Racing Louisville FC, buoyed by the second-half efforts of Emma Sears and Bethany Balcer, beat the visiting North Carolina Courage 2-1 at Lynn Family Stadium on Saturday.

Balcer scored a decisive penalty kick in the second minute of stoppage time to lift Louisville (6-7-8). 

North Carolina (10-2-9) took a 1-0 lead late in the first half when Brianna Pinto found the back of the net in the 43rd minute with a right-footed shot from the center of the box, assisted by Ashley Sanchez. 

The second half saw a rejuvenated Racing Louisville side. In the 59th minute, Sears replaced Ary Borges and made an impact. She scored the tying goal for Louisville in the 79th minute with a left-footed shot from close range.

Balcer's contributions were pivotal throughout. She had five shots and converted the go-ahead goal via penalty kick in stoppage time after North Carolina's Dani Weatherholt was called for a hand ball inside her penalty area.

The victory for Racing Louisville marked its first over North Carolina, which had won all eight previous regular-season matchups. 

Up next: Racing Louisville will be on the road Saturday against Utah Royals FC. The North Carolina Courage will be on the road on Sept. 29 against the Chicago Red Stars.

ESPN Generative AI Services creates recaps from event data and/or transcripts that are reviewed by human editors before posting; email support@espncustomercare.com for corrections.