It took a little while, but eventually Seattle Reign FC caught up to the Chicago Red Stars, and then kept going. The Reign finished the season 10 points ahead of second-place Chicago, capturing the NWSL shield for the second consecutive season. The Reign also led the league in scoring -- netting 41 goals in 20 games, and with a league-best plus-20 goal differential. Now the team that Laura Harvey built will face a Washington Spirit team looking to avenge the upset that almost was from a season ago.
Reign vs. Spirit, 2015 NWSL semifinals: Preview and how to watch
In a rematch of one of last season’s semifinals, fourth-place Washington gets a second chance at the upset, while regular-season champions Seattle look to take the first step toward avenging 2014’s title game loss.
Patrick Smith/Getty Images
If Sunday's matchup feels a little familiar, it's because Washington faced Seattle in the semifinal last season, too. That game eventually ended 2-1 in the Reign's favor, but lost in the final score is that the Spirit nearly pulled it off. Washington took a 1-0 lead into the 72nd minute before a Kim Little penalty kick leveled the score. Megan Rapinoe netted the eventual game-winner 10 minutes later. Seattle would go on to lose in the final to FC Kansas City.
This season Washington again enters the playoffs as the fourth-place team, though the Spirit managed to make things a little more comfortable for themselves this time around. Where Washington snuck into the postseason on the strength of tiebreakers a year ago, this season’s version had put six points between themselves and the fifth-place Dash by the time the regular season ended.
Season series
Seattle and Washington met three times during the regular season, with the Reign winning twice, including the regular-season finale last weekend. The Spirit’s lone win in the season series came in mid-July, a 3-0 shutout. It was one of just three matches all season where Seattle was held scoreless.
Key player: Crystal Dunn (Washington)
Washington's Crystal Dunn has been the breakout player of 2015. Selected by the Spirit as the first overall pick in the 2014 college draft, Dunn went on to make 22 appearances and register three assists in her rookie season. For 2015, it seemed like a real possibility that Dunn would miss considerable time with the Spirit, as she'd surely be named to Jill Ellis' roster for the Women's World Cup. Or ... not. But Dunn's World Cup snub was probably the best thing that could have happened to the Spirit. Already the winner of this season's Golden Boot, Dunn netted 15 goals in 2015. She's also got three assists. The Spirit -- as a team -- have only scored 31 goals total. That means Dunn has contributed to more than half of Washington's goals. Some context for the season Dunn is having: Kim Little won 2014's Golden Boot award with 16 goals. She needed 23 games and six penalty kicks to make that happen. Dunn did it in 20 games and every single one of her goals came in the run of play. Dunn's also been named Player of the Week a record six times, was August's Player of the Month, is a sure thing for this season's Best XI and is the frontrunner for the 2015 MVP award.
Key matchup: Hope Solo vs. Ashlyn Harris
Seattle's Hope Solo and Washington's Ashlyn Harris are number one and two on the USWNT's goalkeeping depth chart, respectively, and while neither played an entire season due to the World Cup, both have been essential parts of their teams when available. Solo and Harris will be plenty busy on Sunday, with a lot of firepower on the field for both sides. Of the league's top 10 scorers, three -- Kim Little, Beverly Yanez and Jess Fishlock -- play for the Reign, and one -- Golden Boot winner Crystal Dunn -- plays for the Spirit. Dunn also led the league in shots on goal and those four players scored a combined 42 goals in 2015, which is at least one more than any entire team in the league.
Who else is here from the World Cup?
Not Ali Krieger! The Spirit star will miss out because she’s attending her father’s wedding. Besides her and the aforementioned Harris, there’s Arianna Romero and Veronica Perez from Mexico, Diana Matheson from Canada and Francisca Ordega from Nigeria.
The Reign have cornered a market inefficiency by signing two of the greatest players on earth who will probably never play in a World Cup or (another) Olympics -- Little and Fishlock. The aforementioned Solo and Rapinoe are just as good for the Reign as they are for the USWNT.
I am terrible at predictions, but let’s go for it anyway
2-1, Seattle. At least one penalty kick. Probably more.
Match date/time: Sunday, 9:30 p.m. ET, 6:30 p.m. local
Venue: Memorial Stadium, Seattle, Wash.
TV: Fox Sports 1
Online: Fox Sports Go
See More:
