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North Carolina Courage Match Notes
Washington Spirit vs. North Carolina Courage Saturday April 15, 2017
Live Stream: go90 | Live Tweets: @TheNCCourage Maureen Hendricks Field Maryland SoccerPlex | 3:00 p.m. ET
#WASvNC
Date Opponent Result Sat 4.15 @Washington Spirit 0-0 Sat 4.22 Portland Thorns 0-0 Sat 4.29 Orlando Pride 0-0 Sun 5.7 @Boston Breakers 0-0
Sun 5.14 @Orlando Pride 0-0 Sun 5.21 Chicago Red Stars 0-0 Wed 5.24 Sky Blue FC 0-0 Sat 5.27 @ Chicago Red Stars 0-0 Sat 6.3 FC Kansas City 0-0
Sat 6.17 Boston Breakers 0-0 Sat 6.24 @ Boston Breakers 0-0 Sat 7.1 Sky Blue FC 0-0 Sat 7.8 Seattle Reign 0-0
Sat 7.15 @Portland Thorns 0-0 Sat 7.22 @FC Kansas City 0-0 Sat 8.5 Seattle Reign 0-0
Sun 8.13 @Seattle Reign 0-0 Sat 8.19 Washington Spirit 0-0 Sun 8.27 @Houston Dash 0-0 Wed 8.30 @Washington Spirit 0-0 Sun 9.3 @Chicago Red Stars 0-0 Sat 9.9 Houston Dash 0-0
Sun 9.24 @Sky Blue FC 0-0 Sat 9.30 Orlando Pride 0-0
North Carolina Football Club announced on January 9 that it had acquired the rights to the National Women’s Soccer League 2016 Champion team, the Western New York Flash, for the 2017 NWSL season. Since coming to the Triangle, the Courage have completed a perfect, unbeaten 4-0 preseason and are now ready to carry that success into their long awaited inaugural season with the opener against the Washington Spirit this Saturday. Offensive production came from numerous sources, as Lynn Williams, Rosana, Debinha and Jess McDonald found the back of the net in the four consecutive preseason wins. The Courage maintained the key core of the 2016 NWSL Championship winning Western New York Flash’s roster, including McDonald, Williams, Sam Mewis, Abby Erceg and Sabrina D’Angelo. Williams was last year’s NWSL Golden Boot winner and League MVP, with 11 goals and five assists in 2016, while D’Angelo led the Flash to their championship, as the starting goalkeeper helped propel the club to their win in penalty kicks. McDonald, Williams, Mewis and D’Angelo, as well as new faces in Rosana and Debinha, are all important players to their respective national team rosters. Lately, Mewis has been part of the starting XI for a U.S. Women’s National Team that most recently played to a 5-1 win over Russia in an international friendly on Sunday. Last Time Out: The Courage played to a perfect preseason that featured matches against the University of North Carolina, Duke, Wake Forest and the University of Tennessee. #5 Sam Mewis In 2016, Sam Mewis played in and started 14 games for the Flash, where she scored five goals and added two assists. Through Sunday’s U.S. Women’s National Team win over Russia, Mewis now has 23 caps and four goals with the senior team. This year, the 24-year-old has made five starts already, alongside the likes of Meghan Klingenberg and Carli Lloyd. #19 Kristie Mewis The older Mewis sister is new to the Spirit, as she came to the team via a trade prior to the NWSL season, but like her sister, she is no stranger to the U.S. Women’s National Team. The 26-year-old made her debut for the senior team in February of 2013 and has played as a midfielder for the U-15, U-17, U-20 and U-23 U.S. National Teams as well. Last year, the Boston College product, made 13 starts for the Boston Breakers.
