Jordan Silkowitz Saves Earn Bay FC 0-0 Draw With Utah Royals as Utah Stretches Unbeaten Run to Seven

Paige Cronin had been on the field for six minutes when she pounced on a loose pass deep in Bay FC territory and found herself alone with Jordan Silkowitz. On a Sunday afternoon at PayPal Park, that was the moment the Utah Royals were waiting for. Silkowitz said no, and then said it again 22 minutes later.

Bay FC and the Utah Royals drew 0-0 on Mother's Day in front of 11,689 fans, a game in which neither side put a shot on target in the first half and only three were on frame all afternoon. Utah stretched its unbeaten run to seven matches, according to the club, but a five-match winning streak came to an end. Bay FC took a second straight clean sheet and its first draw of the season.

Two Defenses, Zero Room

The opening half felt like two teams who had studied each other's homework. Utah coach Jimmy Coenraets made two changes from the midweek 2-0 win over Houston, starting Nuria Rábano and Kiana Palacios, per the club. Palacios headed a corner just wide in the fourth minute, and Cece Delzer did the same from very close range in the 17th after a Narumi Miura cross. Bay's best moments came in transition. According to Bay FC, Racheal Kundananji ran onto a ball in the 13th minute and sent an early cross toward Karlie Lema, but Utah goalkeeper Mandy McGlynn won the race to it. Taylor Huff fired wide from distance in the 14th minute, Dorian Bailey had a shot blocked in the 28th, and Hannah Bebar sent one just past the top right corner in the 43rd.

The best first-half chance belonged to Kundananji. In the 40th minute, she knifed through the Utah defense and into the box, only for Miura to throw herself in front of the shot. Utah's recap said Miura blocked it with her leg. Both clubs noted that neither team put a shot on target before the break, which tells you everything about how tight it was.

Utah Turns Up the Heat

Coenraets brought on Tatumn Milazzo for Janni Thomsen at halftime, and the Royals came out sharper. Kate Del Fava headed wide off a set piece in the 51st minute, and Palacios pulled a shot wide in the 57th after a pass from McGlynn. Bay answered through Bailey, whose effort from outside the box drifted just left in the 60th. Caroline Conti had replaced Huff two minutes earlier and was caught offside twice in the next quarter hour.

Claire Hutton was booked for a bad foul in the 55th, Aldana Cometti in the 65th and Milazzo in the 70th. The game was getting edgier as the legs got heavier.

The Turning Point

In a match without a goal, the turning point is the goal that never happened. Coenraets sent on Cronin for Palacios in the 61st minute, and in the 67th the substitute picked off a pass, according to Utah, and was through one-on-one. Silkowitz stood her ground and saved low. If that goes in, Utah's winning streak probably lives to see another week.

Instead, the Royals kept knocking without getting through. Rábano fired over in the 77th minute, and Milazzo headed over off a corner in the 87th. In the 89th, Mina Tanaka teed up Cronin, and Silkowitz made her second save, this one straight down the middle. Bay head coach Emma Coates had sent on Onyeka Gamero in the 72nd minute and Maddie Moreau in the 90th to chase a winner, and Bay nearly stole it at the end. Gamero sent a shot just past the top right corner in the first minute of stoppage time, and Hutton tested McGlynn from distance with the final chance of the day.

Who Stood Out

Jordan Silkowitz made both of her saves on Cronin and was named Player of the Match, according to Bay FC. The club said it was the first time it had posted back-to-back shutouts since June 2024.

Paige Cronin put both of her shots on target in 29 minutes plus stoppage time. On another day, she leaves with a goal.

Mandy McGlynn made one save and kept Utah's clean sheet streak going.

Claire Hutton was everywhere for Bay, with two shots, a yellow card, four fouls drawn and four committed.

Narumi Miura's block on Kundananji might have been the most important defensive play of the first half.

By the Numbers

• Shots: 8 apiece.
• Shots on target: Utah 2, Bay FC 1.
• Possession: Bay FC 52.7 percent, Utah 47.3.
• Tackles: Bay FC won 19 of its 21.
• Crosses: Utah completed 5 of 16, Bay FC 3 of 13.

Where Both Sides Stand

Utah moves to five wins, two draws and two losses with 17 points, and its recap listed the Royals third. After back-to-back losses to open the season and a draw at Washington, Utah won five straight against Boston Legacy FC, Chicago Stars FC, Seattle Reign FC, Angel City FC and the Houston Dash. This draw ended that run, along with a streak the club said it carried into the match of scoring in 17 straight games. Utah has now kept five straight clean sheets, and its recap noted Bay is winless in five consecutive meetings with the Royals. Utah hosts Racing Louisville FC on Sunday, May 17.

Bay FC moves to three wins, one draw and three losses with 10 points, 10th in Utah's recap. Back-to-back shutouts, following a 1-0 win at San Diego Wave FC on May 3, give Bay something sturdy to build on. Boston Legacy FC visits PayPal Park on Friday, May 15.

The Final Word

Coates walked away wanting more. "I thought we deserved three points today," she said. "You don't concede, you don't lose, and every point counts in this league." Fair enough. This was a Seinfeld episode of a soccer match, a show about nothing that somehow kept you watching, and Silkowitz was the only character who got a real storyline.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Postgame quote and additional details as reported by BayFC.com and the Utah Royals on RSL.com.