NWSL Decision Day: Racing Louisville book playoff spot, Kansas City Current stay dominant, quarterfinals set

Racing Louisville are playoff-bound for the first time in their history, booking the final spot in the postseason as the NWSL regular season came to an entertaining close.

Louisville’s 1-0 win over Bay FC took them two points clear of the North Carolina Courage, who were in the hunt for a postseason berth but their 3-2 win over Gotham FC was not enough to get them over the line. The combination of results also sent Gotham from seventh place at the start of Decision Day to eighth place, leaving them with one win in their last seven and ensuring they will meet the in-form Kansas City Current in the quarterfinals.

The Portland Thorns, meanwhile, made the greatest gains on Sunday by rising from sixth to third with a 2-0 win over the Houston Dash and booking a home playoff game in the process. Deyna Castellanos and Jessie Fleming bagged both goals, winning three in their last four en route to the playoffs and setting up a meeting with the San Diego Wave in the quarterfinals.

Here are the takeaways from NWSL Decision Day and what Sunday’s results might mean for the playoffs.

NWSL Decision Day results

• Kansas City Current 2, San Diego Wave 1
• North Carolina Courage 3, Gotham FC 2
• Utah Royals 1, Washington Spirit 0
• Orlando Pride 1, Seattle Reign 1
• Racing Louisville 1, Bay FC 0
• Chicago Stars 2, Angel City 1
• Portland Thorns 2, Houston Dash 0

NWSL Playoffs quarterfinal matchups

Matches to take place during the weekend of Nov. 7 to 9; schedule TBA

Kansas City Current vs. Gotham FC
Washington Spirit vs. Racing Louisville
Portland Thorns vs. San Diego Wave
Orlando Pride vs. Seattle Reign

Louisville book first-ever playoff berth

Racing Louisville booked the last remaining playoff spot with a 1-0 win over Bay FC on Sunday, enough to finish two points above the North Carolina Courage and pip the two-time NWSL champions for their first-ever trip to the postseason. The game’s lone goal came courtesy of Ella Hase in the 48th minute, the rookie scoring her first professional goal on a day where Louisville’s dominant performance met the moment during a must-win game. Their ability to reach the postseason is a testament to their steady improvement under head coach Bev Yanez, now in her second year in the job, though the road does not get easier from here – they will take on a Washington Spirit team that cruised to second place, though an injury crisis could make a run to the Championship trickier than they would like.

Current re-establish championship credentials

The Kansas City Current may have been without the injured Temwa Chawinga but they fared just fine without her on Sunday, notching a 2-1 win over the San Diego Wave for one final win of the regular season. The Wave did open the scoring with a goal from Dudinha in the eighth minute but the Current’s depth stole the show, first with Debinha‘s 54th-minute equalizer and Nichelle Prince‘s go-ahead goal 20 minutes later. Debinha is a mainstay in the Current’s lineup, as are fellow starter Bia Zaneratto and a healthy Chawinga, the three of them enough to mount a title challenge. That merely scratches the surface on the Current’s attack, though – rising U.S. women’s national team stars Michelle Cooper and Ally Senator started on Sunday and add another dimension to their offense, while Prince’s contribution off the bench shows head coach Vlatko Andonovski has no shortage of options as they begin to mount a deep playoff run.

Gotham’s skid continues

The most tantalizing matchup in the quarterfinals will see Gotham face the Current in Kansas City, but what version of Gotham shows up a week from now is the biggest question as the NWSL pivots from the regular season to the postseason. They were already assured of a playoff spot before Decision Day but the Courage carved up their defense in a 3-2 win, an uncharacteristic showing for a Gotham side that is usually anchored by defensive resolve. There is perhaps an argument to be made that conceding two-plus expected goals and three actual goals is an anomaly but Gotham could not muster one expected goal from 14 shots by the 86th minute, their late goals flattering their performance. They have been overly reliant on Spain international Esther Gonzalez, who has scored nearly 40% of the team’s goals this season but was unavailable on Sunday, and enter the postseason with just one win in their last seven. Gotham are the exact type of team that can turn things around in the span of a week, boasting a mix of NWSL winners and players with international titles on their roster, but their eighth place regular season finish signals that there is plenty of room for improvement.