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Match Preview
Players to watch
Projected Starting XI
D’Angelo
Smith Dahlkemper Niemiec Hinkle
Mewis Kawamura Zerboni
Eddy McDonald Williams
Washington Spirit vs. NC Courage | Saturday, April 15 #WASvNC
North Carolina Courage Match Notes
Injury Report: Out: Abby Erceg | Right meniscus injury Darian Jenkins | Left broken fibula and dislocated ankle (on DL45) Doubtful: None Questionable: None Probable: None Referees: Referee: Ekaterina Koroleva Assistant Referee 1: Maggie Short Assistant Referee 2: Karl Kummer 4th Official: Paul Ciaramitaro Referee Assessor: Richard Grady In Case You Missed it: Sahlen’s Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park The North Carolina Football Club, along with the Town of Cary, announced a new sponsorship deal with Sahlen Packing Company on March 31. As part of the deal, the main stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park was renamed Sahlen’s Stadium. Additionally, Sahlen’s is the exclusive hot dog provider to the stadium. The Sahlen family owned the 2016 NWSL Champion Western New York Flash, which was acquired by the North Carolina Football Club in January of 2017 and subsequently re-branded as the North Carolina Courage. On April 29, the club will honor the Sahlen family with a pre-game ceremony highlighting their championship season and contribution to the sport. CASL and TFCA Enters a Historic Strategic Collaboration with North Carolina Football Club: In early March, North Carolina Football Club announced that it entered a historic collaboration with the Capital Area Soccer League (CASL) and Triangle Futbol Club Alliance (TFCA), resulting in the largest youth-to-professional soccer club in the United States. CASL and TFCA rebranded as North Carolina FC Youth beginning this season, and will complete the transition this summer. North Carolina FC Youth will take the field in the fall wearing the NCFC crest on their jerseys.
Team Notes: NC Courage’s Inaugural Season About the NC Courage The North Carolina Courage is a professional women’s soccer team that plays in the NWSL (Women’s First Division). On January 9, 2017, the North Carolina Football Club announced it had entered into an agreement to acquire the rights to the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) 2016 Champion Western New York Flash. The club was renamed North Carolina Courage. The North Carolina Courage crest is a nod to the history of women’s professional soccer in North Carolina, incorporating a stylized lion, a major component of the old Carolina Courage of the WUSA logo, while retaining the brand identity of the club’s parent organization with the signature North Carolina Football Club star and the separated triangle. Additionally, the colors mirror those of the men’s side, uniting the two teams under the North Carolina Football Club umbrella, while maintaining their individual identity. Malik announced his intent to secure the awarding of an NWSL team to the Triangle within three to six months, on December 6, 2016, and the acquisition of this club achieved that objective in only one month’s time. Founded by the Sahlen family in 2008 as the Buffalo Flash in the USL W-League, the North Carolina Courage (former WNY Flash) is one of the most decorated women’s professional soccer teams, winning four championships in three different leagues. Most recently, the club won the 2016 NWSL Championship on October 9 by defeating the Washington Spirit in penalty kicks. The State of North Carolina has always been a leader in women’s soccer. It has produced several legends including Mia Hamm, Kristine Lilly, Heather O’Reilly, Charmaine Hooper and Carla Overbeck, and UNC women’s coaching legend Anson Dorrance. The Triangle was the home of WUSA’s 2002 Founders Cup Champion Carolina Courage for three seasons before the league folded the following year.
