The Utah Royals have just two matches left in the regular season and they are two spots out of the playoffs. Now they’re in Washington D.C. to face the Washington Spirit, here’s what you need to know ahead of the match:
1. Things were looking bad for the Royals in New Jersey on Saturday after they went down 2-0 thanks to a brace from Katie Johnson, but an own goal and a screamer from Amy Rodriguez salvaged a point from the match and kept Utah’s playoff hopes alive.
A-Rod’s goal brought her total to 3 goals and 1 assist on the season, but it’s Katie Stengel who leads Utah with 5. With her assist to Rodriguez, Christine Press now has 2 goals and 2 assists, Diana Matheson has 2 goals and 1 assist, and Brittany Ratcliffe has 2 goals.
2. Utah is 2-0-0 against the Washington Spirit this season and a road win is crucial to keeping their playoff hopes alive. Here are the matches that will impact Utah this week:
Tuesday, August 21: Houston Dash (7th) at Seattle Reign (2nd)
Wednesday, August 22: Sky Blue (9th) at Portland Thorns (3rd)
Saturday, August 25: Chicago Red Stars (4th) at Orlando Pride (5th)
Saturday, August 25: Portland Thorns (3rd) at Washington Spirit (1st)
Saturday, August 25: Sky Blue (9th) at Houston Dash (7th)
3. The Washington Spirit sit in 8th place with a record of 2-15-4 and 10 points. The Spirit fell in Houston 4-0 on Friday and haven’t won any points since their 0-0 draw with Seattle on June 16th. The Spirit are 2-5-2 at home this season while Utah is 3-4-4 on the road. Ashley Hatch leads Washington with 4 goals and 1 assist, Francisca Ordega has 3 goals, and Mallory Pugh has 2 goals and 1 assist.
Utah Royals at Washington Spirit kicks off on Wednesday, August 22nd at 5:30 PM.
