CARY, N.C. — The North Carolina Courage pushed late but could not complete a comeback Saturday night, dropping a 2-1 decision to the visiting San Diego Wave at WakeMed Soccer Park’s First Horizon Stadium and leaving Ashley Sanchez still waiting on a league scoring record.
San Diego struck almost immediately. In the fourth minute, Melanie Barcenas took a feed from Lia Godfrey and hit a long-range shot that clipped the post and went in. It was her seventh goal of the year, a new NWSL single-season high for a teenager. Barcenas nearly added another in the 14th minute when a curling left-footed try rang off the crossbar.
The Wave doubled the margin early in the second half when Gia Corley slipped Trinity Byars in behind the back line, and Byars chipped Courage keeper Kailen Sheridan to reach 11 goals this season.
North Carolina finally broke through in the 83rd minute. Sanchez pulled several defenders toward her near the top of the box and then slid a pass to an open Vilde Bøe Risa, who finished for her first goal since joining the club in the middle of the season. The Courage struck the frame more than once in the closing minutes and pressed in stoppage time but could not find the tying goal.
Sanchez came in needing one more goal to own the single-season NWSL scoring record on her own. Courage coach Mak Lind said after the match that opponents are increasingly sending extra defenders at her and that she is focused on helping the team win rather than chasing the mark.
The crowd of 10,353 was a sellout, the club’s fourth of 2026 and a team record for sellouts in one season. It ranks as the third-largest crowd in club history and lifted the Courage’s season attendance to 114,112, topping the 2025 total of 107,990. Defender Ella Hase also made her Courage debut, coming on in the 71st minute.
The loss drops North Carolina to 13-12-3 with 42 points as it fights to stay in the playoff picture. San Diego, now 17-8-3 with 54 points, locked up a home quarterfinal. The Courage visit Portland on Friday at 10 p.m. and close the regular season at home against Denver on Nov. 1.
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