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Match Recap
Nov 15, 2025

Thorns Fall Short 2-0 in the Semifinal at Washington Spirit

PORTLAND, Ore. (Saturday, November 15, 2025) – The 2025 season for the Portland Thorns has come to an end following its road semifinal defeat at Washington Spirit, falling 2-0 to the hosts.

A season defined by the Thorns’ remarkable resilience and grit, the youngest team in the league faced immense challenges and adversity throughout the course of the year yet fought to overcome each obstacle that came their way. Ahead of today’s match against the #2 seed Washington at one of the toughest road venues to play at in Audi Field, the Thorns knew today was no different.

The Thorns sat back and absorbed Washington’s offense to start the match, with the Spirit getting one early in the 5th minute before it was disallowed for offside. However, Washington would still be first to strike in the 27’ when Thorns goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold was forced away from goal to stop Rosemonde Kouassi run the field only for the ball to be laid off to Gift Monday who hit ball into the open net. The Spirit continued to push in their search for a second, but Portland’s defensive efforts — including four saves in the first half from Arnold — remained solid to deny the hosts another.

After the break, the Thorns came out with their foot on the gas looking for the equalizer, but Spirit’s defense were tough to break through. Washington almost doubled it in the 69th but the ball bounced off the woodwork.

A defensive error in the final 83’ would see Portland concede the second and from there, Washington would hold out the result to see it through that they advance to the final.

Portland’s season has come to an end and despite all the adversity faced, the Thorns hold their heads high knowing they finished as the #3 seed with a winning 11-7-8 record, a record-breaking 10-match home undefeated streak and for the 9th time overall (first since 2021), led the league in overall fan support with 236,263 total fans (18,174 average) going to support this resilient Thorns squad at Providence Park. Now, the Thorns will head back home to Portland knowing preparations for 2026 are soon to begin.

GOAL-SCORING BREAKDOWN

FIRST HALF

WAS – Gift Monday (Rosemonde Kouassi) 27’: Kouassi ran down the field past Portland’s defense and laid off a short pass to Monday, who tapped it in the net.

SECOND HALF

WAS – Croix Bethune 83’: Bethune would take advantage of a defensive error and strike the ball into the open net.  

LINEUPS

Portland Thorns (4-3-3): Mackenzie Arnold, Kaitlyn Torpey (Mallie McKenzie 63’), Isabella Obaze, Sam Hiatt (Jayden Perry 86’), Reyna Reyes, Jessie Fleming, Sam Coffey-C, Olivia Moultrie, Deyna Castellanos (Laila Harbert 82’), Reilyn Turner (Daiane 82’), Alexa Spaanstra (Pietra Tordin 63’)


Subs not used: Bella Bixby, M.A. Vignola, Naomi Powell, Valerin Loboa

Washington Spirit (5-3-2): Aubrey Kingsbury, Tara McKeown, Rebeca Bernal, Esme Morgan, Kate Wiesner, Rosemonde Kouassi (Paige Metayer 89’), Croix Bethune, Hal Hershfelt, Leicy Santos-C (Deborah Abiodun 72’), Sofia Cantore (Trinity Rodman 90’), Gift Monday

Subs not used:  Narumi Miura, Brittany Ratcliffe, Courtney Brown, Heather Stainbrook, Kysha Sylla, Sandy Maclver

MISCONDUCT SUMMARY

POR: Jessie Fleming (Yellow) 67’

WAS: Rosemonde Kouassi (Yellow) 44’

MATCH STATS

POR | WAS

Goals: 0|2
Assists: 0|1
Possession: 40|60
Shots: 10|16
Shots on Target: 3|8
Saves: 6|3
Tackles: 22|15
Tackles Won: 15|5
Interceptions: 11|10
Fouls: 7|11
Offsides: 0|2
Corner Kicks: 3|11

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PORTLAND, Ore. (Saturday, August 15, 2026) – The Portland Thorns continued their impressive home form with a 2-1 win over Orlando Pride on Saturday when forward Caiya Hanks — who was making her return to the pitch after missing action for over a year with an ACL injury — scored a stoppage time winner to secure three points for the home side.

