Four days after withstanding the heavy rain and wind in New Jersey, Seattle Reign FC fell 1–0 to the North Carolina Courage in the 80-degree weather of Cary, NC.
Seattle was without six players for the match, including Nahomi Kawasumi, Rumi Utsugi, Steph Catley and Lydia Williams, who are all away at the Asian Cup with their respective national teams. In addition, Reign FC was without the talents of forward Megan Rapinoe, who picked up a left hamstring strain in Sunday’s match against Sky Blue FC. Forward Jaycie Johnson, who was signed as a national team replacement player, was also unavailable for the match due to injury.
North Carolina’s first real chance came on a free kick outside the box in the seventh minute. McCall Zerboni took the kick for the Courage, but her lofted cross into the box failed to connect with the head of Jessica McDonald.
The Courage had another free kick seconds later with a similar outcome. McDonald broke through the Seattle defense in the 11th minute, beating Seattle goalkeeper Michelle Betos who made a play on the ball near the top of the box. Luckily, Megan Oyster was there to provide sterling defense, stopping McDonald before she could get a shot off.
A reckless tackle from North Carolina’s Kristen Hamilton in the 14th minute warranted the first and only yellow card of the match. Hamilton took down Allie Long, who briefly went to the turf before getting back to her feet.
Seattle put together a lovely string of passes in the 16th minute, seemingly setting up Beverly Yanez for a scoring opportunity, but the linesman ruled her offside. Moments later, just before taking a corner kick in the 18th minute, North Carolina was interrupted by a Seattle substitution. Lauren Barnes came on for Christen Westphal, giving Barnes her 111th appearance in a Seattle uniform. When Carolina sent the corner into the box, it rattled around before being cleared by Kiersten Dallstream, who was stationed at the left post.
The Courage recorded two corner kicks and sent 10 crosses in the first 20 minutes, but couldn’t muster any shots on goal. Morgan Andrews won a free kick for Reign FC 23 minutes into the match, allowing Jess Fishlock to stand over a free kick. Seattle put together a well-executed set piece, but was called for its second offside. Former Reign FC defender Merritt Mathias gave her old team a scare by placing a ball perfectly on the head of McDonald in the penalty area, but her header was too tall, leaving Betos unbothered.
In the waning minutes of the first half, Fishlock rocketed a shot headed for the upper 90, but it was deflected away. The ensuing corner kick did not result in a shot on goal for Seattle. A back-and-forth first half ended with the score tied 0–0. North Carolina fired seven shots, but none of them landed on frame. Seattle got three first-half shots off, testing Courage GK Sabrina D’Angelo only once.
After the halftime break, McDonald set up her teammate Lynn Williams, gifting her a perfect opportunity. Seattle caught a break when Williams settled the ball and pushed it wide with her left foot.
Reign FC came out swinging to open the second half, but quickly had its attack countered by North Carolina, whose run eventually fizzled out without a shot. Betos notched her first save in the 65th minute, keeping the score level with a highlight reel kick save.
As the teams fought back and forth to keep things even, Jasmyne Spencer entered for Seattle in the 67th minute. She had a chance to put Seattle on the board, with the ball on her foot just off the penalty spot, but she blasted her shot into the bleachers. In the blink of an eye, the Courage were storming down the field, and McDonald was behind the Seattle defense. This time, she slipped a nicely placed ball past Betos, putting North Carolina on top 1–0 in the 70th minute of action. Lynn Williams clanged one off the post in the 79th minute, depriving the Courage of a chance to double its lead.
The loss is the first of the season for Reign FC, who remain on six points, third in the standings. North Carolina Courage earns its fourth consecutive win to start the year, putting them on 12 points at the top of the NWSL table.
Reign FC remains on the east coast for its next match, on Saturday, April 28 against the Orlando Pride. Kickoff is slated for 4:30 pm PDT. Seattle’s next home match will be Saturday, May 12 at 7 p.m. PT against Sky Blue FC.
Tickets for the May 12 match are available at www.reignfc.com/tickets.
