The San Diego Wave beat Racing Louisville 2–0 at Lynn Family Stadium on Friday 25 September to stay six points behind NWSL leaders Gotham FC. Gia Corley and Ludmila scored either side of half-time, while Sandra Paños kept a second straight clean sheet. The San Diego Wave Louisville win also ended Racing’s playoff hopes, Racing Louisville confirmed.
How San Diego Wave Beat Louisville
Corley opened the scoring in the 27th minute from a Lia Godfrey assist, according to the Wave’s match report. Ludmila then doubled the lead four minutes into the second half with her third goal of the season.
Louisville felt hard done by. Kayla Fischer had an early goal ruled out for a narrow offside, a call forward Rachel Hill said “kind of changes the momentum”, as quoted by Racing.
Godfrey’s assist was a landmark, too. She became only the fifth rookie in NWSL history to record five assists in a season, the Wave said. A crowd of 5,128 attended.
San Diego Wave Break Club Records After Louisville Win
The win lifted San Diego to 15 wins, eight defeats and three draws, with 48 points. It was also their seventh away win of 2026, a club record for a single season.
The Wave have now won five of their last six matches, Racing noted. In addition, they are 13–0–2 this season when they score at least twice. The run follows their 2–0 win over the Kansas City Current a week earlier.
Gotham Keep Pace as Jaedyn Shaw Makes History
However, Gotham matched San Diego’s result. They beat the Chicago Stars 3–1 on the same night to move to 54 points, Gotham FC reported.
Jaedyn Shaw scored twice, becoming the youngest player in NWSL history to reach 25 career goals at 21 years and 309 days. Sam Kerr also scored and set up Shaw’s opener, extending Gotham’s home unbeaten run to 11 matches.
Around the NWSL This Weekend
Elsewhere, Kansas City beat Denver Summit 4–1, while Angel City won 1–0 away to the Washington Spirit. Meanwhile, Orlando Pride won 3–1 at Bay FC and the Seattle Reign beat Boston Legacy 2–0, according to league results.
San Diego next travel to Orlando on Friday 2 October at 5pm PT, live on Prime Video. Gotham, meanwhile, host Angel City, who recently reached their first 10-win season.
