Gotham FC clinches a playoff berth with a draw against Racing Louisville FC | OneFootball

A draw against Racing Louisville FC was all NJ/NY Gotham FC needed to clinch a playoff spot, but the path to earning that draw was not at all straightforward. A 2-2 scoreline is proof that this was not a simple one to understand just from the box score.

More than likely, there will be a lot of mixed feelings after the draw. Yes, they clinched a playoff spot and did so in a manner that showed a lot of character and strength in the face of adversity. Still, as Rose Lavelle mentioned postgame, they should not need a late-game moment of magic when they had as much possession and as many shots as they did.

This Gotham team can realistically beat just about anyone other than maybe the Kansas City Current, but they need to be more clinical in front of goal and put these types of games away earlier.

Meanwhile, the big story heading into the match for Gotham FC was that they were missing two key players, with Ann-Katrin Berger again missing and Esther González a late addition to the injury report with a hip injury. Shelby Hogan again assumed the starting role in goal, and Katie Stengel replaced González at the striker position.

Gotham FC is playoff bound for the third year in a row

The first half began with Louisville coming out strongly and immediately having the first few minutes of sustained pressure. Gotham then followed this up with their own attacking pressure.

This led to the eventual opener in the 15th minute when Jaelin Howell ripped the ball off the post from outside of the box. It started with some nice passing on the edge of the box before the ball eventually found Howell, who managed just enough space to get a shot off. With the ball making its way into the goal, the midfielder secured her fourth goal of the season.

Gotham then had multiple opportunities to double their lead first through Midge Purce. The forward played a nice give-and-go with Jaedyn Shaw and then blasted one off the crossbar. And then Lavelle made a powerful run from midfield and passed off to Katie Stengel, who shot just over the crossbar.

Those missed opportunities would then come back to bite them as Louisville found the equalizer in the 29th minute. Janine Sonis found herself in acres of space in the box and a bouncing ball entering her path. She took the shot, which initially looked like it would be saved by Hogan. Unfortunately, a bit of miscommunication saw Howell go to block the shot and get in Hogan's way, and ultimately, the ball deflected into the back of the net.

The goal was a tough one to swallow. It just seemed like a result of Hogan not having played much this season, and maybe not being the same understanding between her and the others, like Berger has. She made a great save off a Jess Carter deflected shot from Emma Sears, not too long after, to keep the game tied.

After a bit more pressure from Louisville following their goal, Gotham had another great chance at a second as Purce won the ball high up the field and hit the crossbar for the second time. Then, a few minutes later, Jordyn Bloomer made two huge saves. The first came from a shot by Lavelle, who managed to tip onto the crossbar. And then off of an ensuing free kick, Shaw bent one around the wall, which was again brilliantly saved by Bloomer.

The two teams went into halftime at 1-1. Gotham was the better team in the first 45, but Louisville, who were deserving of the one goal they did score, clearly has a knack for keeping games closer than maybe the stats say they should.

In the second half, the Bats came out as the better team with plenty of sustained pressure in Louisville's defensive third for close to 20 minutes. But again, they were unable to capitalize as they managed one shot on goal in that time.

And it came back to bite them as in the 66th minute, when Louisville took the lead. On really their first venture forward of the half, Louisville had a ball bounce in the box that Sarah Weber managed to shoot past Hogan and give Louisville the lead completely against the run of play.

Still, Gotham assumed much of the possession and momentum as the match progressed and would finally make it pay off in the 84th minute. Taylor Flint fouled Kayla Duran, who had only just come onto the field a minute or so prior, on the edge of the box. As a result, the Bats had a free kick. Lavelle stepped up to take the kick and sent the ball past Bloomer to level the score with five minutes to go.

The team continued to fight, and then had a last-second corner to try and steal a win that even Hogan went up for. The ball did bounce around and ultimately did get a Gotham head to it, but it was just weak enough for Bloomer to get to it and have the game finish in a draw.

The draw was enough for Gotham to secure their third straight playoff appearance. However, the ladies need to win their last game of the season and get some favorable results around the league in order to finish in the top four and earn that home quarterfinal match.

It has been an up-and-down season for Gotham in 2025, but they have clinched a playoff spot that had looked inevitable for a few weeks now. There is still one game to go against the North Carolina Courage, who are in a position where anything less than a win will not be enough to reach that eighth and final spot. And even with a win, it's not guaranteed that they'll make it in.