The No. 4 Utah Royals are hanging tough, as this season’s surprise success story searches for consistency before October’s international break pauses NWSL competition.
Fresh off picking up two red cards in last Sunday’s 3-0 drubbing by Angel City, the Royals haven’t strung together two consecutive wins since July.
“The second you get a red card, you’re not in control of it anymore, but you control what you do next,” said Utah manager Jimmy Coenraets. “I think we reacted quite well.”
The Royals have a chance to right the ship against No. 7 North Carolina, though player suspensions could come back to haunt them against a Courage attack led by Golden Boot leader Ashley Sanchez.
Defenders Paige Cronin and Ana Tejada will sit out Sunday’s match, with the league disciplinary committee serving Tejada one additional suspension.
Utah faces North Carolina on Sunday at 7 PM ET (Roku Channel).
