Three-first half goals lead home side to victory
TACOMA, Wash. – Orlando Pride (7-6-7, 28 points) was defeated on the road by second-seeded OL Reign (11-7-2, 35 points) on Sunday night, falling 3-0 in a rainy match in Tacoma.
The home side was led by a brace from forward Eugenie Le Sommer, as well as a goal from striker Bethany Balcer.
The Pride will now turn their attention to their upcoming match with the Chicago Red Stars, who the team travels to face on Saturday evening at SeatGeek Stadium.
Orlando Pride Interim Head Coach Becky Burleigh:
“First of all, credit to the Reign. They came out definitely on fire and their shape gave us a bit of a problem. I think that was on us as coaches, we have to adjust to that a little bit sooner because their numbers were just overwhelming us, particularly in the midfield. I think we’ve got to do a little bit better of a job dealing with that as coaches to put our team in a better position to be successful…Once we switched shapes, I think it became a more straight-forward matchup and allowed us to match-up a little bit better with them defensively.”
Scoring Recap:
3’ Bethany Balcer (Sofia Huerta) – RGN 1, ORL 0
The Reign opened things early, with Sofia Huerta sending a cross into the box that found the head of Bethany Balcer for the game’s opening goal.
28’ Eugénie Le Sommer (Dzsenifer Marozsán) – RGN 2, ORL 0
The home side doubled its lead in the 28th minute after Dzsenifer Marozsán picked off a pass deep in the Orlando zone, finding Eugénie Le Sommer who hit a one-time shot to catch Ashlyn Harris off her line.
32’ Eugénie Le Sommer (Dzsenifer Marozsán) – RGN 3, ORL 0
Le Sommer made it a brace on the night with a goal four minutes later after Marozsán found her on a driven ball into the six-yard box.
Match Notes:
With 90 minutes played, Alex Morgan made her first start for the Pride since June 26, 2019 at Houston, which came before the forward joined the U.S. WNT for the 2020 Tokyo Games.
Morgan made her 98th NWSL regular-season appearance on Sunday, sitting just two matches away from the century mark with five matches left in the 2021 campaign.
After missing the Pride’s last match due to injury, Ashlyn Harris returned to the starting lineup for her hometown club.
The shutout snaps the Pride’s 17-game road scoring streak, the longest in the league, that began on June 15, 2019 at Houston.
Next Match: The Pride close out its two-game road trip next Saturday, Oct. 2, traveling to face the Chicago Red Stars in a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff at SeatGeek Stadium.
Scoring Summary:
RGN – Bethany Balcer (Sofia Huerta) 3’
RGN – Eugénie Le Sommer (Dzsenifer Marozsán) 28’
RGN – Eugénie Le Sommer (Dzsenifer Marozsán) 32’
Misconduct Summary:
ORL – Jodie Taylor (Yellow Card) 30’
ORL – Amy Turner (Yellow Card) 62’
ORL – Ali Riley (Yellow Card) 73’
Lineups/Substitutions:
Orlando Pride – GK Ashlyn Harris ©; D Ali Riley (Erika Tymrak 79’), Ali Krieger, Amy Turner, Courtney Petersen; M Gunny Jonsdottir, Taylor Kornieck (Marta 58’), Meggie Dougherty Howard (Marisa Viggiano 46’); F Jodie Taylor (Phoebe McClernon 46’), Alex Morgan, Sydney Leroux
Substitutes Not Used: GK Brittany Wilson; D Toni Pressley, Kylie Strom; M Parker Roberts; F Abi Kim
OL Reign – GK Sarah Bouhaddi; D Sofia Huerta, Alana Cook, Lauren Barnes ©, Kristen McNabb; M Jessica Fishlock (Dani Weatherholt 87’), Quinn, Rose Lavelle (Shirley Cruz 88’); D Bethany Balcer (Leah Pruitt 89’), Dzsenifer Marozsán (Angelina 71’), Eugénie Le Sommer (Tziarra King 76’)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Phallon Tullis-Joyce; D Celia, Stephanie Cox, Sam Hiatt
Details of the Game:
Time: 7 p.m. ET
Weather: Rain
Date: September 26, 2021
Attendance: 5,044
Stats Summary: ORL / RGN
Possession: 43.8% / 56/2%
Shots: 11 / 21
Shots on Goal: 3 / 8
Saves: 5 / 3
Corner Kicks: 2 / 5
Fouls: 11 / 8
Offside: 1 / 3
Officials:
REF: Malik Badawi
AR1: Katarzyna Wasiak
AR2: Melissa Beck
4TH: Adorae Monroy
