Rodman hot streak continues as Washington Spirit battle past Utah Royals: Match report
Trinity Rodman scored her eighth goal in 12 games as the Spirit ground out a tough win in Utah.
The Washington Spirit had to grind it out once again, but between some rugged defending and Trinity Rodman's eighth goal of the season had just enough in the tank to claim a 1-0 road win over the Utah Royals Wednesday night.
Rodman's goal came shortly after an 80-minute lightning delay, and though the hosts created a far higher volume of looks at goal, the Spirit managed the late pressure to pick up a third straight win, and a sixth victory in seven.
An arduous schedule has tested the Spirit's depth all season, but a fifth midweek match of the campaign saw Adrián González make just two changes from Sunday's win over the Denver Summit. Leicy Santos, after making a major impact off the bench despite resting a nagging foot knock, replaced Andi Sullivan in the midfield, while Élisabeth Tsé stepped into the back four for Kate Wiesner.
It was a meeting between two of the most prolific scoring sides in the NWSL, and Utah showed their teeth straight away. Mina Tanaka didn't get proper contact on two promising early looks, while Cece Delzer and Cloé Lacasse turned angled bids into narrow misses.
The Spirit's sporadic threats before the delay were never better than a counterattack in the 23rd minute that saw Paige Metayer's cross pick out Rodman. Rodman beat Kate Del Fava to the spot, but could only guide the ball wide. Seconds later, referee Matt Thompson cleared the field due to the powerful storms on the Wasatch Front.
The Metayer-to-Rodman threat didn't work out before the delay, but it created the opener in the 28th minute. After fine work from Sofia Cantore and Hal Hershfelt to push play forward, Metayer stormed past Nuria Rábano to square a low ball behind the Utah back line, while Rodman won the battle with Tatumn Milazzo to supply the finish.
Come for Metayer's delightful assist to Rodman, stay for the celly with Cantore
— Hey Spirits! (@heyspirits.bsky.social) July 29, 2026 at 11:00 PM
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Utah's direct play still caused worries, with Sandy MacIver having to race out of her area multiple times to snuff out threats. However, the next truly good look went the Spirit's way after Rodman jumped on a poor 41st-minute pass at the back from Kaleigh Riehl. The U.S. women's national team forward charged ahead, drawing two defenders before dishing to Cantore, but the Italy attacker could only send her shot wide.
Lacasse chopped the ball away from Tsé again in the late stages of the half and wanted a penalty kick from the resulting contact, but Thompson turned the shout down, and a brief check from the VAR crew stuck with the referee's initial read.
Utah remained aggressive, creating two good 51st-minute chances. Delzer volleyed a Milazzo cross over the bar, and then Kiana Palacios could only guide a delivery from the left wide while falling inside the six-yard box.
It took nearly 25 minutes before the Spirit offered much of a threat the other way. Santos curled a 72nd-minute shot over the bar, while a break for substitute Claudia Martínez ended with Metayer unable to get good contact on the resulting cross.
Despite the Royals forcing the Spirit into plenty of defending, the chances started to splutter for the hosts as the clock drained away. Washington — in a manner that was missing against Denver and the Boston Legacy — began taking the air out of the ball, turning throw-ins into real stoppages while pinging balls wide to open players rather than being boxed into central turnovers.
That game management was just enough to carry the win over the line despite being out-shot 19-6. One last strike from Lara Prašnikar tested MacIver from long range, but it was easy enough work for the Scotland goalkeeper.
The Spirit (11-3-3) have now won three straight, and six of seven to remain atop the NWSL standings. There's one last instance of short rest to endure in 2026, with just four days before the San Diego Wave come to Audi Field in a match with major NWSL Shield implications. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. ET.
Box score — NWSL regular season (game 17)
7/29/2026
Utah Royals 0
Washington Spirit 1 (Rodman 28)
Lineups:
Utah (4231): Mandy McGlynn; Tatumn Milazzo, Kate Del Fava (C), Kaleigh Riehl (Miyabi Moriya 65), Nuria Rábano; Ana Tejada (Madison Hammond 79), Narumi Miura; Cece Delzer (Alexa Spaanstra 79), Mina Tanaka (Lara Prašnikar 86), Cloé Lacasse; Kiana Palacios (Paige Cronin 65)
Spirit (433): Sandy MacIver; Élisabeth Tsé (Kate Wiesner 46), Tara Rudd (C), Esme Morgan, Gabby Carle; Hal Hershfelt, Rebeca Bernal (Andi Sullivan 70, Tamara Bolt 85), Leicy Santos; Paige Metayer, Sofia Cantore (Claudia Martínez 70), Trinity Rodman (Madison Haugen 86)
Bookings:
Utah - Cronin 90
Spirit - None
Referee: Matt Thompson
Weather: Blustery, then calm after the lightning delay, 86°
Attendance: 9,538
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