Sofia Huerta knows her selection to the USWNT roster for the 2023 World Cup tells a story of dedication and persistence.

“I’ve faced a lot of adversity in my career and there were definitely times where I wasn’t sure if it was going to be possible for me to be named to a World Cup roster or Olympic roster,” the defender said after OL Reign’s 2-1 win over the San Diego Wave on Saturday.

“Going to my first big tournament at (age) 30, it feels crazy, but it just shows that I have a lot of perseverance and resilience.”

Huerta made her international debut at the 2012 U-20 Women’s World Cup as a member of Mexico’s roster, a decision she made after she wasn’t named to the U.S. team for the tournament. She went on to record five caps for Mexico’s senior national team, but in 2017, she officially switched her national affiliation with the goal of representing the United States.

She recorded her first cap for the U.S. on March 7, 2018, but then found herself left off of national team rosters for more than three years. While Huerta aimed to compete for the U.S. as an outside back, she instead found herself playing as an attacker in the NWSL, first for the Chicago Red Stars and then for the Houston Dash.

Huerta credits her trade to the Reign in 2020 and Laura Harvey’s return in 2021 with changing her trajectory.

“When I got to the Reign, it was just easier to have more freedom and play the way that I knew how, especially when Laura took over and put me at outside back,” Huerta explained.

“I’m proud of myself, for sure, but it’s not a coincidence that I’ve been selected (for the World Cup) now that I play on the Reign.”

Megan Rapinoe was subbed out of Saturday’s NWSL game between the OL Reign and Kansas City Current with an apparent calf injury, a concerning sight for the two-time World Cup champion just days ahead of the USWNT’s World Cup roster release.

Rapinoe started the game, but within the first minute of play, was seen massaging her lower leg. Play was stopped in the second minute after Rapinoe sat down on the field and OL Reign’s trainers stepped on to assess her condition. After attempting to jog it off on the sidelines, she exited the field to return to the locker room in the fifth minute and was replaced by Veronica Latsko. The Reign went on to win Saturday’s game, 2-1.

“She’s ok, I think. I truly don’t know the severity of it,” OL Reign head coach Laura Harvey said, noting that the team may have handled the situation differently if the World Cup wasn’t just weeks away. “I’m glad she could get out quickly and not have to push through it.”

USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski is expected to announce his World Cup roster in just over a week, with Steven Goff of the Washington Post reporting that players are expected to be told of their status by this Thursday, June 15.

After dealing with an ankle injury during the NWSL offseason, Rapinoe missed the first two games of the 2023 season and wasn’t available for selection for April’s USWNT friendlies against Ireland due to a calf injury. But since late April, she has started every OL Reign game and logged consistent minutes — until Saturday night.

OL Reign captain Lauren “Lu” Barnes is the first player to make 200 regular season appearances in NWSL history, playing all 90 minutes in the Reign’s 2-1 win over the visiting Kansas City Current on Saturday.

During her 11-season tenure with the Reign, Barnes has only missed 14 of the club’s 214 regular season games. The 34-year-old also holds the league record for most games started (196) and minutes played (17,328).

Reign head coach Laura Harvey, who also recently hit her 200th regular season NWSL game coached, struggled to find words to describe Barnes’ feat.

“It’s really hard to put in perspective how big of an achievement that is for her,” Harvey said. “To have done it for the same club, in a league that’s set up for that not to happen, is phenomenal.”

Despite her longevity in the league, Barnes isn’t exactly the biggest NWSL — or even OL Reign — name, something Harvey called out on Saturday.

“She’s willing to put her body on the line for the team and she does it without needing to be the star,” the head coach said. “She’s humble and wants everyone else to get the limelight instead of it being her.”

True to form, Barnes played down the accomplishment in her post-game remarks.

“For me, it’s another game,” she said. “We’ve been focused on what’s ahead of us, game by game. So, I’m proud of the team, we put up a good performance together, today, and yeah, 200 with one club, I couldn’t be more proud.”

Barnes, a UCLA alum who played in the Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) league before it folded, was selected by the Reign — then Seattle Reign FC — as the 10th overall pick in the NWSL’s Supplemental Draft in 2013. She is one of just five players to have played with the same club since the NWSL’s launch, joining Reign teammates Megan Rapinoe and Jess Fishlock, plus Christine Sinclair (Portland Thorns) and Tori Huster (Washington Spirit).

“If I thought I was gonna still be here 11 years ago, I would probably say no,” Barnes told the Associated Press earlier this season. “The way the league started off, there’s been huge improvements. There’s definitely a life and an opportunity to make this a lifestyle and a job — the last probably three to five years or so. So that’s really promising for the next generations to come and it’s been really fun to be a part of that and build that.”

NJ/NY Gotham FC’s McCall Zerboni (198) is the next NWSL player in line to hit 200 regular season appearances.

The last time the Portland Thorns defeated OL Reign in Seattle, the Thorns had two fewer stars above their crest.

