The 2017 North Carolina Courage season was the team's first season as a professional women's soccer team. North Carolina Courage plays in the National Women's Soccer League, the top tier of women's soccer in the United States. The Courage finished the regular season atop the table, winning the NWSL Shield and earning a spot in the NWSL Playoffs. After defeating Chicago 1–0 in the semi-finals of the playoffs, it lost 0–1 to Portland in the final.[1]
| 2017 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner | Stephen Malik | ||
| General manager | Curt Johnson | ||
| Head coach | Paul Riley | ||
| Stadium | Sahlen's Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park Cary, North Carolina (Capacity: 10,000) | ||
| NWSL | 1st | ||
| Playoffs | Runner-up | ||
| Top goalscorer | Lynn Williams (9) | ||
| Highest home attendance | 7,020 (September 30 vs. Orlando) | ||
| Lowest home attendance | 2,383 (May 24 vs. Sky Blue FC) | ||
| Average home league attendance | 4,389 | ||
Review
editThe team played its previous season as the Western New York Flash, which won the 2016 NWSL Championship. The owners of North Carolina FC purchased the Flash and moved them to Cary, North Carolina, in January 2017 to create the Courage franchise, and retained most of the Flash's roster and coaching staff.[2][3]
Team
editFirst-team roster
edit- As of August 13, 2017
- Source: North Carolina Courage[4]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Transactions
edit- Source: National Women's Soccer League[5]
| Round | Pick | Nat. | Player | Pos. | Notes | Previous Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Round 1 | 2 |  | Ashley Hatch | FW | [7] | Brigham Young University |
| Round 1 | 7 | | Darian Jenkins | DF | UCLA | |
| Round 2 | 20 | | Claire Wagner | DF | [8] | Clemson |
| Round 3 | 27 | | Jaycie Johnson | FW | [10] | University of Nebraska |
In
edit| Date | Player | Positions played | Previous club | Fee/notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 23, 2016 |  Rosana | MF | Houston Dash | Acquired while the franchise operated as the Western New York Flash. | [11] |
| January 5, 2017 | Debinha | MF |  Dalian Quanjian F.C. | [12] | |
| January 19, 2017 | Samantha Witteman | MF | Orlando Pride | Acquired in a trade for Alanna Kennedy. | [13] |
| April 4, 2017 |  Yuri Kawamura | DF | Albirex Niigata Ladies | [14] | |
| April 10, 2017 | Ashley Hatch | FW | Brigham Young University | Signed college draft picks. | [15] |
| Darian Jenkins | FW | University of California, Los Angeles | |||
| June 16, 2017 | Stephanie Ochs | DF | Houston Dash | Acquired off waivers. | [16] |
| July 26, 2017 |  Nora Holstad | DF |  FC Bayern Munich | [17] | |
| July 28, 2017 |  Denise O'Sullivan | MF | Houston Dash | Acquired off waivers. | [18] |
Out
edit| Date | Player | Positions played | Destination club | Fee/notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 19, 2017 |  Alanna Kennedy | DF | Orlando Pride | Traded to acquire Samantha Witteman. | [16] |
