Racing Louisville and OL Reign once again played to a draw, this time a 2-2 tie at Lumen Field in Seattle that extended the clubs’ run of regular-season deadlocks with each other to five.
Saturday’s match left Racing disappointed because it was the second game this year against OL Reign that Louisville led 2-0 only to concede a late equalizer.
Wang Shuang’s penalty and Paige Monaghan’s 76th-minute goal built Racing’s lead, but Veronica Latsko and Elyse Bennett scored in the final 10 minutes for OL Reign.
“We did a good job in the first half, moving them and making them shift from side to side,” said Monaghan. “In the end, though, they had two good chances and punished us for it and then it’s a 2-2 game. Unfortunate, and it doesn’t feel good walking away from that, but we have to keep pushing on. The only way is forward for us.”
Racing Louisville (3-4-7, 16 points) leads the National Women’s Soccer League with seven draws, and three of them have come after Racing took a two-goal lead. Louisville is 3-0-3 this season when scoring first.
Still, midfielder Jordan Baggett, who started her first regular-season game in a Racing uniform, echoed Monaghan and said the draw presented an opportunity for her team.
“Obviously disappointed and frustrated to give up that win and those three points,” Baggett said, “but at the same time, I’m really proud of our effort and it’s a huge learning moment for us. We’ll go back and watch the film and learn from this.”
Racing kept OL Reign (7-4-3, 24 points) at bay for most of the game, holding the hosts to one shot on target in the first half. Louisville has kept opponents scoreless in 10 of 14 first halves this season, more than any other club.
Wang Shuang won the penalty in the 23rd minute when OL Reign’s Jess Fishlock knocked down Wang Shuang’s shot with her arm in the box. A minute later, Wang converted the penalty, her second of the season.
In the second half, Monaghan took advantage of a loose ball rolling into her path, blasting a shot from 16 yards out that OL Reign goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce got a hand on but couldn’t fully stop. It was Monaghan’s second goal of the year, both coming against OL Reign.
In the game’s waning moments, OL Reign halved its deficit with a Veronica Latsko header in the 82nd minute. Elyse Bennett, who assisted Latsko’s goal, headed in a deflected shot five minutes to draw level with Louisville.
“In the end, I think we need to sit together as a group a little bit better,” Racing coach Kim Björkegren said. “(OL Reign) always starts to go long. That’s what they always do. … Overall, a good performance, but of course extremely disappointed with only one point when you have a 2-0 lead with only eight minutes left.”
Racing has one more NWSL regular-season game before the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup starts in mid-July, a July 7 home match against the Kansas City Current.
Game Summary: Racing Louisville FC at OL Reign
Date: July 1, 2023
Venue: Lumen Field
Kickoff: 3:30 p.m. ET
Weather: 70 degrees, sunny, slight breeze
Player of the Match: Wang Shuang
Scoring
Racing Louisville (1, 1, 2)
OL Reign (0, 2, 2)
Goals
Racing Louisville:
24’ Wang Shuang (penalty)
76’ Paige Monaghan
OL Reign:
82’ Veronica Latsko (Elyse Bennett)
87’ Elyse Bennett (Nikki Stanton)
Lineups
Racing Louisville FC (4-3-3): 1 – Katie Lund; 16 – Carson Pickett, 20 – Abby Erceg, 4 – Elli Pikkujämsä, 2 – Lauren Milliet; 6 – Jaelin Howell (c), 9 – Kayla Fischer, 19 – Jordan Baggett; 5 – Paige Monaghan, 22 – Kirsten Davis (67’ 21 – Parker Goins), 77 – Wang Shuang (90’ 13 – Emina Ekic)
Subs not used: 99 – Olivia Sekany; 3 – Zaneta Wyne, 15 – Julia Lester, 25 – Rebecca Holloway, 29 – Uchenna Kanu, 31 – Riley Parker
Head Coach: Kim Björkegren
OL Reign (4-3-3): 91 – Phallon Tullis-Joyce; 22 – Ryanne Brown (72’ 20 – Alyssa Malonson), 17 – Sam Hiatt, 21 – Phoebe McClernon (80’ 25 – Shae Holmes), 3 – Lauren Barnes (c); 7 – Nikki Stanton, 10 – Jess Fishlock (65’ 24 – Veronica Latsko), 33 – Olivia Van der Jagt (80’ 12 – Olivia Athens); 8 – Bethany Balcer, 34 – Elyse Bennett, 23 – Tziarra King (72’ 51 – McKenzie Weinert)
Subs not used: 30 – Claudia Dickey; 13 – Marley Canales, 31 – Natalie Viggiano, 54 – Jadyn Edwards
Head Coach: Laura Harvey
Stats Summary: Racing Louisville / OL Reign
Shots: 7 / 12
Shots on Goal: 4 / 4
Expected goals: 0.91 / 0.58
Possession: 52.6% / 47.4%
Fouls: 18 / 14
Offside: 3 / 1
Corner Kicks: 3 / 2
Discipline Summary
Racing Louisville:
41’ Wang Shuang (yellow)
OL Reign:
4’ Phoebe McClernon (yellow)
23’ Jess Fishlock (yellow)
53’ Nikki Stanton (yellow)
Referee: Alex Billeter
VAR: Kevin Terry Jr.
