Kiana Palacios scores and Mandy McGlynn makes four saves as Utah beats San Diego 1-0 for its first playoff win

SAN DIEGO. Kiana Palacios scored in the 30th minute and Mandy McGlynn made four saves as the No. 7 seed Utah Royals beat the No. 2 seed San Diego Wave 1-0 on Friday night at Snapdragon Stadium. The win was the first playoff victory in Utah’s history, in the club’s first playoff match, and it was the only road win of the NWSL quarterfinal round.

Utah (14-5-11 in the regular season) arrived winless in four matches and scoreless in its last three, and it played without midfielder Mina Tanaka, a team high scorer who was ruled out with a hamstring injury. San Diego (18-4-8) came in on a seven match unbeaten run and had won all six previous meetings between the clubs, including both matches this season. None of that held. Utah led a San Diego team for the first time in 2026 and never gave the lead back.

The goal came from the left side. Jameese Joseph, starting in Tanaka’s place, played the ball wide to Cloé Lacasse, who drove a low cross to Palacios at the penalty spot. Palacios took a touch with her right foot, turned, and fired with her left through the legs of defender Kristen McNabb into the right side of the net. It was the first playoff goal in club history.

“Cloé made a nice pass in the box, I saw it coming, took my touch and didn’t even think about it,” Palacios said.

San Diego had the chances to change the match before and after the goal. In the fifth minute Melanie Barcenas headed from the penalty spot and McGlynn got low to parry it away, and McGlynn then deflected a Lia Godfrey shot with an outstretched right hand. San Diego also forced a double stop on the Utah goal line from Kate Del Fava and Paige Cronin in the first half. Utah’s counter produced its own openings: Lacasse shot just high of the far post in the 13th minute, and goalkeeper Sandra Paños dived to turn away a Paige Cronin shot three minutes later, her only save of the night.

The second half followed the same pattern. Palacios curled a shot just wide of the far post in the 50th minute, and at the other end Miyabi slid to block a Kenza Dali chance inside the box. San Diego’s best opening came in the 77th minute, when a mis-hit Gia Corley cross drifted toward the top left corner and McGlynn readjusted and dived to reject it with her right hand. San Diego finished with 16 shots to Utah’s eight, five shots on goal to two, 63 percent of possession and 10 corner kicks to three, and scored on none of them. McGlynn’s four saves and the clean sheet closed out a defensive stand in which Utah also took four yellow cards, Palacios among them in the 59th minute.

“Unbelievable, it’s just everything you could hope for,” McGlynn said. “I’m like in shock, no words can describe this feeling.”

San Diego played without midfielder Kimmi Ascanio, unavailable with a thigh injury, and its season ends with a fourth consecutive playoff defeat. The Wave’s 58 points and No. 2 seed were built on the league’s second best regular season record, and it ended in one night, held scoreless at home by the lowest seed left in the bracket.

Up Next: Utah travels to face the No. 3 seed Washington Spirit in a semifinal on Saturday, Nov. 14, at Audi Field in Washington, D.C. San Diego’s season is over.

Scoring summary: Utah, Palacios 30, Lacasse. Halftime: Utah 1, San Diego 0. Attendance: 12,638.