Sarah Weber’s first NWSL goal was a huge one for Racing Louisville as the rookie’s header in the 85th minute lifted the hosts to a 3-2 victory Friday over a short-handed Utah Royals squad.
The forward, who got the start due to Kayla Fischer serving the first of her three-game suspension, scored the game-winner off a cross from Courtney Petersen. It came 12 minutes after Royals defender Ana Tejada was sent off for her second yellow card of the match.
Louisville (5-4-2, 17 points) earned its fourth win in its last five matches, while Utah (1-8-2, 5 points) fell for the fourth time in its last five.
Thunderstorms in the Louisville area delayed the start of the match by about an hour, but it did nothing to dampen either team’s attack as the two teams combined for four goals in the first 31 minutes.
Louisville rallied after Utah’s Brecken Mozingo scored in the game’s third minute. Emma Sears tied the match with her sixth of the season six minutes later. Ellie Jean’s header off a corner gave Louisville the lead in the 26th minute, only for Bianca St-Georges to tie it on a perfectly timed breakaway five minutes later.
Ally Sentnor, who scored a brace for the U.S. national team on Tuesday, had three shots in the second half, including one that hit off the post.
Royals captain and former Racing forward Paige Monaghan entered the game as a second-half substitute, marking her return to action after suffering a foot injury in Utah’s season opener on March 15.
–Field Level Media
