2023 Racing Louisville FC season

Racing Louisville FC

2023 season
Chairman	John Neace
General manager	Ryan Dell
Head coach	Kim Björkegren
Stadium	Lynn Family Stadium (capacity: 11,700)
League	9th
Challenge Cup	Runners-up
Playoffs	DNQ
Top goalscorer	League: Savannah DeMelo (5) All: Savannah DeMelo (8)
Highest home attendance	10,214 (Aug. 19 vs. LA)
Lowest home attendance	4,143 (May 12 vs. CHI)
Average home league attendance	5,999
Biggest win	3–0 (May 12 vs. CHI)
Biggest defeat	0–2 (Apr 22 vs. POR)
Home colors Away colors
← 2022 2024 →
All statistics correct as of July 7, 2023.

The 2023 Racing Louisville FC season was the team's third as a professional women's soccer team. Racing played in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), the top tier of women's soccer in the United States.

On November 23, 2022, Racing announced the hiring of former NWSL player Bev Yanez, previously of the NJ/NY Gotham FC coaching staff, as the club's top assistant coach.^[1][2] She replaced Louisville City FC academy director Mario Sanchez, who had served as interim head coach after the firing of head coach Christy Holly in 2021 and remained as interim assistant coach under Holly's permanent replacement Kim Björkegren.^[3]

On March 29, 2023, Racing announced the hiring of Ryan Dell, former administrator and operations manager of the United States women's national soccer team (USWNT), as Racing's first dedicated general manager.^[4] Dell was the second USWNT operations manager to become an NWSL general manager, following San Diego Wave FC's Molly Downtain.^[5]

Racing's soccer operations had previously been run by James O'Connor, president of Louisville City FC and Racing Louisville holding company Soccer Holdings, LLC, who moved to a business operations role for the parent company. The changes were made in part as a response to the 2021 NWSL abuse scandal, which included allegations from players of sexually and emotionally abusive behavior by former head coach Christy Holly. Dell reported directly to Soccer Holdings chairperson John Neace.^[6]

In March 2023, Racing announced new primary kits with a houndstooth pattern that referenced Secretariat owner Penny Chenery's houndstooth jackets, commemorating the 50th anniversary of Secretariat's Triple Crown victory.^[7]

Racing continued to play in Lynn Family Stadium, their full-time home since the team's inaugural season in 2021.

On April 12, Racing announced its first local broadcasting deal with local NBC affiliate WAVE, which would broadcast seven of the team's matches on its Circle TV network, promote the team, interview players, and provide game-day weather reports. The local broadcasts would carry separate feeds and feature commentary separate from the NWSL's national broadcast and streaming partners.^[8]

As of June 2, 2023.^[9][10]

Sporting operations staff

General manager

Ryan Dell

Technical staff

Head coach	Kim Björkegren
Assistant coach	Bev Yanez
Goalkeeping coach	Sergio Gonzalez

Performance staff

Head of high performance	Julie Twaddle
Head athletic trainer	Tara Condon

As of July 20, 2023.^[11]

