Saige Wimes scored in the 88th minute to lift the Aurora to a 1-0 victory over Kings Hammer FC Cincinnati in the quarterfinals of the USL W League playoffs Sunday in Pittsburgh.
The Aurora earned the Central Conference championship and advanced to the semifinals next weekend. The Aurora will play at home on Saturday night against Utah United, a 2-0 winner over host Stockton Cargo on Sunday night for the Western Conference championship.
It is the first time since the Aurora’s inaugural season in 2022 that they have advanced to the semifinals. That season, they lost to South Georgia in the league championship game.
For Wimes, it was her fifth goal of the season. She scored a goal in the first half of the Aurora’s 2-0 first-round playoff victory over the Pittsburgh Riveters on Friday.
The Aurora, who improved to 12-0-2 on the season, have given up the fewest goals (four) in the league this season.
Cincinnati, which went 7-0-3 in the regular season to win the Valley Division championship, was making its first appearance in the playoffs.
