NC Courage Coach Paul Riley (Photo by Diego G Diaz).
Cary, N.C- The North Carolina Courage went up against Sky Blue FC for their second home match in front of 4,078 fans on Saturday. The first half of the match brought about opportunities for both teams. Forward Crystal Dunn took the ball down to the right side of the field before she crossed the ball toward the goal post, but no one was there to receive the pass.
Along with North Carolina’s attempts, Sky Blue also brought the pressure to the pitch. Midfielder Carli Lloyd played well with rookie forward Savannah McCaskill. Lloyd led her teammates well in her first match with Sky Blue putting her in a position to control the pace in the middle.
NC Forward Jessica McDonald (Photo by Jeff Wong).
At halftime, the match remained scoreless, but the Courage were ready to see action. Jessica McDonald was substituted in the 55th minute for Kristen Hamilton and within 35 minutes of being on the pitch, McDonald had three shots on goal.
In the 81st minute, Sky Blue had a free kick and another just six minutes later, but both were unsuccessful.
Three minutes of stoppage time were added with the score still 0-0. Two minutes later McDonald received a pass through the middle from Jaelene Hinkle. Sky Blue goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan came out and McDonald made her way to finish off the game-winning goal.
“The game grinds on, you think to yourself maybe we’re not going to get that one big opportunity,” said NC Courage Head Coach Paul Riley. “I think they worked hard enough to win in the end, and we got the opportunity.”
Last season McDonald scored four goals and was the first NWSL player to score 33 regular-season career goals. In this match, she marked her 36th career goal.
The Courage are now 2-0-0 and had 23 shots against Sky Blue, which is also the same shooting ratio the Courage had against the Portland Thorns last weekend.
On April 14, the Courage will travel to Boyds, Maryland where they will compete against the Washington Spirit at 7 p.m.
SCORING SUMMARY:
NC-Jessica McDonald, 92’
BOOKING SUMMARY:
NJ-Christina Gibbons, yellow card, 66’
NJ-Rebekah Stott, yellow card, 86’
NC COURAGE: #1-Sabrina D’Angelo, #15-Jalene Hinkle, #6-Abby Erceg, #13-Abby Dahlkemper, #11-Merritt Mathias, #8-Denise O’Sullivan (#25-Meredith Speck, 79’), #7-McCall Zerboni, #23-Kristen Hamilton (#14-Jessica McDonald, 55’), #9-Lynn Williams, #19-Crystal Dunn, #10-Débora Cristiane De Oliveria (#21-Darian Jenkins, 86’)
Subs not used: #30-Kaleigh Kurtz, #12-Frannie Crouse, #0-Katelyn Rowland, #2-Allysha Chapman
SKY BLUE FC: #1-Kailen Sheridan, #22-Mandy Freeman, #13-Rebekah Stott, #8-Erica Skroski, #31-Christina Gibbons, #12-Janie Beckie (#2-Mckenzie Meehan, 69’), #16-Sarah Killion, #10-Carli Lloyd, #21-Savannah McCaskill, #14-Katie Johnson (#19-Adriana Leon, 58’), #6-Shea Groom (#24-Michaela Abam, 78’)
Subs not used: #27-Caroline Casey, #15-Kayla Mills, #7-Jennifer Hoy
TOTAL SHOTS: NC 23-3 NJ
SHOTS ON GOAL: NC 5-0 NJ
FOULS: NC 6-7 NJ
OFFSIDES: NC 3-2 NJ
CORNER KICKS: NC 5-3 NJ
SAVES: NC 0-4 NJ
NC Courage
