Eva Zuniga and Her Sports San Diego
SAN DIEGO – You get a goal! You get a goal! You get a goal! Channeling their inner Oprah Winfreys, the Wave FC turned in their most impressive scoring performance in team history, defeating the Chicago Stars 6-1 on Saturday night and earning a playoff bid in the process. The San Diego Wave FC (10-8-7) knew a win would clinch their playoff berth, and they played like it: Four of the team’s six goals came in the first half, and three of the four came within the first 18 minutes.
The Wave overwhelmed the Stars (2-12-11) with goals by Delphine Cascarino, a Stars own goal off a shot by Wave defender Hanna Lundkvist, a decisive shot by Dudinha, and a header in the 44th minute by Kristen McNabb. In the 57th minute, Dudinha continued the high-powered scoring with her second goal of the night, while Kenza Dali knocked in one (after having an earlier goal called back with an offside call) in the 83rd minute.
“It was a good night and it was nice to be able to ... both score a lot of goals and also win here at Snapdragon,” said head coach Jonas Eidevall. “It was definitely the way that we wanted to finish off the season at home.”
First Half
The Stars started the game with a shot on goal in the first minute, sending nervous energy through the crowd. After a shaky first two minutes, the Wave offense took over and never looked back. Through the first half, the Wave controlled possession and, countering the narrative through the back half of the season that the Wave could control possession but could not score, the Wave scored early and often.
The team spent most of their time on Chicago’s defensive side, deftly generating scoring opportunities. In the seventh minute, Dudinha dribbled in the box and rifled a shot which was deflected by the goalie only for Cascarino to knock it in the right corner of the goal using the outside of her right foot. The goal was Cascarino’s fifth on the season.
In the 15th minute, Stars defender Sam Staab scored an own goal after deflecting a ball driven into the box by defender Hanna Lundkvist to go up 2-0. Dudhina struck again in the 17th minute, this time dancing around the defenders to make a deadly strike that slotted right in the corner for the third goal of the match.
Lundkvist constantly pressed to force the attack on the right side of the field, while aggressively defending her space. After some physical back and forth between teams, in the 44th minute, the Wave scored another goal on a header by McNabb from the right side of the six-yard box to the center of the goal off a set piece from a Dali penalty kick. The goal was McNabb’s second of the season. The Wave ended the first half up 4-0.
Second Half
The Wave continued their offensive dominance in the second with an immediate goal attempt by Cascarino. Soon after, Dali had a goal called back for offside with a left-footed shot from the center of the box. Six minutes later, Dudhina scored with a right-footed shot from the center of the box to the center of the goal, assisted by Gia Corley, to go up 5-0.
The Stars finally secured their only goal of the match with a shot by Bea Franklin in the right corner assisted by Aly Schlegel’s no-look pass to avoid the shutout, 5-1. Dali scored in the 83rd minute with an assist from Adriana Leon for the final goal of the night, 6-1. The Wave set a club record with six goals in one game.
What’s Next
From Oct 23-29, NWSL players will take part in FIFA’s October International Window. NWSL teams will be back in action in November.
On Nov. 2, the Wave will play No. 1 Kansas City Current in Kansas City in their final regular season game (time TBD). Playoffs begin Nov 7-9.
Notable
Dali was named player of the year by the Sirens, an active supporters group for the Wave FC.
Dudinha earned her first brace playing in the NWSL, and her fourth goal of the season.
Eidevall referred to the team’s scoring this week and last as the Ketchup Effect, referencing the old-school challenge of getting ketchup out of ketchup bottles. After pounding on the bottom of the bottle with nothing coming out (that is, the team not scoring many goals), all of a sudden the ketchup would overflow onto the plate (the team scoring at will over the past two games).
Cascarino is the only player in the league this season with at least five goals and five assists.