USL Super League | Tuesday, March 31, 2026 | 7:30 p.m. CT Cotton Bowl Stadium | Dallas, TX Broadcast: WFAA+, Peacock, TUDN Radio
Dallas Trinity FC (8-7-5, 29 points) hosts defending champion Tampa Bay Sun FC (3-8-9, 18 points) at the Cotton Bowl on Tuesday night. The Golden Girls need three points. DC and Spokane both sit three points back with games in hand, and with seven matches remaining after Tuesday, there is no room left for dropped points at home against the team at the bottom of the table.
Tampa Bay arrives off a 2-0 road win over DC Power on Thursday — their most complete performance in weeks. Faith Webber opened the scoring with a technically impressive finish in the 10th minute, midfielder Jilly Shimkin sealed it with her first professional goal, and goalkeeper Emory Wegener earned her second clean sheet of the season. Denise Schilte-Brown‘s squad went to Audi Field with a plan, and they executed it. Dallas cannot afford to treat Tuesday as a formality.
Recovery Report
Dallas Trinity FC: Lauren Flynn (lower leg) and Sydney Cheesman (concussion protocol) are both listed as questionable.
Tampa Bay Sun FC: Four players are out. Forwards Parker Goins (knee), Hannah Keane (quad), and Farrah Walters (quad) are all unavailable, as is midfielder Yuki Watari (knee).
Dallas
Nathan Thackeray has a full week between matches for the first time since February, and the extra days in training will matter.
The back line is the biggest question heading into Tuesday. Flynn has been Dallas’ most reliable center back all season, and Cheesman made her professional debut just nine days ago. She’s being evaluated after picking up a knock in training. If both are ruled out, Thackeray will likely turn to Hannah Davison and Maya McCutcheon to fill the gap.
Dallas has the attacking personnel to make life difficult for a Sun side that has conceded 30 goals in 20 matches, second-worst in the league. Set pieces have been a growing weapon in recent weeks, and against a team that gave up a similar kind of goal to DC on Thursday, that threat is worth building on, but Dallas must find a way to finish their chances and capitalize on opportunities when they present themselves.
Players to Watch:
Heather Stainbrook — She has been Dallas’s most consistent attacking presence since joining the squad during winter break, with two goals and an assist on the season already, and a relentless engine in the middle of the park. Tampa Bay struggled to contain central runners against DC, and Stainbrook’s ability to arrive late into the box at exactly the right moment is the kind of problem that defense has not solved. “We’ll keep working on the things we can control,” she said after last Sunday. “Playing our game, putting this one behind us, and win as many games as we can.”
Amber Wisner — The captain has anchored this defense through every lineup change Thackeray has had to make this spring. With Flynn and Cheesman both questionable, her ability to organize the back line and stay composed under pressure may be the most important factor in Tuesday’s result.
Bethany Bos — She came within inches of opening the scoring against Sporting JAX before her concussion exit and has been central to Dallas’s attack all spring. Her directness and ability to draw fouls in dangerous areas makes her a genuine threat from the opening whistle. If Bos can get it going, Dallas can really open the match up.
Tampa Bay Sun FC
The defending champions have not defended their title well — 18 points from 20 matches is a long way from last season’s standard. But Thursday’s result was a real one, and Schilte-Brown has a group that showed against DC what they look like when the pieces connect. Tampa Bay will be without three forwards and a midfielder on Tuesday, which thins their attacking options considerably.
Faith Webber — Technically gifted and dangerous in tight spaces, Webber set the tone inside the first ten minutes on Thursday with a goal that required composure and improvisation in equal measure. Against a Dallas back line that may look unfamiliar on Tuesday, she is the player most capable of making them pay early.
Jordyn Listro — One of Tampa Bay’s original signings and a Canadian international, Listro has been the Sun’s primary creative force all season. From her number ten role she controls tempo, links midfield to attack, and finds runners in behind. She set up both goals against DC on Thursday. How Dallas’s midfield handles her early will go a long way toward deciding how the match unfolds.
Jilly Shimkin — She has featured in 14 matches this season and now carries the confidence of a first professional goal. Players who break through a milestone like that tend to show up differently in the matches that follow.
What’s at Stake
Three points would keep Dallas in the playoff picture with breathing room. Anything less hands DC and Spokane an opening they would not waste. The Cotton Bowl on a Tuesday night with this much riding on the result is the kind of environment this team has thrived in at home. Samar Guidry put the mentality plainly after Sunday. “We’re not a team built on excuses. We’re built on opportunities.”
It is also World Cup Preview Night, with a DTFC Countries of the World jersey giveaway upon entry while supplies last.
PROJECTED DALLAS TRINITY FC LINEUP (4-2-3-1): Tyler McCamey; Cyera Hintzen, Hannah Davison, Amber Wisner (C), Samar Guidry; Wayny Balata, Heather Stainbrook; Chioma Ubogagu, Lexi Missimo, Sealey Strawn; Bethany Bos
PROJECTED TAMPA BAY SUN FC LINEUP (4-3-2-1): Emory Wegener; Sabrina McNeill, Taylor Chism, Vivianne Bessette, Victoria Haugen; Sandrine Gaillard, Gabby Provenzano, Jordyn Listro (C); Sydny Nasello, Faith Webber; Jilly Shimkin