San Diego Wave clinches playoff berth with win over Orlando

San Diego Wave FC punched its ticket to the 2026 NWSL playoffs with a 2-1 win over the Orlando Pride at Inter.Co Stadium. The postseason berth marks the Wave's fourth in five seasons, and they'll carry their historic campaign into November.

Rookie sensation Lia Godfrey opened the scoring just four minutes in with a spectacular goal, before Gia Corley doubled San Diego’s advantage in the 22nd minute. Orlando leading scorer Barbra Banda converted a penalty early in the second half to cut the deficit in half, but the Pride couldn't find an equalizer.

The victory marked San Diego’s second-ever win over Orlando and extended its winning streak to four matches. The Wave have now won six of their last seven games, building momentum at a pivotal point in the season.

With three regular-season matches remaining, San Diego (16-3-8, 51 points) sits three points behind Gotham FC (16-6-4, 54 points) in the race for the NWSL Shield. Gotham will face Angel City on Sunday morning.

Earlier this week, defender Kennedy Wesley and forward Trinity Byars received call-ups to the U.S. Women’s National Team. Wesley has made seven appearances for the United States, while Byars earned her first senior national team call-up.

The scoring started early Friday night.

Wave defender Mimi Van Zanten threw the ball into play to Byars in the attacking third, who one-touched a pass to Godfrey. She dribbled the ball into the left side of the box before firing a shot just inside the left post to give San Diego the early lead.

The goal marked Godfrey’s sixth of the season and her first since Aug. 2. She has the second-most goals among NWSL rookies this year. Last week against Racing Louisville, Godfrey had an assist. 

The Wave have yet to lose a match this season when finding the back of the net.

Pride goalkeeper Cosette Morche made two saves amid a crowded penalty area, but San Diego capitalized on the third opportunity. Wave attacking midfielder Gia Corley collected the rebound and finished with her left foot to double the advantage.

Corley has scored in three of San Diego’s last four matches and now has seven goal contributions this season: three goals and four assists. The 24-year-old has appeared in 22 matches for the Wave in 2026, logging 1,357 minutes.

San Diego led 2-0 into halftime.

A few minutes into the second half, Wave defender Kennedy Wesley fouled Banda inside the penalty area. It didn’t seem like an egregious penalty. Following a VAR review, the referee confirmed the foul and awarded the Pride a penalty kick.

Banda stepped up to the spot and converted. Wave goalkeeper Sandra Paños hesitated to dive, and the Pride cut the deficit to one. Banda has the second-most goals in the league with 17, trailing North Carolina’s Ashley Sanchez, who has 20. The 26-year-old has 42 career goals for Orlando.

San Diego made it difficult for the home team to find the equalizer by keeping the ball away from the opponent and limiting chances. Wave completed 603 passes and finished the night with 15 shot attempts.

After the international break, the Wave will travel to North Carolina to face the Courage at WakeMed Soccer Park on Oct. 17. San Diego defeated the Courage 2-1 on Sept. 12.