Battling the leagues best: previewing the Reign vs the Pride, April 12th, 2025
By Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA - Following an international window this past week, as eleven players in total were away with their respective national teams, our Seattle Reign FC are back in match action this week as they play host to the Orlando Pride this afternoon at Lumen field. The Reign play host to the reigning NWSL Champions, as Orlando looks as formidable as ever coming into this match with a 3-0 record and a 10-1 goal differential to begin the 2025 campaign while Seattle is looking for a bounce back effort after a tough defeat on the road to Angel City in their last fixture. While these two clubs had far different seasons in terms of success last year, the Reign strongly challenged the Pride in the two matches that the sides played in 2024, so this shouldn’t be seen as a game with a clear/outright favorite. Ahead of the afternoon matchup between Orlando and Seattle, here’s our match preview that covers an overview of both clubs, the head-to-head history, injury notes, key players to watch, and more.
Reign looking for a bounce back
Our Reign (1-1-1, 4 points in the NWSL table) are coming off that 2-1 road loss against Angel City FC in Los Angeles, sending them into last weeks international break in a reflective mood considering their frustration with their own mistakes in that defeat. After conceding the opening goal in the ninth minute, Seattle earned a penalty kick three minutes later, which Ji So-Yun successfully converted from the spot to level the game and give us a brand new match. In the second half, Angel City FC was able to find the game-winning goal by Riley Tiernan in the 63rd minute, snapping the Reign’s early unbeaten start to the year and giving them plenty to want to improve upon going into the aforementioned international window. Seattle hasn’t looked stellar per se early into this season, but their improvement from last years frustrating campaign has been noticeable and that should only heighten as the club gets healthy and comfortable as a unit. The Reign attack has shown some promising signs early, with Maddie Dahlien’s speed and pressing ability perhaps the most exciting piece so far, and it’s safe to say that the club’s offensive production should only get better going forward with both Biyendolo and Huitema seemingly ready for full action. Defensively, it’s been encouraging to see newer/younger faces like Madison Curry, Jordyn Bugg, and Emily Mason hold things down to an extent on the backline while veteran mainstay Phoebe McClernon continues to be an anchor. There’s a good bit to like about Seattle moving forward, with health potentially being their biggest hurdle as a unit.
Pride continuing to power on
Orlando (3-0-0, 9 points) enters this match with ten goals across their first three games of the year, only conceding once in the 2025 season and that score came in their last match. In that most recent contest, the Pride hosted San Diego Wave FC and secured a 2-1 win, with both goals coming in the second half from Haley McCutcheon and Marta (two players we’ll feature in our key players to watch later). Orlando didn’t do a lot in the offseason following their title victory, and it’s not as though they really had to, with their only notable transactions being forward Adriana moving on to a club in Saudi Arabia, signing Wake Forest/ team Canada defender Zara Chavoshi and Zambian midfielder, Prisca Chilufya. There were other moves from the Pride, but it was mostly just several rotational players hanging up their boots for retirement or leaving to try and find a better opportunity somewhere else. Orlando has two things that every club across soccer could want: an effective and deep attack plus an incredibly stout defense. The Pride have shown both with their goal differential of ten scored and just the one conceded this season through their three matches played, and by now I guess you can understand why we continue to hammer home how much of a tough contest this could be for our Reign.
Sights from the May 19th, 2024 matchup between the visiting Orlando Pride and our Seattle Reign FC at Lumen Field, a match that ended by a score of 3-2 in favor of the Pride. (Photos by Rio Giancarlo for Circling Seattle Sports)
Head-to-head matchup
Seattle holds a winning seven wins, four losses, and seven draws all-time head-to-head record against Orlando across all NWSL competitions. The Reign have won five of the last eight meetings, but the Pride travels to Seattle with a two-game win streak over the Reign, with both results from the 2024 season ending with 3-2 score lines despite how far apart the two clubs ended up being in the league table.
Theme of the match: Youth match
Reign FC will host its first Youth Match of two this season on Saturday, April 12 as the club looks to defend its home against reigning NWSL Champions Orlando Pride. The evening will be dedicated to young supporters and families while including activities and special experiences to engage in while cheering on the Reign. There will be two Kids Zones at the stadium with activities like coloring and friendship bracelet making, providing plenty of entertainment on and off the pitch for children and their families.
