Match Forecast: OL Reign Set to Battle North Carolina at Home

OL Reign returns to play after an international break, at home in front of a Lumen Field crowd. Taking on the North Carolina Courage, OL Reign looks to earn an essential three points in the playoff race and extend their home unbeaten streak in the regular season to four games. 

WHEN AND WHERE: The Reign kickoffs at 5:00 p.m. PT at Lumen Field in Seattle, WA 

WHERE TO WATCH: Fans can tune in on FOX13+ locally, Paramount+ in the United States, TSN+ in Canada. 

2023 NWSL REGULAR SEASON RECORDS AND STANDINGS (W-L-D): OL Reign: 8-8-3 (27 points, 6th place), North Carolina Courage: 8-7-4 (28 points, 5th place) 

Key Points Ahead of the Match: 

1. LAST MEETING – The last time OL Reign and Courage met was on May 14 of this year, which resulted in a 1-0 win for the Courage at their home field in Cary. The lone goal of the match was scored in the 34th minute by forward Tyler Lussi. OL Reign nearly mounted a comeback but fell just short of splitting the points on the road. Notably, the Reign have not lost at home to North Carolina Courage since June 23, 2018 - an unbeaten streak of four games in that span. 

"I just think they're very clear on who they are,” said OL Reign head coach Laura Harvey. “They're very - what looks like – well coached, on what they want to do and how they want to go into games. I think there's a very clear identity of what they believe in and you have to acknowledge that they want the ball a lot, which we're actually all right with that. We're fine with teams wanting the ball. We've always been a team where, defensively, we believe that we can make it difficult for teams to break us down. So yeah, I just think it's very clear what identity they have, so I think just being very solid defensively and being deadly in transition is key against them." 

2. SCOUTING NORTH CAROLINA – Most recently, the North Carolina Courage took on the Orlando Pride at Exploria Stadium and were downed 2-1. The Courage conceded a goal in the first minute of the match, scored by former OL Reign forward Ally Watt. Adriana doubled the score for Orlando in the 32nd minute, sending the home side into the locker room with a two-goal lead. In the second half, the Courage found a goal back in the 52nd minute, thanks to Manaka Matsukubo’s first regular season goal for the team. However, North Carolina went down a player in the 78th minute, after Malia Berkely was shown a red card and the ten-player squad was unable to find a comeback. 

The Courage enter this match winless in their last five regular season games. North Carolina also has six losses on the road in the 2023 regular season, tied for the most in the league. 

“I think that it's hard to isolate a player and just play against one player, especially with a team like North Carolina, who's had so much success in front of goal as of late. So, I think it's just more about team defending and limiting their opportunities and keeping our numbers behind the ball when we're defending, going organized, going together - it's not a one-person game, (Courage forward) Kerolin's obviously a super technical, super talented player and if you're just expecting the most out of 1-v-1 battles every single time, it's going to be a long game, so I think that working together and just using all of our strengths on the field in unison is how you break them down and stop their attack,” said OL Reign defender Phoebe McClernon. 

“They're a team who we know can just unleash in front of the net, they can score a lot of goals and they can score a lot of goals fast. So, I think our organization and our communication is probably the most central to us being successful against this team,” she added. 

3. PLAYOFF PUSH – As the season is coming to an end, each result is crucial to OL Reign’s push to make the playoffs. Currently, the team sits in sixth place in the NWSL standings, just one spot below the Courage, making three points extra important tonight. As of now, only one team has clinched a playoff berth – San Diego Wave FC. 

 “Our task is very clear, we have our playoff destiny in our own hands, currently - getting points in the weekend helps solidify that. There's no better task than that. It's very black and white for us. Is there a lot of stuff outside of us that is being talked about? Yes, but I think, especially around (forward Megan Rapinoe) Pinoe, the way she carries herself, the way that the group is, we're very clear that, if we won't do what we want to do as a collective and send her off in the right way, we have to make sure that we cut out all that noise and concentrate on what we need to be able to execute in the games that we have coming up,” said Harvey. 

MultiCare Availability Report: 

OUT  
Sofia Huerta (leg) 

Rose Lavelle (leg) 

 
QUESTIONABLE 

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