Lauren Rowe scored her fifth goal in six matches, Croix Soto earned her first start of the season, as Toronto suffered its first loss in six matches

Toronto, ON (July 11, 2026) – AFC Toronto’s unbeaten streak came to an end on Saturday afternoon, as the club fell 2-1 to Ottawa Rapid FC at York Lions Stadium. Toronto (4-3-3) remains in third place in the Northern Super League table with 15 points.

Lauren Rowe gave Toronto the early lead, taking a feed in the box from Kaylee Hunter and burying it for her fifth goal in six matches. Hunter earned her first assist of the year on the goal. Rapid FC responded 10 minutes later with a tying goal from Min-A Lee. Early in the second half, Colby Barnett was sent off on a red card and will now serve a two-match suspension. Ottawa took the lead late in the game off a corner kick. Toronto pushed for an equalizer deep into stoppage time, but were unable to find the tying goal.

“Obviously the red card changed the game completely, but I thought even with 10 players we actually created better chances than Ottawa,” said head coach Marko Milanović. “I can’t be too upset about the effort, but obviously it didn’t go our way. It was a tough loss to take, but there’s so much soccer to be played.”

Next, Toronto hosts Vancouver Rise FC at York Lions Stadium on Saturday, July 18 at 4 p.m. ET.

LAUREN ROWE: Lauren Rowe now has five goals in her last six matches. The 22-year-old striker was named NSL Player of the Month in June and currently sits tied for third in the league’s Golden Boot race.

KAYLEE HUNTER: Kaylee Hunter earned her first assist of the season on Saturday.

CROIX SOTO: The 25-year-old defender made her first start of the season on Saturday.

HEAD-TO-HEAD: AFC Toronto has a draw and a loss in two contests against Ottawa this season. The club holds a 2-2-3 record all-time against Rapid FC.

UP NEXT: AFC Toronto hosts Vancouver Rise FC at York Lions Stadium on Saturday, July 18 at 4 p.m. ET (Stream on CBC Gem and NSL.ca).

MATCH SUMMARY
AFC Toronto - 1 | Ottawa Rapid FC - 2
Venue: York Lions Stadium
Referee: Angelina Baldino
Assistants: Stéphanie Fortin, Reda Fazazi
Fourth Official: Yusri Rudolf
Referee Observer: Amato De Luca
Attendance: 2,519

SCORING SUMMARY
AFC Toronto: L. Rowe (2’)
Ottawa Rapid FC: Min-A Lee (12’), D.B. Pridham (87’)

MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
59’ - Red: Colby Barnett (AFC Toronto)
62’ - Yellow: Keera Melenhorst (Ottawa Rapid FC)
89’ - Yellow: Manager (AFC Toronto)

STARTING LINEUP & STATS
AFC Toronto Starting Lineup:
 GK Sofia Manner (FIN)
DF Ashley Cathro (USA)
DF Sarah Rollins (Toronto, ON)
DF Croix Soto (USA)
MF Colby Barnett (USA)
MF Zoe Burns (USA)
MF Kaila Novak (London, ON)
MF Nikayla Small (Pickering, ON)
MF Sarah Stratigakis (Woodbridge, ON)
FW Kaylee Hunter (Calgary, AB)
FW Lauren Rowe (Conception Bay South, NL)

Substitutes: Danielle Krzyzaniak (GK), Jordan Brewster (DF), Kaela Hansen (DF), Nyota Katembo (MF), Olivia Chisholm (MF), Linda (MF), April Lantaigne (MF), Cloey Uddenberg (MF), Esther Okoronkwo (FW)

Total Shots: 17
Shots on Goal: 3
Fouls: 8
Offsides: 0
Corner Kicks: 5
Saves: 6

Video Highlights
Media can access video highlights from the match on the Northern Super League YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/@NorthernSuperLeague

Match Summary
A complete summary of the match facts and stats can be viewed at:https://www.nsl.ca/games/2026-07-11-toronto-ottawa

More from the locker room:

Marko Milanović, on the game: “Yeah, we came out with really good energy. I thought we created more chances in the first half to score, not just our goal. I think the goal we conceded was quite poor from outside of the box, I thought we could have been better stepping out a little bit earlier. But I was very pleased with the first half. I thought we had a flat, maybe, first 10, 15 minutes of the second, but then we picked it up after that. And then the red card obviously changed the momentum of the game.”

Milanović, on the team’s drive to win at home: “I thought today the performance was quite good. We’re very upset and sad that we weren’t able to win for our fans, because the atmosphere was incredible. We’re going to continue to do everything we possibly can to get results at home, just like we get them away. And I'm sure at some point those results will come, as long as the performances continue to be there.”

Milanović, on Lauren Rowe: “I hope her confidence is high right now. You can ask her, but she scored five goals in six games. So I'm hoping that would be something to be excited about. She's made significant strides over the course of the last year. At this point last season, she was still playing League1 Ontario, I believe she was just finishing. So she’s made significant strides. She's one of the leading goalscorers in the league now, I believe, with five goals. So really happy to see her progress the way she did because she works so hard.”

Milanović, on Kaila Novak: “I’m always pleased when players come in and perform. Kai is an incredible person, incredible girl. The amount of energy she brings to the squad on and off the field, the girls can talk about that as well, but she’s an amazing person. When someone like that does well, it makes you smile because she's one of those players that would do all of that even if she wasn't on the field. And that's really rare to find at any level, especially at this level. So I'm really happy with her performance. Second game in a row where she was good and she contributed. So I’m hoping for more of that.”

Captain Nikki Small, on bouncing back from the loss: “I don't think it's a matter of resetting. I think we've been playing well and I think at the end of the day it just comes down to finishing our chances or not. And I think they're going to fall. So for us, it's not about resetting. It's about continuing on the momentum that we are on. I think, yeah, this is maybe a one-off game, just because of the situation and the circumstances. But in the future, we're continuing to grow and build on what we have and I think we're on the right path right now.”

Defender Sarah Rollins, on Croix Soto’s return to the pitch: “It was so great to play with her again. She's such a communicative, good player who works really hard and is really fast. She's put in so much work off the field rehabbing. She does it every day. She still does it every day. She does it, like, twice a day, going to the gym, doing extra gym. She's really worked for it and I'm really happy to see her back on the field again. She, as you saw, made a big difference and helped our back line.”