A scoreless draw caps off San Diego Wave FC’s first regular-season campaign with a great defensive battle and 18,000 lower-bowl sellout against North Carolina Courage, and they put themselves in good position for a home playoff game in two weeks.
San Diego was without Kayla Bruster (left foot), Abby Dahlkemper (back), Katie Johnson (right foot), Taylor Kornieck (right ankle), and Alex Morgan (left knee) at the start of the match against the playoff-hopeful NC Courage.
Defender Naomi Girma, the frontrunner for NWSL Rookie of the Year, was named the captain as the starting lineups were announced. With the armband in Girma’s possession, Wave FC began their hunt for a home playoff game.
A yellow card was handed to Kristen McNabb early on in the 15th minute.
The remainder of the first half saw multiple chances for both sides but near misses and a few goalkeeper saves kept it scoreless.
To begin the second half, Jodie Taylor entered the match for midfielder Emily van Egmond.
After what appeared to be a San Diego goal in the 54th minute was called off as the head referee called offsides, Snapdragon was flooded with boos. San Diego responded right back with back-to-back corner kicks but could not manage to find the net.
In the 72nd minute, forwards Marleen Schimmer and Jaedyn Shaw replaced Kelsey Turnbow and Sofia Jakobsson for fresh legs during the final stretch of the match. Shaw made her first pro appearance as a substitute after starting and scoring in the previous four games.
San Diego now awaits the final results in the NWSL Saturday and Sunday when the Houston Dash face off against the Washington Spirit. Barring an offensive explosion on Houston’s part Saturday in DC where they will need a win of four or more goals, Wave FC will host a home playoff match the weekend of Oct. 14-16, against the fifth or sixth seed.
Those potential opponents include Kansas City Current, Houston Dash, NC Courage, or Chicago Red Stars. And technically, but unrealistically, Angel City FC who would need a whopping 16-goal victory over Chicago on Sunday in order to pass NC Courage for the final playoff berth.
Either way, it’s set to be a great finish in the NWSL.