The start of a pivotal three-game home stretch for Racing Louisville starts Friday at 8 p.m., when the Louisvillians host the second-place San Diego Wave at Lynn Family Stadium.
The match will be streamed live on Paramount+, and tickets are on sale at RacingLouFC.com/tickets.
Racing (2-3-5, 11 points) is back at home after a gutsy 1-1 draw at Washington this past Saturday. Louisville rallied to tie up the game after giving a third-minute goal, with Savannah DeMelo’s penalty in the 51st minute leveling the Louisvillians. Down to 10 players for the final 25 minutes of play, Racing held firm defensively and left with a valuable point against one of the best teams in the league.
Led by the red-hot DeMelo, who was just named the NWSL’s Player of the Month for May, Racing is four points off sixth place, the last spot in the race for the NWSL playoffs. Coach Kim Björkegren’s squad is 4-1-1 over its past six games, including two home wins last month over Chicago and Kansas City across all competitions.
It’s still early this season, but DeMelo is making a strong case for NWSL MVP, with 10 goal involvements in 11 appearances. She played a part in six goals across all competitions in May, scoring three, assisting two and converting a penalty that ultimately counted as an own goal on Chicago.
But the California native hasn’t done it herself – Racing is third in the league in goals per match and second in shots on target per match. Left back Carson Pickett ranks sixth in the NWSL in scoring chances created, and DeMelo, Pickett, Ary Borges and Wang Shuang all rank in the top 20 in shot-creating actions.
For the first of three games in nine games, Racing will take on a San Diego squad that is tied for first place in the NWSL. The Wave (6-3-1, 19 points) moved to the top of the standings with a strong performance and 1-0 win at then-first-place NJ/NY Gotham on Sunday.
Superstar forward Alex Morgan is tied for the league lead with five regular-season goals, and bright young star Jaedyn Shaw, all of 18 years old, has three goals and an assist. Goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan, the No. 1 for Canada’s national team, is tied for first in the NWSL with four clean sheets.
In the teams’ brief series history, Racing has won four points from six in two games against San Diego, including a 1-0 win last May at Lynn Family Stadium.
Follow along…
• For Starting XI and in-game updates, follow @RacingLouFC on Twitter and Racing Louisville FC on Facebook. Also find us at @racinglouisvillefc on Instagram.
• The game will be streamed live on Paramount+, and international viewers may watch for free on NWSLSoccer.com.
Story lines …
DeMonth of DeMelo: Involved in six goals in five May appearances, midfielder Savannah DeMelo claimed NWSL Player of the Month honors for May and was named to the Team of the Month. The 25-year-old now has 10 goal contributions in 11 games this year, including a converted penalty in the 1-1 draw at Washington this past weekend. Somehow left off the NWSL Rookie of the Year finalists list last year, DeMelo’s run of success extends to last season, when she led the league with two direct free kick goals, finishing the year with four scores and two assists.
Shooters shoot: Ten matches into the season, Racing is second in the NWSL in shot-creating actions per 90 minutes, a metric that measures a team’s ability to generate attempts on goal. Louisville is also second in shots on target and third in expected goals. DeMelo is a big contributor in those categories, but Wang Shuang (fifth), DeMelo (seventh), Ary Borges (17th) and Carson Pickett (19th) have also played big roles in generating offense.
Howell’s big presence: Already Racing’s captain at 23, Jaelin Howell has been a huge figure in Louisville’s midfield, ranking second in the NWSL in interceptions (25) and fifth in tackles won (19). The Colorado native, who has five U.S. Women’s National Team appearances in her career, ranks among the world’s best in aerials won, blocks, clearances and interceptions, according to Opta and FBRef.com’s player comparison tool.
Global Racing: Racing Louisville is the first club in NWSL history to feature players from six different continents on its roster. The Louisvillians already had an international flavor last year, with four continents represented. But the additions of Brazilian midfielder Ary Borges as well as Nigerian forward Uchenna Kanu and South African forward Thembi Kgatlana nudged Racing to six continents. Abby Erceg, who made 146 appearances for New Zealand’s national team, reinforced Australian midfielder Alex Chidiac as a second representative from Oceania.
World Cup year: This is a big year for women’s soccer, with the 2023 FIFA World Cup set for Australia and New Zealand from July 20-August 20. Racing should be well-represented at the planet’s biggest competition. There are nine current internationals on Racing’s roster, and seven of their countries have qualified for the World Cup. The NWSL will only play one regular-season game in the World Cup window, instead scheduling half of the NWSL UKG Challenge Cup matches for that period.
