Seattle Reign came from behind for the first time the season, earning a 2-1 win at home against the North Carolina Courage. The Reign forced an own goal in the 71st minute, while Maddie Dahlien scored in the 80th to put the Reign ahead – with Sally Menti earning her first NWSL assist on the play.
The Reign jumped into fourth place with the win, although the league table is still extremely tight. The match marked Jess Fishlock's 200th NWSL start, an accomplishment few in the league have hit.
Here are three additional stats from Seattle Reign's 2-1 victory over the Courage.
24
Emeri Adames and Ainsley McCammon were game changers in the 24 minutes they were on the field. While neither player will be credited on the stat sheet, both Adames and McCammon played important roles in the Reign's two goals.
On the first goal, McCammon received a throw-in from Madison Curry and turned toward the endline under significant pressure. She then calmly cut the ball into space to her left. Adames beat her defender into that space and crossed the ball with her first touch — putting it in a dangerous spot on the far post. Jordyn Huitema made just enough contact with the cross to cause some chaos, with the ball bouncing off defender Ryan Williams and sneaking into the goal.
On the second goal, Adames smartly dropped into space in the Reign's middle third to receive a ball from Phoebe McClernon. She quickly found McCammon in the middle of the field, who — again under pressure — progressed the ball forward to Sally Menti, who then found Maddie Dahlien with space to take her defender on 1v1. Dahlien did the rest, slipping her shot under goalkeeper Marisa Jordan.
In their 24 minutes, both players completed more passes than the players they were replacing.
- McCammon - 10/15 passes | Fishlock - 7/11 passes
- Adames - 7/11 passes | Mondesir - 6/16 passes
This was partially the result of the Reign having more of the ball in the second half, and the result of the Courage cutting off passes to Jess Fishlock. But it was also due to just how much both players created space and got on the ball.
“I thought the game suited Ainsley," head coach Laura Harvey said about the substitute decision. “I thought she would be able to get the ball in positions to hurt them. Tonight, I just felt the game was going to suit her, and it did, and I thought she did a great job.”
Here are two more stats that explain just how much they changed the game:
- Adames was tied with Maddie Dahlien for the most progressive passes received in the match (5). This is an important metric because it illustrates a player's ability to create and exploit dangerous offensive situations. Adames found and got into that space consistently.
- McCammon was one of just four players on the Reign credited with a shot-creating action this match — the last two actions before a shot. Had Opta credited Jordyn Huitema for the Reign's opening goal, McCammon would have led the Reign with two shot-creating actions and two goal-creating actions.
“When the game gets stretched, it's a great way to get Emeri on the field because when she has a little bit of space, she can always show her quality,” Harvey said.
That's another important point. In certain matches, where teams are defending tightly, the team has struggled to get Adames involved. In moments like this, with both teams stretching the field and trying to find more scoring opportunities, Adames can thrive. It's great to have so many different attacking options this year.
100
The Courage had the Reign pinned back in the first half. The Reign struggled to get into their attacking third. While the Reign still defended well, they couldn't prevent the Courage from moving the ball around freely.
The Reign made adjustments in the second half, switching up how they pressed. In the first half, the Reign were often in a 4-1-4-1 formation while pressing. In the second half, their wing players pushed a little higher when the Courage backline had the ball, with Jordyn Huitema sometimes dropping a bit deeper to sit alongside Jess Fishlock. In the midfield, Sally Menti dropped back next to Sam Meza to press in more of a 4-2-4 formation — putting extra bodies in the middle. As a result, while the Courage still dominated possession, most of the action was in North Carolina's defensive half.
Here's a stat that highlights this: The Courage completed 161 passes in their attacking third in the first half and just 61 in the second — a difference of 100 passes.
11
Sam Meza continues to terrify opponents — always hunting for the ball and making life difficult in the midfield. She kept a close watch on Manaka Matsukubo, who entered the match with six goals and four assists. The attacking midfielder is always moving, and Meza was always right next to her — buzzing in her ear. On the rare occasions Manaka had space, it was often because she'd moved to the other side of the field, forcing another Reign player to mark her. Manaka completed the fewest passes since August 16.
Meza finished the match leading in every defensive category. She had 11 defensive contributions, which includes:
- 6 tackles
- 1 interception
- 4 clearances
She also had eight recoveries, or regained possession, and won the most duels of the evening (winning 9/12). On top of that, Meza completed 24/30 passes (80%).
Meza currently leads the league in tackles attempted (95 – 15 more than second-place Taylor Flint) and tackles won (59). She's second in the league in the number of dribblers tackled as well (38), and second in blocks (38).
“She's just committed to what she wants to be good at,” Harvey told reporters after the match when asked how Meza continues to be consistent match after match. “Her ability to break up plays is something like we've not seen for a long time. She's fantastic at it and her ceiling's so far away from where she's at right now, which is so exciting.”
The Reign have another tough test this weekend, as they travel to face 3rd-place Gotham FC on Sunday, October 5. The match kicks off at 1 p.m. PT and will air on FOX 13+, NWSL+ and Paramount+.
