Racing Louisville FC is gaining traction just as the season heads into its decisive phase.
A mere days after its most resounding result of the season, Racing welcomes another in-form side — Seattle Reign FC — to Lynn Family Stadium for a significant Wednesday showdown in the playoff race. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. ET.
The rare midweek game will be Women in Business Night, featuring an hour-long panel available for ticket holders leading up to the gates opening. Tickets and more information on the match’s promotions can be found at RacingLouFC.com/business.
Racing (6-11-2, 20 points) picked up a club-record third straight regular season win Saturday evening, comprehensively topping expansion side Boston Legacy FC, 4-1. The result saw Louisville move up to 13th place in the NWSL standings, surpassing both Boston and Bay FC.
The Racing attack, in front of a season-high crowd of 7,018, produced a show. Each of Louisville’s four shots on goal ended up in the back of the net, as Kayla Fischer led the way with the club’s sixth brace on the season.
Since the start of August, only the North Carolina Courage (13) have scored more goals than Racing (9).
The clock keeps on ticking, however, with another challenge coming Wednesday. In 11 regular season matchups to date, Louisville has not beaten Seattle, which has won the last four encounters. The series has seen a lot of draws — six to be exact — with three coming at Lynn Family Stadium.
A win Wednesday would be massive for Racing as it continues its climb up the table. With the Reign occupying the final eighth-place playoff spot, a maximum three points would bring Louisville within four of the postseason cutoff.
Like Racing, Seattle (8-7-3, 27 points) rolls into the midweek amid its best stretch of the season. The Reign extended its unbeaten streak to four contests last Friday after besting Chicago Stars FC, 1-0. It was a game where Seattle had the opportunity to win by multiple goals, finishing with a new 2026 single-game high for shots (24).
Wednesday is the start of a two-game road swing for the Reign, which heads off to Kansas City next for a Saturday encounter with the Current. Seattle is a top-six side away from home this year, collecting 13 points through nine road games. Its last two away results were wins over Bay and San Diego Wave FC.
Follow Along
- The midweek clash will be streamed on the free NWSL+ app or via plus.nwslsoccer.com. 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 …
Another Buckeye brace: For the second week running, an Ohio State University product recorded a brace for Louisville. In the meeting versus Boston last Saturday, it was Kayla Fischer who delivered it. The Ohio native netted Racing’s opener and the final goal against the Legacy, bringing her goal tally for the season to a team-leading six — three more than her previous single-season career high. It went down as Fischer’s first professional brace, and first multi-goal game since Oct. 16, 2022, during her final year at OSU.
Just scoring goals for fun: The week after netting a brace in Orlando and becoming the club’s new all-time scoring leader, Emma Sears played a crucial role in Louisville’s offensive display versus Boston. Sears scored Racing’s third goal Saturday — the 20th of her career — while also delivering a pinpoint ball to Fischer for her fifth assist on the campaign. She currently has 10 goal involvements this season and 22 since the beginning of 2025, more than any other American player in the NWSL during that span, per Opta.
Making their marks: Katie O’Kane and Makenna Morris each tallied an assist in the commanding triumph over the Legacy. O’Kane, who now has an assist in consecutive games, also scored a penalty, joining Sears and Fischer as players with multiple goal contributions on the night. Morris’ assist, which set up Fischer for Racing’s first goal just before halftime, was her first as a Louisville player. O’Kane’s assist total is now at four on the campaign, one more than what she had as a rookie last year.
Out the gates firing: Out of Seattle’s 23 goals scored this season, 17 have been scored in the first half, accounting for roughly 74% of the total. Wednesday’s visitors are one of two teams that have scored over 70% of their total goals in the first half, alongside Bay FC. Notably, both of the Reign’s finishes against Racing in the first meeting this season were scored in the opening period.
The sheer definition of a breakout: In her first full season since returning from a loan in the USL Super League, forward Maddie Mercado has quietly emerged as a force in the Reign’s attacking line. Mercado, 25, leads Seattle in goals with six — good for double that of any other Reign player. She netted just one goal in her first two seasons in the NWSL across 19 league appearances. Her most recent finish came last week when she recorded the winner versus Chicago Stars FC. To put it even more into perspective, Mercado’s goal tally so far is already tied with Seattle’s two leading scorers from last year, Emeri Adames and Jess Fishlock. Her activity without the ball is also a standout aspect of her game, as she is among the league leaders in possessions won in the final third (23).