| May 27, 2017 | Courtney Niemiec | DF | Retired. | [19] | |
| June 21, 2017 | Rosana | MF | Waived. | [20] |
Competitions
editNational Women's Soccer League
editPreseason
edit- Source: North Carolina FC[21]
| 25 March 2017 | North Carolina Courage | 3–0 | University of Tennessee | Charlotte, NC |
| 5:30 p.m. ET | [Report Pre 1] | Stadium: Queens Sports Complex |
| 1 April 2017 | North Carolina Courage | 3–1 | Wake Forest University | Cary, NC |
| 1:00 p.m. ET | [Report Pre 2] |
| Stadium: WakeMed Soccer Park Field 3 |
| 5 April 2017 | North Carolina Courage | 1–0 | Duke University | Cary, NC |
| 7:30 p.m. ET |
| [Report Pre 3] | Stadium: WakeMed Soccer Park Field 3 | |
| Note: Kickoff postponed from 6:00 p.m. EST due to weather issues. | ||||
| 8 April 2017 | North Carolina Courage | 1–0 | UNC-Chapel Hill | Cary, NC |
| 6:00 p.m. ET |
| [Report Pre 4] | Stadium: WakeMed Soccer Park Field 14 |
Regular season
edit- Source: National Women's Soccer League[22]
| 15 April 2017 1 | Washington Spirit | 0–1 | North Carolina Courage | Boyds, MD |
| 3:00 p.m. ET | [Report 1][Report 3] | Stadium: Maryland SoccerPlex Attendance: 2,407 Referee: Ekaterina Koroleva[23] Assistant referees: Sean Regan, Maggie Short Fourth official: Karl Kummer |
| 22 April 2017 2 | North Carolina Courage | 1–0 | Portland Thorns FC | Cary, NC |
| 7:30 p.m. ET | [Report 4][Report 6] | Stadium: Sahlen's Stadium Attendance: 6,298 Referee: Victor Rivas Assistant referees: Adrienne McDonald, Amilcar Sicaju Fourth official: Javier Rodriguez |
| 29 April 2017 3 | North Carolina Courage | 3–1 | Orlando Pride | Cary, NC |
| 4:00 p.m. ET | [Report 7][Report 9] |
| Stadium: Sahlen's Stadium Attendance: 4,586 Referee: Farhad Dadkho Assistant referees: Amanda Ross, Ryan Graves Fourth official: Aaron Gallagher |
| 7 May 2017 4 | Boston Breakers | 0–1 | North Carolina Courage | Boston, MA |
| 6:00 p.m. ET | [Report 10][Report 11] | Stadium: Jordan Field Attendance: 2,276 Referee: Malik Badawi Assistant referees: Trent Vainhaitsma, Matthew Osterhouse Fourth official: Randall Kelley |
| 14 May 2017 5 | Orlando Pride | 3–1 | North Carolina Courage | Orlando, FL |
| 5:00 p.m. ET | [Report 12][Report 13] | Stadium: Orlando City Stadium Attendance: 5,260 Referee: Jon Freemon Assistant referees: TJ Zablocki, Natlie Simon Fourth official: Sammie Gillispie |
| 21 May 2017 6 | North Carolina Courage | 1–3 | Chicago Red Stars | Cary, NC |
| 4:00 p.m. ET | [Report 14][Report 16] |
| Stadium: Sahlen's Stadium Attendance: 4,786 Referee: Rosendo Mendoza Assistant referees: Jeremy Weed, Francisco Bermudez Fourth official: John Collins |
| 24 May 2017 7 | North Carolina Courage | 2–0 | Sky Blue FC | Cary, NC |
| 7:30 p.m. ET | [Report 17][Report 19] | Stadium: Sahlen's Stadium Attendance: 2,383 Referee: Kevin Broadley Assistant referees: Benjamin Wooten, Gregory Brigman Fourth official: Javier Rodriguez |
| 27 May 2017 8 | Chicago Red Stars | 3–2 | North Carolina Courage | Bridgeview, IL |
| 3:00 p.m. CST |
