San Diego Wave FC came out with a dramatic 1-0 victory over the Seattle Reign on Friday, March 29 at Snapdragon Stadium for its first victory over the West Coast adversaries.

San Diego dominated the match and created the best scoring opportunities throughout starting with a shot in the 39th minute from 25 yards out by midfielder Savannah McCaskill that hit the post after a slight deflection by the Seattle defense. The Wave kept up the pressure in the second half bringing in midfielder Emily van Egmond right after halftime in a move that would eventually pay dividends.

After both teams ended the 90 minutes of regulation tied 0-0, Wave forward Alex Morgan scored what looked to be the game-winner in the 92nd minute on a beautiful header from five yards out, but the goal was disallowed after the play was ruled offside despite there being no VAR review by the referee.

Despite the momentary setback, San Diego did not relent in its attack and found that overdue goal in the 98th minute when van Egmond took advantage of a rebound inside the box and slotted her right-footed shot past the outstretched arm of goalkeeper Claudia Dickey.

“This is a massive three points that is going to boost us for the two games coming up,” said van Egmond.

San Diego goes on the road for back-to-back matches against Racing Louisville on April 13 and Orlando Pride on April 19 before returning home to take on Bay FC on April 27. San Diego’s victory over Reign was the first in the 10 games against the team from Seattle, which includes Challenge Cup play.

“I thought we deserved it,” said Wave head coach Casey Stoney. “I think we were the better team in terms of chances created in the first half and the players were able to build on it.”

Photos by David Frerker