Both sides battled back and forth as they tried to search for the opening goal, with Thorns goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold making three saves to ensure the match remained level going into the halftime break.
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The Thorns came out into the second half much more threatening in Orlando’s half and finally broke the deadlock in the 58th minute when forward Pietra Tordin laid the ball off to forward Deyna Castellanos, who from the top right corner of Orlando’s box placed the ball perfectly into the top left corner of the goal over the hands of Orlando goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse.

The lead was short lived however when Arnold’s diving save to punch out a crossed ball in the 63rd minute ricocheted off the knees of Orlando forward Jacqueline Ovalle and rolled into the net to level things back up.

From there, Portland and Orlando continued in their fight to search for a second and despite several good looks at goal, the match remained level.

That would all change after Hanks — who subbed on in the 88th minute — curled the ball into the goal from outside the box in the 96th to send Providence Park into a frenzy as the Thorns secured three points and extended its home unbeaten streak to 12 matches, nine on the season.

UP NEXT: The Portland Thorns host Denver Summit FC for the first time at Providence Park on Saturday, August 22. Kickoff is scheduled for 5:45 pm PT on ION and 910 ESPN Portland. Purchase tickets for the match HERE.


TEAM NOTES

  • Pietra Tordin extended her assist tally to nine, sitting alongside Croix Bethune (KC) for most in the league so far this season. Tordin is one assist away from equalizing the league record for assists which is 10 (Tobin Heath, POR 2016 and Croix Bethune, KC 2024).  
  • Deyna Castellanos scored her first goal of the 2026 season.
  • Caiya Hanks, who was removed off the Season-Ending Injury list, made her return to the pitch for the first time since June 15, 2025 and scored the game-winner.
  • M.A. Vignola got her first assist of the season.
  • The Thorns have gone 12 home regular season matches (dating back to September 2025) without losing (8W,4D), extending the current club record.
  • The Thorns have not lost at home in 2026 (6W,3D).
  • In seven matches since 2018, Portland has not lost at home against Orlando (7W-0L-0D).

GOAL BREAKDOWN
First Half

N/A

Second Half

POR – Deyna Castellanos (Pietra Tordin) 58’
ORL – Jacqueline Ovalle 63’
POR – Caiya Hanks (M.A. Vignola) 90+6’

LINEUPS
Portland Thorns (4-2-3-1):
Mackenzie Arnold (GK), M.A. Vignola, Jayden Perry, Isabella Obaze (Sam Hiatt 78’), Carolyn Calzada, Jessie Fleming-C, Nina Nijstad (Cassandra Bogere 85’), Pietra Tordin (Caiya Hanks 88’), Deyna Castellanos (Renee Lyles 78’), Marie Müller (Morgan Weaver 67’), Sophia Wilson

Subs not used:  
Morgan Messner (GK), Reyna Reyes, Shae Harvey, Mallie McKenzie

Orlando Pride (4-4-2): Anna Moorhouse (GK), Hailie Mace (Gabi Nunes 90+8’), Rafaelle (Zoe Matthews 89’), Cori Dyke, Oihane Hernández (Zara Chavoshi 76’), Solai Washington, Ally Lemos, Haley McCutcheon-C, Julie Doyle (Summer Yates 65’), Jacqueline Ovalle, Barbra Banda (Angelina 65’)


Subs not used:
Cara Martin (GK), Cossette Morche, Luana, Nicole Payne

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MISCONDUCT SUMMARY

POR: N/A
ORL:
Jacqueline Ovalle (Yellow) 40’, Julie Doyle (Yellow) 52’, Rafaelle (Yellow) 85’

MATCH STATS

POR | ORL

Goals: 2|1
Assists: 2|0
Possession: 51|49
Shots: 10|12
Shots on Target: 4|6
Saves: 5|2
Tackles: 16|16
Tackles Won: 9|11
Interceptions: 14|26
Fouls: 7|6
Offsides: 0|1
Corner Kicks: 0|6

ATTENDANCE: 19,106

Referee: Brad Jensen
Assistant Referee 1:
Katarzyna Wasiak
Assistant Referee 2:
Sarah Gaddes
4th Official:
Justin St. Pierre
VAR:
Danielle Chesky
Assistant VAR: 
Seun Yinka-Kehinde

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Thorns Fall Short 2-0 in the Semifinal at Washington Spirit

PORTLAND, Ore. (Saturday, November 15, 2025) – The 2025 season for the Portland Thorns has come to an end following its road semifinal defeat at Washington Spirit, falling 2-0 to the hosts.

