WPS Playoffs First Round Preview
Published on September 17, 2010 under Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) News Release
FC Gold Pride's Kelley O'Hara is WPS's Week 22 Player of the Week
Rookie forward Kelley O'Hara is Women's Professional Soccer's Player of the Week for Week 22 after leading regular-season champion FC Gold Pride to victory in its final game before the 2010 WPS Playoffs presented by MedImmune.
O'Hara scored two goals and assisted another in an emphatic 4-1 triumph Saturday over the Philadelphia Independence as the team from the San Francisco Bay Area completed its worst-to-first turnaround by improving its record to 16-3-5 and extending its 2½-month unbeaten streak to 13 games.
Gold Pride will be home, at Pioneer Stadium on the campus of Cal State-East Bay in Hayward, for the Sept. 26 WPS Championship presented by Citi. Philadelphia and Washington meet in the postseason's first round Sunday, and the winner plays at Boston in next week's Super Semifinal. The survivor will be Gold Pride's foe in the final.
O'Hara, who won the Hermann Trophy as college soccer's top player following her senior season at Stanford, gave Gold Pride a 40th-minute lead over Philadelphia, assisted Marta's league-best 19th goal a minute later, then netted her sixth goal of the season one minute after the Independence halved the advantage. She departed minutes later with an injury.
She is the third FC Gold Pride player to win the Player of the Week award this year, joining Marta, who was honored in Weeks 6, 9 and 12, and Christine Sinclair, who won in Week 14.
The WPS Player of Week is selected by a panel of journalists from the North American Soccer Reporters.
Week 1: Eniola Aluko (Saint Louis Athletica)
Week 2: Abby Wambach (Washington Freedom)
Week 3: Lori Lindsey (Philadelphia Independence)
Week 4: Sonia Bompastor (Washington Freedom)
Week 5: Karen Bardsley (Sky Blue FC)
Week 6: Marta (FC Gold Pride)
Week 7: Kosovare Asllani (Chicago Red Stars)
Week 8: Amy Rodriguez (Philadelphia Independence)
Week 9: Marta (FC Gold Pride)
Week 10: Danesha Adams (Philadelphia Independence)
Week 11: Amy Rodriguez (Philadelphia Independence)
Week 12: Marta (FC Gold Pride)
Week 13: Ella Masar (Chicago Red Stars)
Week 14: Christine Sinclair (FC Gold Pride)
Week 15: Caroline Seger (Philadelphia Independence)
Week 16: Hope Solo (Atlanta Beat)
Week 17: Kelly Smith (Boston Breakers)
Week 18: Amy Rodriguez (Philadelphia Independence)
Week 19: Eniola Aluko (Atlanta Beat)
Week 20: Abby Wambach (Washington Freedom)
Week 21: Veronica Boquete (Chicago Red Stars)
Week 22: Kelley O'Hara (FC Gold Pride)
2010 WPS Year-End Awards Announced
WPS announced the 2010 WPS Year-End Awards on Thursday. Regular season champion FC Gold Pride won three awards and will honor their winners prior to the WPS Championship presented by Citi. Philadelphia Independence coach Paul Riley was selected Coach of the Year and will be honored on Sunday in Philadelphia. Boston's star defender Amy LePeilbet captured her second straight MedImmune Defender of the Year Award and will be honored next Thursday at the WPS Super Semifinal while the Citi Sportswoman of the Year winner, Natalie Spilger, will be officially presented with the award at a later date.
2010 WPS Playoffs presented by MedImmune - Full Schedule
Sunday, September 19, 2010
WPS First Round - 2:30pm ET (Pregame Show at 2pm on FSN, Comcast; check local listings)
Philadelphia Independence vs. Washington Freedom
Thursday, September 23, 2010
WPS Super Semifinal - 8pm ET (FSC)
Boston Breakers vs. Winner of WPS First Round
Sunday, September 26, 2010
WPS Championship presented by Citi - 2:30pm ET (Pregame Show at FSN, Comcast; check local listings)
FC Gold Pride vs. Winner of WPS Super Semifinal
WPS First Round Preview
Sunday, September 19
Philadelphia Independence vs. Washington Freedom (2:30pm ET)
John A. Farrell Stadium, West Chester, PA
- Two teams that have been trending in different directions over the final weeks of the regular season.
- Philadelphia has lost four in a row to end the regular season, only the second losing streak all year for the Independence since losing two games back-to-back in early July. Over that time, the team has scored just two goals after scoring seven goals during a three-game unbeaten streak in mid-August.
- Washington has won three of its last four and four of its last seven, losing just once since August 1 to earn the fourth and final playoff berth in the WPS Playoffs. After struggling on defense in July, Jim Gabarra's defense gave up just four goals in its final seven games.
- The two teams play just 100 miles apart and split their season series 2-2 with each team winning both games at home. Philadelphia won 3-1 and 3-2 at home,while Washington picked up wins at the SoccerPlex with 2-1 and 2-0 scorelines.
- Washington really struggled on the road this season picking up just one victory while going 1-7-4 when traveling away from home. Their last and lone victory on the road came in mid-May with a 2-0 victory in Atlanta.
- Philadelphia was a solid 7-3-2 this year at home, but two of those home losses came in the final two home games of the season.
- The WPS First Round will be a match-up of two of the league's top forwards with Abby Wambach (13 goals) up top for Washington, while her national team teammate on the forward line, Amy Rodriguez (12 goals) will be Philadelphia's top offensive threat.
- In the middle, former Freedom midfielder Lori Lindsey will be the key to controlling play for the Independence
- After missing Sonia Bompastor and Lene Mykjaland due to national team commitments in Week 22, the Freedom will have its two most dynamic international stars back for the playoffs.
- Philadelphia midfielder Jen Buczkowski and Washington Freedom defender Anita Asante won the 2009 WPS Championship with Sky Blue FC and are the only players in WPS with a chance to win a second straight WPS title. Buczkowski was the third player taken in the 2009 Expansion Draft when Sky Blue FC left her on the unprotected list. Asante was traded by Sky Blue FC in early May to St. Louis, was then picked up by Chicago in free agency and then subsequently dealt to Washington in a trade.
- Freedom defender Becky Sauerbrunn is the only player in WPS history to play every minute of every regular season game.
- Last year's WPS First Round was played at Maryland SoccerPlex. Sky Blue FC scored an 85th minute goal to take a 2-1 victory just six minutes after Washington Freedom had tied the game which was played in hot 90+ degree temperatures. Sky Blue FC went on a three-game road winning streak to win the 2009 WPS Championship.
- A home team has yet to win a WPS Playoff game.
Women's Professional Soccer Stories from September 17, 2010
- Hope Solo to Have Shoulder Surgery - Atlanta Beat
- WPS Playoffs First Round Preview - WPS
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.
