ALLSTON, Mass. – Concluding a two-game road trip, Portland Thorns FC rallied from a two-goal deficit in the second half, receiving a brace from Nadia Nadim to claim a point on the road in a 2-2 draw against the Boston Breakers in front of 3,321 fans at Jordan Field on Friday night.
Trailing 2-0 in the second half, Nadim scored a second-half brace, her first for Thorns FC and the second of her NWSL career. Nadim leveled the score with her fourth goal of the season in the 83rd minute of play after converting from the penalty spot in the 57th minute to open the scoring for Portland (2-1-3, 9pts).
Down 2-1 and pushing for the equalizer, Lindsey Horan helped start the break for Thorns FC, settling a ball and sending a one-touch pass to Hayley Raso making a surging run towards the edge of the box. Raso slotted a well-weighted pass between two defenders and with a quick, deft touch Nadim beat a pair of Boston defenders and tucked the ball into the bottom right corner to level the score. The assist was Raso’s first of the campaign.
Thorns FC have now claimed at least a point in 10 of their last 13 road matches, earning a positive result in five of their last six meetings with Boston (4-1-1), including at least a point in their last two trips (1-0-1) to Jordan Field.
With her two goals, Nadim now has scored five goals in Portland’s last two matches against the Breakers, previously recording a hat-trick in a 5-1 win for Thorns FC on Sept. 4, 2016 at Providence Park. In addition, Nadim moved into fourth place on the all-time scoring list for Portland with 13 goals, while becoming the seventh player in league history to reach the 25-goal mark.
Nadim nearly opened the scoring for Thorns FC in the 24th minute when she received a back-heel pass near the edge of the box from Christine Sinclair. Nadim fired a shot towards the top right corner, but Boston goalkeeper Abby Smith dove to her left to tip the ball just wide of the post and out for a corner kick.
The Breakers (2-2-2, 8pts) scored two goals just 10-minute stretch as Natasha Dowie opened the scoring in the 38th minute and Rosie White doubled the lead for Boston in the 48th minute.
Thorns FC registered nine shots over the final 35 minutes of the match and cut their deficit in half as Nadim converted from the spot after Horan, who registered a game-high five shots, fired a powerful shot from inside the box, earning a penalty kick as Megan Oyster was whistled for a handball on the attempt in the 56th minute.
Portland nearly scored in the 73rd minute with consecutive chances from Raso and Horan. Raso delivered a curling, right-footed strike that skipped inches wide of the left post on a deflection that resulted in a Thorns FC corner kick. On the ensuing corner kick, Nadim’s delivery landed at the back post for Horan, who fired a hard shot from close range, but Smith made a diving stop to deny the attempt.
Thorns FC return to the Rose City to play host to the Breakers on Saturday, May 27, at Providence Park. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. (Pacific) with a live, high-definition web stream at NWSLSoccer.com and www.go90.com.
Notes:
- With the draw, Portland has earned at least one point in 10 of its last 13 road matches.
- Thorns FC improved to 6-5-1 all-time against Boston, claiming at least one point in each of their last two matches at Jordan Field.
- Portland has now scored two or more goals in four of the last six matches against the Breakers
- Nadia Nadim scored her second career brace in the match.
- Hayley Raso registered her first assist of the season and the third of her NWSL career. Additionally, all three of Raso’s assists have come on the road.
- Nadim has scored five goals in her last two matches against the Breakers, including a hat-trick in a 5-1 win on Sept. 4, 2016 at Providence Park.
- Nadim remains a perfect 8-for-8 from the penalty spot in her NWSL career.
- With the goal, Nadim now ranks fourth all-time in career goals (13) and points (29) for Thorns FC.
- Nadim is the seventh player in NWSL history to reach 25 goals for her career.
- Defender Emily Menges made her 65th career start for Thorns FC, while extending her streak to 26 consecutive starts playing all 90 minutes.
- Friday’s match marked Nadia Nadim’s 50th career NWSL appearance.
Portland Thorns FC (2-1-3, 9pts) at Boston Breakers (2-2-2, 8pts)
May 19, 2017 – Jordan Field (Allston, Mass.)
Goals by Half 1 2 F
Portland Thorns FC 0 2 2
Boston Breakers 1 1 2
Scoring Summary
BOS: Dowie (Leon), 38
BOS: White (Dowie), 48
POR: Nadim (penalty kick), 57
POR: Nadim (Raso), 83
Misconduct Summary
POR: Weber (Caution), 65
POR: Cox (Caution), 68
BOS: Salem (Caution, 90
Lineups & Stats
POR: GK Franch, D Boureille (Cox, 67), D Sonnett, D Menges, D Klingenberg, M Henry, M Horan, M Sinclair ©, F Weber, F Nadim, F Raso
Substitutes Not Used: GK Eckerstrom, D Johnson, M Long
TOTAL SHOTS: 11 (Horan, 5); SHOTS ON GOAL: 4 (Nadim, 3); FOULS: 11 (Horan, 5); OFFSIDES: 1; CORNER KICKS: 6; SAVES: 2
BOS: GK Smith, D King ©, D Oyster, D Westphal, D Chapman, M Salem, M Leon (Da Costa, 75), M Lavelle, M White, M Purce (Onumonu, 81), F Dowie
Substitutes Not Used: GK Prudhomme, D Elby, M Andrews, F Weimer
TOTAL SHOTS: 13 (Dowie, 4); SHOTS ON GOAL: 4 (Dowie, 2); FOULS: 8 (Leon, 4); OFFSIDES: 2; CORNER KICKS: 5; SAVES: 2
Referee: Farhad Dadkho
Assistant Referees: Shane Kennard, Kali Langevin
4th Official: Alexandra White
Attendance: 3,321
Weather: Sunny, 86 degrees
All statistics contained in this box score are unofficial.
