July 26, 2024 – National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL)
North Carolina Courage News Release
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The North Carolina Courage continue NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup action as they visit Racing Louisville FC for the second fixture of Group E play this Friday, July 26, with an 8 p.m. ET kickoff at Lynn Family Stadium.
North Carolina played the Orlando Pride to a 1-1 draw last Saturday in the opening fixture before earning an extra point in the penalty shootout with a 5-4 result behind two big saves from Marisa Bova, who made her professional debut in goal. Manaka scored just before halftime, slotting home a cutback feed from Ryan Williams. It was another team goal, shades of the 15-pass buildup that led to a goal a few weeks ago.
Racing Louisville overcame an early deficit to earn a 3-1 home win over Rayadas de Monterrey in the opener. Louisville sits atop the group with three points while the Courage have two.
The Courage, who have earned a result in a season-best four straight regular-season fixtures, continue to build upon their strong performances. They held over 65% of possession and rattled off 20 shots in the draw last week. While disappointed to concede, the versatility and depth of the group were on display while sticking to the Courage brand of football.
With five group winners competing for four semifinal spots, there isn’t much room for error, as winning the group is not a guarantee to advance. The Courage will look to build on their recent run of form and continue to give bigger roles – and new ones – to some players for experience and experimentation.
The Courage have two matches in the next five days. If they earn a semifinal appearance with the next two performances, they’ll be right back to work for August 6. Otherwise, they will continue to prepare for the back half of the NWSL regular season, which resumes in late August.
• Discuss this story on the National Women’s Soccer League message board…
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.