It was a warm welcome for the seven members of the 2024 Paris Olympics as Gotham FC started NWSL play with a 2-0 victory against the Portland Thorns.
Saturday’s match had a bit of everything as the franchise welcomed newest signing Jessica Silva, had Sam Mewis complete the lighting of the torch ceremony then honored the members of the 2024 Olympics for both Portland and Gotham after the match concluded.
In front of a crowd of both new fans and those that are season ticketholders they were all able to see a match that is chocked full of action as Gotham FC displayed some wonderful passing and teamwork.
Getting the ladies of New York and New Jersey on the scoreboard early is Ella Stevens as the forward continues to become more and more of a star while with the Gotham FC Club. How popular is Ella well the fans made a tifo of her thanks to her scoring abilities.
For Stevens the goal was her sixth in the regular season.
Fans are encouraged to check out the following photos from prior to the start of the action between Gotham and Portland:
From there it was all back and forth action by both Portland and Gotham having some great opportunities.
Fans are also encouraged to give a click to the following audio interviews:
Jenna Nighswonger:
Head Coach Juan Carlos Amorós
After the half things continued to be action packed as in the 69th minute getting rewarded for her hard work was Yazmeen Ryan. Ryan coming close to scoring earlier in the frame, found herself another opportunity in the 69th minute and made sure to cash in.
Once the ball went in those in attendance can see the sheer joy and enthusiasm from Yazmeen, and well they themselves also showed enthusiasm as this was a great start for the ladies of the second half of the NWSL season.
In addition, the goal for Yazmeen was the fifth of her regular season career and hopefully something the team can look forward to seeing more of.
In the cage after her Bronze Medal performance with team Germany goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger continues her fine play as the goalkeeper for the franchise as she recorded her fifth shutout of the season.
Berger was able to move on up the Gotham FC rankings as she is third place for single-season sheets and tied with Jill Loyden in career shutouts. Also, an interesting fact compliments of the Gotham FC PR department is the fact that she earned her ninth victory which ties a club record set by Brittany Cameron in 2013 and matched by Kailen Sheridan in 2017.
With the victory Gotham FC finishes the regular season against Portland undefeated.
There was a bit of a milestone moment in the game as Delanie Sheehan made her 50th regular season appearance as she is the 17th player to reach that milestone.
The NWSL regular season continues for Gotham FC as they head down to Florida to take on the Orlando Pride on September 1 at Inter&Co Stadium with the start of the action scheduled for 6:00 p.m.
For more information on Gotham FC fans are encouraged to click on the link below: