Another early Midge Purce goal gets Gotham FC a road win over Bay FC

Gotham FC pulled out a gritty 1-0 win on Wednesday evening at PayPal Park in San Jose, California thanks to a very early Midge Purce goal scored just 119 seconds into the match.

An early corner kick taken by Jaedyn Shaw connected with Jaelin Howell's head, and Howell's deflected header fell to Purce in close proximity to goal, with Purce recording the game-winning goal at the two-minute mark.

This was Purce's second straight game picking up a goal within the first five minutes of a match after she scored in the second minute of Gotham's 2-2 draw with Portland Thorns last weekend.

119 - Midge Purce scored the only goal in Gotham FC's win on Wednesday just 119 seconds into the match, the second-earliest goal in a 1-0 win in #NWSL history (Sophia Wilson after 32 seconds for Portland vs. HOU in July 2021). Enough.

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— OptaJack (@optajack.optajoe.com) July 30, 2026 at 11:52 AM

Bay FC's Cristiana Girelli was quick to respond with a goal of her own after Gotham goalkeeper Shelby Hogan found herself off her line while making a save. However, the Girelli goal was discounted after VAR determined that Bay FC forward Alyssa Malonson was offside in the build-up.

Hogan and a reworked Gotham back line went on to earn a second shutout in as many starts, with Gotham's usual second-string goalkeeper making three key saves to prevent Bay FC from tying the match.

"We weren't as clean as we wanted to be, but just being able to gut out three points away is always hard, especially against a good team," Hogan said after the win. "We're happy with the performance and obviously getting a shutout is great for the entire team."

Gotham emerged as the more aggressive team early on in the match, coming away with more scoring chances despite some transitional errors. Bay FC goalkeeper Jordan Silkowitz was forced to make nine saves, including on a Sam Kerr header in the 20th minute, and on a long-distance strike from Tierna Davidson.

Gotham’s acting head coach Shaun Harris (Juan Carlos Amorós remains on parental leave) mentioned that the early lead did not dissuade the team's initial game plan, which involved taking control of the game as early as possible.

"When it's 1-0, the teams are always still in it," Harris said. "We mentioned that at halftime, they're still in the game, so we need to make sure we try and kill it off. That was the aim, going into the second half, and we had a couple of really good chances."

It was clear early in the second half that Gotham would not be resting on that early goal. Continuous pressing by Jordynn Dudley almost resulted in a 2-0 Gotham lead in the 85th minute, but a kick-save by Silkowitz denied a good chance.

Bay FC was not without their chances, but the Bats held firm with their defensive tactics, with Bruninha making a massive sliding block in the dying minutes of second-half stoppage time to prevent an equalizer.

"I feel like we improved certain areas that we came off the back of last game," Harris said. "There's still a couple of things we need to tweak in terms of in and around the box. We can be a little bit more clinical and then kill the games off."

Gotham’s win comes amidst heavy roster upheaval, including the unexpected departure of the club’s all-time leading scorer, Esther González. The club announced on Monday that González agreed to a mutual contract termination as she temporarily steps away from soccer to attend to personal matters in Spain.

The Spanish striker made an immediate impact on the squad after joining Gotham in the late-summer of 2023, fresh off a 2023 World Cup win with Spain. While scoring 33 goals across all NWSL competitions, she scored the game-winner in the 2023 NWSL Championship and helped lead the club to another championship in 2025 after scoring 13 goals during that regular season.

“This journey has surpassed every expectation I had when I first came to Gotham,” González said in a statement released by the club. "Together we achieved everything there is to achieve, and I will forever be proud to say that with this club, I won it all. But beyond the trophies, Gotham is the place where I grew in so many ways — as a player, as a professional and,most importantly, as a person. And it is here, in New Jersey, where my family grew, too..."

González is not the only one departing the club. Gotham announced the free transfer of forward Khyah Harper to the Houston Dash on Tuesday, another player who contributed to the Bats' strong forward line.

Harris also confirmed this week that defender Emily Sonnett needed surgery after suffering a serious injury while playing against the Thorns, and while it remains to be seen how long her recovery will take, defender Jess Carter moved from right-back into central defense in Sonnett's place. 

Tarryn Torres made her return to the pitch after a torn ACL in September 2025 put her on the NWSL's season-ending injury list. Her addition to Gotham’s midfield alongside the likes of Howell, Rose Lavelle, and Savannah McCaskill allows the Bats to have more rotation.

"There's a lot of season left," Howell said. "We gotta continue to build, especially with roster changes and everything we've had. We gotta continue to build. Our group is really strong mentally and very resilient, and we’ve got a great group of players, great culture, and I'm really positive going forward."

Highlights | Gotham FC 1-0 Bay FC