North Carolina FC has fallen to the fifth spot in the North American Soccer League rankings, while its National Women’s Soccer League counterpart, the North Carolina Courage, stands strong at No. 1 in the league.
NCFC has faced a difficult June, and is now 15 points behind first-place Miami FC in the North American Soccer League standings. After ending May only four points behind Miami, NCFC has gone 0-4-1 in league play since June 4 to drop back down to fifth in the standings.
NCFC dropped a second-straight game Saturday to Indy Eleven with a disappointing 2-1 result. The weather delayed the match by 75 minutes, but didn’t stop NCFC’s Tiyi Shipalane from opening up the scoring in the ninth minute. But that would be the last successful effort for the local squad, as Indy’s attack heated up.
Indy’s Justin Braun, one of the league’s top scorers, recorded his sixth goal of the season with a well-timed header in the 21st minute. Just two minutes later, a lapse in defense from NCFC led to Eamon Zayed getting behind the defense off a deflected ball and finishing it to give Indy the 2-1 lead.
NCFC would have numerous chances before halftime, but solid goalkeeping from Indy’s Jon Busch became the theme of the match. For the second-straight week, Busch and Indy kept NCFC’s attack at bay, and came out with another victory.
The recent loss to Indy came shortly after a heartbreaking 3-2 loss to the Houston Dynamo in the Round of 32 of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. Similar to their loss against Indy, NCFC jumped out to a dream start. Steven Miller opened the game with a left footed dart from outside the box in the fourth minute. But the Dynamo scored two unanswered in the 25th and 62nd minutes to go up 2-1. After an excellent tying goal from Lance Laing shortly after, the rain-soaked game headed to overtime. NCFC couldn’t close, as Houston’s Memo Rodríguez found the back of the net with a deep ball from outside the box in the 109th minute. The club has had its opportunities and played well against quality opponents, but has had a tough time finishing down the stretch.
NCFC looks to right the ship and climb back up the NASL standings with a critical game against Miami FC July 4 at Sahlen’s Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park.
The NC Courage remains in first place in the National Women’s Soccer League after ending a strong June with a 1-0 win over the Boston Breakers.
Despite numerous chances, both teams struggled to find the back of the net early, with excellent goalkeeping coming from Boston’s Sammy Jo Prudhomme. NC’s rookie and second overall draft pick, Ashley Hatch, was the main source of offense as she continued to create chances that tested Prudhomme.
Hatch’s aggressive play broke open the scoring as she one-timed an excellent through ball from midfielder Sam Mewis to give the Courage the lead in the 44th minute. Thanks to impressive goalkeeping from Katelyn Rowland, the Courage kept their 1-0 lead despite Boston’s threats late in the game.
The Courage’s consistent offense and dominant defense gave them their third and final victory against Boston this season and solidified them at the top of the standings. Their impressive 8-3-0 record has them four points ahead of the second-place Chicago Red Stars. The young club looks to continue its great run at home against third place Sky Blue FC at WakeMed Soccer Park Saturday.