A season defined by the Thorns’ remarkable resilience and grit, the youngest team in the league faced immense challenges and adversity throughout the course of the year yet fought to overcome each obstacle that came their way. Ahead of today’s match against the #2 seed Washington at one of the toughest road venues to play at in Audi Field, the Thorns knew today was no different.

The Thorns sat back and absorbed Washington’s offense to start the match, with the Spirit getting one early in the 5th minute before it was disallowed for offside. However, Washington would still be first to strike in the 27’ when Thorns goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold was forced away from goal to stop Rosemonde Kouassi run the field only for the ball to be laid off to Gift Monday who hit ball into the open net. The Spirit continued to push in their search for a second, but Portland’s defensive efforts — including four saves in the first half from Arnold — remained solid to deny the hosts another.

After the break, the Thorns came out with their foot on the gas looking for the equalizer, but Spirit’s defense were tough to break through. Washington almost doubled it in the 69th but the ball bounced off the woodwork.

A defensive error in the final 83’ would see Portland concede the second and from there, Washington would hold out the result to see it through that they advance to the final.

Portland’s season has come to an end and despite all the adversity faced, the Thorns hold their heads high knowing they finished as the #3 seed with a winning 11-7-8 record, a record-breaking 10-match home undefeated streak and for the 9th time overall (first since 2021), led the league in overall fan support with 236,263 total fans (18,174 average) going to support this resilient Thorns squad at Providence Park. Now, the Thorns will head back home to Portland knowing preparations for 2026 are soon to begin.

GOAL-SCORING BREAKDOWN

FIRST HALF

WAS – Gift Monday (Rosemonde Kouassi) 27’: Kouassi ran down the field past Portland’s defense and laid off a short pass to Monday, who tapped it in the net.

SECOND HALF

WAS – Croix Bethune 83’: Bethune would take advantage of a defensive error and strike the ball into the open net.  

LINEUPS

Portland Thorns (4-3-3): Mackenzie Arnold, Kaitlyn Torpey (Mallie McKenzie 63’), Isabella Obaze, Sam Hiatt (Jayden Perry 86’), Reyna Reyes, Jessie Fleming, Sam Coffey-C, Olivia Moultrie, Deyna Castellanos (Laila Harbert 82’), Reilyn Turner (Daiane 82’), Alexa Spaanstra (Pietra Tordin 63’)


Subs not used: Bella Bixby, M.A. Vignola, Naomi Powell, Valerin Loboa

Washington Spirit (5-3-2): Aubrey Kingsbury, Tara McKeown, Rebeca Bernal, Esme Morgan, Kate Wiesner, Rosemonde Kouassi (Paige Metayer 89’), Croix Bethune, Hal Hershfelt, Leicy Santos-C (Deborah Abiodun 72’), Sofia Cantore (Trinity Rodman 90’), Gift Monday

Subs not used:  Narumi Miura, Brittany Ratcliffe, Courtney Brown, Heather Stainbrook, Kysha Sylla, Sandy Maclver

MISCONDUCT SUMMARY

POR: Jessie Fleming (Yellow) 67’

WAS: Rosemonde Kouassi (Yellow) 44’

MATCH STATS

POR | WAS

Goals: 0|2
Assists: 0|1
Possession: 40|60
Shots: 10|16
Shots on Target: 3|8
Saves: 6|3
Tackles: 22|15
Tackles Won: 15|5
Interceptions: 11|10
Fouls: 7|11
Offsides: 0|2
Corner Kicks: 3|11

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