Air Groom takes flight on a first half equalizer
By Lesley Ryder
Chicago Stars FC battled Bay FC to a 1-1 draw on a swampy Sunday afternoon, but an officiating decision took the spotlight at SeatGeek Stadium.
Taylor Huff opened the scoring for Bay FC off a corner kick play in the 30th minute. The Stars responded with an equalizer in the 42nd minute on an opportunity created by defensive grit. Jenna Bike won the battle for the ball on the far sideline, and Maitane took control, sending a pass to Ally Schlegel. Schlegel took a cheeky backheel touch to put the ball in Shea Groom’s path. Groom outmanuvered Caroline Conti to gain possession, and confidently dribbled toward goal and sent a shot past Jordan Silkowitz to tie the game before halftime.
The teams traded chances in the second half, and made substitutions to fight the weather’s effect on the match. Bay FC’s nearly broke the deadlock in the 69th minute. Karlie Lema raced to intercept the ball from Alyssa Naeher as she tried to play out from the back. Lema’s pressure forced the loose ball to Rachael Kundinanji’s foot as she stared down a wide open net. Kundinanji’s shot went mercifully wide, keeping the score level.
A controversial whistle in the 85th minute halted a scoring opportunity in progress for the Stars. Nadia Gomes won the ball off of Alyssa Malonson and started to bring the ball downfield with Mana Hayashi, but center referee JC Griggs blew the play dead as a foul on Gomes. Chicago’s interim head coach Ella Masar protested the decision, and earned her first yellow card.
Masar expanded on her frustrations after the match. “This is eight times now they've gotten it wrong. And we can do our job, We're not trying to make an excuse, but it has to be better. Whoever's watching, it has to be better.
“[The referee] tell us that it's wrong, and then nobody holds them accountable. Nobody. It's not a slap on the wrist. This changes the game, over and over and over game. I have eight times that has changed the trajectory of how we come out on this end. And I'm tired of it. I understand I'm in trouble. I get that, but you hold us accountable for how we do it, how we conduct ourselves. It has to be better. It has to be it's enough.”
The Stars continue to make improvements as they attempt to climb from the bottom of the table and into the playoff race. Masar’s influence on the club in the last month has allowed them to put the pieces of their game they’ve gathered in the first half of the season to work. “I think we're we've always been a transition team, at least since we've both been here,” said Sam Staab “but we haven't really put it all together, where we're pressing and going at teams and being a relentless team the whole game, I feel like we're starting to do that, or she's basically forcing us to, and it's helping.
“I think this team has needed direction, and it's not really that big of a shift, but at least the direction is like, go forward, play forward, run forward—run, period. So I think it's pretty simple. I think all of us are bought into doing that.”
Shea Groom’s goal was her second of the season, marking her first multi-goal season since 2022. “I'll be honest. I was just thinking, don't screw this up. But yeah, [Dydasco] just kept dropping and just tried to make it.”
Groom earned the start this week after missing out on the starting XI in last weekend’s match. “[last week] I felt like Mana [Hayashi] had it. And it was a really hard conversation with Shea Groom. I said, ‘Hey, listen, prove that I'm wrong. Tell me I'm wrong. Go out and do your job.’ And she came in and she did that, and that's why she got the start today.”
The Stars have a difficult run of games ahead. They’ll travel to Seattle next week for a rare Monday night match, and turn around for a home match against North Carolina on the following Friday. Despite the challenges, Masar is turning her team into true believers for a Cinderella run to playoff position down the home stretch of the season.
“We're three games away. If we win three games, we're in the mix. And now they're starting, I think, to truly believe, ‘okay, we can do it’!
“It's gonna be a hard swing going to Seattle. It's gonna be hard three days later to come here against Carolina. It's gonna take this but we've pushed them to a point where I think we have a chance, and they're believing it, and that credit goes to them.”
From the notebook
- Ludmila came off for a substitution at halftime. Masar noted after the match that it was a protective measure. She’d missed some training this weekend, so they didn’t want her to overdo it with the upcoming run of games.
- Alyssa Naeher recorded her 154th appearance for the Chicago Stars, putting her one appearance away from tying with Vanessa Dibernardo for the lead.