Gilchrist, a two-time All-American, signed a three-year contract with Bay FC, the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) club announced on Tuesday.

“I am so excited to be starting my professional career at Bay FC,” Gilchrist said in a release issued by Bay FC. “The vision, support, and culture at Bay is special, and I am so grateful to have the opportunity to be a part of it. I can’t wait to grow in this environment as a player and person and play in front all the incredible fans of the Bay Area.”

Gilchrist won two national championships in four seasons with the Seminoles, both against the Cardinal. Florida State edged Stanford 1-0 earlier this month in Kansas City, and won 5-1 in the 2023 national championship game.

The arrival of Gilchrist is just part of a new-look Bay FC squad that will open the 2026 season in March.

Bay FC went 11-1-14 and reached the NWSL quarterfinals as an expansion club in 2024, but last season missed the playoffs, finishing 13th in the 14-team league with a 4-8-14 record.

Less than a week before Gilchrist’s Seminoles completed their title run, Bay FC announced Emma Coates, a former Leeds United player and the manager of the U-23 Lionesses since 2023, as the successor to Albertin Montoya, who managed Bay during its first two seasons. Bay FC is also still searching for a replacement for Brady Stewart, its founding CEO who departed in September.

“Bringing Heather to Bay FC is an important signing for us,” Coates said in the team release. “She is a composed and competitive defender. She fits exactly what we’re building at Bay FC and we’re excited about the impact she’ll have.”

Gilchrist helped Florida State reach the College Cup three times. One of her teammates from 2023-24 was current Bay FC midfielder Taylor Huff. In 2023, the pair helped the Seminoles cap an undefeated season with their rout of Stanford in the College Cup final.

This postseason, Gilchrist helped Florida State to four shutouts in six matches and provided one of the team’s most important goals of the season. The defender only scored four times during the season, but she provided the lone goal in FSU’s 1-0 second-round win over Lipscomb.

Gilchrist represented the United States at the 2024 U-20 Women’s World Cup in Colombia, starting in five of the six games as the Americans finished third in the tournament.

It was a decidedly unfamiliar environment for the two women on stage, who got to know each other long ago under the gray skies of the English countryside and, now, will determine the direction of the NWSL club that just concluded a turbulent second season. Kay Cossington, who came across the pond six months ago to helm Bay FC’s parent company, concluded a monthslong search to find its second coach on Wednesday by introducing her longtime associate from Britain, Emma Coates.

Cossington, who came prepared with an anti-nausea patch, outlined a “new phase for Bay” following a year that included a league investigation to the club’s culture, a stagnant offense and a second-to-last-place finish that resulted in the resignation of Albertin Montoya, who helmed the club for its first two seasons.

And, why Coates, a 34-year-old “from a little village in North Yorkshire,” was the right woman for the job.

“We want to have a really distinct, Bay FC style (of play), that’s going to drive a winning mentality and get the most out of our players,” said Cossington, who previously worked in the league office of the English Football Association, where Coates has coached its amateur national teams since 2017.

“When we went on the journey to look at what a head coach needed to have, what the key credentials were, it was about somebody that had the experience and truly been there, developing players, developing systems and stars and has won things.”

Coates began her coaching career at 25 and most recently managed the U-23 Lionesses, one step below the English national team, where she worked closely with Serina Wiegman, the leader of the Lionesses’ top squad. She graduated 27 players to the senior team without interrupting the junior squad’s success on the field, leading an undefeated European league campaign in 2023-24.

“The bit that I really want to implement is: How do we play with variety? How do we create a style of play that suits the identity of the club, but the players that we have, it brings out the best in them,” Coates said. “That’s something that, working really closely with Serina over the past couple of seasons, that I learned from her.”

Coates said her relationship with Cossington goes back “a long, long time.” As soon as she heard Cossington’s plans to leave FA and start Bay Collective, which could eventually expand beyond Bay FC, Coates began to think about ways to follow her. Cossington described a “global” search process but said the list of candidates quickly narrowed, “and I’m delighted to say the lady sitting next to me right now ticks all those boxes.”

The mention of Coates’ gender generated hoots and hollers from the supporters groups on board. Despite the NWSL serving as the top women’s domestic league, she will be only the third woman out of 11 currently filled head coaching positions. At 34 years of age, she will also be the league’s second-youngest active coach, replacing Montoya, 50.

“I think it’s so important that we’re given the opportunity and that there’s space for females to lead,” said Coates, who also brings her top assistant, Gemma Davies. “Hopefully that will generate more female coaches at the top level.”

