What to Watch for as Racing Visits the In-Form Utah Royals FC
NWSL Racing Louisville FC

What to Watch for as Racing Visits the In-Form Utah Royals FC

Published on May 16, 2026 under National Women's Soccer League (NWSL)
Racing Louisville FC News Release


Racing Louisville FC huddle
Racing Louisville FC huddle
(Racing Louisville FC)

Lifted by the momentum of a statement home triumph over the league leaders, Racing Louisville FC heads off on the road yet again, this time traveling west for an 8 p.m. Sunday encounter with Utah Royals FC at America First Field.

While this is Racing's sixth road game out of the first nine, it's also the last before the summer break. The final two matches prior to the over one-month hiatus are at Lynn Family Stadium.

Louisville (2-5-1, 7 points) rolls into the weekend fresh off besting the current NWSL pacesetters, Portland Thorns FC, 3-1 on home soil. Spearheaded by persistent energy and its trademark press, Racing responded to an early goal to net three unanswered en route to a win.

The hosts' largest-ever triumph over the three-time league champions notably snapped Portland's five-game unbeaten run.

As head coach Bev Yanez put it, last Friday "was just (about) betting back to us and what we know we can contribute."

After navigating three games in 10 days, Louisville deservedly got a chance to breathe a bit - a nine-day run-in ahead of Sunday.

It'll surely need it as the focus becomes clinching back-to-back wins for the first time this season. In Racing's way is another team in the NWSL table's current top five: Utah.

The Jimmy Coenraets-led Royals (5-2-2, 17 points) have been surging since dropping the opening two contests of the season. Utah has, in fact, not lost since March 22 vs. San Diego Wave FC. Currently, the club is on a seven-game unbeaten streak - one very much defined by its stalwart defense.

While the Royals' winning run ended at five with a scoreless draw against Bay FC in their most recent match, they miraculously haven't conceded a goal in the last 468 minutes. The last time Utah allowed a goal was March 28.

Overall, the Royals' defensive unit has leaked just six goals in nine games, tied for the second fewest in the league. For context, Utah had already shipped seven goals before its fourth league game last season.

Follow Along

The match will be available to stream for free on Victory+, the NWSL's newest streaming partner. To create a free account, fans can visit victoryplus.com/register. Fans can also listen to the match on Sports Talk 790AM or 790louisville.com.

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.

Story Lines...

Alright, brace yourself: Louisville midfielder Katie O'Kane played a pivotal role in the win over Portland, capping off her first career brace with a game-winning free kick. The clinching strike from distance was not only the first free kick scored in the NWSL this year, but was also voted the league's Goal of the Week. Her display, which, in addition to the two finishes, featured a team-high 22 passes into the final third, also garnered a Player of the Week nomination.

Milestone duo: Two of Racing's team leaders attained significant career landmarks last Friday. Club captain Arin Wright became just the ninth player in league history to play in 200 NWSL regular-season games with her 90 minutes against the Thorns. Club original Lauren Milliet also hit the round number of 10,000 career league minutes. 9,968 of those minutes have been in lavender.

Delivering magic: Coming on as a second-half substitute vs. Portland, Emma Sears came through with the decisive knockout blow in stoppage time. Sears' energy up top ahead of a powerful strike earned Louisville's third goal to put a cherry on top of the impressive performance. The winger's second goal of 2026 was her 17th in lavender, tying Savannah DeMelo for the club record. It was also the Racing's fourth tally in the last 15 minutes - tied for the most such goals in the league with the Orlando Pride, per Opta.

Home advantage: In all four meetings between Racing and Utah, the club on home soil has won. Last year, the teams played out two games to the same scoreline: 3-2. In the most recent clash at America First Field, Louisville netted two second-half goals after going down three in the opening period.

Hey, we know y'all: Three key members of Royals' 2026 roster - Kaleigh Riehl, Paige Cronin and Cece Delzer - once donned lavender. Delzer (formerly Kizer), ranked among the top five in minutes played this season for the Utah, was part of a major historic moment in Racing history when she scored the club's first-ever goal in April 2021. Riehl, like Delzer, was a part of Racing's inaugural season in 2021, while Cronin (formerly Monaghan) appeared for Louisville in 2023. In total, the trio made 72 combined regular-season appearances for Racing.

Hitting her stride again: The hot start to the campaign for the Royals has seen many players step up. Veteran Canadian Cloé Lacasse being one of them. Lacasse, so far this season, is tied for the team lead in goal contributions (5). She also has a goal in three out of her last four games. The former Arsenal player, who arrived in the summer of 2024, has notably dealt with recent adversity. She suffered a ruptured ACL and sprained MCL after scoring four goals in her first nine NWSL games. Lacasse spent 10 months recovering before returning to action last August. The in-form start suggests she is back to the production the league witnessed prior to the injury.

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Racing Louisville FC huddle
Racing Louisville FC huddle
   



National Women's Soccer League Stories from May 16, 2026


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