Natalie Means scored a late goal and Denver Summit welcomed U.S. national team captain Lindsey Heaps to the club with a 2-1 home victory over the Portland Thorns on Saturday in front of a sellout crowd of more than 12,000.
Heaps started for Denver (5-4-4) after spending four seasons with Lyon. Summitt announced the deal in January, but she first needed to finish the season with the French club.
Portland (8-5-3) took a 1-0 lead on a penalty kick by Sophia Wilson in the 23rd minute.
Jeanine Sonis put the visitors ahead 1-1 in first-half stoppage time, and Means scored her first professional goal in the 86th minute with an angleless shot from outside the box.
Gotham comes from behind to win against Rain
Esther González scored twice and Rose Lovell added the game-winning goal as Gotham FC (9-3-3) erased a two-goal deficit late in the game and defeated the visiting Seattle Reign 3-2.
Mia Fishel converted a penalty kick in the 14th minute to give Seattle a 1-0 lead, and Maddy Mercado made it 2-0 on a feed from Maddie Darian in the 22nd minute.
The Reign (5-7-2) also earned a penalty in the 50th minute, but Darian’s shot hit the post.
González cut the lead in half in the 81st minute, then scored the equalizer four minutes into stoppage time. Three minutes later, Sam Kerr slotted it into Rose Lovell to seal the win.
With this win, Gotham overtook the San Diego Wave for the top spot in the NWSL standings. The game, played at Icahn Stadium on Randall Island, was delayed more than two hours due to inclement weather.
Carly Lema’s two goals lead Bay FC
Visiting Bay FC (5-6-3) defeated North Carolina Courage 3-0, with Carly Lema scoring two goals in the first half.
Lema beat multiple defenders and got past goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan to score the opening goal in the 14th minute. Three minutes later, it was 2-0. Lema has now scored in three games in a row, scoring four goals in that span.
Rachel Kundananji intercepted Courage’s pass and slotted it into the goal for the final height.
Goaltender Jordan Silkowitz made five saves for his second straight clean sheet and fourth of the season.
Courage (6-5-3) has dropped back-to-back games.
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