CyberRays disappointed by loss before huge doubleheader crowd

April 21, 2003 - Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA)
San Jose CyberRays News Release


SAN JOSE (April 21, 2002) – The CyberRays prepare for their first road trip of the season this week after dropping a disappointing 2-0 decision Saturday to the Washington Freedom at Spartan Stadium. The CyberRays are 1-1-0 to open the season.

Week 3 in review: Didn't capitalize on chances The CyberRays nearly doubled the Washington Freedom's shot total, 19-10, and had a league record 19 corner kicks. But the ones that count are those in the net, and Washington had both of those: a Mia Hamm penalty kick in the ninth minute and a Lori Lindsey header in first-half injury time for a 2-0 victory before the largest home crowd in CyberRays history, 17,032. The game was played as the opener of a doubleheader that featured the MLS San Jose Earthquakes against the Kansas City Wizards in the nightcap.

Coming in Week 4: Short trip to a tough venue Torero Stadium in San Diego has always been a tough place for the CyberRays even though the team has never lost there. In three trips, the CyberRays managed a 1-0 victory in the first and two subsequent ties. That's where the CyberRays open their 2003 road season at 5 p.m. Sunday. Season series: First meeting. All-time series: 2-1-3, (1-0-2 in San Diego). Top scorers: CyberRays – Katie Barnes (1g = 2pts); San Diego – Shannon MacMillan (1g, 1a = 3pts). Training schedule this week at West Valley College: Off Today. 4 p.m. scrimmage Tuesday vs. Stanford at West Valley, 1:30 p.m. practice Wednesday-Friday (about two hours each day). Travel Saturday, 6:30 p.m. train at Torero Stadium in San Diego.

CyberRays-San Diego series notes: The CyberRays have never lost in San Diego's Torero Stadium, although two of the three games played there were ties. The CyberRays' last victory in San Diego was the first game, June 2, 2001, when Jacqui Little scored in the 80th minute for a 1-0 victory. ... The CyberRays lead in goals in the series by the bare margin of 3-2 in San Diego, 7-5 overall. ... The first game of the CyberRays-San Diego series last season featured the latest goal ever surrendered by the CyberRays – San Diego's Sherrill Kester scored in the 93rd minute to clinch a 1-1 tie at Spartan Stadium.

Key matchup: CyberRays midfielder Betsy Barr vs. San Diego midfielder Julie Foudy. The history of the CyberRays-San Diego series is that the matches usually turn on whether the CyberRays are able to contain Foudy, and that assignment likely will fall to Barr, a rookie, who was drafted specifically for the defensive midfielder role.

Coach Sawyers on 7 players from the two teams called to USWNT team duty the day before the WUSA match: ``It's going to be interesting to see what the fallout is after that game (USA vs. Nigeria on Saturday in Washington, D.C. I hope my wife (San Diego midfielder Julie Foudy) runs her tail off Saturday and is exhausted.''

Game notes

Lots of call-ups: Three CyberRays – goalkeeper LaKeysia Beene, defender Thori Bryan and defender Brandi Chastain – will be in national team camp the week before this game training for the USA-Nigeria match to be played Saturday in Washington, D.C. They will fly to San Diego immediately after the national team game for Sunday's WUSA match. However, the CyberRays also will be without two of their three Brazilian players – Katia and Pretinha – who have been called to their national team for South America's World Cup qualifying tournament, to be played in Peru. San Diego sends four players to the U.S. national team – Joy Fawcett, Julie Foudy, Shannon MacMillan and Aly Wagner – and one – Daniela of Brazil – to Peru for qualifying.

Trouble with Washington: The CyberRays have played the Washington Freedom as the first or second game on their schedule all three of their WUSA seasons and are yet to win one of those games. Washington won the WUSA's inaugural game 1-0 on April 14, 2001, last year's April 21 match 2-1 and Saturday's game 2-0.

Trouble with corner kicks: The CyberRays had taken 12 corner kicks in a game twice before Saturday's match against Washington, one of six times the WUSA single-game record by a team had been achieved through 2002. But they had 11 in the second half alone Saturday on the way to a new league record of 19 corner kicks in a single game. The number of corner kicks ordinarily is an indication of offensive dominance because they are such good scoring chances, but the CyberRays have the distinction of losing the three games in which they had their most corners. Here's the rundown:

Date Opponent No. of corners Result

16 May 2001 vs. Boston Breakers 12 2-4 L

22 June 2002 @ Atlanta Beat 12 1-2 L

19 April 2003 vs. Washington Freedom 19 0-2 L

Season starts: This is the second straight season the CyberRays have started off 1-1. In their inaugural season the CyberRays didn't win until their fourth game.

Big turnout: The 17,032 fans who saw the CyberRays play Washington was the largest CyberRays home attendance in their three-year history, and it ranks as the third largest crowd the team has ever played before. Here is the list of the CyberRays top five home crowds:

Date Game Attendance

19 April 2003 Washington Freedom 2, CyberRays 0 17,932*

22 July 2001 CyberRays 1, Washington Freedom 0 16,174

27 April 2002 Carolina Courage 2, CyberRays 1 11,990#

29 April 2001 CyberRays 1, Boston Breakers 1 10,010

21 July 2002 Washington Freedom 3, CyberRays 2 8,384

* - Doubleheader with San Jose Earthquakes

# - Doubleheader with U.S. Women's National Team

Here is the list of the CyberRays top five all-time crowds:

Date Game Attendance

14 April 2001 CyberRays 0 @ Washington Freedom 1 34,148*

25 August 2001 CyberRays 3 vs. Atlanta Beat 3 (4-2) 21,078#

19 April 2001 Washington Freedom 2 @ CyberRays 0 17,932

22 July 2001 Washington Freedom 0 @ CyberRays 1 16,174

27 April 2002 Carolina Courage 2 @ CyberRays 1 11,990%

* - WUSA Inaugural Game

# - Founders Cup I @ Foxboro, Mass.

Penalty kicks surrendered: When Mia Hamm made her penalty kick in the ninth minute Saturday, it was only the fifth PK goal scored against the CyberRays in three seasons and the fourth allowed by goalkeeper LaKeysia Beene. Beene has faced PKs six times in her WUSA career. Goalkeeper Dawn Greathouse allowed the CyberRays' other penalty goal, and it was last season against Washington, her former team. Including Pretinha's PK that beat the CyberRays in the WUSA Inaugural Game, Washington has three of the five penalty goals against the CyberRays.

CyberRays injury update

Dianne Alagich (bronchitis) out; Kelly Lindsey (R knee) questionable; Tisha Venturini-Hoch (R knee contusion) probable.

Quote of the week

``That's our M.O.: lots of chances, no goals. But we've got a lot of goal scorers on this team, and we'll work it out.''



Women's United Soccer Association Stories from April 21, 2003


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