Schrödinger's Reign

It’s a complicated series of emotions after that one.

On one hand, we lost to the best team in the league, which was, frankly, expected. On the other, we showed (once again) that we can fight, that we can put together dynamic attacks, even that we can, at times, stifle the best attackers we face. And in the face of all of that – we lost.

6,781 fans came out to Lumen Field on Sunday, May 19th, 2024. They were treated to a beautiful blue afternoon and an exciting, back-and-forth soccer match against the top team in NWSL. Angharad James-Turner scored her first goal of the year, while Bethany Balcer notched her fourth of the season. Orlando had three: Emily Sams’ first and Barbra Banda’s fifth and sixth. Final score: 3-2, Orlando.

Laura Harvey started out the game with a 4-1-4-1 formation, departing from her usual 4-3-3 and her more recent 4-4-2. The full starting lineup looked like this:

Ji
Zee – Jess – Haz – Balcer
Van der Jagt
McClernon – Barnes – Cook – Huerta
Ivory

Pride roar early

Seattle, as has so often been the case recently, stumbled out of the gate. In the ninth minute, Pride right back Emily Sams opened the scoring with a left-footed curler to the inside of the right post. Though Ivory was positioned on that side of the net, she got a late break on it, and the ball flew by her outstretched arm.

To make matters worse, in the 18th minute, the Pride doubled Seattle’s deficit. Lu Barnes attempted a clearing pass in front of the goal, but the ball was intercepted and given to Adriana on the right side, who worked around both McClernon and Barnes to send an arcing cross off Ivory’s fingertips to Banda, who was waiting at the left post.

Banda heads the ball into the net, past a last-ditch attempt by Cook to deflect. The crowd goes quiet. Seattle is down 2-0.

It ain’t over ‘til it’s over

If there’s one thing you have to give the Reign, it’s that they don’t roll over and die. For the rest of the half, Seattle had a dynamic offense: taking chances, trying to make things happen.

In the 25th, Zee sent off a shot from just outside the box – saved by Moorhouse. The next minute, Zee sent a cross to Balcer, who was just feet from the goal – again, Moorhouse saved it.

Briefly, however, the Reign’s good play seemed to break down for a brief moment. In the 32nd, the Pride nearly expanded their lead to three with a Kylie Strom goal, but an offside call on the play held the point back.

But Seattle just kept putting on the pressure. Fishlock had a rising shot in the 35th that almost snuck its way above Moorhouse; two minutes later, Angharad James-Turner tried to place a ball in the top right corner of the net, but her shot went barely high.

Haz wasn’t done on the attack: In the fifth minute of first half stoppage, she was positioned at the front edge of the box when Ji gave her a short cross.

She takes the shot. It deflects off Strom. The ball rises into the air, floats for a few seconds, and sinks into the side of the net. Pride 2, Reign 1.

For the first few minutes of the second half, Seattle kept up their energy, and it was enough to equalize. In the 48th, Jess sent a ball from about midfield up to Balcer, who burst past the Pride back line and brought the ball all the way to the middle of the box.

She swipes the ball with her right foot. It flies diagonally to the left side of the goal, a couple feet inside the post. It hits the net. Game tied, 2-2. Lumen Field is filled with cheers and horns.

Close, but no cigar

And now for another frustrating part. Immediately after Balcer’s equalizer, the Pride put together a little over ten minutes in the Reign half of the pitch. This culminated in the 58th, as Marta sent a corner into the left side of the box.

Alana Cook tries to head it out, but it goes into the waiting feet of Banda. She kicks the ball towards the top left of the net. Ivory tries to leap in the way of the shot, but it is no good. 3-2 Pride. As loud as the stadium was ten minutes prior, that was how silent it now becomes.

The two of them nearly combined for another goal in the 62nd, as Banda gave Marta a cross, mere feet from the goal line. Ivory stuck her foot out and deflected the ball away. Huerta sent it a little further away, and the Reign were still within one.

But that is where Seattle would remain for the rest of the match. Despite Harvey’s late insertions of Athens and Adames for Zee and Haz, Seattle was unable to push one across the goal line. To make matters worse, Balcer was handed a second yellow card in the 83rd minute, taking one off the field for the Reign.

Final score: Orlando 3, Seattle 2.

Can’t keep digging holes

The disastrous final minutes of the previous week’s match against Portland and the disastrous opening minutes of Sunday’s match against Orlando show that when this team falls apart, they really fall apart. The Reign’s comebacks against San Diego and (attempted) Orlando show that when this team is on, this team is on.

A shield one minute, a sieve the next – Harvey commented on this lack of consistency postgame.

“When we’re down, we tend to respond very well. But that intensity that we show when we’re down, we have to start with,” Harvey stated. “That, to me, is what winning teams do.”

Ultimately, Seattle’s recent habit of giving opponents early leads is a dangerous game to play, even if they have the chops to make it interesting.

“When you have to put yourself in a position where you have to score three goals? No one’s winning long-term doing that,” Harvey said. “We’ve conceded seven goals in the last two games, that’s reality. We’ve got to get better on both sides of the ball.”

The truth is that the 2024 Reign are probably somewhere between those extremes, at least in the aggregate.

But in the table right now, it’s the warts that are showing. Seattle Reign sit second to last in the standings, only ahead of the Utah Royals. The side has a dismal 2-7-1 record: the ship needs to be righted soon.

Moving forward

Seattle’s next match is on Friday, May 24, on the road against the Washington Spirit. After that, they travel to Kansas City for a game on June 9, before returning home to face the Thorns on June 16.

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