A strong first half powered Peoria City to a 3-nil shutout victory. It used its press style of play to take control of the Missouri Reign in the first half on Saturday.

In its inaugural season as part of the Women's Professional Soccer League, Peoria City (2-0-2) has instantly found success. Its two losses have been by a combined three goals. Peoria controlled much of the first half by pressuring the Reign's (1-0-3) defenders in their defensive third.

In the 16th minute, Emily Murphy broke the scoring open. Later in the half, Yierdan Padilla scored in the 39th minute. Leah Crotty tallied the third goal in the 45(+7)th minute, seemingly ending any form of momentum the Reign looked to carry into the second half. Had it not been for multiple offsides, Peoria could have easily been up 5-nil at the break. The game was physical from start to finish and Reign coach Dakota Acock says when games are like that they need to play cleaner.

Acock also takes the blame for not having the start they wanted.

"I have to put them in a better position to start games," Acock said. "We have to make sure that we're on the front foot and not trying to make adjustments after the games got out of hand.

The Reign made adjustments and executed them in the second half, though. Peoria's press didn't seem to have the same affect on them as it did in the first half. They presented themselves with multiple scoring opportunities. Holland Hawkins had two really good looks in the second half from outside the box. The first she sent just wide of the net. In the 76th minute, Hawkins had a great opportunity on goal placing the ball in the left upper 90. But City's keeper Peyton Rhodes made the incredible diving save and kept her shutout intact. Peoria didn't take its foot off the gas, even when the game had little time left. Credit the Reign's defense for playing much stronger in the second half and preserving a second half shutout despite numerous good looks. Acock said part of the better performance in the second half was due to them figuring out "how to tighten up across the midfield and into the final third."

Despite the loss, Acock believes they are starting to figure things out and is remaining positive and expects better things to come.

"(If) we keep the course, we keep growing as a team, I have no doubt that the results turn our way," Acock said. "There's a lot to take away from (the game)." He continued by saying they can walk away from the game knowing they ended the game stronger than they started it.

Reign split road trip with victory over Junction

The Missouri Reign salvaged the road trip with a 3-1 victory over Junction FC on Sunday, thanks to a brace by forward Georgia Pardalos.

Junction (0-0-5) struck first in the 28th minute. Rebecca Rheinheimer tallied Junction's (0-0-5) first goal of the season on a miscommunication between the Reign's keeper and back, and Rheinheimer capitalized on that. Acock said they needed to be a bit cleaner and allowing a goal in that manner was "a wake up call", but was happy that his team settled in and were resilient.

In the 40th minute, the Reign (2-0-3) evened the score when defender Addy Clay scored her first goal this season. Fellow defender Ayanna Clark picked up the assist. Clay struck the ball well from far out and it floated, making it a tough ball for the keeper to handle.

The Reign took the lead a few minutes later. In the 43rd minute, Pardalos scored her second goal of the season. She took a shot from just inside the penalty box to give her team a 2-1 lead going into the half. Forward Zoe Lockhert picked up the assist on a nice lead pass.

Pardalos scored her second goal a shot from the penalty arc in the 47th minute, padding the lead. Callie McMurtrey secured the assist on the Reign's third and final goal of the game. Acock gave high praise for Pardalos.

"(She) is a special player and is really gaining confidence," Acock said. "Last year the struggle was to find what she could do to help the team when she wasn't scoring - and she went all season without one," Acock said.

This year, it's a different story, creating many opportunities for her teammates.

In the second half the Reign gave Junction many opportunities because of three yellow cards. But Acock, doesn't seem to mind his team getting cards.

"We play physical and we play hard," Acock said. "I really don't mind it at all."

He is also happy with the way his girls responded after a gritty and physical match on Saturday.

"To rally from down a goal (tonight), that takes some mental fortitude," Acock said. "I'm very impressed and proud of that. It was great to see how we responded."

Next up, the Reign play their second home game of the season. They face FC Pride (3-1-0), which sits second in the Gateway Division because of a lower goal differential than Lou Fusz Athletic, despite having the same record. Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. Friday at R. Marvin Owens Field.