Charge Extend Home Unbeaten Streak
June 10, 2002 - Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA)
Philadelphia Charge News Release
The post-Kelly Smith portion of the Philadelphia Charge's season commenced this past weekend, as the team hosted the Washington Freedom in a battle of two squads competing without their top players. Mia Hamm, who has not played yet this season for Washington, decided to sit out one more game before returning Wednesday, June 12 for her first action. Smith, movement limited by a brace running from ankle to above her knee, accompanied her teammates on the bench and received several ovations during the contest from sympathetic fans in attendance.
Without its English-born superstar, Philadelphia (5-1-2, 17 pts) found itself trailing by a goal late in the contest when Frenchwoman Marinette Pichon notched the dramatic equalizer in the 87th minute to salvage a point for the Charge. The tie kept Philadelphia in sole possession of first place in the WUSA and means that the Charge have yet to spend a single day this season in any other spot.
Generating scoring chances certainly was not the problem without Smith in the lineup. Countering Washington's attack with a 4-5-1, Philadelphia took a game-high 15 shots and managed to direct seven of them on goal. But the Charge were a one-woman offense for much of the contest, as Pichon recorded six of the seven shots on goal. In fact, midfielder Kerry Connors' shot on goal in the 76th minute was the first-and only-by a Charge player not named Marinette. Pichon's frustrations mounted over the course of the contests, as the forward hit the cross bar with one shot and the right post with another before finally burying the game-tying goal.
The equalizer was set up when defender Heather Mitts jumped into a play on the right flank in the 86th minute and was fouled by the Freedom's Tracey Milburn. Philadelphia defender Jen Tietjen stepped up to take the free kick from about 30 yards out. Her service appeared to be intended for the head of forward Mandy Clemens, but sailed over its target and found the foot of Pichon, positioned opportunistically at the top left corner of the six-yard box. She made no mistake with this chance, erasing the memory of a frustrating first 86 minutes. The goal was Pichon's fourth of the season, tying her with Smith for the team lead, and was arguably her biggest in a Charge uniform to date.
Moore was her usual stellar self on Saturday, making four saves and allowing only one goal on a penalty kick by Jen Grubb. Moore twice made spectacular point-blank stops on charging opponents in the first half to keep the Philly deficit to one goal. The tie pushes her record to 5-1-2 on the season with a league-best winning percentage of 75 percent.
Upcoming Opponent
The Charge will conclude their three-game homestand this Saturday, June 15, when they host the Boston Breakers at 7:00 p.m. at Villanova Stadium. The match-up will be the teams' second of the season. Philadelphia defeated Boston, 4-2, at Villanova back on May 4 behind a goal and an assist from Pichon. The Charge will look to extend their season-long occupation of first place and will be awarding the first 1,000 Dads with a Father's Day tie. Philadelphia, which is undefeated at home thus far this season (2-0-2), has not lost a game at home since last July 19, when it fell to Boston, 2-1. With 10 points, the Breakers currently occupy fifth place in the WUSA with a 2-3-4 record. Although unbeaten at home (1-0-3), they are just 1-3-1 on the road this season.
Boston touts the German-born Maren Meinert, whose 13 points this season tie her with San Jose's Katia for tops in the league. Behind her efforts, Boston scores 1.4 goals per game ranking third in the league in offensive output. Defensively, the Breakers yield 1.6 gpg, which ranks sixth in the league. Goalkeeper Karina LeBlanc has started all nine games in net for Boston this season and is sixth in the WUSA in goals-against average with a 1.56 mark. Her save percentage of just 67.19 is just eighth among league goaltenders, however.
Midfielder Liu Ailing leads the Charge in career scoring against Boston with five points on two goals and one assist. Dagny Mellgren has been the Breakers' most successful player in games against Philly, as she has four goals and eight points on her career.
Boston, which is 2-2 all-time versus the Charge, is winless in its last three (0-1-2) overall and has just one victory in its last seven games (1-2-4) this season.
CHARGE NEWS & NOTES:
Pichon's Goal Ends Season's Longest Scoring Drought
Marinette Pichon's goal in the 87th minute to tie Washington, 1-1, on Saturday put an end to the Charge's longest scoreless drought of the season. Philadelphia had not netted a goal since the 82nd minute of its May 25th 3-1 win over the Carolina Courage. During the span, the Charge went 185 minutes without a goal, since they played to a 0-0 tie against San Jose and then played without a goal for 86 minutes on Saturday. As a matter a fact, Pichon has scored three of the last four Charge goals. Kelly Smith's penalty kick goal against the Courage is the only other goal scored by a Charge player over that span.
Philly Topping the League
Philadelphia, which has been tied for or in sole possession of first place all season long, has the No. 1-ranked offense and defense in the league. With 15 goals in eight games thus far, the first-place Charge are scoring at a clip of 1.9 goals per game. Defensively, Melissa Moore and company allow just 0.9 goals per game, also tops in the league. The Charge have allowed more than one goal by an opponent just once, in the 4-2 win over the Breakers on May 4, and have recorded two shutouts. A large part of this success can be attributed to a stingy defensive corps that has allowed a league-low 80 shots all season long. To put this in perspective, San Jose ranks second in this category but has allowed 92 shots.
Home Cooking
This season the Charge are 2-0-2 at Villanova Stadium, having outscored their opponents 8-4. Dating back to last season, the Charge are 4-0-3 in their last seven as the host and 6-1-4 in their last 11. The club's lone loss over that 11-game span came to the Breakers on July 19. All-time Philadelphia is 7-3-4 at home.
Practice Times
The Charge are scheduled to be practicing this week at Villanova Stadium. Any media outlet interested in attending is encouraged to contact the Charge PR office at 215-952-5492 before heading out to confirm practice times. Monday: 10am-Noon Thursday: 10am-Noon Sunday: 3pm Tuesday: 10am-Noon Friday: 10am-11am Wednesday: Off Saturday: 7 p.m., game vs. Boston
Upcoming Promotions
Date Item Amount Opponent Time
Saturday, June 15 Charge Ties 1,000 (Dads) Boston 7:00 p.m.
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Women's United Soccer Association Stories from June 10, 2002
- Charge Extend Home Unbeaten Streak - Philadelphia Charge
- Carolina Courage Notebook - Carolina Courage
- Katia Named Player of the Week - WUSA
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