Sights from the May 19th, 2024 matchup between the visiting Orlando Pride and our Seattle Reign FC at Lumen Field, a match that ended by a score of 3-2 in favor of the Pride. (Photos by Liv Lyons for Circling Seattle Sports)
Lineup/injury notes
The most notable piece of information regarding Seattle’s lineup for this match against Orlando is that forward Lynn Biyendolo, the Reign’s biggest acquisition this offseason, is set to make her club debut after a few weeks of waiting. Biyendolo suffered a high and low ankle sprain after she got her ankle stuck in a hole while shooting in training, as she said on the Good Vibes podcast with Sam Mewis a few weeks ago, but she’s now set to make her Reign debut this afternoon against Orlando. She’ll be on a minutes restriction per head coach Laura Harvey, but having Lynn on the field in any sort of capacity will be a big deal for the club as they take on the reigning NWSL champions. Outside of Biyendolo, Harvey didn’t give any other clear idea of what the availability report would look like considering that the international players for the club had just returned and they hadn’t been in training as a whole, but the NWSL website says that midfielders Jess Fishlock and Ji So-Yun will miss this match with leg injuries. Unless something chances or the leagues website is incorrect, those are two very critical players for Seattle to not have in any match, let alone going up against the NWSL’s very best. It’ll be interesting to see how the Reign will handle the midfield considering who they’re missing due to injury, as we could see names like Sam Meza and Olivia Van Der Jagt inserted into the starting eleven.
Availability reports for both clubs are as follows:
Reign
OUT: Ryanne Brown (SEI – knee), Jess Fishlock (leg), Ji So-Yun (leg), Veronica Latsko (SEI – lower leg)
Pride
OUT: Amanda Allen (SEI - shoulder), Simone Charley (SEI – ankle), Julie Doyle (knee), Luana (SEI - illness), Aryssa Mahrt (knee), Rafaelle (thigh)
Key players to watch
For the Reign, Jordyn Bugg, Lynn Biyendolo, Angharad James-Turner, and Madison Curry are the four players that we’d keep an eye on in this contest. Bugg, Seattle’s swiftly rising defender, has made 18 clearances and posting a perfect tackle success rate (100%) so far this season as she was named to the NWSL Best XI for the month of March and also earned NWSL Goal of the Week honors back in Week two for her cannon shot of a goal against the North Carolina Courage. If the Reign are going to have any success today against Orlando, look for Jordyn Bugg to be huge defensively for Seattle. An obvious choice in this category would be Lynn Biyendolo, considering that everyone in the Reign fanbase and many across the NWSL in general have wanted to see her hit the pitch, and they’ll finally get to do so this afternoon at Lumen. All of Lynn’s abilities as an attacker make her a key upgrade for the Seattle attack, but getting to watch what she’ll be able to do with Dahlien in the offensive game is going to be fascinating. Angharad James-Turner and Madison Curry, like Bugg, are going to be critical for the Reign in this one. Curry has played every minute of Seattle’s first three matches of the season, and she currently leads the NWSL with 15 total interceptions on the season so far. Madison’s ability to cut off attacking play will be huge against the terrifying Orlando offensive attack. For James-Turner, aka “Haz,” her play as the six in this Seattle lineup has been interesting to watch and her best game in that role was the Reign’s big road victory against the Courage. With some key midfielders out and against this dominant Pride side, Haz will need another performance like that one versus North Carolina to help clog up the middle of the field.
For the Pride, you have to keep an eye out for Barbara Banda, Haley McCutcheon, Angelina, and of course Marta. One of the greatest athletes to ever set foot on the pitch, Marta made a somewhat surprising decision to return to Orlando for the next few seasons after what could’ve been a great moment to retire as she helped the Pride win the NWSL Championship last fall. If anybody had questions about how she’d look after that championship and at the age of 39 years old, Marta has silenced any of that early on with three goal contributions (Two goals, one assist) in three matches played. In regards to Banda, one of the most dangerous players in the league continues her strong play this season, as the Zambian forward already has two goals and an assist. Banda’s speed and technical ability make her a nightmare for defenses, while she’s already a tough player on the ball, and she chips in defensively as well. Former Reign midfielder Angelina has found a new home in Orlando since leaving Seattle in free agency a few years ago, and she has been a key playmaker that helps the Pride move the ball up field, so you could consider this a revenge match for her. Lastly to round out the players to watch for Orlando, key an eye on midfielder Haley McCutcheon (neé Hanson), who has the ability to play all over the field. We call her a midfielder because that’s where she’s mostly played so far this season, and she’s been able to contribute immediately in that role with two goals on the young season. McCutcheon’s hustle and heart make her the sort of engine that can drive a team forward and do all the sort of little things a club could ask of her, but she also possesses the wherewithal to make her way to the opposing box when opportunities arise.
Key storylines to watch
How will Seattle handle another tough test?
As we’ve told you time and time again in this preview, the Pride are off to one of their strongest starts in recent memory. With the three straight victories to begin the 2025 campaign and a chance to become the fourth 4-0 team in league history, Orlando now heads to Seattle looking to take part in that history. The Reign, already looking for a bounce back effort after the loss to Angel City on the road two weeks ago, are looking to play spoiler here at home but will be doing so without two key names and their depth as a club will once again be tested.
