The 2023 Racing Louisville squad will make history on Wednesday, participating in the club’s first-ever NWSL knockout competition when it takes on OL Reign at 10 p.m. ET in the UKG NWSL Challenge Cup semifinals at Lumen Field in Seattle.
The match will be broadcast nationally on CBS Sports Network. The winner between OL Reign and Racing will play the winner of the other semifinal between Kansas City and North Carolina in the Challenge Cup final set for 12:30 p.m. ET Saturday.
For Racing, semifinal qualification came thanks to a bright start to the Challenge Cup group stage. Louisville won its first four matches, matching a competition record for consecutive wins, and ultimately clinched a spot in the knockout rounds as the second-place team with the most points.
Coach Kim Björkegren’s squad travels to Seattle on a high, riding a five-match unbeaten run in regular season matches highlighted by a 2-1 win over reigning NWSL champion Portland this past Saturday. After falling behind just six minutes in, Racing dominated the match, producing a number of quality chances before Abby Erceg tied the game in the 60th minute and Thembi Kgatlana won it four minutes later.
To reach the Challenge Cup final, Racing and OL Reign need to break the deadlocks that have defined the series history between the teams. They have tied each of the past five regular season contests between them, including a pair of 2-2 draws this year. Racing led 2-0 in both of the ties this year before OL Reign rallied to salvage a point.
The Challenge Cup knockout rounds will not have extra time. If a match is tied after 90 minutes, the teams will go straight to a penalty shootout.
OL Reign has made its own mark on the Challenge Cup this year, going unbeaten in group play without conceding a goal. The Seattle club clinched the top seed in the semifinals, winning four matches and drawing two. Goalkeepers Claudia Dickey and Laurel Ivory each posted three clean sheets.
Coach Laura Harvey’s team topped Orlando, 1-0, on Sunday in a pivotal regular season game, holding off the hard-charging Pride in the race for a top-six playoff place. Jordyn Huitema scored the game-winner after Orlando goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse was sent off early in the match.
OL Reign lost in penalties to Washington in last year’s Challenge Cup semifinals.
Follow along …
• For Starting XI and in-game updates, follow @RacingLouFC on Twitter and Racing Louisville FC on Facebook. You can also find us at @racinglouisvillefc on Instagram.
• The game will broadcast live on CBS Sports Network and stream for free for international viewers on NWSLSoccer.com.
Story lines …
Goals, goals, goals: Racing scored 10 goals in its six group stage matches of the UKG NWSL Challenge Cup, and Savannah DeMelo (three goals) and Parker Goins (two) led the charge. The duo ranked among the competition’s leaders in goals, sitting second and third, respectively. DeMelo registered a brace in Racing’s 3-2 win over Kansas City back on May 17 and notched her third Challenge Cup goal in a 3-0 win over Houston. Goins scored in back-to-back Challenge Cup wins over Chicago and Houston, netting two goals in 64 minutes of action off the bench.
Paige’s chapter: Racing forward Paige Monaghan is having a banner year in her first season in Louisville, scoring four goals and dishing out two assists across all competitions, both career bests. The assists have both come in the Challenge Cup, nudging the 26-year-old Monaghan into second in the category among the tournament’s leaders. She also leads the Challenge Cup so far in progressive carries, with 28.
Golden Gloves: Star goalkeeper Katie Lund had a breakout season in 2022, and this year has cemented her status as one of the NWSL’s top shot stoppers. The 26-year-old Texan is tied for the Challenge Cup lead with three clean sheets while starting and playing every minute of Racing’s six group stage games. Lund has already matched her regular season mark of six clean sheets last year with four games left, and her nine shutouts this year across both the regular season and Challenge Cup rank the best in the NWSL.
Knockout stage newbies: With its qualification for the Challenge Cup semifinals, Racing Louisville became the 14th team in NWSL history to reach a league-sponsored knockout stage (playoffs or Challenge Cup). It’s the first time Racing will play in a non-friendly knockout stage of any kind. Louisville won its first four matches of the group stage, matching a competition record, and ultimately qualified for the semifinal as the second-place team with the most points.
Global Racing: Racing Louisville is the first club in NWSL history to feature players from six different continents on its roster, and four different confederations were represented by goal involvements in Saturday’s 2-1 win over Portland. The signings of Nigeria’s Uchenna Kanu and South Africa’s Thembi Kgatlana as well as Brazilian midfielder Ary Borges pushed Racing’s roster from four continents on the roster to six.
