Racing Louisville Preps for Pivotal West Coast Matchup

Sports stats



Racing Louisville FC

Racing Louisville Preps for Pivotal West Coast Matchup

September 6, 2024 - National Women's Soccer League (NWSL)
Racing Louisville FC News Release


Back on the road for the first time in more than a month, Racing Louisville encounters eighth-place Bay FC in a critical matchup amid the late-season playoff race at 10 p.m. ET Saturday at PayPal Park in San Jose, California.

The second clash between these two postseason hopefuls will be nationally broadcast on ION and streamed for free on ionnwsl.com. Sports Talk 790 AM will carry the radio broadcast, which will be additionally available online at 790louisville.iheart.com or via the iHeart app.

Racing (4-7-7, 19 points) fell out of playoff position and into 10th place in the NWSL standings after a cruel 3-2 loss at the hands of Seattle Reign at Lynn Family Stadium.

Racing outshot Seattle, 17-5, and doubled the Reign's expected goals, which were just 0.2 outside of a first-half penalty kick. Louisville twice led in the first half thanks to goals from Ary Borges and Taylor Flint, but several controversial moments helped Seattle net two second-half goals to complete the rally entirely against the run of play.

"I think we possessed the ball differently, better," said assistant coach Carmelina Moscato, who led the team this past Saturday with head coach Bev Yanez sidelined by illness. "I think defensively, we're winning it higher, transitioning more often. When you look at progress, we feel we're making it."

Racing is still the only club outside the top six with a non-negative goal differential. With a triumph, Louisville could leapfrog Bay in the standings and take one step closer to the club's first postseason berth.

The league's Saturday night finale is a rematch of the June 29 nationally televised meeting in Louisville - a 1-0 victory for Bay that was also against the run of play. Bay's Asisat Oshoala converted a second-half penalty for the win.

Bay FC (7-11-0, 21 points) is in good form heading into the weekend, coming off an impressive 3-1 road victory against the Portland Thorns at Providence Park. The California side led from the seventh minute as new addition Abby Dahlkemper, a Bay Area native, opened the scoring in her league debut for the expansion outfit.

Follow along ...

For the starting lineup and in-game updates, follow @RacingLouFC on Twitter and Racing Louisville FC on Facebook. You can also find us at @racinglouisvillefc on Instagram.

The game will be broadcast on ION - viewers can search for the channel number in their area by typing in their ZIP Code here - or streamed free at ionnwsl.com. You can listen to the match on Sports Talk 790 AM, online at 790louisville.iheart.com or via the iHeart app.

Fans can watch the game at any of our Pub Partners. Please check with the bar to ensure it is open for the late kickoff.

Storylines ...

Cruel summer: Taylor Flint has been one of the top NWSL signings of the offseason and once again showed why in the loss to Seattle. The 25-year-old scored in the 44th minute against Seattle, posting up a defender and nodding in a header from point-blank range. The Nevada native leads the league in aerial duels won, interceptions and tackles won and ranks second in blocks - all despite missing a game and a half through injury. She was named to the NWSL Best XI for March/April. She now has two goals and an assist in her first year with Louisville.

It's Milliet Time: Defender Lauren Milliet is the club's all-time appearances leader and keeps building on her numbers. The Colorado native made her 71st consecutive start - and 86th straight appearance - on Saturday vs. Seattle, reaching the 7,000-minute mark with Racing. The 27-year-old has played in all but 47 minutes since the start of the 2022 season, including an ironwoman campaign in 2023. No field player in the NWSL has started more consecutive games or played more minutes than Milliet since 2022.

Uniquely Racing: Racing Louisville is a team with several standout notes. This is the only NWSL team to have NAIA products on its roster, and the club has two in forwards Bethany Balcer and Uchenna Kanu. Both were decorated players at the collegiate level, with Balcer winning national player of the year honors twice and a national championship at Michigan's Spring Arbor University and Kanu breaking the NAIA single-season scoring record. The club also has the most Michiganders (Balcer, Marisa DiGrande and Courtney Petersen) and most Texas Tech alumni (Janine Beckie, Madison White and Kirsten Wright) on its roster.

Newcomers abound: New addition Bethany Balcer started her Racing Louisville era in grand fashion, delivering an assist in Racing's 3-1 win over Chicago on Aug. 24. Fellow newcomer Janine Beckie has come off the bench for her first two appearances with Racing, totaling 51 minutes and immediately showing her quality on the right flank. Defenders Ángela Barón and Courtney Petersen, both acquired in August, will make their Racing debuts the next time they step on the pitch.

Marisa's (Di)Grand(e) moment: The first free agent signing in Racing Louisville history, Marisa DiGrande added a new milestone to her time at the club with her first goal in the Chicago win. It was DiGrande's first score since October 2022. The Michigan native has made 15 appearances this year, including 12 starts, with two assists in addition to the goal.

DeMelo's dangerous: With only 55 NWSL matches under her belt, Savannah DeMelo is already reaching record books and setting the pace on Racing Louisville milestones. The 26-year-old is tied for the team lead with five goals to go with two assist this season, pushing into the club's all-time lead for goals (14) and assists (6). Her next goal and assist would give her a new single season best in either category. The USC grad is the NWSL's leader in free-kick goals among current players and tied for third all-time.

Air Kiwi: Veteran defender Abby Erceg moved into third in the NWSL record books in career minutes played, surpassing Gotham's McCall Zerboni as she also climbed past 16,000 minutes. The center back has started every game and played every minute for Racing since joining the club via trade ahead of the 2023 season. She has two goals and two assists in 40 league games with Racing, including an assist on Taylor Flint's goal against Seattle.

Bahr none: How about that for an NWSL debut? For the first time in eight years, a player registered an assist and a goal in their NWSL debut, with Racing's Elexa Bahr matching Houston's Rachel Daly in 2016 with the feat. Bahr scored a magnificent opening goal in the season-opening draw vs. Orlando on March 16, chipping the goalkeeper from the edge of the box. She added an assist a few minutes later on Uchenna Kanu's well-taken goal in transition.

Check out the Racing Louisville FC Statistics

• Discuss this story on the National Women's Soccer League message board...

National Women's Soccer League Stories from September 6, 2024


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

Other Recent Racing Louisville FC Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central