San Diego, California: Utah Royals Upset San Diego Wave 1-0 for First Playoff Win

The San Diego Wave's season ended at Snapdragon Stadium on Friday night, November 6. The seventh seeded Utah Royals beat the second seeded Wave 1-0 in the quarterfinals of the National Women's Soccer League playoffs. It was the first playoff win in Royals history and their first win over San Diego.

Kiana Palacios scored the only goal in the 30th minute. Jameese Joseph played the ball wide to Cloé Lacasse, who crossed low into the penalty area. Palacios took a touch at the penalty spot, turned, and fired a left footed shot into the right side netting. The goal was the first playoff goal in Utah's history, and it ended a goalless streak for the Royals that had run past 300 minutes.

San Diego had the better of the match on paper. The Wave outshot Utah 16 to 8 and put five shots on target to Utah's two, the Associated Press reported. San Diego came in on a seven match unbeaten run and as the second seed, with 58 points in the regular season. Utah finished seventh with 47 points, and snapped a four match winless streak with the upset.

McGlynn holds the line

Utah goalkeeper Mandy McGlynn made four saves for her sixth clean sheet. She parried a header from Melanie Barcenas low in the fifth minute and deflected a hard shot from Lia Godfrey soon after. In the 77th minute, a Gia Corley cross that swung toward the top corner forced McGlynn to readjust and push the ball away with her right hand. "Unbelievable, it's just everything you could hope for," McGlynn said after the match. "I'm like in shock, no words can describe this feeling."

Utah protected the lead through seven minutes of stoppage time at the end of the match. The Royals held San Diego scoreless at home for the first time since July 26, according to the club's recap. Utah head coach Jimmy Coenraets had named an unchanged starting lineup for the club's playoff debut.

Both teams played without midfielders. San Diego's Kimmi Ascanio was unavailable with a thigh injury, and Utah's Mina Tanaka, first listed as questionable with a hamstring injury, was ruled out before the match.

What comes next

Utah moves on to the first semifinal in club history. The Royals will travel to face the winner of the quarterfinal between the third seeded Washington Spirit and the sixth seeded Portland Thorns, who play on Sunday, November 8. For San Diego, the loss is a fourth straight playoff defeat, and a season that carried the second seed into the postseason ends at home in the first round.