The Royals scored early in the second half when Cece Delzer dropped into the midfield before slipping Mexican international Kiana Palacios a pass into a dangerous position down the right side of the penalty area. Palacios calmly rolled the ball across the six-yard box, where Cloé Lacasse slid in at the back post to tie the game at 1-1.
The Royals took the lead halfway through the second half when Lacasse beat her defender in a one-on-one opportunity outside the penalty box. Lacasse crossed the ball to Paige Cronin, who made a darting run at the top of the penalty area and finished with a one-touch, left-footed strike to give Utah the lead.
Lacasse is now the sole leader in the NWSL for goal contributions with 18 throughout the season. The Canadian international has now set a new club record, assisting in three consecutive games and tied the league record with 11 assists in a single season.
Quotable“Everyone wants to succeed and to see each other succeed as well. A lot of us have been on the bench, have been impactors, have been through injuries,” Cronin said.
“The biggest take away was, did we have a different mind set than we did against Leon? And we did,” RSL Head coach Pablo Mastroeni reflected. “I thought Kobi Henry’s decisions with the ball and his defensive positioning was crucial.”
Game summariesThe Royals started the match on the front foot, taking the game to Orlando Pride throughout most of the first half. A couple of close chances fell to the feet of Utah’s all-time leading scorer, Mina Tanaka. However, strong defense from the Pride prevented the Royals from finding the opening goal.
The best opportunity of the half for Utah fell to midfielder Madison Hammond, who fired a powerful shot from outside the penalty area. The Orlando goalkeeper was able to palm the ball away before quickly getting back up to deny Kiana Palacios a second chance on goal.
Toward the end of the first half, Barbra Banda made a dangerous forward run in between the two Royals center backs. The Zambian international took the ball in stride before quickly accelerating away from the defenders. USWNT goalkeeper Mandy McGlynn was forced out of the penalty area to attempt a last-ditch tackle. The ball ricocheted back to Banda, who dribbled past McGlynn and scored into an open net to give the Pride the lead.
Orlando had one late chance, but Banda’s header went harmlessly into the hands of McGlynn. The Royals continue to make history, with their 2-1 victory over the Pride marking the first time in club history that Utah Royals FC have swept Orlando Pride.
Real Salt Lake headed back to Colorado to take on the Rapids after a tough quarterfinal game that was also played at Dick’s Sporting Good Stadium Tuesday. The match saw a terrific battle between Colorado’s Minoungou and RSL captain Rafael Cabral in the first half as Cabral made two point blank saves to deny Minoungou from scoring the opening goal.
The breakthrough came in the 58th minute as the Rapids whipped in a dangerous free kick toward the back post. A wide-open Reggie Cannon headed it home to give Colorado the lead. The game would remain 1-0 through the final whistle as RSL struggled to find a scoring opportunity.
Up nextUtah Royals FC return home to host the Boston Legacy as the club celebrates Jimmy Coenraets’ 50th game as Head coach at America First Field on Friday, Sept. 4. Real Salt Lake will face off against LAFC next Saturday, Sept. 5, at America First Field.
Captain Rafael Cabral (1) controlling the penalty area. | Real Salt Lake Colin Guske (25) getting his first minutes on the pitch with RSL. | Real Salt Lake Cronin (4) scoring the winning goal in the 69th minute. | Morgan Tencza
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