OL Reign’s 2021: A Story of Perseverance and Determination
The 2021 NWSL season was unlike any other NWSL season in the past. It was a season full of challenges and major highs and lows. For OL Reign, it was a story of overcoming adversity and working as a team to put together a memorable comeback season. Though the team fell just short of the championship, the remarkable journey from ninth place and second place was no easy task. This whirlwind of a season will not soon be forgotten by OL Reign fans.
OL Reign started 2021 with the Challenge Cup, a tournament that was created in 2020 to adapt to the challenges the COVID-19 pandemic created. The Challenge Cup looked different in 2021, but the goal was the same – do everything possible to win. The Reign unfortunately had a slow start in the tournament, first earning a 1-1 draw against the Houston Dash, then losing 2-0 to their Cascadia rival, the Portland Thorns.
OL Reign found their first win against the Chicago Red Stars. The team showed their potential and drive after initially going down 1-0 but fighting back to secure the 3-2 win. In their final game of the 2021 Challenge Cup, OL Reign picked up another comeback win, this time against Kansas City. Spirits were high going into the regular season, as the two comeback wins boosted OL Reign into second place of the five teams in the Western Division of the Challenge Cup.
Adding to the excitement for the start of the 2021 NWSL regular season, OL Reign announced that the team had signed three Olympique Lyonnais legends on loan – Sarah Bouhaddi, Eugénie Le Sommer and Dzsenifer Marozsán. The combined experience and skill of these world class players had OL Reign fans eagerly awaiting their arrival from France in June.
The Reign started the regular season with a scoreless draw against the North Carolina Courage, but the very next week, the Reign traveled to Portland to take on their rivals for the first time in the regular season. The team ground out yet another comeback win, picking up three points on the road and moving into third place in the NWSL standings. The celebration would be short lived however, as the Reign would then go on to earn just three points in the next six games. The team struggled to find a rhythm and consistency, despite the talent on the field. At this time, the Reign continued to make some exciting signings, adding Rose Lavelle and Alana Cook to the roster.
Things took a downward turn for the Reign as they struggled to click as a group. With a rotating starting eleven and lack of consistency on the pitch, OL Reign dropped important points. To make matters worse, the Reign were then dealt their worst loss of the season at home, on June 26. The team fell 3-0 to NJ/NY Gotham FC and moved into ninth place of the ten teams in the NWSL.
The following week, it was announced that head coach Farid Benstiti resigned and assistant coach Sam Laity would step in as interim head coach, just hours before kickoff of the Reign’s match in Houston. The team would go on to lose that match 2-0 in a hot, humid and frustrating game. At that point, the Reign had taken up residence in the bottom half of the table. Moving into playoff position would be a struggle, but it was a challenge that the Reign were ready to face head on.
“The way we have stuck together from literally the bottom of the table for a lot longer than we wanted, we never want to be bottom of the table. Fighting our way back. Staying patient. Staying positive. Staying with each other. It has been incredible. In so many ways, this is a huge success of a season and one that I think is super to all of us,” said OL Reign forward Megan Rapinoe.
The importance of Laity’s time as interim head coach cannot be overlooked. From the moment Laity stepped up as interim head coach, there was palpable change in this OL Reign team. The team started to find a rhythm that worked for them as a group and that directly translated to results on the field.
Under Laity’s lead, OL Reign earned three NWSL Player of Week honors in a row. Beginning with Tziarra King for her performance against the Orlando Pride on July 24, then Eugénie Le Sommer’s performance against Racing Louisville on July 31 and concluding with Bethany Balcer’s performance against the Houston Dash on August 7. That was the first time that any team in NWSL history had earned Player of the Week honors for three consecutive weeks.
Laity also managed a three-game win streak, the Reign’s first since the 2016 season. In those three games, OL Reign scored nine goals – four more than the team scored in all seven games before Laity was appointed interim head coach. He also led the team to their biggest victory of the season – the 5-1 win over Houston at Cheney Stadium.
“Sam’s time as interim head coach was and will be a vital part to this team and organization’s success. He has a deep-rooted history with this club that allowed him to be the perfect person to redirect the club on the path we wanted to be on,” said OL Reign midfielder Jess Fishlock. “He’s always been a huge part of the team, from 2013 till now … I think that was a huge reason why his time as head coach was super successful. He brought us all into focus. We will all look back on that time and never have the words to really express his importance to us.”
Even with key players out for the 2020 Olympic Games, the Reign still found success. Something clicked for the team and reinforcements were on the way still following the conclusion of the 2020 Olympic Games. Not just the five players with their national teams, but the return of beloved head coach, Laura Harvey.
The five OL Reign players that joined their national teams for the 2020 Olympic Games showed up for their respective teams. Each team made it to the quarterfinals or further and each player could return to OL Reign proud of their contributions.
Nicole Momiki played for the host nation, Japan, in the 2020 Olympic Games, but instead of returning to OL Reign after the tournament, Momiki joined Linköpings FC on loan. Momiki played in two matches for Japan, contributing 37 minutes to Japan’s Olympic campaign.
