The Lion's Pitch

The NC Courage beat the Denver Summit 1-0 on a stoppage-time own goal from Kaleigh Kurtz. Unfortunately, Seattle’s win ended their playoff hopes and they finished ninth. Trevor and Katie break down a wide-open, evenly matched game. In This Episode What We Learned This Week: NC Courage vs. Denver Summit Ally Schlegel started at the nine and Bia Gomes got her second straight start on the right wing,...

The NC Courage fall 1-0 at Portland in a must-win match, and the playoff picture is now simple: beat Denver at home on Decision Day and hope Seattle loses or draws. Trevor and Katie break down a match where the Courage had the ball but not the chances, discuss whether the team is leaning too hard on Ashley Sanchez, and preview the final match of the regular season against the Denver Summit. In Thi...

The NC Courage fall 2-1 at home to San Diego Wave and sit ninth with two games left, but they still control their fate! Trevor and Katie preview the playoff picture, break down the match, and look ahead to a must-win trip to Portland. We also chat with Courage forward Gianna Paul. In This Episode The Playoff Picture In short, it all comes down to Portland 🤮. A win on Friday is a six-point swing t...

The NC Courage grind out a 1-0 win at Seattle Reign before the international break, snapping a three-game streak of one-goal losses. The Courage now sit above the playoff line in 8th. Trevor and Katie break down the full-team goal, the control the Courage showed, and the midfield gaps that still need cleaning up. Then they look ahead to a must-win rematch with San Diego Wave. Heads up: there is no...

The NC Courage fall 2-1 to Utah Royals despite a historic evening from Ashley Sanchez, who ties the NWSL single-season goal-scoring record. Trevor and Katie break down familiar midfield issues, celebrate a wave of international call-ups, and look ahead to a must win match against Seattle who sit right above us. A win would edge us back into the playoffs. In This Episode Breaking News: Internationa...

The NC Courage fall 2-1 to Gotham FC in a gritty, physical match at WakeMed, dropping to seventh in the table with just five matches left. Trevor and Katie break down a wonky midfield and a defense that keeps getting caught too far forward. Then they look ahead to a road trip against the Utah Royals, on the wrong side of their win-loss-win-loss pattern lately. But they're missing two starters,...

The NC Courage fall 1-2 in San Diego in a top-five showdown, but Trevor and Katie see real signs to build on as they head into a home match against shield leaders Gotham FC. Plus, exciting roster news at the trade. In This Episode What We Learned This Week: NC Courage vs. San Diego Wave A tight, evenly matched game that came down to the midfield battle. San Diego overloaded the middle early and di...

Trevor is back! Just in time to see the NC Courage set the NWSL record for the largest margin of victory with a 6-0 demolition of Chicago Stars. Ashley Sanchez becomes the league's all-time leading American goal scorer. Katie and Trevor break down a historic weekend before looking ahead to a huge road test against San Diego Wave. In This Episode What We Learned This Week: NC Courage vs. Chicago St...

The NC Courage go 2-1 in a three-game week, beating Boston Legacy and Angel City FC before falling short in a comeback against Kansas City Current. Bill Nottingham joins Katie while Trevor remains out on paternity leave. This week we're joined again by Bill Nottingham. You can find him on Bluesky at @notting.bsky.social , and his writing at splat.cc In This Episode What We Learned This Week: NC Co...

The NC Courage grind out a 2-1 win over Boston Legacy, capped by a stoppage-time penalty from Ashley Sanchez, the latest in NWSL history. She now sits atop the Golden Boot race. Plus, we sit down for a really fun conversation with forward Ally Schlegel. Since we record on Mondays and the pod drops Thursdays, we'll cover Wednesday's Angel City match next episode. Victoria returns to the pod on coho...

The NC Courage lose 2-3 to Houston Dash. Katie is joined by guest Victoria Klum this week while Trevor remains out on paternity leave. Plus a great conversation with forward Evelyn Ijeh, who just recorded her third straight game with a goal. You can find Victoria at Victoria Klum Media across socials and on Bluesky at @vicster.net In This Episode What We Learned This Week: NC Courage vs. Houston D...

The NC Courage go 3-0-0 in a three-game week, beating Denver 2-0 on the road and pulling off a thrilling 4-3 comeback win at Washington with a stoppage-time Natalie Jacobs winner. Katie is joined by Aaron once again while Trevor is out on paternity leave, and they break down a team that finally seems to have found its identity. This week we're also joined by Aaron Rogoff. You can find him on Blues...

