Seattle Reign FC Kick-Off Preseason Competition Defeating University of Portland 5–0
Seattle Reign FC concluded their third week of training camp with a bang last night, defeating the University of Portland in a preseason friendly 5–0 on the road at Merlo Field.
Reign FC’s attack fired on all cylinders as four different players got on the board, including a brace by Scottish international midfielder Kim Little.
Six Reign FC players returned to a pitch they know well as Stephanie Cox, Michelle Cruz, Danielle Foxhoven, Amanda Frisbie, Elli Reed, and Keelin Winters all suited up against their alma mater for the first time since donning the Reign FC crest.
Midfielder Keelin Winters scored the first goal of the night in the 9th minute when a corner kick from Little was mishandled by the Pilot’s keeper, causing the ball to fall to an onrushing Winters who buried her shot into the roof of the net.
“It was great to be back in Portland playing on Merlo Field,” said Winters. “It was a little weird to be on the visitors bench and have the fans cheer against you and heckle you but other than that, we enjoyed it.”
Reign FC played the majority of the match in Portland’s end, stringing together pass sequence after sequence to break down the Pilot’s defense. The offense found their groove towards the end of the half when forward Merritt Mathias cut into space from the right side of the field before finding a streaking Danielle Foxhoven at the top of the 18-yard box. Foxhoven cut left and placed a curling shot over the keeper into the upper left-hand corner doubling Seattle’s lead in the 38th minute.
Seven minutes later, Foxhoven would be involved in the play once more when she flicked on a pass to Little who dribbled into the box and finished from close range to extend Reign FC’s lead to three before half-time.
Reign FC’s high pressure picked up right where it left off as Pilot alumna and defender Stephanie Cox found the end of a Little pass and placed a shot from nine yards out increasing the visitor’s lead to 4–0 in the 48th minute.
Little would tally her brace on the evening and the final goal of the match in the 52nd minute. Forward Beverly Yanez chipped a perfectly timed ball over the Pilot’s backline to the feet of a rushing Little who rounded the keeper before tapping it into the lower left corner of the goal from eight yards out.
Head coach and general manager Laura Harvey expected to have a bulk of the possession throughout the match, but insists the important aspect was what her squad did with it.
“We came out here knowing we would have a lot of the ball but we had to make sure we did that well,” said Harvey. “The big part now is taking some of the things that we didn’t do great and working on them before the next game.”
The club will return to Seattle to round out their preseason schedule on April 3 at 7 p.m. PT on the Moda Pitch at Memorial Stadium against the University of Washington in a Community Shield Match presented by Dr. Thomas McKenny, DDS. This match is free of charge and fan wishing to attend can click here for tickets.
