Goals in both halves from Gia Corley and Ludmila lifted the visiting San Diego Wave FC past Racing Louisville FC, 2-0, Friday night at Lynn Family Stadium.
The loss went down as Racing’s sixth consecutive as the team’s hopes of a return trip to the NWSL Playoffs officially ended.
Corley netted the Wave’s opener inside the first 30 minutes before Ludmila scored shortly after coming on as a halftime substitute. The win marked San Diego’s fifth win in six games, pushing the Wave past the Washington Spirit for second place.
“I thought there was a lot of character out there tonight,” said head coach Bev Yanez. “I thought they fought. … We’ve talked about it, what we want from these next five games. What do we want to look like? What do we want to be remembered for from a character standpoint, knowing that playoffs are not tangible for us this season?
“I saw a group that fought tonight. I said I would rewatch the game. I’m hopeful that I feel the same when I rewatch it, but that’s the narrative on the match itself.”
Back at home, Racing produced an encouraging start when Kayla Fischer found the back of the net. But a narrow offside call denied Louisville the opener after a review.
That decision shifted the tides.
“Unfortunate,” is how forward Rachel Hill put the call. “Because if we get that go up, go ahead, it kind of changes the momentum of the game a bit. It was a great finish, so it just sucks to get it taken away, but that’s the game.”
Soon after the goal was taken off the board, San Diego’s Corley scored in the 27th minute, as rookie Lia Godfrey played the crucial distributor role to help bypass Louisville’s press. The Wave then doubled their lead through Ludmila in the 49th minute.
Racing continued to battle, registering six of the game’s final seven shots. But San Diego claimed a crucial three points in the NWSL Shield chase.
“Obviously, we always want to fight for playoffs,” said midfielder Lauren Milliet. “It’s disappointing in that regard. That’s obviously where we want to be. I don’t think that this group in general or this club is known to just like give up and lay over.
“I think that’s important to us, putting a good product on the field for the rest of the season. There’s always so much to be learned just from each game. I think kind of finding that perspective of, like, what can we learn, what can we improve on each game, and making sure that’s the headspace that we’re in.”
Racing has four matches left in the regular season, including two at home.
Next week Louisville will welcome another playoff contender — Utah Royals FC — to Lynn Family Stadium on Saturday, just ahead of the October international break. The match will be Pink Night, a recognition of breast cancer survivors and fighters, with kickoff set for 4 p.m. ET.
Louisville is unbeaten all-time at home versus the Royals, outscoring Utah 8-3 across two games.
Game Summary: Racing Louisville FC vs. San Diego Wave FC
Date: September 25, 2026
Venue: Lynn Family Stadium
Kickoff: 6:30 p.m. ET
Weather: 74 degrees, mostly sunny
Attendance: 5,128
Scoring
Racing Louisville FC (0, 0, 0)
San Diego Wave FC (1, 1, 2)
Goals:
San Diego Wave FC
27′ Gia Corley (Lia Godfrey)
49′ Ludmila
Lineups
Racing Louisville FC: 24 – Jordyn Bloomer; 21 – Rachel Hill (74′ 23 – Macy Philippus), 5 – Ellie Jean, 3 – Arin Wright (c), 15 – Mirann Gacioch, 4 – Makenna Morris (64′ 12 – Quincy McMahon), 20 – Katie O’Kane (64′ 88 – Audrey McKeen), 10 – Macey Hodge, 2 – Lauren Milliet, 42 – Sarah Weber (64′ 13 – Emma Sears), 9 – Kayla Fischer (74′ 16 – Maja Lardner)
Subs not used: 1 – Maddie Prohaska; 6 – Ella Hase, 8 – Courtney Petersen, 11 – Taylor White
Head coach: Bev Yanez
San Diego Wave FC: 12 – Sandra Paños; 75 – Perle Morroni (81′ 6 – Brooklyn Courtnall), 14 – Kristen McNabb, 2 – Kennedy Wesley (c), 16 – Mimi Van Zanten, 8 – Kimmi Ascanio (56′ 4 – Laila Harbert), 10 – Kenza Dali, 11 – Gia Corley (81′ 21 – Barbara Bonansea), 22 – Lia Godfrey (68′ 81 – Gabi Portilho), 7 – Melanie Barcenas, 15 – Trinity Byars (46′ 17 – Ludmila)
Subs not used: 31 – DiDi Haracic; 18 – Laurina Fazer, 19 – Tatum Wynalda, 23 – Nya Harrison
Head coach: Jonas Eidevall
Stats Summary: Racing Louisville FC / San Diego Wave FC
Shots: 12 / 20
Shots on Goal: 1 / 9
Expected goals: 1.48 / 2.94
Possession: 41.2% / 58.8%
Fouls: 10 / 8
Offside: 5 / 1
Corners: 3 / 7
Discipline Summary
Racing Louisville FC:
63′ Kayla Fischer (yellow)
Match referee: Joshua Encarnación
