DC Power FC (3-2-2, 11 pts.) 2 v. 1 Fort Lauderdale United FC (1-5-0, 4 pts.)
2026 Gainbridge Super League Fall Season
September 22, 2026 – Audi Field – Washington, D.C.
Match Recap
DC Power FC earned their third victory of the Gainbridge Super League Fall 2026 season, in a 2-1 thriller against Fort Lauderdale United FC at Audi Field. Coming off a 1-1 draw with Tampa Bay Sun FC, DC Power claimed their first victory at home this season, while Fort Lauderdale entered the matchup on a three game losing streak.
Both teams looked quiet in the first half, with each side earning a caution apiece in a physical match played under the rain in DC. Fort Lauderdale came closest to scoring first when forward Kiara Locklear hit the post with a left-footed shot from inside the box in the 9th minute.
In the second half, DC changed their attacking lineup, brining on forwards Tatum Thomason and McKenna Whitham. Thomason opened up the scoring for Power in the 62nd minute, finishing off a pass from Emily Colton across the face of goal for her first career professional and Power FC goal. Fort Lauderdale got one back five minutes later when midfielder Abigail Hugh received a corner at the top of the box, placing a one time finish into the bottom left corner. Both teams searched for an equalizer going towards the final whistle. In the 89th minute, Whitham played on a looping cross from the left side to Thomason, whose header beat Haley Craig for her first career brace and Power’s winning goal.
With their third win of the season, DC Power move temporarily into second place with 11 points in the Super League standings. Fort Lauderdale remain in seventh place with three points. DC Power have a two week break before returning to league play against Sporting Jax on October 9. With both teams fighting for a top spot, DC will look to put together another win and assert themselves as a championship contender.
Player Notes
- Defender Susanna Fitch played a strong game in DC Power’s back line. She recorded 5 interceptions and 3 clearances in 88 minutes of play.
- Midfielder Emily Colton earned her first assist of the season and completed 10 passes in the final third in 88 minutes of play. She now becomes Power’s all time assist leader with six.
- Emma Jaskaniec had a standout performance in the midfield with 12 duels won and 10 passes completed in the final third. She also achieved a 89.7% passing accuracy in 90 minutes of play.
- Forward Tatum Thomason scored a brace in 35 minutes played. These were her first professional and DC Power goals.
Match Notes
- DC Power recorded four shots on goal to Fort Lauderdale’s two.
- DC Power now hold a 4-2-2 record against Fort Lauderdale United FC.
- DC Power move up to 2nd place in the Gainbridge Super League standings with 11 points.
DC Power Lineup (4-2-3-1): Katie Cappelletti, Susanna Fitch (C) (Hallie Augustyn 88’) Claire Constant, Sydney Cummings, Samantha Angel (Sarah McCoy 88’), Abby Boyan, Emma Jaskaniec, Emily Colton (Justina Gaynor 88’), Kayla Colbert (Tatum Thomason 55’), Tyler Lussi (Mak Whitham 73’), Loza Abera (Gianna Gourley 73’)
Unused Substitutes: Makenna Gottschalk
Head Coach: Omid Namazi
Fort Lauderdale United FC Lineup (4-4-2): Haley Craig, Haley Thomas, Ella Simpson, Margot Mace (Farrah Walters 46’), Kelsey Oyler, Kelli Van Treeck, Nicole Vernis (Taylor Smith 78’), Daniela Todd, Sh’Nia Gordon (Grace Cutler 78’), Abigail Hugh, Kiara Locklear
Unused Substitutes: Molly McDougal, Maggy Henschler, Julianna Cagle
Head Coach: Tyrone Mears
DC POWER FC POST-MATCH QUOTES
Head Coach Omid Namazi
Q: Tatum and Mak specifically sparked things when they came in. It almost felt like you caught Fort Lauderdale napping off that triple sub for the second goal – what happened there?
A: “We’d basically already made up our minds about our substitutions, then [Sue] went down with a concussion, which gave us an extra sub. That let us put in the players we wanted to. Mak made a great play with her cross — great delivery — and that’s something that’s been lacking a bit. She has the ability to deliver the ball on the spot, and Tatum did a great job getting on the end of it.”
Q: You’ve talked about wanting to reverse the trend of dropping points at home. You get the win here, and now you have a two-week break halfway through the season. How do you take the energy from this win into that break and prepare for the second half of the season?
A: “As I said at the beginning, we didn’t play particularly to the level we’ve played at times here, and some of those times we’ve dropped points — whether tying or losing, like the first game of the season against Carolina, where I thought we were far the better team on the day and still came away with zero. So today we showed some fight, some grit, and we grinded out the win. But we have to be much better on the ball. I felt our play on the ball wasn’t particularly good tonight — we weren’t connecting passes. The conditions were a bit slippery, the ball skids off the grass, so that had something to do with it. But when you watched them in the first half, they were pinging the ball around pretty well. We have to be better in possession, keep the ball more, take control, and develop some rhythm and tempo. That’s what we’ll go back and work on through this break.”
Forward Mak Whitham
Q: You’ve been here a couple months now, coming from the NWSL on loan. It took a while to find your footing, but now that it’s been a bit, how do you feel about the league, about getting this win today, and about how your game has developed since you arrived?
A: “Yeah, I feel like since I came here I’ve developed a lot, and DC has really helped me with that — they’re doing a great job, and I’m very happy here. I think this league is great — a lot of different things compared to the NWSL. We really needed these three points. I think we did a great job today and fought hard, so I’m really proud of us.”
Forward Tatum Thomason
Q: You got a brace — your first two goals of the season. On the second one, where those crosses don’t always float over the way that one did, what were your emotions as you saw the ball trickling in?
A: “Oh my gosh, I was so happy. I mean, it was a great ball — and that’s what [Omid] said as one of the last things he told to me before I came in was, on crosses, come inside, don’t hang out wide, because you’re not going to make a play on the ball to score from out wide. So that’s the only thing going through my head — get to the back post. Honestly, I was trying to redirect it back across for somebody, but it just worked out. It was a great team goal, honestly, from back to front.”
