Taylor Flint’s spectacular second half goal clinched a 1-0 win for Racing Louisville FC against Gotham FC at Lynn Family Stadium Friday night, delivering the team’s first home win of the year and second consecutive victory.
In a game where Racing’s aggression set the tone, Flint registered her first goal of the season in the 56th minute — a show-stopping strike from outside the box — to capture a triumph over one of the league’s top-four outfits.
Louisville held Gotham to its third-lowest expected goals total this season. Goalkeeper Jordyn Bloomer spearheaded Racing’s defensive success with five saves as the home side tallied its second clean sheet of the campaign.
“I thought it was fantastic,” said head coach Bev Yanez of the performance. “I thought yet again in regards to our aggression and our press and our ability to get pressure on the ball so quickly, and everybody understanding how to be very connected in that moment. … I think they’re doing a fantastic job. I think that’s causing a lot of havoc, a lot of chaos.
“… I can feel it from the sidelines, we can feel it as a staff from the sidelines — we believe so much right now and I think it’s fantastic for us as a group and all the hard work that we’ve put in.”
Racing Louisville (3-3-2, 11 points) now vaults into ninth position, just below eighth-place Seattle Reign FC in the league’s final postseason position on goal differential. The club’s first victory over Gotham since June 2023 puts it three points ahead of its pace through the first eight games of last season.
Louisville’s press was a central storyline of the opening half, where neither team managed to find the back of the net. It caused Gotham to produce its second-worst pass accuracy percentage in a first half this year.
Though the score read 0-0 after 45 minutes, Racing proved to be the more likely to finish an opportunity.
That opportunity came 11 minutes into the second period when Louisville found its breakthrough. After receiving the ball from Savannah DeMelo outside the box, Flint took advantage of the space given by Gotham, smashing home her first goal of 2025 past the outstretched gloves of the reigning NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year, Ann-Katrin Berger.
“I got the ball from Sav (DeMelo) and I looked up and I had zero pressure,” said Flint. “I’ve been wanting that goal for I don’t even know how long. It was a long time coming. The way it came off my foot, I just knew it was going upper 90. I completely blacked out and threw my hands up in the air. Honestly, I was just so happy.”
From then on, the visitors were chasing an equalizer. Louisville, behind Bloomer in net, held off the flurry of chances late on by Gotham to clinch all three points.
Seeing the match out was a significant step in the right direction for a team that dropped the second-most points from winning positions last year.
“We want to control what we can control,” DeMelo said. “That’s our effort and that’s putting pressure on teams, gaining quality chances. I think no matter what happens, we all know we have each other’s back(s). Even if they score a goal on us, we know we’re going to comeback and I think that’s the difference.”
Racing will go for a third win in a row in the close-out match of this homestand at 7:30 p.m. next Friday against another team currently in the playoff picture — Seattle Reign FC — at Lynn Family Stadium. The club’s final home match until June 6 is Cheer and Spirit Night at Lynn Family Stadium, with tickets and further information available at RacingLoufc.com/seattle/.
Game Summary: Racing Louisville FC vs. Gotham FC
Date: May 9, 2025
Venue: Lynn Family Stadium
Kickoff: 8 p.m.
Weather: 65 degrees, sunny
Attendance: 5,495
Scoring
Racing Louisville FC (0, 1, 0)
Gotham FC (0, 0, 0)
Goals:
Racing Louisville FC
56’ Taylor Flint (Savannah DeMelo)
Lineups
Racing Louisville FC: 24 – Jordyn Bloomer; 11 – Courtney Petersen, 3 – Arin Wright (c), 5 – Ellie Jean, 2 – Lauren Milliet; 26 – Taylor Flint, 20 – Katie O’Kane, 7 – Savannah DeMelo; 16 – Janine Sonis (87’ 6 – Ella Hase), 13 – Emma Sears, 9 – Kayla Fischer (58’ 42 – Sarah Weber)
Subs not used: 71 – Maddy Anderson; 4 – Elli Pikkujämsa, 12 – Allie George, 14 – Marisa DiGrande, 15 – Ángela Barón, 29 – Uchenna Kanu, 32 – Avery Kalitta
Head Coach: Bev Yanez
Gotham FC: 30 – Ann-Katrin Berger; 3 – Bruninha, 27 – Jess Carter (46’ 22 – Mandy Freeman), 6 – Emily Sonnett, 4 – Lilly Reale; 7 – Jaelin Howell, 11 – Sarah Schupansky (46’ 13 – Ella Stevens), 14 – Nealy Martin (c) (68’ 8 – Taryn Torres); 23 – Midge Purce (61’ 17 – Mak Whitham), 10 – Geyse (68’ 21 – Sofia Cook), 9 – Esther González
Subs not used: 12 – Ryan Campbell; 24 – Emerson Elgin, 34 – Khyah Harper, 90 – Stella Nyamekye
Head Coach: Juan Carlos Amorós
Stats Summary: Racing Louisville FC / Gotham FC
Shots: 9 / 13
Shots on Goal: 5 / 5
Expected goals: 0.55 / 0.93
Possession: 37.7% / 62.3%
Fouls: 16 / 17
Offside: 4 / 0
Corners: 4 / 4
Discipline Summary
Racing Louisville FC:
16’ Kayla Fischer (yellow)
Gotham FC:
7’ Jaelin Howell (yellow)
55’ Geyse (yellow)
84’ Taryn Torres (yellow)
Match referee: Muhammad Hassan
