At Sandy, Utah, Cloe Lacasse scored three first-half goals for the first hat trick in franchise history to help provide the Royals with a three-game winning streak at the expense of the Reign, 3-0.
Lacasse scored in the third and 20th minutes before her final tally in first-half extra time. The first tally came when she converted off a Utah corner kick and then she followed up her own shot, which had been blocked, for the second goal.
Claudia Zornoza assisted on the third goal for the Royals (7-14-3, 24 points) by sending the ball to Lacasse just inside the box.
Lacasse, who has the NWSL’s only hat trick this year, had one goal in seven matches entering the day.
Goalkeeper Mandy Haught needed just one save for the shutout.
Seattle (5-14-5, 20 points) has lost five straight matches and has failed to produce a goal in any of those. The Reign was a player down after Angharad James-Turner’s red card in the 16th minute.
Washington Spirit 4, Racing Louisville FC 1
At Washington, Makenna Morris scored two goals in the first half as the Spirit stayed tied for the league’s second-best record.
Morris scored seven minutes apart in the first half for her third and fourth goals of the season. These were the first to come in a home match for the 22-year-old rookie.
Ashley Hatch’s penalty kick in the 56th minute stretched the margin for Washington (16-6-2, 50 points), which bounced back from a loss to regular-season champion Orlando from a week earlier. Lena Silano added the final Spirit goal in extra time.
The penalty kick came after Janine Beckie’s foul in the penalty area, drawn by Rosemonde Kouassi. Silano’s second goal of the season came after she subbed in for Morris in the 86th minute.
Emma Sears scored in the 72nd minute for Louisville (6-11-7, 25 points).
–Field Level Media