Late Troubles Spell End to Courage Winning Streak
NWSL North Carolina Courage

Late Troubles Spell End to Courage Winning Streak

by Fran Stuchbury
Published on August 17, 2026 under National Women's Soccer League (NWSL)
North Carolina Courage


North Carolina Courage battle the Houston Dash
North Carolina Courage battle the Houston Dash
(North Carolina Courage, Credit: Fran Stuchbury)

The North Carolina Courage saw its three-game winning streak come to an abrupt halt due to a brace by Houston Dash forward Clarissa Larisey late in the second half in a 3-2 loss in front of a 7,031 fans at First Horizon Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C., Sunday evening.

North Carolina's record fell to 9-7-3 for 27 points.

"Pretty tough end of the game, conceding goals and and losing the the point we had," said Courage Head Coach Mak Lind. "If you think about last weekend, it was the opposite. Scored the goal the last minute and took all of the points. I felt that today when you score the first goal, and they come back into the game and we score again should be at least points. We should not lose a game like this, but again this league is very competitive and great teams, good players. We get punished in the end of the game. We scored two goals, could score more goals, but again, it's also hard to to win games when you concede three goals."

North Carolina opened the scoring in the 37th minute on a goal from forward Ally Schlegel, her third of the season.

"I think they're just moments of good connection with the team," said Schlegel. "I think the first one just comes off somebody else making a good play. I think Ijeh puts that ball on target."

The Dash tied the game at 1-1 in the 42nd minute with a score from forward Kate Faasse, her third this season.

The Courage regained the lead at 2-1 in the 51st minute on the tenth goal of the season by forward Evelyn Ijeh, with an assist by Schlegel. Schlegel recorded a goal and an assist for the first time in the same match in her NWSL career.

"I'm very happy for Ijeh," added Lind. "Now double-digit for her, exactly 10 goals. You have Ashley Sanchez also double-digit goals. It's important to have those players on your team. So it was a big moment for her to score that goal."

Ijeh scored her sixth goal in four games.

Forward Clarissa Larisey scores her first of the season to lift Houston back into a tie at 2-2 in the 80th minute. She had entered in the 63rd minute.

Houston then scored the game-winner by Larisey in stoppage time. Larisey is the first player to score multiple goals off the bench for the Dash since the 2014 season.

Houston improved its record to 6-8-5 for 23 points.

"I don't know how many goals this is now what we've scored in the last 75th," said Dash Head Coach Fabrice Gautrat. "We call it 'Dash time' where we come through and kind of have that belief. I thought our game changers came on and really changed the game. So, really, really proud of them and proud of the group as a whole."

"I think we need to just close out games, and I think that for us it can be done in a lot of different ways," explained Courage defender Ryan Williams. "Maybe being more patient with the ball, spending more time and possession in their half or just things like that, going for a third goal. I think that this is a good learning moment from us. I think that we're going to be better from this game and I think we're going to learn a lot from it. So, I'm already looking forward to next week."

North Carolina's next game is Saturday at home against Boston Legacy FC at 7:30 pm est.

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Images from this story

North Carolina Courage battle the Houston Dash
North Carolina Courage battle the Houston Dash
(Fran Stuchbury)		   



National Women's Soccer League Stories from August 17, 2026


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