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WPS Weekly - Week 20

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


In one of the most exciting weekend's of games in WPS' short history, WPS Week 20 saw two come-from-behind victories in crucial games filled with playoff implications and an unprecedented goal-scoring outburst from 2010 WPS Regular Season champion FC Gold Pride.

Led by two goals from league-leading scorer Marta, FC Gold Pride, ran up a 6-1 scoreline against the Atlanta Beat at KSU Soccer Stadium to set a WPS record for goals by a team in a game (6) and goals in one half (5). In three games at KSU Soccer Stadium, the regular season champion FC Gold Pride outscored the Beat 10-1 as the Bay Area side all but mathematically eliminated the Beat from playoff contention. Along with Marta's two strikes, FC Gold Pride had goals from Christine Sinclair, Kelley O'Hara, Tiffeny Milbrett and Camille Abily. Eniola Aluko notched the Beat's lone goal.

In other games, two teams strengthened their playoff positions in a pair of second-third and four-fifth place match-ups. Philadelphia took an early 1-0 lead against Boston in the race for the right to host the WPS Super Semifinal as the second place team in the regular season. But the Breakers fought back on goals by Stephanie Cox and Kelly Smith to earn a 2-1 victory over the Independence and move within 2 points of Philadelphia with a game in hand. Philadelphia entered the match with a chance to clinch a home playoff game with a tie or win, and ended up losing its second straight for just the second time this year in its inaugural season.

Similarly in Washington on Saturday night, the Washington Freedom came from behind to defeat Sky Blue FC, 2-1, to notch a crucial victory in the fight for the final playoff berth. The win gave the Freedom a three point edge on Sky Blue FC in the standings, with the New Jersey side having a game in hand. The win also gave the Freedom the season head-to-head tiebreaker over their New Jersey rivals essentially pushing their lead to four points over Sky Blue with two games remaining for Washington and three games for Sky Blue FC.

Saturday

FC Gold Pride 6, Atlanta 1

Washington 2, Sky Blue FC 1

Sunday

Boston 2, Philadelphia 1

League Leaders

Goals

Marta (FC Gold Pride) 17

Amy Rodriguez (Philadelphia) 12

Abby Wambach (Washington Freedom) 12

Kelly Smith (Boston Breakers) 11

Eniola Aluko (Atlanta Beat) 9

Christine Sinclair (FC Gold Pride) 9

Assists

Christine Sinclair (FC Gold Pride) 8

Abby Wambach (Washington Freedom) 8

Lori Lindsey (Philadelphia Independence) 7

Amy Rodriguez (Philadelphia Independence) 6

Sonia Bompastor (Washington Freedom) 5

Shannon Boxx (FC Gold Pride) 5

Caroline Seger (Philadelphia Independence) 5

Saves

Hope Solo (Atlanta Beat) 91

Erin McLeod (Washington Freedom) 68

Jillian Loyden (Chicago Red Stars) 66

Nicole Barnhart (FC Gold Pride) 62

Karen Bardsley (Sky Blue FC) 56

Washington's Wambach is WPS's Week 20 Player of the Week

U.S. national team forward Abby Wambach is Women's Professional Soccer's Player of the Week for Week 20 after rallying the Washington Freedom to a 2-1 victory over Sky Blue FC in a pivotal match fraught with playoff implications.

Wambach earned and converted a penalty kick in the 79th minute to tie the score, then finished a feed from Allie Long five minutes later to give the Freedom (7-8-7) a three-point advantage on the defending WPS champion in the race for the final playoff berth with just two weeks remaining in the regular season.

Sky Blue FC has three games left to Washington's two, but the Freedom win the tiebreaker -- head-to-head results -- if they finish level on points.

The goals were Wambach's 11th and 12th of the season. She has 20 goals in two WPS campaigns, second to FC Gold Pride forward Marta's 27, and her WUSA/WPS total of 43 is the top mark for professional women's soccer in the U.S.

This is the second time Wambach has been honored as Player of the Week this season -- she also won in Week 2 -- and the fifth time in two seasons, matching Marta's record. Washington's Sonia Bompastor won the award in Week 4.

