WPS Chicago Stars FC

Chicago Red Stars Preseason Kicks Off

Published on March 8, 2010 under Women's Professional Soccer (WPS)
Chicago Stars FC News Release


BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- Chicago Red Stars soccer is right around the corner as the Women's Professional Soccer franchise gears up for its second season starting in April. WPS officially opened its preseason on Sunday when players reported to their respective teams.

Today, the Red Stars announce their preseason schedule, which opens with the Washington Freedom on Friday, March 12, and their 28-player roster. The 2010 preseason lineup includes a mix of returning Red Stars players, key offseason signings and 2010 WPS Draft selections, and several local athletes from the Chicagoland area.

Brazilian forward Cristiane, England midfielder Karen Carney, U.S. Women's National Team midfielder Megan Rapinoe and the other returning Red Stars players will see plenty of new faces. Former Saint Louis Athletica goalkeeper Jillian Loyden, former FC Gold Pride midfielder Formiga, Arsenal midfielder Katie Chapman and Linkopings FC forward Kosovare Asllani out of Sweden highlight the Red Stars' carefully crafted preseason roster.

Additionally, U.S. WNT allocation and Red Stars defender Kate Markgraf, who missed the 2009 season because of the birth of twins, will make her long-awaited debut.

A heavy dose of the 2009 College Cup champion University of North Carolina team is on the pitch for the Red Stars, with 2010 WPS Draft selections Whitney Engen and Jessica McDonald, and dispersal draft pick Casey Nogueira suiting up for Chicago.

Among the locals, Chicago signed midfielder and Oswego native Julianne Sitch in the offseason. The Red Stars then selected Naperville native and forward Michele Weissenhofer and Geneva native and midfielder Jackie Santacaterina in the 2010 WPS Draft. Joining this trio on the preseason roster is goalkeeper Erin Kane (St. Charles, Ill.) and forward Becky Ryan (Batavia, Ill.). Kane formerly played at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Ryan played at Marquette University.

The Red Stars open their preseason slate when they take on their WPS counterparts, the Washington Freedom, on Thursday, March 12, at Vero Beach, Fla. The game takes place at 6 p.m. (7 p.m. ET) at the Indian River Soccer Association's Hobart Soccer Complex, 7955 58th Ave., just north of Vero Beach. The cost is $15 for adults and $7.50 for children.

Tickets can be purchased online only at www.irsoccer.com.

Following their match against Washington, the Red Stars face the University of South Florida on March 17. Then Chicago takes on the local collegiate contingent, traveling to Notre Dame on March 24, Northwestern and DePaul in Evanston on March 31, and conluding the preseason with a trip to the University of Illinois on April 3.

WPS teams will announce their first cutdown from 28 to 24 players on March 16. Teams then will announce their official roster (18 players plus four optional development players) on April 1.

2010 CHICAGO RED STARS PRESEASON CALENDAR

Friday, March 12: vs. Washington Freedom, Vero Beach, Fla., 7 p.m. ET

Wednesday, March 17: vs. University of South Florida, Tampa, Fla., 7:30 p.m. ET

Wednesday, March 24: at University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Ind., 6 p.m. ET

Wednesday, March 31: vs. Northwestern/DePaul, Evanston, Ill., 6 p.m. CT

Saturday, April 3: at University of Illinois, Urbana, Ill., 1 p.m. CT

2010 CHICAGO RED STARS PRESEASON ROSTER

(Name; Position; Hometown)

Kosovare Asllani; forward; Kristianstad, Sweden

Meghann Burke; goalkeeper; Saint Louis, Mo.

Karen Carney; midfielder; Birmingham, England

Katie Chapman; midfielder; Bermondsey, London

Cristiane; forward; Sao Paulo, Brazil

Marian Dalmy; defender; Lakewood, Colorado

Kelsey Davis; goalkeeper; Thousand Oakes, Calif.

Ifeoma Dieke; defender; Glasgow, Scotland

Whitney Engen; defender; Rolling Hills Estates, Calif.

Formiga; midfielder; Sao Paulo, Brazil

Chioma Igwe; midfielder; Belmont, Calif.

Erin Kane; goalkeeper; St. Charles, Ill.

Katie Kelley; midfielder; Kansas City, Mo.

Brittany Klein; midfielder; Arcadia, Calif.

Jillian Loyden; goalkeeper; Vineland, N.J.

Kate Markgraf; defender; Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

Ella Masar; forward; Urbana, Ill.

Jessica McDonald; forward; Glendale, Ariz.

Casey Nogueira; forward; Raleigh, N.C.

Fiona O'Sullivan; forward; San Geronimo, Calif.

Megan Rapinoe; midfielder; Redding, Calif.

Sophie Reiser; midfielder; Seattle, Wash.

Becky Ryan; forward; Batavia, Ill.

Jackie Santacaterina; midfielder; Geneva, Ill.

Julianne Sitch; midfielder; Oswego, Ill.

Natalie Spilger; defender; El Cajon, Calif.

Lydia Vandenbergh; defender; Pisgah Forest, N.C.

Michele Weissenhofer; forward; Naperville, Ill.

Check out the Chicago Stars FC Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Women's Professional Soccer Stories from March 8, 2010


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central