With Rachel Kundananji, Bay FC’s most dynamic offensive player, firing on all cylinders, the Houston Dash stood no chance of dashing the Bay’s playoff dreams in the team’s first season.
“I’m just very happy and proud of the players and happy for the fans that have supported this all season long,” noted Bay FC coach Albertin Montoya after their 3-2 victory over Houston. “We like to make it exciting every single game, so I guess maybe that’s why the fans enjoy watching us play.”
Bay FC entered their final regular-season game needing either a win or draw against Houston on the road to clinch a playoff spot and eliminate Racing Louisville. Fortunately, the visitors got the perfect start.
In the 10th minute, on a free kick, Dorian Bailey lofted a ball into the middle of the penalty box, which the Dash’s Paige Nielsen deflected into her own goal.
Houston, however, responded almost immediately, scoring in the 14th minute. A through ball found Bárbara Olivieri, who ran in unmarked on goal and slotted her shot past Katelyn Rowland.
But then Kundananji took over for Bay FC.
First, in the 19th minute, Rachel began terrorizing Dash defender Neilsen by dribbling by her and unleashing a shot from a sharp angle that hit off the far woodwork.
Two minutes later, Kundananji got another opportunity on a corner kick when the ball fell to her. She one-timed the ball into the net before Dash goalie Heather Hinz could respond.
“If you are being around people who are supporting you, even if you make a mistake, they are just keeping on lifting you up. It’s very easy to do wonders,” noted Kundananji.
Rachel had three more shots in the half, with one hitting off the crossbar again, and Bay entered the half with a 2-1 lead.
“She is very talented. She has that in her, so the fact that she stepped up and played the way she did, you know, that’s what we know we can get out of Rachel,” said Montoya.
The lead quickly disappeared in the opening minute of the second half when Bay FC was caught napping on defense. Houston’s Yuki Nagasato found her teammate Avery Patterson out wide unmarked. Patterson then dribbled into the box, wrong-footed Bay defender Savy King, and placed her shot perfectly inside the far post to tie the game 2-2.
But once again, Kundananji came to the rescue for Bay FC.
In the 54th minute, she received the ball well out wide, dribbled her way past Neilsen, and ran in on goal. With the Dash defense scrambling to cover her, Kundananji snuck the ball past Hinz with the outside of her right foot to help Bay regain the lead.
Bay was not seriously challenged by Houston after Kundananji’s goal. Rachel had the two best chances to add to Bay FC’s lead after she again wrong-footed Neilsen in the 75th minute and almost scored from a tight angle. In the 86th minute, she again hit the woodwork for the third time in the game.
“She’s just such a pleasure to work with,” noted Montoya about Kundananji. “Her energy and her positivity, the players feed off that. So couldn’t be happier, prouder for her.”
When the final whistle blew, Bay FC’s players celebrated their victory, clinching either the seventh or eighth seed in the NWSL playoffs. Their eleven wins are also the most in league history for an expansion side in their first year.
In the post-game press conference, Montoya reflected on all the work it took to reach their goal of making the playoffs.
“We have gone through a lot, and we’ve come together, and there’s a belief and an understanding of how we want to play, how we treat each other on and off the field, and the players genuinely care about each other, and they want to help each other be successful, and that’s a big part for any team to be successful,” Montoya explained.
Kundananji also reflected and appreciated her team and teammates after the game.
“This is a special team, which, from the word go, we didn’t start well,” she explained. “And in the end of the season, we had to pull up our socks, and here we are now in the playoffs.”
Next up for Bay FC is their first-ever playoff game against either the first-place Orlando Pride on Friday, November 8, or Washington Spirit on Sunday, November 10.
