Spirit Take On Chicago Tonight

The Washington Spirit are heading to Chicago after two weeks off to play the league-leading Chicago Red Stars tonight at 8 p.m.

“The team has arrived back from a short break looking fresh and hungry for the challenge at Chicago this weekend,” said general manager and head coach Mark Parsons. “The level in training this week has been extremely high and I know we can take this in to the game and perform.”

You can watch the game live here.

Statistically, the Spirit and Red Stars are even over the first half of the season with each having 47 and 58 shots on goal. Meanwhile, Spirit goalkeeper Kelsey Wys and Red Stars goalkeeper Michele Dalton have held their teams to close games only allowing ten goals and six goals, respectively, according to a Spirit press release.

The Chicago Red Stars have been a dominant force up front with rookie forward Sofia Huerta scoring six goals in eight games played for the Red Stars, and Vanessa DiBernardo having five assists in eight games played. Huerta was named NWSL player of the month for May for her constant pressure upfront and clinical goal scoring. Huerta and Crystal Dunn are both tied with six goals each in the NWSL, according to the Spirit.

However, the Chicago Red Stars have struggled in their last two games, receiving their first loss against Western New York Flash and a tie against the Seattle Reign. Chicago will come out strong against the Spirit as they look to come away with a win in front of their home crowd and hold on to their first place spot, according to the news release.

The Washington Spirit backline of Megan Oyster, Whitney Church, Estelle Johnson and Katherine Reynolds need to be strong in front of goalkeeper Kelsey Wys in order for the Spirit to stay evenly matched against the attacking force of the Red Stars. The Spirit’s attacking core includes Amanda Da Costa, Dunn and Christine Nairn. The three have combined for several goals in the last three games and their strength up top will be key to the Spirit’s success this Saturday.

The Washington Spirit are back on their home field on June 27 when they take on the Houston Dash. Washington Spirit single game tickets and group packages are now available.

About Krista Brick

Krista Brick is a multi-media journalist with Montgomery Community Media.

View all posts by Krista Brick