First-team roster

No.	Pos.	Nation	Name	Birthday (age)	Since	Previous team	Notes
1	GK	USA	Katie Lund	(1996-11-27)November 27, 1996 (aged 26)	2021	TCU Horned Frogs
18	GK	USA	Hillary Beall	(1999-01-27)January 27, 1999 (aged 24)	2022	Michigan Wolverines
24	GK	USA	Jordyn Bloomer	(1997-10-14)October 14, 1997 (aged 25)	2022	Wisconsin Badgers
99	GK	USA	Olivia Sekany	(1998-12-29)December 29, 1998 (aged 24)	2023	Washington Huskies
3	DF	USA	Zaneta Wyne	(1990-08-03)August 3, 1990 (aged 32)	2022	West Ham United
4	DF	FIN	Elli Pikkujämsä	(1999-10-24)October 24, 1999 (aged 23)	2021	KIF Örebro DFF	INT[a]
5	DF	USA	Paige Monaghan	(1996-11-13)November 13, 1996 (aged 26)	2023	NJ/NY Gotham FC
12	DF	USA	Ella Shamburger	(2000-01-18)January 18, 2000 (aged 23)	2023	Vanderbilt Commodores	NTR[b]
15	DF	USA	Julia Lester	(1998-01-16)January 16, 1998 (aged 25)	2022	Apollon Ladies F.C.
16	DF	USA	Carson Pickett	(1993-09-15)September 15, 1993 (aged 29)	2022	North Carolina Courage
20	DF	NZL	Abby Erceg	(1989-11-20)November 20, 1989 (aged 33)	2022	North Carolina Courage
25	DF	NIR	Rebecca Holloway	(1995-08-25)August 25, 1995 (aged 27)	2023	Birmingham City	INT[a]
44	DF	JAM	Satara Murray	(1993-07-01)July 1, 1993 (aged 29)	2022	Bristol City
2	MF	USA	Lauren Milliet	(1996-12-01)December 1, 1996 (aged 26)	2021	North Carolina Courage
6	MF	USA	Jaelin Howell	(1999-11-21)November 21, 1999 (aged 23)	2022	Florida State Seminoles
7	MF	USA	Savannah DeMelo	(1998-03-26)March 26, 1998 (aged 24)	2022	USC Trojans
8	MF	BRA	Ary Borges	(1999-12-28)December 28, 1999 (aged 23)	2023	Palmeiras	INT[a]
9	MF	USA	Kayla Fischer	(2000-01-05)January 5, 2000 (aged 23)	2023	Ohio State Buckeyes
17	MF	USA	Maddie Pokorny	(1996-11-24)November 24, 1996 (aged 26)	2023	HB Køge	NTR[b]
19	MF	USA	Jordan Baggett	(1996-10-28)October 28, 1996 (aged 26)	2023	Washington Spirit
26	MF	USA	Taylor Aylmer	(1998-09-23)September 23, 1998 (aged 24)	2023	Åland United	NTR[b]
27	MF	AUS	Alex Chidiac	(1997-04-22)April 22, 1997 (aged 25)	2022	Melbourne Victory FC	INT[a]
77	MF	CHN	Wang Shuang	(1995-01-23)January 23, 1995 (aged 28)	2022	Wuhan Jianghan University F.C.	INT[a]
	FW	USA	Riley Parker	(2000-03-31)March 31, 2000 (aged 22)	2023	Alabama Crimson Tide
10	FW	DEN	Nadia Nadim	(1988-01-02)January 2, 1988 (aged 35)	2021	Paris Saint-Germain	INT[a]
11	FW	RSA	Thembi Kgatlana	(1996-05-02)May 2, 1996 (aged 26)	2022	Atlético Madrid	INT[a]
13	FW	BIH	Emina Ekic	(1999-06-06)June 6, 1999 (aged 23)	2021	Louisville Cardinals
14	FW	USA	Jessica McDonald	(1988-02-28)February 28, 1988 (aged 35)	2022	North Carolina Courage
21	FW	USA	Parker Goins	(1998-12-08)December 8, 1998 (aged 24)	2022	Arkansas Razorbacks
22	FW	USA	Kirsten Davis	(1998-09-08)September 8, 1998 (aged 24)	2021	Texas Tech Red Raiders
29	FW	NGA	Uchenna Kanu	(1997-06-20)June 20, 1997 (aged 25)	2023	Tigres UANL	INT[a]

  Win   Draw   Loss

As of matches played July 7, 2023.^[13]

Goalscorers, per competition

Player					Goals by competition
Rank	Pos.	No.	Nat.	Name	NWSL	Cup	Playoffs	Total
1	MF	7	USA	Savannah DeMelo	5	3	—	8
2	FW	21	USA	Parker Goins	1	2	—	3
	DF	5	USA	Paige Monaghan	3	0	—	3
4	MF	8	BRA	Ary Borges	1	1	—	2
	FW	22	USA	Kirsten Davis	2	0	—	2
	FW	77	CHN	Wang Shuang	2	0	—	2
7	DF	20	NZL	Abby Erceg	1	0	—	1
	FW	9	USA	Kayla Fischer	0	1	—	1
	FW	29	NGA	Uchenna Kanu	0	1	—	1
	FW	11	RSA	Thembi Kgatlana	1	0	—	1
	MF	4	FIN	Elli Pikkujämsä	1	0	—	1
	Total					17	8	—	25

