Kansas City Current clinched a place in the NWSL playoffs with a 2-0 victory over the North Carolina Courage at CPKC Stadium, while MLS teams Sporting Kansas City and St. Louis City SC also played a full slate of weekend matches.
In a tight, energy-filled affair, Izzy Rodriguez opened the scoring for the Current in the 31st minute. After a corner was cleared back to her on the left of goal, the veteran midfielder bent a shot past Courage goalkeeper Casey Murphy for her first goal of the year. Ten minutes later, Lo’eau LaBonta converted a penalty after Temwa Chawinga drew a foul in the box, doubling Kansas City’s lead. The second half belonged to the Current’s defense, as they did not allow any Courage shot on target. Lorena, the Current’s keeper, recorded her tenth clean sheet of the season, helping Kansas City extend its streak to six consecutive shutouts. With the win, Kansas City moved 15 points clear of Washington Spirit in the standings, and they’ll visit Bay FC next Saturday at 9 p.m.
Sporting Kansas City ended a six-game winless run by pulling away to a 4-2 victory over the Colorado Rapids at Children’s Mercy Park. Dejan Joveljic opened the scoring in the fourth minute, heading home for what was his 100th professional goal. Rafael Navarro pulled the Rapids level 20 minutes later, then delivered a cross to Keegan Rosenberry to restore Colorado’s lead in the 31st minute. The balance shifted in the 73rd minute when Daniel Salloi fired low into the left corner to equalize, marking his seventh of the year and putting him in a tie for second on Sporting’s all-time list with 67 career goals. Two minutes later, Santi Munoz and Mason Toye combined to set up Toye for the deciding blow, and Joveljic added a second header in the 80th minute to seal it. Pulskamp made five saves as Sporting outshot Colorado 20-16 (11-8 on target). Sporting remain 13th in the Western Conference with 27 points, eight points behind the ninth-placed San Jose Earthquakes with a game in hand.
St Louis City SC faced a 3-2 setback against the Houston Dynamo at Energizer Park, dropping them further in the Western Conference standings. Ezequiel Ponce gave Houston the lead in the 20th minute, and an own goal by City defender Henry Kessler after halftime extended the Dynamo’s advantage. City pulled a pair back in a four-minute span late in the game, with Eduard Löwen scoring in the 86th minute and Mykhi Joiner notching his first MLS goal three minutes later, but it was not enough. City finished the match with more shots (13) than Houston (8) and had four on target to Houston’s three. The loss leaves City 14th in the West with 21 points, and they’ll host FC Dallas next Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
Looking ahead, Kansas City Current’s playoff-clinching run positions them strongly as they chase seeding, with defensive prowess on display in their clean-sheet streak. Sporting KC’s win ends a tough stretch and gives them confidence heading into a stretch of important fixtures, while St. Louis City SC will need a quick regroup as they continue to push for better results in a tight Western Conference race. City’s next home game versus FC Dallas and Sporting’s home match against Austin FC will be key tests in the coming weekend. The weekend action left the standings with several teams jockeying for position as the season moves toward its late stages.
Summary: Kansas City Current clinched a playoff berth with a 2-0 win, featuring Rodriguez’s opener and LaBonta’s penalty, while Sporting KC snapped a winless run with a 4-2 victory over Colorado, and St. Louis City SC fell 3-2 to Houston in a late-contest comeback bid. The results set up a busy slate of matches for the coming weekend across the region. Positive momentum for KC Current and Sporting KC contrasts with City’s ongoing rebound efforts.