Postgame Press Conference (vs. SD) • Friday, July 28, 2023
OL REIGN vs. SAN DIEGO WAVE FC
POSTGAME QUOTES
Friday, July 28, 2023 • Lumen Field • Seattle, WA
OL Reign Head Coach Laura Harvey
On clinching the West division in the Challenge Cup and her thoughts on the match:
“The whole journey of the Challenge Cup has been – we’ve managed it very purposely. I think we’ve made sure that players who we want to get minutes have got minutes, we’ve tried to utilize as many players as we can and I think in this period where we have a lot of players missing that’s either in the World Cup or through not being available, it’s meant that we could continue that sort of trend of showing up and putting in some good performances. I didn’t think tonight was our best performance, but I do think the one thing that I’ve been really proud of the group throughout the process is how professional we’ve been every game and how professional we’ve been in our performances and I thought we were professional again tonight.”
On the depth of the goalkeeper group:
“I think that’s been the greatest thing, probably throughout the journey, has been (goalkeeper) Laurel (Ivory) and (goalkeeper) Claudia (Dickey) putting on performances that we see every day and showing that to the fans. I think it’s given them two things: I think it’s given them trust within the group because until you play in games, there’s always a question mark. So, if and when they’re ever called upon, then it will be a seamless transition. Secondly, just for their development and their careers, they need to play some games and we identified that the Challenge Cup would be games that they would get and we’ll be continuing our rotation with those guys because they’ve obviously been performing at a really, really high level and I just was speaking to Laurel before I came in here, she’s already thinking about next week, she’s already prepared for what she wants to try and make sure she does in preparation for playing against Portland, which says everything about them.”
On the tactical performance on the defensive side:
“I thought it was good. I thought, obviously San Diego played (Wave forward Taylor) Kornieck higher in the first half, which they haven’t done against us and it’s smart because (midfielder Olivia Van der Jagt) Olo does a really good job against Taylor and it sort of nullified Olo in a little bit in regard to being able to compete with Taylor in those moments. But I thought there were periods in the first half where we got our press to step wrong and they got opportunities to get in behind us, so we spoke about that at halftime. I thought we did a better job in the second half and I think when you play against these teams, all three teams in the West, there are some very similar traits and they want to try and lure you into thinking that you’ve got them and then they try and get in behind you and there were occasions tonight where they did that, but we solved it or we didn’t allow them to do it. So, I think our press higher up could’ve been a little bit better at times, we’ve just got to commit to it a little bit, but I think that’s maybe a little bit of fatigue later in the game. But, overall, I thought obviously the defensive effort was great, getting a clean sheet again. But there are things I think we can continue to work on in preparation for next week.”
On forward Bethany Balcer wearing the captain’s armband:
“We try to hand it around a little bit to players and it’s no secret, (defender Lauren Barnes) Lu, (midfielder) Jess (Fishlock) and (forward Megan Rapinoe) Pinoe aren’t going to be here forever. I’ve said this publicly a few times, there’s a group here I could see the future of this club in and it’s a scary thought, thinking about them three not being here, but it’s also reality, we have to prepare. But, tonight’s average age, I was told at the kickoff was 25, which is exceptional for our club and I think with our subs, we’ve probably got younger not older, so it says a lot about where we’re at. We’ve got this group, and probably (forward Bethany Balcer) Boats sits in that group, that have been around a little bit, they’re still young but they’ve got experience and they’re surrounded by veterans who they know will lead for them when they need them, but also, we need them to lead at times, too, and we don’t just want to keep turning to Pinoe because there’s going to be a day she’s not here anymore and an armband can help someone step up. But there’s also other areas where I think just the pride in which she has playing for this club, I think she’s someone that has taken on a bigger role over the last couple of years since I’ve been back. I think she deserves an opportunity to have a little bit more responsibility and she took it on her shoulders tonight and obviously took on the responsibility of taking the penalty, too, which is great.”
OL Reign Forward Bethany Balcer and Goalkeeper Claudia Dickey
On her penatly kick:
Bethany Balcer: “Yeah, going into PKs, you kind of have an idea of what you want to do – if the goalie moves early, you kind of adjust. I went back and forth between a couple of spots I wanted to hit it, but I’ve been taking a lot of them that way. So, just went there and thankfully she didn’t get it.”
On her goal celebration:
Bethany Balcer: “No, I literally thought of it today. I’ve got to plan them sometimes and my boyfriend bet me that I wouldn’t do it and it gave me all the more reason to go out there and do it. So, the corner flag didn’t bounce back as quickly as I thought it would, but I think it still looked kind of cool.”
On her saves tonight and if any of them were challenging for her:
Claudia Dickey: “Definitely the first half, you always know that (Wave forward) Taylor Kornieck’s going to be in the game and that’s going to be their target, always, but I think just anticipating that and the defense did so well marking her, it was never even an issue. I never had to go up and compete with her on it, so I think that helped a lot. They did their job so I could do mine and it made it a lot easier for me than I thought it was going to be, basically. Then, second half, it was the same thing – we did so well marking, we didn’t let anybody into the box, basically, and our line held. So yeah, because of the defenders, it makes it look very easy, so I’m very grateful to them.”
On missing eight players due to the FIFA Women’s World Cup:
Bethany Balcer: “I think it just gives a good opportunity for people who maybe don’t get a lot of minutes in regular season to really step up and just show the depth of this team. We’ve been saying that this whole Challenge Cup that this team is so deep and we’re just proving it every game and that’s why we’re the top of the West. But I think it’s just a testament to the team culture that we have, every starting spot is so highly competed for and I think now you see why that we’re able to put two teams on the field that can compete at the same level and I think that’s really dangerous to have and that’s why we’re having the success that we do.”
On what it means to wear the captain’s armband:
Bethany Balcer: “It means a lot. Having (defender Lauren Barnes) Lu, who’s been the captain for this club’s entirety – just following under her leadership has been really inspiring, so every time I put it on, I kind of do it for Lu and how she’s paved the way for this club and what it’s become. You hear it talked about all the time, the culture that is at OL Reign, it’s just something that I’m proud to represent every time I step on the field, whether I wear the captain’s armband or not. I’m just grateful that the team and the coaching staff entrust me with that and obviously I loved being here for the last five years and hopefully that can continue.”
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