On Sept. 5, the Washington Spirit (14-2-4) announced that NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson purchased a minority stake in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) franchise. The basketball legend was in town for his first match at the stadium just two days after the announcement. He and majority owner Michelle Kang had a front-row seat to an electric 2-1 come-from-behind win over the Portland Thorns. Star winger Trinity Rodman came off the bench to score the equalizer and assist Colombian midfielder Leicy Santos’s winning goal in the last minute of stoppage time.
“I had an incredible time at my first Washington Spirit game! Our fanbase is unbelievable,” Magic said in an Instagram post following the game.
And they were, with 14,306 people in attendance on an abnormally breezy early Saturday afternoon. They brought positive energy and enthusiasm throughout the game, creating a raucous, happy atmosphere unlike any I have seen before. It was almost as if they had all been given a jolt of caffeine – unsurprising, considering Rodman and Thorns’ talisman Sophia Smith were present (two-thirds of Triple Espresso, the new name for the United States Women’s National Team’s potent Olympic gold medal-winning front line) plus Thorns’ defensive midfielder Sam Coffey.
The prematch excitement was palpable, fueled by the presence of numerous 2024 Olympic medalists on both sides of the pitch and the appearance of legendary United States Women’s National Team (USWNT) forward Michelle Akers, serving as the match’s honorary captain. The Spirit held a ceremony at midfield for the “golden girls”, gifting plaques to Smith, Coffey, Rodman, and Spirit defender Casey Kreuger, as well as Spirit midfielders Hal Hershfelt and Croix Bethune, who traveled to France with the national team as alternates.
Bethune, however, accepted her award with a walking boot and crutches. Two days before the match, the Spirit announced the leading NWSL rookie of the year candidate would miss the remainder of the season after surgery to repair a torn meniscus suffered throwing out the ceremonial first pitch at a Washington Nationals game earlier in the week. She had suffered 3 ACL injuries in high school and college, so this setback could pose a serious threat to her future.
Also notable was the absence of Rodman, Krueger, and Hershfelt from the Spirit starting lineup. In the postgame press conference, Spirit head coach Jonatan Giráldez said this decision was due to rest, also mentioning that Rodman had been dealing with a knock in training all week.
As the match finally got underway, the Spirit had the lion’s share of the chances early, with forwards Ashley Hatch and Ouleymata Sarr narrowly missing chances from less than six yards out. Sarr picked up a back injury and was replaced by Rodman in the 21st minute, meaning the gold-medal winning forward entered earlier than expected. An even more dominant attacking run of possession followed, but as the clock ticked past the 30-minute mark, the Thorns began to grow into the game. Smith threatened, drawing several corner kicks and driving a strike into the box that Spirit goalkeeper Aubrey Kingsbury bobbled. Spirit forward Rosemonde Kouassi hit a shot from point-blank range straight at Thorns keeper Mackenzie Arnold in the 35th minute, but other than that, neither side got any closer, and it remained 0-0 going into halftime.
The Thorns struck first early in the second half. In the 49th minute, Midfielder Hina Sugita lasered a shot into the net with textbook precision off a cross from recent signing Alexis Spaanstra. Both teams then proceeded to trade chances as the game opened up, and the Spirit struck next to tie the match at 1-1.
In the 60th minute, Hatch played a precision through ball to a rampaging Rodman, who jinked inside the box past two defenders and hit a pinpoint strike into the bottom left corner. She ran toward the stands in celebration, throwing down an imaginary dunk in front of Magic Johnson, an instantly viral moment.
Two minutes later, the Spirit made a triple substitution, with Hershfelt, Krueger, and forward Makenna Morris entering the match. All three were active immediately, with Krueger driving a powerful shot just wide after an authoritative Hershfelt challenge and Morris forcing Arnold to conjure up the best of her many saves to keep the score level. This dominance continued into the 79th minute when Kouassi made a brilliant touch at midfield to get around her marker and sped down the right flank before pulling her shot wide left in a one-on-one with Arnold. In the 88th minute, the Thorns almost silenced the home crowd in D.C. with an unlikely winner. Smith played a perfect cross into a dangerous area, but substitute striker Izzy D’Aquila’s volley bounced off the crossbar before the Spirit defense cleared it.
It looked like this game would end in a hard-fought draw, but Spirit right back Paige Metayer had other plans. Her brave, pacy run forward down the right wing allowed her to drop the ball off to Rodman, who casually touched it past a defender and floated a cross up for grabs into the box. It was headed authoritatively to the bottom right corner of the net by the shortest player on the pitch, Leicy Santos, sending the home fans into a frenzy.
Giráldez, who just arrived in Washington after a term coaching FC Barcelona Femení, seems to have brought his former team’s winning ways across the Atlantic. The Spirit have roared to a 3-0-1 record in his first four games in charge. At the postgame press conference, he was extremely satisfied with his side’s depth and quality on the day and optimistic about their future prospects.
The second-placed Spirit travel to the Midwest to take on fourth-place Kansas City Current at CPKC Stadium on Friday, Sept.15. This team could easily go all the way, so head out to a match at Audi Field and witness the journey!
