Just like last year, Racing Louisville FC kicked off the NWSL Challenge Cup by earning a point, with Cece Kizer scoring the club’s first goal in an eventual 1-1 draw against the KC Current.
A week later, Racing enters Friday’s game looking for its first-ever victory in the preseason tournament while set to host the Houston Dash for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff at Lynn Family Stadium.
The Dash are coming off a 3-1 loss Sunday to the Chicago Red Stars. In the offseason, the club lost U.S. Women’s National Team regular Kristie Mewis in the expansion draft. However, Houston returns other notable international talents including USWNT goalkeeper Jane Campbell, English forward Rachel Daly and a trio of Canadian internationals in Allysha Chapman, Nichelle Prince and Sophie Schmidt.
In its three matches against the Dash last year, Racing went 1-2. Forward Ebony Salmon’s memorable first goal, scored seconds into her NWSL debut, made the difference in that victory.
Racing currently sits second in the Challenge Cup’s Central Division standings. The winner of each group will advance to the semifinals on May 4 along with the top second-place finisher.
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.
• Visit our Match Center for everything you should know before you go to Lynn Family Stadium.
• Can’t make it? The game will stream live on Paramount+.
Player availability report
• Nadia Nadim (out, right leg)
Story lines…
Cece’s streak: Kizer’s now making a habit of scoring Racing’s season-opening goals, connecting with striker Jess McDonald on a counter in the first half of Friday’s game. Going back to 2021, it marked the first straight game in which Kizer found the back of the net, making for the longest active scoring streak in the NWSL.
McDonald on the mark: With her assist to Kizer’s goal on Friday, McDonald became the all-time Challenge Cup assists leader with 4. She currently holds the most all-time assists not only in this competition but also the NWSL regular season (27) and playoffs (4).
A Lund-erful start: Goalkeeper Katie Lund picked up where she left off in 2021 having won the starting goalkeeper job to finish Racing’s inaugural season. Lund made a career-high seven saves in the Current draw and going back to last season is four straight games unbeaten between the posts.
Pro debuts: Both midfielder Jaelin Howell and forward Kirsten Davis made their first NWSL appearances against the Current, going all 90 minutes. Picked second overall in the 2022 NWSL Draft, the Florida State product Howell led Racing in total crosses (6). Davis, the Big 12 Conference’s Offensive Player of the Year out of Texas Tech, ranked first in shot attempted (3).
Merrick makes her return: After missing all but 57 minutes of 2021 due to injury, defender Addisyn Merrick made her return to the field on Friday when she started and went the full 90 against the Current. In the match, Merrick made three interceptions. six clearances and won possession nine times.
Freja moves forward: Thanks to Howell’s addition to the lineup, midfielder Freja Olofsson played more to her strengths versus the Current, moving up the field and away from last year’s role as a defensive midfielder. In her more advanced position, Olofsson led the team in passes in the final third (11) and tackles (5).
Fresh faces: Days before the Challenge Cup opener, Racing signed forward Sh’Nia Gordon thanks to a FIFA ruling allowing players from Russian clubs — she was under contract with CSKA Moscow — to void their deals in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine. This week, Racing singed another Florida native, defender Julia Lester, from Europe having agreed to a transfer with coach Kim Björkegren’s former club, Apollon Ladies, in Cyprus. Lester captained Apollon to consecutive league titles, including the most recent season that ended this past weekend.
