Bay FC players celebrate following the team’s 2-1 victory over Denver Summit FC in the NWSL opener at PayPal Park in San Jose on Saturday.
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Bay FC’s Joelle Anderson (18) celebrates after scoring her team’s second goal in a 2-1 win over Denver Summit FC at PayPal Park 26 in San Jose on Saturday.
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Bay FC goalkeeper Jordan Silkowitz, center, and Keira Barry congratulate each other after a 2-1 victory over Denver Summit FC in the teams’ NWSL opener at PayPal Park in San Jose on Saturday.
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Bay FC goalie Jordan Silkowitz, left, and Alex Pfeiffer celebrate the team’s 2-1 victory over Denver Summit FC at PayPal Park in San Jose on Saturday.
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Bay FC goalie Jordan Silkowitz poses for selfies with fans after the NWSL season opener against Denver Summit FC at PayPal Park in San Jose on Saturday.
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Bay FC head coach Emma Coates looks on during the season-opening NWSL match against Denver Summit FC at PayPal Park in San Jose on Saturday.
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Bay FC midfielder Claire Hutton controls the ball during an NWSL match with Denver Summit FC at PayPal Park in San Jose on Saturday.
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Bay FC’s Alex Pfeiffer controls the ball during Saturday’s NWSL season opener against Denver Summit FC at PayPal Park in San Jose.
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Bay FC’s Alex Pfeiffer celebrates after scoring her team’s first goal during the NWSL match with Denver Summit FC at PayPal Park in San Jose on Saturday.
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Meg Boade of Denver Summit FC, left, and Tess Boade of Bay FC pose for photos with fans after the season-opening NWSL match at PayPal Park in San Jose on Saturday.
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Bay FC’s Joelle Anderson is surrounded by teammates after scoring her team’s second goal in an NWSL match against Denver Summit FC at PayPal Park in San Jose on Saturday.
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Bay FC’s inaugural season in 2024 was a surprising success. The club’s second season fell flat, ending with head coach Albertin Montoya’s departure and uncertainty.
Year 3 is a fresh start. In front of 13,110 at PayPal Park in San Jose on this sunny Saturday afternoon, the season kicked off with a 2-1 win against expansion team Denver Summit FC.
After the team went to the playoffs as an expansion team before falling into a tie for last place last year, the 2026 opener provided a glimmer of hope that a year full of potential may be worth watching; on display were the building blocks Bay FC are already laying down to launch this reboot. Fans in the stands were excited about watching the team rise from the ashes.
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“It looks promising, keeping our fingers crossed,” said Alex Thomas, a season-ticket holder from Morgan Hill. “We hope that the retooling and rebuilding is short and it all continues to go forward.”
Before the rebuild came drastic changes this offseason. Primarily, the club replaced Montoya with Emma Coates, 34, who will coach in the NWSL for the first time after having managed clubs in England.
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Rising star Claire Hutton arrived in February in a stunning $1.1 million transfer from the Kansas City Current, a club that finished 2025 in first place with 21 wins. Hutton is just 20 years old, but the defensive midfielder is already making a name for herself within the U.S. women’s national team.
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“I feel like it’s pretty promising. I’m excited we have a coaching change to see the possibilities,” said season-ticket holder Anna Thomas. “Love our new midfielder. Just lots of new additions, but of course I will miss the people that are gone.”
Roster changes were expansive. In addition to Hutton, Bay FC acquired former Current forward Alex Pfeiffer, who scored Bay FC’s first goal of the season seven minutes into the match. Also arriving were center back Heather Gilchrist, forward Keira Barry, defenders Anouk Denton and Aldana Cometti, goalkeeper Camryn Miller and forward Cristiana Girelli, who is on loan from the Italian club Juventus through August.
Gone are midfielder/defender Kiki Pickett, goalkeepers Melissa Lowder and Leah Freeman and forwards Rachel Hill, Catherine Paulson and Penelope Hocking, who was traded to Kansas City on March 11. Of course, Bay FC return some of their familiar stars, including forward Racheal Kundananji.
“I’ve lost so many of the people I loved in the first season, but I’m excited for the new,” said Jennie Voight, a season-ticket holder from Santa Cruz.
Winning is a hope, but those on the field are also well aware that this is a rebuilding year.
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“The club’s ambition is to go and win and compete for championships consistently,” Coates said. “Are we in a position where we were near that last season? No. Our focus across preseason has been really clear. It’s been developing the style of play and trying to get the players in a position that they’re physically and mentally able to sustain the demands of how we want to play.”
Added captain Sydney Collins: “We’re trying to play a style of soccer that suits our team and our coaching staff and our players. But at the end of the day, the goal is to win.
“I think that we’ve worked really hard to build relationships across the field, a style of play that we’re proud of that is recognizable against many different teams across the league. Our goal is to grow, to continue to grow from last year and at the end of the day get three points.”
Midfielder Joelle Anderson, a San Jose native, helped ensure they would do just that on Saturday, as her goal in the 31st minute broke the 1-1 tie and provided the final margin.
Other season-ticket holders at the game aren’t deterred by a year that doesn’t promise a playoff berth or tons of wins.
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“I’m excited. I feel like we just have a new whole kind of team happening,” Voight said. “Racheal is still here. It’ll be a good thing. It’ll be positive and we’ll go far.”
Tiffany Vargas, who lives within earshot of PayPal Park, said she’s just excited the sounds of soccer are back in the neighborhood.
“I’m excited. I love coming to these games,” she said. “The energy is so fun and it’s more female-forward and it’s fun. I might be partial to that, but I love it so much. I always like a fresh start.”