Plus: Erica Meg Parkinson’s debut and news on our end
Hello Courage Country!
Whew. I promise not to dwell too much on that loss to Bay. This felt different than the loss to the Spirit two weeks ago, when the Courage went down fighting against a team that now tops the league.
Against Bay, the Courage were strategically outmaneuvered against a squad with known struggles. We’ll see if head coach Mak Lind changes things up heading into the match against Utah this weekend.
What we learned: Courage v. Bay FC
Transition defending proved disastrous
The Courage have emphasized attacking with numbers and taking risks early in the match. Bay FC exploited that in the simplest manner: watching for moments when the back line was too far forward, then booting long balls and counting on the speed of their offense to create problems.
At 14’, Karlie Lema took possession of one of these long kicks. Maycee Bell was close to a tackle, but nearly ran into Courage keeper Kailen Sheridan, and Lema scored in the confusion. Just 3 minutes later, Bay basically ran the same play, with Alex Pfeiffer picking up the ball. She served a cross into Lema for the brace.
Bay’s tactics were a little old school NWSL, but proved highly effective against the Courage.
Opponents have figured out a blueprint for attacking
As Katie points out on this week’s podcast, teams seem to have developed a tactical blueprint for attacking the Courage, both in the transition plays mentioned above and through space in the midfield.
Whether the Courage show a different formation, mix up subs and starters, respond differently to a high press, or some combination of all three, a shift in pattern might help the team spring a few surprises. For instance, we could see Olivia Wingate coming in as a sub in matches where the Courage need a late game spark, or Chioma Okafor seeing some starting minutes. In any case, the team will need to shake things up.
Erica Meg Parkinson makes NWSL / Courage debut
The Courage acquisition of attacking midfielder Erica Meg Parkinson was one of the most exciting roster moves this season. She was eligible to play for the first time this week, and she subbed in for Feli Rauch at the half.
In that time, she recorded three tackles, won 4 out of 9 duels and took a shot at the goal, according to Fotmob.
In the post-game press conference, Lind said, “It’s early for her to already be on the pitch, but she showed me in the last one-and-a-half weeks since she arrived that she’s a great player. I’m happy with that performance that she did individually, shows that she’s here to compete, and can be somebody that will have a bright future.”
Standout stats
Based on the score line, it might be surprising to know the Courage matched Bay shot-for-shot. Each team took 14 total shots, with the Courage hitting 5 on target and Bay getting 6. The Courage took 10 shots inside the box, compared to Bay’s 6.
The Courage improved in some areas where they’ve struggled earlier in the season, earning more tackles (27 to Bay’s 17) and only giving up two corners.
Look ahead: Courage v. Utah Royals
Utah has been the season’s biggest surprise, sustaining a strong run at the top of the table after finishing 12th in the league last season. Following the 2025 season, they lost some key players including Ally Sentnor, Imani Dorsey and Madison Pogarch.
Two key additions have helped their successful start in 2026, including former Courage midfielder Narumi Miura (signed from the Washington Spirit) and forward Kiana Palacios from Club América.
Utah likes to spread goals around among many attackers, and boasts exceptional goalkeeping talent in Mandy McGlynn. Narumi scored in Utah’s 1-0 win over Orlando last week.
One opportunity against Utah is that they’ve struggled to lock down their right back position, cycling through a rotating list of players, which may give the Courage some options with Ashley Sanchez playing on that side of the pitch.
One challenge is that Utah has scored in every single match this season except one: a 0-0 draw with Bay back in May. The Courage will likely have to put several goals on the scoreboard to win this match.
Upcoming, temporary changes at Lion’s Pitch
Some happy news on the Lion’s Pitch front: any day now I (Trevor) will welcome my second child into the world. Two things will be happening temporarily:
- Katie will be joined by a guest host or hosts on the podcast so that we can continue coverage there
- This newsletter will pause for several weeks while I enjoy some time with our newest family member
I’ll be back on the pod and the newsletter no later than mid-September, and we’ll resume coverage as normal through the end of the season. We appreciate everyone’s patience!
Courage news and updates
- The Courage released a video, Get to Know: Erica Meg Parkinson, if you want to hear what drew her to the club.
Around the league and beyond
- Denise O’Sullivan debuted for Gotham; also Sam Kerr, who managed to hit 10,000 minutes in the NWSL despite this being her first match back in sometime.
That’s it for this week! As always, you can get in touch with tips, suggestions, corrections and more: contact@lionspitch.com.
Next match: Saturday, July 25, 7:45 pm ET
North Carolina Courage v. Utah Royals
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