LOS ANGELES — The games are winding down on the 2026 NWSL season and Angel City Football Club isn’t going away without a fight.
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Ally Sentnor converted a first-half penalty kick and Ary Borges scored, leading Angel City to a two-goal halftime advantage on the way to a 3-1 victory over the Seattle Reign on Wednesday night at BMO Stadium. With six games remaining in the regular season, Angel City (10-8-6, 36 points) now sits one point out of eighth place – the final playoff spot in the 16-team league.
Ninth-place Seattle (11-9-4) entered the game with a four-point lead over Angel City. In addition to gaining ground on Seattle, Angel City is now four points ahead of the 10th-place Denver Summit (8-8-8, 32 points).
“After the last game, we knew how important it was come away with a win,” Angel City forward Taylor Suarez said. “We knew it was a playoff game for us and we knew how important these points were.”
Now in its fifth season, Angel City has qualified for the NWSL playoffs just once (2023).
Suarez put the game away with a goal in the 81st minute, just moments after she came on as a substitute. Officially, the time between her entrance and goal was 21 seconds, making her the quickest in league history.
Sentnor opened the scoring with her successful penalty kick in the 20th minute after a Seattle defender was ruled to have committed a handball infraction. Sentnor stood over the ball and tucked it into the left corner.
Borges made it 2-0 in the 40th minute. Off of a corner kick, Borges found herself with space atop the 6-yard box and redirected the kick into the goal. The assist was Evelyn Shores’ team-leading sixth of the season.
Sofia Huerta finally got Seattle on the scoreboard in the early stages of second-half stoppage time, denying Angel City goalkeeper Angelina Anderson her eighth shutout of the season.
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The win gives Angel City an interesting split so far this season, with identical five-win, 18-point totals at home and on the road.
“I think there is a competitive spirit in us now, that I like a lot,” interim coach Leif Smerud said. “And in football, that really pays off. It’s a lot of pressure going into this game and we knew how important it was and to deal with that in the way we did, I’m very impressed by the team and the players.”
The response for Angel City came after a 3-3 draw against Denver on Friday. Angel City trailed 3-1 in the second half in that game but managed to rally for the draw.
Wednesday’s game was much calmer than the first meeting between the teams. Back on Aug. 9, Angel City needed a 72nd minute goal from Prisca Chilufya to secure a point in a 2-2 draw. Angel City led 1-0 after the 32nd minute, only to have the Reign respond in the 50th and 52nd minutes.
Wednesday’s win is just the third at home for Angel City in its limited history against Seattle.
Now comes an important stretch of the season for Angel City with the next four games on the road, starting Sunday at the Utah Royals. After that, the team heads east, visiting the Washington Spirit (Sept. 26) and NY/NJ Gotham FC (Oct. 4) before the international break. Then after the break, Angel City visits Denver (Oct. 17).
Angel City’s final two regular-season games are at home, Oct. 24 against Bay FC at BMO Stadium and the regular-season finale on Nov. 1 against Boston Legacy FC at Dignity Health Sports Park.
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