The NC Courage put on a 5-0 masterclass against Orlando Pride, with Evelyn Ijeh's hat trick and a Parkinson-Thompson connection that had everyone buzzing. Trevor is joined by guest co-host Aaron this week. A note from Trevor: He'll be out for the next few weeks on paternity leave. Katie will be back next week alongside Aaron. The newsletter will pause until mid-September, but the podcast will keep...

The NC Courage lose 1-4 to Utah Royals in, ironically, one of our strongest matches of the season. This game featured three goals conceded from corners, a brilliant press from the Courage, Erica Meg Parkinson's first start, and Natalie Jacobs back on the pitch. Trevor and Katie break it all down before previewing a big week with matches against Orlando and Denver. Plus some exciting signing news....

The NC Courage face back-to-back losses with a 3-0 loss to Bay FC, repeating some familiar and frustrating patterns. Trevor and Katie break down what went wrong and look ahead to a tough home match against the Utah Royals. In This Episode Looking Back: NC Courage vs Bay FC Two goals in three minutes, the same transition defending problems we've seen before, and a 3-0 loss. We break down the back l...

The NC Courage fall 2-0 to the Washington Spirit in their biggest test of the season so far, but there were plenty of signs of growth in the second half. Trevor and Katie break down the match, grade the Courage's season so far, and look ahead to a rematch at Bay FC. In This Episode Looking Back: NC Courage vs Washington Spirit A tough 2-0 loss at home, but not without its moments. The Courage were...

The NC Courage beat Seattle Reign 3-1 on July 4th, making it four wins in a row, the first four-game winning streak since 2023. Trevor and Katie break down the win and catch up on a busy month of roster news. This week we also welcome Courage Chief Business Officer Ralph Vuono to the podcast for a conversation about fan engagement, theme nights, attendance growth, and the club's vision for the fut...

The NC Courage close out the first half of the season with a nervy 2-1 win at Angel City, making it three wins in a row for the first time in season since 2024. Trevor and Katie break down two beautiful team goals, celebrate some big international call-ups, and look way ahead to Seattle after the June break. In This Episode Looking Back: NC Courage vs Angel City FC Two beautiful goals from Evelyn...

The NC Courage pick up a hard-fought 2-1 win at Racing Louisville, making it back-to-back victories, something we may not have been able to do last season. Trevor and Katie break down how we managed to hold on during the last half, look ahead to a tough road trip to Angel City, and celebrate some big news off the pitch. In This Episode Looking Back: NC Courage vs Racing Louisville Evelyn Ijeh cont...

The NC Courage dominated with a 4-0 win over a struggling Chicago Stars. Trevor and Katie break down an exciting performance before welcoming midfielder Carly Wickenheiser as a special guest. Then we dive into our next road match against Racing Louisville. This week, we welcome Courage midfielder Carly Wickenheiser to the podcast. In This Episode Looking Back: NC Courage vs Chicago Stars Four goal...

The NC Courage fall 1-0 to Orlando Pride in a fairly evenly matched game. Trevor and Katie break down a strong defensive performance despite the injuries in the back before looking ahead to a home match against the Chicago Stars with special guest Lesley Ryder from Gal Pal Sports. This week, we're joined by Lesley Ryder, independent journalist and co-founder of Gal Pal Sports. Follow Lesley on Blu...

The NC Courage picked up a draw in Boston and dropped 3 points at home to Kansas City. Trevor and Katie break down both results and look ahead to a road trip to Orlando. In This Episode Looking Back: NC Courage vs Boston Legacy & KC Current Two games, two slow starts, and too many goals conceded inside the first ten minutes. We break down the goals against Boston and Kansas City, what they rev...

The NC Courage grind out a 1-0 win away at Houston Dash, playing more than 20 minutes a player down after Ally Schlegel's red card. Trevor and Katie break down the win at Houston and look ahead to Kansas City at home. In This Episode Looking Back: NC Courage vs Houston Dash Ashley Sanchez is inevitable, Manaka Matsukubo delivers another moment of magic, and the back four put in one of their best c...

The NC Courage bounce back with a fun-to-watch 2-2 draw against our bitter rivals, the Portland Thorns. Katie and Trevor break down the match before looking far into the future to the Houston road match after the international break. In This Episode Looking Back: NC Courage vs Portland Thorns We break down Manaka Matsukubo's magic and Ashley Sanchez's stunning strike. The Courage's defensive work...

The NC Courage suffered their first loss, 1-3 to Bay FC. Trevor and Katie break down what went wrong and what gave them hope. Then they look to bounce back at home against our bitter rivals, the Portland Thorns. In This Episode Looking Back: NC Courage vs Gotham FC A frustrating result, but there are things to build on. We break down the defensive shape, midfield control issues, and offensive ques...