 During the team 's second regular season match against the Washington Spirit in Boyds , Maryland , Wambach was struck hard in the face from close range on an attempted clearance by her teammate , Brittany Taylor , in the 80th minute of the match . She dropped to the ground and appeared disoriented after standing up . Though she continued playing to finish the match and even attempted to score a goal with her head , she dropped to the ground after the final whistle and was described by Spirit goalkeeper , Ashlyn Harris as dazed and mumbling . Wambach was assessed after the game for concussion . US Soccer announced several days later that she had suffered a concussion and acknowledged that the injury should have been handled differently by the referee , coaching staff , and players . Wambach sat out the next game as a precautionary health measure . She made her home debut for the Flash on May 1 and scored the match @-@ winning goal in the 20th minute to defeat Sky Blue 2 – 1 . It was the team 's first league win and lifted them to a three @-@ way tie for third place in the league . 
