The Washington Spirit have been aiming to take down the North Carolina Courage, but learned just how difficult that is going to be in a 2-0 NWSL Challenge Cup defeat. Lynn Williams struck twice in a ten-minute span in the second half as the Spirit, showing some fatigue after opening the tournament with a win last weekend, struggled to keep up after halftime.
Expectations of a high-quality game were in place coming in, and both teams started the game at a furious pace. Debinha’s through balls to McKenzie Meehan gave the Spirit trouble twice within the first five minutes, and the Brazilian international also thumped the post with a shot from the left side in the 4th minute.