Ludmila scored early and the Chicago Red Stars held on to beat the San Diego Wave 1-0 on Saturday night in Bridgeview.
Ludmila’s goal came on a header in the 12th minute. It was the first NWSL goal for the Brazilian, who signed with the Red Stars in late July.
Mallory Swanson, who left last weekend’s victory over the Portland Thorns with a shoulder injury, started for the Red Stars for her 100th NWSL appearance.
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The Red Stars improved to 9-10-2 and are sixth in the NWSL standings. The Wave (4-10-7) remain below the eight-team playoff line.
Fire shut out in Montreal
Josef Martínez had a first-half goal, Caden Clark scored in the second half and CF Montreal blanked the Chicago Fire 2-0 on Saturday night in Montreal.
Martínez staked Montreal (8-12-10) to a 1-0 lead in the 21st minute when he used Nathan Saliba’s first assist of the season to score for the sixth time.
Clark found the net in the 74th minute for an insurance goal. It was the second goal in five appearances for Clark since coming over from Minnesota United, with whom he had one assist in 11 starts and 23 appearances.
Jonathan Sirois turned away four shots to earn his sixth shutout of the season for Montreal. Chris Brady finished with one save for the Fire (7-16-8), who were held without a goal for the second straight match and have lost four of five.