The San Diego Wave hosted the Portland Thorns at Snapdragon Stadium this Saturday, September 28.
This was the second time the teams were meeting in San Diego this year, but the first in NWSL league play.
Both teams are on the edge of the very competitive NWSL playoff race, as this was an important clash. San Diego had defeated Portland 3-2 when they played in the CONCACAF Champions Cup and were trying to ride on that momentum.
Landon Donovan tinkered with his lineup a bit and decided to bench Melanie Barcenas, while playing Amirah Ali at striker and Makenzy Doniak as an attacking midfielder.
The Wave controlled possession for most of the match but struggled to generate much offensive play in the opening 45 minutes. Both teams did not have much action in first half and saved it all for the second half.
The second half was a completely different game at Snapdragon Stadium, with both teams pushing forward. Landon Donovan made a pair of key substitutions in the 59th minute as Melanie Barcenas and Mya Jones replaced Makenzy Doniak and Amirah Ali.