Bay FC battled in their NWSL X Liga MXF Summer Cup match with Angel City FC at Pay Pal Park in San Jose on Fri Jul 26, 2024 but lost their second match in the Cup (photo by Bay FC)
By William Espy
SAN JOSE–Bay FC looked to bounce back and get some points on the board in the NWSL X Liga MXF Summer Cup on Friday night when they hosted Angel City FC. Bay lost their second match in the Femenil Summer Cup at Pay Pal Park 2-0 to Angel City.
Bay FC Starting XI: Rowland, King, Brewster, Sharples, Moreau, Bailey, Shepherd, Conti, Hill, Doms, Castellanos Angel City Starting XI: Anderson, Vignola, Reid, Gorden, Fuller, Dougherty Howard, Hammond, Emslie, Thompson, Spencer, Bright
Rachel Hill nearly got Bay FC an early lead, when a fantastic through-ball found her with only the goalkeeper to beat however Angelina Anderson made the save, knocking the ball out for a corner. The corner led to a scramble in front of the goal, and Maya Doms put a shot on target causing Anderson to make a second save to tip the ball over the night.
Off the second straight corner, Savy King’s pass found a player in front, but Anderson once again made the stop. Angel City got a chance of their own in the fifth minute when Dorian Bailey slipped while defending but the shot sailed over the goal.
Maddie Moreau was continuing her strong performance in the Cup, making a few solid defensive plays early in the night. Deyna Castellanos nearly scored a phenomenal goal in the 10th minute when Anderson was outside of her box.
Castellanos shot it from midfield, however it was just off-target and went to the right of the net. Bailey had another great opportunity in the 15th minute, but the ball rolled just enough to throw her shot off and it went out of play.
Bay FC came out of the gate very strong, maintaining possession and generating quite a few scoring opportunities while preventing Angel City from getting many of their own. Overall, they were playing well up and down the entirety of the pitch. It seemed like Bay could easily be leading by two or 3 goals. After a freekick in a dangerous area though, an own goal by Bailey put them down a goal in the 18th minute.
Madison Hammond got shown the first yellow card of the night in the 22nd minute when she grabbed Doms with two hands from behind. Caroline Conti forced Anderson to make another save in the 25th minute, and Bay was starting to get momentum back on their side after the energy had been taken out of PayPal Park following the goal.
There was a break in play as Anderson got evaluated for a potential head injury following a collision with Hill. Angel City nearly extended their lead in the 37th minute when King slipped inside the box trying to clear the ball, but Kayla Sharples was able to press the shooter a bit and force a rushed shot that trickled out of play.
Mary Alice Vignola got another opportunity for Angel City in the 38th but the shot went just over the crossbar. Sharples made a fantastic sliding block in the 41st minute, on a shot that could’ve easily gotten past Rowland.
As the first half reached stoppage time Bay desperately attempted to tie it before halftime, creating quite a few chances late in the half. They were unable to accomplish their goal though and entered the break still trailing by a goal.
Rowland needed medical attention roughly a minute into the second half after a collision with Claire Emslie. Bay FC’s goalkeeper was trying to play the ball inside her box, while Emslie slid directly into her trying to play the ball.
After a few moments, Rowland was back to her feet and remained in the match. Emslie was shown a yellow card for the dangerous play. Rowland got tested almost immediately after and made the save. Emslie would end up extending Angel City’s lead to 2-0 in the 54th minute.
Although it seems that Bay FC manager Albertin Montoya is taking a development approach to this Cup rather than attempting to win it, he certainly had to be disappointed in how the game was turning out. Sharples and King kept up the aggressive defending that we’d seen from them all night as we approached the hour mark, both were pulling off sensational slide tackles to deny their opposition scoring chances.
Bay made three substitutions in the 61st minute taking off Hill, Doms, and Castellanos for Alyssa Malonson, Princess, and Kiki Pickett. The substitutes attempted to make an impact right out of the gate, creating some pressure in the offensive third of the pitch.
Angel City made a substitution of their own in the 65th minute with Casey Phair entering the match for Messiah Bright. Montoya responded moments later taking off Jamie Shepherd for Joelle Anderson. Conti fired a long shot in the 69th minute following a pass from Princess,it was a great effort but went over the goal.
It’s certainly worth noting, Sharples really stepped up into a leadership role in this game. With a majority of the typical leaders out of the lineup, she was truly leading by example and putting her body on the line to make an impact. Princess nearly scored off of a cross in the 77th minute, but the shot went into the side netting after a deflection off the goalkeeper.
Ultimately Bay FC wouldn’t be able to complete a comeback and were shutout by Angel City, with a final score of 2-0.
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