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[2021-05-17 | Cheney Stadium, Seattle, USA | 13:35 PDT]

[63’ - OL Reign 1-2 Utah Royals SC]

Akari stripped off her tracksuit with trembling hands, revealing the Reign’s teal and blue kit underneath. The number 33 gleamed brightly on her back as she quickly made sure her laces were firmly tied. Adjusting her shorts and retighting her ponytail, she made her way to the sideline where coach Harvey stood.

"Akari!" Coach Harvey spoke loudly, trying to get the girls’ attention, but all she could hear was her heart hammering against her ribs. The coach gripped her shoulder firmly, looking her straight in the eye, snapping her out of it. "Listen to me. They’re sitting deep, hitting us on the counter. What I need you to do in the middle is to stay active and link the ball between the midfield and forwards."

Akari nodded quickly, absorbing every word, her pupils dilating. "And breathe," Harvey added, her expression softening slightly. "You’ve earned this. Go show them why."

"Yes, Coach." She exclaimed and jogged over to the fourth official, who was preparing the substitution board. Moments later, following a stray pass, the fourth official raised the board: [#15 OUT | #33 IN]

Akari jogged onto the pitch as Shirley Cruz came off, the veteran midfielder giving her a quick pat on the back. "Good luck, kid."

The home crowd offered polite applause, hoping this change could turn the 1-2 score around. Still, eighteen minutes plus stoppage time to find an equaliser wasn’t a lot of time, but at the same time, it was a long time to defend a one-goal lead. Akari took her position just behind striker Bethany Balcer, glancing around to orient herself.

Jess Fishlock was to her left, Rose Lavelle to her right in the central midfield. The Royals had dropped into a compact 4-5-1, daring Reign to break them down.

[65’]

The ball came to her quicker than she had expected after Lavelle flicked on the throw-in from Sofia Huerta on the right. Akari controlled it with her first touch, feeling a sense of peace, but immediately felt pressure from behind—a Royals midfielder closing fast. She tried to turn quickly, but her touch was heavy, pushing the ball too far ahead.

The defender stepped in, intercepting cleanly before she could recover. "Stay composed!" Fishlock called out as the Royals cleared it long.

Moments later, in the 69th, the Reign contingent won the ball back in defence and promptly played it up to Lavelle. The midfielder drove forward, beating his man with a deft turn before playing it wide to Fishlock. The Welsh international took one touch, then cut it back inside to Akari, who had drifted into space between the lines.

This time, Akari was ready to receive the ball on the half-turn, losing her marker, allowing her a moment to scan the field ahead. Two Royals midfielders converged on her, cutting off the central passing lanes, but she reacted quickly, slotting the ball through the legs of her marker, who had just recovered. Using her shoulder to fight past her, she latched back onto the ball and began dribbling up the right channel.

She drove forward rapidly, gaining speed, keeping close control of the ball as she broke down the space ahead of her. A Royal’s defender stepped across to cut off the angle, forcing her wider toward the touchline. She came to a sudden stop, her right foot nudging the ball across, trying to cut back inside, but the defender was alert, coming to a stop.

Before the defender could react, she knocked the ball back to her right, performing a graceful La Croqueta to skip past him. "Akari Jones on the move." The commentator exclaimed as the player in question broke into the edge of the box.

She didn’t need to scan the box immediately; she picked out Balcer, who broke into the box with a grounded, curved cross. The forward’s first step was quick, allowing her to get ahead of her marker and meet the ball with a first-time right-footed strike. She struck it cleanly, aiming low toward the bottom left corner with pace.

Royals goalkeeper Abby Smith jumped into action, arms fully outstretched to meet the ball. She managed to get on the end of the ball, but the deflection wasn’t enough to guide it beyond the post. The home crowd erupted, six thousand voices suddenly finding new life after seeing the ball slot into the bottom left corner.

"GOOOOAAAL!" the stadium announcer’s voice boomed through the speakers. "Bethany Balcer with the equaliser! And what an assist from the debutant, Akari Jones!"

