Current Stun Bay FC 2-1 Late as Croix Bethune Ties NWSL Record for Assists in a Regular Season

Rocky Rodríguez had been on the field for 23 minutes when Croix Bethune found her at the top of the box in the 89th minute. One touch to settle, one curling left-footed shot into the top right corner, and a night Bay FC had mostly controlled ended with the Kansas City Current celebrating.

The Current won 2-1 at PayPal Park on Friday night. Izzy Rodriguez had opened the scoring straight from a corner kick in the 11th minute, Karlie Lema leveled for Bay in first-half stoppage time, and then the substitute settled it. Bethune's assist was her 10th of the season, which the Current said matched the most any player has recorded in a single NWSL regular season.

Straight From the Corner Flag

The opener was the kind of goal that gets replayed until the pixels wear out. Izzy Rodriguez stood over a corner on the right and swung it in with her left foot. Both clubs described it as going in directly, the Current said it curled over a leaping Jordan Silkowitz, and Bay called it one of the few Olimpico goals in league history. The Current said it was her first goal of the season and the sixth of her regular-season career.

Bay had started brightly. Lema went close from a tight angle in the fifth minute, and after falling behind, the hosts kept the ball and kept probing. Heather Gilchrist slid in to block a Debinha shot near the penalty spot in the 19th minute, Marisa Jordan saved a long-range effort from Jenna Nighswonger in the 28th, and Laney Rouse picked up a yellow card for Kansas City in the 37th.

The equalizer came in the third minute of first-half stoppage time. Per Bay, Lema pounced after Alex Pfeiffer's shot was blocked and finished from the center of the box on her first touch. Bay said it was her sixth goal of the campaign.

Bay Holds the Ball, Kansas City Holds Its Nerve

The second half belonged to Bay on the possession chart. Kansas City had a pair of looks through Bethune, who fired over off a corner in the 54th minute and missed high and wide from distance a minute later. Bay lost Joelle Anderson to an injury in the 54th minute, with Aldana Cometti replacing her.

Current head coach Chris Armas sent on Rodríguez for Debinha in the 66th minute. Lema was booked a minute later and replaced by Racheal Kundananji in the 73rd, the same minute Bethune went into the book. Claire Hutton went close off a corner in the 76th, and Silkowitz made her only save of the night a minute later, stopping Amelia White's shot from the right side of the box. Kundananji had a shot blocked in the 83rd, Hannah Bebar was cautioned in the 84th and missed high from the right side three minutes later, and Girelli had an attempt blocked.

The Turning Point

Then the 89th minute happened. Rodríguez had a shot from distance blocked, and the Current kept the ball alive. According to Kansas City, Michelle Cooper clipped a ball into the area that ran through to Bethune on the left, and Bethune threaded a pass through a crowd of Bay defenders to an unmarked Rodríguez at the top of the box. The finish was pure quality, a left-footed strike that climbed beyond Silkowitz's reach. The Current said it was Rodríguez's first goal for the club and the 15th of her regular-season career.

Bay had one last chance, a Kundananji strike from distance in the fifth minute of stoppage time that Jordan saved.

The Difference Makers

Bethune was everywhere. She took two shots, was fouled five times, picked up a yellow card and still had enough left to set up the winner. Per the Current, her 10 assists tied Utah's Cloé Lacasse for the league lead and matched the most in a single NWSL regular season, a mark shared by Lacasse this year, Tobin Heath (Portland, 2016) and Bethune herself (Washington, 2024).

Rodríguez needed two shots to change the game. Izzy Rodriguez scored on her only attempt. Jordan made two saves, and defender Itala Gemelli played all 90 minutes on her league debut, the first KC Current II player to appear in an NWSL regular-season match, according to the club.

Armas spread the credit around. "It was a really, really good team win. From the starters to the reserves, I'm really proud of the group," he said.

For Bay, Lema was the bright spot with a goal and two shots. Head coach Emma Coates liked the response before halftime. "I thought we did a great job to get a goal back in the first half and get ourselves back in at 1-1," she said. She also saw Kansas City tweak its approach after the break. "I'll take that as a compliment that they were having to adjust and adapt to us," Coates said.

Stats That Matter

• Possession: Bay held 56.3 percent.
• Passing: Bay completed 404 of 485 passes; Kansas City completed 277 of 377.
• Shots: Bay led 9 to 8, with three on target apiece.
• Fouls: Bay committed 16, Kansas City nine.
• Tackles: Kansas City won 20 of 30 attempted tackles.

What It Means

Kansas City improved to 11-4-8 (wins, draws, losses) with 37 points and has won two straight after a 3-2 home win over the North Carolina Courage. The Current listed themselves in sixth place and noted this was the club's fifth consecutive victory over Bay. Orlando visits CPKC Stadium next Friday.

Bay fell to 6-4-12 with 22 points after a second straight one-goal defeat, following a 1-0 loss at Washington the previous Sunday. Coates put her finger on the frustration. "It's just as I say, disappointing to concede later on again," she said. Bay visits Seattle Reign FC on Sept. 12.

Closing Take

A substitute named Rocky delivering the knockout in the final minutes is so on the nose that a screenwriter would get notes for it. Bay outpassed Kansas City and matched it shot for shot on target, but the Current had the two moments of genuine magic: a corner that bent straight into the net and a curler from the edge of the box. Armas called it "a real display of what real teams look like." Bay will call it another one that got away.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Postgame quotes as reported by the Kansas City Current and Bay FC.