Photo Copyright Rob Kinnan for USA TODAY Sports
CARY, N.C. — The North Carolina Courage kicked off their eighth year in the NWSL with a rousing home victory to start the campaign, but also honored their past in the process.
Midfielder Sam Mewis, who announced her retirement as a player this winter after being sidelined for two years with a chronic knee injury, became the first player inducted into the Courage Ring of Honor, with a postgame ceremony on the field after the Courage defeated the Houston Dash 5-1 at WakeMed Soccer Park on Saturday.
It was fitting that the five goals scored in the home team’s favor matched Mewis’ No. 5, and a club home opener record crowd of 5,878 was on hand to honor one of the best and most beloved players of her generation. While playing in North Carolina between 2017-21, Mewis won two NWSL Championships and three NWSL Shields, was an NWSL Best XI selection in 2017, won the 2019 World Cup with the U.S. women’s national team and was awarded the 2020 U.S. Soccer Female Player of the…
