Main Takeaways

The North Carolina Courage dominated the Portland Thorns 3-1 at home in midweek action to secure their second win in as many games.

Game Recap

In their rescheduled regular-season home opener, the Courage bested the first-place Portland Thorns with a 3-1 scoreline.

Despite the first 10 minutes of this match being a bit disorganized, the Courage quickly figured things out. It was Diana Ordóñez who struck first for the Courage in the 24th minute off yet another Carson Pickett assist.

With the goal, Ordóñez is now in second place–tied with Portland’s Sophia Smith–for the NWSL Golden Boot race, only behind San Diego’s Alex Morgan. Ordóñez has shattered the league’s rookie goal record and has secured a spot in the North Carolina record books.

She’s the first Courage player to score in six straight appearances, tied with Abby Wambach and Kim Little for most consecutive NWSL games with a goal.

And with her latest assist tally, Pickett has now assisted at least five goals in each of the past two seasons.

Shortly after her goal, in the 33rd minute, Ordóñez was forced to leave the game with a shoulder injury. Brittany Ratcliffe entered the match in her place.

After the half-time break, Debinha doubled the Courage’s lead with her fifth goal of the season in the 50th minute. 

Just 13 minutes later, Portland struck off a corner kick to spoil North Carolina’s–and goalkeeper Casey Murphy’s–clean sheet. 

As the game progressed, Meredith Speck, Malia Berkely, Merritt Mathias, and Jaelene Daniels entered the match as the Courage shifted to a more defensive-minded formation. The tactical shift worked, quelling Portland's attack.. What’s more is that the Courage attack tacked on another goal before the clock ran out, in the 83rd minute. 

This time, it was Courage veteran Speck off an assist. 

The Courage have now recorded the second-most goals of all teams this season (30), despite playing the fewest games (14). North Carolina is also responsible for one-third of Portland’s goals-against in 2022. 

Following their second win–which marked their fourth of the season–the Courage now sit in 9th place with 16 points through 14 games. Next up, the team will travel to Kansas City to face a red-hot Current team that’s on an 11-game unbeaten streak.

Hopefully, North Carolina will keep their win streak alive and continue their climb up from the bottom of the table.