WMLS: HOUSTON DASH VS. WASHINGTON SPIRIT (1-2) 3/14/25

Written by Michael Thervil

VEDA COMMUNICATIONS | WMLS: COACH FABRICE GAUTRAT HOUSTON - DASH VS. WASHINGTON SPIRIT 3/14/2025 Video by Michael Thervil

If we were to use one word to describe last night’s opening game between the Houston Dash and the Washington Spirit, it would be “balanced”. The reason for this is because both teams, despite the Washington Spirit scoring 2 points by the end of the first half to the Houston Dash’s 0, played at an even pace. Backing our position here at VEDA Communication are the stats that were submitted by halftime. Looking at the numbers from the last 5 head-to-head matches between the two teams, the Houston Dash only won 1 game while Washington won 5, while another 2 games ended in a draw.

The Houston Dash appeared to play rather aggressively on the pitch yesterday despite not yet scoring by halftime. However, when it came to aggression on the pitch, not only did The Washington Spirit display slightly more aggression on the pitch than the Houston Dash but that aggression was indicated by the number of fouls they racked up by the end of the game. As a side note, last night’s game was met with a little criticism due to the fact that this year's Houston Dash team, like the Houston Dynamo’s are essentially a new team given all of the new additions that were added to their roster (to include the coach).

VEDA COMMUNICATIONS | WMLS: MAGGIE GRAHAM - HOUSTON DASH VS. WASHINGTON SPIRIT 3/14/2025 VIDEO BY MICHAEL THERVIL

Looking at the stats, when it came to taking shots on the attack, the Houston Dash led in this area as they took a total of 11 shots to the Washington Spirit’s 8 and both teams faired equally when it came to shots on target. Both teams were equal with 3 shots off target. On the defensive end, The Houston Dash were able to block 4 shots, while the Washington Spirit’s blocked 1. The Houston Dash also executed a whopping 28 interceptions to the Washington Spirit’s 14. Washington led in clearances with a total of 37 clearances to Houston’s 4. 

Washington also led when it came to keeper saves (3) to Houston's 2. The Houston Dash had possession of the ball just over half of the time (55%), while the Washington Spirit’s had taken ball possession 45% of the time. Washington had a total of 369 passes while the Houston Dash dominated in this area with a grand total of 432 passes. Both teams were roughly equal in terms of pass accuracy with the Washington Spirit acquiring an ass accuracy rate of 72% to the Houston Dash’s 78%.

VEDA COMMUNICATIONS | WMLS: KATIE LIND - HOUSTON DASH VS. WASHINGTON SPIRIT 3/14/2025 VIDEO BY MICHAEL THERVIL

Fouls can be seen as either a great indicator of how aggressive each team played on the pitch or how inexperienced a team may be, however in this case the first order takes precedence, with the Houston Dash racking up 11 fouls as the Washington Spirit’s took the lead with 15 total fouls for the game. The Houston Dash received neither red or yellow cards, but the Washington Spirit’s received 2 yellow cards and no red cards. Both teams were tied when it came to getting calls for being offsides with 2 calls apiece. The Houston Dash picked up 8 corners and Washington none. The final score between the Houston Dash and the Washington Spirit was 1-2.

For all those Houston Dash fans out there, the next Houston Dash game will be an away game with the Dash taking on the Chicago Red Stars, on Sunday March 23rd, at 4:00pm. Looking at the previous 5 games between the Houston Dash and the Chicago Red Stars, Chicago has beaten them 4 times. Currently the win probability of this next game lies in favor of the Chicago Red Stars defeating the Houston Dash. The question that’s on the minds of all Houston Dash fans is: “can this new line up of players on the Dash’s roster turn the odds of them losing upside down?” Well, it looks like they are going to have to wait and see on March 23rd.