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)

The Playoff Skinny: 2010 WPS Playoff presented by MedImmune

With just three game dates left in the WPS regular season, the race for the WPS Playoffs presented by MedImmune continues to crystallize. While only FC Gold Pride has secured a post-season berth, several teams have opportunities to either clinch or enhance their positioning with a slate of three midweek games on Wednesday, Sept. 1. Here's a breakdown of the playoff picture:

Wednesday's Games

Sky Blue FC vs. FC Gold Pride, 7pm ET

Atlanta Beat vs. Boston Breakers, 7:30pm ET

Chicago Red Stars vs. Philadelphia Independence, 8pm ET

FC Gold Pride (14-3-4, 46 points)

The Bay Area side has clinched the top seed in the WPS Playoffs presented by MedImmune and will host the WPS Championship presented by Citi on Sunday, Sept. 26 at 2:30pm ET/11:30am PT.

Philadelphia Independence (10-8-4, 34 points)

All the Independence needed in their last two outings was a single point to clinch a post-season berth. Philadelphia lost both games. They'll try again when they visit Chicago on Sunday. With a win or a tie against the Red Stars, the Independence will clinch a spot in the playoffs plus a home playoff game. Should the Independence lose and Sky Blue FC lose or tie, Philadelphia will clinch just a spot in the post-season. If Philadelphia loses to Chicago and Sky Blue FC beats FC Gold Pride, the Independence will let another opportunity to clinch a playoff berth slip through their hands.

Boston Breakers (9-7-5, 32 points)

The Breakers now control their own destiny. If they win against Atlanta on Wednesday, they are in the playoffs and will host a playoff game. Alternatively, if Sky Blue FC loses on Wednesday, Boston can back into the playoffs with a loss or a tie. If both Boston and Sky Blue FC tie on Wednesday, the Breakers will also secure their ticket to the post-season. But if Sky Blue FC wins or ties on Wednesday and Boston falls to Atlanta, the Breakers won't clinch a playoff berth.

Washington Freedom (7-8-7, 28 points)

The Freedom are idle on Wednesday and can neither clinch a playoff spot or be eliminated from contention.

Sky Blue FC (7-10-4, 25 points)

Likewise, Sky Blue FC can neither clinch a playoff spot or be eliminated from contention on Wednesday, but a win over FC Gold Pride would be huge as it would push the New Jersey side back into a tie with the Freedom for the fourth and final playoff berth. After Wednesday's games, both the Freedom and Sky Blue FC have two games remaining on their regular season schedules.

Chicago Red Stars (5-11-6, 21 points)

The Chicago Red Stars have been eliminated from playoff contention.

Atlanta Beat (5-11-5, 20 points)

The Beat must defeat the Breakers on Wednesday to keep their playoff hopes alive. A loss or tie to Boston will eliminate Atlanta from the post-season chase.

WPS Super Semifinal Set for 8pm ET on Thursday, September 23

The WPS Super Semifinal has been set for kick-off time at 8pm ET/5pm PT on Thursday, September 23rd. The game will air on Fox Soccer Channel nationally and will be hosted by the team that finishes second in the final 2010 WPS Regular Season Standings.

The No. 2 seed from the regular season will host the winner of the WPS First Round from September 19th with the winner of the WPS Super Semifinal traveling west to FC Gold Pride on just two days rest to face regular season champions FC Gold Pride in the WPS Championship presented by Citi on September 26 at Pioneer Stadium.

The WPS First Round and WPS Championship presented by Citi will be broadcast nationally on Fox Sports Net and affiliated regional sports networks at 2:30pm ET/11:30am PT.

WPS COO Mary Harvey to be Replaced by USL/W-League's Melanie Fitzgerald as Manager of League Operations

As part of the league re-structuring announced in July, WPS Chief Operating Officer Mary Harvey has left her position at the league office last Friday upon the hiring of USL/W-League Sr. Director of Operations Melanie Fitzgerald, who will start September 7 with the title of WPS Manager of League Operations.