Balcer sprinted toward the corner flag, arms spread wide, pulling Aakri into a hug. "That’s how you do it, kid! That was Brilliant!" On the sideline, Laura Harvey could be seen clapping her hands together once before immediately barking instructions.

[OL Reign 2-2 Utah Royals SC - 70’ Bethany Balcer]

[85’]

The equaliser heated things up, the Royals no longer sitting back, actively marching up the field looking to score again. However, it was easy to stop but much harder to restart hastily, and they were punished for it. The home sides, seeing the gaps opening up, attacked more fiercely, launching attacks from both flanks.

Akari, fully settled into the match, began actively demanding the ball and connecting passes in midfield. She went on occasional solo expeditions but left it mostly to Lavelle, acting in a supporting role. Still, she got a few good chances taking a pop in the 77th that, unfortunately, hit the post.

She got her first clear-cut chance in the 85th minute when Lavelle intercepted a lazy pass in midfield. The American international immediately looked up, spotting Akari’s run between the lines, and played it forward with pace. She controlled it on the edge of the box, her first touch taking her away from the nearest defender.

She had space for the first time all match as two Royal defenders converged on her, but she was already shaping to shoot. Her right foot connected cleanly, striking it low toward the bottom right corner. The ball skipped across the turf with pace, beating the diving goalkeeper’s outstretched hand by inches. It looked destined for the net, curling beautifully, but—(CLANG) the ball struck the inside of the post and ricocheted back into play.

Balcer lunged for the rebound, but a Royals defender got there first, clearing it desperately upfield. The home crowd groaned collectively, thousands of voices expressing the same frustration.

"Unlucky!" Fishlock called out, jogging past her. "Stay ready! Next one’s going in!"

[88’]

The Royals tried to slow things down, holding possession in their own half, working the ball around the back. But Reign pressed high, forcing increasingly more mistakes. In the 88th minute, Sofia Huerta won the ball near the halfway line, immediately driving forward down the right flank.

She took on her marker with a quick stepover, then cut inside onto her left foot. Akari had already started her run, drifting into the channel between the Royals’ centre-backs and their left-back. Huerta spotted it, playing a diagonal ball into that space.

Akari accelerated, getting ahead of her marker, when the ball dropped perfectly into her path. Her first touch was velvet-soft, controlling it in stride and taking it into the penalty area. The goalkeeper, Abby Smith, came off her line, trying to close down the angle.

Her mind raced over whether to shoot or pass, but when a Royals defender tried to block the shooting lane with a sliding tackle, she reacted instinctively. She dragged the ball back with the sole of her boot, then pushed it forward with the outside of her right foot. The defender slid past, grasping at air, and now it was just Akari and Smith, one-on-one, eight yards out.

Smith rushed forward, making herself big, arms spread wide. Akari took one more touch with her left foot, opening up the angle slightly, then struck it with the inside of her right boot. The ball left her foot cleanly, curling away from Smith’s dive.

It felt good, really good, the moment it left her boot. The goalkeeper stretched desperately, her fingertips reaching for the ball, but not enough to change its path. The ball nestled into the bottom left corner of the net.

"GOOOOOOAAAAAAAAL!" the stadium announcer screamed. "AKARI JONES! THE DEBUTANT! SHE’S DONE IT!"

[OL Reign 3-2 Utah Royals SC - 88’ Akari Jones]

[90+3’]

The Royals threw everything forward in the dying minutes, desperate for an equaliser. Corner kicks, long throws, hopeful crosses into the box, the Reign absorbed it all, defending desperately. In the 93rd minute, a Royals corner kick swung into the box, and bodies rose into the air fighting for breathing room.

Headers, blocks, and chaos quite literally ensued as they tried to reach it somehow. The ball pinballed around the six-yard box before Barnes finally cleared it, booting it long toward midfield. The referee checked her watch, then raised the whistle to her lips.

FWEEET! FWEEET! FWEEEEEET!

[FT: OL Reign 3-2 Utah Royals SC] 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

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TO BE CONTINUED...