The San Diego Wave fell 1-0 to OL Reign in the 2023 NWSL UKG Challenge Cup on Friday night at downtown Seattle’s Lumen Field.
After a scoreless first half, Reign took the lead in the 70th minute when midfielder Bethany Balcer converted from the penalty spot.
San Diego had three shots on goal, with the best opportunity happening in the 30th minute when forward Jaedyn Shaw hit a free kick that found midfielder Taylor Kornieck. Kornieck headed on frame but had her attempt saved by Seattle goalkeeper Claudia Dickey.
Kornieck was injured twice in the match. The second time just before halftime, Kornieck came in contact with an opposing player and was lead off the pitch with a nose injury.
She didn’t return for the second half.
The penalty kick proved to be the only goal of the match, resulting in a 1-0 win for the host team.
The Wave is out of contention for the Challenge Cup playoffs; however, the team is still in the hunt for the regular season NWSL playoffs. The Wave is in sixth place in the table.
OL Reign is in first place in the Challenge Cup and moves on to the semifinals.
The Wave announced two items of good news the club this week:
Defender Abby Dahlkemper was on the active game day roster for the first time since being put on the Season Ending Injury list in October 2022 due to back surgery. She did not appear in Friday’s match.
In addition, goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan — now playing with the Canadian national team in the Women’s World Cup — signed a new contract to play with the Wave through the 2026 season.
The Wave return home for the first time in nearly a month to host Angel City FC in the final group match of the 2023 NWSL UKG Challenge Cup on Saturday, Aug. 5.
The match is set to kickoff at 4:30 p.m. PT at Snapdragon Stadium and will be streamed domestically on Paramount+ and internationally on NWSLsoccer.com.
