April 14, 2023 – National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) – Washington Spirit News Release
Cary, NC – The Washington Spirit will face the North Carolina Courage Saturday night in both club’s third game of the season. The match kicks off at 7 p.m. EDT at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, North Carolina and will broadcast on Paramount+ for fans across the United States. International viewers can stream the match on NWSLSoccer.com as well.
The Spirit
The Spirit enters Saturday’s match looking to defeat the North Carolina Courage for the first time since it took the side down in a 2021 NWSL quarterfinal match, 1-0 after extra time. Last season, the Spirit went winless in all five matchups against the Courage – 0-2-3, including a loss in the Challenge Cup Final. The Spirit was outscored 10-12 in those matchups against the Courage, with forwards Ashley Hatch (5) and Trinity Rodman (3) accounting for eight of the goals.
The last match between the two sides – and the Spirit’s most recent trip to Cary – resulted in a 3-3 draw in which Rodman netted a brace. The Spirit is still in search of its first road victory since November 2021 when the team defeated OL Reign in a 2021 NWSL semifinal, having drawn or lost each of its last 16 matches as the visiting side.
The Spirit opened the season with four points (W1, D1) in its first two regular season matches, the team’s best opening of a season since winning the first two matches in the 2016 season. That season is the only time Washington has won three consecutive matches to start a season.
First-year midfielder Paige Metayer, an undrafted midfielder who signed a three-year contract earlier this year, was inserted into the Starting XI to start the season but will be absent after obtaining two yellow cards in the final ten minutes of the Spirit’s April 1 match in Louisville.
During the team’s lone three-match away stretch last season, the Spirit drew all three matches: 1-1 against Portland Thorns FC, 0-0 against OL Reign and 2-2 against the Orlando Pride during the first month of the regular season.
Hatch is tied with dynamic North Carolina forward Kerolin for the second-most shots on goal (4) thus far in the NWSL regular season. After scoring the Spirit’s only two goals against Racing Louisville FC two weeks ago, she passed Crystal Dunn (4) for the most multi-goal matches in club history. Additionally, Hatch is one of seven Spirit players returning from international duty. Gabrielle Carle (CAN), Hatch (USA), Rodman (USA),…