While OL Reign’s 2021 Challenge Cup opener last Friday didn’t get the club the three points they wanted to start the year, there were some positive things to take away from the match. The team earned a point and kept a clean sheet against the Houston Dash — the 2020 Challenge Cup winners — and showed promising options in the attack in the second half.
With the caveat that one game is not enough to draw conclusions from, here are three things we observed in OL Reign’s first match — along with a few thoughts on what they could mean for their next set of Challenge Cup matches.