Will the home team take another victory in this head-to-head battle?
We’ve already discussed the head-to-head history of these two clubs, but there is a somewhat fun trend to watch for. The last five meetings between Orlando and Seattle have often favored the home team, with the club that was the home team in the respective match having won four of the last five meetings. It obviously isn’t the ultimate deciding factor, but it is somewhat interesting, and we’ll of course be watching to see if the Pride go against that trend or the Reign help keep it running.
Who will have the advantage from the jump in terms of energy?
Orlando is a time that can strike at any point, considering the weapons they have offensively, but notably they’ve scored early across their first two matches. They’re scored in the seventh and second minute of their first two matches, respectively, and Seattle will surely be looking to avoid suffering that same sort of fate happening to them this afternoon. Can Seattle do what they did against the Courage in North Carolina in week two when they were able to dictate pace of play and control the match from an early point, or will the Pride force them to play catch up?
Will Orlando have their way in terms of set piece play?
Orlando has been able to get some of their offensive so far this season from set play, including those two penalty goals that Marta has scored this year. In addition to those two penalty scores, as the legend has created three goals through set piece play, Banda and McCutcheon both have been able to take advantage of some balls into dangerous areas that the Pride have put into play from set pieces, so defending those and doing so well will be another major key for the Reign if they want to at very minimum walk away from this contest with a point.
Whose press will Reign supreme?
Seattle’s press is often a topic of discussion surrounding the Reign in the media scape, whether it’s because it did well and created strong opportunities for themselves or if it didn’t play out the way they wanted and became more of an issue than something positive. Orlando’s press is also quite notable, given that they have so much speed on the roster which can create plenty of problems for opposing clubs in transition. The Pride aren’t always constantly pressing, and they really didn’t do much of it at all last season, but it’s still something that Orlando has the capability of doing and therefore it’s another key for the Reign to watch for this afternoon.
“You’ve gotta pick your moments when to really go after them, but try and also, when you have the ball, control the game as well.”
Milestone tracker
While it’s already taken place back when the Reign beat the Courage in North Carolina in their week two contest, Seattle hasn’t had a home match to properly celebrate midfielder and team original Jess Fishlock hitting the 200 appearances mark in the league, so a ceremony for that will happen pregame.
Players looking for Reign debuts: Goalkeeper Maddie Prohaska, midfielder Sally Menti and forward Lynn Biyendolo.
50th NWSL appearance, if she players: forward Jordyn Huitema.
The club is also just one point away from reaching 400 points all-time across regular season play.
How to watch
For those who are unable to join us at Lumen field for this match, with tickets still available by clicking here for general options or here to join the supporters section, this contest will air on ION TV with play-by-play by JP Dellacamera and analysis by Jill Loyden, which is available free over the air in most markets and on a multitude of free streaming apps including Roku, Tubi, and Pluto TV. For international viewers, you can watch this match for free on NWSL+. If you’d like to be surrounded by fans of the Reign when you’re watching this match, you can always head to the official home of Circling Seattle Sports: Rough & Tumble Pub! With more than enough televisions for ALL of the sports, local brews, great food, there isn't a better place to catch a game and R&T is an especially great place to watch any Reign match considering that it’s Seattle's home to women's sports!
What’s next?
After this match against the Orlando Pride today, our Seattle Reign FC will have a second consecutive home match in their next contest. That game will be the first installment of this years “Cascadia rivalry” between our Reign and the Portland Thorns FC, as Seattle hosts their rivals to the South on Friday, April 18th with a kickoff time of 7PM PDT at Lumen Field. After the two clubs last met on June 16th, 2024, the all-time head-to-head record sits at a totally even 15 wins, 15 losses, and 10 draws for the two sides. Even with that being taken into account, Seattle hasn’t beaten Portland in a match since the group stage of the NWSL Challenge Cup (Remember that?) back on June 28th, 2023 at Providence Park as Elyse Bennett’s 55th minute score was all Seattle needed. Since that match, the Thorns have outscored the Reign 6-0 over a span of four games, with two matches resulting in scoreless draws. Portland hasn’t started this NWSL season off too hot, having failed to record a win in their first three matches of the campaign, as they’ve recorded back-to-back draws after falling to the Kansas City Current in the first match of the year. Coming off the international break this past week, our Reign will have some tough tests in the next few matches with the reigning league champion in Orlando and the always gritty battle against Portland after that.
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Cover photo of this article by Liv Lyons, check out her portfolio here.
Check out our previous articles with writing by Charles Hamaker here.
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