Denver Summit Women held Boston Legio Women to a 1-1 draw in the NWSL group stage on Sunday evening. The result leaves both sides navigating a difficult patch of fixtures.
S. Smith broke the deadlock in the thirty-fourth minute, and here's the thing — she was the one who scored, then was brought off at the end. A straightforward finish, but it kept Denver ahead for nearly forty minutes.
Boston responded with changes. A. Oke came on for the hosts in the fifty-eighth minute, perhaps trying to close down space. D. Lynch picked up a yellow card in the sixty-fifth minute, a booking that could cost her if the tension builds.
The penalty in the seventy-second minute came from J. Sonis, and by then Denver had already shown they could control territory. Shots on target told the story — seven for the home side against two for the visitors, yet the scoreboard remained level.
Late substitutions followed. D. Sheehan and S. Smith were off for Denver in the ninetieth minute, while J. Carabali arrived for Boston two minutes into stoppage time. The game had lost its urgency.
Denver dominated possession at fifty per cent and completed 343 passes compared to Boston's 361, but accuracy mattered more than volume. They registered four shots off target and seven on target, yet only one found the net. Boston's goalkeeper made six saves to keep them in contention.
The draw keeps Denver tenth on thirty points from twenty-two games, while Boston remain fourteenth with twenty-three points from twenty-three matches. Neither side has much room to breathe at this stage.