Match Forecast: OL Reign Set to Take on Houston Dash Tonight
OL Reign is set to return to regular season play tonight, against the Houston Dash. The teams have not met since last season, and both have just one loss this season. This match also marks the return to Seattle of former OL Reign assistant coach Sam Laity, who is now the head coach of the Houston Dash.
WHEN AND WHERE: Kickoff is at 7:00 p.m. PT on Saturday, May 6 at Lumen Field in Seattle, Washington.
WHERE TO WATCH: Gates open at 6:00 p.m. and fans can get tickets HERE. For fans wanting to keep up with the match at home, tune in to Paramount+.
2023 NWSL REGULAR SEASON RECORDS AND STANDINGS (W-L-D): OL Reign: 3-1-1 (10 points, third place), Houston Dash: 1-1-3 (6 points, sixth place)
Key Points Ahead of the Match:
1. LAST MEETING – Most recently, the teams met during the 2022 NWSL season at PNC stadium in Houston, where the Reign earned a 2-0 win. A 29th minute goal from forward Bethany Balcer, followed by a 76th minute goal from forward Veronica Latsko sealed the three road points for the Reign.
Just over a month before that, the two sides met at Lumen Field. In this meeting, the Dash got the better of the Reign, coming away with a 2-1 win, thanks to a brace from forward Ebony Salmon. Though a 16th minute goal from forward Megan Rapinoe prevented the Dash from shutting the Reign out, the Houston-based side was the only team to beat OL Reign at home in the regular season. OL Reign remains unbeaten in 12 of 13 regular season games played at Lumen Field since the 2022 season.
2. SCOUTING HOUSTON – Most recently, the Dash faced off with the Chicago Red Stars in a midweek UKG NWSL Challenge Cup match. The Dash came away with a 2-0 win, marking their first Challenge Cup win of the year. Midfielder Bárbara Olivieri scored her first NWSL goal in the fifth minute and forward Diana Ordóñez converted a penalty kick to double Houston’s lead.
“I think that we’re pretty ready for either a three-back or a four-back,” said OL Reign forward Veronica Latsko. ‘I think, given the teams that we’ve played thus far, we’ve seen both and we’ve played against both. I think each presents its own challenge but also each presents its own opportunity to exploit those types of systems and we’re really excited about it.”
3. FINISHING THE WEEK STRONG – OL Reign is rounding out a very busy three-game week with this match against Houston. The Reign’s midweek match on Wednesday saw a lot of squad rotation, emphasizing just how deep the team’s bench is. The team looks to build on their performances earlier this week and pick up a result tonight.
“I think we just have to be good on both sides of the ball. I think the last couple of games, we’ve been not as dominant as we would like to be on certain aspects of the game, so I think tomorrow is a chance for us to put that right, obviously a clean sheet against Angel City (FC) was great, but we weren’t great going forward and then obviously in Louisville, we conceded goals, which we always struggle when we do that – we want to try and nullify that as much as we can,” said OL Reign head coach Laura Harvey.
“I think we’ve identified some things that we think we can do to try and expose some of the things that Houston try and do. But I think for us, we’ve just got to try and get the basics of who we are and how we defend and how we play right and stamp our authority on the game.”
“I was just joking with one of our assistant coaches, I was like, ‘Wow, every training has felt like a matchday minus one training’. We’ve just not been able to train and it’s a little frustrating, especially as someone who loves training. We’re really fortunate that we have a really deep squad and it’s good for us because we can rotate so many players and the quality doesn’t diminish, which is great. I think we’ve shown that in the last three-game week that we played – how much we needed that rotation and how much we were able to do it and still put the same kind of quality and get the same results out on the field. I think you’ll see the same thing tomorrow, for us,” added Latsko.
MultiCare Availability Report:
OUT
Angelina (SEI - knee)
Rose Lavelle (leg)
Phoebe McClernon (back)
Quinn (leg)
Olivia Van der Jagt (excused absence)
QUESTIONABLE
None