Houston, Texas (Friday, April 25, 2025) - Utah Royals FC (1-1-4, 4 pts.) fall 1-0 to Houston Dash (2-1-3, 7 pts.) at Shell Energy Stadium. Tonight's loss marks the first against Houston since Utah’s reiteration into the league last season, falling to 1-1-1.
Head Coach Jimmy Coenraets opted for two changes after last week's win against the Chicago Stars starting midfielder Cece Kizer in the middle, pushing Ally Sentnor out wide, and playing forward Brecken Mozingo on the left wing. Janni Thomsen moved further back to her familiar right back position. Rookie midfielder Aria Nagai made her professional debut, entering the match for new signing Cece Kizer.
Utah Royals midfielder Claudia Zornoza exited the match early, coming off in the 23rd minute. Lauren Flynn replaced the Spaniard to make her 2025 season-debut after coming off of the season ending injury list, recovering from bilateral compartment syndrome in the lower legs.
The best chance for the Royals came from a run down the middle by Sentnor who was fouled by Danielle Colaprico. Sentnor took the resulting free kick which arced over the wall of three but fell into the hands of fellow USWNT player, Jane Campbell.
The last chance of the half came from a Houston corner kick in first half stoppage time. The header from Graham was initially blocked by Thomsen before trickling into Mandy McGlynn’s hands.
The Royals started the second half with energy and possession, building up the pitch, leading to early shots from Kizer and Thomsen. Sentnor had another quality look stopped by Campbell, an opportunity earned by pressing the Dash higher up the pitch. A big clearance from McGlynn found Mozingo downfield, but the forward’s lobbed attempt rebounded off the crossbar and out.
Despite McGlynn stopping multiple one on one opportunities from Houston. The lone goal of the night came for the Houston Dash after an attempted clearance from Thomsen fell at the feet of Delanie Sheehan who found the top right corner of the goal from outside the box.
Utah Royals FC return to America First Field next Saturday, May 3 to take on North Carolina Courage. Kickoff is set for 8 PM MT. Broadcast will be available on ION TV, tickets are available for purchase here.
HOU 1 : 0 UTA
GOAL-SCORING SUMMARY:
Houston Dash: Delanie Sheehan (unassisted) 80’: After an attempted clearance by Utah, Delanie Sheehan takes a right footed shot from outside the box to the top right corner following a set piece situation.
LINEUPS:
Utah Royals FC (4-2-3-1): Mandy McGlynn, Janni Thomsen, Kate Del Fava ©, Ana Tejada, Nuria Rábano, Dana Foederer, Claudia Zornoza (Lauren Flynn, 23’), Ally Sentnor, Cece Kizer (Aria Nagai, 65’), Brecken Mozingo (Macey Fraser, 78’), Aisha Solorzano (Madison Pogarch, 79’)
Subs not used: Mia Justus, Ana Maria Guzman, Mikayla Cluff, Imani Dorsey, Sydney Jones
Houston Dash (3-4-3): Jane Campbell; Paige Nielsen, Katie Lind, Christen Westphal; Avery Patterson, Danielle Colaprico (Diana Ordóñez, 69’), Delanie Sheehan, Ryan Gareis; Maggie Graham, Messiah Bright (Bárbara Olivieri, 62’), Yazmeen Ryan
Subs not used: Liz Beardsley, Kiki Van Zanten, Sophie Schmidt, Sarah Puntigam, Belle Briede, Rebeca, Abby Smith
Stats Summary: HOU / UTA
Possession: 43 / 57
Shots: 7 / 13
Shots on Goal: 4 / 5
Corner Kicks: 5 / 2
Fouls: 8 / 9
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY:
HOU: Danielle Colaprico (Yellow Card - 27’)
UTA: Ana Tejada (Yellow Card - 73’)
UTA: Nuria Rábano (Yellow Card - 86’)
HOU: Bárbara Olivieri (Yellow Card - 89’)
