“Penalty kick.”
That’s all Chicago Red Stars head coach Rory Dames had to say when asked what changed between his team’s 1-0 win over the North Carolina Courage on June 5th and Sunday night’s 1-0 lightning-delayed and rain-soaked loss.
The kick in question was scored by Courage striker Amy Rodriguez in the 39th minute after a hand ball in the box by Chicago defender Kayla Sharples, who was attempting to play the ball with her shoulder.
“[You] can’t let that happen at this level,” Dames said of the hand ball, adding that he felt bad for Sharples.