WASHINGTON, D.C. (Aug. 23, 2026) – Orlando Pride (8-11-2, 26 points) defeated the Washington Spirit (11-6-4, 37 points), 1-0, on Sunday evening at Audi Field. The victory marked the Pride’s fourth consecutive regular season win at Audi Field, making Orlando just the second team in NWSL history to win four straight regular season matches at the Spirit’s home venue.
The first half saw the Pride score its earliest goal of the 2026 season, with Barbra Banda pressing the Spirit defense and earning a turnover. Banda then drove down the sideline and slid a ball to the middle of the box, where it found an oncoming Haley McCutcheon who was able to score with a one-time finish. The goal ties McCutcheon’s career high for most goals scored in a season, with three. Banda recorded her second assist of the year and her ninth career regular-season helper, which ties former Pride player Alex Morgan for the second-most regular-season assists in club history.
The Pride backline and goalkeeper Cosette Morché held firm through a flurry of chances in the second half to earn the team’s seventh clean sheet of the 2026 season. Morché's start in goal marked her NWSL debut, which she capped off by making three saves, including a diving save in second half stoppage time to secure the three points.
With the result, head coach Seb Hines’ recorded his 50th regular season victory, becoming just the sixth coach in NWSL history to achieve the milestone and the fifth to do so with one club.
Scoring Summary:
3’ Haley McCutcheon (Barbra Banda) – ORL 1, WAS 0
Head Coach Seb Hines:
“A terrific result. Really gritty performance. We took an early lead and the attention to detail was really good with players playing their roles and doing their responsibilities and throwing their bodies on the line throughout the whole game. Yeah, we had a little bit of luck. Good teams are always going to create opportunities to score, and the post helped us out, but a really good collective performance from everyone.”
Match Notes:
- Haley McCutcheon’s goal in the third minute was her third of the 2026 NWSL season, matching her career high for goals in a single campaign set in 2025.
- Barbra Banda’s assist on McCutcheon’s opening goal marked her second of the 2026 campaign and ninth regular-season assist with the Pride, tying former Pride forward Alex Morgan for second-most in club history.
- Cosette Morché made her NWSL debut, getting the start between the sticks.
- With the clean sheet, Cosette Morché became the first goalkeeper in Orlando Pride history to record a shutout in her NWSL debut.
- Head Coach Seb Hines earned his 50th career regular-season win, making him just the sixth coach in NWSL history to achieve the accomplishment and the fifth to do so with one team.
- With the win, the Pride have now won four consecutive regular-season matches at Audi Field against the Spirit, becoming just the second team in NWSL history to do so.
- Head Coach Seb Hines made two changes to the starting lineup since the Club’s last match against the Portland Thorns, with Cosette Morché and Angelina entering the starting XI.
- Kerry Abello (Thigh), Kylie Nadaner (maternity leave), Viviana Villacorta (knee), Marta (excused absence) and Solai Washington (head) missed the match due to injury.
Next Match:
The Pride will now return to the City Beautiful for two straight matches at Inter.co Stadium, first taking on the Utah Royals on Saturday, Aug. 29 (7 p.m. ET | NWSL+).
