**Harrison, New Jersey** – The Chicago Red Stars traveled to Red Bull Arena to take on, and eventually defeat, NJ/NY Gotham FC on Saturday night and relied on first half strikes from Sarah Luebbert and Vanessa DiBernardo and a second half strike from Ella Stevens for the win. The three points help Chicago extend its unbeaten streak to eight games, while Gotham suffers its third straight loss.
Gotham FC got the action kicked off quickly and created several opportunities in the opening few minutes, one of which was created by the Red Stars defense after a bad giveaway at the back. Gotham attacker Cameron Tucker intercepted a telegraphed pass just inside her attacking third and charged forward. Unleashing a shot toward the top corner, Chicago goalkeeper Emily Boyd—who made her first regular season appearances in nearly a year—came up with a fantastic stop to keep the score level.
Ten minutes later though, Chicago would end up opening the scoring through forward Sarah Luebbert as the Red Stars took advantage of some quality one-on-one play. On the left side, defender Tatumn Milazzo cut up field and danced around a pair of opposition players as she wriggled to the endline. Picking out a teammate in the middle, attacker Ella Stevens was able to get a touch pass toward Luebbert, who fired home from close range with her left foot for an easy score.
Then in the 25 ^th minute, midfielder Vanessa DiBernardo added a second for the visiting side and produced a bit of magic to go two-up on the hosts Gotham. Taking a pass from Milazzo just outside the penalty area, DiBernardo skipped around one defender before opening her body to curl a right-footed shot toward the goal of netminder Ashlyn Harris. The ball then nestled in the side netting at the far post and in as the Red Stars continued to put their stamp on the game in the opening half.
Chicago would continue with pressure as the hosts looked to step up a gear in play, but neither side truly tested the other after the two goals scored. As the halftime whistle sounded, Chicago carried its two-goal lead into the break.
Into the second half, Gotham FC posed a great threat right on the hour mark with a free kick from just outside the 18-yard box. The delivery into the box picked out defender Gina Lewandowski—who was playing in the final game of her career—just a few yards out from goal, and she did well to get on the end of the pass and put an effort on frame. However, Boyd was positioned well in the middle of the box and got low enough to keep the ball out to preserve the clean sheet and shut the door on Gotham.
In the 69 ^th minute, Chicago had a golden opportunity to bury the game via Ella Stevens though the attacker was ultimately unable to convert the try. Receiving a pass in the penalty area, Stevens did brilliantly to turn toward goal and fire a left-footed shot toward the far post. However, though she beat Harris on the chance, she was unable to find the side netting and narrowly missed wide.
Just under ten minutes later, Gotham had another good look on goal as substitute and debutant Taylor Smith burst into the box and tested Boyd. Close in and being marshalled off the ball by a defender, Smith ultimately could not get enough of a foot on the try to beat the goalkeeper and the search for a Gotham goal continued.
The icing on the cake for Chicago came in the 84 ^th minute when the Red Stars added a third and final goal, this time through Stevens. A beautiful team move saw the ball switched from the right side into the left side of the box to Yuki Nagasato, and Nagasoto headed back across goal where Stevens was waiting. The forward then redirected the ball into the side netting to help her side earn a third goal and tie off the match.
At fulltime, the Red Stars picked up another impressive result with a 3-0 win over Gotham to advance its unbeaten run. One of the positives the hosts can take, though, is that it was Gotham who led in total shots and matched Chicago’s shots on target total. The Red Stars now return home to face the North Carolina Courage next Sunday, while Gotham FC faces Racing Louisville next Friday night in Louisville.

Match Highlights

Match Highlights