Having collected six points across three games last week, Racing Louisville FC received its first taste of the confidence that comes with winning tough games, especially on the road.
The ladies in lavender — now sixth on the NWSL table — are 3-1-3 overall exiting Saturday’s 3-0 away win over the Chicago Red Stars, the club’s first victory outside of Lynn Family Stadium. In the days prior, Racing had defeated the Houston Dash before rotating its lineup for a midweek defeat to the NC Courage.
“Anytime that you’re having to play three games in [seven] days, I mean that’s hard for anyone to do, so being able to manage certain players and making sure that they could go 90 and give their best is huge,” said forward Savannah McCaskill.
“All of the players on our roster, we need every single one of them, from people who didn’t even make the bench to people that were starting to people who were coming in games. So it was a total team effort this past week. It’s definitely huge to get six points out of a three-game week. It’s awesome. We just have to keep building from this.”
Racing gets a full week to recharge before hosting Portland Thorns FC at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
“It’s nice,” head coach Christy Holly said of the break. “I mean we definitely need it.”
Racing opened its run of games with that 1-0 victory over the 2020 Challenge Cup winners Houston, with forward Ebony Salmon scoring a minute into her first club appearance. Three days later, Holly’s side held the North Carolina Courage to two first-half goals as the coach made six changes from his previous starting 11.
“It’s interesting for us, because after the Houston game we didn’t get to actually enjoy the win. And I don’t mean go out on the town and celebrate. I just mean to feel the aura of a team that’s having a bit of success,” Holly said. “It was very quickly into the North Carolina game. So I want them to be able to actually enjoy their hard work and show up to practice and have that good vibe, that we’re a team that’s working hard, we’re a team that’s feeling some success in certain areas of the field.
“It’s fantastic to have that break, but during that break I want them to not get comfortable, but feel the results of their hard work.”
Racing will return to the training pitch Wednesday with an edge over most of its league rivals in the coming weeks. The club’s exceptionally young roster will stay together while others lose players during the Tokyo Olympics.
No team may be without more than the Thorns, 3-0 winners over Racing when the two met in Portland on June 5. The Thorns will be down as many as five starters including goalkeeper Adrianna Franch, defender Becky Sauerbrunn plus midfielders Lindsey Horan and Crystal Dunn, all on the U.S. Women’s National Team. Forward Christine Sinclair also represents Canada.
Meanwhile, Racing is poised to continue building, already bringing in Salmon and fellow English star Gemma Bonner, a defender. Recent signing Nadia Nadim – fresh off a Division 1 Feminine title with Paris Saint-Germain in France – will also arrive in Louisville upon receipt of her work visa.
Salmon demonstrated just how impactful she is in the Louisville attack during Saturday’s win, opening the scoring with a low ball slipped past veteran Chicago keeper Alyssa Naeher in the 38th minute.
“I think we’ve shown that we want to combine and be creative going forward, find pockets, do little give-and-gos and be creative and have that little bit of flair so I think [Ebony] fits in perfectly,” McCaskill said. “When we need to go in behind and we need to press and turn backlines, she’s willing to do that as well, so I think she’s come in and she’s really fit in with our players and it’s definitely something special.”
The former Red Stars McCaskill and Yuki Nagasato, acquired in a trade prior to last year’s expansion draft, also netted a goal apiece in the win at Chicago.
“We knew from the start that this was gonna be a tough week with the three games, but I think Christy’s obviously managed us well, and I think he’s managed minutes, managed players how he needs to and how he thinks is best for the team and I think coming out of this week with six points and two wins is really good for us,” Salmon said following her first start in lavender on Saturday.
“I think we’re really building something special in Louisville. I think this group of players really has something to prove, and I think we’re showing that week in and week out, so it’s just really exciting to be a part of this organization and represent this city.”
