On Saturday night, Gotham FC defeated the Washington Spirit in the National Women’s Soccer League championship game. Midfielder Rose Lavelle scored in the 80th minute to bring the final score to 1-0. “We’ve had a rollercoaster of a year, so I think to get this is the icing on the cake,” head coach Juan Carlos Amorós told ESPN’s Futbol W.
Lavelle echoed the “rollercoaster” sentiment to CBS News: “We had injuries. We had a really daunting schedule with the amount of games that we were playing, the travel. I think just like the way that every single individual stepped up in the moments, did what they were asked to, was so huge,” she said. “I think you learn the most about yourself in the toughest moments. And so, I think what we faced throughout the season really helped set us up.”
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Washington Spirit forward Trinity Rodman, a top player in the NWSL, has been suffering from a knee injury for the past few weeks and only logged 33 minutes of play time, according to the Washington Post. “I’m just grateful,” Rodman said when asked about the season. “It was very hard — the hardest season I’ve ever had.”
This is Gotham FC’s second championship win in three years and the first time an eighth-seeded team has won the title. They had another unlikely win in 2023, when there were six playoff spots and the team was the sixth seed.
