at SEA Airs Live on KMYU, KSL TV App, and ESPN700 AM
PORTLAND, OR. (Friday, July 6, 2018) – Utah Royals FC (5-4-6, 21 pts., 6th NWSL) suffered the club’s worst-ever loss in its 15-game history Friday night at Portland’s Providence Park, falling 0-4 at defending NWSL champion Thorns FC in the first leg of back-to-back Pacific Northwest “turf” games.
Head Coach Laura Harvey’s side continues on to Seattle next Wednesday, Harvey visiting Memorial Stadium in Seattle for the first time since her resignation from the Reign last November, weeks prior to Utah’s NWSL existence. Wednesday’s match airs live on KMYU and ESPN700 AM while streaming digitally via the RSL on KSL app and KSL.com at 8:30 p.m. MT, with Greg Wrubell and Carla Haslam on the call.
Portland improved to 2-0-1 against Utah this season to close out the clubs’ three-game season series with Friday’s dominant performance, a three-goal first-half kicked off with an exquisite Tobin Heath chip just 63 seconds into the match, the quickest goal ever conceded by Royals FC. Back on May 25, Thorns FC won 2-0 over Utah, via a pair of first-half goals.
Just a half-hour following Heath’s 2nd-minute goal, Portland blew open the game with two goals in three minutes, as Lindsay Horan and Ana Crnogorcevic were rewarded by relentless pressure and beneficial deflections across Utah’s backline, which conceded multiple goals for just the fourth time in 15 games and more than two for the first time ever.
With tonight’s result, two points separate five teams in the race for the final three playoff spots, with Utah holding at least one game in hand over Portland and Chicago, with Orlando and Seattle playing in Saturday’s action.
Following the Portland/Seattle trip, Royals FC returns home to kick off a run that sees Utah play four of five games at home from July 14 – against Alex Morgan, Marta, Sydney Leroux and the Orlando Pride, at 5:00 p.m. MT – to August 11 in a return match against Harvey’s former Seattle side, as part of a second-half of its inaugural campaign where Rio Tinto Stadium hosts five of the club’s final eight games. Tickets for all home games are available atwww.UtahRoyalsFC.com/Tickets or by calling 844.Real.Tix.
GOAL SCORING RUNDOWN
POR: MF Tobin Heath, 2’ – Receiving the ball on the far side of the field, Heath initiated a give-and-go with teammate Ana Crnogorcevic inside of the box and took a one-time volley over the head of GK Abby Smith.
POR: MF Lindsey Horan, 32’ – Running inside of the box, Horan connected on the end of a Tobin Heath set-piece, redirecting her header into the far-post.
POR: FW Ana-Maria Crnogorcevic, 34’ – In a Lindsey Horan attempt to find a streaking Tobin Heath, URFC DF Becky Sauerbrunn blocked the pass and deflected the ball to an opportunistic Crnogorcevic waiting at the top of the box. A one-time touch by the Swiss star found the low far-post.
POR: FW Tyler Lussi, 62’ – Horan received the ball near the center of the pitch and passed a through ball past the Utah defensive line, connecting with the foot of a running Tyler Lussi – who took a one-time shot past Smith into the net.
KEY SAVES AND DEFENSIVE STOPS
POR:GK Adrianna Franch, 10’ – Utah FW Diana Matheson found herself on the end of a bouncing ball on top of the box, finding a shot that hit Franch square in the chest.
POR: GK Adrianna Franch, 57’ – MF Katrina Gorry received a pass 22-yards outside of the box and hit a laced shot to the far-post, but a diving snag by Franch kept a zero on the board for Portland.
UTA: GK Abby Smith, 59’ – Ellie Carpenter hit a right-footed shot from long-range, but GK Abby Smith caught the ball mid-air from the frame.
UTA: GK Abby Smith, 70’ – Christine Sinclair hit a right-footed rocket on top of the box to the waiting arms of Smith, who pounced on it cleanly.
UTA: GK Adrianna Franch, 79’ – Gunny Jonsdottir passed the ball to the waiting feet of FW Katie Stengel on top of the box, who then turned and found a shot with her left-foot. Franch caught the ball in the center of the frame to deny the Utah goal.
NOTES
-URFC has two players that have played every single minute this season. Included are MFs Desiree Scott and Gunny Jonsdottir. DF Rachel Corsie has also appeared in every single match.
-Sam Johnson made her first start as a center back for Utah, playing 52 minutes.
-Christen Press has played every single minute for the Utah side since being traded to the team in late June
Match: Utah Royals FC vs Portland Thorns FC
Date: July 6, 2018
Venue: Providence Park, Portland, OR
Attendance: 17,930
Weather: Sunny, 80 degrees F
Scoring Summary: 1 2 F
Utah Royals FC 0 0 0
Portland Thorns FC. 3 1 4
POR: Heath, 2’
POR: Horan, 32’
POR: Crnogorcevic, 34’
POR: Lussi, 62’
Lineups:
Utah Royals FC (4-3-3): Abby Smith, Sam Johnson (Sydney Miramontez, 52’), Rachel Corsie, Becky Sauerbrunn, Becca Moros, Desiree Scott, Gunny Jonsdottir, Katrina Gorry (Lo’eau LaBonta, 65’), Diana Matheson, Amy Rodriguez (Katie Stengel, 75’), Christen Press
Substitutes not used: Nicole Barnhart, Taylor Lytle, Brittany Ratcliffe, Erika Tymrak
Portland Thorns FC (4-3-3): Adrianna Franch, Emily Menges, Emily Sonnett, Celeste Bourielle, Ellie Carpenter, Midge Purce (Mallory Weber, 46’), Lindsey Horan, Christine Sinclair, Tobin Heath (Tyler Lussi, 62’), Ana Marie Crnogorcevic, Hayley Raso (Elizabeth Ball, 85’)
Subs not used: Britt Eckerstrom, Ifeoma Onumonu, Angela Salem, Kelli Hubly
Stats Summary: UTA / POR
Shots: 7 / 9
Shots on Goal: 3 / 6
Saves: 2 / 3
Corner Kicks: 4 / 3
Fouls: 11 / 9
Offside: 2 / 2
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
UTA: Samantha Johnson, 31’ (caution)
UTA: Diana Matheson, 45’ (caution)
OFFICIALS
Center: Farhad Dadkho
First Assistant: John Krill
Second Official: Sya Magee
Fourth: Scott Kachmarik
