Orlando Pride (1-0-3, 6 points) vs San Diego Wave (1-1-1, 4 points)
When: Friday, April 18, 8:00 p.m. ET
Where: INTER&Co Stadium, Orlando, FL
TV: Prime
As the Pride host the Wave to keep their unbeaten run going, here are five things to watch for on Friday:
Smooth Sailing
The Pride remain just one of three unbeaten teams in the NWSL, picking up the Club’s first win of the regular season on the road against the Utah Royals last week. The Pride currently hold a 1-0-3 record to start the season and it is the first time since 2021 that the Club has been unbeaten through its first four games of the regular season. During that run in 2021, the Pride started the season going seven consecutive games unbeaten and held a 4-0-3 record.
Starboard Side
Pride captain Marta found the back of the net for the Pride in the match against Utah, which served as the game winning goal in a 1-0 victory. Marta scored just six minutes after coming into the match as a second-half substitute with a nice right-footed finish. The goal was her first right-footed goal in the NWSL since October 2017, with all her previous 19 goals coming via her left.
A CLEAN Shred
Goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse and the Pride defense recorded their first clean sheet of the 2024 NWSL regular season in the match against the Royals. Moorhouse made a season-high five saves on the night and earned her eighth clean sheet of her Pride career, which is the second-most in Club history. The match also saw defender Kylie Strom don the captain’s armband for the first time this season, with Bri Martinez, Emily Sams and Kerry Abello all starting alongside her. This was the second consecutive game the Pride fielded the four of them in the defense.
Home is Where the Water is
The Pride have lost only two of their last 11 regular-season home matches (7-2-2) dating back to the beginning of May 2023, including going unbeaten in the last four matches (2-0-2), with both draws coming this season. Only North Carolina (26 in 12 matches) has collected more points at home since the beginning of May than Orlando (23 in 11 matches). In the series against San Diego, the home team has only come away with one point in four matchups, that was the Pride earning a 2-2 draw in the 2022 season in the City Beautiful.
Crossing the Atlantic
Sunday marked the arrival of Zambian international Barbra Banda to Orlando. Banda joins the Pride after signing a Club-record deal in March, most recently helping her country qualify for the Paris Olympics with a Leg 2 brace against Morocco. Banda then held her introductory press conference on Tuesday alongside VP of Soccer Operations and GM Haley Carter and Head Coach Seb Hines. The highly anticipated first look at Banda in a Pride uniform could happen in Friday’s match against the Wave, as she will be available for selection.
Home Kit, but Different
Friday’s match will the Pride don their Citrus kits at INTER&Co Stadium. The kit honors Florida’s rich citrus beginnings and serves as a fan favorite after coming in second place in the Ally BracKIT Challenge that was voted on by NWSL fans across the league. On Friday night, the two kits that made it to the final of the challenge will square off as the Wave will be in their Del Sol kits, which ended up just edging out the Pride’s Citrus kits in the tournament.
Milestone Tracker
- Marta is two assists away from 20 in her NWSL career.
- Marta is five appearances away from 100 regular season appearances, all of which have come with the Pride.
- Adriana’s next goal would be her seventh with the Club and put her in a tie for seventh place in Club history with most goals scored.
