This article was first published in the Tampa Bay Times on May 4.
By Ella Zinken
TAMPA — The Tampa Bay Sun is more than the 11 players in their starting lineup, head coach Denise Schilte-Brown said Sunday at Riverfront Stadium.
It’s a good thing, because they had to play much of their game against Dallas Trinity FC down a player.
The Sun lost captain Jordyn Listro in the 25th minute after she received the first red card in the history of the first-year USL Super League.
Nevertheless, Tampa Bay was able to make Hannah Keane’s early goal stand up in a 1-0 victory.
“There’s a lot of depth on this team,” Schilte-Brown said, “and a lot of character.”
Listro was ejected for a “violent conduct” foul that resulted from a collision with Dallas captain Amber Brooks, who was struck in the face. Brooks was awarded a free kick.
Schilte-Brown said she didn’t think the call was correct “at all.”
“I think Amber Brooks is one of the smartest players on the pitch,” the coach said. “I think she led into (the hit).”
A red card results not only in an ejection for the player who receives it but also a suspension for the next game, which is Saturday against Lexington. (The Sun will be permitted to start 11 players.)
Schilte-Brown said the Sun plan to appeal the red card.
Listro “is not that kind of person or player,” the coach said.
Keane gave the Sun the only scoring they would need with a goal into the top left corner of the net in the 13th minute.
“I think we do play better when we score first and start off strong,” Schilte-Brown said.
The goal was the second for Keane since returning from a ruptured patellar tendon in her right knee April 5 against Fort Lauderdale. She sustained the injury in March 2024.
“We just tried to take the opportunities that were given to us,” Keane said, “and we did on one, and it’s all we needed.”
The game became a defensive battle, with Sun goalkeeper Sydney Schneider making five saves to preserve the shutout.
“I’m doing my job. That’s that’s what I’m there for,” Schneider said. “But I have their back and they have mine, and I’m just going to roll on that.”
She had to do it with only nine players in front of her for the final 74 minutes, including stoppage time.
“It’s not the best situation, and you don’t want that,” Schneider said. “But at the same time, I have confidence in the people in front of me, and I hope they have confidence in me that we can, no matter what minute, play a man down and just be disciplined, believe in each other, and that’s all we did.”
They did so despite the chaos created by the game being pushed back a day due to weather-related travel delays for Dallas, the controversial red card and relentless pressure from the Trinity.
With the win, the Sun (10-6-9) took sole possession of third place in the USL Super League standings, two points ahead of Spokane and Brooklyn, and moved within one of second-place Dallas, with three games remaining.
The top four teams will make the playoffs in the Division I professional women’s soccer league’s inaugural season.
Tampa Bay Sun up next
at Lexington (Ky.), 7 Saturday Streaming: Peacock
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Thumbnail image caption: Hannah Keane of the Tampa Bay Sun celebrates her goal in the 13th minute of a 1-0 victory over Dallas Trinity FC Sunday at Riverfront Stadium in Tampa. [ Mike Carlson/Tampa Bay Sun FC ]