Reign Send Out Barnes With Playoff-Clinching Win in Regular Season Home Finale
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Seattle Reign defender Lauren Barnes is hugged by her teammates after a NWSL match against the Utah Royals on Friday, Oct. 17, 2025 at Lumen Field in Seattle, Wash. (Jane Gershovich / Reign FC Communications) [/caption]
SEATTLE — It was the second straight week that Seattle Reign head coach Laura Harvey's squad was playing a team down on its playoff luck in the 12th-seeded Utah Royals. With nothing to play for but "pride" according to Harvey, she saw Utah, a squad that had won three of its last five, as a real threat to a No. 5 Seattle side looking to clinch a playoff berth with a result.
The Reign, perhaps spurred by the fact that it could have been the last time that NWSL games-played leader Lauren Barnes played at home, outdueled the Royals 2-1 to help honor their captain, who received tributes throughout the evening. With the win, Seattle (10-7-8) not only secured a playoff spot but also moved two points ahead of Orlando for third place ahead of the Pride's game on Saturday.
In short, this win goes a long way toward Seattle's hopes of ensuring that Barnes plays in front of the Reign faithful one last time with a top-four seed. It didn’t come without drama.
Ainsley McCammon Gets Up, Seattle Goes Up
The first 15 minutes of this game belonged to Utah, and Utah alone. The Royals held a 5-0 shot advantage and controlled over 60 percent of possession, despite being the second-worst expected-goal producer in the league behind Seattle.
But a diving save from Seattle keeper Claudia Dickey three minutes in represented the only imposing threat of the game, as Seattle managed to keep goose eggs on the board.
“I actually sat on my cooler and was like, 'OK, yeah, now it's a game everybody,'” Harvey said postgame.
As Seattle's press and rare five-player backline finally started to pay dividends with more sustained possession, the Reign began to narrow the opportunity disparity. Mia Fishel, who notched the start at forward on the left side, had a header narrowly miss on a corner from Sofia Huerta. Still, the Reign had earned some real credibility in a match where opportunities were slated to come at a premium.
Ainsley McCammon, who was making her sixth start of the season with fixtures like Sally Menti and Jordyn Huitema missing the game with injury and illness, respectively, finally broke through in first-half stoppage time.
McCammon sent a ball from well in Seattle territory to Fishel, who forced a throw-in after a great touch. With the ball in Utah territory, Maddie Dahlien worked the left baseline and served up a perfect high ball suited for a tall striker like Huitema. Instead, McCammon attacked the ball with a strong header to score her first career goal, putting the Reign on top.
Maddie Dahlien with an incredible cross to set up Ainsley McCammon's first NWSL goal! 🎉 pic.twitter.com/61jmlATvHO— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) October 18, 2025
But Barnes noticed the urgency from the 18-year-old midfielder before she even scored.
"Right before her goal, she was the one that was yelling, 'Hey we need to get a goal before half,'" Barnes said. "She took it into her own hands."
Another Costly Seattle Mistake, and a Swift Response
For the second straight week, the Reign gave up an equalizing opportunity on a poor pass going the other way. Last time it was Jordyn Bugg, this time it was on Dahlien, whose short pass at midfield didn’t have enough on it.
Paige Monaghan, who was scored on by McCammon earlier, went the other way with the poor pass. She saw nothing but turf for 50 yards, keeping Dahlien at bay before launching a scorcher over Dickey to level it at 1-1.
Seattle may have reeled for a moment, but you wouldn’t have been able to tell. Maddie Mercado worked for a ball in Utah's box before being tackled from behind by Bianca Rose St-Georges, leading to an eventual penalty call after VAR.
Calm, cool and collected 🧘♀️ pic.twitter.com/eDkLPoUepK— Seattle Reign FC (@reignfc) October 18, 2025
Huerta, making her 200th career start, nailed the penalty kick to the left side to retake the lead — one Seattle would hold onto without giving up many more opportunities for the remainder of the game.
Takeaways: The Reign Are Back
One season removed from a 13th-place finish in their first season after the retirement of Megan Rapinoe, the Reign sit in third place (for the moment) with one game to play.
Not bad.
Harvey credited the turnaround to glue players like the injured Lynn Biyendolo, who she says empowered veterans like Barnes and Jess Fishlock to take up a bigger leadership mantle. It’s paid off in a big way, as Barnes (five duels won) showed she’s still got it with a flawless start in which the Reign won ground duels 40-25.
Seattle’s defensive identity still isn’t perfect, given that it allows so many opportunities. But it’s a workable identity on a night where the Reign generate real chances like they did against Utah — 1.51 expected goals on 11 shots is something to build off.
On the offensive end, Mercado's work rate earned Seattle free kicks and the Huerta penalty, as her second game since being recalled from loan was one to remember. Then you have McCammon, an 18-year-old, scoring her first goal on a powerful header on service from a 21-year-old Dahlien. With Jordyn Huitema out of this game due to illness, Harvey needed someone to fill in that vertical role and McCammon did that and more.
McCammon’s long passing ability and individual ball-handling add a different layer to this attack. But her vocal leadership affirmed the thought in the organization that this team could run the NWSL in the not-so-distant future.
“We’re going to have big shoes to fill,” McCammon said of the veterans on the team. “But we’re learning from the best.”
Long story short, Seattle, yet to win an NWSL postseason title, will go into this playoff run with house money in a sense. It’s the last ride for Barnes, but even Harvey didn’t expect her team to be riding this high this late in the campaign.
Might as well win the whole blanking thing.
Thank You, Lu Barnes
It’s been a whirlwind of a week for Lauren “Lu” Barnes.
The NWSL legend announced her retirement following the season earlier this week and has fielded all the questions from media that come with a story of that magnitude while preparing for what turned into a key start.
With around 25 family members in attendance, Barnes shared that she had to let out a quick cry before taking the field as the emotion of the week caught up to her.
Can the real Lu Barnes please stand up ✋ pic.twitter.com/WTZ6x3x3lJ— Seattle Reign FC (@reignfc) October 18, 2025
Players posed for the pre-game photo with Barnes-themed masks while Barnes received a special jersey with “250” on it to commemorate her league-record 250th game last week. After a game in which the legend played the duration in relief of Phoebe McClernon, who is recovering from a minor knock and came on late, Barnes was honored again with a video tribute. Former teammates like Megan Rapinoe thanked Barnes in the video, as the waterworks started all over again for the club legend.
The reception after Lauren Barnes is honored following #ReignFC’s 2-1 win over the #Royals.
Powerful moment for a league original.@EmeraldSpectrum | #NWSL pic.twitter.com/v2zvuIbsEh— Qasim Ali (@qasimasports) October 18, 2025
But what Barnes is building right now is a legacy in the form of the youth movement on this team. Barnes’ personable nature has made the transition into pro sports smooth for players like McCammon.
“She’s so easy to come to with anything you need,” McCammon said of Barnes. “To have that coming in (for) the younger players, (it’s) a game-changer.”
While Barnes has no firm plans for what to do at the end of this run, she didn’t rule out a coaching role with Harvey and company when asked.
“I learned from the best,” Barnes said of Harvey.
Up Next
Plenty of Reign players will be traveling to various locations next week as the NWSL takes off for an international break. October 22 will see Jess Fishlock suit up for her final international appearance with Wales while Sam Meza, Jordyn Bugg and Claudia Dickey are available for selection in U.S. friendlies throughout the week.
The Reign will take the field for their regular-season finale at Orlando on November 1, likely deciding whether Seattle will host a playoff game to start their postseason run. Harvey expects players like Sally Menti and McClernon to be fully recovered from injuries when that time comes.
