Published August 25, 2026
Ashley Sanchez scored the latest goal in NWSL regular-season history Saturday, converting a penalty at 106 minutes, 50 seconds — deep into a 17-minute second-half stoppage period — to complete a brace and lift North Carolina Courage past Boston Legacy FC, 2-1. The goal was also her 13th of the season, moving her into sole possession of the NWSL’s Golden Boot lead.
Key Takeaways
- Ashley Sanchez scored the latest goal in NWSL regular-season history Saturday — a stoppage-time penalty at 106 minutes, 50 seconds — completing a brace in North Carolina Courage’s 2-1 win over Boston Legacy FC.
- The goal was Sanchez’s 13th of the season, moving her into the sole NWSL Golden Boot lead and earning her a second NWSL Player of the Week honor this year.
- Sanchez hasn’t received a USWNT call-up since a late-2024 friendly against Argentina; her scoring surge has revived real media speculation about whether Emma Hayes will bring her back into camp.
- North Carolina improved to 10-7-3 (33 points), the club’s fifth 10-win season, and sits sixth in the 16-team NWSL table.
- Sanchez is one goal away from the Courage’s single-season scoring record, and she and teammate Evelyn Ijeh — with 23 combined goals — are closing in on the NWSL record for goals by a pair of teammates in one season (26).
Ashley Sanchez Scores the Latest Goal in NWSL History
Ashley Sanchez opened the scoring in the 10th minute Saturday, cutting inside from the left wing and curling a shot into the far corner for her 12th goal of the season. Boston Legacy FC, playing its third straight match without a win, equalized two minutes into second-half stoppage time when substitute Aïssata Traoré converted a rebound for her sixth goal of the year.
What followed was one of the more dramatic finishes in league history. North Carolina kept pushing, and defender Maycee Bell drew a penalty deep into stoppage time after beating her defender one-on-one near the box. Sanchez stepped up and buried it into the top corner — officially at 106 minutes, 50 seconds on the clock, the latest goal ever scored in an NWSL regular-season match. “It’s not easy to concede at the end of the game the way we did,” Courage head coach Mak Lind said afterward, crediting his team’s response.
The brace gave Sanchez sole possession of the NWSL Golden Boot race with 13 goals, and earned her a second NWSL Player of the Week honor this season.
Why It Matters
The record-breaking timing is a fun trivia note, but Sanchez’s larger 2026 season is the more meaningful story. She’s now one goal away from North Carolina’s single-season scoring record, and she and forward Evelyn Ijeh have combined for 23 goals this year, closing in on the NWSL’s record for combined goals by two teammates in a single season (26). The Courage, a team that scored fewer goals across entire seasons as recently as 2023 and 2024 than it already has through 20 matches in 2026, has rebuilt its identity around exactly this kind of attacking production.
Sanchez’s form also carries real national-team weight. She hasn’t received a USWNT call-up since appearing in a late-2024 friendly against Argentina under Emma Hayes, and her scoring surge has revived genuine media speculation — including recent ESPN coverage asking directly whether a call-up is coming — about whether she forces her way back into the picture. It’s familiar territory for Sanchez, who has described the past two years, including a trade from Washington to North Carolina, as among the hardest stretches of her career.
Can Ashley Sanchez Force Her Way Back Into the USWNT?
Hayes has been explicit that NWSL club form matters heavily in her evaluation process, and Sanchez’s case is difficult to ignore on the numbers alone: a league-leading scoring pace, genuine chemistry with Ijeh that’s producing one of the most productive attacking partnerships in the league, and a signature moment — the latest goal in league history — that’s put her name in front of a national audience again. Sanchez isn’t the only NWSL forward pushing for a first or renewed USWNT look this month, but her case is built on the rarest kind of evidence: production that’s now impossible to leave out of any Golden Boot conversation, let alone a national-team one.
What Comes Next
North Carolina is back in action Wednesday, Aug. 26, hosting Angel City FC in a midweek match, with Sanchez well-positioned to add to her Golden Boot and franchise-record totals. Nationally, her clearest opportunity remains October’s camp ahead of the Concacaf W Championship — if Hayes is watching, Sanchez has given her plenty to see over the past several weeks.
Conclusion
Ashley Sanchez’s stoppage-time penalty will live in NWSL record books regardless of what happens next, but it’s the season building around it that matters more. A Golden Boot lead, a franchise scoring record within reach, and a national team case that’s genuinely being discussed again — Sanchez has turned a difficult couple of years into one of the best individual seasons in the league, and she’s doing it in a way that’s hard for anyone, including Emma Hayes, to ignore.
Frequently Asked Questions
What record did Ashley Sanchez break?
Ashley Sanchez scored the latest goal in NWSL regular-season history, converting a stoppage-time penalty at 106 minutes, 50 seconds, to complete a brace in North Carolina Courage’s 2-1 win over Boston Legacy FC on Aug. 22, 2026.
How many goals does Ashley Sanchez have this season?
Sanchez’s brace against Boston Legacy gave her 13 goals for the 2026 NWSL season, taking sole possession of the league’s Golden Boot lead.
Has Ashley Sanchez been called up to the USWNT recently?
No. Sanchez hasn’t received a USWNT call-up since appearing in a late-2024 friendly against Argentina under head coach Emma Hayes, though her 2026 form has revived speculation about a potential return to camp.
Where do North Carolina Courage stand in the NWSL standings?
North Carolina improved to 10-7-3 (33 points) with the win over Boston Legacy, the club’s fifth 10-win season, and sits sixth in the 16-team NWSL table.