San Diego Wave Fútbol Club clinched a playoff birth thanks to a dramatic 2-2 draw after falling behind 2-0 against the Orlando Pride at Exploria Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

The tie came thanks to a beautiful header from forward Makenzy Doniak in the 76th minute, after coming in as a substitute, and midfielder Taylor Kornieck in the 87th with her right-footed shot from 10 yards out that beat goalkeeper Erin McLeod.

The Wave had two potential scenarios coming into its match on Sunday, which was to either win or draw against Orlando or have Angel City FC lose or tie its game versus Racing Louisville, which started an hour later. San Diego is currently in fourth place with 35 points and one regular season match remaining at home on Friday, Sept. 30 against the North Carolina Courage at Snapdragon Stadium.

The team, led by head coach Casey Stoney, can finish no worse than fifth in the standings or as high as second place with a win versus the Courage allowing the Wave to get a first-round bye in the playoffs. In order for that to happen, the second-seeded OL Reign and third-seeded Kansas City Current must also lose or draw their respective matches on Oct. 1.

“Not the performance or the result we wanted but a huge comeback yet again from this incredible group,” said Stoney. “Need to say I am very proud of this team, this club and these people. Now we recover and we work smart to put things right for the last push.”

One note of potential concern for San Diego Wave moving forward is the condition of Kornieck who left the game due to an ankle injury she sustained in the final minute of the game.

ALBION SAN DIEGO

Albion came out with its third consecutive victory after an impressive 3-1 win over the Syracuse Pulse on Saturday evening at Canyon Crest Academy Stadium. Albion fell behind in the 20th minute after Syracuse defender Bruno Rendon got to a deflected ball in the box and poked it by goalkeeper Ryan Buckingham who was making the start for the injured Ben Roach.

The match was played mostly in the midfield during the first half with both sides closing passing lanes with excellent man-to-man coverage. Albion tied the match in the 34th minute off a corner kick from midfielder Tyler Gabarra that goalkeeper Daniel Glagiardi let slip through his arms with the ball ending up in the back of the net after Rendon tried to kick it out of danger but instead scored an own goal.

The second half became much more physical with both teams trying to impose their tempo with Albion taking advantage in the 75th minute when forward Alioune Diakhate converted a penalty kick, his 12th goal of the season after teammate Daniel Vicente was taken down in the box moments earlier.

The Pulse had a chance to tie the game in the 81st minute when midfielder Evan Waldrep took a penalty kick after teammate Minjae Kwak was taken down in the box by Gabarra. It was at this moment that Buckingham put his stamp on the match diving to his right and blocking the conversion attempt to keep Albion with the lead.

After Waldrep was issued a second yellow card a minute later for what the referee deemed was a dangerous tackle on midfielder Pablo Pelaez, Syracuse played the rest of the match with only 10 men. Albion scored its final goal in the game on a shot that Pelaez took from 25 yards out that found the upper right corner of the net for the 3-1 final.

“I thought Syracuse gave us a lot of problems in the first half,” said Albion San Diego head coach Ziggy Korytoski. “I thought the guys came out poised and really impacted the game in the second half. Ryan Buckingham came up with a fantastic save on the penalty and we were able to wrap up the game with an incredible goal from Pablo (Pelaez).”

Albion now goes on a road trip that will see the team play three games over the span of a week starting on Sept. 28 against Chattanooga FC in a match that could ultimately decide the second seed for the NISA playoffs. Albion San Diego returns home to play its final regular season game on Oct. 8 versus California United Strikers.

SAN DIEGO FIEL

After clinching a playoff spot on Sept. 17 in a victory over Phoenix Rising, San Diego Loyal clinched its first home playoff game with its 2-1 win over Las Vegas Lights on Saturday night at Cashman Field. The Loyal got all the scoring it need in the first few minutes of the match when forward Kylie Vassell took advantage of a miscommunication by the Las Vegas defense and beat goalkeeper Abraham Romero for the 1-0 lead.

That was quickly followed by a goal in the 4th minute by midfielder Elijah Martin who found himself open in the box and right-footed a six-yard shot that beat the outstretched arm of Romero extending the lead to 2-0. The only goal that the Lights were able to come up with happened in the 71st minute when forward Daniel Trejo was able to score on goalkeeper Koke Vegas.

The team, led by head coach Landon Donovan, is now assured of finishing no worse than fourth place and can finish as high as the second place position it currently holds.

“This time of year the games aren’t always pretty but you have to find ways to continue to get results,” said Donovan. “These games are always difficult but I’m proud of our guys for grinding and getting the result. Now we get our first home playoff game in club history which is really exciting.”

San Diego Loyal next plays Orange County SC at Championship Stadium on Saturday, Oct 1.

Héctor Trujillo ha estado cubriendo fútbol comenzando con el equipo de fútbol masculino de la Universidad Estatal de San Diego en 2003 para The Daily Aztec. Graduado de SDSU, donde recibió su licenciatura y maestría, Trujillo tiene una pasión de toda la vida por jugar y escribir sobre el hermoso juego.

Photos courtesy of San Diego Wave FC and San Diego Loyal