Angelina made her Olympic debut with Brazil in the Tokyo Olympics, playing one-hundred and eighty-three minutes over three matches for Brazil. The hardworking midfielder and her team made it to the quarterfinals.
Rose Lavelle also made her Olympic debut at Tokyo as a member of the U.S. WNT. Lavelle played in six matches for four-hundred and sixteen total minutes. She scored 1 goal and converted a penalty kick in the penalty kick shootout in the quarterfinal match. The USA squad also featured Megan Rapinoe. Rapinoe played in six matches, totaling three hundred and six minutes. She scored two goals and converted a penalty kick in the penalty kick shootout in the quarterfinal match. Lavelle, Rapinoe and their teammates defeated Australia in the third-place match to earn a bronze medal for the United States.
Quinn represented Canada in the tournament and played in six matches for three hundred and thirty-four minutes. Quinn and Canada defeated Sweden in the final to earn Canada’s first ever gold medal in women’s soccer. Quinn is the first openly transgender and non-binary player to win an Olympic medal.
Following the Olympics, Harvey came directly to Tacoma to get started with OL Reign. In her first game as head coach, the Reign narrowly lost to Kansas City, but Harvey never missed a beat, encouraging the team to push onto the next game. Then the team continued the positive streak that Laity started. The wins started to roll in and the Reign were climbing up the NWSL standings.
“I loved it. It feels like I’ve come home, honestly. This club is special. Always has been, always will be. It’s got special people in it. I was away for three or four years but I’ve come back and it’s still the same. It’s still special people here. Maybe different faces, but it’s just a desire to want to be the best. It’s infectious. You want to be part of it. People care and a lot and sometimes you take that for granted,” said OL Reign head coach Laura Harvey.
A highlight from the summer of the 2021 season was the first-of-its-kind doubleheader event at Lumen Field, that featured an OL Reign vs. Portland Thorns match, followed by a Seattle Sounders vs. Portland Timbers match. The Reign pulled off a 2-1 win in front of 27,278 fans in a memorable event for the Pacific Northwest soccer community.
By the first of September, OL Reign had reached third place in the NWSL standings but were not content to stay there. After going undefeated through the entire month of September, the Reign occupied the second-place spot in the standings, something no one would’ve thought possible after the slow start to the season.
Though the Reign were on a great run, challenges arose throughout the league. On September 12, OL Reign’s match against Washington Spirit was canceled due to breaches of the league’s medical protocols and Washington had to forfeit the match.
Not long after, the league faced another wave of game changes. All matches were postponed the weekend of October 1st, starting a long overdue conversation surrounding the mistreatment and abuse in the women’s soccer space and a starting point for systemic transformation. In the following weeks, players continued to protest, gathering together in center of field for a minute, showing their solidarity with the brave players who spoke out.
“You’ve got to look at our journey from the beginning to now. We were sitting in last place for a while and worked our way up to second. It’s been an incredible season for these girls and coaching staff with everything that has happened. The girls were incredible with a lot of obstacles, so credit to them,” said veteran OL Reign player Lauren Barnes.
“This is honestly one of the most, if not the most, incredible locker rooms I’ve been a part of. We’ve had to deal with a lot this year, as have most of the teams around this league. Some are collective issues, as everyone knows about, and some are different than that,” said Rapinoe.
The team was on a roll when approaching the end of the regular season and despite having one “off week” where the performances were not at their highest level, OL Reign ended the season strong. The team’s last regular season game was on the road against Kansas City. In a mentally challenging game, the Reign prevailed with a firm 3-0 win. OL Reign secured a second-place finish after spending the first fourteen games of the season in the bottom half of the standings.
“I’m really proud of them. I was really proud to come back and coach this club. It’s been a wild journey coming back. To think where we were when I signed my contract, to where we are today is a phenomenal achievement,” said Harvey.
With the second-place finish secured, OL Reign earned a bye for the first round of the playoffs. The team hosted the Washington Spirit in the NWSL semifinals and fell just short of making the final, with a heartbreaking 2-1 loss. Although the team did not advance to the final, they have so much to be proud of.
OL Reign had three nominations for the 2021 NWSL Awards. Laura Harvey won the Coach of the Year award, Jess Fishlock won the Most Valuable Player award and Alana Cook was nominated for the Defender of the Year award.
On top of this, five OL Reign players were named the NWSL Best XI First Team and Second Team. Defender Alana Cook, midfielder Jess Fishlock and forward Eugénie Le Sommer were named to the Best XI First Team, presented by Mastercard and defender Sofia Huerta and forward Bethany Balcer were named to the Best XI Second Team.
“I’m really proud of this team and the effort and work that they put in, said Harvey. “We can’t forget what this group did from the beginning of July to today. I’m going to make sure that everyone knows that the journey that this group has been on is one that they should be really, really proud of.”