Assists by player, per competition

Player					Assists by competition
Rank	Pos.	No.	Nat.	Name	NWSL	Cup	Playoffs	Total
1	MF	7	USA	Savannah DeMelo	2	1	—	3
2	DF	5	USA	Paige Monaghan	0	2	—	2
3	MF	19	USA	Jordan Baggett	0	1	—	1
	MF	8	BRA	Ary Borges	0	1	—	1
	FW	22	USA	Kirsten Davis	1	0	—	1
	FW	9	USA	Kayla Fischer	1	0	—	1
	DF	16	USA	Carson Pickett	0	1	—	1
	FW	11	RSA	Thembi Kgatlana	0	1	—	1
	DF	2	USA	Lauren Milliet	1	0	—	1
	FW	77	CHN	Wang Shuang	1	0	—	1
Total					6	7	—	13

Clean sheets by goalkeeper, per competition

Player					Clean sheets by competition
Rank	Pos.	No.	Nat.	Name	NWSL	Cup	Playoffs	Total
1	GK	1	USA	Katie Lund	5	2	—	7
Total					5	2	—	7

Disciplinary cards by player, per competition

Player					NWSL		Cup		Playoffs		Total
Rank	Pos.	No.	Nat.	Name
1	MF	7	USA	Savannah DeMelo	5	1	0	0	—		5	1
2	MF	8	BRA	Ary Borges	3	0	1	0	—		4	0
	MF	6	USA	Jaelin Howell	4	0	0	0	—		4	0
4	FW	11	RSA	Thembi Kgatlana	2	0	1	0	—		3	0
	DF	16	USA	Carson Pickett	3	0	0	0	—		3	0
6	DF	20	NZL	Abby Erceg	1	0	1	0	—		2	0
	FW	9	USA	Kayla Fischer	1	0	1	0	—		2	0
	DF	25	NIR	Rebecca Holloway	1	0	1	0	—		2	0
	FW	29	NGA	Uchenna Kanu	0	0	2	0	—		2	0
	DF	2	USA	Lauren Milliet	2	0	0	0	—		2	0
	MF	4	FIN	Elli Pikkujämsä	1	1	0	0	—		1	1
12	DF	5	USA	Paige Monaghan	1	0	0	0	—		1	0
	MF	77	CHN	Wang Shuang	1	0	0	0	—		1	0
Total					25	2	7	0	—		32	2

As of July 5, 2023.

Best XI of the Month

Month	Pos.	Nat.	Player	Ref.
May	MF	USA	Savannah DeMelo	[14]
June	DF	NZL	Abby Erceg	[15]
	MF	USA	Savannah DeMelo (2)

Player of the Week

Wk.	Pos.	Nat.	Player	Won	Ref.
1	GK	USA	Katie Lund	Nom.	[16]
2	MF	BRA	Ary Borges	Nom.	[17]
3	MF	USA	Savannah DeMelo	Nom.	[18]
7	MF	CHN	Wang Shuang	Nom.	[19]
8	MF	USA	Savannah DeMelo	Nom.	[20]
12	MF	USA	Savannah DeMelo	Nom.	[21]

Save of the Week

Wk.	Pos.	Nat.	Player	Won	Ref.
4	GK	USA	Katie Lund	Nom.	[22]
8	GK	USA	Katie Lund	Nom.	[23]
10	DF	USA	Carson Pickett	Nom.	[24]

Draft selections are not automatically signed to the team roster. The 2023 NWSL Draft was held on January 12, 2023, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

2023 NWSL Draft selections, by round

Round	Pick	Pos.	Nat.	Player	College	Status	Ref.
2	16	FW	USA	Kayla Fischer	Ohio State University	Signed to a two-year contract on March 17, 2023.	[25][26]
	17	DF	USA	Brianna Martinez	University of Notre Dame	Not signed, rights waived.	[25][27]
3	29	MF	USA	Jadyn Edwards	Ohio State University	Not signed, rights waived.	[25][27]
	31	FW	USA	Riley Parker	University of Alabama	Signed to a one-year contract with an option for an additional year.	[25][28][29]

Contract expirations

Date	Pos.	Nat.	Player	Notes	Ref.
November 15, 2022	DF	ENG	Gemma Bonner	Contract option mutually declined.	[28][30]
	DF	USA	Nealy Martin	Contract expired.

