Playing the second edition of the 2018 Cascadia rivalry, Seattle Reign FC (6–3–5, 23 points) earned a 1–0 victory in an instant classic with Portland Thorns FC (5–5–5, 20 points). Jodie Taylor supplied the only goal of the match, knocking home a pass from Megan Rapinoe in the 89th minute. Seattle’s defense dominated its opponent, keeping Portland from recording a shot on goal or a corner kick.
Both teams opened the match with palpable energy. Good ball movement and crisp passes defined the first ten minutes, as the Memorial Stadium crowd supplied the soundtrack for this heated rivalry match. Christine Sinclair fired the night’s first shot, but it never reached the goal as Megan Oyster stepped in to block the ball away. Seattle began to build its own attack from there, using the flanks to move forward.
Bev Yanez issued Reign FC’s first shot in the 9th minute, heading a cross from Theresa Nielsen. Yanez got a bit under the ball, sending it skyward and allowing Adrianna Franch to make an easy save. Nielsen delivered another well-placed cross one minute later, this time picking out Jodie Taylor in the box. Taylor brought the ball down for a left-footed strike. Her shot was just inches wide, whizzing past the post for a goal kick. The match came to a brief delay in the 13th minute when Meghan Klingenberg brought down Allie Long near midfield, earning the Portland defender a yellow card.
Seattle’s offense displayed brilliant pace in the 17th minute, as Elizabeth Addo carried the ball through the midfield and into Reign FC’s offensive third. The Ghanaian speedster found Rapinoe on her left, who took a touch to get the ball on her preferred right foot. Rapinoe’s curling shot looked headed for the upper corner of the goal, but Franch laid out for a magnificent save to keep the ball out. Rapinoe had another shot in the 18th thanks to a pass from Yanez, but this shot flew high above the crossbar and out of play.
After some fouls and free kicks slowed things down, Rapinoe stood at the flag for a corner kick in the 29th minute. She swung a ball for the near post, and Portland cleared. When the ball landed, the Thorns initiated a counter-attack toward the other end. Andressinha led the charge, which ultimately ended with a header out of bounds by Hayley Raso.
The home team would get another chance in the 30th minute. Taking a pass from Jodie Taylor on the left side of the box, Bev Yanez tried a right-footed shot at the center of the goal. Her attempt didn’t have quite enough juice on it, and Franch gathered it for the save. The next booking of the evening came in the 35th minute, when Lauren Barnes and Raso got tangled up chasing the ball down the sideline. Barnes was the one whistled for the foul, and was the recipient of a yellow card, much to the chagrin of her teammates and Reign FC supporters.
Those supporters nearly had their first goal to celebrate in the 39th minute. Taking a beautiful cross from Theresa Nielsen, Yanez propelled the ball on goal from inside the six-yard box. Franch made the quick save standing on the goal line, just narrowly keeping Seattle from taking a lead. Elizabeth Addo had another opportunity to score with her head, making an acrobatic deflection toward Franch in the 41st that ran a bit too high. Portland put the ball in the net on their last chance of the half, a set piece in the 44th minute, but was flagged offside to negate the goal. After 45 back-and-forth minutes, the teams trotted to the halftime locker rooms tied at zero.
Lauren Barnes began the second half with a textbook slide tackle in the box to quell Portland’s attack. Shortly afterward, Hayley Raso had an excellent opportunity to put Portland ahead. Lindsey Horan played Raso on a header, putting the ball on Raso’s foot in a dangerous position. The Thorns’ striker could not put the ball on target, missing high by a significant margin. Seattle won a corner kick in the 52nd minute, resulting in the team’s first chance of the second half. Rapinoe took the ball and spun it toward the back post, but couldn’t connect with any teammates.
A series of passes in the 56th minute sprung Steph Catley down the wing. Having gone forward, Catley was in a great spot to release a left-footed cross. She did just that, linking with Elizabeth Addo on a low, skipping ball. Addo elected to hit it on her first touch, but couldn’t get enough on it to beat Franch.
Meghan Klingenberg stood behind a free kick in the 68th minute from about 30 yards out. She lofted a ball into the box that went beyond the reach of anyone on either side, careening right into the grasp of Reign FC goalkeeper Lydia Williams. Action came to a brief stoppage in the 70th as Portland’s medical staff tended to Andressinha. She was forced to leave the match, and was replaced by Midge Purce.
Intensity swelled in the 74th, when Megan Oyster dropped a dime to Rapinoe on the left side of the box. Rapinoe drew the attention of the defense, and passed to an open Addo, but she could not get a shot off before being swarmed by Thorns. Addo went down in the box in the 75th after another solid build-up by Reign FC. She appeared to be hit in the face, but the referee did not call a foul to give Seattle a penalty kick.
With time winding down, the ball bounced around the box in the 80th minute. It eventually came to a twirling Jodie Taylor, who attempted a half volley before spinning herself to the turf. Her shot was blocked away for a corner kick that resulted in a shot by Theresa Nielsen. The Danish national got a solid crack at the ball, but her shot ran into a Portland defender before reaching Franch.
Rapinoe created another chance in the 84th. Operating from a tough angle, she utilized some creative footwork to get a shot off. Rapinoe finessed a shot from the left of Franch that rang off the crossbar. She would get another chance to put one past Franch in the 87th minute, sending a bender for the upper 90. Franch sprang into action again, diving to make a heroic save.
The dam finally broke in the 89th minute. Coming from her trademark spot on the left wing, Rapinoe worked her way into the box. After creating space for herself, Rapinoe slid a pass for Taylor, standing on the doorstep of the goal. Taylor finished with a shot into the middle of the net, giving Seattle a winner right before the end of regulation. This goal clinched Seattle’s second win of the season over its biggest rival, snapping the team’s four-match winless streak and sending the Memorial Stadium crowd into hysteria.
Seattle stays home for its next match, as Reign FC hosts Houston Dash on Saturday, July 7 for ReignStorm night. The match gets underway at 7:00 p.m. PT on the UW Medicine Pitch at Memorial Stadium. Tickets are available at www.reignfc.com/dash.
