Angel City earned their first win since May on Thursday night at BMO Stadium. The team finished their 17th game week by snagging all three points against the reigning NWSL Champions, the Orlando Pride.

Truthfully, not words I was anticipating writing when I saw that Jun Endo is still injured, and Alanna Kennedy, Katie Zelem, and Julie Dufour would be unavailable to play for excused absences. The Pride would be without star striker Barbra Banda, but for a team that is visibly going through growing pains, with a thin bench, pulling off a result on Thursday seemed like a tall task.

Head Coach Alex Straus leaned on players like Macey Hodge and Megan Reid, who hadn’t been playing as much as of late, in light of the absences. However, compared to the past couple of games, it felt like more players were in their preferred positions and it seemed to have a positive impact on the performance.

Admittedly, the first half was a bit boring. The Pride appeared happy to let Angel City have the ball and just absorb and try to provoke mistakes from which they could capitalize. Whether it was from lack of confidence or viable outlets, or a bit of both, Angel City didn’t try to force it and were happy to pass backward and try to wait for something a bit more clear cut. For the most part, both sides let each other do this for 45 minutes.

Orlando had a couple of big chances thanks to Ally Watt cutting in behind and bombing past left outside back Evelyn Shores to send in shots and crosses. Hannah Seabert started in goal again and made huge saves at the beginning of the match to keep the scoreline level.

In the second half, Angel City came out on the front foot and did not stop until the final whistle. Pride Head Coach Seb Hines’ substitutions in the second half were a bit confusing to me. Their right outside back Oihane Hernández managed to keep Alyssa Thompson quiet throughout the first 45, but came off at half time. It felt like the remainder of their attacking juice, which is already noticeably below their 2024 level, dried up as Kerry Abello came on for Carson Pickett at outside back in the 61st and Watt came off in the 79th. In the meantime, Angel City’s desire to win this game was clear, and Straus increased the attacking threat by bringing on Gisele Thompson, Christen Press, and Maiara Niehues

To Hines’ credit, by the 79th the match was still 0-0 and he maybe felt that Marta could clutch the game for them as a playmaker or with a banger. Perhaps he was okay with ending a pretty horrid, hot, two game road trip with another draw. However, Angel City’s momentum had been building throughout the second half. They seemed basically camped in Orlando’s defensive third, and rattled off an alarming 19 shots. At that point it felt like it would have been a bit of a disappointment if one didn’t find the back of the net.

In the 86th minute the scales finally tipped. Alyssa Thompson converted her first regular season goal since May after trapping a deflected shot from Riley Tiernan.

Something I want to highlight about Thursday’s game is the vibes in the stadium. There seemed to be a bit more joy in the atmosphere. I could definitely just be riding the high of a long awaited win, but it felt lighter in the crowd and on the pitch. Perhaps it was watching the players clearly and successfully executing a game plan. Maybe it was seeing some players have their best night of the season so far. Possibly previously-sidelined Captain Ali Riley’s presence on the bench or currently-recovering Savy King being in the building just elevated everything. But the roar in the stadium for Thompson’s goal was amazing. Despite BMO’s attendance numbers not being what they used to be, it was loud. It seemed cathartic for everyone. Los Angeles is a tough market to please, and it was fun to feel rewarded as a fan. The best part however, was you could see the players’ joy. They were having fun. MegaMan celly and all.

Thursday night’s game showcased, probably, Angel City’s best defensive performance in 2025. The lines were organized and compact, and the aggressiveness of the press only seemed to increase throughout the match. The whole backline had a good night minimizing the Pride’s high quality chances. Captain Sarah Gorden and Megan Reid had one of their best performances I’ve ever seen them have as a pair over one and a half seasons. Moriya Miyabi has really stepped up and pushed herself to get up to NWSL speed in G. Thompson’s absence. Even Shores turned her performance around in the second half. Each of the midfielders had great games as well. Madison Hammond and Hodge played well together in the double pivot, and Kennedy Fuller was on a tear back in her natural position in attacking midfield. Perhaps most impressive of all, Hodge made it through a whole 90+ minutes without getting a yellow card!

Young goalkeeper Angelina Anderson was not on the injury report this week, but she may still be carrying something as it was third-string keeper Hannah Stambaugh participating in the sideline warm ups throughout the game. Seabert has made a strong case to take over the #1 spot over the past couple of games. On Thursday she commanded an organized line throughout the match, assisted in the build up play, and made some very important saves. Her experience over many seasons in multiple leagues has shone through. Although I think Angel City’s long-term plan is still with Anderson, I wouldn’t be surprised if Seabert kept her spot in goal for 2025. In the post-game press conference, Straus praised both players but implied that Seabert already has the skills that he would like Anderson to continue developing. If there is a shift to Seabert as the #1, I don’t think it’s a death sentence for Anderson by any means. She is only 24 years old, is already within the USWNT picture and garnered that attention while she was a #2. Anderson seems to be a well-loved player in the locker room and a developing leader on the pitch, but she still just might not be there yet to be the #1. If Seabert stays solid and Straus sticks with her on match days, Anderson can continue her development with Seabert as a mentor.

The defense has looked better under Straus since the Kansas City game. Not perfect, but better. The piece that needs to be recovered is the offense. A little funny considering that at the beginning of the season it felt like Angel City’s only defense was offense. During the post-game press conference A. Thompson talked about the fluidity of the frontline and the team trying to have a Plan A and a Plan B while in possession. Since the summer break, A. Thompson, Tiernan, and Sveindís Jónsdóttir have been seen interchanging with each other across the line.  I think this has been a tough adjustment considering the best chances of the night were generated by midfielders. There were a few missed connections in the box and instances of Tiernan, Jónsdóttir, and A. Thompson all converging on the same spot. Hopefully this last piece comes together soon and the forwards can become more productive and efficient. Overall, Angel City won the xG battle, but it took them over 20 shots to do it. Orlando did a good job keeping Angel City out of areas for big chances, so it took a moment of brilliance and a fortuitous deflection for Angel City to earn their goal.

At the week’s end, Angel City sits one point off of the playoff line and Thursday night’s performance showed a bit more tangible proof of concept for what Straus intends to build in Los Angeles. I think this win will do great things for the squad in terms of belief as they build an identity. There are rumblings of some all but confirmed player movement that might constrain the team a bit, but overall I think the team is moving in the right direction. For now, Angel City have quite a few days off to prepare to hunt for their first win against Bay FC on Labor Day.

** Images courtesy of Angel City FC