• Final stats

ORLANDO, Fla. – The Orlando Pride had the fortune of having their full roster on hand, save for injured midfielder Camila Martins Pereira, but that wasn’t enough for three points in their most recent home bout.

Orlando (1-2-2, 5 points) drew 1-1 with Seattle Reign FC (2-1-1, 7 points) at Orlando City Stadium in front of an announced attendance of 5,058 fans Saturday night.

The two opposite-coast teams’ Central Florida bout epitomized their joint, all-time record, as both teams are now 1-1-3 against the other. For Pride boss Tom Sermanni, it’s a matter of similarities.

“I think we’re both similar kinds of teams. You know, I think we’ve got good, quality international players,” Sermanni said after the draw. “I think we play a similar style of soccer, and I think, you know, generally across the teams, we’re quite evenly matched, and I think you see that in all the games that we play against them.”

Trailing 1-0 after one half of play, the Pride amplified their attack almost immediately after the second-half whistle sounded.

Their flurry of early attacks didn’t culminate in an equalizer in the run of play, however. Instead, forward Alex Morgan drew a foul in the 61st minute to set up forward Marta Vieira da Silva, who was making her return for the Pride on Saturday, for a free kick.

With fellow free-kick threat Alanna Kennedy hovering, too, Marta struck the ball from distance outside the top of the box, past Seattle keeper Michelle Betos.

“So, at that position, right there, where the foul was, I feel very comfortable,” Marta said, translated from Portuguese, after the match. “So, right away, I just talked to Alanna, and I talked to Christine [Nairn], and I told them that, that position, I feel very comfortable. And I’m very happy to be able to finish and put the ball in the back of the net.”

Seattle scored the opening goal of the match off a free kick. The initial chance looked to be non-threatening, but poor clearing efforts allowed the Reign’s Megan Oyster to head the ball to an open teammate.

Oyster found midfielder Allie Long with a header near the left part of Orlando’s 6-yard box, leaving her and Pride keeper Ashlyn Harris in a close-range, one-on-one situation. Long finished her 33rd-minute chance with a strike to the right of Harris for a 1-0 lead.

“Originally, it was a set piece off the second ball and a little bit of transition in between clearing the lines, and, yeah, I don’t know whether it was possibly offside, but we’ll have to check that,” Kennedy said after the draw. “Yeah, I just think, you know, we obviously have to stick with our players there, and it was a good finish by them.”

The Pride had their fair chances at an opening-half goal, too, as they produced 12 shots (four on-goal) in the first 45 minutes. Those chances primarily came in the 12th minute when Kennedy unloaded an on-target effort that was deflected out by Betos.

Right back Ali Krieger put the ball back into play, and Morgan had a go at it, too, but her chance also ended as one of Betos’ four saves.

“I think at different times during the game both teams were in the ascendancy,” Sermanni said. “I thought we had a very good 25 minutes of the first half, and I thought we had a very good 25 minutes in the second half.

“I think the key thing to take away from the game–or one of them–is that I think when we’re having those good spells…I think what we need to our game, now, is actually scoring.”

The Pride have returned the necessary pieces to complete that part of their game, as Marta and Kennedy, who contributed 18 goals and seven assists last season, are back.

Returning to full strength will take time, though, as those players–as well as starting center back Monica Hickmann Alves and second-half sub Emily van Egmond–are coming off strenuous schedules and length flights.

This was a realization Kennedy came to after playing a physical 90 minutes for Orlando, wherein she came up hobbling around the 60th minute.

“To be honest, I feel a little tired. I felt pretty good going into the game, but I did cop a few knocks throughout, as well. Don’t think that helped,” Kenned said. “You definitely know when you’re in Orlando. The humidity here is different to anywhere else. I’m from Australia, and I’m saying that.

“So, I mean, I sort of knew it was going to happen, but I think it’s good that we have a few games so I’m able to sort of get back into the rhythm. But, otherwise, felt good.”

Who’s Next?

The Pride will take to the road for three games, beginning with the Chicago Red Stars on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. Chicago is, so far, 2-1-3 in 2018.

For more on the Pride, as they prepare for the quick turnaround, follow Victor Tan on Twitter at @NDR_VictorTan.

To contact Victor, you can email him at vtan@newdayreview.com.