While Cossington said she valued female role models, “for some of our female coaches in the industry, they don’t just need to be good — they need to be great. And I think we’ve got somebody great here right now, and we want to give greatness an opportunity.”

Coates takes the reins at a crossroads for the franchise. It made a surprising playoff run in its inaugural season but went backward this past season, earning only 20 points in 26 matches. The season began with an investigation into a reportedly “toxic” culture under Montoya, a prominent local youth coach with limited professional experience. He was eventually cleared of wrongdoing but submitted his resignation with eight games left.

The shakeup extends beyond the coaching staff. Cossington came on board in June and hired two more foreign executives to the Bay Collective front office in October, adding Anja van Ginhoven, also from FA, and Patricia González from Atlético Madrid, to foster the club’s global interests.

Bay FC is also still searching for a replacement for Brady Stewart, its founding CEO who departed in September.

Culture was “definitely something we brought into the recruitment process,” Cossington said, reciting the popular quote: “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” Coates outlined a “football-first, performance-driven culture, where we put the players in the middle.”

On the field, Bay FC is one of the few remaining teams yet to release its end-of-season roster. When it comes time to address personnel, Cossington said, “we think about this in a two-, three-year plan.” Coates said she hopes to play “possession-based football” and “to play forward regularly” as a means to address a Bay FC attack that ranked last in the NWSL. But, Cossington noted, “Error number one would by trying to play a system where you don’t have the players that are capable of delivering that.”

With its new training facility under construction across the water, on Treasure Island, Bay FC believes it has big things in store. The franchise’s new leaders were asked when they realistically believed their championship aspirations could come to fruition.

“That’s a great question,” Cossington said, “because we’re super impatient.”

Coates, a former Leeds United player, has managed the U-23 Lionesses since 2023, directing an undefeated 2023-24 European league campaign.

“Emma is not only an excellent coach, but she also has a proven track record of developing players to compete at the highest levels of both the domestic and international game,” Bay Collective CEO Kay Cossington said in the club’s announcement. “She is an outstanding leader of people and culture and has the football vision we were looking for.”

Cossington, who led the coaching search as an executive for Bay FC’s parent company, was the women’s technical director for England before leaving for Bay FC in May.

“From my first conversations with Bay FC, it was clear that the club shares my passion for people, performance, and culture which I believe are fundamental to sustained success,” Coates said in a statement. “I’m eager to get back on the grass every day, to work closely with the players and staff, and to meet the fans at PayPal Park.”

Coates, 34, also worked elsewhere in the English FA after starting out as a head coach for Doncaster Rovers Belles. She was a specialist coach for young players, then became the U-19 coach before taking over the U-23s.

The club’s release emphasized Coates’ work in “individual player growth, culture building and modern, possession-based football.”

In addition to Coates’ hire, Bay announced the addition of Gemma Davies to the coaching staff as an assistant. She was also an assistant coach under Coates for England’s U-23 team and previously served as the nation’s U-19 head coach and the manager of Aston Villa’s women’s side.

The additions are pending visa approval.

Coates replaces Albertin Montoya, who managed Bay during its first two seasons. In Bay’s inaugural season, it made the NWSL playoffs but the 2025 season brought a significant downturn in results as Bay FC earned just 20 points over 26 matches.

Montoya, who will remain involved with the club, announced plans in September to step down after the season. Player allegations of a toxic club culture in the lead-up to the 2025 season prompted an NWSL investigation of Montoya and his staff, which did not result in discipline but cast clouds over the club’s second season.

Bay FC founder Brandi Chastain told this news organization last month before PayPal Park hosted the NWSL championship that she expected next year’s team to look different.

“We will have some new players. Having new leadership, it doesn’t happen overnight,” she said. “But the potential is here. We understand more than we did when we started out.”

Coates and Davies will be introduced at a press conference on Dec. 10.

Washington Spirit and Gotham FC contested the NWSL championship in front of an announced sellout crowd of 18,000 – there were empty seats visible here and there – in San Jose, bringing together a collection of fans from the East Coast who came to root their teams to a title. 

Rose Lavelle’s curling strike in the 80th minute was the decisive tally in a defensive game, as Gotham won 1-0.

Though Saturday was the unquestioned highlight, Lavelle, who was named the match’s most valuable player, enjoyed her time in the Bay Area all week long.

