Sky Blue FC forward Sam Kerr scored two goals at home in the final game of the NWSL season, but it was not enough as FC Kansas City pulled out the 3 – 2 victory.
Kansas City opened the scoring in the 5th minute when forward Amy Rodriguez received a ball toward the right flank, she was able to split the Sky Blue defense with a pass that found forward Sarah Hagen who was wide open near the back post as she tapped it in to put Kansas City up 1 – 0.
“We had a flat start tonight in the first 20 minutes and found ourselves chasing an early goal,” Sky Blue FC Technical Director & Head Coach Jim Gabarra said. “Once we found our proper energy level, I was proud of the way our team battled. Throughout the game, we created enough chances to get out of here with a result, but a couple of uncharacteristic mistakes in the back cost us a bit. Overall, I was pleased with the performance and the resolve that our team displayed.”
Kerr scored her first goal of the match in the 37th minute when she gathered a pass in the air from midfielder Kelly O’Hara and outran her defender. Kerr took a left-footed shot from just inside the left side of the box that struck the far post and went into the goal to even the score at 1 – 1.
Kerr’s goal ended the 415 minute shutout streak that FC Kansas City had going, and they would not take it lightly. In the 40th minute Kansas City answered back when midfielder Heather O’Reilly lifted a cross into the center box that Rodriguez was able to get her head to, as she knocked it past goalie Brittany Cameron to give Kansas City a 2 – 1 advantage heading into the half.
Just as they started the first half, Kansas City looked like the much more aggressive team in the second half. In the 52nd minute defender Rebecca Moros fired a pass from around midfield up forward to a racing Rodriguez who was able to body her defender away from the ball just far enough to get shot off and beat Cameron for her second goal of the game, extending the Kansas City lead to 3 – 1.
Sky Blue wasn’t ready to quit just yet. After an O’Hara corner kick lead to a scrum in the box, the ball was cleared out to midfielder Sarah Killion who got set and sent a pass back in toward the front of the goal where Kerr found her way to the ball and managed to hit a header into the net for her second score of the game, cutting the Kansas City lead to 3 – 2.
The final whistle would blow and Sky Blue’s season would end with a loss. Though they were already eliminated from playoff contention, it would have been nice to close the season with three points.
After allowing the two goals to Kerr, Kansas City has allowed a league-low 20 goals, one per game, over the entirety of the regular season. They are also the only team in the NWSL to make the playoffs three years in a row.
After winning just one of their first 11 matches, Sky Blue would end the season with a 5-8-7 record. The return of players who were participating in the Women’s World Cup would spur Sky Blue to make a run for playoff contention in the second half of the season, but they sat in too large of a hole to dig themselves out.
