Sports stats



Filling the Void

May 20, 2003 - Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA)
San Diego Spirit News Release


There is no doubt the loss of Shannon MacMillan for the rest of the season is a harsh blow to the Spirit. No one player can replace one of the all-time greats in the history of women's soccer, but the Spirit has several players who can step up and fill the void. San Diego is fortunate to have depth on its forward line, something sorely lacking in the previous two seasons, and now the Spirit will count on Scottish international Julie Fleeting and Canadian international Christine Latham for goal production. Fleeting has had a fantastic start to the season, while Latham, just 21, has shown promise with her big heart, big body and relentless tenacity.

Fleeting, who also has much strength in her game, possesses a tremendous touch and sophistication around the goal, meaning the pair of strikers might just click well during the last two thirds of the WUSA season. Still, without MacMillan, the midfield will also be called upon to produced goals, that means Julie Foudy, Aly Wagner, Zhang Ouying and Daniela, none of whom have tallied yet this year, need to find a way to put the ball in the net.

In addition, the speedy Allie Sullivan, who scored her first goal for the Spirit last weekend against Boston, will be needed to create danger in the attacking third. In the end, the Spirit will sorely miss MacMillan, but still has a myriad of attacking options and must combine to produce more goals as the season rolls toward the midway point.

QUICK GLANCE AT THE SPIRIT

NEXT MATCH: Saturday, May 24, 1 p.m. PT, @ Carolina, SAS Stadium, Cary, N.C., Live on PAX TV
LAST MATCH: 1-1 tie with Boston, Sunday, May 18, Torero Stadium, San Diego, Calif.
RECORD: 2-1-3, 9 pts.
LEADING SCORER: Julie Fleeting, 4 goals, 8 points
INJURIES: MacMillan, Torn R ACL, Out

NEXT ON THE SLATE:

Carolina Courage, Saturday, May 24, 1 p.m. PT, SAS Stadium, Cary, N.C.

The Spirit goes on the road to the beautiful SAS Stadium for its next match on May 24 against the Carolina Courage in the first game of the season against the defending WUSA champions. The game will be nationally televised on PAX TV, beginning at 1 p.m. PT.

FLEETING AND LATHAM TO JOIN TEAM IN CAROLINA FOR SATURDAY's MATCH

After a week away, both Julie Fleeting and Christine Latham will join the team in Cary, N.C. on Friday for Saturday's match against the defending Founders Cup champion Carolina Courage. Fleeting, the club's leading scorer with four goals, is chasing the team record of five consecutive games with a goal. 'Air Scotland' has a four-game goal streak and can set the record on Saturday. Latham will play for Canada in a friendly match against England on Thursday in Ottawa before meeting the Spirit on Friday.

PICKUP, FAIR AND KRZYKOWSKI MAY HAVE FOUND NEW CAREERS?

Defenders Kim Pickup, Ronnie Fair and Lisa Krzykowski recently traded in their shin guards for teleprompters during the Spirit's Trading Places theme with local media members. The trio anchored various sports and weather segments on local newscasts last week, and in turn the anchors trained with the Spirit during a practice session. By all accounts, all three players did a good job at their new assignments. Pickup was featured on the KNSD News at 6 p.m. last Monday, Fair did the weather on Fox 6 In the Morning last Friday and Krzykowski anchor a sports segment on KSWB's "In Zone Sports" show on Sunday night. The five-part series is scheduled to continue on Wednesday as head coach Omid Namazi will trade places with KGTV's Jeff Cawley, anchoring the sports segment during the 6:30 p.m. newscast.

THE BEST START TO A SEASON CONTINUES

The Spirit are off to the best start in team history with a 2-1-3 record and nine points. San Diego currently has a five-game unbeaten streak; the longest streak in club history is six games recorded between July 25-August 12, 2001.

SPIRIT VENTURES INTO THE KITCHEN WITH VONS.COM

"Cooking with Spirit," a new cookbook sponsored by VONS.com features favorite recipes of the San Diego Spirit players including Shannon MacMillan, Jaime Pagliarulo and Julie Foudy. The cookbook will be given away as a promotional item at the Spirit/Atlanta Beat game on May 31. Vons.com, which offers online grocery service throughout the San Diego area, produced the 20-page cookbook with the Spirit. Other Spirit players and team personnel contributed recipes to the cookbook. Soccer training tips are also featured in the cookbook, which will be given to the first 4,000 fans entering Torero Stadium. Media opportunities are available with Spirit players throughout the week. Please contact the Spirit Communications Department to set up interviews or recipe tastings.

SPIRIT SNAPSHOTS

Jaime Pagliarulo is unbeaten in her last four starts (2-0-2) and is one win away from 10 career victories... San Diego extended its unbeaten streak to five games with a 1-1 tie with Boston on Sunday, May 18 at Torero Stadium... Forward Allie Sullivan registered the equalizer in the 50th minute, her first goal as a member of the Spirit... With Sunday's match the 2003 season series between San Diego and Boston has concluded (Boston wins 1-0-2)...Fleeting leads the WUSA in shots on goal (18)... Rookie Susan Bush made her WUSA debut on May 18, playing 79 minutes...Daniela made her home debut on Sunday... Daniela will receive a one game suspension if she is issued a caution in Saturday's game, she has accumulated two consecutive yellow cards...The Spirit ranks seventh in team offense (1.33 goals per game) and is tied for second in team defense (1.00 goals per game).

UPCOMING SCHEDULE

The Spirit goes on the road to the beautiful SAS Stadium for its next match on May 24 against the Carolina Courage in the first game of the season against the defending WUSA champions. The Spirit will then open an important two-game home stand on consecutive Saturdays against the Atlanta Beat on May 31 and the Philadelphia Charge on June 7. Both kickoffs are at 6 p.m. PT at Torero Stadium. Those matches will mark the first and only visits by the Beat and the Charge, both playoff teams in the first two seasons, to Torero Stadium in 2003.

QUOTES

Spirit head coach Omid Namazi on MacMillan's injury: "I feel heavy hearted for Mac. She's been playing some of the best soccer of her career. You can't replace a Shannon MacMillan because of the quality of player she is, but for us, other players will have to step up and I am confident they will do that. With the strength of her character, and work ethic, I think she'll have a very speedy recovery."

Spirit team physician Dr. David Chao on MacMillan's injury "Unfortunately she did suffer a significant injury to her knee and she will need reconstructive surgery. But considering the kind of athlete she is, knowing the kind of shape she is in, and how hard she works, we anticipate as quick of a recovery as possible."

SPIRIT NUMEROLOGY

1 - Spirit player, Allie Sullivan, to have scored against their former team. She tallied a goal against Boston in Sunday's game. 3000 - Career minutes goalkeeper Jaime Pagliarulo will have played after she plays another 32 minutes in her next game.

8 - Spirit statistical records, in which Shannon MacMillan holds of a possible 21.



Women's United Soccer Association Stories from May 20, 2003


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