After a three-goal, four-red card NWSL After Dark the night before, the NC Courage’s NWSL Challenge Cup opener against the Washington Spirit had a lot to live up to, and it did not disappoint as the Courage won 3-2 with the two teams combining for 33 shots.
Washington opened the scoring early and, with the Courage missing its two starting center backs and many of its other starters, it looked like the start of a long evening, but as the teams settled in, the Courage’s lethal attack went to work, constantly getting in behind the Washington defense.
“I thought it was a good first half,” said Courage head coach Paul Riley. “We missed some big chances. Debinha had a couple of big-time chances that would have changed the game… Wasn’t a great performance. I am more about the performance than the result. We will get better. We needed that 90 minutes.”
In addition to beating the Washington defense with speed, the Courage’s front four of Debinha, Hailie Mace, Kristen Hamilton and Jessica McDonald won the physical battles. McDonald especially proved to be a lot to handle in the box.
“One of my favorite things about the game of soccer is playing against a three-back,” McDonald said. “With the pace that we have up top, we have the confidence to take on three players with the two and then we have two incredible 10s underneath us with incredible speed. If we can pull them off their lines and we can get another player open, that’s absolutely amazing… As soon as I heard that they were playing a three-back, I was salivating.”
The Courage leveled things up in the 10th minute through Hamilton following an excellent pass by Debinha and some patient play by McDonald to wait for Hamilton to get open in the box. While Debinha’s pass was good, Hamilton’s movement off the ball in the build up was the most impressive part of the equalizer.
McDonald put the Courage in front in the 28th minute; Carson Pickett, who linked up well with McDonald in the preseason, put the forward in behind, and while her initial shot was saved, she got a hometown bounce, and the rebound flew off her leg into the back of the net.
It did not take the Courage long to increase its lead in the second half as Merritt Mathias, in her first game since Sept. 17, 2019, scored a beautiful chip in the 52nd minute. The right back made an aggressive run to exploit some open space on the weak side, and Mace made a great switch pass to her, but from there, it was all Mathias.
“Getting back is never easy,” Mathias said. “It has been, I think, a year and seven months and a couple days but who’s counting?… To get back on the field, today was a little bit emotional to be honest. Just the feeling of putting on a jersey again and playing for the Courage, it is special and it means a lot to me. To be able to do it again, I will never take it for granted.”
There was a question if Mathias’ chip was a shot or an attempted cross, but after the game, both Mathias and McDonald put any of those questions to bed.
“It was definitely a shot,” Mathias said. “I looked up and saw her off her line, and I was going back post. I will take that to my grave.”
McDonald backed up her teammate, trying not to laugh while answering.
“She did not even look at us,” McDonald said. “She looked at the keeper, she had her eye on that.”
The two-goal advantage did not last long as Washington substitute Trinity Rodman got in behind the Courage defense and made it 3-2 in the 61st minute with a debut goal.
The final half hour went without either team finding the back of the net, but both had chances to either find an insurance goal or an equalizer. The Spirit had multiple good chances during the seven minutes of added time, but the Courage held on.
While the Courage’s back line improved as the game progressed, the center back partnership of Cari Roccaro and Schuyler Debree allowed a lot of dangerous play through the middle of the field. With Diane Caldwell away on international duty, and Abby Erceg dealing with a back injury, the duo are a decent stopgap, but Erceg’s return should provide needed stability at the back.
“Schuyler had a good game at center back,” Riley said. “These two had played together at center back for three days now out of the 11 weeks. It was difficult when [Erceg] went down last week, [Kaleigh Kurtz] just got back from injury, really only over the last 48 hours. It was a difficult team to pick.”
The Courage will continue its Challenge Cup schedule on April 20 as it takes on newly rebranded NJ/NY Gotham FC in New Jersey.
