North Carolina Courage midfielder McCall Zerboni has been named the Week 3 Player of the Week by the NWSL Media Association. She earns the honor following her brace in North Carolina’s 4-2 road win over the Washington Spirit on Saturday night. It’s the first time that Zerboni has been named Player of the Week in […]

North Carolina Courage midfielder McCall Zerboni has been named the Week 3 Player of the Week by the NWSL Media Association. She earns the honor following her brace in North Carolina’s 4-2 road win over the Washington Spirit on Saturday night.It’s the first time that Zerboni has been named Player of the Week in her NWSL career, which is now in its sixth season and has spanned more than 100 games. Zerboni scored her first two goals of 2018 in her only two shots on goal in the game, needing just one touch on each shot to find the back of the net. Her first came in the 24th minute to give the Courage a 2-1 lead. After a foul gave North Carolina a free kick straight on and about 19 yards from goal, Lynn Williams took a quick touch on the dead ball and Zerboni stepped up, sending a right-footed swerving shot through the wall and past a diving Aubrey Bledsoe. [Youtube oembed has failed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJmDXAeYXOA] Her second came in the 48th minute on another set piece. After Abby Dahlkemper took a short corner kick, Kristen Hamilton turned and sent a cross in Zerboni’s direction inside the six-yard box. Without letting the ball hit the grass, Zerboni tapped it in with her right foot. Defensively, Zerboni held down the midfield with team-highs in tackles (eight), interceptions (six) and total touches (81). Zerboni also won more than half of her aerial duels in the game, according to Opta. The goals were the 10th and 11th of Zerboni’s career. Last year, she was named to the Best XI for the first time in her career. The NWSL Player of the Week is selected each week of the regular season by the NWSL Media Association, a collection of writers that cover the league on a consistent basis. For more information on the NWSL Media Association, follow them on Twitter.