**San Diego hosts a fired-up Courage squad in a **classic clash of form vs. momentum**—the Wave are streaky at home, but Carolina just demolished Chicago 6-0.** 🔥

San Diego's picked up two wins in their last five but lost to Seattle most recently; they'll need to lock down defensively against a Courage team playing some of their best football. North Carolina are the form team here with three wins in five, though they did drop a game to Kansas City on the road.

Key storylines:

- **Courage's attack is humming**: that 6-0 demolition of Chicago shows Carolina can be lethal, and they'll test a San Diego backline that's been inconsistent
- **Wave have home-court edge but need rhythm**: Snapdragon Stadium should help, and recent wins over Louisville and Utah show they can score in bunches at home
- **H2H history is even**: 3-3-2 in the last eight suggests this is always competitive, so expect a tight battle

Expected lineups:

- **San Diego Wave FC**: L. Agudelo, K. Wesley, K. McNabb, P. Morroni, G. Corley, K. Ascanio, L. Fazer, T. P. Byars, M. Barcenas, G. Portilho
- **North Carolina Courage**: K. Sheridan, R. Williams, M. Bell, F. Rauch, A. Sanchez, R. Jackson, E. Ijeh, E. Parkinson, L. Thompson, C. Okafor

Prediction:

**San Diego 2-1 North Carolina**. Home advantage and recent form at Snapdragon give the Wave a slight lean, but this feels like a toss-up. 🎯