Second-year player Kayla Fischer is back in Racing Louisville’s starting lineup for this afternoon’s highly-anticipated matchup with NJ/NY Gotham FC that will be nationally broadcast on ESPN and ESPN Deportes and streamed on ESPN+.
The Ohio native, who missed Racing’s 2-0 win over Houston this past Friday due to suspension, is the only change to Bev Yanez’s starting lineup. The 24-year-old will make her seventh start of the season and the first against Gotham in her young career. In the April encounter between these two, Fischer came on late for Savannah DeMelo in central midfield.
Racing Louisville (3-2-6, 15 points) will kick off at 12 p.m. at Lynn Family Stadium with the opportunity to secure the franchise’s 20th win and its third straight, which would be a new club-high in league play. A draw or a win would propel the Louisvillians past the Chicago Red Stars into sixth position in the NWSL table. Louisville has lost once in nine meetings with the New Jersey outfit, going unbeaten last season against the eventual league champions, including a 2-0 triumph at Lynn Family Stadium this same weekend last year.
Fischer will slot in as the left winger opposite the dynamic rookie Emma Sears while Reilyn Turner starts as the No. 9 for the second consecutive home match. Turner, a first-year forward out of UCLA, was Louisville’s lone goal scorer in the teams’ first meeting this year at Red Bull Arena in April, netting a brilliant back-heel goal in second-half stoppage time, just before Gotham equalized in the 1-1 draw.
Center back Abby Erceg, Racing’s captain for the sixth straight contest, is just 89 minutes away from 16,000 for her career. She’ll be joined by Kentucky native Arin Wright in central defense. The club’s all-time appearance leader, right back Lauren Milliet will feature in her 80th game for Louisville. No other player has appeared in more than 60 for Racing. Carson Pickett, who just made her 150th NWSL appearance last week, slots in alongside Erceg as the left back for the 12th time this season.
Racing’s star shot-stopper, Katie Lund, is three saves away from hitting 250 for her NWSL career. That would make her only the seventh goalkeeper in NWSL history to record that many saves for one club. With a shutout, the Texas native would grab sole possession of 11th in NWSL career clean sheets.
The in-form Savannah DeMelo will occupy the No. 10 role in the midfield, just ahead of Taylor Flint and Marisa DiGrande in the double pivot protecting the back four. DeMelo, a goal scorer in three of the last four games, is one goal away from breaking her single-season career-high (5). DiGrande played alongside Flint in this same role in New Jersey in April after subbing on for an injured Jaelin Howell just before the half-hour mark. The two tied for the team lead in progressive passes that night with three.
The substitutes list includes newly signed rookie goalkeeper Madison White; defender Ellie Jean; winger Maddie Pokorny; midfielders Jaelin Howell, Linda Motlhalo and Yuuka Kurosaki; and forwards Parker Goins, Elexa Bahr, and Milly Clegg.
Forwards Kirsten Wright and Uchenna Kanu; defender Elli Pikkujämsä; midfielder Ary Borges; and goalkeepers Jordyn Bloomer and Olivia Sekany were previously listed as out on Racing’s availability report.
Racing Louisville lineup vs. NJ/NY Gotham FC
1 – Katie Lund
2 – Lauren Milliet
3 – Arin Wright
20 – Abby Erceg (c)
16 – Carson Pickett
7 – Savannah DeMelo
14 – Marisa DiGrande
26 – Taylor Flint
13 – Emma Sears
9 – Kayla Fischer
66 – Reilyn Turner
Substitutes: 77 – Madison White (GK); 5 – Ellie Jean, 6 – Jaelin Howell, 10 – Linda Motlhalo, 17 – Maddie Pokorny, 18 – Milly Clegg, 19 – Jordan Baggett, 21 – Parker Goins, 23 – Elexa Bahr