“It’s been pretty fun,” Lavelle said. “We got here on Monday. We didn’t do too much, just because obviously we were preparing for something. But the atmosphere was incredible. It was really good vibes. No notes. We had a lot of fun.”

The out-of-town fans from the East Coast weren’t the only ones represented. Fans wore gear from several teams across the NWSL – and many outside the league – at what became a cosmopolitan celebration of women’s soccer across the United States, and even around the world.

“It’s been great,” Gotham midfielder Jaedyn Shaw said. “I mean, I love California, and it’s been really nice. Weather was nice. The stadium was amazing. The atmosphere was great, although it sounded like there weren’t as many Gotham fans as we would like. But yeah, it was great.”

U.S. women’s national team coach Emma Hayes, an England native, took in her first league title match and was impressed with what the Bay Area had to offer.

“It’s a lovely place to come to,” Hayes said. “I had fond memories of being here with the team, but it’s so great to feel. It’s a little bit like the FA Cup in England. And I know it’s a big day out for everyone, and you can feel that sort of even in the town just in the build-up to the game.”

Bay FC sporting director Matt Potter was wandering the concourses before the game and wasn’t sure where he’d watch the match from. He seemed content to take in the scene from any vantage point.

“It’s amazing for everybody involved, whether that’s as a fan, the community, the area,” Potter told this news organization. “It sounds like it’s been an amazing week with the preparations that the league’s put on. So I couldn’t be happier to see a packed stadium, and hopefully that’s inspiring for us as we move forward.”

For Bay FC co-founder Brandi Chastain, a woman synonymous with Bay Area soccer, the championship offered an opportunity to showcase the nexus of the local market and the growth of women’s soccer all over the globe.

It also gave the women’s game its own dedicated spotlight. The match was broadcast on CBS in primetime coast-to-coast. 

“It shows that our community and our fan base and our love for women’s soccer is ever present and means a lot to our league,” Chastain said. “It’s all about women’s soccer, and that is something that we don’t get to say all the time. And the fact that we’re hosting it is even more important to me.”

Even Washington forward Trinity Rodman enjoyed the Bay Area vibe, though the result wasn’t what she had hoped for on the pitch.

“It’s always good here,” Rodman said. “Playing in this stadium, it’s amazing, a great atmosphere. The fans feel closer in this stadium, which is nice. It’s very loud. But yeah, I’m a California girl. So I love being on the West Coast. It was nice for sure.”

The former Cal midfielder has transformed into one of the league’s most versatile players. On Saturday, she brings that full-spectrum game back to the Bay Area as the Washington Spirit face Gotham FC in the NWSL championship at PayPal Park.

The third-year pro has played at forward, midfield, and fullback for the Spirit, and started at right back in last year’s 1-0 championship game loss to Orlando.

Metayer started for four years at Cal, but didn’t receive all-conference recognition and went undrafted. But the Spirit offered her a preseason invite, and it took her just a few weeks to prove she belonged.

As a rookie in 2023, she started all 21 matches she appeared in, and scored three goals—every one of them a headed finish off a corner kick. Heading had never been a strength earlier in her career, but like so much else in her game, she developed it quickly, even unexpectedly.

“It wasn’t something I specialized in,” she said. “I wasn’t very tall growing up, so heading wasn’t really part of my game. But the service was great, and I was able to get my head on things. It became a strength I didn’t know I had.”

Cal coach Neil McGuire wasn’t surprised at Metayer’s professional evolution.

“She’s got incredible soccer intellect,” McGuire said. “She understands the game at a really high level, so positionally she can play in a number of spots. Athletically she’s extremely fit. Technically she’s gifted. She can deal with pressure, strike a ball over distance, receive with both feet—she just has a lot of strengths that make her right for the professional game.”

That combination of intelligence, composure, and athleticism turned her into one of the most adaptable players on the Spirit roster. In 2024 alone, she appeared in 20 regular-season matches, making 11 starts, and played across all three levels of the field.

Her first start at outside back came against Arsenal.

“I was like, ‘Oh, we’re playing Arsenal and I’m playing outside back,’” Metayer said. “But it worked out well. I’m grateful for the belief they had in me.”

Spirit head coach Adrián González sees that adaptability as a defining trait.

“It’s so positive for a player to have that many options,” he said. “She’s been open-minded. With her physicality and her quality, she can cover a lot of ground. Inside, outside, higher up, defensively—she can give us so much. And she’s improving. That type of versatility is important for her development and for our team.”

That growth stalled briefly this year when Metayer sustained a knee injury in preseason. Suddenly, a player known for covering ground couldn’t cover any. The timeline for her return was uncertain.

