The Red Stars gave everything they had and it wasn’t enough.
That’s the simplest, kindest way of summing up last night and the 2016 campaign. They rebounded from a humiliating loss on the first day of the season at Houston, ground out results over the summer, remained in the playoff chase and ultimately secured a #3 seed. They were paired against Washington for their pivotal semifinal match, the team they had just beat the weekend before. Things were looked good for much of the season and they continued looking up as the Red Stars traveled to Maryland.
But Chicago were undone, in the end, by the one problem that plagued them all season— the defense.