Trinity Rodman Strikes Again, Sandy MacIver Sets Club Record as Washington Spirit Blank Chicago Stars

A week after getting embarrassed on its own field, the Washington Spirit went to Evanston, stood in the wind and rain, and made sure nobody would be talking about that loss for long.

Trinity Rodman scored in the seventh minute, Andi Sullivan converted a penalty in the 34th and Tamara Bolt headed in her first career NWSL goal late, as the Spirit beat the Chicago Stars 3-0 at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium on Sunday. Sandy MacIver made five saves for the shutout, which the Spirit say set a club single-season record with her 10th clean sheet. Rodman, meanwhile, tied the league's single-season record for game-winning goal contributions with nine, according to the club.

Seven Minutes to Lift Off

Washington wasted no time shaking off the 3-0 home loss to Boston Legacy FC from the previous Sunday. In the seventh minute, Hal Hershfelt played a leading pass into the final third, and Rodman took it from there, finishing left-footed from the center of the box into the top left corner past Alyssa Naeher. Per the Spirit, it was Rodman's 11th goal of the season and Hershfelt's first assist of the year.

The Spirit then camped in Chicago's end. Mélissa Bethi missed off a 15th-minute corner, Hershfelt and Sullivan both fired wide from outside the box in the 18th, and Rodman forced Naeher into a save in the 28th that turned into a corner.

The Turning Point: VAR Doubles the Lead

That corner changed the afternoon. Sullivan had a header blocked, and Bea Franklin was penalized for a handball in the area. After a VAR review confirmed the penalty, Franklin was booked for handball and Sullivan stepped up in the 34th minute, sending a right-footed shot into the bottom left corner. Per the Spirit, it was Sullivan's first regular-season goal since May 2024, so it was worth the wait.

Up 2-0, Washington controlled the rest of the half. Chicago's best moments came from Michelle Alozie, who missed from a set piece in the 39th minute and then forced MacIver into a save in the 43rd off a Leila Ouahabi cross. Sofia Cantore nearly made it 3-0 just before that, missing narrowly to the left.

Second Half: Bend, Don't Break

Washington changed things at halftime, bringing on Ashley Hatch for Rosemonde Kouassi and Paige Metayer for Lucia Di Guglielmo, who according to the club was making her first appearance since mid-July. Chicago came out with more urgency, and MacIver had to work. She stopped Alozie in the 48th minute, though Washington answered with a Tara Rudd free kick from just outside the box that flashed wide in the 50th. MacIver then denied Ouahabi from distance in the 59th and Sam Staab from outside the box in the 76th.

The game paused for several minutes in the second half while Bethi received treatment, and she was replaced by Bolt in the 75th minute because of an injury. Monique Ngock came on for Sullivan a minute later.

Bolt needed only 10 minutes to make her mark. In the 85th minute, Rodman whipped in a cross and Bolt headed it in from point-blank range to make it 3-0. The club says it was the first NWSL goal of Bolt's career. Not a bad way to make a first impression.

Chicago kept pushing through nine minutes of stoppage time. Anna Gasper forced one more save from MacIver in the 88th minute, and Ouahabi left with an injury late, replaced by Aaliyah Farmer. Rodman nearly added a fourth in stoppage time, just missing the top left corner.

Star Turns

Trinity Rodman was involved in two of the three goals, scoring the opener and assisting Bolt's header, and finished with four shots, two on target. Tying a league single-season record with five matches still to play means the outright record is very much within reach.

Sandy MacIver made five saves, all of them needed on a day Chicago put five shots on target. Per the club, her 10th clean sheet is a new single-season record for the Spirit.

Hal Hershfelt kept the midfield ticking, assisting the opener and taking three shots.

Andi Sullivan scored the penalty and had three shots before giving way to Ngock.

For Chicago, defender Nádia Gomes made her 50th NWSL and club appearance, and the Stars say she led the team with eight possessions won, four interceptions and three tackles. Taylor Wood added eight clearances.

Stats That Matter

• Possession: Washington 58.8 percent, Chicago 41.2.
• Shots: Washington 16, Chicago 11.
• Shots on target: Chicago 5, Washington 4.
• Saves: MacIver 5, Naeher 1.
• Crosses: Washington attempted 22 and completed six.

The shots-on-target line is a reminder that this was not as one-sided as the scoreline suggests. Chicago tested MacIver more than Washington tested Naeher. The difference was that the Spirit took their chances and MacIver took away all of Chicago's.

What It Means

Washington improved to 14-4-7 with 46 points, and the club says it remained second in the NWSL table with five matches left in the regular season. The win was the Spirit's 10th shutout of the season, per the club, a strong response to the loss to Boston. The Spirit return home to host Angel City FC on Sept. 26.

Chicago fell to 5-2-18 with 17 points. After a 1-1 draw at Portland the previous weekend, the Stars were shut out at home. Their schedule does not get easier: next up is a Friday trip to face Gotham FC. This was the first of two meetings between these clubs, and the Stars get another crack at Washington on Nov. 1.

Closing Take

Every great show has a main character, and the Spirit's is not hard to identify. Rodman scored the winner, set up the dagger and pulled level with the league's best single-season mark for game-winning contributions. MacIver wrote her own name into the club record book behind her. Chicago did enough to make MacIver sweat, but on a wet Sunday in Evanston, Washington had the better finishers and the better goalkeeper.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Additional details from WashingtonSpirit.com and ChicagoStars.com.