**PORTLAND, Ore.** – The Kansas City Current stormed into Providence Park and, thanks to a first half penalty kick from forward Michelle Cooper, left with all three points in a 1-0 shutout win. The win is Kansas City’s first ever against Portland as the Current earned a vital road victory to help swing some season momentum their way.
The two teams traded chances back and forth with Kansas City having the first look on goal in the 15 ^th minute. The Current were working the ball around the penalty area when a pass was played back for midfielder Jenna Winebrenner just outside the box. Running onto the moving ball, Winebrenner unleashed a rip that curled away from the middle of the goal and toward the top right corner. Her shot then ricocheted off the post and out of play as the chance fell narrowly wide.
One minute later, Portland was on the attack as forward Izzy D’Aquila attempted to roll a Morgan Weaver pass home only to see it cleared just before it crossed the line of the goalmouth. Weaved had been played in down the left side of the field when she worked her way into the box and eventually picked out D’Aquila with a short pass. From there, D’Aquila tried to slide the ball through a sea of bodies, but her effort was cleared in the nick of time to prevent the game’s opening goal.
A real turning point in the match came in the 34 ^th minute as Portland defender Meghan Klingenberg was judged to have fouled Kansas City’s Alexa Spaanstra, who was cutting toward the middle of the box in possession when she went to ground. The center official did not hesitate in awarding the spot kick, though, and up stepped rookie sensation Michelle Cooper to face Portland goalkeeper Bella Bixby. Up to take, Cooper sent Bixby the wrong way and blew kisses toward the Current bench as she went to celebrate near the corner flag.
At the halftime interval, Kansas City clung to their 1-0 road lead thanks to Cooper’s penalty.
The Thorns continued to battle back and had an excellent opportunity in front of goal just after the hour mark, again through the forward D’Aquila in the 63 ^rd minute. Klingenberg had picked out D’Aquila with a pass into the middle of the box, and D’Aquila fired off from there only to hit the post like Winebrenner had with the ball eventually rolling out of play for a corner kick. Five minutes later, D’Aquila again found herself on the ball except this time outside the box, but her right-footed effort from there was saved by Current goalkeeper Cassie Miller.
As the match wore on, Portland showed no signs of stopping in front of the Kansas City goal with another lifeline opportunity afforded to the club in the form of a free kick on the right flank. Up to take was midfielder Sam Coffey, and she found the head of D’Aquila in the center of the box with the delivery. However, though D’Aquila’s header was well executed, Miller produced a fantastic save to keep the ball out and her team up a goal.
In the end, through five minutes of added time, the visiting Kansas City Current held on for a big 1-0 win and the club’s first in Portland. The result moves the Thorns to 2 ^nd in the table after North Carolina’s win over Houston on Saturday night, with Portland amassing 25 points over 14 games played. Meanwhile, though the Current sit in 10 ^th place through 14 games of their own, the 1-0 win helps them go above Angel City and Chicago ahead of Angel City’s game on Sunday.

Match Highlights

Match Highlights