Dallas Trinity FC 2, Tampa Bay Sun FC 0
Dallas Trinity FC got what it came for. Two goals before the half hour, a clean sheet held without serious threat, and three points on a warm Saturday evening in Tampa that tightened the Golden Girls’ grip on the final playoff spot with one match left.
The win over Tampa Bay Sun FC keeps Dallas (10-10-7, 37 points) in fourth place, clear by just one point over Spokane Zephyr FC (8-9-10, 36 points).
DC Power FC was eliminated from contention Saturday night (when Dallas won), and then Spokane beat them 1-0 at ONE Spokane Stadium. One playoff spot remains. Both Dallas and Spokane have one match to play.
Partly cloudy and 85 degrees greeted kickoff at Suncoast Credit Union Field, and Dallas had the lead before Tampa had time to settle. Amber Wisner played it out of midfield to Camryn Lancaster, Lancaster found Samar Guidry on the right side, and Guidry drove a right-footed shot from at least three yards outside the box into the bottom left corner.
One minute and 32 seconds. The fastest goal in club history.
“It was so exciting,” Guidry said afterward. “I feel like I’ve been waiting for one and it was just perfectly lined up for me. All I really had to do was just take it, so I’m excited.”
It was her first professional goal, across 24 matches in her first year with the club.
Nathan Thackeray sent out a 4-2-3-1 with Hannah Davison and Maya McCutcheon at center back, Cyera Hintzen at left back alongside Guidry on the right, Wisner captaining the double pivot with Sydney Cheesman, and Lancaster, Sealey Strawn, and Jasmine Hamid behind Allie Thornton up top. Lauren Flynn, the projected starter at center back, did not feature.
Dallas doubled the lead in the 27th. Strawn slipped a through ball in behind the Tampa defense, Lancaster collected it in stride, took on her defender one-on-one inside the box, and buried a right-footed finish to the top right corner for her fourth goal of the season, tied for the team lead.
“We’ve been working really hard,” Lancaster said. “Every single week, no matter the final score, we’re learning from the result that happened. We’ve been coming to training focused and having a good mindset heading into the next match.”
It was Strawn’s first assist of the season.
Wisner picked up a yellow card in the 32nd minute following a delay for a Lancaster knock. McCutcheon was cautioned in the 53rd. Neither changed how Dallas played.
Tampa had its moments in the second half. Sydny Nasello tested Tyler McCamey in the 56th and 60th. Shea Connors forced saves in the 60th and 84th off Jillian Shimkin‘s service, and McCamey had to be sharp each time. But Dallas won 88 percent of its tackles on the night and never allowed Tampa to build anything sustained. McCamey made five saves and finished with her second personal clean sheet of the season, 48 on the year across 14 matches, and a seventh for the team.
Thackeray was measured in his assessment. “I want us to do everything with a level of intensity that opposing teams struggle to match. It’s also important, in the right moments, that we can be calm and control the tempo of the game. We knew in the second half that they were going to push and try to come after us a little bit. I was happy with our intensity and composure to combat their efforts.”
Fifteen players saw action for Dallas. The series with Tampa Bay finishes 1-1-1 this season, 2-3-3 all-time including playoffs.
Spokane’s win Saturday night means the Zephyr trails by one point heading into their home finale against Brooklyn FC next Saturday.
Dallas hosts Fort Lauderdale United FC (5-13-8, 23 points) at the Cotton Bowl on May 16 at 7:30 p.m. CT. It is Fan Appreciation Night and the final home match of Amber Wisner‘s career. The captain has played every minute of every match across Dallas Trinity FC’s two-year Super League existence. A win clinches a second straight playoff berth. The match airs on KFAA (Ch. 29) and streams on WFAA+, Peacock, and TUDN Radio.
DALLAS TRINITY FC McCamey; Guidry, McCutcheon, Davison, Hintzen; Wisner (C), Cheesman; Lancaster, Strawn, Hamid; Thornton Substitutions: Ubogagu for Hamid (71′), Bos for Thornton (72′), Missimo for Lancaster (86′), Swann for Cheesman (88′)
TAMPA BAY SUN FC Beardsley; Hendrix, Bessette, Chism; Haugen, Listro (C), Heilferty, McNeill; Nasello, Connors, Giammona Substitutions: Shimkin for Haugen (23′), Pokorny for McNeill (46′), Webber for Giammona (65′), Provenzano for Listro (83′), Mauron for Heilferty (83′)
SCORING SUMMARY 2′ — DAL: Samar Guidry (Camryn Lancaster) 27′ — DAL: Camryn Lancaster (Sealey Strawn)
DISCIPLINE 32′ — DAL: Amber Wisner (Yellow Card) 38′ — TB: Jordyn Listro (Yellow Card) 53′ — DAL: Maya McCutcheon (Yellow Card) 62′ — TB: Brooke Hendrix (Yellow Card)