NWSL news: Gotham jump to third, Taylor Kornieck salvages draw for Wave, week 15 roundup

In the final NWSL match week until mid-August, Racing jumped to seventh, San Diego shocked the Spirit, and Gotham FC kept Portland’s struggles going. 

NWSL news: Katie Stengel fires home decider as NJ/NY Gotham FC beat the Thorns at home to tie them on points

For the first time since the end of August 2022, the mighty Portland Thorns have dropped consecutive regular season matches. With the assistance of a dynamic Margaret Purce once again, and rookie Jenna Nighswonger on the left flank, Gotham FC are now even on points with Portland going into the international break.

Due to the defeat that North Carolina suffered at BMO Stadium on Sunday evening, the Thorns needed just a point to return to the top of the table.

The former Thorns shot stopper herself Abby Smith came up with four brilliant saves to deny the most potent attack in the league numerous quality chances. The best of them all came in the 51st minute when Morgan Weaver played a perfectly weighted ball into the middle of the box for Meghan Klingenberg. In what looked at first glance to be the equalizer, Klingenberg was denied by Smith who came off her line to deflect the ball away with her left boot.

While Smith has pitched just four clean sheets in the league, her ability to come up with the big time save was been something special. Last year, she sat on the bench competing in just one league match for the Oregon side. Now, the 29-year-old is piling up consistent player-of-the-week-type performances.

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In her first match since signing on loan on July 5, the Liverpool attacker Katie Stengel converted the goal that would ultimately decide the contest. It was Stengel’s first NWSL goal since 2019 when she donned a Utah Royals kit.

The proactive Juan Carlos Amorós knew his team needed a spark up top without Lynn Williams for an extended period of time. The weeks that these international stars are not here could very well make a difference.

Gotham did not want to be the club that continued to sink down the table. Securing a player that had nine goals in the 2022-2023 Women’s Super League demonstrates the ambition this side has to put themselves in the best position possible late in the campaign to make a run.