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NWSL North Carolina Courage

NC Courage Preview: vs. Gotham FC (May 3)

May 2, 2023 - National Women's Soccer League (NWSL)
North Carolina Courage News Release


CARY, N.C. - The North Carolina Courage return home to open a four-game home stand as they host NJ/NY Gotham FC in UKG NWSL Challenge Cup group stage action this Wednesday, May 3, at 7:00 p.m. ET. Tickets are on sale now and the game will stream live on Paramount+ with @TheNCCourage providing live updates on social media before, during and after the match. The Courage are the defending Challenge Cup champions after claiming the title in 2022.

The Courage are coming off a weather-shortened 0-1 win in Houston last Friday, snapping a three-game regular season skid and improving to 2-3-0 on the season. Tyler Lussi scored her first goal for the Courage, one-timing home a brilliant cross from Emily Fox a half-hour into the contest. The Courage also held 65% of possession, passed at 85% accuracy and had the advantage in shots and shots on goal for a game that was called after 52 minutes due to lightning.

This is the second group stage game of the 2023 Challenge Cup, with Gotham sitting atop the East Division with three points after a 1-0 win over the Washington Spirit. The Courage got the latest goal in club history when Denise O'Sullivan ripped an equalizer in the 90+9' to salvage a 1-1 draw in Orlando, despite a stat sheet dominated by North Carolina. The late-game heroics extended the Courage undefeated streak to 11 straight Challenge Cup matches, dating back to 2021, which extended the longest such streak in tournament history.

The Challenge Cup splits the 12 NWSL clubs into three divisions, aligned by location (East, Central, and West), with the groups of four playing each opponent home and away for a total of six matches. With each win worth three points and draw worth one, the team with the most points from each division, plus the team with the next-highest point total, advance to the Challenge Cup playoffs, where single-game semifinals lead to a winner-take-all championship match.

The Matchup

The Courage face Gotham for the second time in two weeks, this time in Challenge Cup action. In a game that was delayed two hours due to weather, the Courage fell in Harrison, 1-0, on a Lynn Williams 80' goal two Saturdays ago. The Courage are now 11W-5L-3D against Gotham lifetime, with the loss last month the first to Gotham since October 17, 2021.

The Courage do have a slight advantage in rest over Gotham heading into the Wednesday showdown; the Courage played last Friday, although were kept up abnormally late due to the lengthy delay and eventual abandonment, while Gotham played on Sunday in Kansas City. The extra day of rest, plus home field advantage, could prove useful during this grueling stretch of the season.

Scouting Gotham

Gotham got off to a hot start, earning three wins in their first four regular season games and was the only East Division team to start Challenge Cup play with three points. They opened the season with a come-from-behind 2-1 win at Angel City, were shut out by OL Reign, 0-2, in their first home game, then scored a pair of stoppage time goals to down Orlando, 2-0, on the road before the 1-0 home win over the Courage. They fell in Kansas City, 2-0, Sunday.

Gotham has added some key experience to the roster this season, including U.S. Women's National Team mainstays Kelley O'Hara and Lynn Williams. They traded the second-overall pick in the draft for Williams, but still were able to select Jenna Nighswonger with the fourth pick. Add in Midge Purce and Kristie Mewis, and this potent offense will look to attack early and often.

The youthful Courage will also have to deal with a very experienced opponent. According to Opta, Gotham by far has the most veteran roster with an average age of 29.32. The next-highest average age is OL Reign at 26.7 years.

Players to Watch

NC Courage: #14 Tyler Lussi

Veteran Tyler Lussi was outstanding for the Courage in her debut back on March 25 but had been battling a bit of a knock in the weeks since, limiting her minutes in both matches and training. She returned to starting form over the last week and continued to show the pace and tenacity that makes her such a difficult matchup, culminating in No Sleeves FC's first goal for the Courage, scoring the game-winner in the 1-0 final at Houston last Friday. Prior to joining the Courage this past off-season, the Princeton grad and Maryland native had spent her entire professional career on the west coast with Portland and Angel City, but has quickly built a chemistry with her new squad, both on and off the field.

Gotham FC: #4 Abby Smith

Last week, our Gotham player to watch scored. But what are the odds of a goalkeeper scoring in an NWSL match? That's only happened, like, twice. So we think we're safe here. Smith has been outstanding in goal for Gotham after joining the club this past off-season. Her 21 saves in regular season matches lead the NWSL and she's third in save percentage (80.0). She made a double save on Brittany Ratcliffe at the goal line last Saturday to keep the Courage off the scoreboard, earning the clean sheet for her club and NWSL Save of the Week honors. A veteran in the league since 2016, Smith won a 2022 NWSL Championship with the Portland Thorns.

Next Up

The Courage return to NWSL regular season action this Saturday, May 6, when they host the defending champion Portland Thorns at 7:00 p.m. ET. The match will stream live on Paramount+ and @TheNCCourage will provide live updates on social media. Tickets to the match can be purchased here.

MATCH PREVIEW

NC Courage vs. Gotham FC (UKG Challenge Cup)

Wednesday, May 3, 7:00 p.m. ET

WakeMed Soccer Park | Cary, North Carolina

Coverage:

Live Stats (NWSL)

Broadcast: Paramount+ (PXP: JP Dellacamera, Analyst: Lori Lindsey)

Social Media: @TheNCCourage

Check out the North Carolina Courage Statistics



National Women's Soccer League Stories from May 2, 2023


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