Washington Spirit vs. NC Courage | Saturday, April 15 #WASvNC North Carolina Courage Schedule and Results
2017 NWSL Standings
Date Opponent Result Goal Scorers Sat 4.15 @Washington Spirit 0-0 Sat 4.22 Portland Thorns 0-0 Sat 4.29 Orlando Pride 0-0 Sun 5.7 @Boston Breakers 0-0
Sun 5.14 @Orlando Pride 0-0 Sun 5.21 Chicago Red Stars 0-0 Wed 5.24 Sky Blue FC 0-0 Sat 5.27 @ Chicago Red Stars 0-0 Sat 6.3 FC Kansas City 0-0
Sat 6.17 Boston Breakers 0-0 Sat 6.24 @ Boston Breakers 0-0 Sat 7.1 Sky Blue FC 0-0 Sat 7.8 Seattle Reign 0-0
Sat 7.15 @Portland Thorns 0-0 Sat 7.22 @FC Kansas City 0-0 Sat 8.5 Seattle Reign 0-0
Sun 8.13 @Seattle Reign 0-0 Sat 8.19 Washington Spirit 0-0 Sun 8.27 @Houston Dash 0-0 Wed 8.30 @Washington Spirit 0-0 Sun 9.3 @Chicago Red Stars 0-0 Sat 9.9 Houston Dash 0-0
Sun 9.24 @Sky Blue FC 0-0 Sat 9.30 Orlando Pride 0-0
Team Points W L T 1 Boston Breakers 0 0 0 0 2 Chicago Red Stars 0 0 0 0 3 Houston Dash 0 0 0 0 4 FC Kansas City 0 0 0 0 5 North Carolina Courage 0 0 0 0 6 Orlando Pride 0 0 0 0 7 Portland Thorns FC 0 0 0 0 8 Seattle Reign 0 0 0 0 9 Sky Blue FC 0 0 0 0
10 Washington Spirit 0 0 0 0
Washington Spirit vs. NC Courage | Saturday, April 15 #WASvNC NORTH CAROLINA COURAGE ROSTER
North Carolina Courage 2017 Transactions Debinha: Signed with the New York Flash on January 5, 2017 Sam Witteman: Acquired in a trade with the Orlando Pride on January 19, 2017 for defender Alana Kennedy. Rosana: Rights acquired from Houston Dash in December 2016 Britt Eckerstrom: Traded to Portland Thorns on March 8, 2017 for two 4th round picks in the 2018 NWSL Draft Yuri Kawamura: Signed by the NC Courage on April 4,2017 as a discovery player
No. Name Position Height DOB Hometown Status No. Name Pronunciation
0 ROWLAND, KATELYN G 5.11 3/16/94 Vacaville, CA 1 D'ANGELO, SABRINA De Ann-jel-oh
1 D'ANGELO, SABRINA G 5.7 5/11/93 Welland, Ontario FED 13 DAHLKEMPER, ABBY Dall-kemp-er
3 DONIAK, MAKENZY F 5.8 2/25/94 Chino Hills, CA 10 DEBINHA Deb-in-ya
4 EDDY, ELIZABETH D 5.5 9/13/91 Costa Mesa, CA 3 DONIAK, MAKENZY Don-ee-ak
5 MEWIS, SAMANTHA M 5.11 9/13/91 Hanson, MA FED 4 EDDY, ELIZABETH Eddy
6 ERCEG, ABBY D 5.10. 1/20/89 Whangarei, NZ INTL 6 ERCEG, ABBY Er-seg
7 ZERBONI, MCCALL M 5.4 12/13/86 Camarillo, CA 23 HAMILTON, KRISTEN Hamilton
8 ROSANA M 5.7 7/7/82 São Paulo, Brazil INTL 12 HATCH, ASHLEY Hatch
9 WILLIAMS, LYNN F 5.7 5/21/93 Fresno, CA FED 15 HINKLE, JAELENE Jay-lean
10 DEBINHA M 5.2 10/20/91 Brasópolis, Brazil INTL 16 JENKINS, DARIAN Dare-ee-in
11 SMITH, TAYLOR D 5.3 12/1/93 Fort Worth, TX 20 KAWAMURA, YURI Yer-ee Kaw-ah-mure-ah
12 HATCH, ASHLEY F 5.9 5/25/95 Gilbert, AZ 14 MCDONALD, JESSICA McDonald
13 DAHLKEMPER, ABBY D 5.7 5/13/93 Menlo Park, CA 5 MEWIS, SAMANTHA Mewis
14 MCDONALD, JESSICA F 6 2/28/88 Phoenix, AZ 17 NIEMIEC, COURTNEY Nee-mick
15 HINKLE, JAELENE D 5.4 5/28/93 Denver, CO 8 ROSANA Rose-an-uh
16 JENKINS, DARIAN F 5.10. 1/5/95 Riverton, Utah D45 0 ROWLAND,KATELYN Roll-and
17 NIEMIEC, COURTNEY D 5.7 4/13/92 Philadelphia, PA 11 SMITH, TAYLOR Smith
20 KAWAMURA, YURI D 5.6 5/17/89 INTL 25 SPECK, MEREDITH Speck
23 HAMILTON, KRISTEN F 5.4 4/17/92 Littleton, CO 9 WILLIAMS, LYNN Williams
25 SPECK, MEREDITH D 5.3 2/1/93 Rockville Centre, NY 26 WITTEMAN, SAMANTHA Witt-uh-man
26 WITTEMAN, SAMANTHA M 5.3 2/26/94 Redondo Beach, CA 7 ZERBONI, MCCALL Zer-bone-ee
Washington Spirit vs. NC Courage | Saturday, April 15 #WASvNC North Carolina Courage 2017 Stats
No. Name Position GP Starts Goals Assists YC RC Minutes
0 ROWLAND, KATELYN G 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
1 D'ANGELO, SABRINA G 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 DONIAK, MAKENZY F 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 EDDY, ELIZABETH D 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
