The San Diego Wave set a new attendance mark for an NWSL playoff game with 26,215 fans watching them beat the Chicago Red Stars 2-1 on Sunday at Snapdragon Stadium.
The crowd numbers snapped the previous mark of 21,284 fans, set earlier in the day in the Houston Dash's 2-1 home loss to the Kansas City Current at PNC Stadium.
The Wave now hold the attendance records for both an NWSL playoff game and a regular season match after a sellout of 32,000 packed their home venue for a 1-0 win over Angel City FC on Sept. 17.
"The atmosphere tonight was incredible," said star forward Alex Morgan after scoring Sunday's extra-time winner as the Wave advanced to the next round of the playoffs. "It was so much fun to play in front of our fans for one last time this season. We are ready to go to Portland now after we recover our legs from playing 120 minutes.
"There is just no better feeling than winning a playoff game in front of your home fans."
Morgan, who won the NWSL's Golden Boot award in early October with 15 goals in 17 regular season matches, has been a key player for the Wave in their inaugural campaign.
San Diego will now visit the Portland Thorns on Oct. 23, in the semifinal round of the NWSL playoffs. On the other end of the bracket, OL Reign will host the Kansas City Current on the same day.
The winners will meet in the NWSL championship game on Oct. 29, at Washington D.C.'s Audi Field.
Last Friday, the NWSL announced nominees for their annual awards, including the Wave's Naomi Girma and Morgan for league MVP. North Carolina Courage's Debinha, Chicago's Mallory Pugh and Portland's Sophia Smith are also in the running.
This year's MVP and other award-winners will be announced "in the days surrounding the 2022 NWSL Championship game," the league said.
