{"id":410836,"date":"2026-09-26T00:20:09","date_gmt":"2026-09-26T00:20:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/410836\/"},"modified":"2026-09-26T00:20:09","modified_gmt":"2026-09-26T00:20:09","slug":"match-preview-bay-fc-welcome-orlando-pride-to-paypal-park-for-sunday-matinee-on-espn-bay-fc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/410836\/","title":{"rendered":"Match Preview: Bay FC Welcome Orlando Pride to PayPal Park for Sunday Matinee on ESPN\u00a0| Bay FC"},"content":{"rendered":"

SAN JOSE, Calif. (Sept. 25, 2026) \u2013 Bay FC is back at PayPal Park for the second straight week this Sunday, welcoming the Orlando Pride for a matinee in the Bay Area<\/a>. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. PT, and the match will broadcast live for a national audience on ESPN. The club will celebrate Latino Heritage<\/a> alongside the match with special activities and performances leading to kickoff. Tickets remain available at BayFC.com\/tickets<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The club will look for a third straight unbeaten result after a draw at Denver<\/a> and win vs. Louisville<\/a> closed a busy three-match stretch in Week 22. A pair of goals and a clean sheet earned the club three points and the club\u2019s fourth straight home victory in shutout fashion. A tough opponent waits on the other side in the Orlando Pride, who will look to return to the win column and get back into the playoff race.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

PLAYERS TO WATCH<\/p>\n

Bay FC defender Jenna Nighswonger<\/a>: Since making her club debut in August, Nighswonger is Bay FC\u2019s leader in chances created with 12. Last week, each of Bay FC\u2019s goals flowed through the left flank, where her combinations with forward Racheal Kundananji<\/a> put the club\u2019s attack in advantageous positions all afternoon.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Orlando Pride midfielder Ally Lemos: Lemos has led the Pride\u2019s build-up this season and repeatedly put her club\u2019s front line, led by forward Barbra Banda, in positions to score. Keeping her ability to dictate play in check could have an impact on the number of opportunities Orlando generates on Sunday. She scored her club\u2019s lone goal vs. Portland last week.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Jenna<\/p>\n

Jenna Nighswonger, Bay FC<\/p>\n

\"Ally<\/p>\n

Ally Lemos, Orlando Pride<\/p>\n

KNOW YOUR OPPONENT<\/p>\n

Orlando has had a challenging second half that\u2019s included the dismissal of Head Coach Seb Hines Aug. 31. Entering this week, the club sits 11th in the league standings on 30 points, and needs to surge in the final five weeks to return to the playoff line. The club fell in a 4-1 result vs. Portland last week, marking its third time conceding two or more goals in its last four games.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Banda has continued to be a bright spot for the club, entering this week second in the golden boot race with 16 goals for the season. The Zambian netted two when Bay FC visited Florida in May, and she remains one of the league\u2019s most dangerous attackers. She\u2019s scored four goals in her past four games, including a brace at Kansas City Sept. 11, her fourth multi-goal game this season.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

CELEBRATING LATINO HERITAGE<\/p>\n

This Sunday, Bay FC\u2019s match vs. Orlando becomes a meeting place for the vibrant tapestry of Latin American and Hispanic cultures that shape the Bay Area. The club\u2019s Latino Heritage Match<\/a>, part of its celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month through Oct. 15, will celebrate the unique traditions and shared passion for music and the arts that enrich the Bay Area with special activities featuring local community organizations, performers, matchday content and merchandise<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Grupo Folklorico Los Laureles will perform at halftime, bringing the artistic creations of Mexico to life, and fans who purchase tickets in the supporters\u2019 section will receive a custom Lucha Libre mask giveaway while supplies last. A special-themed fanfest will feature performances from vocalist Ysenia Martinez and Bay-Area based Latin Jazz ensemble Mamboleo, and 100% of proceeds from the club\u2019s Latino Heritage Tee, designed by local artist Vanessa \u201cAgana\u201d Espinoza, will benefit the SF Latino Task Force. \u00a0<\/p>\n

BRING ON THE HONORS<\/p>\n

Bay FC midfielder Taylor Huff<\/a> and goalkeeper Jordan Silkowitz<\/a> each earned league-wide recognition for their play last week. Huff earned a nomination for Player of the Week, commending her contributions to the club\u2019s two unbeaten results. Her stoppage time equalizer vs. Denver Sept. 16 earned a nomination for Goal of the Week for its game-changing nature and nutmeg of Summit FC goalkeeper Abby Smith.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Silkowitz was nominated for NWSL Save of the Week for her 45th minute save vs. Denver, her league-leading eighth nomination for the weekly league honor. She continued to fill out the record books on the weekend vs. Louisville, becoming the sixth goalkeeper in league history to record 100 saves in a single regular season. Entering this week, Silkowitz sits second league-wide in saves (100), second in save percentage among goalkeepers with at least 10 appearances (76.38%), and fourth among goalkeepers in clean sheets (7).\u00a0<\/p>\n

WELCOME BACK STATESIDE<\/p>\n

Bay FC midfielder Kennedy Fuller<\/a> returned to the club this week after representing the U.S. U-20 National Team at the U-20 World Cup in Poland<\/a> since the start of September. Her second youth World Cup, Fuller captained her side throughout the tournament and netted a hat trick in the squad\u2019s final group stage match vs. New Zealand, punching the U.S. a ticket into the knockout round. She showed admirably in her club\u2019s lone knockout match vs. Brazil, a tough defeat following a penalty shootout.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Where to Watch<\/p>\n

For all other regions, watch live on NWSL+<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mobile App<\/p>\n

Download the Bay FC app to easily manage your tickets and receive exclusive news and matchday exclusives all at your fingertips.<\/p>\n

Lineups<\/p>\n

Bay FC vs Orlando Pride lineups will be available before kickoff below.\u00a0<\/p>\n

MATCH TIMELINE<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"SAN JOSE, Calif. (Sept. 25, 2026) \u2013 Bay FC is back at PayPal Park for the second straight…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":410837,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[139,141,140],"class_list":["post-410836","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-orlando","tag-orlando","tag-orlando-headlines","tag-orlando-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/410836","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=410836"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/410836\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/410837"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=410836"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=410836"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=410836"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}