April 23, 2023 – National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) – Angel City FC News Release
LOS ANGELES – Angel City Football (ACFC) lost 0-2 to San Diego Wave FC at home tonight following goals by forwards Sofia Jakobsson and Makenzy Doniak. The match saw a strong performance by ACFC in many respects, but the team ultimately weren’t able to break down the Wave’s organized defense.
“We improved a lot defensively, with our defensive structure,” said Head Coach Freya Coombe after the match, “but we’re learning that we need to do a little more in each of the boxes to see out games. We need to make sure we’re not allowing chances in those game-changing moments.”
Much of the first half was a midfield battle, as both sides defended well and limited quality chances for the opposition. Angel City had the better of the action early on, spending a fair amount of time in San Diego’s defensive third and combining for a few half-chances on goal. Several such chances went through forward Alyssa Thompson, but she found herself marked by multiple defenders each time and struggled to find space for a quality shot.
The Wave had the first dangerous shot of the half in the 11th minute when defender Kristen McNabb sent in a cross for midfielder Emily Van Egmond as the latter crashed the net, but her header went wide.
The match remained a back-and-forth affair with few real chances on either side, until the 36th minute, when San Diego had two looks in close succession. First, a corner kick by midfielder Dani Colaprico was punched away by ACFC keeper DiDi Haračić; the rebound fell to McNabb, who hit a volley that went wide. Less than a minute later, forward Alex Morgan sent a hard shot from the top of the 18 over the crossbar.
Angel City had their best chance in the 51st minute after a shot by forward Claire Emslie was blocked by defender Christen Westphal and fell to defender M.A. Vignola, who fired off a low, angled shot that beat multiple defenders but went inches wide of the far post.
The home team kept pushing and put together a number of near chances, but ultimately couldn’t break down an organized San Diego defense. One promising transitional attack saw Thompson sprint into acres of space on the left side of the field and find McCaskill centrally, but was cut short when referee Ekaterina Koroleva whistled for a handball by McCaskill.
San Diego had a near miss in the 68th minute when forward Makenzy Doniak scooped up a second ball and took a hard, angled shot from the right…