CHICAGO (Aug. 3, 2018) – Portland Thorns FC midfielder Lindsey Horan and goalkeeper Adrianna Franch lead the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) Team of the Month, presented by Cutter® Insect Repellent, voted by the NWSL Media Association for the month of July of the 2018 NWSL season.
NWSL Team of the Month – July
GK – Adrianna Franch, Portland Thorns FC: Franch played in two games in July, helping lead the Thorns to back-to-back wins over Royals FC on July 6 and Dash on July 15. She recorded one shutout and made five saves and four catches during the month.
D – Katie Naughton, Chicago Red Stars: Naughton played in all four games in July, helping lead the Red Stars to a 3-1-0 record with wins over Seattle, Sky Blue and Washington. She also made 18 clearances and added three blocks and seven interceptions in the month.
D – Abby Erceg, North Carolina Courage: Erceg played every minute of all four games for in July leading the club to a 3-0-1 record, including three shutouts and the league’s lowest goals against average (0.30 GAA) for the month. She also recorded three blocked shots, seven interceptions and 23 clearances.
D – Rachel Corsie, Utah Royals FC: Corsie started all four matches during the month and earned back-to-back Save of the Week on honors on two incredible individual defensive plays in Week 16 and Week 17. She also recorded one assist in a 2-1 loss vs. the Pride on July 14.
D – Theresa Nielsen, Seattle Reign FC: Nielsen started all four matches during the month and helped the Reign FC finish July with a 3-0-1 record and two shutouts as well as third-best defense in the month (0.80 GAA). She also recorded nine tackles won, eight clearances and 18 interceptions.
M – Lindsey Horan, Portland Thorns FC: Voted the NWSL Player of the Month, Horan scored three goals and added one assist in July despite only appearing in two games. She tallied her first brace of the season and the second of her Thorns FC career in a 3-1 home win over the Dash on July 15.
M – Yuki Nagasato, Chicago Red Stars: With one of the most impressive performances of the month, Nagasato scored two goals and added three assists in July. She recorded two game-winning assists in victories over Sky Blue on July 7 and Reign FC on July 14 helping the Red Stars.
M – McCall Zerboni, North Carolina Courage: Zerboni played every minute of three games for the Courage during July as she contributed wins over the Red Stars, Spirit and Sky Blue. She registered six tackles won, eight interceptions and five clearances along with 206 touches on the month.
F – Sam Kerr, Chicago Red Stars: Kerr tallied four goals and one assist in four appearances – including 31 shots, 15 shots on goal and 12 chances created. She became the first NWSL player to score three hat tricks, recording it in a 4-1 win over her former club Sky Blue FC on July 7. It was the 14th hat trick in league history.
F – Rachel Daly, Houston Dash: Daly registered three goals on the month including the game-winner in a weather postponed 1-0 victory over the Spirit on July 22. The forward now has seven goals on the season.
F – Megan Rapinoe, Seattle Reign FC: Rapinoe tallied two goals and two assists in three appearances – including back-to-back game-winning goals against the Dash on July 7 and Royals FC on July 11.
The NWSL will return to action Sunday, August 5 when the North Carolina Courage host the Portland Thorns FC at 3 p.m. PT.
The NWSL Team of the Month is selected each month of the regular season by the NWSL Media Association, a collection of writers that cover the league on a consistent basis. For more information on the NWSL Media Association, follow them on Twitter.
