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Kaili Torres scores for Virginia as Chantel Jones is unable to make her third successive save

Time was, it wasn’t all that unusual to witness a match at the Soccerplex in which one team scored five goals in a half. However, that team was usually the formidable W-League Washington Freedom, who could generally field a starting lineup with half-a-dozen past or future professional players, and who would completely overwhelm the typical local-girls-playing-for-the-summer W-League team. It was quite a new experience seeing the home team get beaten up this way.

 

To be sure, the Washington Spirit were extremely shorthanded, especially on the back line, with only four defenders on the game-day roster (and, given the result, one has to wonder how many of them will remain on the roster). But even an uncharacteristically grim head coach Mike Jorden admitted that wasn’t an excuse. “It doesn’t matter how many people you’re missing, really, when you’ve got 14, 15 players playing against a college team. You’ve got to do better than that.”

It only took five minutes for Virginia to get on the board, with forward Gloria Douglas managing to come straight in on the right post unmarked with all the Washington defenders to her left. Midfielder Danielle Colaprico fed her the ball. Spirit goalkeeper Chantel Jones came running out to meet her, but the ball skipped past her and in.

Douglas was also key to the next goal, as in the 24th minute she got through and into the box again. Jones blocked the initial shot, but the rebound went to Douglas, who shot again. Jones stuffed that shot as well, but the ball dribbled out to the right. Spirit players were ball-watching rather than trying to rescue Jones, and forward Kaili Torres got to the ball first. Spirit defender Diana Weigel tried to block the shot from the goalmouth, but the ball went over her and in.

Three minutes later, Jorden subbed in his two best available players, Stephanie Ochs and Tiffany McCarty, to try to get back in the game. It would take only five minutes for them to team up on the Spirit’s first goal, as Ochs drew a crowd deep on the right before sliding the ball left into space where McCarty had plenty of room to run on and easily put the ball away.

But any thoughts that Washington had gotten back into it lasted mere seconds as Virginia responded almost immediately with a clinical goal, forward Makenzy Doniak charging hard at the left post before kicking the ball back out and to the right for onrushing midfielder Amber Fry, who sent the ball in.

Three minutes later Spirit defender Skyy Anderson turned the ball over to Doniak in midfield. Doniak had an uncontested run into the box, then sent the ball from the left past Jones and into the right side netting.

Four minutes later Doniak slipped through the line on a well-timed ball from midfielder Morgan Brian. In the resulting two-on-goalkeeper break, she kept the ball herself and sent it in.

Two first-half goals from rookie forward Tiffany McCarty were one of the very few bright spots for the Spirit

In the 42nd minute – two minutes after the fifth Cavalier goal – the Spirit finally get another back as forward Caroline Miller took a through ball to the top of the box on the left. Meeting traffic there, she slid the ball into the box on the right. Tiffany McCarty had a long hard run to catch up to it, but got there first and cannoned it into the left side netting. Despite all the scoring, referee Kari Seitz blew the whistle only a few seconds into stoppage time. The scoreboard read 5-2 in favor of the visitors.

 

The Spirit changed formations to start the second half, going from a 4-2-3-1 with Miller up top to a 4-4-2 with Miller and McCarty as the forwards. Anderson was also subbed out, replaced by Weigel, while Tori Huster, normally a midfielder, took the left back position. This formation seemed to work much better for the home team as they had two good chances early. In the 48th minute, veteran midfielder Lori Lindsey sent a long ball to Miller over the top. Virginia second-half goalkeeper Churchill O’Connell had to come up with a big save on Miller’s ensuing shot. Six minutes later, after a long Spirit possession, Lindsey received a cross from the right directly in front of goal with plenty of room but somehow managed to send it just wide right.

But against the run of play on yet another defensive breakdown, substitute forward Mary Morgan in the 64th minute received a through ball from Fry and sent it into the left side netting. Meanwhile, the Spirit would finally get a second-half goal in the 73rd minute, also from their subs, as former Terrapins Olivia Wagner and Jasmyne Spencer teamed up, Wagner sending a through ball to Spencer, who from 14 yards out on the left sent the ball to the right and in. But still the final score was 6-3, not what you expect to see from a professional team, particularly after a loss to another college team just a few days before.

Head coach Mike Jorden was uncharacteristically grim after the game

Jorden was asked about the hit to the team’s confidence, going into the regular season after losing two in a row. “We’re going to take it for what it is. We’re going to look at what we can improve upon and at some of the things we did well. If anything, we’ve got players that we’ve had to put in places that they typically don’t play in, like Tori here. So we’re learning a little bit about each other every day and every week. Hopefully when the rest of the team comes in we’ll put ourselves in the right direction.”

The Washington Spirit open their regular season on the road against the Boston Breakers on Sunday at 6:30 pm. The match will be webcast. Players available for that match who weren’t available for this one should include Ali Krieger, Ashlyn Harris, Robyn Gayle, Diana Matheson, Candace Chapman, Colleen Williams, and Holly King, most of whom will start.

Their home opener is the following Saturday, April 20, at 7 pm against the Western New York Flash, who feature Abby Wambach.

Photos (other than of Jorden) courtesy of @kazlovespinoe.

Other coverage:

Beau Dure/SportsMyriad: Washington Spirit vs. Virginia: Battle of field goals

Jennifer Gordon/The Equalizer: Virginia breaks down Spirit in 6-3 win

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