Carolina Ascent’s inaugural season ends after controversial call in playoffs
Carolina Ascent FC built the USL Super League’s model franchise in six months, only to watch it crumble in six seconds of questionable officiating.
The regular-season champions’ dreams died Sunday night when Fort Lauderdale United scored what appeared to be an offside goal in the 120th minute, stunning a crowd of 5,539 at American Legion Memorial Stadium. Carolina’s 2-1 semifinal loss ended one of the most successful inaugural seasons in Charlotte pro sports history.
“When you see the game-winner back on a replay, you’re going to be just as disappointed as I am, probably a yard, two and a half yards offside,” Ascent head coach Philip Poole said.
This wasn’t just any goal in any game. This was the moment that transformed Carolina from a championship contender to a cautionary tale, proof that in sports, excellence guarantees nothing.
Consider what the Ascent accomplished in its debut season: Carolina led the league in goals scored (45), attendance and wins. The Ascent claimed the USL Players’ Shield as regular-season champions. The team developed stars like league assists leader Jill Aguilera and goals runner-up Mia Corbin. Carolina built genuine community connections in a market starved for professional women’s soccer success.
Most remarkably, the Ascent did it while navigating the growing pains that typically doom expansion teams. Fifteen different players scored. Injuries opened opportunities that players seized. Poole, the head coach, created a culture where the next woman up became the norm, not the exception.
“We’ve established a winning mentality, we’ve established a winning culture, we’ve established community connection,” Poole said. “All things we spoke about from the very first press conference.”
But Sunday’s semifinal exposed the cruel reality of elimination soccer: None of that matters if the officials miss the call that decides a season.
Offside violations became the night’s defining storyline long before the controversial finish. Fort Lauderdale had already been flagged multiple times in the minutes before their 68th-minute equalizer, when Kiara Locklear beat Carolina’s defense despite Poole’s animated sideline protests. The coach’s objections earned his bench a yellow card.
When Locklear struck again in the second overtime, the Carolina players visibly abandoned the play, expecting another offside call that never came. It was a lesson learned at the worst possible moment: Never stop playing until you hear the whistle.
“We have to stay really mentally focused when we’re that physically fatigued, when it’s that 120th minute,” midfielder and co-captain Taylor Porter said. “We can’t always count on the refs to help us.”
Porter’s perspective carries weight. The ironwoman midfielder played every minute of the regular season, embodying the team’s relentless approach. She helped Carolina control 65.5% of possession in the first half and watched Kathrynn González deliver what could have been the winning goal with a laser from the box top in the 55th minute.
Instead, Porter and her teammates learned that building the league’s best team means nothing if you can’t control the variables that matter most in the final moments.
“I wish we could have brought a bigger trophy home for Charlotte,” Poole said. “We’ll get the next one.”
This story was originally published June 8, 2025 at 11:04 PM.