Angel City FC opened the NWSL vs. Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup with a 2-1 victory over Club América on Saturday night at Titan Stadium at Cal State Fullerton.
Angel City central midfielder Kennedy Fuller scored in the 29th minute, beating goalkeeper Sandra Paños, and forward Sydney Leroux, who replaced Gisele Thompson in the first half, scored the eventual winner in the 89th minute. For América, forward Kiana Palacios scored in the 93rd minute.
América featured Scarlett Camberos, who returned to the Mexican team after stints with Angel City FC and Bay FC in the NWSL. Paños, a goalkeeper from Spain, also made her debut with Club América and started the match against Angel City.
“There are little things we need to fix on the field. We have new players and we need to organize ourselves a little better on the field, we are growing more and more,” said Palacios, who grew up in Orange, played college soccer for UC Irvine and is part of the Mexican national team.
Angel City coach Becki Tweed praised the new tournament between NWSL and Liga MX Feminil that will help players who were not called up for the Olympics stay fit during a break in league matches.
“This tournament is an opportunity,” Tweed said. “When you see the atmosphere that has been created between two different groups of fans, it’s something that doesn’t happen often in women’s sports. I think it’s something really special and something to celebrate.”
Angel City will now face Bay FC in San Jose on Friday as the tournament continues, while Club América plays the San Diego Wave on the same day in the second day of the group stage.
In another match in the same group, San Diego Wave FC defeated Bay FC 3-1 at Torero Stadium on Saturday night. Defender Kennedy Wesley, midfielder Maria Sanchez and forward Amirah Ali scored for San Diego. Maddie Moreau scored for Bay FC.
This article was first published in Spanish via L.A. Times en Español.