DC Power FC had a match that was one of the most exciting for the season, but a 3-1 halftime lead disappeared and they settled for a 3-3 draw on the road to Lexington SC.

DC Power got the party started early in the 5th minute, when off the long pass from Carleigh Frilles, Susanna Fitch was able to find Gianna Gourley in the box. Gourley had a terrific finish into the net to make it 1-0 early. It was Gourley’s sixth goal for DC Power this season.

DC Power couldn’t hold the lead for long, as in the 12th minute, Lexington got a great chance on goal from Natalie Higgin. However, DC Power goalkeeper Adelaide Gay stonewalled Higgins to briefly keep it 1-0. However, just a few seconds later, Lexington equalized as Nicole Vernis fired a rocket from 30 yards into the top left corner of the net.

DC Power continued to press after Lexington made it a tie ballgame, and just 4 minutes later, they struck again. Anna Bagley made a great pass from the middle of the field to open up Katie Duong in the box. Duong sent a pass across the net to Loza Abera, who was able to collect the ball and sneak it across the line to make it 2-1. It was her fifth goal on the season.

Three goals in the span of 17 minutes had both teams really aiming to get another goal. It was a back-and-forth affair for the rest of the half, but just a few minutes before halftime, DC struck again. It was Gianna Gourley again to nab a brace. On the long break from a Loza Abera pass, Gourley received it and dribbled 40 yards towards goal. She was able to calmly slot the ball home to make it 3-1 DC.

In the second half, it was a different story for DC Power. Lexington pulled a goal back in the 50th minute as Madison Parsons got a turnover deep in DC territory and made them pay, slotting the ball into the net to make it 3-2 DC.

That score held until the 68th minute, when Lexington drew a foul on the edge of the box. Madison Perez lined up for the free kick and shot a bending ball into the back of the net to level the score at 3-3.

It got chippy after that goal, but both teams scrapped to try and get the game-winner. It went all the way down to the final whistle, where seconds before, DC Power had one final chance. Katie Duong got the ball on the edge of the box and tried to chip it over the top to Loza Abera. However, Shea Doyle was able to come in last minute to clip the ball away and preserve the draw.

With the draw, DC Power FC ended the inaugural season of the USL Super League in 7th place with a 5W-14L-9D record and 24 points. After the match, interim head coach Phil Nana said that while the players and staff deserved a little break, he planned to get right back to reviewing what happened from the match and start preparing for next season. “Next season will be dictated by what we start to do tomorrow,” Nana said. “That’s my mindset…it’s been a very long season for us, emotionally as well as physically. So, yeah, yeah, some rest for [the players and staff] would be good. Some rest for me would be good too, but my brain doesn’t work that way…we got problems to fix and [I will] roll the sleeves up and get fixing.”