San Diego Wave end first half of season with 0-0 draw against Washington Spirit

San Diego Wave FC officially reached the halfway point in the 2025 NWSL season in 0-0 draw against the Washington Spirit. (Emmanuel Alonso/Sandiego.futbol)

San Diego Wave FC ended the first half of their 2025 NWSL with a scoreless draw against the Washington Spirit at Snapdragon Stadium in front of an announced crowd of 12,011. 

The draw kept the Wave (7-3-3) in third place in the NWSL standings with 24 points, only a point above the fourth place Washington Spirit and one point behind the Orlando Pride.

The Wave dominated on the offensive end with possession, shots and chances, but the Spirit defense remained compact in a low block that proved difficult to break past. 

“Obviously, we were missing the final touch, final decision today to really capitalize on that, but on another day I’m sure we would have scored one or two goals,” head coach Jonas Eidevall said. “So, happy with the performance, a little bit disappointed with the result since I think we were the better team.”

The loudest moment in the match came in the 43rd minute when standout Wave midfielder, Kenza Dali, sent a long ball down the wing for Delphine Cascarino. Cascarino rushed for the ball, but the Spirit defender lifted her leg high to clear the ball. She avoided contact, but the ball went into the face of Cascarino. 

“It’s a tough one, I understand both sides, I think, though it’s a dangerous play and the only reason it wasn’t called is because she didn’t touch her,” Wave goalkeeper and captain, Kailen Sheridan said. “If you’re going to put your foot up that high, that’s just dangerous and unnecessary in my opinion…

“We had to move on, that’s the call of the ref, unfortunately we have to just play the game with whatever they say, and I think we did a good job of letting it go, but ultimately it’s a frustrating one. Instead next time, she’s just going to get kicked in the face I guess.”

The Wave had many close chances, and a season-high 14 corner kick opportunities. The Wave employed a combination of Kenza Dali, Savannah McCaskill and María Sánchez as the servers, but none would find the back of the net. 

The Wave had some better opportunities in the second half as they pushed for a goal while the Spirit hunkered down their defenses. Kimmi Ascanio provided some especially strong chances with a header and tap in near the post, but the Spirit goalkeeper, Aubrey Kingsbury, made many great saves throughout the match. 

The match will likely be Sánchez’s final with the club as ESPN has reported that she has agreed to a transfer to the Liga MX’s Tigres Femenil, where she played in 2021 before rejoining the NWSL. 

San Diego Wave FC will take a break from NWSL competition for the month of July and play two friendly matches against the Utah royals. The home match  for Wave will be played in front of season ticket holders at Torero Stadium on July 12. 

The Wave will return to regular season NWSL action on August 2, against the North Carolina Courage.