5 MEWIS, SAMANTHA M 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
6 ERCEG, ABBY D 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
7 ZERBONI, MCCALL M 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
8 ROSANA M 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
9 WILLIAMS, LYNN F 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
10 DEBINHA M 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
11 SMITH, TAYLOR D 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
12 HATCH, ASHLEY F 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
13 DAHLKEMPER, ABBY D 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
14 MCDONALD, JESSICA F 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
15 HINKLE, JAELENE D 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
16 JENKINS, DARIAN F 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
17 NIEMIEC, COURTNEY D 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
20 KAWAMURA, YURI D 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
23 HAMILTON, KRISTEN F 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
25 SPECK, MEREDITH D 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
26 WITTEMAN, SAMANTHA M 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Washington Spirit vs. NC Courage | Saturday, April 15 #WASvNC North Carolina Courage 2016 Player Stats
NAME GP GS Min G A PK Sh SOG SOG% Crs CK Off FC FS YC RC D'Angelo, Sabrina 11 11 990 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Dahlkemper, Abby 20 20 1800 2 1 2 14 8 57% 4 60 0 11 11 2 0 Debinha 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Doniak, Makenzy 20 15 1144 3 4 0 15 8 53% 13 1 1 6 15 1 0 Eddy, Elizabeth 20 20 1754 0 2 0 8 5 63% 6 8 1 21 12 3 0 Erceg, Abby 17 16 1474 2 1 0 13 4 31% 0 1 1 14 6 2 1 Hahn, Michaela 13 8 659 1 1 0 9 2 22% 0 0 0 3 4 1 0 Hamilton, Kristen 12 0 125 0 0 0 1 1 100% 0 0 0 3 1 1 0 Hinkle, Jaelene 15 15 1325 1 3 1 12 9 75% 12 38 0 9 9 2 0 McDonald, Jessica 19 19 1665 10 7 0 61 34 56% 8 3 13 10 11 0 0 Mewis, Sam 14 14 1260 5 2 1 39 17 44% 3 0 0 22 13 1 0 Niemiec, Courtney 6 4 397 0 0 0 2 1 50% 0 0 0 2 3 0 0 Rosana 4 3 184 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Rowland, Katelyn 6 6 540 3 0 0 0 0 0% 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Smith, Taylor 18 5 726 2 0 0 17 4 24% 1 1 0 9 11 1 0 Speck, Meredith 6 5 369 0 1 0 3 1 33% 1 1 2 3 0 1 0 Williams, Lynn 19 19 1670 11 5 0 70 34 49% 6 0 22 15 4 0 0 Witteman, Samantha 16 12 1070 0 0 0 7 4 57% 7 0 0 8 17 0 0 Zerboni, McCall 12 11 1011 0 1 0 13 4 31% 3 0 1 17 16 2 0
North Carolina Courage 2017 Injury Summary
Injury Report (April 15 @ Washington Spirit): Out: Abby Erceg | Right meniscus injury Darian Jenkins | Left broken fibula and dislocated ankle (on DL45) Doubtful: None Questionable: None Probable: None
Washington Spirit vs. NC Courage | Saturday, April 15 #WASvNC
North Carolina Courage 2017 Player Bios
Katelyn Rowland Pronunciation: Roll-and Position: G Height: 5.11’ Jersey Number: 0 Date of Birth: 3/16/94 Age: 23 Hometown: Vacaville, CA Citizenship: United States College: UCLA Last Club: WNY Flash
2017 Stats:
Sabrina D’Angelo Pronunciation: De Ann-jel-oh Position: G Height: 5.7’ Jersey Number: 1 Date of Birth: 5/11/93 Age: 23 Hometown: Welland, Ontario Citizenship: Canada College: University of South Carolina Last Club: WNY Flash
2017 Stats: International: 2017: D'Angelo was named to the 2017 Canadian Women's National Team roster for the Bronze Medal Celebration match against Mexico where she played in the goal for the second 45 minutes and helped secure the 3-2 win for Canada. 2016: Made her first appearance with Canada’s Senior team with a clean sheet to help Canada win the 2016 Algarve Cup.
