Happy to welcome our newest midfield maestro, Carly Wickenheiser, onto the pod. Carly joins us to talk about her journey from playing at college, going overseas, the Canadian national team, and ultimately the Courage!
New episode drops at midnight.
Photo cred: Lewis Gettier//NC Courage Communications, Memed by us
Thank you.
Seriously…thank you to everyone who showed up tonight, brought friends and family, got loud, leaned into the fun, and helped us achieve back-to-back sellouts for the first time in Club history.
That’s a significant milestone for this Club.
A lot of people have worked incredibly hard behind the scenes to help grow this thing, but we don’t get here without you.
Your support, energy, belief in this Club, and willingness to show up again and again is what’s helping build something special, not just for the Courage, but for women’s sports in this market.
Tonight was electric. The atmosphere was incredible. The players felt it. The staff felt it.
And for all of us who care deeply about where this Club is headed, tonight was special.
The Force is strong with this community.
Now let’s keep building. And one last thing…
The Courage don’t lose on Star Wars Night.
It’s Star Wars Night.
One of our biggest theme nights of the season the past few years, and for good reason.
Big crowd. Star Wars characters. Specialty drinks. In-game integrations. Lots happening around the stadium and in Fan Fest. If you’ve never done Star Wars Night at a Courage match, it’s a fun one.
Tonight’s poster giveaway: the graphic in this post 👀
Huge shoutout to our lead designer for absolutely crushing this one. Posters will be available at the gates while supplies last.
Sellout Watch
We have a real shot at a sellout tonight.
If you’re coming, arrive early.
Last match with a similar-sized crowd, most people arrived between 5:45–6:30 PM and traffic got heavy. Gates open at 5:00 PM, and there’s more to do tonight than any match this season.
We expanded Fan Fest onto the adjacent turf field, added more activations throughout the stadium, and there’s a lot happening pregame. Worth getting in early and enjoying it.
Sports & Social Pregame is Back
If you’re not planning to be at the stadium around 5:00, I highly recommend:
Fenton Parking - Sports & Social - Shuttle - March to the Match.
Grab food/drinks, park for free, take the shuttle to the trailhead, and walk in with the crowd. Great setup, especially on a night like tonight.
NEW: Mamava Nursing Pod
We now have a permanent Mamava nursing pod available for guests who are nursing.
Location: next to the Box Office on the northeast side of the stadium.
Appreciate everyone who provided feedback on this, glad we could get it in place.
Grogu Merch Promo
Tonight only:
Spend $50+ on merch to get a free co-branded Star Wars t-shirt
Spend $100+ on merch to get the shirt + Grogu bobblehead
(While supplies last)
STM Reminder
STM Lounge:
$5 beers
Free popcorn
Specialty merchandise
I’m going to try and stop in for a few minutes before pregame activations start. If you see me, come say hello.
Welcome Back, Mallory Swanson!
Really special moment tonight.
We’re excited to celebrate and support Mallory’s return from maternity leave. It’s a reminder of the strength, resilience, and determination it takes to compete at the highest level while embracing motherhood.
Great moment for women’s sports.
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It’s going to be a beautiful night for soccer.
Let’s have fun, get loud for these amazing players, take three points…
…and maybe make a little Courage history tonight. May the Force be with you...
Going to the game tonight (can’t wait!) and was wondering how early and often the shuttle returns from the stadium to Fenton. I’ve got a six and nine year old, so who knows when they’ll hit a wall. Thanks!
Do y'all think this is a Manaka replacement? Not hearing any updates on contract negotiations makes us think she's out after this season. Which is a massive bummer. But this might help.
I am so happy to see that Olivia Wingate has left the SEI list. She is back for today's match.
I am sure she can make a difference for us this season (and hopefully already this match)!
We're at the other end of the field and hope she's ok.
My friend and I unfortunately aren’t able to go to the game tomorrow so we listed our tickets for sell. We both have season tickets but have separate accounts with seats beside each other. The app will not show that both of our tickets are available when you search for 2 tickets despite them being right beside each other. Instead, you can only see them when you search for a single ticket. Really seems like a design flaw. We got front row seats in a premium section available at a great price compared to the resell tickets around ours but they’re not being given the same chance of being seen due to only showing up if you’re looking for a single ticket.
Maybe this is something that can be approved upon?
https://bsky.app/profile/tayvincent6.bsky.social/post/3mlw7bqkelk2t
NC Courage
SEI: Crawford
OUT: M Bell (Knee), N Jacobs (Ankle), H Betfort (Lower Leg), F Rauch (Suspension), L Thompson (Ankle)
Chicago Stars
SEI: Kuikka
OUT: M Alozie (Thigh), K Atkinson (Thigh), T Dellarose (Thigh), E Egizii (Lower Leg), B Franklin (Head), T Wood (Knee)
It's really just gonna be a cursed season. Both Bell and Jacobs still out, now Thompson with an injury, and the Red Stars get Swanson back at the last moment, great...
I guess Uno and Talia have a crash set of vid homework tonight...
Hi! Former STM here, I'm getting alerts to save my tickets for tonight's (5/16/26) game. Small problem, I don't have any tickets to tonight's game. It's a little annoying.
Brianna Pinto is coming back to WakeMed tomorrow and former Courage players love to score against us. 😭 Are y'all nervous?
Quick update for everyone...as of tonight, we are pacing toward a sellout for Saturday. That said, we definitely can’t take it for granted yet. We still have work to do over the next few days to get this thing across the finish line.
Any help you all can provide spreading the word, bringing friends/family/coworkers, reposting content, group texts, etc. genuinely makes a difference. Grassroots word of mouth is the most powerful marketing there is.
It’s shaping up to be a beautiful night, and Star Wars Night has consistently become one of the most fun and energetic atmospheres we have all season.
Honestly, it would mean a lot to send the players into the World Cup hiatus with back-to-back sellouts at First Horizon Stadium. We’ve never done it before in Club history, and everyone inside the building is pushing hard to make it happen.
Roll call time...who’s planning to be there Saturday?
We can't remember what we were talking about in this moment, but we can't wait for y'all to listen and let us know when you think this moment happened. New pod drops at midnight, y'all. And we got a special guest helping to look ahead to Chicago this weekend.
Just sharing that a portion of ticket sales for home games until the Pride game in August is being donated to the LGBT Center of Raleigh! Gotta get tix through this link so please share!
The Courage head to Orlando looking to bounce back after a tough week. Drop your predictions below and LFG! 🦁
Match Info
Current Standings
Series History
In 30 all-time matches since 2017, the Courage is 15-8-7. In our last meet-up, we beat Orlando 0-1 thanks to a lone Shinomi goal. Prior to that, the last time we beat Orlando was July 29, 2023 during the Challenge Cup where we put up 5-0 on them. The last regular-season win was just a few weeks before that, on June 17, 2023, where we walked away with a 3-0 win. (I am still traumatized from Banda entering the league and taking it out on us in 2024 -MP)
Availability Report
https://www.nwslsoccer.com/news/availability-report
NORTH CAROLINA COURAGE
ORLANDO PRIDE
Crawford was placed on the SEI list this week. We still don't have any new updates on when Wingate will return. Feli was given a ridiculous two-game suspension for an accidental hand in a hair tangle (one, I get, two is harsh -MP). Jacobs and Bell are also still out. It's rough out there.
Referee Assignment
Things of Note
Watch Parties
The Uproar is hosting two watch parties tonight:
This pregame thread is brought to you by The Lion's Pitch Podcast, your home for NC Courage coverage. Episode 9 is out now at lionspitch.com or wherever you get your podcasts.