| [Report 20][Report 22] | Stadium: Toyota Park Attendance: 2,618 Referee: Becky Pagan Assistant referees: Deleana Quon, Joshua Haimes Fourth official: Rachel Smith |
| 3 June 2017 9 | North Carolina Courage | 2–0 | FC Kansas City | Cary, NC |
| 3:30 p.m. ET | [Report 23][Report 25] |
| Stadium: Sahlen's Stadium Attendance: 3,717 Referee: Christina Unkel[24] Assistant referees: Alicia Messer, Maggie Short Fourth official: Christopher Spivey |
| 17 June 2017 10 | North Carolina Courage | 3–1 | Boston Breakers | Cary, NC |
| 7:30 p.m. ET | [Report 26][Report 28] | Stadium: Sahlen's Stadium Attendance: 3,780 Referee: Elvis Osmanovic Assistant referees: Jeremy Weed, Justin Howard Fourth official: Aaron Gallagher |
| 24 June 2017 11 | Boston Breakers | 0–1 | North Carolina Courage | Boston, MA |
| 4:00 p.m. ET | [Report 29] | Stadium: Jordan Field Attendance: 3,209 |
| 1 July 2017 12 | North Carolina Courage | 0–1 | Sky Blue FC | Cary, NC |
| 3:30 p.m. ET | Report |
| Stadium: Sahlen's Stadium Attendance: 3,056 Referee: Greg Dopka Assistant referees: Cory Richardson, Trent Vanhaitsma Fourth official: Javier Rodriguez | |
| Note: Televised on Lifetime. | ||||
| 8 July 2017 13 | North Carolina Courage | 2–0 | Seattle Reign FC | Cary, NC |
| 9:45 p.m. ET | Report |
| Stadium: Sahlen's Stadium Attendance: 3,565 | |
| Note: Kickoff was delayed from 7:30 p.m. Eastern due to severe weather. | ||||
| 15 July 2017 14 | Portland Thorns FC | 1–0 | North Carolina Courage | Portland, OR |
| 12:30 p.m. PST | Raso  62',  70' (Klingenberg) | Report | Smith 58' | Stadium: Providence Park Attendance: 16,804 |
| Note: Televised on Lifetime. | ||||
| 22 July 2017 15 | FC Kansas City | postponed | North Carolina Courage | Kansas City, MO |
| 7:00 p.m. CST | Stadium: Swope Soccer Village | |||
| Note: match postponed to 10 August due to weather | ||||
| 5 August 2017 16 | North Carolina Courage | 1–0 | Seattle Reign FC | Cary, NC |
| 7:30 p.m. ET | Williams 32' | Report | Stott 24' Barnes 86' | Stadium: Sahlen's Stadium Attendance: 5,249 |
| 10 August 2017 17 | FC Kansas City | 0–1 | North Carolina Courage | Kansas City, MO |
| 7:00 p.m. CST | LaBonta 45' | Report | Williams 86' | Stadium: Swope Soccer Village Attendance: 1,398 |
| Note: Match was originally scheduled to be played 22 July 2017 but was postponed due to weather | ||||
| 13 August 2017 18 | Seattle Reign FC | 1–2 | North Carolina Courage | Seattle, WA |
| 6:00 p.m. PST | Utsugi 40' | Report | Mewis 24', 74' | Stadium: Memorial Stadium Attendance: 4,156 |
| 19 August 2017 19 | North Carolina Courage | 2–0 | Washington Spirit | Cary, NC |
| 3:30 p.m. ET | Hatch 46' Kallman 84' (o.g.) Dahlkemper 90+2' | Report | Dydasco 55' | Stadium: Sahlen's Stadium Attendance: 3,530 |
| Note: To be televised on Lifetime. | ||||
| 27 August 2017 20 | Houston Dash | postponed | North Carolina Courage | Houston, TX |
| 7:00 p.m. CST | Report | Stadium: BBVA Compass Stadium | ||
| Note: match postponed to 27 September due to Hurricane Harvey | ||||
