Orlando

North Carolina Courage Maul Fatigued Orlando Pride with 3-0 Shutout

Published

7 years ago

June 30, 2018

ORLANDO (FNN SPORTS) - North Carolina Courage clawed their way to a clean sheet against the Orlando Pride Saturday. Photo: Carlos Romero/The Mane Land.

ORLANDO, Fla. (FNN SPORTS) – The National Women’s Soccer League’s top two teams faced off at Orlando Cty Stadium Saturday with Orlando Pride hosting North Carolina Courage. The Pride, fresh off of a 2-1 loss to Houston Dash Wednesday, needed a win to maintain their number 2 spot and maintain their playoff prospects. North Carolina came into Saturday’s game with a 4-1 win against the Seattle Reign under their belt.

Pride head coach Tom Sermanni switched the starting lineup from Wednesday, and including the return of Ali Krieger, who was out with an injury. The remaining lineup includes Alanna Kennedy, Ashlyn Harris, Alex Morgan, Sydney Leroux (who was on the bench in Wednesday’s match), Marta, Monica, Poliana, Emily van Egmond and Rachel Hill. The lineup shift promised to breathe life into the team after Wednesday’s loss and was needed considering North Carolina’s attacking capabilities.

There was a nail-biting close call in the 17th minute. On a corner kick, the Courage kicked close to the goal, but the Pride swarmed the ball. Courage managed to get a shot off though, but Harris deflected it with a saving dive.

In the 21st minute, there could have been an Orlando goal, but Alex Morgan was called for a foul before a shot could follow through.

In the 33rd minute, Ali Krieger went down, gripping her right shoulder. She arose and chose to continue play, but still wrestled with the pain for the rest of the half.

North Carolina’s Debinha got her team on the board first with a near-miss goal in the 37th minute. Crystal Dunn made the shot first, but Debinha kicked it over a heads first, then got close and made the kick into the box. Harris touched it, and the ball slowly rolled into the net.

Within the next minute, Merritt Mathias brought the Courage’s second goal, making the score 2-0.

Jess McDonald, who made a breakaway, nailed goal number three in the 40th minute. Rachel Hill and Emily van Egmond gunned it for the goal, but Courage goalie Katelyn Rowland deflected it past the right goalpost. In the 44th minute, Syndey Leroux made a shot on goal, but that too was deflected–this one off the left goalpost.

Orlando couldn’t secure a goal before the half, leaving the score at 3-0 at halftime.

The Pride subbed in Dani Weatherholt for Rachel Hill at halftime.

From the 59th to the 61st minute, the Pride kept the ball in the box and made three attempts but still couldn’t score. It didn’t help that in the 62nd minute, Morgan made a breakaway shot on goal and the ball flew over the crossbar. In the very next minute, Leroux broke away and made a right cross to Morgan, who made another shot, but this time kicked the ball far right of the goal.

In the 71st minute, Orlando finally made another substitution: Christine Nairn came in for Emily van Egmond. The Courage subbed in Lynn Williams for Kristen Hamilton. In the 75th minute, Orlando brought in Kristen Edmonds for Ali Krieger.

In the 81st minute, Alex Morgan went to the bench, leaving the Pride one short, since they used all of their substitutions.

While Orlando did come alive in the second half and prevented any further North Carolina goals, they still weren’t able to score any of their own, leaving the final score at 3-0.

The Pride next host the Washington Spirit Saturday, July 7 at 7:30pm.

_____________________________________________________

Mellissa Thomas is Editor for Florida National News. | mellissa.thomas@floridanationalnews.com

Up Next

Crayola Launches “Thank A Teacher” Contest, Encouraging Families to Create Thank-You Notes for Teachers With One Winner’s Art to Be Featured on a Box of Crayola Crayons!

Don't Miss

US Senator Bill Nelson, Reps. Nydia Velazquez and Darren Soto To Host Latino Town Hall in Orlando July 3

Click to comment

Golf

Russell Henley Wins Red Cardigan at 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational

Published

2 months ago

March 9, 2025

Mike Brodsky

Russell Henley wins the 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational (Photo credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News)

ORLANDO, Fla. (FNN Sports) – Russell Henley wins his first red cardigan at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, today, along with $4 million of the $20 million prize pool. The red cardigan was first awarded in 2017, in memory of Arnold Palmer who passed the year before. This is Henley’s fifth win on the PGA Tour.

