By Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA – In a tough battle between expansion side Angel City and our OL Reign, Bethany Balcer’s goal in the first half was the decider. Both clubs played a tough, physical games with six yellow cards being distributed. Balcer’s goal in the 30th minute would be the only goal in the match, giving the Reign three points and moving them to fourth in the NWSL table.
It was a tough battle between both clubs (Photo Mel Levin)
Balcer continues her pace
Bethany Balcer, the 2019 NWSL Rookie of the Year, had a career year in 2021, scoring nine goals and finishing second in the golden boot race. For a Reign team that is still working on converting the chances it puts on net, Balcer has net four goals across the Challenge Cup and regular season to this point. Her fourth goal was a 30th minute strike off of a somewhat broken play.
The Reign were trying to bring the ball up, but Jess Fishlock would be pushed off the ball. Angelina would swoop in to regain possession, thundering into the box. Angelina would loft the ball towards the middle of the box, in the direction of teammate Veronica Latsko. The ball would be underplayed, cleared by Ali Riley. That clearance was rocketed straight to Bethany Balcer, who redirected that rocket back towards goal, past DiDi Haracic. That goal wouldn’t be answered, and the Reign collected three points.
Angelina played a role in Balcers goal (Photo Mel Levin)
Getting chippy
This was a physical match through, specifically shown by Reign forward Megan Rapinoe receiving her first red card of her professional career. The two clubs committed 28 total fouls, and six total yellow cards. Those six yellow cards are close to the NWSL record for total yellow cards, which is eight. The biggest example of the nights frustrations was Megan Rapinoe, who earned her red card while on the bench.
Rapinoe was unhappy with how the referee of the match was reacting or lack of reaction to the way Balcer was being played. Balcer had to be escorted of the field, and was in obvious physical pain. There have been a few incidences where Balcer has had a similar situation take place this season, and the fact that I even had to say that is frustrating. The league and the referee’s need to do a better job of keeping player safety at the top of their focus.
Megan Rapinoe received the first red card of her career (Photo Mel Levin)
Reflection
With the win, the Reign still had their flaw of the season apparent: the Reign are not converting their chances. Balcer’s goal was nice, but it also came off of some chaos. It will be important as the season continues for the club to take that turn and start finding the back of the net. With that being said, head coach Laura Harvey and several players have stated that they are aware of the issue, so expect to see the change happen sooner rather than later. That should especially be the case considering the three huge additions that the club will add in the coming weeks.
The Reign will get a bit of a break before their next match, and it should give them time for two of their new additions to join the club. The next matchup for the club will come on July 1st, against the North Carolina Courage. It will be the clubs pride match, kicking off at 7PM PST.
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