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Breakers Head to Atlanta with Playoffs on the Line

August 31, 2010 - Women's Professional Soccer (WPS)
Boston Breakers News Release


Westwood, MA - August 31st, 2010 - Fresh off of Sunday's come-from-behind 2-1 victory over the Philadelphia Independence, the Breakers travelling caravan rolls on towards Atlanta. The Breakers are in the midst of their longest road trip of the season, a grueling three-city, eight-day swing that takes the team from coast to coast and back again.

Wednesday evening the Breakers (9-7-5, 32 pts.) face the Atlanta Beat (5-11-5, 20 pts.) with a chance to move into second place in WPS and clinch a home playoff spot. A win over the Beat would ensure that the Breakers finish no lower than 3rd place and would host either the WPS 1st Round playoff match on Sunday, September 19th or the WPS Super Semi-Final on Thursday, September 23rd.

There are several other scenarios that would allow the Breakers to clinch a postseason berth on Wednesday. Sky Blue FC plays FC Gold Pride on Wednesday evening as well. If Sky Blue loses, the Breakers can back into the playoffs with a tie or loss. If both the Breakers and Sky Blue tie on Wednesday night, the Breakers also clinch the first playoff appearance in franchise history.

Boston has scored two or more goals in seven consecutive matches, while Atlanta is coming off a season-worst defensive performance that saw Hope Solo and the Beat defense concede five second half goals in a record-setting 6-1 drubbing at the hands of FC Gold Pride last Saturday. But the Breakers would be wise not to underestimate the Beat. The Breakers have produced a remarkable 8-2-1 record since the All-Star Break on June 30th. But the Beat were responsible for one of those two defeats, dealing the Breakers a 3-2 setback in the team's previous meeting at New Britain, Connecticut on August 21st.

Fan Voting Now Open For 2010 WPS Awards

The Boston Breakers were well represented as Women's Professional Soccer announced its 2010 WPS Year-End Award nominations on Monday, August 30th. The Breakers were one of two teams - along with first place FC Gold Pride - to receive six nominations for postseason honors.

The Breakers are the only team with two nominations in one category as both Jordan Angeli and Lauren Cheney are up for the WPS Rookie of the Year Award. Forward Kelly Smith is one of four nominees for the Michelle Akers Player of the Year Award. Defender Amy LePeilbet is up for the MedImmune Defender of the Year Award, an honor she took home after WPS' inaugural season in 2009. Tony DiCicco is among the four nominees for WPS Coach of the Year honors.

In non-fan voting categories, Breakers defender Stephanie Cox has been nominated for the Citi Sportswoman of the Year Award, an honor voted on entirely by WPS players and coaches. The PUMA Golden Boot Award will go to the top goal scorer during the 2010 WPS regular season. Brazilian striker Marta of FC Gold Pride currently holds the top position on the scoring charts with 17 goals. Kelly Smith is in fourth place in league scoring with a Breakers team record 11 goals this season heading into Wednesday night's match in Atlanta.

WPS fans can vote online now through September 6th on the WPS Fan Corner at www.womensprosoccer.com. Five separate awards, including the Michelle Akers Player of the Year Award given to the league MVP, will be decided by a combination of fan voting (33%), player/coach voting (33%) and media voting (33%). The others include the MedImmune Defender of the Year, Coast Guard Goalkeeper of the Year, WPS Rookie of the Year and WPS Coach of the Year.

Cox, Smith Spark 2-1 Comeback Over Philly

The Breakers edged the Philadelphia Independence, 2-1, at John A. Farrell Stadium on Sunday to tighten the battle for the second seed in the WPS Playoffs presented by MedImmune. With the win, the third-place Breakers (9-7-5, 32 points) now trail the second-place Independence (10-7-4, 34 points) by just two points and have three games remaining in the WPS regular season as opposed to the Independence's two.

Philadelphia opened the scoring in the 16th minute as Joanna Lohman cleaned up an Amy Rodriguez rebound off the post for a 1-0 lead. The goal was Lohman's fifth of the season.

Boston knotted the score in the 34th minute off a corner kick. Kristine Lilly took the kick and rolled it to a wide-open Stephanie Cox at the top near corner of the 18-yard box. Cox perfectly placed her right-footed shot into the far corner for her first WPS goal.

In the 58th minute, the Breakers earned a penalty kick as Philadelphia defender Danielle Johnson took Lauren Cheney down inside the penalty area. Kelly Smith converted the PK for her team-record 11th goal of the season and gave Boston a 2-1 advantage. Both teams had late second half goals called back for offside infractions and the 2-1 score held up for the final.

Boston finished the regular season 2-0-2 against the expansion Independence.

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