Racing Louisville Tops North Carolina to Move into Playoff Position

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NWSL Racing Louisville FC

Racing Louisville Tops North Carolina to Move into Playoff Position

September 21, 2024 - National Women's Soccer League (NWSL)
Racing Louisville FC News Release


Racing Louisville FC's Emma Sears in action
Racing Louisville FC's Emma Sears in action
(Racing Louisville FC)

Emma Sears tied the game in the 79th minute and Bethany Balcer scored the game-winning penalty shot two minutes into stoppage time to help Racing Louisville beat the North Carolina Courage, 2-1, in dramatic fashion Saturday night at Lynn Family Stadium.

It was Racing's first win over North Carolina in the 12th meeting across all competitions between the teams. The Courage had previously outscored Racing 24-4 in eight NWSL regular season wins over the Louisvillians.

The victory was also Racing's second comeback from one goal down in consecutive weekends, and it moved Louisville back into eighth place - playoff position - in the NWSL standings.

"The ability to grind a result out, the ability to be resilient to get a result - I think today they showcased just that yet again," said Racing Louisville coach Bev Yanez. "Are there things that we need to improve? Yes, yes, there are. But the fact is, a result is a result, points are points. And when you get opportunities and you take advantage of those opportunities, you walk away with points."

Racing Louisville (6-8-7, 25 points) toppled several long-standing streaks in the process of moving back onto the right side of postseason cutline. Yanez's team hadn't come back from a halftime deficit this year, snapping a six-game drought. It was also the first time in 33 games that an NWSL opponent bested the Courage after North Carolina had a halftime lead.

Racing has now scored 10 goals in the last 15 minutes of the second half - most in the NWSL this season.

"It took patience and picking our moments of when to go and when to not, and it could get frustrating for us to sit back for a long time, but the girls did great," said Racing goalkeeper Katie Lund. "So proud. And then to go up and be able to finish the win off, I'm really, really proud, and I'm really excited with where our progress is going."

To get the vital three points in the ever-tightening playoff chase, two Racing substitutes changed the energy of the game. With her team down a goal, Sears came on in the 59th and immediately caused problems down the right flank. Maddie Pokorny substituted nine minutes later and added to the much-needed energy injection, nearly scoring the game-tying goal in the 72nd minute, forcing North Carolina goalkeeper Casey Murphy to make a good diving save to her right.

Twenty minutes into Sears's shift, she pounced on a slow North Carolina pass back, dribbled around Murphy and rolled in the equalizer. Sears, a second-round NWSL Draft pick out of Ohio State, netted her fourth goal in her rookie season, tying the club record with five games left in her first campaign.

Then, in the second minute of stoppage time, North Carolina midfielder Dani Weatherholt blocked a shot just inside the box and was determined to have handled the ball. Balcer slotted home the ensuing penalty, scoring her second goal in as many weeks for her new team.

Balcer is now tied for the league lead with three converted penalties this season, and her seven goals - five with Seattle and two with Racing - now tie for sixth in the NWSL.

"The people coming on had a really big impact, but again, I think it's just knowing that it's coming and not giving up," said defender Lauren Milliet. "For us this year, it's the never-say-die mentality. We have to fight until the final whistle regardless of the result, and I think that's starting to bleed through the squad and you can see that."

Game Summary: Racing Louisville FC vs. North Carolina Courage

Date: September 21, 2024

Venue: Lynn Family Stadium, Louisville, Ky.

Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. ET

Weather: 84 degrees, cloudy

Attendance: 4,653

Scoring

Racing Louisville (0, 2, 2)

North Carolina Courage (1, 0, 1)

Goals

Racing Louisville

79' Emma Sears

90'+2 Bethany Balcer (penalty)

North Carolina Courage

42' Brianna Pinto (Ashley Sanchez)

Lineups

Racing Louisville FC (4-2-3-1): 1 - Katie Lund; 2 - Lauren Milliet, 3 - Arin Wright, 20 - Abby Erceg, (c), 11 - Courtney Petersen; 8 - Ary Borges (59' 13 - Emma Sears), 26 - Taylor Flint; 7 - Savannah DeMelo, 14 - Marisa DiGrande, 16 - Janine Beckie (68' 17 - Maddie Pokorny); 88 - Bethany Balcer (90'+3 21 - Parker Goins)

Subs not used: 24 - Jordyn Bloomer (GK); 5 - Ellie Jean, 15 - Ángela Barón, 18 - Milly Clegg, 19 - Jordan Baggett, 23 - Elexa Bahr

Head Coach: Bev Yanez

North Carolina Courage (4-3-3): 1 - Casey Murphy; 13 - Ryan Williams, 7 - Malia Berkely, 3 - Kaleigh Kurtz (c), 11 - Feli Rauch (84' 27 - Maycee Bell); 2 - Ashley Sanchez, 6 - Narumi Miura, 17 - Dani Weatherholt (90'+4 23 - Bianca St. Georges); 5 - Haley Hopkins (73' 20 - Olivia Wingate), 8 - Brianna Pinto (73' 9 - Kerolin Nicoli), 77 - Aline Gomes (84' 25 - Meredith Speck)

Subs not used: 44 - Marisa Bova (GK); 14 - Tyler Lussi, 33 - Charlotte McLean, 94 - Victoria Pickett

Head Coach: Sean Nahas

Stats Summary: Racing Louisville / North Carolina Courage

Shots: 13 / 9

Shots on Goal: 3 / 2

Expected goals: 2.37 / 0.66

Possession: 36% / 64%

Fouls: 4 / 12

Offside: 4 / 2

Corners: 3 / 3

Discipline Summary

Racing Louisville

38' Courtney Petersen (yellow)

North Carolina Courage

19' Ashley Sanchez (yellow)

78' Feli Rauch (yellow)

89' Narumi Miura (yellow)

90'+7 Ryan Williams (yellow)

Match referee: Adorae Monroy

Assistant referees: Chris Canales, Ben Rigel

Fourth official: Rebecca Luther

Video Assistant Referee: Shawn Tehini

Assistant VAR: Maggie Short

Check out the Racing Louisville FC Statistics




Images from this story

Racing Louisville FC's Emma Sears in action
Racing Louisville FC's Emma Sears in action
   

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National Women's Soccer League Stories from September 21, 2024


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