Cary, NC (September 3, 2020)- The North Carolina Courage announced today the signing of Rylee Baisden and Danica Evans to contracts through the 2020 season. The two forwards will be available to play in the 2020 NWSL fall series. The first game for the NC Courage in the fall series will take place on Friday, September 11 at 7 p.m. at Sahlen’s Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park against the Houston Dash.

Baisden joins the NC Courage with experience in the Westfield W-League, the highest division of women’s soccer in Australia. The forward played with the Brisbane Roar in 2019, making 10 appearances and scoring three goals. The Pepperdine University graduate played alongside NC Courage forward Lynn Williams and defender Hailey Harbison in college where she scored 12 goals in 78 appearances. “Rylee is a welcome addition and brings with her a skill set that fits our group,” said NC Courage head coach Paul Riley. “She is quick, sharp, and has great ability in and around the box. She is a two-way player with excellent 1on1 qualities. It’s a great challenge for her to get up to the pace and fitness required at NWSL in a very short period of time. We are confident that she can, and we expect her to make a major contribution.” Evans has spent her time in 2020 playing for Sporting de Huelva in Spain where she made four appearances. Before playing in Europe, Evans played for the Orlando Pride for three seasons. The forward has 26 NWSL games and two goals under her belt as she joins the roster of the 2019 NWSL Champions. “Danica is a competitive experienced NWSL forward and she will fit in immediately,” Riley said. “She has pace, drive, finishing ability, and a tremendous presence around the penalty box. She has many attacking attributes and with the quality of players like Debinha, Lynn, and Jessica around her, we think she can flourish in this environment. We are excited to see her perform, develop, and help the team maintain its standards of performance.”