Brecken Mozingo’s stoppage-time stunner steals point for Utah Royals in Louisville

For nearly 96 minutes, the Utah Royals couldn’t find a goal.

Brecken Mozingo came off the bench and needed only one swing of her left foot.

With Utah staring at a 1-0 loss as the clock was about to strike midnight, Paige Cronin chased down Cece Delzer’s deflected shot along the end line and somehow kept the ball in play under heavy pressure. Cronin laid it back for Nuria Rábano, whose service into the box was headed away, but only as far as Mozingo outside the penalty area.

Mozingo chested the clearance down, let it bounce and stepped into a left-footed strike that ripped just inside the post beyond a diving Jordyn Bloomer.

Six minutes had been added. As the ball crossed the line, the clock struck 96:00.

After an extended VAR review confirmed Cronin had kept the ball in play during the buildup, the goal stood, and Utah escaped Lynn Family Stadium with a 1-1 draw Saturday.

“I had such a good angle,” goalkeeper Mandy McGlynn said. “Once it came off her foot, I was like, ‘Goal.'”

The result snapped Utah’s run of 11 consecutive matches alternating between wins and losses, although not quite the way the Royals hoped.

“If you look at the second half, I think we should be disappointed because I think we had some moments where we could have scored,” Royals head coach Jimmy Coenraets said. “If you look at the first half, we should count ourselves lucky.”

A game of two halves

Louisville nearly found the opener midway through the first half, as Emma Sears broke toward the six-yard box along the end line before Kate Del Fava put in a perfectly timed tackle to knock the ball behind.

On the ensuing short corner, Louisville served to the far post. As McGlynn slid across her goal, Macey Hodge headed it back against the grain, but Mina Tanaka was waiting on the line for a goal-saving header.

Utah couldn’t fully clear their lines. Sears drove back down the right and found Mirann Gacioch in the box. Gacioch took the pass with her left, touched it onto her right to create space and fired through the legs of Kaleigh Riehl, but McGlynn reacted with a kick save to finally end the threat.

The hosts broke through after another corner in the 37th minute.

Madison Hammond wrapped up Arin Wright at the back post while McGlynn collected the service. Play initially continued, but VAR sent the referee to the monitor.

After a lengthy review, Louisville was awarded a penalty. McGlynn read O’Kane’s penalty correctly and dove the right way, but the shot caught the inside of the post and bounced into the net for a 1-0 lead.

“The PK was a PK, I’m not gonna lie,” Coenraets said. “You hold onto someone, if it would’ve happened against us I’d be shouting.”

Coenraets made tactical adjustments at halftime, replacing Hammond with Cronin and pushing her higher while Narumi operated deeper in midfield as a single pivot.

“We noticed even from the bench that when Kate was getting the ball, they were jumping. When Miyabi was getting the ball, they were jumping, and there was such a pocket of space in the wide channels,” Cronin said.

Utah finished with 58% possession, 16 shots and 29 touches in Louisville’s box. The Royals repeatedly threatened but couldn’t find the finish as regulation time expired and the fourth official indicated six minutes of stoppage time would be added.

A meaningful return

Savannah DeMelo entered for Louisville in the 91st minute, her first NWSL appearance since collapsing during a match against Seattle on Sept. 14, 2025. DeMelo later revealed she had suffered cardiac arrest caused by an undiagnosed cardiac arrhythmia.

DeMelo has since filed a medical-malpractice lawsuit alleging medical providers failed to properly diagnose and treat her condition before the cardiac arrest.

Coenraets sought her out after Saturday’s match.

“I told her right after the game that she has all the elements to be proud of as a person, as a player, as a human being,” Coenraets said. “Not just for overcoming what she did, but also fighting what happened.”

For Coenraets, whose best friend collapsed roughly 15 years ago four days after undergoing an EKG, DeMelo’s return and decision to speak publicly carried particular meaning.

“We gotta make sure the next one’s healthy, the next one’s safe,” Coenraets said. “That’s our duty as people, and I think she did an amazing job doing that.”

‘That’s the person we want’

Cronin wasn’t thinking about Utah’s alternating run of wins and losses as she chased the ball toward the end line.

She was thinking about getting one goal.

“I don’t care if it’s the last 30 seconds, five seconds, we need to get it,” Cronin said.

After keeping the play alive and finding Rábano for the redelivery, Cronin watched Louisville’s clearance fall toward Mozingo.

“And honestly, Brecken is so clinical,” Cronin said.

“Lethal,” McGlynn interjected.

“Nine times out of 10,” Cronin continued. “As soon as she had it, I was like, ‘That’s the person we want on top of the box,’ and just credit to her for just freaking smacking it.”

“It looked so cool,” McGlynn added.

Mozingo had entered in the 80th minute. Coenraets said her opportunity was earned through what he has seen from the third-year forward in training.

“Brecken has been showing the elements that she showed today, the 1v1, the going at people, the getting a shot on goal,” Coenraets said. “She’s been showing it for the past few weeks.”

The Royals now head into a two-week international break before returning Oct. 17 to host Kansas City Current at America First Field.