NWSL Playoffs Preview: San Diego Wave FC vs. Chicago Red Stars
Snapdragon Stadium | San Diego, California – Sunday, October 16 at 10:00 PM ET
Players to watch:
San Diego forward Alex Morgan is undoubtedly the one to watch on the Wave’s side, though certainly not the only threat the hosts will present on Sunday night. Morgan leads the league in goals with 15 scored in a 17-game span, a remarkable ratio that is unequalled by anyone in the league who has scored three or more goals. In addition, Morgan has scored on all five of her penalty attempts on the season, demonstrating her threat from the spot kick. Attackers Makenzy Doniak and 17-year-old Jaedyn Shaw as well as midfielder Taylor Kornieck have all contributed three goals as well, though Shaw scored her three in five games as opposed to 18 for Kornieck and 16 for Doniak.
Chicago is led up top by forward Mallory Pugh, whose 11 goals in 16 games have her well above her teammates and into top tier status around the league. In fact, Pugh’s lone penalty converted out of three attempts means she has scored 10 goals from open play in those 16 games, with San Diego’s Morgan scoring 10 goals from open play on the year in her 17 games played. Behind Pugh is forward Ella Stevens (4) with defender Amanda Kowalski and attacker Yuki Nagasato (3) closely following in third with three goals apiece. In addition, of goalkeepers who have played 19 games or more, netminder Alyssa Naeher has the third-best GAA rate across the league at 1.16 goals a game.
Match facts: San Diego Wave FC enters the 2022 NWSL Playoffs as the first-ever expansion side to punch its ticket to the postseason in its inaugural season of competition, and just as impressive, the hosts finished in third place en route to a banner year. Now, though, they face a hungry Chicago Red Stars side that is seeking revenge after being bested by San Diego twice previous this year already.
Though the club wrestled for the top spot with OL Reign and Portland in the final few weeks, San Diego finished third in the league—four points off the top—after consecutive draws to end the season slowed the Wave’s momentum ever so slightly. Prior to those two draws, San Diego had won three of its previous four matches. However, a 2-2 draw on the road against Orlando was followed by a scoreless draw against San Diego at home in a contest that saw San Diego outshot 15-7 in total shots but only edged 3-2 in shots on goal.
Chicago, though, did not take the easy road to clinch the sixth and final playoff spot with a win against Angel City on the final day. The club’s up and down run saw it swap results nearly every game in their previous eight, a run in which it won three and lost five of those (D1) as it fought to keep place in the race. Two consecutive defeats against Houston and Portland in late September put a dent in the hopes of Chicago fans, but a win or stay home scenario against Angel City on the final day saw the Red Stars take advantage of their opportunity and blank the visitors 2-0 on that Sunday.
However, a head-to-head comparison gives San Diego a clear advantage after sweeping the two meetings with six points in hand after wins in mid-May and late July. First, San Diego defeated Chicago, 2-1, at Torero Stadium and were propelled by goals from Alex Morgan and Kaleigh Riehl, with Chicago’s Ava Cook scoring her side’s lone goal in the 90th minute—one minute after Riehl added the Wave’s second. Then, at the end of July, San Diego beat Chicago, 1-0, at Soldier Field in a massive clash that saw the budding star Jaedyn Shaw score in the first half to seal the victory for her side.