| 30 August 2017 21 | Washington Spirit | 2–3 | North Carolina Courage | Boyds, MD |
| 7:30 p.m. ET | Banini 8' Farquharson 23' Huster 45' Williams 73' | Report | Mewis 45+1' McDonald 61', 66' | Stadium: Maryland SoccerPlex Attendance: 2,365 |
| 3 September 2017 22 | Chicago Red Stars | 2–1 | North Carolina Courage | Bridgeview, IL |
| 5:00 p.m. CST | Williams 15' Zerboni 77' | Report | Colaprico 40' Nagasato 52' Ertz 73' 84' | Stadium: Toyota Park Attendance: 3,745 |
| 9 September 2017 23 | North Carolina Courage | 1–0 | Houston Dash | Cary, NC |
| 7:30 p.m. ET | Hamilton 26' Dahlkemper 63' | Report | Roccaro 64' Van Wyk 90+7' | Stadium: Sahlen's Stadium Attendance: 4,702 |
| 24 September 2017 24 | Sky Blue FC | 1–1 | North Carolina Courage | Piscataway, NJ |
| 6:00 p.m. ET | Stanton 65' Rodriquez 75' | Report | Hatch 27' | Stadium: Yurcak Field Attendance: 2,690 |
| 27 September 2017 25 | Houston Dash | 0–4 | North Carolina Courage | Edinburg, TX |
| 7:00 p.m. CST | Report | Mewis 13' Williams 38' Debinha 51' Hatch 56' | Stadium: H-E-B Park Referee: Michael Radchuck | |
| Note: Match was originally scheduled to be played 27 August but was postponed due to Hurricane Harvey | ||||
| 30 September 2017 26 | North Carolina Courage | 2–3 | Orlando Pride | Cary, NC |
| 7:30 p.m. ET | Williams 62', 67' (pen.) Dahlkemper 90' | Report | Edmonds 22' Marta 51' 72' Harris 67' Kennedy 90+1' | Stadium: Sahlen's Stadium Attendance: 7,020 |
Postseason playoffs
edit| 8 October 2017 Semifinal | North Carolina Courage | 1–0 | Chicago Red Stars | Cary, NC |
| 3:30 p.m. ET | O'Sullivan 89' | Report | Colaprico 36' | Stadium: Sahlen's Stadium Attendance: 10,017 |
| Note: Televised on Lifetime. | ||||
| 14 October 2017 Final | North Carolina Courage | 0–1 | Portland Thorns FC | Orlando, FL |
| 4:30 p.m. ET | Report | Heath 41' Raso 45+1' Horan 50' Brynjarsdóttir 72' | Stadium: Orlando City Stadium Attendance: 8,124 | |
| Note: Televised on Lifetime. | ||||
League table
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | North Carolina Courage | 24 | 16 | 1 | 7 | 38 | 22 | +16 | 49 | NWSL Shield |
| 2 | Portland Thorns FC (C) | 24 | 14 | 5 | 5 | 37 | 20 | +17 | 47 | NWSL Playoffs |
| 3 | Orlando Pride | 24 | 11 | 7 | 6 | 45 | 31 | +14 | 40 | |
| 4 | Chicago Red Stars | 24 | 11 | 6 | 7 | 33 | 30 | +3 | 39 | |
| 5 | Seattle Reign FC | 24 | 9 | 7 | 8 | 43 | 37 | +6 | 34 | |
| 6 | Sky Blue FC | 24 | 10 | 3 | 11 | 42 | 51 | −9 | 33 | |
| 7 | FC Kansas City | 24 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 29 | 31 | −2 | 31 | |
| 8 | Houston Dash | 24 | 7 | 3 | 14 | 23 | 39 | −16 | 24 | |
| 9 | Boston Breakers | 24 | 4 | 7 | 13 | 24 | 35 | −11 | 19 | |
| 10 | Washington Spirit | 24 | 5 | 4 | 15 | 30 | 48 | −18 | 19 |
Results summary
edit| Overall | Home | Away | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
| 24 | 16 | 1 | 7 | 38 | 22 | +16 | 49 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 20 | 9 | +11 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 18 | 13 | +5 |
Last updated: September 30, 2017.
