Ashlyn’s Big Night
With her first save of the night on Wednesday against Chicago, Orlando Pride goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris registered her 200th save in the regular-season as a member of the Pride. Harris finished the night with seven saves to her account, her highest total since she recorded seven in the Pride’s last home match against Utah on August 17.
Defensive Test
Following a near-shutout performance on Wednesday against Chicago, the Pride’s defense will be put to the ultimate test in facing North Carolina on Saturday. The Courage enter Saturday’s match coming off a six-goal performance at Providence Park against the then-league leading Portland Thorns. The Courage lead all of NWSL in goals with 40 and hold the league lead in shots by a margin of 50 with 295, with 131 of those coming on target.
Back to the Triangle
A number of players on the Pride’s roster will return to their collegiate stomping grounds in Saturday’s match at North Carolina. Goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris, midfielder Joanna Boyles and forward Abby Elinsky each played at the collegiate level for the University of North Carolina. Boyles and Elinsky were teammates at UNC from 2015-17, with Boyles spending all four years as a Tar Heel beginning in 2014 and Elinsky entering the program as a transfer her sophomore year, while Harris played for the ACC powerhouse from 2006-09. Orlando Pride defender Morgan Reid also spent her collegiate years in the state of North Carolina, playing at Duke University from 2014-17. Reid was traded to Orlando from the Courage at the beginning of the 2019 season.
For Libby’s Legacy
At halftime of Wednesday’s match against the Chicago Red Stars, the Orlando Pride announced their first-ever Breast Cancer Awareness Match, set to take place on Oct. 12, the team’s 2019 season finale. In conjunction with the match, the Pride and all other eight NWSL clubs have joined forces for an online auction to benefit Libby’s Legacy, an Orlando-based non-profit selected by Pride defender Toni Pressley. Pressley, a four-year Pride veteran, announced she was diagnosed with breast cancer on Aug. 7. Saturday’s match will serve as North Carolina’s third Breast Cancer Awareness Night, with the Courage having donated a team-signed ball to the Pride’s online auction, set to run through Oct. 10.
