Lavelle’s goal leads Gotham over Spirit 1-0 for NWSL championship

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Rose Lavelle scored in the 80th minute and the eighth-seeded Gotham FC beat the Washington Spirit 1-0 on Saturday night to win their second National Women’s Soccer League championship.

Second-half substitute Bruninha drove into the box on the left wing and sent the ball across to Lavelle, whose left-footed shot sailed past Spirit goalkeeper Aubrey Kingsbury into the bottom corner of the net.

“It was maybe the one moment I had in the game to step up,” Lavelle said. “I keep saying Bruninha did the heavy lifting on that.”

It is the first NWSL championship title for Lavelle, who had scored in the 2023 final when she was playing for the Seattle Reign against Gotham in a 2-1 loss.

“This was such a roller coaster of a season for us. We had injuries. We had a really daunting schedule with the amount of games that we were playing, the travel. I think just like the way that every single individual stepped up in the moments, did what they were asked to, was so huge,” Lavelle said. “I think you learn the most about yourself in the toughest moments. And so, I think what we faced throughout the season really helped set us up.”

After a strong opening 10 minutes of the match for Gotham, with three shots from Jaedyn Shaw, the final began to mature into a tense affair.

There were few chances and the best of the first half came when Spirit midfielder Hal Hershfelt perfectly timed a slide tackle and cleaned out Midge Purce with the follow through.

Not long after the half, Trinity Rodman was brought off the Spirit bench for Sofia Cantore, bringing the crowd to its feet. The U.S. women’s national team star was on limited minutes after suffering a knee sprain in October.

Even with the introduction of Rodman, the Spirit continued to struggle to create chances. They had marginally more control of the ball, 53%, but were outshot by Gotham 12-6 and finished the game without a single shot on target. Rodman had zero shots and zero chances created.

“As much as I don’t want to admit it, I still don’t feel like I was my full self tonight, which sucks, because I feel like it’s the second year I’ve gone into a final not feeling like myself,” Rodman said.

The second-seeded Spirit (14-6-8) suffered a second consecutive defeat in the NWSL final, having lost last year to the Orlando Pride in Kansas City, Missouri.

The Spirit reached this year’s final by overcoming Racing Louisville 3-1 in a penalty shootout in the quarterfinals and then beating the Portland Thorns 2-0 in the semifinals.

Gotham (11-8-9) had defied the odds to make the final, going on the road twice to defeat the top-seeded Kansas City Current 2-1 in the quarterfinal and the defending champions the Pride, 1-0.

Gotham is the first eighth-seed to win the NWSL Championship. In 2023, when there were only six playoff spots, Gotham became the first sixth seed to lift the trophy.

Coach Juan Carlos Amoros has seven NWSL playoff wins in his career and two championships.

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