Sporting Jax fell to D.C. Power FC 3-1 in their inaugural season home opener on Saturday, August 23 at UNF’s Hodges Stadium. After a nearly two-hour rain delay, both teams took the field in a first half that was largely controlled by Sporting Jax.
Jade Pennock scored the only goal for Sporting Jax, putting them on the board early in the first half. Obviously, the weather was not ideal and head coach Stacey Balaam recognized that as a difficult hurdle to overcome. “It is tough to sustain high energy throughout the game, and the weather certainly didn’t help.” said Balaam.
Sporting Jax struggled to finish their chances and had several missed opportunities throughout the game. “We overcomplicated a simple game at times, and if you miss that many chances in a game it leaves the other team hanging on.” said Balaam. The head coach recognizes that she has a fairly young team and understands there will be growing pains. “I expect that we are going to make some inexperienced mistakes, and we have to have a positive response.” she said.
In addition to Pennock’s goal, there were a few other positives for Sporting Jax including their 60.9% possession rate compared to D.C. Power’s 39.1%.
Even though the final result was not in favor of her team, Balaam knows how important it is to put it in the rear view and focus on the future. “This outcome doesn’t define us. It gives us something to look at in terms of what we need to improve for next week.” she said.
Sporting Jax will be on the road on Saturday, August 30 against Tampa Bay Sun FC, and they will have their hands full. Tampa Bay Sun won the USL Super League championship last season, which was their first in the league. “We have to bounce back, and we have to respond quickly.” said Balaam.