Source: NWSLsoccer.com
Results by round
editUpdated to match(es) played on September 30, 2017. Source: NWSLsoccer.com
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss; P = Postponed
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss; P = Postponed
Honors and awards
edit| Month | Goalkeeper | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| April | Debinha Sam Mewis | Lynn Williams | [25] | ||
| June | Abby Dahlkemper | Sam Mewis | Ashley Hatch | [26] | |
| July | Abby Dahlkemper Taylor Smith | McCall Zerboni | [27] | ||
| August | Katelyn Rowland | Taylor Smith | Sam Mewis | [28] |
| Week | Result | Player | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | Won | Sam Mewis | [29] |
| Week | Result | Player | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nominated | McCall Zerboni | [30] |
| 2 | Nominated | Debinha | [31] |
| 3 | Nominated | Lynn Williams | [32] |
| 6 | Nominated | [33] | |
| 7 | Nominated | Debinha | [34] |
| 8 | Nominated | Ashley Hatch | [35] |
| 9 | Nominated | [36] | |
| 16 | Nominated | Sam Mewis | [37] |
| Week | Result | Player | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Nominated |  Sabrina D'Angelo | [38] |
Statistics
edit- As of June 18, 2017
- Source: National Women's Soccer League[39]
| N | Pos | Player | GP | GS | Min | G | A | PK | Shot | SOG | SOG% | CK | Off | Foul | YC | RC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GK | Sabrina D'Angelo | 7 | 7 | 630 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 13 | DF | Abby Dahlkemper | 10 | 10 | 900 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 50.00% | 65 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | MF | Débora Debinha | 10 | 9 | 819 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 22 | 13 | 59.09% | 4 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | FW | Makenzy Doniak | 10 | 9 | 657 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | DF | Elizabeth Eddy | 2 | 0 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | DF | Abby Erceg | 8 | 8 | 687 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 50.00% | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| 23 | FW | Kristen Hamilton | 5 | 1 | 154 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 100.00% | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | FW | Ashley Hatch | 8 | 2 | 266 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 8 | 66.67% | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| 15 | DF | Jaelene Hinkle | 8 | 8 | 694 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 25.00% | 1 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | FW | Darian Jenkins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | DF | Yuri Kawamura | 8 | 7 | 588 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 50.00% | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 0 |
| 14 | FW | Jessica McDonald | 8 | 7 | 620 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 19 | 8 | 42.11% | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | MF | Samantha Mewis | 10 | 10 | 900 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 16 | 7 | 43.75% | 7 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 0 |
| 17 | DF | Courtney Niemiec | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | DF | Stephanie Ochs | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | Rosana Rosana | 4 | 1 | 68 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 100.00% | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 0 | GK | Katelyn Rowland | 3 | 3 | 270 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | DF | Taylor Smith | 10 | 5 | 553 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 100.00% | 0 | 0 | 13 | 1 | 0 |
| 26 | DF | Meredith Speck | 2 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | FW | Lynn Williams | 9 | 9 | 810 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 30 | 16 | 53.33% | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | MF | Sam Witteman | 7 | 4 | 305 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 100.00% | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 0 |
| 7 | MF | McCall Zerboni | 10 | 10 | 900 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 5 | 50.00% | 3 | 0 | 21 | 4 | 0 |
| Team Total | 140 | 110 | 9867 | 17 | 12 | 2 | 131 | 69 | 52.67% | 80 | 12 | 110 | 11 | 1 | ||
See also
editReferences
edit- Match reports (pre-season)
- ^ "Preseason roundup: O'Hara scores Sky Blue game winner". equalizersoccer.com. The Equalizer. March 26, 2017. Retrieved June 18, 2017.
- ^ "Preseason Roundup: NWSL finish weekend undefeated". equalizersoccer.com. The Equalizer. April 2, 2017. Retrieved June 18, 2017.
- ^ @TheNCCourage (April 5, 2017). "[FINAL] NC Courage defeats @DukeWSOC 1–0 with the lone goal from @elizabetheddy2. Next up: UNC comes to visit this Sat. at 6 pm at WMSP!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "Preseason roundup: Pride close preseason with U-23 shutout". Equalizer Soccer. April 8, 2017. Retrieved June 18, 2017.
- Match reports (regular season)
External links
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