Carolina Ascent streaking into the GSL playoffs

CAROLINA ASCENT

Jill Aguilera and her Carolina Ascent mates have won five straight matches and unbeaten in 10 going into Saturday's regular season finale against Sporting JAX at American Legion Memorial Stadium.

Last year at this time, the Carolina Ascent were about to clinch the Player’s Shield in the Gainbridge Super League’s inaugural season.

But they did so with a less than impressive 1-1 draw against the Tampa Bay Sun, a match nothing like the six previous games where the Ascent went 6-0, outscoring the opposition 21-2 with five shutouts. A three-week break had taken the wind out of their sails. They captured the shield but drew their next game and lost the regular season finale before getting upset by fourth-seeded Fort Lauderdale United in a playoff semifinal.

That was then. This is now.

Heading into Saturday's finale against league leader Sporting JAX (7 p.m. at American Legion Memorial Stadium), the Ascent hasn’t lost since Valentine's Day – 12 weeks ago. They’ve won five straight matches and are unbeaten in their last 10 games. They scored 16 goals in that stretch, conceding just three. Seven of the games have been clean sheets.

“I think this year, people are just a little bit more dialed in in training,” said defender Addisyn Merrick, who has returned to the starting lineup after missing the fall due to injury. “You can tell that we want it a little bit more. After going through last year, I think we understand what needs to be done. We’ve got a little bit more experience under our belt for this year.”

Jill Aguilera, last season’s GSL Defensive Player of the Year and Golden Playmaker as the top assist provider, admits this season has been different. 

“This year has been, in my opinion, much more of a grind, and we've had to adjust throughout the season, whether that be (integrating new) personnel or how we defend or attack,” she said. “I think we have gone through a little bit more adversity this year, and I think that is going to help us get our way through the playoffs this season, whereas last season, I think it was a lot of highs, not a whole lot of lows.”

Said Mia Corbin: “I would say we're being diligent with how we approach each week. “We're not really looking ahead, so we're just looking at this week.” 

The Ascent came out of the gate fast last season, winning GSL’s first-ever match and going undefeated for the first eleven games, a feat eclipsed by Lexington this year. But Lexington found, as did Carolina last season, that a team can draw its way out of first place. They have lost only three times, winning 13 and tying 11. Jacksonville has 16 wins against six losses and five draws. The Ascent has 14 wins, one more than last season, with seven losses and six draws. 

The Ascent has scored 36 times this season, third best in the GSL, but 10 less than their league-leading total of 46 for the 2024-25 season. Both Jacksonville (53) and Lexington (49) have superseded that total this season. 

“There were certain times last year when we had no problem scoring,” said Aguilera. “This year, we've gone through that. Our (last) game against Fort Lauderdale, winning that game 3-0, I think that was really good for us to put the ball in the back of the net and secure a clean sheet. I think that is big for us.” 

Last season, Corbin topped the team with 12 goals, just one behind the Golden Boot winner. This year, it’s been more by committee. Of the 16 goals scored during the unbeaten streak, nine different players found the net, led by Corbin, Tyler Lussi, and Sydney Studer with three apiece. Aguilera scored twice, with Lily Nabet, Emily Morris, Rylee Baisden, Jenna Butler, and Mackenzie George.

“The goals are coming from all over the team,” coach Philip Poole said. “The goals are not just coming from one source or one star player. Last season, we put ourselves in the lead, and we had a little bit of spare cushion. This time, we've had to kind of come late and earn it. (It’s a) different mentality, different mindset. But it's a great time of year to be on that type of run.”

Baisden, who will miss Saturday’s match with a leg injury, is Carolina’s leading scorer with five goals. Corbin has four tallies, the same as Madison Mercado, who started the season on fire before being recalled from her loan by the NWSL Seattle Reign. Studer’s season ended with a leg injury in early April.

While Poole still wants more conversion and efficiency in front of the net, the Ascent have been solid in defense. Their 10 clean sheets are equal to Lexington and one less than Jacksonville. Their 26 goals conceded, the same as last year, are second only to Lexington’s 24.

Head-to-head

With this being Jacksonville’s first year in the GSL, the teams have played three times, with two wins for the Floridians and a draw. After a 2-2 draw away and a 4-3 loss at home last September, they last met on Jan. 31, a 1-0 decision for Sporting.

The league’s top-scoring side, Jacksonville has a triple-edged sword up front with three players scoring double-figure goals. Baylee DeSmith and Ashlyn Puerta have 12 each, and Paige Kenton has 10. Four of Puerta’s goals have come against the Ascent.

While they haven’t been the headline for most of this campaign, Aguilera dismisses the notion that the Ascent have become the hunter rather than the hunted. 
“Even though we're in third place right now,” he said, “I still feel like everybody wants to play their best game against us, so I still feel strongly that we are being chased, and we are a team that people want to beat.” 

Decision day metrics

While it’s highly probable that Carolina will finish third behind Jacksonville and Lexington, meaning the Ascent would travel to Kentucky for a semifinal on May 26, it is still possible that could change by the end of Saturday’s matches.

Demonstrating a sense of humor, the GSL included this note in their permutations of how Lexington keeps second place if the Ascent take down Sporting. 

“Lexington SC draws vs. Tampa Bay Sun FC, ends on 51 pts, AND Carolina Ascent FC wins by fewer than 15 goals vs. Sporting Club Jacksonville, ends on 51pts.”

Wins by fewer than 15 goals. Oh, those crazy jokers at USL headquarters. 

Jacksonville ended the chance for Saturday’s season-ender to be for the Player’s Shield with a win over DC Power last week, which put them at 53 points, two more than what the Ascent can max out with. A win or draw over Carolina will clinch the Shield and top seed in the playoffs, so they will be coming to Charlotte with purpose. 

While second-place Lexington (50 points) has a chance to jump Jax into first with a win over eighth-place Tampa Bay Sun, and the Ascent winning, they could also fall to third if they lose and the Ascent move to 51 points. 
If Lexington draws, the Ascent can always get past them by scoring 16 more times than Jacksonville to improve their current goal differential (plus-10) to plus-26 or better.

Totally separate is the battle for the fourth and final place in the playoffs. Dallas Trinity goes into Saturday with a one-point lead over Spokane Zephyr. A Dallas win over Fort Lauderdale clinches that. Spokane can take the spot with a win over Brooklyn FC and a draw or loss by Dallas.

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