Pride fall further out of playoff spot

Thanks to a pair of impressive goals from Yazmeen Ryan and Hina Sugita along with constant pressure defense that stymied the host Orlando Pride, the Portland Thorns prevailed 2-0 on Friday night to break their two-game losing skid.

The Pride (5-7-6, 21 points) dropped their second match in a row after having run off a sevengame unbeaten streak and are in eighth place in the NWSL. Their next game is Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Racing Louisville.

On top of the big victory, Crystal Dunn made her season debut for the Thorns after giving birth to her son Marcel on May 20.

The Thorns (8-3-7, 31 points) at least temporarily returned to the top of the NWSL table thanks to the victory with five games remaining on the league’s weekend schedule entering Saturday.

“Orlando has been working hard and playing hard and frustrated us in the first half,” Thorns coach Rhian Wilkinson said. “Sat low, got numbers behind the ball. Really proud of my team for continuing to find a way. You saw them try lots of different things and I really thought we stepped up our game in the second half.”

Portland’s offensive onslaught began early, with a corner in the fourth minute that found Morgan Weaver’s head. While the header was off, the pressure from the Thorns continued.

Weaver’s cross in the 11th minute nearly found a sprinting Sophia Smith. In the 18th, Portland’s pressure forced a bad giveaway, and Sugita fired in a left-footed shot that forced a save.

Orlando’s first appearance in the stat sheet came in the 22nd minute as defender Megan Montefusco earned a yellow card. Otherwise, the Pride weren’t able to do much of anything with the ball at their feet, and Portland maintained its constant defensive pressure.

The Thorns finally broke through in the 31st minute on a perfect cross in from Morgan Weaver that met the slicing foot of Ryan for the goal. Ryan angled her right foot up and to the side, redirecting the ball deftly into the back of the net to put Portland up 1-0.

Ryan would later pick up a yellow card for a physical challenge in the 34th minute, and Orlando summoned some attacking momentum in the final 10 minutes of the half. A header from Mikayla Cluff in the 42nd minute was the Pride’s most dangerous attempt of the first 45. They were outshot 10-4 in the first half by the Thorns, including five shots for Portland on goal.

Coming out for the second half, Ryan maintained her consistent involvement. Meghan Klingenberg put a cross in for Ryan on a platter, but Ryan’s shot from in close sailed high.

Natalia Kuikka picked up a yellow card for Portland in the 55th minute on a dangerous challenge, and the Pride capitalized with a shot from in close by Ally Watt after the set piece. But Becky Sauerbrunn was there to block it out of bounds.

Portland extended its lead in the 65th minute as Olivia Moultrie dropped off a pass to Sugita, who lined up a left-footed shot from outside the box that bounced perfectly off the far post and into the back of the net.

The Thorns led 2-0 and mobbed Sugita in celebration, her wide smile spreading quickly to her teammates.

Chances continued to show up for Portland throughout the remainder of the match, including a powerful shot from Smith in the 70th minute that forced a kick save and a one-timer from the star forward on the feed from Weaver that sailed high in the 74th minute.

A briefly scary situation for the Thorns came in the 78th minute as Sam Coffey took an elbow to the face, but after being examined by trainers she ran off the field and would return to play soon after.

The shining moment of the match came well after the result was in hand. In the 86th minute, Dunn made her season debut for the Thorns after training with the team into her third trimester of pregnancy and giving birth less than four months ago. She replaced Smith and played primarily in an attacking position.

“I’ve visualized this moment for a really long time,” Dunn said. “Thinking about how I was going to feel when I first stepped on the field. I just tried to keep it simple. ... Coming into this moment, I was just like, ‘Crystal, you’re a soccer player. Play soccer. Play simple. Provide value in the way you know you can.”