Houston Dash at Seattle Reign FC: Highlights, stats, and quotes
(image via Houston Dash)
The Houston Dash won for just the second time ever in Seattle, beating Reign FC 1-0 on Sunday night.
MATCH SUMMARY
Seattle Reign FC 0-1 Houston Dash
Sunday, May 11, 2025
Venue: Lumen Field - Seattle, Washington
Referee: Alyssa Nichols
Assistants: Tiffini Turpin, Melissa Gonzalez
Fourth Official: Yannick Rothfuss
VAR: Mark Verso
Attendance: 6,841
Weather: 58 degrees, light rain
SCORING SUMMARY
HOU: Maggie Graham (Ryan Gareis) 57’
DISCIPLINE SUMMARY
SEA: Maddie Dehlien (caution; foul) 16’
LINEUPS & STATS
Seattle Reign FC: Claudia Dickey; Lauren Barnes (c), Phoebe McClernon, Jordyn Bugg (Maddie Mercado 86’); Maddie Dahlien (Emeri Adames 71’), Angharad James-Turner (Ainsley McCammon 71’), Smantha Meza, Lynn Biyendolo, Ana-Maria Crnogorcevic (Shae Holmes 71’); Ji So-Yun (Madison Curry 57’), Jordyn Huitema
Unused substitutes: Emily Mason, Hanna Glas, Olivia Van der Jagt, Maddie Prohaska
Total shots: 6
Shots on goal: 1
Fouls: 5
Offside: 5
Corner kicks: 5
Saves: 1
Houston Dash: Abby Smith; Christen Westphal (Pagie Nielsen 64’), Katie Lind (c), Natalie Jacobs, Avery Patterson; Delanie Sheehan (Sarah Puntigam 83’), Danielle Colaprico, Maggie Graham; Ryan Gareis (Michelle Alozie 78’), Messiah Bright (Bárbara Olivieri 46’), Yazmeen Ryan
Unused Substitutes: Jane Campbell, Evelina Duljan, Kiki Van Zanten, Sophie Schmidt, Rebeca
Total shots: 3
Shots on goal: 2
Fouls: 12
Offside: 3
Corner kicks: 2
Saves: 1
HOUSTON DASH HEAD COACH FABRICE GAUTRAT
On the match:
"Seattle and Lumen Field is a very tough place to play. Obviously, the defensive performance was very good. So that continues with the trend with the last four games. I know sometimes we've conceded goals, but overall, a solid defensive performance, and we also got the clean sheet. So, very pleased with that. We created two real quality moments, and I think we could have ended the game then and there. So, overall very pleased with the result and performance."
On the decision to start Abby Smith:
"In every position, I've said it before, we're very competitive. We were about a little over the one-fourth marker of the season. As we all know, Abby (Smith) has played in this league, has had experience and we felt she was training well, and we wanted to give her a shot. So, we did that. I will take it one training and one game at a time. I can't make any promises for what it will look like next week. That's just the decision we made for this game."
On Ryan Gareis:
“The biggest thing is keep giving (Ryan Gareis) reference points of where she should play balls. On the other end of her crosses, we need runs to be made. Those are all crosses and runs that we're looking to make. Giving her good references, so that she knows what to pick out which she is getting better and better at."
On transitional moments:
“We have some very simple, but important principles when it comes to transition moments. Then we have another set of references for things like, 'Where's the back line? Are they high or low? Where should the ball be delivered?' All those things. Honestly, I haven't looked back at the goal yet. I saw it live, but at Lumen Field, you're sitting lower, so it's hard to catch everything. It's a combination of the team just having the quality that they had, but also giving them some clear references in transition, but also in those crossing moments."
On Maggie Graham’s impact:
“If you look earlier in the season, Maggie Graham was a real spark plug coming off the bench. We're still figuring out what role suits her best. We've also played her in a lot of different positions, which she's been doing well in. Her quality is one thing she brings in front of goal. We need to clean up those giveaways 100 percent, she'll be the hardest on herself out of anyone for that. But we do have a young group of players and sometimes you get to go with a little bit of the youth. She's still developing and learning how to play in that pocket or inverted forward, but overall, I've been pleased with her progress."
HOUSTON DASH DEFENDER NATALIE JACOBS
On the game:
“I'm super excited and proud of the group. That was a big win for us. We've been working hard for a while, and it felt good. Everybody played a big role in this game, everyone starting and everyone who came on. It was just a great team effort and I’m really proud of everyone."
On the defensive effort:
“It was a great team defensive performance. I'm proud of everyone for that. You could see the whole game, we were working to be a strong defensive unit. It was a great job by Abby (Smith) and a great job by everyone on the backline and further up the field as well. It was a super good performance in that regard."
On playing in a tight game:
“It's exciting and it's also very important how focused we all must be in every moment because one moment can determine a win for us or a loss. It's one of those games where every second you're locked in and trying to find how we can capitalize on it. We did that today."
On Seattle Reign FC’s lineup:
"It almost felt a bit like a chess match at times where it's like, okay we got to figure it out and work into the spaces that are open for us. It's exciting because we have to work together and that's kind of how it felt during the game. There were a lot of moments where it was transition, and we had to stop that and then kind of create our own. It was a good game in that sense, and we had to lock in the whole time."
HOUSTON DASH DEFENDER KATIE LIND
On the game:
“I am just so thrilled for the group. This was a massive win on the road. Not an easy place to play. But I thought we really stuck to the game plan. We really put in a great, defensive effort, I thought, and kept a clean sheet, which was huge. A great goal. I think we could have had a couple more, but just really, really proud of this group and the progress that we're making. Now on to the next."
On her first Mother’s Day and having her son with her at the game:
“It means the world to me. It's kind of come full circle. So, it's amazing that Tommy (Lind) can share these moments with me and be, you know, in and amongst the team, all of his aunties. So that's been just such a empowering and amazing experience to be able to share this with him."
On the defense in the game:
“Abby (Smith) did great back there for us. She was really clear in her communication. Obviously had some really big saves for us there at the end to help us keep the clean sheet. So proud of her for stepping in and just doing what she does best. So, kudos to her. For the backline, I thought we were pretty organized tonight. Limited their chances as best we could. Kind of shut down some of their, you know, firepower up front. So just really, really proud of our defensive effort. And that starts from the top down too."
On being the last defender against a high line from Seattle Reign FC:
“You kind of hit it on the nose. There was just a lot of push and pull. How high do we step? How low do we drop? Just trying to find that right balance. We did a lot of work in training on defensive transition in the instance that we would lose it maybe in a not great area on the field and just making sure that we got back into our spots as quickly as possible. That definitely played out tonight a couple of times. We were in the right spots at the right time, able to make those plays, at least as predictable as possible to try and and stop a counter."
On wearing the captain’s armband in the game:
“It's always an honor. Every time that I'm wearing the armband, it's a huge honor. I think today was a little more special because it is Mother's Day, so I felt a little extra motivation. Yes. Right, Tommy? He agrees. It's always such an honor. I'm just so grateful that the team entrusted me with that leadership today."
