
Faced with the tall task of competing with only 10 players for 48 minutes, Racing Louisville FC fought to a well-earned 0-0 draw against the Houston Dash in the Texas heat on Friday night at PNC Stadium.
Houston outshot Racing, 15-3, and had 28 touches in Racing’s defensive area, but Louisville held strong after defender Satara Murray was sent off with a red card, thanks to gritty defending and nine saves from goalkeeper Katie Lund.
“I’m extremely proud of the fighting spirit in the second half,” Racing coach Kim Björkegren said. “We said, ‘Let’s break this game down into three time (periods)’ – 45 minutes to 60, 61 to 75, 76 to stoppage time. We did a really good job, and we did our best from the sides to coach them and help them. It was a really good performance when it comes to hard work and discipline, especially in the second half.”
The draw for Racing (2-6-8, 14 points) extends the squad’s winless streak to 11 games, but it was Louisville’s eighth point from eight road games this season. Racing has tied four of its last five matches.
“It was very tough,” said midfielder Jaelin Howell. “Playing away, hot and humid, playing with 10 players – we definitely had to grind it out and come together, work hard. Obviously we don’t want to be in that position, but it happens. To come out with a point, we fought pretty hard for that. But we want to start getting on that winning track.”
On Friday, the visitors started on the back foot, withstanding a handful of early Houston attacks. Racing midfielder Savannah DeMelo cleared a Houston opportunity off the goal line in the third minute. Two minutes later, Lund made a waist-high save to her right when Dash striker Ebony Salmon broke loose for a breakaway.
Racing grew into the game after the first 20 minutes, but Murray’s second yellow card and dismissal required a change in strategy. Louisville ultimately produced 10 won tackles and 31 clearances in the team effort to keep Houston scoreless, using Julia Lester as Murray’s replacement at the center back alongside Gemma Bonner after Lester started out on the right wing.
On a night when scoring opportunities were hard to come by, star fullback Emily Fox, who was named player of the match for Racing, had the best chance, fizzing a 20-yard right-footed shot beyond the far right post.
Racing controlled large portions of the second half despite playing down a player, growing in confidence as the game wore on, but beyond Fox’s shot never really threatened for a goal. New signing Wang Shuang, the first Chinese player to play in the National Women’s Soccer League, came on as a substitute in her Racing debut and played 30 quality minutes.
Considering the circumstances, Racing left PNC Stadium feeling good about its togetherness and fighting spirit ahead of the annual Women’s Cup, which kicks off next week in Louisville.
“It was not a pretty game,” Bonner said. “The whole squad deserves huge credit with the way we stuck together until halftime. There was never panic in the group. What you saw was a different side of us – we have to be hard to beat, first and foremost, and fight for each other, and you could see that in abundance.”
Game Summary: Racing Louisville FC vs. Houston Dash
Date: August 12, 2022
Venue: PNC Stadium
Kickoff: 8:38 p.m. ET
Weather: 85 degrees, partly cloudy
Player of the Match: Emily Fox
Scoring
Racing Louisville (0, 0, 0)
Houston Dash (0, 0, 0)
Lineups
Racing Louisville FC (3-5-2): 1 – Katie Lund; 11 – Emily Fox (78’ 30 – Zaneta Wyne), 44 – Satara Murray, 4 – Gemma Bonner (c); 2 – Lauren Milliet, 6 – Jaelin Howell (88’ 8 – Freja Olofsson), 7 – Savannah DeMelo; 27 – Alex Chidiac (60’ 77 – Wang Shuang), 15 – Julia Lester; 10 – Nadia Nadim (88’ 13 – Emina Ekic), 22 – Kirsten Davis (78’ 14 – Jess McDonald)
Subs not used: 24 – Jordyn Bloomer; 17 – Nealy Martin, 25 – Rebecca Holloway; 21 – Parker Goins
Head Coach: Kim Björkegren
Houston Dash (4-3-3): 1 – Jane Campbell; 21 – Ryan Gareis (73’ 9 – Haley Hanson), 25 – Katie Naughton, 23 – Ally Prisock, 30 – Natalie Jacobs (58’ 22 – Michelle Alozie); 13 – Sophie Schmidt, 10 – Shea Groom (73’ 18 – Emily Ogle), 15 – Marisa Viggiano (83’ 14 – Bri Visalli); 8 – Nichelle Prince, 11 – Ebony Salmon (83’ 34 – Michaela-Batya Abam), 7 – Maria Sanchez
Subs not used: 20 – Lindsey Harris; 12 – Julia Ashley 19 – Elizabeth Eddy; 30 – Natalie Jacobs; 28 – Cali Farquharson
Head Coach: Juan Carlos Amoros
Stats Summary: Racing Louisville / Houston Dash
Shots: 3 / 15
Shots on Goal: 0 / 10
Possession: 47.9% / 52.1%
Fouls: 6 / 10
Offside: 3 / 2
Corner Kicks: 4 / 2
Discipline Summary
Racing Louisville:
33’ Satara Murray (yellow)
42’ Satara Murray (second yellow – red)
Houston Dash:
59’ Nichelle Prince (yellow)
Referee: Ekaterina Katja Koroleva