In the final regular season meeting with rival Portland Thorns FC, Seattle Reign FC fell 2–1 at home at Memorial Stadium in front of a crowd of 6,041. This marks the first time in club history Reign FC has lost in consecutive matches at Memorial Stadium.
Despite the loss, Reign FC (7–7–6, 27 pts) extended their home scoring streak to 28 consecutive matches, the best in the NWSL. Seattle has now scored 26 goals at home this season, three less than their goal total for the entire 2016 NWSL season.
“We got what we deserved. We weren’t good enough, and they were the better team,” said Seattle Reign FC head coach and general manager Laura Harvey. “We have to regroup and decide what we want to do. Do we want to be the team that misses out on the playoffs again, because it’s our own fault? Or do we want to be the team that pushes every inch to get there? Mathematically we can still get there, realistically we can still get there, but we won’t get there if we play like we did today.”
Reign FC came out pushing for a goal early, with their first chance coming in the 10th minute of the match. Defender Merritt Mathias found space on the right side, and whipped a cross into the box. It found forward Katie Johnson at the back post, but her header went just over the crossbar.
Just before the half, Portland had a chance to take the lead thanks to forward Nadia Nadim. Forward Christine Sinclair chipped it over the Reign FC defense, putting Nadim in against goalkeeper Haley Kopmeyer. Kopmeyer came up big off her line and shut down the attack.
After going into the half scoreless, Thorns FC took the lead in the 50th minute. Forward Hayley Raso was able to win the ball off a Reign FC free kick, and finished the opportunity to put the visitors up 1–0.
Raso would double the lead for Portland in the 85th minute of the match. Sinclair sent a ball forward, and after one touch Raso was in behind the defense. Kopmeyer blocked the initial shot from Raso, but the forward was able to finish the second chance.
Midfielder Jessica Fishlock was able to pull one back for Reign FC with a penalty kick in the 90th minute. Defender Rachel Corsie earned the penalty after she was fouled in the box by defender Meghan Klingenberg.
Corsie was named Reign FC player of the match for her performance. The defender played the full 90 minutes in the match, and led the team in clearances with 11. Corsie also had five blocks in the match.
Tonight’s result sees Reign FC’s points total for the season remain at 27, and they remain out of playoff position on the NWSL table in fifth place. Today also saw the Orlando Pride earn a win.
Reign FC’s next match is set for Sunday, September 3rd when they face the Houston Dash at BBVA Compass Stadium. This is the final meeting between the two teams in the 2017 NWSL regular season. Kickoff is set for 5:00pm PT. The previous meeting between the two teams saw Reign FC earn a 2–0 win on the road on May 27th.
