Sunday tie gives Reign top seed in the Challenge Cup playoffs
Reign and Thorns tie 0-0 to round out Challenge Cup group stage
On August 6, the OL Reign played their final group stage Challenge Cup game against the Portland Thorns. The Reign had already clinched a Challenge Cup playoff spot the week before, but a draw or a win would clinch the top seed in the Challenge Cup playoffs.
Due to the World Cup, the Reign were still without five Alana Cook, Sofia Huerta, Megan Rapinoe, Rose Lavelle, and Emily Sonnett, all for the USA, while the Thorns lacked Sophia Smith and Crystal Dunn, playing for the USA, and Hina Sugita, playing for Japan.
The game began with a back-and-forth cadence, with both teams trading opportunities. The Reign started off in the 3rd minute with a Veronica Latsko pass up to Tziarra King in the box that King kicked into the waiting arms of Portland goalie Shelby Hogan, then the Thorns attacked in the 7th minute but kicked the ball onto the top of the goal for a goal kick. In the 13th minute, Latsko crossed to Bethany Balcer, who headed the ball on top of the goal.
And so it continued for the half. The Reign’s best opportunity of the first half came in the 25th minute as Latsko hit a sliding shot from the edge of the penalty box that bounced off the crossbar past Tziarra King and downfield. The Thorns, meanwhile, had multiple drives that petered out into either a weak shot or a giveaway in the box.
The second half followed a similar pattern. The Reign’s best chance of that half turned out to be a a floater from Elyse Bennett in the box that Hogan barely managed to deflect away from danger. The Thorns, while maintaining possession for a decent amount of time, were unable to buckle the Reign defense and didn’t threaten the goal much. The game ended in a 0-0 tie, clinching top seed in the Challenge Cup playoffs for the Reign.
Head coach Laura Harvey was broadly happy with the performance, noting that the Reign had clean sheets in every Challenge Cup group stage game.
“I thought again we were really defensively solid, didn’t give them a lot of opportunity. We had a few chances where if we just had a little bit more quality, we could have got a goal,” she stated. “I think the biggest thing for me is we’ve played six games and we’ve been very purposeful with how we rotated our team. Our group has the most parity across the four teams and we haven’t conceded a goal.”
Defender Shae Holmes indicated that the team’s depth and ability across the roster has been instrumental in keeping opponents off the board.
“I think no matter who we’ve put on the field, we’ve trusted to get the job done, whether it’s goalkeeper, different backline lineups, and all the way to the forwards, just defending back and helping us out,” she said. “Everyone has been unreal on the field when they’ve had the opportunity to do what they’re needed.”
While the Reign’s previous Challenge Cup performance meant that a tie was sufficient to get the first seed, forward Tziarra King noted that the team could have performed better on offense.
“We had plenty of opportunities, we had chances. So, just looking back on how we can finish those, execute those,” she said. “It wasn’t lack of creating, so that’s good for us, it’s just how we can hone in on those final pieces to get them in the back of the net.”
The Challenge Cup playoffs will take place in early September, but the regular season starts back up on August 18th in Kansas City. Harvey felt good about the Reign’s chances at making it to the postseason and competing for the Shield.
“I think we’re in a better spot than we were a year ago at this stage, we were clinging on for dear life to get into the playoffs at this stage last year, so we’re obviously in a much better place right now, but we’ve got quite a few away games in our stretch towards the end,” she explained. “That’s always our first target, get in the playoffs, and then if we get in the playoffs let’s go win the Shield, so that’s our next target.”
