San Diego Wave had another impressive road performance with a 3-0 win over the Chicago Stars at SeatGeek Stadium on Saturday, April 26.
Chicago had the best scoring chances early on with two shots on goal in the first 25 minutes that goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan was able to deflect. The Wave was then able to find its footing and took the lead in the 31st minute when defender Hanna Lundkvist right-footed a shot from eight yards out that beat goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher.
The Stars pushed forward to start the second half and almost found the tying goal in the 66th on a close-range attempt by midfielder Julia Grosso, but her Canadian national team teammate was well-positioned and caught the attempt. Sheridan came up big again in the 73rd minute on a point-blank shot by forward Catherine Berry that was deflected out to a corner kick.
The Wave put the game away in the 81st minute on a shot by forward Adriana Leon that bounced off the knee of defender and San Diego native Samantha Staab into the back of the net. San Diego tacked on one final score three minutes into second-half added time when Leon found teammate Kimmi Ascanio after the ball rebounded off Naeher.
The Wave is in fifth place in the NWSL standings one point behind Gotham FC but with one less game played while Chicago drops to last place with one victory in six matches.
The Wave returns home for back-to-back games at Snapdragon Stadium versus Bay FC on Sunday, May 4, and then against the Portland Thorns on May 10.
Photo courtesy of San Diego Wave