HOUSTON (Nov. 2, 2024) – The Houston Dash closed the regular season with a 3-2 loss to Bay FC at Shell Energy Stadium on Saturday evening. The match featured the second largest crowd of the season with 8,176 fans in the venue for the contest. The club also celebrated its annual Fan Appreciation Night, presented by Verizon, and festivities included a postgame message from team captain Jane Campbell, who missed tonight’s match due to a thigh injury.
Bay FC took the lead in the 10th minute following a free kick outside the box. Dash defender Paige Nielsen attempted to clear the cross, but her clearance found the back of the net for an own goal.
Katy, Texas native Barbara Olivieri scored the equalizer in the 14th minute after midfielder Sarah Puntigam played a ball into the final third. This is the fourth goal of the season for Olivieri, who has now scored in three consecutive league games.
The Dash backline cleared a corner kick in the 21st minute, but Racheal Kundananji capitalized on the loose ball to give Bay FC the lead.
Rookie defender Avery Patterson scored the equalizer in the 46th minute. Forward Yuki Nagasato found the defender in the open field and Patterson created space for a shot that found the bottom corner of the far post. This is the first goal of the year for Patterson.
Bay FC scored the go-ahead goal in the 54th minute after Kundananji dribbled toward the near post for her second goal of the evening.
Olivieri tallied Houston’s first shot of the match in the seventh minute after Bay FC cleared a corner kick. The rebound fell to Olivieri, but her effort went over the top corner of the far post.
Dash goalkeeper Heather Hinz made her first save of the evening in the 29th minute when she denied Rachel Hill at the far post. This was the first NWSL start for the rookie and her third appearance of the year. The University of South Carolina product made her professional debut in the NWSL x Liga MX Summer Cup earlier this year. Hinz finished with five saves against Bay FC tonight.
Houston nearly equalized in the 33rd minute following a corner kick. Captain Natalie Jacobs headed the ball towards goal but the ball was cleared by the Bay FC backline.
Forward Ryan Gareis forced a save in the 41st minute with an effort from the edge of the box. Gareis is one of two players to return from maternity leave this year. The forward made her regular season debut on Sept. 15 on the road against the Washington Spirit.
Houston nearly equalized in the 63rd minute after Patterson played the ball into the box. Midfielder Sophie Schmidt was well positioned to strike the ball, but her effort was cleared near the goal line.
The Dash weren’t far from forcing the Bay FC backline to make a mistake of their own in the 78th minute of the match. A ball deflected off defender Caprice Dydasco and was making its way toward the Bay FC goal, but goalkeeper Katelyn Rowland was able to recover to make the save.
The Dash finished with a 5-16-5 (WLD) record and tallied eight clean sheets this season. Today’s match was delayed by 50 minutes due to inclement weather near the stadium.
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