Shea Groom scores to help FC Kansas City draw Sky Blue 1-1

FC Kansas City forward Shea Groom sprinted down the left side of the penalty box Saturday in Piscataway, N.J., collected the ball and lofted a shot that drifted only inches over the woodwork.

Four minutes later, another opportunity fell to her left foot. The shot again nearly skimmed the crossbar — except this time it crept inches under it.

Groom scored her second goal of the season, helping FC Kansas City secure a 1-1 draw with Sky Blue FC. It was the FC Kansas City's first road point of the season.

"Her job is to score goals, and she's starting to become that true goal scorer," FC Kansas City coach Vlatko Andonovski said in a phone interview after the match. "I was really happy with her performance."

The Blues, 1-4-3, scored first Saturday — Groom struck in the 27th minute — but Sky Blue FC equalized only three minutes later, after FC Kansas City was whistled for a foul in the penalty box. Sky Blue forward Sarah Killion stepped to the dot and buried the ensuing penalty kick into the left side of the goal.

That goal stood. Sky Blue's first tally did not. Midfielder Kim DeCesare beat FC Kansas City keeper Nicole Barnhart with a shot that clipped the crossbar and deflected downward and past the goal line. The referees, however, ruled the ball did not cross the line, and the game remained scoreless early in the first half.

Advantage, FC Kansas City.

The club buckled down defensively after halftime. Sky Blue FC, 2-3-3, unleashed only one shot in the second half after attempting six before halftime.

"We switched our positioning in the midfield so we could cut down those passes that resulted in their shots," Andonovski said. "I felt like we controlled the pace a little bit more, and our marking was very good."

This story was originally published June 11, 2016 at 8:08 PM with the headline "Shea Groom scores to help FC Kansas City draw Sky Blue 1-1."