SAN JOSE, Calif. ― Rose Lavelle already was a queen of international football.
Now she is finally an NWSL champion after leading Gotham FC to the title, scoring the lone goal in a 1-0 win over the Washington Spirit on Saturday.
The 30-year-old U.S. women’s national team star fired home an 18-yard left- footed shot in the 80th minute. Bruninha, who came off the bench in the second half, dribbled the ball down the left flank and rolled the ball across the top of the box. Lavelle ran onto it from the right side and blasted a shot into the left side of the net.
Washington had a chance to equalize in the third minute of second-half stoppage time when Gotham goalie Ann-Katrin Berger spilled an attempted catch outside the 6-yard box. The Spirit’s Paige Metayer was first to the ball, but her right-footed shot went wide to the left.
Gotham FC completed a surprise run through the playoffs after sneaking in as the eighth and final seed. They upset the top-seeded Kansas City Current in quarterfinals 2-1 with a goal in the 121st minute before edging the fourth- seeded Orlando Pride 1-0 in the semifinals on a goal in second-half stoppage time.
