Pride eager to collect road win over Courage

The Orlando Pride have no intention of coasting.

The Pride already clinched a playoff spot entering their regular-season finale on the road against the North Carolina Courage at 7:30 p.m. today.

Orlando can rest numerous players in their typical starting lineup and focus on their first-round playoff match the following week.

A win, arguably, could even make the Pride’s path to the championship game at Orlando City Stadium Oct. 14 tougher.

If Chicago loses or earns a draw against Portland this afternoon, an Orlando victory would force the Pride to cross the country and play Portland in the opening round of the playoffs seven days later instead of earning a rematch with much closer North Carolina eight days later. Orlando has not beaten Portland, but it did earn a 3-1 win over North Carolina earlier this season.

None of that matters to the Pride, who admit they’d like an easier travel path but not at the expense of another win.

The Pride’s Alex Morgan, Dani Weatherholt, Ali Krieger, Steph Catley and Kristen Edmonds all insisted this week Orlando has three games left and they expect to win all three, capping the regular-season with a victory and sweeping the two-game NWSL playoffs to claim the league title.

Soon after celebrating clinching a playoff bid, Morgan said the hard work had just begun and it would take considerable effort for the talented Pride to wrap the NWSL with a title.

“I just don’t want us to take anything for granted,” Morgan said when asked about how to approach the regular-season finale against North Carolina.

Weatherholt said Pride training sessions were just as intense as usual this week.

“We’re still treating it as an important game,” she said. “We still have an opportunity to grow and build from it. We want to go into the playoffs feeling good and coming off a win. We always want to win.”

Catley is listed as probably due to inflammation in her right knee while North Carolina standout Jessica McDonald is questionable due to a right hamstring strain.

Coach Tom Sermanni wasn’t sure he’d play Catley given her knee issue, but Catley trained all week and doesn’t want to break up the Pride’s seven-game unbeaten streak.

“I’m extremely confident about where this team is at and we just want to keep playing at this high level,” Catley said.

Edmonds, who missed three weeks due to a calf injury and didn’t play a full 90 minutes against Portland last week, said she feels 100 percent and is eager to play.

“We’re going into this weekend trying to get another ‘W,’ so we can take momentum into the playoffs,” she said.

Krieger said she has urged her teammates to stay focused and get ready to face off against a fast North Carolina side that won last year’s NWSL title and will end the regular season still atop the league table.

“We’re going to go out there with the best team we have and get the job done and continue on this path we’ve been on,” Krieger said. “We don’t really want to get out of our game too much and mentally I think it’s really good to just continue to stay on course and on the winning path we have been.”

Edmonds said the Pride expect to be tested by the wide range of North Carolina scoring threats, with Lynn Williams and Ashley Hatch recording seven goals apiece so far this season. The Courage also lead the league in saves.

“Their speed up top is an issue for any team,” Edmonds said. “And they’re very organized. They don’t let in many goals. … It’s going to be dogfight this weekend and we’re prepared for it.”