Tampa Bay Sun Lock Up Playoff Spot In Inaugural Season

With a hard-fought 1-1 draw at Carolina, the Sun secured their spot in the playoffs. This marks a major step for the first-year club, which now sits firmly in the top four of the eight-team standings.

After Eli Hutchinson struck first for Carolina, the Sun's Cecilie Fløe Nielsen fired back with a strike in the 23rd minute. That single point proved enough to punch their ticket to postseason play.

"Tampa Bay has come alive in support of their first professional women's team," said Sun president Christina Unkel to Tampa Bay Times. "We're riding that energy, and it's delivering historic results. We can't wait for our fans to see the Sun rise in the playoffs."

Between the posts, Sydney Schneider stood strong with four key stops. Her work helped keep the goals-against count at 28, among the best in the league. The stingy defense pairs well with a potent attack that's struck 40 times this year.

While the Sun celebrated their playoff spot, Carolina claimed the USL Super League Players' Shield. Their point total tops the table, giving them home-field rights for the June 7 semifinal match.

Next up: the Sun's final regular-season test comes against DC Power at Riverfront Stadium. A win could mean hosting rights for their June 7 playoff clash, since the top pair of teams get home games in the semis.

The title match hits the pitch on June 14. These next two weeks will sort out who plays where as teams wrap up their regular-season runs.

Want to catch the action? Grab tickets for Saturday's 7:30 p.m. kickoff on the team site. Stick around after, there's a fireworks show to cap the night.