There were roses to be crushed and milestones to be celebrated at Lumen Field Friday night. The Seattle Reign claimed their second win of the 2025 season, beating the Portland Thorns 1-0 and moving one spot up in the table to sixth.
Seattle started on the front foot, scoring the match's lone goal in the fourth minute. With the Thorns' defense drawn wide to the right, Lynn Biyendolo created space and threaded the needle to Maddie Dahlien down the left side. Dahlien turned on the jets and outstepped Kaitlyn Torpey, slipping the ball into the far corner past Sam Hiatt and goalkeeper Bella Bixby. The goal opened the rookie Dahlien’s pro scoring account after a handful of near misses in recent matches. With the assist, Lynn Biyendolo tied Sofia Huerta and Jess McDonald for the all-time NWSL assist record.
Down early, Portland struggled to get anywhere near the attacking third without being dispossessed. However, the Reign couldn’t capitalize on their upper hand, which grew more worrisome as the Thorns grew into the game. Sam Coffey, Reilyn Turner, and Caiya Hanks began to stretch the field and create chances, forcing Claudia Dickey to make some key saves. Seattle’s possessive control was slipping away, but their defensive effort weathered the storm and they came away with all three points.
WHAT WORKED: Lynn 🤝 Lynn Jr.
Lynn Biyendolo terrorizing NWSL defenses with track star acceleration and crafty ball movement is nothing new. A rookie with a similar skillset playing next to and learning from Biyendolo herself? They pose quite the threat despite their limited time playing together.
“I think that Maddie’s ceiling is so high. I’m lucky I get to play with her and see her grow,” Biyendolo said following the match. Speaking to Dahlien directly, she said, “You remind me of a younger me, and I’m hopeful that I can help in any way to teach you things that I learned later in my career.”
Dahlien was just as eager to return the praise after the pair’s first substantial minutes together. “Lynn is so fun to play with, I’m always ready when she’s on the ball…She talks about contributing, she can contribute without being on the field. She’s such an amazing leader, and I think I learned a lot from her even with her not on the field.”
WHAT WORKED: Clau-ing up the table
Claudia Dickey had an excellent performance, earning her first clean sheet of the season in a match that could’ve easily become a 1-1 draw or worse. Dickey played with discipline, athleticism, and grit that kept the Reign on top as Portland took set piece after set piece. All in all, a baller showing from the former UNC point guard.
WHAT DIDN'T WORK: Leaving the door open
Letting Portland control the run of play worked alright at the beginning of the match, when they couldn’t string a pass together and the Reign could pounce on every hesitation. The strategy waned in effectiveness throughout the game as the Thorns made fewer mistakes, and it became apparent that Seattle would have to create their own opportunities.
Head coach Laura Harvey felt her team was overplaying and giving up possession unnecessarily.
“We have to decide, are we clearing the ball? If we’re clearing, put it in row Z. If we’re playing, pass it to someone. We get caught in between, and we give them the ball back thirty yards from goal, and their attack continues.”
Harvey, Biyendolo, and Dahlien agree that while they are proud of scraping together a win, improvements must be made. Another thing they agree on: it’s a lot more enjoyable to learn lessons while winning than it is while losing.
Seattle will have a week to make those adjustments before flying to San Jose to take on Bay FC next Saturday, April 26th, at 7 pm. The match will air on ION in the U.S. and on NWSL+ internationally.
