Kansas City 3 Louisville 0 Player Ratings/Post Match Thoughts

Courtesy USA Today Sports Images

Louisville couldn't find the back of the net (legally) and never seemed in the match after Aylmer picked up a second yellow early in the 2nd half. For the first time in a while, Louisville looked outmatched and a little tired from the start of the match.

Lund-6: Not really called into action much other than to pick the ball out of the back of her net.

Pickett-5: Seemed to be lacking her usual sharpness in attack.

Erceg-5: Put a substandard performance for her and looked to be out of sorts on the third goal.

Pikkujämsä-5: Overhit some long balls in attack that killed some attacking movements

Milliet-6: Not as involved as she usually was but at least tested the keeper on a decent shot.

Aylmer-4: Not the least bit impressive in her time on the pitch. Seemed to be out of position multiple times and her second yellow killed any chance for a Louisville comeback.

Baggett-7: Did her job even if nobody else lived up to their standards and put in another solid performance.

Fischer-6: Neither effective nor ineffective.

Monaghan-6: Got off a couple of shots but none were really dangerous.

Goins-5: 16 touches and zero shots tells you all you need to know.

Davis-6: Got off 3 shots and at least put the ball in the net even if it didn't count.

The story of this match boils down to the early goal given up and the 2 yellow cards for Aylmer.

• The team missed Howell who made the trip, but didn't play. With Lester unavailable too, this forced Louisville into starting Aylmer. I doubt that she see the pitch for Louisville again as reinforcements will be returning soon.

• It would have been nice to host a knockout round match, but not at the risk of exposing Howell to additional injury. Louisville is capable of winning on the road, so I don't think fans should take this loss too hard.

• Slow starts for Louisville continue to pop up too much for my liking. The team seemed organized enough on Kansas City's early counter, but Erceg looked a step slower than normal. Hamilton still had a lot of work to do, and sometimes your opponent just beats you.