A header from Alex Morgan in the 88th minute proved to make all the difference as San Diego Wave FC defeated NJ/NY Gotham FC 1-0 at Red Bull Arena Friday night to claim the 2024 NWSL Challenge Cup. The goal came from a corner, taken by Savannah McCaskill who joined the Wave in free agency during the offseason.
In a game where shots on target were few and far between, much of the action was in the midfield. San Diego seized their opportunity against a Gotham team that seemed to lose steam as the game drew to a close, shown four yellow card cautions in the final 21 minutes of the match (Delanie Sheehan 69’, Esther Gonzalez 72’, Nealy Martin 75’, Bruninha 90’).
The home crowd of over 14,000 at Red Bull Arena welcomed back the 2023 NWSL Champions, witnessing club debuts for Maycee Bell, Tierna Davidson, Crystal Dunn, Cassie Miller, Emily Sonnett, and Ella Stevens.
San Diego Wave FC: Sheridan, Westphal (Torpey 61’), Dahlkemper, Girma, Lundkvist, van Egmond, Doniak (Colaprico 71’), McCaskill, Shaw (Ali 90’+1’), Bennett (Jakobsson 60’), Carusa (Morgan 46’)
Subs not used: Beall, Messner, Enge, Barcenas
NJ/NY Gotham FC: Miller, O’Hara (Stevens 85’), Davidson, Bruninha, Martin, Ryan (Sonnett 66’), Lopez (Bell 85’), Sheehan, González, Stengel (Dunn 66’), Purce (Nighswonger 76’)
Subs not used: Betos, Freeman, Hiatt, Torres
