**Los Angeles, California** – The Orlando Pride traveled to Banc of California Stadium on Sunday night and are now returning to the Sunshine State with three points after they beat Angel City FC, 1-0, thanks to a quick goal from forward Sydney Leroux.
Orlando got off to a fast start and ended up shocking the home crowd after just three minutes by taking the lead. A ball played into the center of the box from the right flank went directly between the Angel City defense and goalkeeper DiDi Haracic with neither party making any contact, leaving Pride forward Sydney Leroux to tap in at the back post despite a worthy goal line clearance attempt by the hosts.
Angel City thought they had equalized just before the half-hour mark as forward Christen Press received a perfectly weighted header through from teammate Savannah McCaskill and ended up putting the ball in the back of the net. However, after beating Pride goalkeeper Erin McLeod, the flag for offside went up on the near side and Orlando ended up preserving their lead.
Not dismayed, Angel City continued to apply pressure on the Orlando backline as the half grew. In the 41 ^st minute, Press fashioned an impressive effort at the near post after she was played into the left side of the box and slalomed around a defender. However, the shot was met by McLeod again and the hosts’ search for a response continued. Just three minutes later, Angel City came close again as a ball back into the box by forward Tyler Lussi found defender Vanessa Gilles, but her powerful header could not get down enough to find the back of the net.
At halftime, though Angel City seemed the sure bet to score as the first half continued, Orlando’s combination of resolute defending and better pass accuracy and possession stats helped them carry their 1-0 into the break.
Both sides created a few half-chances up but could not end up converting up and through the hour mark. In the 66 ^th minute, Orlando nearly earned a second goal and brought a little bit of flare to the match as Leroux produced a magical touch to beat the Angel City defender Jasmyne Spencer before firing on goal from out wide. However, the powerful shot clipped the crossbar at the far post and landed narrowly over the bar.
In the 76 ^th minute, Angel City took advantage of another pocket of space on the right side through Christen Press. Stepping inside and taking on a pair of defenders, Press cut up toward midfield with a sharp step back and curled a hopeful ball to the back post for McCaskill, though the midfielder was unable to meet it.
Finally, in the 90 ^th minute, the hosts created one more opportunity as attacker Jun Endo sprinted to the endline in possession on the left side where she slid a ball across toward the forward Lussi. Flicking it in on goal from near point-blank range, McLeod was able to produce a quality reaction save to prevent the goal.
In the end, the Pride managed to cling onto their one-goal lead for 87 minutes of regulation plus stoppage time and defeated Angel City FC, 1-0, in an impressive all-around showing on the road in Los Angeles. Leroux’s third-minute tally would end up being the difference maker in what was otherwise a relatively even encounter statistically between the two sides.

Match Highlights

Match Highlights