After two disappointing road results last week, Seattle Reign return to Lumen Field on Friday night for a two-game homestand. First up is a match against expansion club Boston Legacy. The match kicks off at 5:30 p.m. PT and will stream on NWSL+ for fans in the U.S. and globally.
The Reign enter the weekend in ninth place, just one point outside of the playoff picture. A loss could push them further from the playoff line, while a win could propel the Reign as high as sixth.
After struggling to find the back of the net earlier this season, Seattle is on a historic scoring streak, scoring in 16 straight games. At the same time, they've only scored one goal in seven of their last eight games. Head coach Laura Harvey noted that the team has been more focused this week on taking advantage of their 1v1 opportunities while also getting more bodies around the ball to be more patient in their build-up, when needed. Can they put it all together against a tenacious Boston Legacy side that never gives up?
Head-to-Head
- The Reign and Boston Legacy have met just once, with the Reign earning a 2-1 victory in May off goals from Sofia Huerta and Maddie Dahlien
2026 record
Seattle Reign FC: 11-10-4 (37 points, 9th place)
Boston Legacy: 7-13-5 (26 points, 14th place)
Key stats
- The Reign are 7-3-2 at home
- Boston is 3-5-3 on the road
- Seattle has scored 31 goals and conceded 31; Boston has scored 32 and conceded 42
- Boston Legacy forward Aïssata Traoré leads the team with 10 goals and 1 assist
- Boston leads the league in tackles per match (19.9) and fouls per match (12.2)
- Boston have conceded the most penalties (8) and the second-most set pieces (10)
- Boston averages 52.3% possession and 325 accurate passes per match, compared to 49.6% for the Reign (305 accurate passes)
Who to watch
Aïssata Traoré
The forward has scored 10 goals and added one assist this year for Boston, leading the team. She's tenacious on the front line, has a lot of speed, gets her shots off quickly, and is skilled at getting one step in front of her defender to make an impact. The Reign, quite simply, have to be one step ahead of her and make sure she can't make unmarked runs in the box.
Sarah Schupansky
The midfielder joined the Legacy a month ago in a trade with Gotham FC, where she had a strong rookie showing in 2025. She's already made an impact, earning an assist in her first match with Boston. Schupansky has some of the best crosses and set-piece delivery in the league. The Reign didn't close down Denver quickly enough last weekend, allowing crosses and passes into the box far too easily. With Schupansky on the field, they can't make that same mistake.
Nichelle Prince
Primarily lining up on the right wing, Prince leads Boston with five assists. She also has two goals. She's a great dribbler and crosser, and Prince is key to how the Legacy work defensively — leading their pressure from the front line.
What to watch
The Reign's response
The Reign put in two disappointing performances last week and dipped below the playoff line. Harvey was particularly frustrated by how little grit the team showed, especially in their last match against Denver.
"One thing that we've really talked about is that first half in Denver – we don't want to ever see again, because that just wasn't who we are," Harvey said.
As midfielder Sally Menti confirmed, this has been a big focus for the players this week — especially with two home games coming up. "Both those performances weren't us, and we need to respond now. We don't have any more room for error with how close [things are]. We're out of the playoff line now ... we know that we have no room for error and we have to respond."
The Reign have just four games on the schedule after Friday's match against Boston — two at home and two on the road. They need to start getting points again if they want to get into a good playoff position. Can they respond with a more dominant, gritty performance on Friday?
Boston's man-marking and physicality
Boston lead the league in fouls per match, yellow cards, tackles, and penalties conceded. That data seems to confirm the eye test: the Legacy work very hard to close down opponents and win the ball. That can make them a little foul-happy and overly aggressive at times, but when it works, it makes it hard for teams to build with possession against them.
The other thing that makes Boston really unique is their man-marking defensive approach. Harvey talked about this in her pre-match remarks, noting that the Legacy have surprised some teams at the top of the table because their opponents didn't respect how tough it can be to play against this defensive style.
"They man-mark, and they're very physical, and I think if you don't respect that, you can fall into their trap. If you respect that and you try and work around it and through it and over it and expose it, then you have a good opportunity. But you've got to respect what they bring. And what they bring is they're physically dominant. They work really hard for each other. They make it really challenging. Like, man-for-man is challenging because it's you versus your opponent. How can you create overloads off that? How can you beat your player, how can you win your individual battle? And I think the teams that have done well against Boston have been quite pragmatic in that."
Here's another stat that demonstrates just how hard the Legacy work for each other: they set an NWSL record last week with their seventh goal in second-half stoppage time. This team never quits.
Getting on the front foot
The Reign are unbeaten at Lumen Field coming out of the summer break, going 5-0-1 in that span at home and keeping five clean sheets. As Harvey and Menti both noted, those results have come from playing to the team's strengths — with their fans backing them, the turf surface playing to their advantage, and their early pressure pinning opponents back. They'll need that same momentum against the Legacy.
"When we are on our front foot, and we try to press the opponents and get pressure on the ball, we're at our best," Harvey said. "When we're on the back foot, and we're reactive, and it just becomes a knock-on effect, it's like a domino. That's something that we spoke about a lot this week. We are at our best when we're defensively solid, and that starts from being able to put pressure on the opponent. And that's [a] fundamental of our identity, and we can't come away from that, irrelevant of the opponent, irrelevant of what they're trying to do. We've got to stick to that because that's who we are and it's what makes us great."
"Boston plays a pretty unique style of soccer and their shape on defense," Menti added. "We are looking to exploit that pretty early on and have them be caught off guard with what our game plan is. But they're a good team, so we're gonna have to battle. We're gonna have to show up."
Kit matchup
Injury / Availability Report
Seattle Reign
Pending league report
Boston Legacy
Pending league report
How to Watch
The Reign host the Boston Legacy on Friday, September 25, at 5:30 p.m. PT. The game will stream on NWSL+
