Seattle Reign settle for soggy draw against Houston Dash
If the Reign are trying to rewind to their solid start, it's good they didn't allow Houston a single goal. But they also didn't net a goal for a third consecutive match.
Sticking with the positive, the Reign picked up a point after a soggy 0-0 draw Friday with the Dash at Shell Energy Stadium in Houston.
We love a clean sheet," Reign forward Maddie Mercado said. "Once one (goal) comes, they're all going to start coming. That's kind of the nature of goals, in a way, especially in this league. Once we find our footing around the goal, they'll start coming. It's on us as a forward line and midfield line to have quality in front of goal. We're creating enough chances and we need to be able to put one or two away."
It was instantly evident the Reign were ready to play despite ceding two free kicks in good position outside the box. In their defeat against Utah at home Sunday, they allowed two goals in the opening seven minutes.
Once the Reign had a spell of possession Friday, midfielder Ainsley McCammon and Mercado forced Dash keeper Jane Campbell to make diving saves in the 12th minute. Both shots were from distance, Mercado's off a broken corner kick.
Campbell made another save in the 38th minute, although Reign forward Mia Fishel didn't get a lot of power on the attempt deep inside the box.
In the final minute of the half, defender Madison Curry had a low attempt from deep that was blocked off the line by Dash midfielder Maggie Graham to send the sides into halftime goalless.
The Reign were equally aggressive after the break. On back-to-back corner kicks in the 60th minute, Emily Mason clanked a shot off the crossbar and Campbell stopped a close-range shot from Fishel.
Campbell finished the match with five saves.
"(Mia) was more disappointed with her chance in the first half," Reign coach Laura Harvey said of her conversation with Fishel after the match. "It says a lot about her. That's the type of player she is. She wants to keep improving, she wants to be better."
Harvey made her first changes in the 66th minute. Sally Menti and Nérilia Mondésir entered for Fishel and Dahlien. Mondésir was pulled from the starting lineup due to suffering from the flu earlier in the week.
Houston (3-2-1) had an early chance in the first half, but its strongest looks were in the 72nd and 75th minutes. Dash forward Avery Patterson's shot deflected off the crossbar and Reign keeper Claudia Dickey stopped midfielder Kiki Van Zanten's attempt.
Dickey earned her third clean sheet of the season with five saves.
"Optimistically, last week was a fluke," Reign center back Phoebe McClernon said of the Utah match. "It wasn't the standard that we set throughout the rest of the season. You're not going to play a season as long as ours and have a perfect game every week, people are going to make mistakes. But, it's about how you respond."
And Friday was the best response even without scoring.
"It was just good to see everybody out there focused," McClernon said.
Fishel returned to the starting lineup for the first time since a 2-1 road victory in Orlando after suffering from a leg injury. She was among four lineup changes, one due to the injury to co-captain Jess Fishlock (ankle).
Reign forward Maddie Dahlien was back in the lineup for the first time since Week 2 due to a leg injury.
The Reign (3-2-2) will return to Lumen Field for a match against the Washington Spirit on May 10. Harvey said she is hopeful it's enough time to recover from playing in a downpour Friday that didn't stop until late in the second half.
"I've never been to Houston and been this cold in my life," Harvey said. "It was absolutely freezing … for those that did have a bit of sickness, I'm sure (Friday) did not help them. The good thing is we've got time now.
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