Zambia forward Barbra Banda continued her impressive scoring form in the NWSL after finding the net for the 13th time this season, although her goal was not enough to prevent Orlando Pride from suffering a 2-1 defeat to Utah Royals at Inter&Co Stadium.
Banda broke the deadlock shortly before half-time after racing onto a well-weighted pass from Summer Yates. The Copper Queens captain rounded the goalkeeper before calmly slotting the ball into an empty net to give Orlando the lead heading into the break.
The strike took Banda to 13 league goals and 15 goal contributions for the season, with two assists also to her name. The tally sees her match Orlando Pride’s single-season scoring record, previously set by Marta in 2017 and equalled by Banda in 2024.
Banda was also within touching distance of taking the record outright, needing just one more goal to become Orlando’s outright single-season leading scorer. Her latest strike also keeps her firmly in the NWSL Golden Boot race, with the Zambian sitting second behind Ashley Sanchez, who has 15 goals.
However, Orlando could not hold onto their advantage. Utah responded shortly after the restart, with Cloé Lacasse equalising in the 50th minute before Paige Cronin completed the comeback 19 minutes later to secure all three points for the Royals.
The result leaves Orlando Pride 12th in the NWSL standings on 26 points, while Utah climb to second with 39 points.
For Banda, the individual numbers continue to underline her importance to Orlando, with the Zambia captain once again among the league’s leading goalscorers. Orlando will now look to bounce back when they host Houston Dash on 6 September.
