Courage Held at Bay in 2021 Home Debut
by Fran Stuchbury
May 24, 2021 - National Women's Soccer League (NWSL)
North Carolina Courage
North Carolina Courage battle the Orlando Pride on a beautiful night at Sahlen's Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park
(North Carolina Courage, Credit: Fran Stuchbury)
The North Carolina lost their home opener 2-1 to the Orlando Pride Saturday night in front of 5,048 fans at Sahlen's Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park.
This was the first home loss for the North Carolina Courage since June of 2018.
¬ÅWe shot ourselves in the foot," said North Carolina Courage head coach PauI Riley. "I thought in the second half we were brilliant and really took the game to them. I thought Denise O'Sullivan was excellent on the day, and Debinha was also a handful tonight. Obviously we gave two terrible goals away. ¬Â
The Orlando Pride scored the first goal in the 36th minute on a shot by forward Sydney Leroux.
Leroux has played seven seasons in the NWSL, four of them with Orlando. She also played for the United States women's national team from 2011 until 2017.
The Pride extended the lead to 2-0 in the 79th minute with a goal by forward Alex Morgan.
Morgan has been a member of the Orlando Pride since the 2016 season and has played on the United States women's national team since 2010.
The Courage cut the deficit to 2-1 in the 89th minute with a goal from Jessica McDonald.
¬ÅWe started off slow in the first half then gained some momentum," said McDonald, ¬ÅTo be honest, I thought we were absolutely immaculate in the second half...we created a lot of chances that we should have put away, but we obviously failed to do so and that's a little frustrating, so obviously we're gonna grow from the mistakes today. ¬Â
McDonald, is also a member of the United States women's national team.
The North Carolina Courage's next game is Friday at home against Racing Louisville FC.
Images from this story
 North Carolina Courage battle the Orlando Pride on a beautiful night at Sahlen's Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park (Fran Stuchbury) |
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- Courage Held at Bay in 2021 Home Debut - OSC Original by Fran Stuchbury
- Courage Held at Bay in 2021 Home Debut - OSC Original by Fran Stuchbury
- Courage Held at Bay in 2021 Home Debut - OSC Original by Fran Stuchbury
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The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer(s), and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
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