Orlando Pride (16-0-6, 54 points) vs Washington Spirit (15-5-2, 47 points)
When: Sunday, October 6, 5:00 p.m. ET
Where: Inter&Co Stadium, Orlando, Fla.
TV: ESPN2
As the Pride host the Spirit, here are five things to watch for on Sunday:
Coming for the Shield
The Pride enter the match against the Spirit needing a win to clinch the club’s first NWSL Shield. Orlando would become just the 6th Club in league history to win the NWSL shield and would serve as the club’s first trophy in its history. The Pride are unbeaten in its last five regular season matches against the Spirit dating back to 2022, including wins in each of the last three matchups. Since the 2022 season, the Spirit have had at least one regular season win against every NWSL club except for the Pride.
Standing On Business
Following the team’s 3-1 victory over the Houston Dash, the Pride extended its unbeaten streak to 22 matches this season and 23 overall dating back to last year. With 16 wins this season, the Pride are just one win away from tying the NWSL record for most wins in a season which was done by the North Carolina Courage in 2018. Orlando also earned its eighth home win of the season, which sets a new Club record for most home wins in a season, bettering a record they broke last season with seven. The Pride also have eight away wins this year and are one away from setting a new NWSL record for most away wins in a season which was set by Seattle back in 2014.
Oval Office
With the 3-1 victory last week, the Club’s longest clean sheet streak came to an end at five games, which tied the NWSL regular season record. In that match, the Pride set another new NWSL record for consecutive minutes played without conceding a goal (554), surpassing the previous record streak set by North Carolina in 2021 (547). The Pride’s streak ended when Houston’s Yuki Nagasato scored in the second half last weekend.
Pickett Out of the Net
The Pride scored three goals in their previous match against the Dash. The first goal was scored by Carson Pickett as she earned her first-ever Pride goal with a headed finish in the 29th minute. Angelina scored the game-winning goal on the night in the 51st minute after coming on as a substitute at halftime. Her goal counted as the Pride’s sixth goal of the regular season from outside the box. The night and victory were capped off by a finish from Marta in second-half stoppage time, which was good for her seventh goal of the season, the most she has scored for the Pride since 2017.
The Banda House
Barbra Banda earned an assist on Marta’s second-half stoppage-time goal in the match against the Dash. Banda now has 19 goal contributions on the season with 13 goals and 6 assists. The 19 goal contributions match Marta in 2017 for the most goal contributions in a single regular season for the Pride. Her 13 goals also match Marta in 2017 for the most goals scored in a regular season in Pride history. Banda’s next game-winning goal will set a new NWSL record for most game-winning goals in a single season at seven, as she currently sits tied for the record at six.
Milestone Tracker
- Marta is one assist away from 20 in her NWSL career.
- Barbra Banda’s next goal will break teammate Marta’s record for most goals scored by a Pride player in a single season (13).
- The Pride’s next win will tie the NWSL record for most wins in a single season (17).
- The Pride’s next win will tie the NWSL record for most points in a single season (57).