“Nothing’s ever guaranteed,” she said. “I was lucky it wasn’t season-ending, but I had to claw my way back.”

Metayer returned in the second half of the season, appearing in 11 matches, earning four starts, and playing 38 minutes in the quarterfinal against Racing Louisville that was decided on penalties. By the time the playoffs arrived, she felt fully herself again.

And now she’s back where she spent some of the most meaningful years of her life.

Cal’s women’s soccer alumni network is organizing a tailgate for Saturday’s final, and she expects plenty of familiar faces in the stands.

Returning now, with an NWSL title at stake, adds an extra layer of emotion—especially after the Spirit played in front of 40,000 fans at Oracle Park earlier this year.

“That was very, very cool,” she said. “It showed how much the Bay Area wants to support women’s sports. To play the final here is special.”

“When we went through the expansion process back in 2022–23, it was so clear that it was actually a travesty that professional women’s soccer wasn’t here in the Bay Area,” Berman said Thursday. “The history of the sport in this area, both from college as well as the icons of the Women’s National Team that grew up playing here. It was so clear that a team would be successful here.”

Despite the presence of two East Coast teams, the Washington Spirit and Gotham FC, Berman said she expected a sellout on Saturday at PayPal Park, the home of Bay FC.

Co-founded by Santa Clara University alumni Aly Wagner, Brandi Chastain, Leslie Osborne, and Danielle Slaton and global investment firm Sixth Street, Bay FC debuted in 2024 and has been in the top five in attendance in the 14-team league in each of its first two seasons.

Despite finishing tied for last place this year, it was fourth in attendance with an average of 14,823 – a total that was boosted by the NWSL-record 40,091 fans who came to Oracle Park to watch Bay FC face the Spirit in August.

“When you look at the combination of the Founding Four… with Sixth Street’s financial backing and vision, this was going to be successful,” Berman said. “We’re really proud of what they’ve done the first two seasons, and we believe that they are not stopping in what they want to build here.”

The team is planning to open a new training facility on Treasure Island and just hired a new Chief Revenue Officer. It is searching for a new coach after Albertin Montoya stepped down.

“We’re really bullish on Bay FC and their ownership and their community support of their team,” Berman said.

That community support — from fans, youth clubs, and the broader Bay Area sports ecosystem — is one reason the NWSL felt confident choosing San Jose as host for the 2025 championship. The league hosted its first NWSL Awards show on Wednesday at the San Jose Civic Center and is holding a skills competition on Friday at San Jose State.

“It was really clear that it would be celebrated here and welcomed,” Berman said. “The support we’ve gotten from the local community has been unmatched.”

But the championship is also part of something larger: a historic run of major sporting events coming to the South Bay.

“We’ve been extremely excited about the idea that we can be first of the trifecta of major events that are coming to the Bay Area,” Berman said. “We know that the Super Bowl will be here in February and of course the men’s World Cup will be here in 2026 — and we get to go first.”

That momentum, she added, is fuel for both the NWSL and Bay FC as the club continues to grow its footprint.

“There’s an incredible amount of energy and enthusiasm in this community for professional sports more broadly,” Berman said. “And we’re excited to show what this city is capable of in the next few days.”

The San Jose native authored one of the greatest moments in United States women’s soccer history when her penalty kick won the 1999 World Cup in the championship game against China.

Twenty-six years later, she’s now a part-owner of Bay FC, part of the “Founding Four” that brought professional women’s soccer back to the Bay Area after a decade-plus hiatus.

This week, the women’s soccer world’s spotlight will be on Silicon Valley as PayPal Park hosts the National Women’s Soccer League championship, a first for the Bay Area and San Jose. It’s an opportunity for Bay FC to showcase the growth of its franchise over the past two years, and it’s one Chastain and her fellow owners don’t plan to miss out on.

“It shows that our community and our fan base and our love for women’s soccer is ever-present and means a lot to our league,” Chastain told this news organization. “We’ve made a statement, and I and all of our founders have a debt of gratitude to the fans for always showing up. It’s a wonderful environment every game we’ve had.

“Even when times are tough, it’s hard to get fans to come, but our fans showed up. So we’re really proud about that. That also tells us that we have an opportunity to build our business even bigger and show the world that women’s football belongs here, and it tells the players around the world that this is where you should be looking at and coming to ply your trade here.”

The NWSL has contested 12 championships in its history, the early editions of which were held at the higher-seeded team’s home stadium. Starting in 2016, the title matches moved to rotating neutral sites.

