> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Reign Struggles to Stop Portland Onslaught in Cascadia Rivalry Loss - URL: https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/seattle-reign-struggles-portland-onslaught-cascadia-rivalry/ - Published: 2025-08-11T00:51:55.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-08T06:18:51.000Z - Author: Qasim Ali - Tags: News, Reign, Jess Fishlock, Claudia Dickey, Emeri Adames \[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="4128"\] ![ Seattle Reign FC midfielder Jess Fishlock kicks the ball during a game against the Portland Thorns on Aug. 10, 2025 at Providence Park in Portland Ore. (Seattle Reign FC / Jane Gershovich) ](https://storage.ghost.io/c/1d/f2/1df2f77b-83dd-4bc0-a6d2-6d1bb5df89a3/content/images/2026/10/credit-seattle-reign-fc-jane-gershovich_3-jpg-format-original-1.jpg) Seattle Reign FC midfielder Jess Fishlock kicks the ball during a game against the Portland Thorns on Aug. 10, 2025 at Providence Park in Portland Ore. (Seattle Reign FC / Jane Gershovich) \[/caption\] The NWSL's most heated rivalry didn't disappoint in Sunday's latest installment as Seattle Reign FC and Portland Thorns FC did battle for the 43rd time ever. The Thorns came away with a 4-2 win to stun Seattle after being held scoreless in its last two matchups with its rival. The four goals allowed was the Reign's worst total of the 2025 campaign. Jess Fishlock recorded a goal and an assist, contributing to both of Seattle’s goals for a second straight game. The loss drops Seattle (7-5-3 W-L-D) to sixth in the NWSL while Portland (7-4-4) moves to fifth with the stretch run of the season approaching. ### Early Scoring Continues The Reign was buoyed by an early score from Maddie Dahlien in its 1-0 win over the Thorns in April, as the youngster scored her first NWSL goal four minutes into the defensive contest. The second installment of the Cascadia Rivalry started exactly the same. Veteran midfielder Jess Fishlock, fresh off a game against Angel City FC in which she had a hand in both of Seattle's goals, delivered a perfect through ball to the Reign's leading goal scorer in Emeri Adames in the third minute. Adames calmly tapped it around Portland's Mackenzie Arnold to put Seattle on top in what promised to be a low-scoring game, considering previous installments. While a clean sheet on a 95-degree day is no easy task, Seattle had once again established early that a defensive gem would do just fine on Sunday afternoon. ### Physicality Goes Against Seattle Early, Reilyn Turner Capitalizes As expected, this was a physical matchup in the early going. The midfield was hotly contested as Portland's leading scorer Reilyn Turner worked her way into the box against Seattle's Jordyn Bugg in the 16th. Turner worked past her, but Bugg tackled the young star to send the Thorns to the spot in the 18th minute. Portland captain Sam Coffey showed little hesitation in the penalty, slamming it to the bottom left corner to give Dickey no chance as the stadium erupted. Turner continued her strong day just minutes later. The 22-year old added to her sensational campaign with a perfectly timed run in the 26th to field a pass from one of Portland's excellent midfielders, Jessie Fleming. Dickey came out to stop the opportunity, as she had multiple times in the game already, but Turner showed her class with a slick touch to the left to sneak a go-ahead goal in. Seattle had gone from pure excitement in the early going to having a comeback on its hands on a blistering day in Portland. “It was really hot out there,” Fishlock said. “On turf, it feels like your feet are on fire … that probably played into the momentum parts of the game.” ### The Onslaught After a hydration break around the 30th, Seattle forced its way into opportunities at the end of the half. But the Reign finished with just 0.43 expected goals to Portland's 1.83 despite having 59 percent possession. The Reign needed to do something it hadn't had to in its April win over Portland. It needed to take serious chances in the second half to get a result. Reign legend Megan Rapinoe even said on the broadcast that she'd like her team to be more "direct" in the back 45. Well, the Thorns looked like the team down a goal in the second half. After keeping the ball in the Reign's third for much of the early going, Portland widened its lead in the 55th. Olivia Moultrie, arguably the Thorns' most dynamic midfielder, finally got involved with some fancy footwork to generate a shot. Reyna Reyes headed the deflected shot in from close range to make Seattle's job that much harder down 3-1. The opportunities continued to pour in for Portland as Seattle struggled to work it into the opposing third. When it did, the veteran Fishlock appeared to be the most opportunistic piece on a young Reign squad. She missed Adames on a similar look to the opening goal, but continued to stay optimistic. That attitude was rewarded in the 64th as Madison Curry delivered a perfect right-to-left cross for a diving Fishlock, who finished with a header to cut the lead to one. But not even a minute later, the deficit reverted to two goals as Seattle's backline didn't close a gap properly coming off the kickoff. Pietra Tordin took advantage with service from Hina Sugita. "I thought at that point (after the goal) we were really going to step it up a little bit and put our foot," Fishlock said. “We just completely switched off and conceded arguably won of the worst goals ever two minutes after that. “That is just unacceptable.” Reign head coach Laura Harvey called it a “mental” lapse as Seattle struggled through the heat. Tordin would have another chance to score in the 72nd as Portland worked its way to 23 shots on the day - 12 more than Seattle. ### Lessons Learned The score settled on 4-2 by full-time, but it felt even worse. The Thorns finished with 4.35 expected goals to Seattle's 1.07 and, despite losing possession 60-40, pushed the Reign's backline around at times. You never want to learn a hard lesson with the stakes this high, but that's exactly what Harvey's group did on Sunday afternoon. Each goal came either on or relatively close to a set-piece situation, as the Thorns have been known for their proficiency in those spots. “You’re not going to win games if you concede four goals off set pieces,” Harvey said. The Reign wasn't able to utilize Sofia Huerta's service ability as the veteran defender created just one chance in 120 touches, down from two chances in 69 touches last week. The rest of the backline struggled, as Bugg gave up that early penalty while Shae Holmes didn't make much of an impact. Curry had the assist to Fishlock and was decent against plenty of Portland chances. But overall, Seattle wasn't able to respond to the physicality of Portland's attack on an extremely hot day in the Rose City. Fishlock, who is second on the Reign’s games played list and knows plenty about this rivalry, acknowledged that Seattle’s young players have lessons to learn in taming a hostile atmosphere. “You’re in a pressure cooker,” Fishlock said of the setting. “The intensity is always different in this kind of game, and you have to really feel that and work your way through it. Sometimes it’ll hit you like a ton of bricks.” Fishlock said she talked to Menti and Meza about not taking these moments too harshly, and that rivarly games can provide some of the best learning experiences possible. “Now we’re a part of the history and we can feel how much that sucks,” Curry said. “That’s the biggest learning tool.” Meanwhile, Dickey gave her very best. The star keeper logged seven saves, two of which were diving gems. The defensive breakdown can be attributed more to the sheer number of opportunities Portland generated in close rather than her performance in the net. Mia Fishel played the final 24 minutes for Seattle, her most of the season, and logged just five touches to create a few chances. But overall, the young Chelsea transfer was a non-factor in a 4-2 ballgame. Young midfielders Sally Menti and Sam Meza both looked decent at times, but were outplayed by Portland's standout group of Sugita, Coffey and Fleming - each of whom was relentless in creating Portland's chances. ### Up Next Seattle will have just over a week to lick its wounds as an Aug. 18 home date with Chicago awaits. No win can make up for the bitterness of dropping a rivalry game, but Seattle remains just a point behind Portland in the standings as the NWSL season approaches its most intense stretch. “We have loads of games left. This doesn’t need to derail our year,” Fishlock said.