Contract re-signings

Date	Pos.	Nat.	Player	Notes	Ref.
November 15, 2022	GK	USA	Hillary Beall	Contract option exercised.	[28][30]
	GK	USA	Jordyn Bloomer
	MF	AUS	Alex Chidiac
	MF	USA	Taylor Malham
	FW	USA	Emina Ekic
	FW	USA	Parker Goins
January 10, 2023	MF	USA	Jaelin Howell	Signed a contract extension for a third year through 2025.	[28][31]
January 20, 2023	GK	USA	Katie Lund	Signed a three-year contract extension.	[28][32]
February 6, 2023	DF	USA	Paige Monaghan	Signed a three-year contract extension.	[28][33]
March 13, 2023	DF	USA	Carson Pickett	Signed a three-year contract extension.	[28][34]

Waivers

Date	Pos.	Nat.	Player	Notes	Ref.
February 18, 2023	DF	USA	Taylor Malham	Waived.	[27]

Loans out

Date	Pos.	Nat.	Player	Destination club	Fee/notes	Ref.
September 27, 2022	GK	USA	Hillary Beall	Western United FC	Loaned through 2022–23 A-League Women season ending in April.	[35]
October 16, 2022	GK	USA	Jordyn Bloomer	Western Sydney Wanderers FC		Loaned through 2022–23 A-League Women season ending in February.	[36]
October 18, 2022	FW	USA	Jessica McDonald	Western United FC			[28][37]
October 20, 2022	MF	AUS	Alex Chidiac	Melbourne City FC			[28][38]
November 7, 2022	FW	USA	Emina Ekic	Melbourne City FC	[28][39]
February 2, 2023	FW	USA	Riley Parker	Tigres UANL	Loaned through 2022–23 Liga MX Femenil Clausura in June.	[40]

Transfers in

Date	Pos.	Nat.	Player	Former club	Fee/notes	Ref.
December 9, 2022	DF	FIN	Elli Pikkujämsä	KIF Örebro DFF	Signed to a two-year contract with a mutual option for a third year.	[28][41]
December 23, 2022	MF	BRA	Ary Borges	Palmeiras	Signed to a three-year contract.	[42]
January 12, 2023	DF	USA	Paige Monaghan	NJ/NY Gotham FC	Acquired with $150,000 in allocation money and an international roster slot for the 2023 season, in exchange for the fourth-overall pick in the 2023 NWSL Draft.	[28][43]
January 23, 2023	DF	NZL	Abby Erceg	North Carolina Courage	Acquired in exchange for Emily Fox.	[28][44]
	DF	USA	Carson Pickett	North Carolina Courage
February 2, 2023	FW	NGA	Uchenna Kanu	Tigres UANL	Acquired for a $150,000 transfer fee paid with allocation money with an additional $30,000 fee if Kanu scores 12 or more goals during the 2023 NWSL season, and signed to a two-year contract with an option for a third year.	[40][45]
April 25, 2023	MF	USA	Jordan Baggett	Washington Spirit	Acquired in exchange for a second-round pick and a conditional third-round pick in the 2024 NWSL Draft.	[28]
April 25, 2023	MF	USA	Maddie Pokorny	HB Køge	Signed as a short-term national team replacement player.	[46]
July 20, 2023	MF	USA	Taylor Aylmer	Åland United	Signed as a short-term national team replacement player.	[47]
July 20, 2023	DF	USA	Ella Shamburger	Vanderbilt Commodores	Signed as a short-term national team replacement player.	[47]

Transfers out

Date	Pos.	Nat.	Player	Destination club	Fee/notes	Ref.
January 23, 2023	DF	USA	Emily Fox	North Carolina Courage	Traded in exchange for Abby Erceg and Carson Pickett.	[28]
March 25, 2023	FW	USA	Cheyna Matthews	Chicago Red Stars	Free-agent signing.	[48]

Pos.	Nat.	Player	Previous club	Ref.
DF	USA	Abbey Burdette	University of Tennessee	[27]
MF	USA	Ella Sanchez[a]	Racing Louisville FC (USL W League)	[27]
GK	USA	Olivia Sekany	University of Washington	[49]
DF	USA	Trinity Watson	Pepperdine Waves	[50]