ORLANDO, Fla. (September 6, 2017) - Orlando Pride (10-6-5, 35 points) has an opportunity to secure a spot in the 2017 National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) playoffs when it hosts Seattle Reign FC (8-7-6, 30 points) at 8 p.m. ET on Thursday night. With a win in the midweek match, the Pride would clinch a spot in the league’s four-team postseason.
Thursday’s match was originally slated to be played on Saturday, Sept. 9 but was moved up due to the anticipated arrival of Hurricane Irma. Orlando City B, the Club’s United Soccer League (USL) side, will host the Richmond Kickers at Orlando City Stadium prior to the NWSL match with kickoff at 4:30 p.m. ET.
Pride tickets for Saturday will be valid for Thursday, while fans attending the OCB match are also invited to stay for the Pride match.
The game will be available live on the go90 and NWSL apps and websites or, for our international fans, on NWSLsoccer.com.
“This is a huge game for us and a huge game for Seattle, as well. We played Seattle six games into this season and were in ninth position with one win on the table. So it’s been a significant turnaround and the players have done magnificent to stick with it, keep chipping away and get better week-in and week-out,” Head Coach Tom Sermanni said. “We’re really pleased to be in the position that we’re in. And we’ve done all of the hard work to get in this position. So the key thing now is for us to get out there and make sure we finish it.”
The Pride are coming off of their fifth straight victory after defeating the Boston Breakers 4-2 on Saturday night. Orlando jumped out to a two-goal lead after back-to-back goals from rookie Rachel Hill in the eighth and 15th minutes and would never trail. Despite the visitors cutting the lead to one goal, Marta and Chioma Ubogagu added insurance in the second half.
The Pride have outscored opponents 16-4 over their five recent victories. The win also extended Orlando’s unbeaten streak to six games, with their last loss on July 22 at the Chicago Red Stars.
The Reign traveled to face the Houston Dash last weekend, a game played in Frisco, Texas, due to the effects of Hurricane Harvey. Defender Merritt Mathias scored the game’s only goal, finishing off a pass from Beverly Yanez in the 50th minute.
Thursday’s match will see a battle of the league’s top offensive teams. The Reign FC offense ranks second in the league with 39 goals, second only to Orlando’s 41. U.S. Women’s National Team midfielder Megan Rapinoe leads the side with 12 goals, a total that is tied with Pride forward Marta for second overall in the NWSL.
Seattle recently acquired Australia Women’s National Team goalkeeper Lydia Williams via trade with the Dash.
After finishing their inaugural season with just 19 points, the Pride enter Thursday’s match with 35 points. A win would put the Pride at 38 points with two matches remaining. The Pride hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over Sky Blue FC, the only team with enough potential points to tie the Pride. The 2017 NWSL Championship will be held on Oct. 14 at Orlando City Stadium.
Thursday’s match will be the second to last regular season home game for the Pride. Orlando hosts Portland Thorns FC on Sept. 23 in the NWSL Game of the Week on Lifetime. The match will kickoff at 3:30 p.m. ET.
