SAN DIEGO - The San Diego Wave suffered a 2–1 home defeat to the Orlando Pride on Friday evening in a match that highlighted both the team’s offensive potential and ongoing defensive vulnerabilities.
Orlando struck early, with Lizbeth Ovalle scoring in the eighth minute to put the Pride ahead. San Diego responded with Brazilian forward Dudinha converting a chance during the club’s Noche Latina celebration, offering a spark for the home crowd and hope that the Wave’s woes would end. Unfortunately for San Diego, Orlando ultimately sealed the victory in the 54th minute when Carson Pickett added the game-winning goal, leaving the Wave to reflect on their inability to win a game.
The loss drops San Diego to sixth place in the NWSL standings, a position that underscores a challenging stretch for the club. Over their last 10 matches, the Wave have managed only a single win, a slump that has tested both players and coaching staff.
While the team’s offense has begun to show signs of life that weren’t there during the beginning of their slide, the defensive unit’s struggles have gotten worse. Conceding early goals and failing to maintain organization at the back has increasingly become a concern. Head coach Jonas Eidevall addressed the issue after the match. “We definitely need to play better organized defense,” he said. The sentiment reflects the club’s need for structural improvement on the defensive end.
The statistics highlight the challenges facing the Wave: scoring opportunities are consistently there, but so are missed opportunities and mistakes that lead to conceded goals. The team’s inability to combine attacking prowess with defensive stability in the same game has made matches tight and stressful, leaving little margin for error as the playoff race heats up. With five games remaining, San Diego sits just five points above the cutoff for postseason play, meaning each match carries heightened importance.
Looking ahead, the Wave will travel to face the Washington Spirit on October 5, aiming to break their current skid and establish a stronger foothold in the playoff picture. Success in these remaining games will require a combination of sharper attacking execution and tighter, more disciplined defending, something Eidevall and his squad are acutely aware of as the NWSL postseason rapidly approaches with no guarantee the Wave will be participating.