Playing in front of its home crowd on a warm, hazy evening, Seattle Reign FC (11–4–7, 40 points) became the second team to clinch a spot in the NWSL playoffs, besting the Houston Dash (8–9–5, 29 points) by a score of 2–0. Jodie Taylor notched both goals to bring her total to nine on the season. The shutout was a record-tying 12th of the season for Seattle, and the performance brought the defense’s scoreless streak to 429 minutes.
Taylor put the first shot on goal in the third minute. Her left-footed try sailed into Jane Campbell’s arms, giving the Houston keeper her first save of the match. Seattle goalkeeper Lydia Williams made her first touch in the fifth minute, gathering the ball with her feet after a wayward Houston pass.
Seattle nearly staked a lead seven minutes into the match. After a beautiful build up from Kristen McNabb, Steph Catley and Megan Rapinoe, Jess Fishlock received the ball from Rapinoe at the top of the box. After quickly lining up a shot, Fishlock fired the ball across the face of goal and off the post. Seattle would get two corner kicks in the next two minutes but could not find the net on either of them. Reign FC dominated possession for the first ten minutes, keeping the ball almost exclusively in Houston’s half. A foul at midfield by Jasmyne Spencer led to a brief sequence in the Dash’s offensive third, marking the club’s best opportunity in the first part of the match. At the first hydration break 15 minutes into the match, Reign FC had fired four shots and owned 57% of the possession.
Taylor nearly got behind the Houston defense in the 22nd minute. Coming out of the hydration break, Taylor made a run into the box. Spencer attempted a through pass to her streaking teammate, but Houston’s backline was there to get a foot on the ball. This broke up Seattle’s attack and sent the action headed back down toward Lydia Williams in Reign FC’s net. The Dash failed to get a shot on goal in their short-lived counter-attack.
Reign FC built a long stretch of possession in the 25th minute. After a lovely string of passes, Catley attempted to center the ball but had her cross blocked before it could gain any traction. This was followed by two chances for Megan Rapinoe. On the first, her cross from deep in Houston territory went across the goalmouth untouched. On the second, she took a long ball from Morgan Andrews and mishit the header, propelling the ball out of play.
Megan Oyster picked up the first yellow card of the match for a tackle in the 27th minute. This marked the Seattle defender’s third yellow card in the last four matches. In the 30th minute, Oyster took the ball forward from her center back position and played Theresa Nielsen on the wing. Nielsen expertly poked a cross into the box on her first touch, aimed directly at Jodie Taylor. While Taylor was able to get her head on the ball, she pushed the ball harmlessly out of play. The second hydration match of the evening quickly followed.
Seattle just missed capitalizing on a great chance in the 36th minute. Things started with Jess Fishlock threading a pass from the midfield into the final third. Rapinoe ran onto it and created enough space for a tough cross. Her ball had great weight on it, but lacked the accuracy needed to hit the onrushing Taylor and rolled across the touchline.
The 41st minute brought another near-goal for the home team. Operating just in front of Seattle’s bench, Rapinoe wrapped her foot around the ball for a darting cross toward Houston’s net. Her service narrowly avoided all defenders and nearly beat Campbell to the back post. With Spencer valiantly chasing after, the ball skipped wide of Campbell’s grasp and the post, going out for a goal kick. Rapinoe closed the half by shooting from 25 yards out on a free kick, forcing Campbell to lift the ball up and over the bar for a corner kick. Five minutes of stoppage time later, the teams trotted to their locker rooms for halftime.
Rapinoe ripped a scorching shot in the 51st minute for the first scoring chance of the second half. After Catley’s pressure forced the Dash into a turnover, the Australian defender scooted a pass toward Rapinoe. Rapinoe had ample time and space to shoot, and she elected to do so with her powerful right leg. Campbell laid out to make the save and keep her team in the match.
Campbell would be pressed into duty again in the 53rd. Fishlock took another shot on goal, and had her shot deflected in its path toward the goalkeeper. Campbell did well to stay with the ball and turned in another heroic save to preserve the 0–0 score. This brought about the third hydration break of the match and first of the second half.
When they returned to the pitch, Reign FC looked to score quickly. In the 58th minute, Seattle got its first tally of the game. Theresa Nielsen flew down the wing with her head up, looking to find a teammate. She cracked a perfect cross on the ground for Taylor, who was able to chip the ball up and into the net. When the ball settled in the side netting, Taylor had her eighth goal of the year and the first of the game for Seattle.
In the blink of an eye, Reign FC was going for its next goal. Taylor had another great look in the 60th, and immediately went for the shot. This effort was blocked by Campbell, but the Houston goalkeeper had no time to rest. One minute later, Taylor took a pass from Rapinoe, turned, and fired from the top of the box. The pristine shot left Campbell flat-footed, beating the Dash netminder and putting Seattle ahead 2–0.
A Lydia Williams save in the 75th minute put a stop to Houston’s last great chance. Williams got her fingertips to a shot, pushing the ball up in the air before it fell to McNabb’s feet in front of goal, sending the ball ricocheting off the post and back into Williams’ grasp. Sitting on a two-goal advantage, Vlatko Andonovski would go to his bench in the final 15 minutes. After taking Megan Rapinoe out in the 70th for Nahomi Kawasumi, the Seattle head coach inserted Elizabeth Addo for Jasmyne Spencer in the 82nd.
Christen Westphal subbed on in place of Steph Catley to exhaust all three of Reign FC’s substitutions.
Seconds later, Taylor scampered into the box with a chance for her third goal. Instead, the Seattle scorer looked to pass, and had her attempt broken up. This play in the 87th minute was one of Reign FC’s last pushes forward. Fishlock was knocked to the ground in the box during stoppage time, but the referee was unimpressed, depriving Reign FC of a penalty chance to extend the lead.
When the match came to a close, Seattle cemented its place in the NWSL playoffs. Reign FC still occupies the second spot in the NWSL standings and became the second team this season to reach 40 points. The club will play its final home game of the year, its Fan Appreciation Match, on Saturday, August 25 at 1:00 p.m. PT. The match against the North Carolina Courage will be a matchup of the league’s top two teams.
Tickets to the match can be purchased at www.reignfc.com/tickets.
