Wave continue to struggle at home in loss to Gotham FC

Snapdragon Stadium hasn’t been the friendliest of confines for the San Diego Wave this year, and Gotham FC just happen to be happy travelers.

And Esther González must feel at home on any pitch she stands on.

González scored her National Women’s Soccer League-leading 13th goal of the season to lead Gotham FC to a 2-0 victory over the Wave on Friday night in Mission Valley.

Former Wave star Jaedyn Shaw also scored in the 79th minute, her first goal with Gotham since her acquisition on Thursday.

Gotham made history when it acquired Shaw from the North Carolina Courage for $1.25 million, more than doubling the intra-league transfer record that was set last month with the Kansas City Current’s acquisition of USWNT forward Ally Sentnor from Utah Royals FC for $600,000.

It’s the second trade involving Shaw in eight months: San Diego traded the young star to the Courage in January for $300,000 in allocation money, $150,000 in intra-league transfer funds and international roster slots for both the 2025 and 2026 seasons.

Shaw began her professional career with the Wave as a 17-year-old.

It was Shaw’s second trip to San Diego this season. The first came with the Courage on May 25 in a 3-2 defeat.

The Wave (8-6-6) haven’t won at Snapdragon since that May contest and are just 3-5-3 at home this season.

After a hot start to the season, San Diego has struggled to get going in the second half. Since returning from break, the Wave have won just once. In their last four matches, they’ve been held scoreless and lost three times. Gotham extended its unbeaten streak to four.

González’s goal came when she intercepted a bad pass by San Diego goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan and lofted a kick over Sheridan’s head from about 15 yards out.

González has scored 11 of her 13 goals in the first half this season. She’s one of three players in NWSL history to score double-digit first-half goals in a single season. Sam Kerr (12) and Lynn Biyendolo (10) both did it in 2019.

Gotham (8-6-6) has been quite comfortable away from home, losing only three of its last 26 away matches in all competitions (16-3-7) dating back to May of last year, including a 5-1-1 record in its last seven road matches in the NWSL.

González’s 13 goals puts her second in the Golden Boot race (top scorer) behind Kansas City Current star and reigning MVP Temwa Chawinga. Chawinga has 12 goals and two assists.

Wave head coach Jonas Eidevall complimented the way Gotham played.

“Gotham is a strong opponent,” Eidevall said. “They have really high-quality, experienced players.

“It was very tough for us allowing a goal so close to halftime. We started the second half in a positive way, but after the second goal, we lost some of the structure.”

Despite the difficult night, Sheridan did reach a milestone. The 2022 NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year joined longtime Chicago Star and USWNT standout Alyssa Naeher as the only goalies in league history to reach 600 saves.

The two clubs both produced 12 shots, but Gotham dominated shots on goal (6-1). Sheridan finished with four saves on her milestone night in front of 10,483 fans in attendance.

Gotham’s Ann-Katrin Berger, the 2024 NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year, finished with two saves, including a spectacular leap to stop a Kyra Carusa shot towards the end of the first half.

Berger and Sheridan entered the match top-five in both clean sheets (seven and five) and goals against per 90 minutes (0.90 and 1.16).

Sheridan played five seasons for Gotham FC before being traded to the expansion Wave in December of 2021.

Since the midseason break, the Wave have gained just six points out of a possible 21. Yet they are tied for third with Gotham in the NWSL standings with 30 points as both clubs are currently in position to host a home playoff match.

“This is a really important moment for us as a team,” Eidevall said. “Adversity will happen to people or to a team, but everything now is about how we respond.”

San Diego last faced Gotham FC in May, and the Wave left New Jersey with a 1-0 victory, as teenager Kimmi Ascanio scored the lone goal of the match in the 30th minute. The Wave now hold a 6-2-1 advantage in the all-time regular season series.

The Wave have just six matches remaining on their regular-season schedule, including four against the other NWSL Shield contenders (Kansas City Current, Washington Spirit, Portland Thorns and Orlando Pride).

They’ll travel to Portland to take on the Thorns next Saturday at Province Park. The match will start at 7 p.m.