Jul 6, 2026
92nd-Minute Goal Sends Aurora to Second Straight Conference Title
PITTSBURGH, Penn. – Minnesota Aurora FC claimed its second consecutive Central Conference Championship with a dramatic 92nd-minute game-winner to defeat Pittsburgh Riveters SC, 2-1, on Sunday evening at F.N.B. Stadium. Flavie Dubé opened the scoring for Aurora before Pennsylvania native Gracie Dunaway netted the late winner to send Aurora to the USL W League national semifinals.
The USL W League Playoffs national semifinal round is scheduled for the weekend of July 10 and Aurora will play Salmon Bay FC on Saturday, July 11 at 9:30pm CT. Salmon Bay will host Minnesota Aurora at Interbay Stadium in Seattle, WA, and tickets can be purchased here.
Aurora found their breakthrough in the match and a 1-0 lead in the 18th minute. Dubé played a quick give-and-go in the box with Jeanette Fieldsend, who played the ball back to Dubé and she finished from a tight angle at the near post, scoring her fourth goal of the season.
From there, Pittsburgh would claw its way back into the match. In the 25th minute, Riveters cut inside the penalty area, striking a shot toward Taylor Fox, who parried it off the crossbar. Nine minutes later, the home side won a free kick, which was cleared by Aurora. Off a free kick in the 37th minute, Ellen Molloy fired a shot into the corner of goal, past Fox to level the scoreline, 1-1.
Pittsburgh threatened twice in the opening minutes of the second half, first in the 48th minute when the Aurora defense cleared the attempt and then again a minute later when Fox made a close-range save to keep the match level. In the 59th minute, Thalia Morisi found space in the box, but fired her shot just wide of the target before Aurora had back-to-back corners but were unable to capitalize.
The two sides would carry along level at 1-1, entering second-half stoppage time. It was then that Aurora would finally find their second goal. In the final minute of stoppage time, Dubé received the ball out wide on the right side and fired a pass to the top of the six-yard box for Dunaway, who slid into the box and re-directed the ball into the left side of the net in the final moments of the game.
With the win, it marks the second consecutive season Aurora will appear in the national semifinals of the USL W League playoffs. The win also sets a new club record for consecutive victories with 14. Aurora are the only team remaining in the league with a perfect record in 2026.
