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North Carolina Courage Keeps Undefeated Streak With Win Over Sky Blue FC

The North Carolina Courage keep their undefeated streak alive with the help of a big performance by goalkeeper Katelyn Rowland over Sky Blue FC.

PISCATAWAY, NEW JERSEY (May 19, 2018) — Look on the bright side, Sky Blue FC, it could have been a lot worse.

The last-place team in the NWSL suffered yet another loss, this time at the hands of the North Carolina Courage. North Carolina, a club that remains undefeated and on top of the NWSL standings, defeated Sky Blue, 2-1.

It was a U.S. Women’s National Team scoring affair in front of 1,923 fans.

North Carolina Courage Keeps Undefeated Streak, Beating Sky Blue FC 2-1

For the Courage, Crystal Dunn and Samantha Mewis scored. Dunn’s tally was first, assisted by Jessica McDonald in the 16th minute.

Less than 10 minutes later, Mewis scored an unassisted goal.

Sky Blue didn’t find the back of the net until stoppage time in the second half. Carli Lloyd, off an assist by Sarah Killion, scored in the 94th minute.

After the match, Sky Blue FC Head Coach Denise Reddy said her side started “pretty well” in the first half.

“North Carolina is a team that is so good in transition, and they will punish you when you give the ball away,” Reddy said. “The two goals they scored were preventable, but they were able to capitalize on the situations. I do feel that we deserved a point, and I am very proud of the effort that our players gave tonight.”

With two goals in the first half, North Carolina Head Coach Paul Riley said the team was “actually disappointed” with the second half.

“Our first half was really good, we created five to six great chances and we should have wrapped the game up,” Riley said. “We nearly let ourselves go in the second half, [we got] loose and we got complacent.”

The campaign continues.#Mewis4President #NJvNC #NoFinishLine pic.twitter.com/r4G4HCkk6b

— NC Courage (@TheNCCourage) May 19, 2018

Three Takeaways

Riley still switching it up in goal: For the second week in a row, Riley elected to start Katelyn Rowland in goal over Sabrina D’Angelo. The reason? D’Angelo is hurt with a left ankle injury. Rowland had a strong match, saving four attempted shots. If she continues to help North Carolina win, there’s no reason why she won’t be the starter.
Confidence for Mewis: After dealing with a lingering knee injury, Mewis is back. The midfielder scored her first goal of the season against Sky Blue. There’s no doubt that a goal will help Mewis get her full confidence back.
Don’t be afraid to bench Lloyd, Denise: For the third week in a row, Raquel Rodriguez — one of the best strikers for the Costa Rican National Team — sat on the bench to start the match. Even when Lloyd doesn’t perform, and she was absent most of the match until her goal, Reddy won’t pull her. Meanwhile, Rodriguez is itching for her spot back. She should be allowed to compete against Lloyd for it.