Makenzy Doniak Pronunciation: Don-ee-ak Position: F Height: 5.8’ Jersey Number: 3 Date of Birth: 2/25/94 Age: 23 Hometown: Chino Hills, CA Citizenship: United States College: University of Virginia Last Club: WNY Flash
2017 Stats:
Elizabeth Eddy Pronunciation: Eddy Position: D Height: 5.5’ Jersey Number: 4 Date of Birth: 10/9/92 Age: 24 Hometown: Costa Mesa, CA Citizenship: United States College: University of Southern California Last Club: WNY Flash
2017 Stats:
Washington Spirit vs. NC Courage | Saturday, April 15 #WASvNC
Samantha Mewis Pronunciation: Mewis Position: M Height: 5.11’ Jersey Number: 5 Date of Birth: 10/9/92 Age: 24 Hometown: Hanson, MA Citizenship: United States College: UCLA Last Club: WNY Flash
2017 Stats: International: Currently a member of the US Women's National Team. 2017: Mewis played with the USWNT in the SheBelieves Cup and in two friendlies against Russia in April 2017 in Texas. 2016: Scored the game-winning goal to beat Germany in the SheBelieves Cup on March 9th, 2016. Scored three more goals that year. 2015: Played for the US in the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup.
Abby Erceg Pronunciation: Er-seg Position: D Height: 5.10’ Jersey Number: 6 Date of Birth: 1/20/89 Age: 27 Hometown: Whangarei, NZ Citizenship: New Zealand Last Club: WNY Flash
2017 Stats: International: 2017: Announced her retirement from international play ahead of the 2017 Cyprus Cup. 2016: Former captain of New Zealand’s squad. Helped the Kiwis to a third place finish at the 2016 Algarve Cup. Played with New Zeland in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio. 2015: Played in all three matches for New Zeland in the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada. 2014: Scored one goal in 16 matches. Became the first player to reach 100 caps for New Zealand on October 25 at the OFC Nations Cup. Helped New Zealand qualify for the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
McCall Zerboni Pronunciation: Zer-bone-ee Position: M Height: 5.4’ Jersey Number: 7 Date of Birth: 12/13/86 Age: 28 Hometown: Camarillo, CA Citizenship: USA College: UCLA Last Club: WNY Flash
2017 Stats:
Rosana Pronunciation: Rose-on-uh Position: M Height: 5.7’ Jersey Number: 8 Date of Birth: 7/7/82 Age: 34 Hometown: São Paulo, Brazil Citizenship: Brazil Last Club: São José
2017 Stats:
International: Rosana has logged 112 appearances for the Brazilian National Team since 2000. In that time she has scored 21 goals for Brazil. She participated in four FIFA World Cups and four editions of the Olympic Games.
Lynn Williams Pronunciation: Williams Position: F Height: 5.7’ Jersey Number: 9 Date of Birth: 5/21/93 Age: 23 Hometown: Fresno, CA Citizenship: USA College: Pepperdine Last Club: WNY Flash
2017 Stats: International: 2017: Williams was called up to participate in the US Women's National Team January training camp in Carson, California. 2016: Made four appearances and scored one goal for the USWNT.
