**San Diego, California** – The Orlando Pride defeated San Diego Wave FC on Saturday night by a single goal, a penalty converted by midfielder Meggie Dougherty Howard. The result sees the Pride extend their unbeaten run to six games, while the Wave suffer successive defeats for the first time all season.
The hosts looked the more likely of the two sides to score early on as they threatened the Pride goal just four minutes in. Streaking ahead, forward Alex Morgan, who is seeking sole first place in the Golden Boot race (11 – tied with Portland forward Sophia Smith), broke in on goal and drove a low effort across the face of goal that ricocheted off the post and back into play. Then in the ninth minute, opting to go for a powerful effort after another through pass had played her in, Morgan was unable to hit the target from just outside the penalty area.
Then, flipping the game’s momentum was the decision to award a penalty kick as Pride forward Julie Doyle crossed a ball into the box that struck the arm of San Diego defender Kaleigh Riehl which resulted in the penalty. Up to the spot stepped midfielder Meggie Dougherty Howard, who was able to place the ball into the bottom left corner despite Wave goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan guessing the correct direction of the effort.
At the halftime interval, Orlando held on to their 1-0 lead thanks to Dougherty Howard’s spot kick.
Into the second half, one of the best opportunities for the Wave came right on the hour mark as the forward Morgan stood over the ball in a direct free kick position right on the edge of the penalty area. Lining up a left-footed rocket, Morgan could only look on in agony as the shot clanged off the post again and fell away from goal and the chance went missing.
One last fantastic opportunity came Morgan’s way again, this time in the 89 ^th minute, as teammate Taylor Kornieck flicked on a ball into the box toward Morgan in front of her. Jumping to meet the ball, Morgan was able to get a header on the effort over the defender only to watch it clip the crossbar on its way over and out of play.
In the end, it was an impressive victory for the Orlando Pride, who push their unbeaten streak fo six games.
The Orlando Pride are the last team yet to face the San Diego Wave in NWSL competitions. In matches where the Wave are playing their opponent for the first time in any competition, San Diego has five wins, two draws and three losses, with all five wins coming during the regular season.
**Ways to watch:** Fans in the **United States** can watch the match on [Paramount+](https://www.paramountplus.com/shows/national-womens-soccer-league/) while fans in **Canada and abroad** will be able to watch on [Twitch](http://twitch.tv/nwslofficial2) .

Match Highlights

Match Highlights