Sofia Cantore's Long-Range Winner Lifts Washington Spirit Past Denver Summit FC

Denver Summit FC took 17 shots at Audi Field on Sunday night. Sofia Cantore needed one, and hers went in off the underside of the bar.

Cantore's long-range rocket in the 61st minute gave the Washington Spirit a 1-0 win over Denver in front of 15,169 fans, and the league leaders then survived a VAR reprieve and a stoppage-time ball off the crossbar to keep their grip on first place. Trinity Rodman set up the only goal on a counterattack, Sandy MacIver and the back line soaked up a late Denver flood, and the Spirit banked three points from a game the visitors will swear they deserved something from.

A Series Allergic to Goals

These two clubs first met on March 28 in Denver, a 0-0 draw in front of 63,004 fans at Empower Field at Mile High. The first half on Sunday kept that theme going. When the halftime whistle blew, the Spirit noted, the brand-new Washington-Denver series had gone 135 minutes without a goal.

That was not for lack of chances. Rodman opened with a shot from the center of the box that slid just wide in the third minute. In the 12th, Yazmeen Ryan pounced on a Lindsey Heaps pass and smacked the left post from the right side of the box, the closest anyone came before the break. Heaps then glanced a header just wide off a corner in the 17th minute.

Washington's best looks came from a slightly unusual source. Paige Metayer, starting at forward rather than in her usual spot on the back line, according to the club, forced Abby Smith into a save in the 38th minute. Smith had already denied Rodman in the 13th, and by halftime the Denver goalkeeper was having the busier night of the two.

Rodman Starts It, Cantore Finishes It

The second half began with Smith stopping a Cantore shot from outside the box in the 46th minute, and Denver kept answering. Heaps headed another cross just wide in the 53rd minute, and Ayo Oke was booked two minutes later for stopping Rodman on the left wing.

Then the Spirit struck the way great counterattacking teams do, with almost no wasted motion. In the 61st minute, Leicy Santos, on as a 58th-minute substitute for Andi Sullivan, snuffed out a Denver attack near her own box and fed Rodman on the left. Rodman carried it forward and found Cantore in stride, and Cantore did not bother getting closer. Her right-footed shot from outside the box flew into the top right corner. The club says it was her eighth league goal for Washington and her fourth from outside the box since she arrived.

The VAR Moment and the Final Barrage

Denver's best chance to level came in the 72nd minute. Heaps broke into the Washington box and went down, and the play was initially given as a penalty before a VAR review called it back. No penalty, no equalizer, and a long night got longer for the visitors.

The Summit kept coming anyway. Melissa Kössler, Ally Brazier and Natalie Means came off the bench, and seven minutes of stoppage time turned into a shooting gallery. Kössler headed wide from the six-yard box, Brazier dragged a shot past the post moments later, Delanie Sheehan headed wide off a set piece, and in the ninth added minute Brazier hit the bar from very close range. MacIver and the Washington defense held, barely, for the club's seventh clean sheet of the regular season.

Who Delivered

Sofia Cantore finished with three shots, two on target and the goal, plus two offside flags, which is the price of living on the shoulder of the last defender. She went off in the 76th minute with the job done.

Trinity Rodman was Washington's engine. She had three shots, two on target, the assist, and drew four fouls, including the three that earned yellow cards for Oke, Eva Gaetino and Natalie Means. When Washington needed an outlet, Rodman was it.

Abby Smith kept Denver alive with five saves, stopping Rodman twice, Metayer, Cantore and Santos. She deserved better than a loss.

Lindsey Heaps was everywhere for Denver: three shots, the assist on Ryan's post-rattler and the penalty shout that VAR overturned.

The Turning Point

Santos' interception in the 61st minute. Denver had been pushing, Washington won the ball near its own area, and moments later it was in the net. In a game where Denver had more shots and more crosses, the Spirit won the only transition that mattered.

Stats That Matter

• Shots: Denver 17, Washington 13. On target: Washington 6, Denver 1.
• Saves: Smith made five, MacIver one.
• Possession: Washington held 52.9 percent.
• Crosses: Denver attempted 16 and completed seven; Washington completed one of nine.
• Discipline: Denver collected three yellow cards, Washington none.

What It Means

Washington moves to 10-3-3 with 33 points, and the club says that leaves it two points clear of second place. It was the Spirit's 10th win in their last 12 league matches, according to the club, and it followed a 2-1 win at Boston a week earlier. The schedule does not let up: Washington plays at the Utah Royals on Wednesday, July 29.

Denver, an expansion side, falls to 5-4-6 with 19 points after beating Portland 2-1 a week earlier. The Summit's own recap put them 11th after this match, three points behind Angel City for the final playoff place, with Seattle, Houston and Boston all bunched around them. Denver returns home to host Boston Legacy FC next Sunday.

The numbers will haunt the Summit. They had more shots, more corners and more completed crosses, and they hit the woodwork twice. They also put exactly one shot on target all night. That is not a recipe for points against the team at the top of the table.

Closing Take

Denver brought a 17-track album to the nation's capital and only one song charted. Unfortunately for the Summit, it was a single by Cantore, and the Spirit have it on repeat at the top of the standings.

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