Photo Coming Soon
Washington Spirit vs. NC Courage | Saturday, April 15 #WASvNC
Debinha
Pronunciation: Deb-in-ya Position: M Height: 5.2’ Jersey Number: 9 Date of Birth: 10/20/91 Age: M Hometown: Brasópolis, Brazile Citizenship: Brazil Last Club: Dalian Quanjian
2017 Stats: International: 2016-2011: Has made 54 Brazilian National Team appearances since 2011. She has 21 international goals, making her seventh all-time for Brazil. 2011: Made her senior debut in the Pan American Games in Guadalajara.
Taylor Smith Pronunciation: Smith Position: D Height: 5.3’ Jersey Number: 11 Date of Birth: 12/1/13 Age: 23 Hometown: Fort Worth, TX Citizenship: USA College: UCLA Last Club: WNY Flash
2017 Stats:
Ashley Hatch Pronunciation: Hatch Position: F Height: 5.9’ Jersey Number: 12 Date of Birth: 5/25/95 Age: 21 Hometown: Gilbert, AZ Citizenship: USA College: Brigham Young University
2017 Stats:
Abby Dahlkemper Pronunciation: Dall- kemp-er Position: D Height: 5.7’ Jersey Number: 13 Date of Birth: 5/13/93 Age: 23 Hometown: Menlo Park, CA Citizenship: USA College: UCLA Last Club: WNY Flash
2017 Stats:
Jessica McDonald Pronunciation: McDonald Position: F Height: 6.0’ Jersey Number: 14 Date of Birth: 2/28/88 Age: 28 Hometown: Phoenix, AZ Citizenship: USA College: UNC Chapel Hill Last Club: WNY Flash
2017 Stats: International: 2017: McDonald was called up to participate in the US Women's National Team January training camp in Carson, California. Appeared on USWNT roster for the SheBelieves Cup in March 2017.
Photo Coming Soon
Washington Spirit vs. NC Courage | Saturday, April 15 #WASvNC
Jaelene Hinkle Pronunciation: Jay-lean Position: D Height: 5.4’ Jersey Number: 15 Date of Birth: 5/28/93 Age: 23 Hometown: Denver, CO Citizenship: USA College: Texas Tech Last Club: WNY Flash
2017 Stats: International: 2017: Hinkle was called up to participate in the US Women's National Team January training camp in Carson, California. Current member of the U.S. Women's National Team. Has made 8 appearances.
Darian Jenkins Pronunciation: Dare-ee-in Position: F Height: 5.10’ Jersey Number: 16 Date of Birth: 1/5/95 Age: 21 Hometown: Riverton, UT Citizenship: USA College: UCLA
2017 Stats:
Courtney Niemiec Pronunciation: Nee-mick Position: D Height: 5.7’ Jersey Number: 17 Date of Birth: 4/13/92 Age: 25 Hometown: Philadelphia, PA Citizenship: USA College: La Salle University Last Club: WNY Flash
2017 Stats:
Yuri Kawamura Pronunciation: Position: D Height: 5.6’ Jersey Number: 20 Date of Birth: 5/17/89 Age: 27 Hometown: Niigata, Niigata Prefecture, JapanCitizenship: Japan Last Club: Vegalta Sendai Ladies
2017 Stats:
International: The 27-year-old has a tenured international career as she has played in 32 games for Japan with 23 starts since she began with the national team in 2010. As a defender, she has scored twice.
