White’s two tallies knot enough for ‘W’
Midfielder Rosie White recorded the first twogoal performance of her NWSL career last night but it wasn’t enough to lift the Breakers, who had to settle for a 2-2 tie with FC Kansas City.
The Breakers (3-7-6) seemingly had the game locked up before surrendering a late KC tally to substitute Erika Tymrak in the 81st minute.
Breakers coach Matt Beard was frustrated with the outcome but saw positives from the effort.
“Especially after the first 10 or 15 minutes of the first half when we settled into the game really well and started passing some great stuff. Obviously, Rosie’s first one was a great strike and ignited everybody and we finished the half up strongly,” Beard said. “The second half we were pinned in our end a little bit and that was one of our problems. Then we started allowing gaps in between. … It’s frustrating because it’s a game that we could have won and should have won.”
Beard, who first brought White into his team when he coached the Liverpool Ladies in England, wasn’t surprised at White’s work.
“She’s a very good player. Technically, she is very gifted. She has a good brain on her. The one thing that we’ve been thinking and working about specifically was getting into scoring positions and she did that (last night). It’s great for her to get the two goals,” said Beard.
Breakers captain Julie King established a franchise record with her 103rd appearance, breaking a tie with U.S. Soccer legend Kristine Lilly, who was on hand to make a pregame presentation.
Kansas City (3-7-5) grabbed a 1-0 lead in the 21st minute when midfielder Christina Gibbons made a pass across the area to the left post, where Maegan Kelly tapped it home.
The Breakers responded in a big way thanks to the 24-year-old White.
The first goal was set up when White slid the ball ahead to forward Katie Stengel from a short distance. Stengel sent the ball right back to White, who sent a booming blast into the upper right corner. White’s next goal came when forward Adriana Leon lined up for a corner kick and passed the ball to White 18 yards out. White wasted little time in curving a rightfoot shot over the collapsing wall of defenders.
“The first one, Katie fed it off to me and it was kind of bouncing at my foot. I thought I would give it a go off my left foot. I struck it. It came off pretty sweetly,’’ said White, a former UCLA star. “The second one was something that we’ve worked on in training. It kind of opened up for us and Adriana played a perfect ball out to me.”
White, a New Zealand native, became the first Breakers player to register a two-goal showing since Hanson product and exBoston College star Kristie Mewis connected against Western New York on Aug. 3, 2014. Mewis now plays for the Washington Spirit.
The Breakers almost gained an insurance tally in the 75th minute when Leon head-faked a defender to gain time and space and then rocketed a blast just wide.
Kansas City’s equalizer came when Tymrak reached a delivery in the area and put the ball home.
Earlier, the Breakers signed former UMassLowell All-American goalkeeper Jamie Gillis, a Billerica native, as a backup to Sammy Jo Prudhomme, who was filling in for starter Abby Smith, who was away on duty with the U.S. Women’s national team.