Carolina Ascent’s set pieces deliver late result; Lexington’s finishing outshines Trinity’s in back-and-forth tilt
Carolina Ascent FC and Sporting Club Jacksonville played one of the best games of the season so far while Lexington SC and DC Power FC both bolstered their positions with victories in Week 7 of the 2026 Gainbridge Super League regular season.
Here are four things we took away from the action.
1. Carolina Ascent’s Set Pieces Delivery Late Result
One of the key questions going into Carolina Ascent FC’s clash with Sporting Club jacksonville on Saturday night was how Ascent’s set piece quality might be mitigated by a Jacksonville defense that had yet to concede from a dead ball situation this season.
Come to find out, when you’ve got two of the best set piece deliverers in the league in Jill Aguilera and Mia Corbin, that’s going to prove a handful for even the best-organized defense. All three of Ascent’s goals in a thrilling 3-3 draw at American Legion Memorial Stadium came from set pieces, with Reese Tappan’s volleyed finish from Aguilera’s back-post delivery from the left earning the hosts a point and a five-point lead at the top of the standings at the midway point of their Fall schedule.
“Whenever we get the opportunity to be in their box on set pieces, we really try to capitalize,” said Tappan. “Jill had a bunch of great services into the box. When we had a set piece that close, I was like, ‘Okay, I need to get to the ball first.’ When I saw it come to me, I was like, ‘I need to get this on target.’”
Carolina has now scored seven goals from set pieces overall this season, with Tappan and Shea Groom both having notched two apiece. As much as we’d like to see more from Ascent in open play, the weapons they have in and around the penalty area off dead balls make give them a threat that’s hard to nullify.
2. Lexington Makes Dallas Trinity Pay for Missed Opportunities
Based on opportunities created, there wasn’t a lot to choose between Lexington SC and Dallas Trinity FC on Friday night in a rematch from the playoff semifinals in May, but Lexington’s clinical finishing ensured the hosts took another big step toward the playoff places with a 3-0 victory that saw both Addie McCain and Catherine Barry find the net.
The key sequence – and point of comparison – came just after halftime. With the game still scoreless, Dallas created a big chance to take the lead when Onyeka Gamero created space and delivered a cross into the six-yard area that Jasmine Hamid connected with but couldn’t turn on target as the finish drifted wide of the right post. Three minutes later, afforded a similar chance from an excellent cross by Ally Brown, McCain headed home to give Lexington the lead on the way to a second consecutive win.
Trinity ended the game with 17 shots, outshooting their hosts and showing the club could compete strongly with the defending titleholders, but only two efforts went on target and another off the woodwork while Lexington put five of its 12 efforts on frame. With reigning Golden Boot winner Barry now off the mark, there’s plenty for LSC to build on from here.
“The goals have felt like they’ve been coming,” said Barry. “There have been some balls that have bounced inches off the goal line the past few games. To be able to help us get on the front foot in the second half and put some of those chances away, just to give us some momentum going forward here, is huge.”
3. DC Power Delivers Important Late Victory
One of the key elements to becoming a contender in any league is taking care of the games you should be taking care of. For DC Power FC last Tuesday, that meant nothing less than three points at home to Fort Lauderdale United FC – which had claimed only one win in its first five games of the season – would do.
The Power might have left things late, but Tatum Thomason’s winner in the 89th minute off Mak Witham’s first professional assist lifted the side to its first home win of the season and a place in the top two in the standings at the end of Week 7. Thomason provided a key jolt off the bench, scoring both goals, but overall the numbers said DC should have taken the result, producing 1.95xG from open play to FTL UTD’s 1.15xG.
While in the past that might not have occurred, this time it did, giving the side a very welcome boost.
“We didn’t play particularly to the level we’ve played at times here, and some of those times we’ve dropped points – whether tying or losing, like the first game of the season against Carolina, where I thought we were far the better team on the day and still came away with zero,” said Head Coach Omid Namazi. “So today we showed some fight, some grit, and we grinded out the win.”
4. Jacksonville’s Baylee DeSmit Continues Scorching Scoring Pace
There has been no hotter goalscorer so far this season than Sporting Club Jacksonville’s Baylee DeSmit, and the 23-year-old standout continued to set the pace for the Fall Schedule’s Golden Boot with another eye-catching performance against Carolina Ascent FC on Saturday night that bagged her another pair of goals to make it seven tallies in seven games this season.
DeSmit’s clinical finish to the bottom-right corner off Ashlyn Puerta’s feed was perfectly placed, and she then won and converted a second-half penalty to put Sporting back on top late before Carolina found an equalizer. The relentless nature of DeSmit’s play has been central to Jacksonville’s attacking success this season, with the striker having logged a league-high 24 shots overall.
“It’s very important to set the tone early,” said DeSmit. “We came ready to play and getting that first goal was very important. It allowed us to put our foot on the pedal and continue to attack.”
Since January 1, DeSmit has been on a scorching pace in opposing penalty areas. Her 17 regular season goals are five more than Lexington SC’s Catherine Barry this calendar year, and have come at a strike rate of a goal every 98.7 minutes. As Sporting JAX pursues success this Fall, DeSmit could be in line for multiple individual accolades at the end of the campaign.