Kristen Hamilton Pronunciation: Hamilton Position: F Height: 5.4’ Jersey Number: 23 Date of Birth: 4/17/92 Age: 25 Hometown: Littleton, CO Citizenship: USA College: University of Denver Last Club: WNY Flash
2017 Stats:
Photo Coming Soon
Washington Spirit vs. NC Courage | Saturday, April 15 #WASvNC
Meredith Speck Pronunciation: Speck Position: D Height: 5.3’ Jersey Number: 25 Date of Birth: 2/1/93 Age: 24 Hometown: Rockville Centre, NY Citizenship: USA College: Yale Univeristy Last Club: WNY Flash
2017 Stats:
Samantha Witteman Pronunciation: Witt-uh-men Position: M Height: 5.3’ Jersey Number: 26 Date of Birth: 2/26/94 Age: 23 Hometown: Rendondo Beach, CA Citizenship: USA College: University of California, Berkeley Last Club: Orlando Pride
2017 Stats:
North Carolina Courage Coaches Bios Paul Riley- Head Coach In his first year with the Western New York Flash (now North Carolina Courage), Riley led the team to the 2016 NWSL Championship where they defeated the Washington Spirit 3-2 in penalty kicks to raise the trophy. Before coaching the Flash, he was the head coach of the Portland Thorns of the NWSL in 2014 and 2015. The Liverpool, England native coached the Philadelphia Independence of Women’s Professional Soccer to back-to-back championship game appearances in 2010 and 2011. With a 26-16-3 record in his two years with the team, Riley was named the WPS Coach of the Year in 2010 and 2011. Before the Independence, Riley coached the Long Island Fury (WPSL) to a league Championship in 2006 and 2009, earning him the WPSL Coach of the Year Award in 2009. The team was Eastern Conference Champions four years in a row under his leadership and went 48-6-8. Riley coached collegiately for CW Post from 1991-1997 and was awarded New York Regional Coach of the Year in 1991. With a 98-48-11 overall record, Riley was NYCAC Coach of the Year five times. He then moved on to coach the Long Island Rough Riders (USISL, USL D3 Pro), where he won the league championship in 2002. His own professional playing career began in the United States where he played for the Long Island Rough Riders, Albany Capitals, New Jersey Eagles, Glen Cove, Hercules, and New York Atlas. He is the all-time leading assister for the Rough Riders. Scott Vallow- Assistant Coach
Vallow was a member of the Championship-winning 2016 Western New York Flash (now North Carolina Courage) coaching staff and helped lead the team to its 3-2 win over the Washington Spirit in penalty kicks. The California native played collegiately at Bowling Green University, where he made 85 starts as the team’s goalkeeper and was a member of the 1995 and 1996 teams that advanced to the Sweet Sixteen round of the NCAA Championship.
Washington Spirit vs. NC Courage | Saturday, April 15 #WASvNC
After his collegiate career, Vallow went on to have a successful career with the Rochester Rhinos. There, Vallow brought the team to the 2000 Championship, and he was also named the A-League Goalkeeper of the Year. Overall, Vallow made 167 appearances with the team as he was there from 2000-2002 and 2005-2010. Vallow started his coaching career in 2011 after he retired from his playing days with the Raging Rhinos. He joined the coaching staff of the Flash and remained there until 2013. Next, he returned to the Rhinos, this time as an assistant coach, for the 2014 season. In 2015, Vallow was an assistant coach with Portland Thorns FC before returning to the Flash for the 2016 season. Now, he is looking forward to the upcoming NWSL season.
Bill Palladino- Assistant Coach Palladino was a long-time chief assistant coach to the University of North Carolina women’s soccer team. In 36 years with the Tar Heels, Palladino helped Anson Dorrance lead UNC to 22 national titles, which is more than every other school in the country combined. Palladino was awarded the Glenn “Mooch” Myernick Award as the national assistant coach of the year by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America following the 2012 season and was the key defensive mind behind the 1987 UNC team that allowed only two goals during the regular season. Sean Nahas- Assistant Coach Nahas brings 13 years of experience with Capital Area Soccer League (now North Carolina FC Youth) to the NC Courage. In addition to being an assistant coach for the NC Courage, Nahas will be a coach for the NC Courage Academy. He has held several leadership positions with CASL including Director of Girls Classic Soccer, ECNL Director, and Director of CASL Player Development. As ECNL Director, he helped CASL reach its highest ranking in USYS of No.7 nationally in 2010-2011. Nahas also has valuable US National Team coaching experience including assistant coaching positions with the U20 USWNT and U14 Youth National Team and serving as a US National Team Youth Scout. Nathan Thackeray- Assistant Coach Thackeray started his coaching career in 2011 after playing with England’s Bradford City from 2003-2006 and William Woods University from 2006-2010. He began with Young Harris College in Georgia, and then became the Head of Goalkeeping at the Houston Dynamo Academy in 2012. Most recently, Thackeray, a USSF licensed coach, was named the Director of Goalkeeping at CASL and with the Capital Area RailHawks Academy.
