Utah Royals FC won its first game of the season – and in franchise history
– on Saturday night thanks to goals from U.S. WNT defender Kelley O’Hara
and Canada midfielder Diana Matheson. In one of the most entertaining
matches this year, the first 2018 installment of the Pacific Northwest
rivalry saw Lindsey Horan and Emily Sonnett score for the Portland Thorns,
but it was the visiting Seattle Reign which came out on top in a 3-2 win
that saw end-to-end action in the back-and-forth affair.
Portland Thorns vs. Seattle Reign (2-3: Horan, Sonnett; Yanez, Taylor, Atsugi)
The first matchup of the 2018 season between the Portland Thorns and the
Seattle Reign lived up to expectations and generated the excitement usually
seen when these two Northwest rivals clash. In a back-and-forth affair,
Seattle twice took the lead only see Portland equalize both teams – on
goals from Emily Sonnettand Lindsey Horan – before Japanese international Rumi Utsugi
finally put the Reign ahead for good in the 75th minute.
After Seattle’s Beverly Yanez gave the visitors the advantage in the 36th
minute, scoring off a corner kick that seemed to bounce off her shoulder
and into the net, the match remained scoreless until the 61st minute. Then
four goals were scored in a 14-minute span. After aTobin Heath corner kick bounced inside the six-yard box, Sonnett bundled the ball home amidst a scramble to tie the
game.
England international Jodie Taylor then converted a penalty kick in the
64th minute as Seattle again took the lead, but six minutes later Horan,v ia an assist from Meghan Klingenberg, leveled the match with a classic Horan
header that looped over goalkeeper Michelle Betos. Five minutes later
Utsugi scored off a short corner kick play for the game-winner.
The match marked a return to Portland for Allie Long, who
played her entire NWSL career for the Thorns before being traded to the
Reign this past offseason. Long had two excellent chances to score while
attacking the goal in front of the famed Portland fan section.
Sky Blue FC vs. Houston Dash (2-3: Johnson (2); Prince, Daly, Latsko)
After two losses in their previous two games, the Houston Dash bounced back
this weekend and earned its first win of the season, a road victory against
Sky Blue FC. SBFC forward and Mexico international Katie Johnson brought
her team back into the game twice, scoring game-tying goals in the 57th and
73rd minutes, but it wasn’t enough as Houston’s Veronica Latsko tallied the
game-winner in the 79th.
Utah Royals FC vs. Washington Spirit (2-0: O’Hara, Matheson)
It was a historic day for Utah Royals FC fans as they got to witness their
team earn its first win in franchise history. Utah got on the board early
via a combination of Amy Rodriguez, who slipped a pass
behind the defense to the overlapping Kelley O’Hara, who
then bent a shot inside the right post on the dead run for her first goal of 2018. Diana Matheson added an insurance goal
for the Royals to blank Washington, 2-0. The Spirit held a 12-10 shot
advantage over the 90 minutes, but put just one of those on goal.
North Carolina Courage vs. Chicago Red Stars (1-1: Zerboni; Kerr)
A late game-tying goal from McCall Zerboni kept the unbeaten streak alive
for the Courage on Sunday afternoon at WakeMed Soccer Park after Chicago’s
Sam Kerr had put the visitors on top early in the game.
The game featured a terrific performance from U.S. WNT and Red Stars
goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher, who made 12 saves in the match
to hold off the Courage who managed to generate a remarkable 42 shots (15
on target). Naeher made a series of spectacular saves throughout the game,
allowing her team to leave with one point and remain amongst the top-three
in the NWSL standings. The Courage remain in first place with a 5-0-2
record (17 points) while the Red Stars are now at 2-2-4 (10 points) and in
third place.
WNT Players in NWSL Action
Goalkeeper Jane Campbell – 90 minutes (Houston Dash)
Defender Abby Dahlkemper – 90 minutes (NC Courage)
Forward Crystal Dunn – 90 minutes (NC Courage)
Forward Ashley Hatch – 90 minutes (Washington Spirit)
Midfielder Tobin Heath – 45 minutes (Portland Thorns)
Midfielder Lindsey Horan – 90 minutes, GOAL (Portland Thorns FC)
Defender Sofia Huerta – 90 minutes (Chicago Red Stars)
Defender Meghan Klingenberg – 90 minutes, ASSIST (Portland Thorns FC)
Midfielder Carli Lloyd – 90 minutes (Sky Blue FC)
Midfielder Allie Long – 90 minutes (Seattle Reign)
Forward Savannah McCaskill – 90 minutes (Sky Blue FC)
Midfielder Samantha Mewis – 62 minutes (NC Courage)
Goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher – 90 minutes (Chicago Red Stars)
Forward Mallory Pugh – 90 minutes (Washington Spirit)
Forward Amy Rodriguez – 69 minutes, ASSIST (Utah Royals FC)
Defender Kelley O’Hara – 85 minutes, GOAL (Utah Royals FC)
Defender Becky Sauerbrunn – 90 minutes (Utah Royals FC)
Defender Emily Sonnett – 90 minutes, GOAL (Portland Thorns FC)
Midfielder Andi Sullivan – 90 minutes (Washington Spirit)
Defender Taylor Smith – 90 minutes (Washington Spirit)
Forward Lynn Williams – 90 minutes (NC Courage)
Did Not Play
Midfielder Julie Ertz – Injury [back] (Chicago Red Stars)
Goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris – Bye (Orlando Pride)
Midfielder Rose Lavelle – Injury [hamstring] (Washington Spirit)
Forward Alex Morgan – Bye (Orlando Pride)
Forward Megan Rapinoe – Injury [hamstring] (Seattle Reign FC)
Defender Casey Short – Injury [ankle] (Chicago Red Stars)
