Seattle Reign surrender late goal in loss to Washington Spirit

Once again, a solid Reign defensive effort was erased in the waning minutes against the Washington Spirit.

Trinity Rodman dribbled toward goal and sent a pass to Spirit teammate Hal Hershfelt in the 81st minute. The midfielder powered a left-footed shot toward goal from outside the box that deflected off Reign defender Jordyn Bugg's foot.

Reign keeper Claudia Dickey committed to the wrong direction, allowing the game-winner. Her team couldn't respond on the other end, losing 2-1 at Audi Field in Washington, D.C., on Saturday.

That's what top players do," Reign coach Laura Harvey said of nearly controlling Washington's potent lineup. "Those are the moments that are crushing. When you've done 95% of the work and that one time you don't get it right, you get punished for it."

Earlier this month at Lumen Field, Washington (6-2-3) was stifled by the Reign's defending but crafted a goal in the 84th minute for a 1-0 win. The Reign are on a five-game losing streak against the Spirit.

The NWSL will close the weekend with three matches Sunday. The Reign are currently below the playoff line in 10th place while the Spirit are fourth in the 16-team league.

"It's frustrating to not get the end product," Reign defender Madison Curry said.

Washington received good positioning for its opening goal due to a yellow card drawn against Holly Ward in the 17th minute.

Rodman made a play on the ball seemingly simultaneously as Ward, both crashing to the ground. Referee Alexandra Billeter called a foul on Ward and awarded the free kick just outside the box.

Leicy Santos stood over the ball for Washington and her right-footed shot had a mind of its own in avoiding the Reign's setup and bouncing into goal out of Dickey's reach, setting off an excited roar from the sellout crowd (19,365).

The Spirit have scored in nine straight matches, through all competitions, this season.

The Reign (4-5-2) weren't deterred. Maddie Mercado jockeyed with Washington's center backs for a ball that Curry slid behind the defense. Instead of denying the shot in the box, Spirit defender Lucia Di Guglielmo's kick bounced in for an own goal equalizer in the 44th minute.

Mercado, knocked to the grass, sat up and raised her arms in celebration with a big smile.

"I just wanted to be able to make those runs and put pressure on that backline," Mercado said. "I was a little upset it wasn't me that touched that ball, but at the end of the day it was in the back of the net so it didn't matter."

Harvey didn't make any lineup changes from the road win against Boston last week. It's the first time this season tweaks weren't made to the starting XI.

At the break, Harvey subbed on Nérilia Mondésir and Sam Meza for Ainsley McCammon and Ward.

Washington coach Adrián González made his first changes in the 66th minute when he brought on Claudia Martínez, Esme Morgan and Andi Sullivan for Sofia Cantore, Élisabeth Tsé and Rebeca Bernal.

"I didn't think Ainsley or Holly played badly," Harvey said. "I felt the game needed Sam's energy and a different type of profile on the right with Coco (Mondésir) coming into that pocket."

The Reign will not play again until a road match against the North Carolina Courage on July 4. Under the collective bargaining agreement, the NWSL will suspend play for the month of June due to the start of the FIFA Men's World Cup.

Lumen will transition to Seattle Stadium and host six matches for the tournament.

"I truly think after the June break, we're going to be nuanced in our press and offensive prowess," Curry said. "It's going to work out really well for us."

The NWSL will first honor a FIFA international window. Reign midfielder Angharad James-Turner (Wales), Ward (Canada) and Dickey (U.S.) will join their national teams. Wales is in the group stage of qualifying for a 2027 Women's World Cup berth.

Harvey said the players who weren't called up will have training next week and then be released for the mandated break.

"Games are the best scenario to be able to work on things," Mercado said of the team improving. "Game speed is unlike anything else. But that's on us to recreate that in training. We need to really bring a competitive environment. We have that and continuing to build on that will be good. We have some scrimmages set up, so treating those like real games will be important for us.

BOX SCORE

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This story was originally published May 30, 2026 at 11:38 PM.