07/12/26 08:45:00
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07/12 20:43 CDT Sonis scores as Summit and Dash settle for a 2-2 draw in the
NWSL
Sonis scores as Summit and Dash settle for a 2-2 draw in the NWSL
By DREW RENNER
Associated Press
Janine Sonis had a goal and an assist for the Denver Summit in a 2-2 draw with
the visiting Houston Dash on Sunday in the National Women's Soccer League.
Sonis played a perfectly weighted corner along the ground to forward Yazmeen
Ryan for the opening goal in the 12th minute. Ryan, who led the Dash in scoring
last season while earning the Golden Boot and Newcomer of the Year honors, spun
past a Houston defender before firing a near-post strike past Dash goalkeeper
Jane Campbell.
Houston (4-5-7) responded less than three minutes later as forward Kat Rader
slipped a shot past Summit goalkeeper Abby Smith. The 22-year-old Rader has
quickly carried her prolific scoring form into the professional league after
scoring 32 goals at Duke.
With halftime approaching, rookie defender Cate Hardin mistimed a challenge on
Summit forward Ally Brazier inside the box, conceding a penalty. Sonis, who
spent two seasons with Houston from 2016-17, converted against her former
teammate Campbell to restore the lead for Denver (4-5-4).
Houston tied it in the 48th minute when midfielder Maggie Graham's cross found
Linda Ullmark, who scored her first professional goal.
Reign tops Thorns in rivalry match
Ryanne Brown scored her first NWSL goal, and midfielder Maddie Mercado added
another as the Seattle Reign beat rival Portland 2-0 in Seattle.
Brown opened the scoring in the seventh minute, running onto a ball played
behind Portland's defense and beating goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold. It was
Brown's first start of the season after returning from an ACL injury last year.
Energy dipped heading into halftime, but midfielder Sam Meza changed the pace
with consecutive tackles before regaining possession and lofting a cross toward
Mercado, who headed home the second goal in the 44th.
The Reign (5-6-2) held the Thorns (8-4-3) scoreless and secured their first win
in five matches. Goalkeeper Cassie Miller made a career-high nine saves in the
shutout, just eight days after the 31-year-old goalkeeper made her Reign debut
in the 3-1 loss against the North Carolina Courage.
Few fixtures in the league carry more intensity than the Seattle-Portland
series, with the clubs inheriting the Cascadia rivalry forged by the Sounders
and Timbers in Major League Soccer decades before the NWSL's founding in 2013.
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