In the news release announcing PayPal Park as this year’s championship site, NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman highlighted the Bay Area’s rich women’s soccer history. It’s a legacy Chastain helped fortify as a former Archbishop Mitty, Cal, Santa Clara, San Jose CyberRays and FC Gold Pride player.

“We understand our community,” Chastain said. “Our community is beautiful. Geographically, we’re surrounded by a beautiful area, and we will be in the middle of the Bay for our training facility (on Treasure Island, expected to open in 2027). I mean, I don’t know if there’s anybody who has a more gorgeous setting than that. What we have to offer in our communities that surround us in terms of culture, food, sports is second to none.”

Bay FC will be banking on a positive impression from out-of-town visitors to the Bay Area with the hope that better days are ahead for the local team on the field. After a strong debut season that resulted in a playoff appearance, Bay FC took a significant step back this year, finishing tied for last in the league with 20 points over the 26-game season.

“We want to show all the fans from all the different teams around our league that coming to one of our games in our stadium is exciting and relevant,” Chastain said. “We are thinking about championships, and the fact that we get to host one tells our fans that the league really values the people, and the people are the most important. And we’ve always said that from the beginning.”

Relevance in the NWSL championship race is a ways off at this point for Bay FC. But as the club heads into its third year seeking a new head coach after Albertin Montoya’s resignation, Chastain remains confident that the future is bright.

“We have more information,” she said. “And with more information, there’s more opportunity. We understand how the league functions, our players and our organization also understand how the league functions and what worked and what didn’t work.

“We will have some new players. Having new leadership, it doesn’t happen overnight. But the potential is here. We understand more than we did when we started out. So that’s where I feel like now, even though it will be new, we have a head start, which we didn’t have at the beginning two years ago.”

Chastain likened Bay FC’s maturation as an organization to the transition from adolescence to adulthood.

“That matters,” she said. “Learned lessons, living experiences. It’s like, what did you know as a teenager that now as an adult, you’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, why didn’t I see that?’ Well, because you just haven’t had enough experience. So there’s a lot to say about that, for what we have done and now what we will do going from this position.”

Before departing for the NWSL awards ceremony on Wednesday, Chastain reached out directly to soccer fans to encourage them to attend Saturday’s match. She spoke particularly to those with young children, who have been fixtures of Bay FC game days since the team’s inception.

“If you haven’t bought a ticket, please come and join us. You won’t be disappointed,” she said. “Seeing a championship team and game is always fascinating and exciting and fun. Our stadium is the best in the league for that. Every seat is a good seat.

“Bring a young girl if you have one in your family or in your life. Give her an opportunity to see herself. Maybe not as a player, but maybe as the coach or the team physician or the owner. Help her see that anything is possible.”

The Bay FC back line fended off pressure throughout a scoreless first half but allowed Ella Hase to break through for the game’s only goal three minutes after intermission. The loss was the club’s 14th to go with four wins and eight draws, 13th out of 14 teams in the NWSL.

“We didn’t end the way we would’ve liked to, but I also have to say thank you to the players and to Bay FC, because regardless of the score this entire season or where we were sitting in the standings, they never stopped competing and playing for each other,” coach Albertin Montoya said. “There’s a lot to be said for that, and this is going to be a group of players that’s going to be very successful in the future because they have that fight, energy and desire. I’m going to miss them.”

The game was Montoya’s last as the club’s coach after the club announced at the beginning of September that he would step down following the season. An investigation into an allegedly “toxic” workplace environment under Montoya marred the club’s second season, which featured few bright spots on the field.

The loss sent Bay FC to its 15th consecutive match since its last win, on June 7 against Portland. The club took a step backward from its inaugural season in 2024, when it finished with an 11-14-1 record — seventh place in the NWSL standings.

A 90-minute performance for defender Caprice Dydasco, however, put her in the league history books. With her start and full shift, Dydasco secured iron woman status, playing every minute of the 2025 regular season. She is the first Bay FC player to reach the milestone, accomplished by only 40 other players in league history entering 2025 including Bay FC defenders Abby Dahlkemper (2016, 2017), Kelli Hubly (2022) and Emily Menges (2016).

Beyond the coach’s seat, there will be more changes heading into the club’s third year. Brady Stewart, the team president who played a central role in organizing the club’s highlight of the season, its match at Oracle Park that drew more than 35,000 fans, also tendered her resignation last month.

