After a somewhat disappointing home draw with Chicago, OL Reign head on the road for a match against an in-form NC Courage. The game kicks off at 4:30 PM PT at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, NC. The match will stream on Paramount+ for fans in the U.S. and Twitch for international viewers (search NWSLOfficial).

OL Reign enters the match in sixth place. They have a 7-4-7 record and have scored 24 goals while conceding 18. The Courage sit in eighth place but are just three points behind the Reign. They have a 7-7-4 record and have scored 39 goals while conceding 31.

Just seven points separate first and eighth place right now, which means every point is critical. A win would be absolutely huge for the Reign, who are just four points from the top of the league.

You couldn’t write a script better than this weekend across the league. All teams in playoff contention play each other. In addition to the Reign facing the Courage, Chicago (#5) hosts Houston (#4), San Diego (#3) hosts Angel City (#7), and Kansas City (#1) hosts Portland (#2).

(It’s also Bark at the Park at WakeMed Soccer Park, which will either distract Rose Lavelle or motivate her to perform well for the dogs.)

What to Watch

• Stay organized: The Courage like to stretch defenses and create overloads, and then punish opponents in the box. The Reign will need to stay extremely organized in all spots on the field.
• Create turnovers with the press: North Carolina builds much of their attack from the back, and they look to left back Carson Pickett in particular to build possession. The Reign have the best press in the league. Can they push the Courage into a few mistakes?
• Finish those chances: The Reign will be hungry to right the wrong from last weekend, when they should have put the game away in the first half after creating endless chances. They have a chance to do this today.

Injury / Availability Report

OL Reign

OUT: Angelina (SEI- right knee), Tobin Heath (SEI- left knee), Sinclaire Miramontez (SEI- right foot), Jodi Ulkekul (right knee)

QUESTIONABLE: Lauren Barnes (right leg)

NC Courage

OUT: None

Lineups

Highlights

6’ — Alana Cook own goal off an unfortunate deflection

11’ — Rose Lavelle with the equalizer!

26’ — Megan Rapinoe with the audacity to go for goal from 30 yards!

How to Watch

Date/Time: Saturday, September 17, 4:30 PM PT
Location: WakeMed Soccer Park, Cary, NC
Streaming (US): Paramount+
Streaming (International): Twitch (search NWSLOfficial)

Join the Discussion

This is your OL Reign versus NC Courage gamethread. Join the discussion here in the comments, or follow the action on Twitter: @rovalks.