By Christine Espinoza
In their first ever loss to the Portland Thorns at home, North Carolina conceded the spot at the top of the board to Portland. The game itself was one to watch, with possession going to Portland at most of the first half, while North Carolina became more dominant at the second.
However, it would be Portland’s Sophia Smith’s goal at the 57th that would break the battle between these leaderboard rivals.
Defensively, goalkeeper Casey Murphy took in 24 shots, with eight on target. Offensively, North Carolina’s best attempts were with Jessica McDonald during the first half and a very well-orchestrated pass from Taylor Smith after the 90-minute stoppage time to Amy Rodriguez whose position before the strike simply could not get past Bella Bixby’s gloves.
With 24 shots from Portland and 11 shots from North Carolina, Carson Pickett remarked “I think everyone is doing a lot of defending, and now we all need to get better going forward-and just create more chances.” Coach Paul Riley echoed her sentiments “just the pass and final ball, creative perspective. I think that’s where we’re probably struggling the most-we’ll just keep plugging along and see if we can improve.”
When thinking of their next match with the Thorns at Portland, Cari Roccaro added, “it’s going to be tough to go out there and play, its going to be a huge battle. I think we’re really up for it, though.”