Brittany Ratcliffe's Debut Header Lifts Seattle Reign Past Orlando Pride 2-1 After Weather Delay

The halftime break in Orlando lasted longer than most superhero movies, and the ending still belonged to a player who had been on the field for about five minutes.

Brittany Ratcliffe headed home an 83rd-minute winner in her Seattle Reign FC debut as the Reign opened the 2026 season with a 2-1 win over the Orlando Pride on Sunday at Inter&Co Stadium. Jess Fishlock scored first, Barbra Banda equalized after a weather delay the Pride say lasted more than two and a half hours, and Nérilia Mondésir assisted both Seattle goals. Seattle leaves Florida at 1-0-0 with 3 points. Orlando starts 0-0-1.

Seattle Starts Fast

In a rematch of last season's playoff meeting, as the Reign framed it, Seattle came out flying in front of 16,320 fans. Maddie Dahlien headed a Mondésir cross wide inside the first minute, and Mondésir fired narrowly wide from distance two minutes later. In the 15th minute, Fishlock slipped Mia Fishel into the left side of the box and Anna Moorhouse saved her left-footed shot.

Orlando had its moments, too. Summer Yates forced Claudia Dickey into a save from a tight angle in the fifth minute, and Cori Dyke tested her from distance in the 19th.

Then Seattle's veteran struck. In the 24th minute, Mondésir attracted a pair of Orlando defenders, which left Fishlock free in the middle of the box. The captain's first touch took her clear, and her right-footed finish beat Moorhouse to the bottom right corner. 1-0.

The half turned into a goalkeeping exhibition from there. Moorhouse made back-to-back stops on Madison Curry and Fishlock around the half-hour mark, while Dickey denied Haley McCutcheon in the 26th minute and Banda in the 31st. Ainsley McCammon sprinted across to block a Jacqueline Ovalle shot in the 39th, and the Pride say Rafaelle had a goal off a corner waved off for a foul in the 42nd.

The Longest Halftime

Then the sky got involved. Inclement weather halted play just as the teams headed in at the break, and the delay stretched for more than two and a half hours, per the Pride. "Obviously, tough as well when you go so long for a break," Pride head coach Seb Hines said afterward.

Orlando handled the restart better. Yates headed just off target in the 46th minute, Dickey stopped Banda in the 48th, and three minutes later the equalizer arrived. McCutcheon sprang Banda down the left on the break, and Banda carried it into the box before tucking a right-footed finish into the bottom right corner. 1-1.

The next half hour was a grind. Banda went close from distance in the 57th minute, Dickey saved from Yates in the 63rd, and both benches started reshuffling. Fishlock, already booked, came off for Maddie Mercado on the hour. The Pride brought on Hannah Anderson, Luana, Reagan Raabe and Solai Washington, and Banda made way for Julie Doyle in the 81st minute.

The Turning Point

Seattle's double change in the 78th minute. Emeri Adames replaced Fishel, and Ratcliffe came on for Dahlien. Four minutes later, the Reign won a corner off Anderson. Off that set piece, Mondésir delivered the cross and Ratcliffe rose in the middle of the box to head it into the bottom right corner. 2-1. Dickey then saved a long-range effort from Raabe in the 84th minute, and Seattle saw out the stoppage time, collecting late yellow cards for Curry and Mercado along the way.

It was the kind of substitution coaches dream about. Fresh legs, one touch, three points.

Mondésir and Dickey Steal the Show

Fishlock and Ratcliffe got the goals, but Mondésir was the engine. Two assists, two shots, and constant problems for the Orlando back line. The Reign say she earned her starting spot with a strong preseason and that she rewarded Laura Harvey's faith in her. One assist was a perfectly weighted pass in open play. The other was a cross out of a corner situation, delivered right onto Ratcliffe's head. That is range.

Dickey was just as important. Seven saves against 22 Orlando shots, two of them on Banda, who finished with five shots, three on target. Fishlock, who the Reign say opened her 13th NWSL season on Sunday, put two of her three shots on target, scored with one and set up the Fishel chance that nearly opened the scoring.

For Orlando, Banda's goal was her first of the season and her 26th for the Pride across all competitions, second most in club history, according to the club. McCutcheon picked up her first assist of the year. The Pride also handed out a pile of debuts: Seven Castain started in her professional debut, Raabe and Washington made their pro debuts off the bench, and Hailie Mace and Anderson made their first Pride appearances.

Stats That Matter

• Shots: Orlando 22, Seattle 13. On target: 8 to 5.
• Saves: Dickey 7, Moorhouse 3.
• Possession: Seattle 52.3 percent, Orlando 47.7.
• Tackles: Seattle made 26, 14 of them effective, to Orlando's 13.
• Discipline: Seattle collected four yellow cards. Orlando had none.

What It Means

Seattle starts the season the way it wanted, with three road points against a team it saw in last year's playoffs. It does not get any easier. The Reign head to the Portland Thorns on Friday, then begin a three-match stretch at ONE Spokane Stadium in Spokane, Washington.

Orlando will look at the shot count and wonder how it lost. Hines was blunt about the start. "We allowed Seattle to get on top in the first 15 minutes, and we got back into the game with some really good opportunities to score," he said. "When you have opportunities like that, you have to punish the team." And on the finish: "Then, we let ourselves down towards the end."

His message to a young group was simple. "I just told them you don't lose the league in the first game," Hines said. The Pride host expansion side Denver Summit FC on Friday, March 20.

Closing Take

Opening day gave us a weather delay, a goalkeeping duel, a small mountain of debuts and a winner from a player who had barely broken a sweat. Seattle will take it. Ratcliffe needed one header to make her first impression in a Reign shirt, and it is going to be hard for anyone to top it. As for Orlando, Hines is right: nobody loses the league in March. But 22 shots and one goal is the kind of math that has to change, fast.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Postgame quotes as reported by the Orlando Pride's official site. Match notes from ReignFC.com.