Suggesting a loss can feel like a win might be a tired sports cliche, but Bay FC players feel they gained momentum in one such case recently.
It was Sept. 20 when the improving expansion side hosted the undefeated Orlando Pride at PayPal Park. Bay FC went toe-to-toe with the league leaders, back and forth for 84 minutes — many of which saw Bay taking the play to the Pride. In the end, the Shield leaders found a way, scoring the only goal of the night on a gorgeous Carson Pickett cross that found Barbra Banda’s head and then the back of the net.
“It’s actually funny in thinking we actually gained momentum from that game because it was a loss,” goalkeeper Katelyn Rowland told The Equalizer last week. “But there were so many positives that came out of it. It is just propelling us forward for sure.”
Bay FC currently occupies the eighth and final playoff spot with four games left in the National Women’s Soccer League season. That might not sound remarkable, but for an expansion team that started the season by losing seven of its first nine games — while bleeding 20 goals — it is an incredible position to be in.
At the heart of the team’s turnaround has been a focus on defending, a topic head coach Albertin Montoya has openly admitted was a secondary focus to attacking when the season began.
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