The Portland Thorns’ chances of winning their NWSL Challenge Cup group just got slimmer.
The Thorns lost 1-0 to OL Reign on Wednesday night at Providence Park, grinding through a mostly out-of-sync match with a heavily rotated lineup in their first tilt since World Cup participants departed. Portland now sits at third in their Challenge Cup group with three points through three group stage matches, with OL Reign (10 points) and Angel City FC (4 points) above them.
The first half was rough at times, with both teams figuring the match out at a measured pace. Sam Coffey — in her first match wearing the captain’s armband for the Thorns — was a force in the midfield, as was young upstart Olivia Moultrie.
The Thorns had their first real chance in the 14th minute, a ball ahead from Hannah Betfort that reached Michele Vasconcelos, who played it back to Moultrie for the shot that went just wide.
The Reign nearly scored in the 43rd minute off the foot of Elyse Bennett, but Bennett was ruled offside and the goal didn’t count.
Moultrie had a shot saved in stoppage time but beyond that, neither team was able to produce much with the ball at its feet.
In the 52nd minute, Moultrie fired another long shot on-goal that forced a leaping save.
Portland picked up its first yellow card in the 54th minute, assessed to Meaghan Nally at the back. That set up a free kick in dangerous territory for the Reign, who immediately capitalized.
The Reign went up 1-0 in the 56th minute as Bennett’s header was true off the free kick attempt.
Portland brought on substitutes Natalie Beckman and Natalia Kuikka in the 63rd minute, replacing Vasconcelos and Betfort. The moves allowed rookie fullback Reyna Reyes to move up into the midfield and display her versatility.
In the 70th minute, Coffey played a nice ball across to Izzy D’Aquila, whose header fell wide.
More substitutes joined the party for the Thorns in the 77th minute as Gabby Provenzano and Tegan McGrady replaced Taylor Porter and Meghan Klingenberg. It was the season debut for McGrady, who spent several weeks recovering from a thigh injury.
Portland could not find the tying goal in the final minutes of the match, but Moultrie gave it her all. Her powerful shot in the 90th minute forced another leaping save, and moments later a dangerous collision forced her to undergo concussion testing.
Fans lamented the officials in the final minutes as no cards were assessed to the extremely physical Reign, and the match overall had several moments that did not go in Portland’s favor when it came to the whistle.
Next up: The Thorns return to regular season play as they host the Kansas City Current. The match kicks off at 7 p.m. Saturday at Providence Park with a live broadcast on CBS Sports Network.
— Ryan Clarke, rclarke@oregonian.com, Twitter: @RyanTClarke