The Orlando Pride‘s unbeaten streak has ended with two games remaining in the 2024 NWSL regular season. The Pride lost 2-0 to the Portland Thorns at Providence Park on Friday night.
Morgan Weaver scored at 13′ in the lower right corner of the net to give the Thorns a 1–0 lead. Weaver’s goal was assisted by Reyna Reyes, who headed a corner pass to the front of the goal that made for a short kick past Orlando goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse.
Portland added a goal by Christine Sinclair, who rocketed the ball into the lower left corner from near the penalty spot. At 55′, that effectively put the game away. The goal was the 78th of Sinclair’s career, the second-most in NWSL history.
Sinclair announced her retirement in late September and scored in her second-to-last game.
The Pride were attempting to become the first NWSL team to finish the regular season unbeaten, coming into the match with a 17–0–6 record. Portland had an 8–4–11 prior to Friday, ranking seventh in the league standings. The Thorns had not won a game since the international break for the Paris Olympics.
Orlando has two games remaining on its schedule, hosting Gotham FC at Inter&Co Stadium on Oct. 20 before finishing the season at Lumen Field versus the Seattle Reign.
The Pride won the NWSL Shield, awarded to the club with the best regular-season record, after a 2–0 victory over the Washington Spirit last Sunday. Their 57 points are tied for the most in league history, accomplished in one fewer game than the North Carolina Courage played in 2018.
Orlando enters the NWSL playoffs as the No. 1 seed with home-field advantage. They will face the No. 8 seed (likely either Portland or Bay FC) when the postseason begins on Nov. 8.
The 2024 NWSL Championship will be played Nov. 23 at CPKC Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri.