Stewart and Montoya had both been in their roles since the club was founded.

The team said in the release that a search for Stewart’s successor is underway.

Stewart played a pivotal role during the San Jose-based club’s first two seasons of existence. Stewart was hired in the late spring in 2023, and during her tenure the franchise established a NWSL record for the highest-attended match in league history (40,091 fans at the Giants’ Oracle Park this summer) and work began on a permanent Sports Performance Center on Treasure Island in San Francisco.

“I’m incredibly proud of what we built at Bay FC,” Stewart said in a release issued by the team. “In just two years, we made history – both here in the Bay Area and in women’s sports globally – by proving what’s possible when vision, commitment, and community come together. I’m deeply grateful to the Bay Area and to our fans, whose passion and support from day one helped turn Bay FC into a model of success for women’s sports.”

In the statement, Stewart suggested she is returning to her business “roots.” Stewart joined Bay FC after a long career in the consumer and retail industry, with her longest stint coming at San Francisco-based Levi Strauss and Co. In her 16 years at Levi’s, Stewart was in charge of growing the direct-to-consumer business for the 170-year-old clothing company.

Alan Waxman, Chair of Bay FC, said in the release, “Brady put her heart and soul into this organization and on behalf of everyone across Bay FC we want to thank her for her contributions to building the club. We started this organization two years ago from scratch. During Brady’s time here, Bay FC has established itself as a commercial leader and as a brand full of meaning and purpose for the Bay Area and beyond. As Bay FC enters its next phase of growth, we couldn’t be more excited about the club’s future.”

When Stewart was hired in June of 2023, she told this news organization, “This is my dream job, because it is your opportunity to give a legacy. It’s a legacy for the Bay Area, it’s a legacy for women’s sports, and if we do it right, it’s a global iconic brand.”

Bay FC will have a very new look after their season finale in Louisville on Sunday, Nov. 2. In addition to Stewart’s departure, head coach Albertin Montoya already announced he is stepping down after this season, although he likely will continue to have some role with the franchise. In April, COO Jen Millet left to become the Denver Summit FC’s team president.

The team (4-13-8) is currently on a 14-game winless streak. Bay FC made the playoffs in its debut season after finishing seventh in the 14-team league during the regular season.

Bay FC (4-13-8) also played its 14th consecutive winless match, equaling the last-place Chicago Stars FC for the longest winless streak in the NWSL this season.

Bay, which sits in 13th place, right ahead of Chicago, has one more shot at achieving a victory when it closes its season in Louisville on Sunday, Nov. 2.

Regardless of Friday’s outcome, and despite Bay FC’s last victory coming 4 ½ months ago, outgoing Bay FC coach Albertin Montoya found reason to put a positive spin on another unfortunate result for his club.

“Regardless of the score, they never gave up. And that’s something we’ve seen from them,” Montoya said in a postgame news conference. “They’ve got so much character, they play with a lot of pride and joy.”

North Carolina came into PayPal as a desperate squad, sitting just outside the playoff line in the league standings, a point below Racing Louisville in the eighth and final spot, with one game left in the regular season. The victory snapped a three-game winless streak for the Courage and kept its postseason hopes alive.

Matsukubo scored her first goal in the third minute that Bay goalkeeper Jordan Silkowitz tried to stop but the ball rolled into the goal. She added a second in the eighth.

Bay’s Penelope Hocking, still playing on a minutes restriction after returning from a left foot injury that sidelined her for a month, scored her team’s lone goal. With Montoya limiting her to roughly 45 minutes of play, Hocking pulled a goal back in first-half stoppage time to make it 2-1. The daughter of former Major League Baseball player Denny Hocking was then rested during the second half.

Shinomi Koyama made it 3-1 for the Courage (8-8-9) in the 74th before Matsukubo’s final goal in the 80th.

The four goals allowed by Bay tied for the most it has given up this season but were the most goals an opponent has ever scored at PayPal. The three-goal margin was the most lopsided loss since Bay lost 3-0 at home to Washington last July.

Nonetheless, Bay FC kept pushing Carolina all match long. Racheal Kundananji was denied on a couple of solid scoring opportunities in the second half. She nearly evened the score within moments of the second-half kickoff, but her effort was saved by Courage goalkeeper Casey Murphy.

Two minutes after Bay’s Tess Boade unleashed a long-distance shot at goal in the 65th minute, only to be denied by Murphy’s diving save, Kundananji again nearly scored. She came inches from leveling the match in the 67th minute, but her try rattled off the woodwork.