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NWSL Seattle Reign FC

Seattle Reign FC to Face Portland Thorns FC at Providence Park on Sunday Afternoon

May 27, 2016 - National Women's Soccer League (NWSL)
Seattle Reign FC News Release


SEATTLE - Seattle Reign FC (3-2-1, 7 pts) will face Portland Thorns FC (3-0-3, 12 points) on Sunday, May 29 at Providence Park in Portland, Ore. at 4:00 p.m. PT in the second of four regular-season match-ups between the Pacific Northwest rivals this season.

Having fallen to the Chicago Red Stars on May 22, Seattle now reside in sixth place in the NWSL standings, while Portland holds the third-place spot behind the Washington Spirit and Red Stars, who are tied at the top of the table with 13 points.

Reign FC forward Merritt Mathias was disappointed with the loss to Chicago, but she's excited for the match against Portland.

"The loss against Chicago is definitely frustrating for us," said Mathias. "We're at a point where we have to regroup, come together as a team, and there's no better way to do that then to get back on the field."

The last meeting between Reign FC and Thorns FC on May 14 saw heated, physical play that ended in a 1-1 draw. Reign FC controlled possession throughout most of the match, holding Portland's offense to only two shots in the first half. In the 47th minute, Portland took the lead when midfielder Meg Morris chipped a ball inside the six-yard box between goalkeeper Hope Solo and defender Lauren Barnes, neither of whom moved to clear the ball, leaving it for Portland forward Nadia Nadim, who headed it above Solo into the back of the net.

Reign FC instantly responded with an equalizer in the 49th minute off a corner from Barnes that forward Beverly Yanez headed into the left side of the frame, bringing the score to 1-1.

The match on Sunday comes after Reign FC played host to Arsenal Ladies FC in a historic international friendly match on Thursday evening. Seattle got on the board in the 17th minute when midfielder Havana Solaun sent a long cross to the top of the box, where midfielder Lindsay Elston collected it, but was immediately stripped of the ball by Arsenal goalkeeper Emma Byrne. The loose ball rolled to forward Yanez, who fired a shot from the left side of the 18-yard line, sending it into the right top corner of the frame for the goal.

Arsenal leveled the score in the 64th minute when midfielder Danielle Van de Donk and Seattle defender Kendall Fletcher collided at the corner of the six-yard box, sending Van de Donk to the ground and earning a penalty for the visitors. Forward Natalia Pablos Sanchon took the kick, burying a shot in the bottom left of the frame beneath a diving Haley Kopmeyer, leveling the score at 1-1.

The match provided midfielder Jessica Fishlock a chance to retake the pitch for the first time since fracturing her left tibia in Reign FC's match against the Boston Breakers on April 24 in Allston, Mass.

Harvey was impressed with Fishlock's quick recovery and is pleased with how her team utilized the friendly to address problems that contributed to last week's loss to Chicago.

"For what we wanted it to be, it served its purpose pretty well. We got players minutes on the field who hadn't had them and got a chance to see Jess for thirty minutes - which was great," said Harvey. "It allowed us to work on things that hadn't been great against Chicago and in other games as well."

Harvey continues to focus on tightening up her team's performance rather than watching the club's place in standings.

"It's always about us and what we need to be good at," said Harvey about the Portland rematch. "We know enough about each other now to know what they're going to do and what we're going to do. Obviously Portland will have more players away from the game than we'll have, but I always believe that it's about what we do and not what our opposition does."

Reign FC goalkeeper Hope Solo will be absent from Sunday's match as she is at training camp in Denver, Colo. preparing for the U.S. Women's National Team's upcoming matches against Japan. The first match will take place at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colo. on Thursday, June 2 (6 p.m. PT on FS1) and the second on Sunday, June 5 (9:30 a.m. ET on ESPN2) at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio.

As a result of Solo's national team duties, Reign FC have added amateur goalkeeper Andi Tostanoski to its roster. Tostanoski will be available for selection in Sunday's match against the Thorns.

Portland is expected to be without six of the eleven players who started in their last match against the Washington Spirit: goalkeeper Adrianna Franch, defenders Meghan Klingenberg and Emily Sonnett, and midfielders Tobin Heath, Allie Long and Lindsey Horan have all been called into the USWNT camp by head coach Jill Ellis.

Seattle currently holds a 4-5-1 all-time record against Thorns FC, with May 14's result the first draw between the teams.

Fans can catch Sunday's match via live-stream at youtube.com/nwsl starting at 4:00 p.m. PT.

Reign FC will return home to face the Houston Dash (2-3-1, 7 pts) on Sunday, June 12 at 4:00 p.m. PT at Memorial Stadium. Tickets begin at $18 and can be purchased at reignfc.com/dash or by calling (855)-REIGN-FC.

Check out the Seattle Reign FC Statistics



National Women's Soccer League Stories from May 27, 2016


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