Portland’s 2-0 shutout win at Lumen Field on Saturday was the Thorns’ first NWSL regular season win against the Reign since 2018 and first road win at a Reign stadium since 2017. Since then, the Thorns have added two NWSL championship titles (2017, 2022) and another NWSL Shield (2021) — all while defeating their Pacific Northwest rivals remained a challenge.

“Every time we play them it’s a battle,” said Thorns defender Emily Menges. “The messaging before the game from (head coach) Mike (Norris) was, ‘Yep, come for the battle, but don’t make it a street fight, make it a boxing match.’ … I think we rose to that occasion and I think that’s what we did.”

Sophia Smith opened scoring for the Thorns in the 17th minute, curling the ball inside the right post. It was Smith’s fifth goal of the NWSL season (tying her for first in the Golden Boot race), but first since she recorded a hat trick against the Kansas City Current on April 1.

“I’ve been staying level-headed and not overthinking not scoring a goal,” Smith said of her scoring drought. “At the end of the day, I feel like I’ve still impacted the game in a lot of different ways. But obviously as a nine, as a goal-scorer, I take a lot of pride in helping my team score goals. So my not doing that for a little bit obviously was hard and it was something I had to deal with internally because I didn’t want to negatively affect the team when we were playing well. But to just get a goal in a big game like this, it lights a new fire in me and make me feel like I’m back to being Soph.”

Christine Sinclair closed it out for the Thorns with an 87th minute goal — a nice bookend to the Canadian legend’s decision at the end of last season to continue playing with the Thorns. In a speech announcing her free agency decision, Sinclair received an ovation from Thorns’ fans when she shouted, “F— Seattle.”

Saturday’s game was part of a doubleheader, following an MLS match between the Portland Timbers and Seattle Sounders. Still, there was some disappointment that many of the 42,054 fans who filled Lumen Field for the first game, which ended in a 0-0 draw, didn’t stick around to watch the second.

The dwindling crowd also resulted in some confusion over a longstanding attendance record. Ahead of Saturday’s game, the best-attended women’s club soccer game in the United States was the opening game of the WUSA in April 2001, when 34,148 fans packed into Robert F. Kennedy Stadium to watch the Mia Hamm’s Washington Freedom defeat Brandi Chastain’s Bay Area CyberRays. The NWSL record is 32,000, set during San Diego FC’s first ever game at Snapdragon Stadium in September 2022.

Despite the asterisk on the attendance figure, OL Reign head coach Laura Harvey, who became the first NWSL coach to coach 200 regular season games on Saturday, was impressed by the showing.

“You look out today, I don’t know how many fans stayed around, but to be able to play in this stadium in front of lots of people, we couldn’t probably have dreamed of that in year one,” she said.

Laura Harvey and the OL Reign offered warm congratulations to Sam Laity, who after 10 years as an assistant coach for the Seattle-based NWSL club left to become the Houston Dash head coach.

“I am so grateful for everything you have done for me, this club and everyone who as been part of OL Reign,” Harvey posted on Twitter after the Dash announced Laity’s hiring Wednesday. “I want everyone to know the legacy you are leaving behind. Houston, you got an amazing coach!”

Laity started his journey with OL Reign in 2013, and he stuck with the club through four head coaches — including current U.S. women’s national team coach Vlatko Andonovski in 2018 and 2019 and Harvey, twice.

The 46-year-old Englishman worked on Harvey’s staff from 2013 to 2017. She stepped down after the 2017 season but returned in 2021 after coach Farid Benstiti resigned midway through the season. Before Harvey’s return, Laity served as interim coach for six matches and led the team to a 4-2-0 (WLD) record.

In her Twitter post, Harvey said she met Laity for the first time in February 2013, ahead of their first season together.

“Within days I knew I had a friend for life,” she wrote.

Laity was the only staff member to stay with the team through its first 10 seasons.

“I think that was a huge reason why his time as head coach was super successful,” said midfielder Jess Fishlock, who also has spent all 10 seasons with OL Reign. “He brought us all into focus. We will all look back on that time and never have the words to really express his importance to us.

“Sam’s time as interim head coach was and will be a vital part to this team and organization’s success. He has a deep-rooted history with this club that allowed him to be the perfect person to re-direct the club on the path we wanted to be on.”

Harvey described her fellow England native as an “unreal human being who is always putting others before himself, with a humor like no other.”

“I am so happy for you to be able to go and show everyone how amazing you are as a head coach,” she wrote. “No one in this league deserves it more.”

OL Reign head coach Laura Harvey wants the NWSL to move the time of its championship game.

Harvey took to Twitter on Tuesday, asking the league to “please please please change” the 9 a.m. local kickoff time.

“It’s not ok for any team!” she wrote. “Showcase our amazing league and athletes the way they deserve.”

The league has been under fire over the past few days for its decisions surrounding the championship game. Many have critiqued not only the kick off time but also the choice in Portland as a location, calling out the fact that the Thorns’ field is turf.

The OL Reign are currently third in the NWSL standings with 29 points.