For the second straight Racing Louisville FC game, a 93rd-minute goal was scored.
Last Saturday, it was Racing’s Brooke Hendrix getting on the end of a set piece in the box and equalizing for the host side in a 2-2 draw with the Orlando Pride at Lynn Family Stadium. But on Thursday, the Washington Spirit’s Ashley Sanchez drilled a late game winner in stoppage time for the host squad in a 1-0 Louisville defeat.
Some other notables from Audi Field…
• Racing has drawn at home and lost away. The club will search for its first victory April 26 when hosting the North Carolina Courage in the third of its four group stage games in the Challenge Cup, the NWSL’s preseason tournament.
• Both as substitutes, midfielder Taylor Otto (77th minute) and forward Vanessa Kara (89th minute) made their NWSL debuts. Otto was drafted out of North Carolina and the Florida product Kara signed after trialing during Racing’s preseason.
• Forward Savannah McCaskill led Racing on Thursday with three shots. Two were on target with the other blocked. She also paced her side with 34 passes attempted.
• Forward Cece Kizer’s team-high two key passes were just that. In the 49th minute, she played forward Yuki Nagasato in behind the defense, and the one-on-one chance flew just wide. In the 64th minute, she similar positioned McCaskill, whose shot deflected off a diving defender and into side netting.
What coach Christy Holly said…
“It’s showed itself twice in two weeks that we can start the game well. We create goal-scoring opportunities — really good opportunities — but if we’re not clinical enough, the NWSL is going to punish you. It’s not going to give you a chance to breathe. It’s a tough lesson, but it’s a really good lesson for an exceptionally young team that maybe needs to learn the hard way at times.”
What McCaskill said…
“I think the vibe in the locker room’s really good. We’re resilient. We’re hungry. We want to show that we’re not going to be another expansion team that, ‘It’s our first year in the league. We’ll always be kind of thin.’ We want to really come in and show that we’re here to compete. We’re here to win games. Of course that’s going to come with some hard moments as well, but everyone’s willing to put in the hard work and continue to grow from these experiences.”
What midfielder Lauren Milliet said…
“I think anytime you get more than five days — that was obviously a very short turnaround, no excuses — but that does impact the way that your legs feel. Having an extra couple of days to get prepared (for the club’s next game on April 26) will always help.”
