Beat Win Three In A Row
July 28, 2010 - Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) - Atlanta Beat News Release
The Atlanta Beat (4-7-4) are on a three-game winning streak after a 3-2 defeat of the Washington Freedom (4-7-5) Wednesday night at KSU Soccer Stadium with goals from the Beat's Johanna Rasmussen and Monica Ocampo and the Freedom's Nikki Marshall and Sarah Huffmann.
Aggressive scoring attempts started in the 18th minute after a Freedom player was called for a high-kick 25 yards from goal. Beat midfielder Aya Miyama took the free kick, sailing the ball over Washington's defensive wall for the score. Referee Michelle Cowman disallowed the goal, ruling that the set piece was an indirect kick.
Beat left mid Johanna Rasmussen scored the first goal of the night in the 20th minute when she cut into the box from the left side and shot a bending ball into the top right corner to give the Beat a 1-0 lead. Washington forward Nikki Marshall, who only had two shots in the match, managed to scored the first-half equalizer in the 41st minute. Homare Sawa earned the Freedom assist.
Washington had yet another goal scoring opportunity in the 44th minute when Beat defender Tina Ellertson was awarded a yellow card for a foul in the penalty area. The foul resulted in a Freedom penalty kick taken by Washington's Sonia Bompastor. Beat goalkeeper Hope Solo tipped the shot over the bar to preserve the first half scoreline. Solo made several crucial saves throughout the match, saving five of the ten shots taken including the Bompastor penalty in the 45th minute.
In the second half, the Freedom took the lead when midfielder Sarah Huffman came off the bench to score in the 64th minute. Forward Abby Wambach received the ball near the right edge of the 18 yard box and served a low, driven ball across the six to an unmarked Huffmann.
Strong play on both ends of the field led to the Beat's win as defender Stacy Bishop limited All-Star captain Wambach to one assist (64') and only two shots on goal. Up top, forward Monica Ocampo evened the match in the 67th minute off a pass from midfielder McCall Zerboni before scoring the game-winner in the 88th minute on a through ball from midfielder Aya Miyama.
Ocampo's second goal marks the Beat's first game-winner scored after the 75th minute and contributed to the club's highest-scoring match all season. The Beat out-shot the Freedom 17-11 with 6 shots to the Freedom's 7 on goal .
The match featured physical play from start to finish as Freedom defender Sonia Bompastor committed four fouls during the course of the match, and Mami Yamaguchi suffered four. The Beat (16 points) are now a single point behind the Chicago Red Stars (17 points) and the Washington Freedom (17 points) in the WPS standings. The first four WPS teams advance for postseason play.
The Beat's next home game is Sunday, Aug. 1 against first-place FC Gold Pride at 5:00 p.m. Enjoy $1 hotdogs all night! Call 678-298-4780 for tickets.
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Women's Professional Soccer Stories from July 28, 2010
- Beat Win Three In A Row - Atlanta Beat
- Chicago Red Stars Drop Match to Philadelphia, 3-0 - Chicago Red Stars
- Breakers Face Abby Wambach and Washington Freedom This Saturday - Boston Breakers
- Beat Host Freedom Wednesday - Atlanta Beat
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