It’s not solitaire the Wave are playing.
Caliber of opposition matters.
A season now half done has so far earned the ninth-place Wave a subpar grade in no small part because of stiffer competition.
The Wave lost 2-1 Wednesday night due largely to NJ/NY Gotham scoring two fabulous goals despite having 12 players unavailable. Among those sidelined were three veterans who had ed for 10 of the club’s 14 goals.
The Wave received a career-first goal from rookie Mya Jones, tying the match three minutes into the second half.
“I was like, all right, put it in the back of the net,” Jones said of her poised finish.
But even with 12 players out, Gotham showed more technical skill and preparedness than it had in any its four matches against the Wave in 2022 or 2023.
It was one thing for Gotham midfielder Rose Lavelle to unleash a wicked, 23-yard screwball for the match’s first goal.
After all, Lavelle is a world-class player in her prime. In 2019, she scored in the World Cup final and was named to that event’s All-Star team.
It’s altogether different for a bottom-roster rookie to author a sparkling goal in the final two minutes, as Gotham’s Maycee Bell — a defender, no less — did to stun the Wave before an announced crowd of 10,718.
Using her 5-foot-11 length, Bell extended a long leg to redirect a crossing and beat the tight coverage of veteran Makenzy Doniak, one of the Wave’s most physical, savvy players.
Having ed the ball to herself, Bell punched the bounder so fast neither a Wave defender nor goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan could prevent the 7-yard liner from going inside the far post.
Hells Bells. The last player off a short bench, Bell looked like a refined veteran.
Scoring against the defensively-oriented Wave generally takes moments of brilliance or something close to it.
The rub: opponents are clearing that bar far more often than in San Diego’s other seasons.
Bell’s slick finish came three days after the Wave saw another rookie, Croix Bethune of the Washington Spirit, tie them in the final minute.
All the 5-foot-3 midfielder did was defeat three world-class opponents.
“It’s devastating to lose to another late goal,” said Wave coach Casey Stoney, who’d said Saturday’s tie felt like a loss.
Wave’s problems
Sure, at times, the Wave are making opponents look better than they are.
Lavelle’s goal, for example, came after Wave allowed her to dribble unchallenged some 15 yards. A Wave turnover gave Lavelle the ball.
The Wave turned in a poor first half. Their much-improved build-up game vanished. Gotham took away catalyst Danielle Colaprico, who looked tired. The Wave were outshot 9–2, out-possessed by 22 percentage points and put no shots on goal in the 45 minutes.
“We made sloppy errors, technical errors,” Stoney said. “We got rushed and didn’t make good decisions. We kept turning the ball over, and they were hurting us. We spent too much time without the ball.”
The Wave (3-5-5) are the NWSL’s most disappointing team in the season’s first half, in defense of their regular-season title. They’re winless in seven road matches. They’ve scored multiple goals in just two matches.
In four of their past eight matches, the Wave have allowed a goal in the 87th minute or later. Their record from that fallout: 0-3-1.
Alex Morgan, who missed four games with an ankle injury, is scoreless this season after netting 22 goals in her previous 35 regular-season matches with San Diego. Savannah McCaskill, who had 11 goals with Angel City over the past two years, seeks her first goal, as does wing Maria Sanchez. Thirteen games to go.
“We need to do a deep dive on why we’re not winning games,” said Stoney, adding that it’s her “responsibility to make things better.”
The Wave play Saturday in Houston, concluding a trip with their third match in eight days.
