After nine years, big stage finally awaits
Club is set to host first playoff game in franchise history
When Jane Campbell was selected by the Houston Dash with the No. 15 overall pick of the 2017 National Women’s Soccer League draft, one of the goalkeeper’s objectives was to be on a team that contends for championships.
It’s taken longer than anticipated. But the initial step begins Sunday. For the first time in club history, Houston has qualified for the playoffs, taking on the Kansas City Current in a 4 p.m. kickoff at PNC Stadium.
The significance of the Dash earning a playoff spot in their ninth year of existence hasn’t been lost on the team’s fans. More than 18,000 tickets were purchased less than a day before the game.
“I hope the crowd is outlandishly loud and obnoxious and crazy with noisemakers and drums and horns and everything,” said Campbell, who made her 100th career appearance for the Dash last month. “I hope they bring it all because the more noise, I think the better for us. I hope it’s more of a distraction for Kansas City. I don’t think we’re thinking of it as a distraction.”
Making the playoffs is a big deal for the club, which has gone through three head coaches this season. And getting to host Sunday’s quarterfinal game makes it even more satisfying for the franchise.
“It’s just a huge opportunity for us as an organization to really get fans into our stadium and make them fans for life,” Campbell said. “I don’t want them to just come to one game. I want them to come all the time and have kids come and friends come.
“It’s awesome that it’s our first playoff berth. It’s at home. What a better way to celebrate just the club in general for fans to come out and hopefully put on a show for them. It’s great.”
The fourth-seeded Dash have been entertaining their supporters all season, finishing fourth in points (36) with a 10-6-6 record. From May to June, the team had a six-game unbeaten run. In June, Nichelle Prince completed the first hat trick in club history against Orlando at home. Ebony Salmon, the most feared attacker on the team, posted a hat trick over Chicago in July.
Coming over from a trade involving Racing Louisville FC in late June, Salmon has scored nine goals in only 12 appearances representing the Dash. Prince has scored five times. Midfielder Sophie Schmidt and forward Michelle Alozie have contributed three goals each. Katie Naughton has been a mainstay on defense.
Houston and No. 5 seed Kansas City, also making its first postseason appearance, posted identical records. In the regularseason matchups between the two, each team secured a road victory. Campbell earned a clean sheet in the Dash’s 2-0 win May 8. Kansas City edged Houston 2-1 on July 1 at PNC.
Despite the road team winning the regular-season matchups, make no mistake that the Dash prefer to play at home Sunday in a match that only the winner advances to the semifinals.
“Being able to play at home is exactly what we wanted,” interim head coach Juan Carlos Amorós said. “It is a great opportunity to engage with fans, to get through (this match) and enjoy, also to show everyone who we are on a football pitch.
“Seeing the players and the club really pushing and affecting so many people with what they’ve been doing on the soccer pitch. Thanks to the brilliant job that they’ve been doing. They’ve achieved this, but we know that this is not our limit, players are hungry for more. They’re ready and they’re really looking forward to perform on Sunday in front of the people and show everyone what we can do.”
Playing before a large crowd at home will be something out of the norm for the Dash. However, Campbell isn’t overly concerned that the festive atmosphere could knock the Dash off their game.
“I’m sure it’ll be intimidating for some of the younger players and that’s great,” Campbell said. “I hope everybody has butterflies, and I hope everyone’s really excited to go. It’s going to be new for us at home with that amount of crowd. But we’ve faced it before. The best part about it is that we will be at home, at our home field, we have the best field in the league.”
Houston secured home-field advantage on the final day of the regular season. The Dash won 2-1 at Washington and Kansas City lost at Racing Louisville 1-0. Record-wise it doesn’t appear that Houston has a big advantage playing at PNC. Houston is 3-4-4 at home and Kansas City is 5-5-1 on the road.
Momentum seems to favor Houston, winners of two of its final three outings. Kansas City won just one of its final four games as it fell from the top of the standings.
“I’ve been in postseason in college (Stanford) and I know it’s different,” said Campbell, who registered four shutouts this season. “But it’s still the same pressure. It’s win or go home.”
Six teams qualified for the NWSL playoffs. OL Reign and the Portland Thorns earned first-round byes as the first and second seeds, respectively. Both will host a semifinal game Oct. 23.
Playing at PNC is exciting for the Dash as well as their fans, but Houston’s main attention is on the Current, a team that excels in transition and is stacked full of attacking threats with four players on the side scoring four or more goals. Leading with a club-best seven goals are attacker CeCe Kizer and midfielder Lo’eau LaBonta, with five of her scores coming from the penalty spot. Forward Kristen Hamilton has added six goals. Goalkeeper Adrianna Franch has the thirdmost saves across the league with 66 in 20 matches.
Kansas City managed only three wins in the club’s 2021 debut season. The team’s improvement was fueled by a 13-game unbeaten streak, the second longest in NWSL history. The Current won or tied every game from May 30 through Sept. 11.
The Current have put together a solid foundation. Data reveals that the Current loses and regains the ball the most in the league. Houston’s game plan is to try to dominate offensively and defensively.
“We are good when we are in an organized attack or an organized defense,” Amoros said. “Every team has so much ability. I hope that we can get it right and be the better team on the day and win the game.”