A Lot of Hope Going Forward: Racing Louisville at Houston Dash

Confident and Collected

After a solid string of preseason performances, all eyes were on Racing Louisville to see if they could keep the momentum going in the regular season. By earning a nil-nil draw in Houston on Sunday in their season opener, it now seems apparent that they can.

A scoreless draw might seem underwhelming at a glance, but this was a fun back-and-forth game where both teams dished out some solid chances and made key saves. It could have easily been 2-0 in either direction or 2-2 with just a few more adjustments. For the Dash, this isn’t surprising because they retained their entire starting XI that made the playoffs in 2022. For Racing, this is much more surprising considering they had five new players start the match, including three who were completely new to the NWSL.

Players had been saying all through preseason that they’d been integrating well as a team and that was on full display as every single one of the newcomers made an impact on the match.

On the backline, Carson Pickett and Abby Erceg (who wore the captain’s armband with Jaelin Howell out with a hamstring injury) lived up to all their promise with Pickett creating excellent chances with her crosses and Erceg keeping the defense ordered against Houston’s potent attack. For his part, head coach Kim Björkegren was so impressed by Erceg’s leadership and cool demeanor that he called her “our best player on the pitch.”

As a whole, the defense – which also included Rebecca Holloway at right center and Lauren Milliet as right back – did a solid job and seemed to be on the same page throughout the match. This is a particularly positive development because backline cohesiveness is something Racing has struggled mightily with in the past. Holloway looked fitter and sharper than she’d ever been and Milliet put her body on the line multiple times to keep the score level. Overall, the defensive performance impressed keeper Katie Lund who said, “I just feel so comfortable with those four that it makes my job easier. They worked their tails off.”

She also had praise for Erceg and Pickett and, in particular, their ability to integrate into the back line so seamlessly.

“Carson and Abby come in with such great experience that it’s easy to work with them,” said Lund. “They’re just so good and what they do and they know how to play the game that it basically just comes naturally.”