Kansas City Current fall to Houston Dash in regular-season home opener

The Kansas City Current fell behind the Houston Dash 1-0 before a goal in extra-time led to a 2-0 final in Sunday’s regular-season homer opener at Children’s Mercy Park.

A dubious penalty kick was the difference for 90-plus minutes before the Dash added their second goal in the 96th minute of play.

The Current (0-2-0) dominated the majority of the game — more shots, more possession — but couldn’t get past Jane Campbell. The Dash goalkeeper made five saves, including two massive ones in the second half, en route to the clean sheet.

“I thought Jane was magnificent tonight,” Current coach Matt Potter said. “She pulled out some really good saves and organized what was in front of her really, really well.”

The moment of controversy came in the 38th minute, when Michaela Abam squared up one-on-one with Current defender Liz Ball. Abam lost her dribble and proceeded to create contact with Ball, falling over dramatically and earning the penalty call.

After the match, questions were submitted to the referee via the NWSL’s pool reporting process:

Q: What did you see in real-time that led you to believe Elizabeth Ball (#7 KC) committed a foul that resulted in the penalty kick given?

A: From the referee’s position it was observed that a foul occurred in the penalty area against #34 of Houston Dash and therefore awarded a penalty.

Due to a lack of clarity on the exact nature of the foul, a follow-up question was submitted:

Q: What specific action by Ball (#7 KC) was not within the laws of the game?

A: #7 by KC committed a foul that impedes the movement of the attacker with contact.

Rachel Daly converted the penalty attempt, sending Current goalkeeper A.D. Franch in the wrong direction.

The Current weren’t without chances in the second half. Kristen Hamilton found herself 1-v-1 with the Houston keeper, but Campbell’s kick-save kept the hosts scoreless. Late in the second half, Lo’eau LaBonta ripped a first-time shot that seemed destined for the top corner, but Campbell again made a diving save to keep her clean sheet.

Deep into stoppage time, the Current had numbers pushed forward when Houston’s Rachel Daly played a ball over the top to send Bri Visalli in on goal. Visalli poked it past Franch and sealed the Dash’s 2-0 decision.

While the scoreline probably doesn’t reflect the course of play, Potter indicated that he felt his team was just an extra pass or touch away from putting in some of the chances it created. Franch agreed, and talked about it from her perspective in goal, where she sees plays develop in front of her.

“We’re getting opportunities the way in which we want to get them,” she said. “It’s just that final piece that we want to transition into finishing our attacks and completing the games as a whole.”

LaBonta spoke of the frustration of not being able to break through in recent matches. After a strong run through the NWSL Challenge Cup tournament, the Current have now lost three straight, starting with their semifinal defeat here against the North Carolina Courage and including last weekend’s loss at Portland.

“I think that’s the most frustrating thing for us when we don’t get the result,” LaBonta said. “We know we are so good and we’re just waiting for it to click and get over that hump, because then I think we’re going to be very deadly.”

The Current next play at the Orlando Pride on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. Central Time.

This story was originally published May 8, 2022 at 6:11 PM with the headline "Kansas City Current fall to Houston Dash in regular-season home opener."