Russell Henley is greeted by his family on the 18th green after winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational (Photo credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News)

Henley finished at 11 under par for the four day tournament, carding a 70 today. Collin Morikawa finished in second place at 10 under par. API defending champion, Scottie Scheffler, finished today at 4 under par, tied for 11th place.

Scottie Scheffler tees off at the Arnold Palmer Invitational (Photo Credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News)

This coming week, the top golfers head to TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra, for The Players Championship. The winner will walk away with $4.5 million of the $25 million up for grabs. This is the PGA Tour’s largest regular season purse. Stay tuned to www.FloridaNationalNews.com for more.

NFL

UCF Hall of Fame Inductee Shaquem Griffin Launches Search For Greatness Combine With Joey Grant and GMTM

Published

6 months ago

October 30, 2024

Mike Brodsky

UCF Hall of Fame Inductee Shaquem Griffin Launches Search For Greatness Combine With Joey Grant and GMTM

Former UCF football players Shaquem Griffin and Joey Grant have partnered with GMTM to launch their Search for Greatness Combine at UCF on Saturday, November 9th. They’re giving local athletes a chance to showcase their talents and explore new sports opportunities. Griffin will be inducted into the UCF Hall of Fame on Saturday, November 2nd, during halftime of the Arizona vs. UCF football game. He is remembered for his tenacity, setting an NFL Combine record with the fastest 40-yard dash by a linebacker, and playing four seasons in the NFL, overcoming the challenge of only having one hand. He is now training to make the USA Paralympic Track and Field Team and hopes to compete in the 2028 Olympics. Joey Grant, the co-founder and CEO of GMTM, is a former UCF team captain, playing mostly Center for the Knights from 2011-2015.

Participation at the upcoming combine is free and invite-only, targeting athletes over the age of 18. To be considered, athletes must submit a highlight video via GMTM’s platform, showcasing their athleticism. GMTM will evaluate submissions and invite the most promising athletes to participate in the combine. The goal for this year’s event is to get 1,000 athletes to submit videos and be part of the combine process. Athletes chosen will receive personalized invites with further instructions, including event time slots and details. The athletes will be evaluated for their key athletic traits, to identify opportunities for them across multiple Olympic sports or professional sports programs. To learn more, or to apply for the combine, visit: https://gmtm.com/articles/the-search-for-greatness-at-ucf-with-shaquem-griffin-what-you-need-to-know.

Florida National News spoke with Shaquem and Joey about the combine, college football in the era of NIL and the transfer portal, and Griffin’s hall of fame induction. You can watch the full interview here:

Shaquem Griffin and Joey Grant interview

Stay tuned to www.FloridaNationalNews.com and www.FloridaSportsChannel.com for more.

Florida

Scottie Scheffler Wins Second Red Cardigan at 2024 Arnold Palmer Invitational

Published

1 year ago

March 10, 2024

Mike Brodsky

Photo credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News

ORLANDO, Fla. (FNN Sports) – Scottie Scheffler wins his second red cardigan at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, today, along with $4 million of the $20 million prize pool. The red cardigan was first awarded in 2017, in memory of Arnold Palmer who passed the year before. Scheffler first won the API in 2022.

Scottie Scheffler wins the Arnold Palmer Invitational. (Photo credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News)

The number one ranked golfer in the world, Scheffler finished at 15 under par for the four day tournament, carding a 66 today. Wyndham Clark finished in second place at 10 under par. API defending champion, Kurt Kitayama, did not make the cut, this weekend, finishing 7 over par after the first two rounds on Thursday and Friday.

This coming week, the top golfers head to TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra, for the 50th anniversary of The Players Championship. The winner will walk away with $4.5 million of the $25 million up for grabs. This is the PGA Tour’s largest regular season purse. Stay tuned to www.FloridaNationalNews.com for more.