Match Recap: Reign Downs Angel City 2-0 in Annual Pride Match Presented by The Starbucks Coffee Company
In the club’s annual Pride Match presented by The Starbucks Coffee Company, Reign FC picked up a massive 2-0 win over Angel City FC at Lumen Field on Friday night.
The Reign adopted a bend-don’t-break approach for much of the opening 25 minutes as they absorbed pressure from Angel City FC without conceding any clear-cut opportunities.
The first chance for the visitors came in the 9th minute as Kennedy Fuller uncorked a shot from distance, but she was denied by a smart stop from goalkeeper Claudia Dickey. Eight minutes later, Jun Endo forced Dickey into a sprawling diving save with a curled effort to the far post.
After weathering Angel City’s pressure, Reign FC sprung to life around the 26th minute as Sally Menti, Sam Meza and Ji So-Yun began controlling tempo and carving through the visitor’s midfield.
In the 34th minute, a quick counterattack from the visitors culminated in Sveindís Jane Jónsdóttir striking a shot towards the far post, but Dickey managed to get her fingertips on the ball with a full-extension diving save to keep Angel City off the scoreboard.
Reign FC’s best chance of the half came three minutes later as Maddie Dahlien latched onto a cross from Sofia Huerta, but Angelina Anderson came up with the save.
The second half got off to a blistering start for Reign FC as they repeatedly tested Angel City’s back line. In the 49th minute, Dahlien clipped a pass to the back post for Huerta to volley, but Anderson recovered in time to make claw the ball off the goal line.
Reign FC’s pressure paid off in the 66th minute as halftime substitute Jess Fishlock opened the scoring. Huerta made a 60-yard overlapping run to join the attack before chipping the ball to the back post. Fishlock rose highest and headed the ball on target, drawing a save from Anderson, before pouncing on her own rebound and smashing the ball into the back of the net to put Seattle up 1-0.
Fishlock nearly doubled the lead three minutes later. Menti found the Welsh legend in a pocket of space inside the box and shed whipped a first-time shot that narrowly missed the top corner.
In the 79th minute, substitute Jordyn Huitema raced behind Angel City’s backline but was denied a goal by a last-ditch sliding tackle from Sarah Gordon.
After dominating the entirety of the second half, Reign FC doubled their lead in the 86th minute. Huerta drove an in-swinging corner from the left side that Fishlock flicked with her heel, deflecting it off Alanna Kennedy for an own goal and the 2-0 lead.
Angel City threw numbers forward in the dying minutes in search of a late comeback, but Dickey came up with a pair of clutch stops.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Strength in Depth: Playing in their first NWSL match since June 21st, Reign FC rolled out a strong starting lineup, spearheaded by the team’s two leading scorers, Dahlien and Adames. Chasing a goal for three points at home, Head Coach Laura Harvey was able to call upon world-class players like Fishlock, Huitema, Nérilia Mondésir and Mia Fishel to change the game.
Huerta Returns: While she didn’t technically get on the scoresheet, Huerta was at the heart of both of Reign FC’s goals. It was her pinpoint cross to the back post on the opener that set Fishlock up for her initial header, and her driven corner kick that forced the own goal.
Offishel Debut: Playing in her first NWSL match, Fishel showed flashes of why Reign FC fans should be excited about her addition to the squad. It was her dizzying skill in the 85th minute that drew the corner that produced Seattle’s second goal, and she made several incisive runs behind Angel City’s defense to put them under pressure.
NEXT UP: Reign FC will travel south down I-5 next weekend to take on their bitter rivals, the Portland Thorns, at Providence Park in a must-see NWSL clash before returning home to Lumen Field to take on Chicago Stars FC on August 18.