Offside galore in a scoreless match
By Lesley Ryder
In a weekend of wild multi-goal results, the Chicago Stars and Bay FC brought us down to earth with a 0-0 draw.
When these two teams last met, the Stars needed a moment of brilliance from Mal Swanson to win, despite Bay FC being down two players. This time, the teams played at full strength.
The first half didn’t offer much offensively for either team, just a single shot on target each. But both teams had a goal called back by the offside flag. Chicago’s chance came in the 26th minute when Brianna Pinto looped a ball to Nadia Gomes, charging into the box. Gomes’ pass found Anna Gasper on the back post, who directed the ball past Silkowitz on a brilliant touch. Offside aside, it was good to see the finishing effort from the newcomer.
On the other side of the pitch, Claire Hutton set up Alex Pfieffer for a screamer in the 32nd minute, but she was well offside. Bay got another big chance off a Chicago corner kick in the 36th minute. Jordan Silkowitz snatched the attempt at goal, and threw long to Pfeiffer who had room to gallop. Keira Barry ran with her, taking a pass through the Chicago box, but she could not convert the effort before being swarmed by the Stars.
A couple of could-be chances for both sides, but they went into the break scoreless.
The second half began with Sam Staab swapping in for Anna Gasper. The Stars center back started on the bench for the first time since March 2025, when she was getting back to fitness after suffering an achilles tear. After the match, head coach Martin Sjogren said the decision was not medical management, but rather, competitive. It would seem Staab has lost favor with Sjogren as Maitane has taken more minutes at center back.
Back on the field, Alex Pfieffer and Keira Barry continued to find opportunities early in the second half. In the 52nd minute, Barry returned the first half favor, sending a pass out wide to Pfeiffer, whose attempt on goal was batted away by Katie Atkinson.
Bay FC was nearly gifted a goal in the 62nd minute thanks to a series of turnovers and miscommunication from the Chicago backline. Kennedy Fuller took advantage of the lost connection between Aaliyah Farmer and Sam Staab, and won the ball in prime position, just a few feet from goal. Atkinson stood tall in net, and Fuller’s shot flew wide.
A few minutes later, Alex Pfeiffer patiently held up play on the right side of the Chicago box, and threaded a pass to a waiting Claire Hutton. Her touch sent the ball off the crossbar, for another near miss.
Bay FC had still another offside callback in the 86th minute on a Karlie Lema header.
As the match ticked closer to full time, the Stars faced a concerning moment. Mal Swanson appeared to take a strange step with right leg. She gingerly walked to the Stars sideline as the game played on, and sat by the bench. The training staff appeared to be evaluating Swanson’s right knee. Swanson had already played limited minutes in the last few matches to a lower leg injury. After the match, Sjogren told the media he wasn’t sure if the injury was related.
In stoppage time, Bay FC caught a break. Tessa Dellarose took a shot in the box that caught Aldana Cometti’s hand. After review, the VAR official ruled Cometti’s hand was in a natural position.
The Stars held on to save the point, and earn their first draw of the season. “Points, they usually come because you work hard. And today, I think I think the team really really fought hard all the way through.” Sjogren said after the match. “I think today we showed we showed that we are a team that can be good as a unit and work hard.”
Chicago midfielder Brianna Pinto wore the captain’s armband for the match, and had similar praise for her teammates. “A lot of people are being asked to play in different positions, myself included. And I think people are handling that with a lot of grace and stepping up to the to the mission and following through.” The effort showed growth for the Stars, as they try to keep showing up for each other for all 90 minutes of the match.
According to FotMob, Pinto was the most accurate passer on the field to play 45 minutes or more, all while withstanding pressure from the Bay FC defense. When asked about her efforts, she was quick to compliment her team’s work. “[Bay FC] made some adjustments in the second half, and we're able to gain a little bit more control in their attacking half, and we had to weather the storm a little bit.”
The Stars will next play Friday at Seattle Reign for their first matchup this season.
Notes from the field
- Anna Gasper got her first start as a Star
- Injuries continue to plague the Stars. Julia Grosso returned to the injury report with a thigh issue, after already missing matches with a concussion
- Katie Atkinson came up big against the Bay attack, making 5 saves for another strong outing. Sjogren said it’s been an impressive season for the veteran keeper. “She's had these incredible games, and I think she's still improving and she's becoming better and better. So I'm I'm really happy for her because she's working hard and she's doing good every every week in training.”
- A neat quirk of the Stars vs Bay FC series: the home team has never won. The six-game streak lives to see another season.
[Photo: Gretchen Schneider/Mary Grace Grabil/Chicago Stars FC]