Harvey was responsible for many key departments at the league related to on-field matters including day-of-game operations, player contracts & rights, league drafts, international relations, scheduling, officiating and rules.

"It has been a tremendous experience to help breathe life into a new league. Being responsible for the operational startup of a new business has been an important experience for me. The structures that were built are solid, and it is a good time to transition to the next phase of the League's development. I am optimistic that there is a place in the global sports landscape for this product. The global growth rates of women's soccer point to it, and we have established a world class league here in the United States."

"Mary Harvey's experience, hard-work and deep knowledge of soccer and its international community have been such a huge asset to developing WPS's operational infrastructure over the past two years," said WPS Commissioner Tonya Antonucci. "She put in place many of the structures which enabled the birth of this league such as player transactions, drafts, scheduling, game-day operations and officiating, while also assisting me and the board on more strategic league issues. Her passion for building and growing the game will be missed within WPS. At the same time, we have brought in an experienced operations manager. Melanie Fitzgerald has overseen tremendous growth within USL's W-league as Sr. Director of Operations and we are confident that Melanie will continue the excellent game-day product, atmosphere and operational standards that we have established at WPS."

Harvey, an eight year veteran of the US Women's National Team is an Olympic gold medalist from the 1996 Olympics, and a 1991 FIFA Women's World Cup Champion. Prior to joining WPS, Harvey spent four years in Zurich as a member of senior management at world governing body FIFA, as the organization's Director of Development.

Marta Nominated for Women's Sports Foundation Sportswoman of the Year

Marta of the FC Gold Pride, the four-time FIFA World Player of the Year, has been nominated for the Women's Sports Foundation Sportswoman of the Year award.

Marta is one of 10 female athletes nominated in the team category who are recognized for their exemplary leadership and athletic performance over a 12-month period that ended in July.

In that span the Brazilian was honored as the world's top player for the fourth consecutive time, capped the inaugural Women's Professional Soccer season with 10 goals and three more in the playoffs to be named league MVP and scored a league-leading 13 goals for the Gold Pride in the WPS' second season.

Marta Takes Commanding Lead in Race for PUMA Golden Boot

Just as WPS All-Star and Philadelphia forward Amy Rodriguez made a late-season run for the PUMA Golden Boot award as the league's top scorer, four-time FIFA World Player of the Year and FC Gold Pride star Marta scored a pair of goals in FC Gold Pride's 6-1 victory over Atlanta to pull away with a five-goal cushion in the race of the PUMA Golden Boot.

Marta, who won the award last year in the league's inaugural season with 10 goals in 20 regular season games, now has 17 goals on the year in 21 games for a .8 goals per game scoring average - a 60% increase on her scoring average in 2010 when Marta played for regular season champion Los Angeles Sol.

Amy Rodriguez is five goals behind with 12 goals on the season and is now tied for second with Washington Freedom forward Abby Wambach who scored a pair in Washington's 2-1 victory over Sky Blue FC. With two games left for both Rodriguez and Wambach it would take an unprecedented scoring streak for both to catch Marta in the race of the coveted PUMA Golden Boot.

2010 WPS Year-End Award Finalists Announced, Fan Vote Begins Online

Women's Professional Soccer announced its 2010 WPS Year-End Award nominations on Monday as voting opened for fans online on the WPS Fancorner 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 fan voting (33%), player/coach voting (33%) and media vote (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.

The Citi Sportswoman of the Year Award is voted on entirely by players and coaches, while the PUMA Golden Boot award is awarded to the top goal scorer during the 2010 WPS Regular Season. WPS Regular Season champion FC Gold Pride and the Boston Breakers lead the league with six nominees each. 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.

Nominees were selected from submissions by teams in which teams could only nominate players from other teams. The Citi Sportswoman of the Year category includes one nomination per team submitted by their clubs. Three of last year's winners are up again for the same award in 2010 including Marta (FC Gold Pride), Amy LePeilbet (Boston Breakers) and Hope Solo (Atlanta Beat).

The online voting will close for fans on Monday, September 6. Winners will be announced in mid-September.

WPS Week 21 Preview

Wednesday, September 1

Sky Blue FC vs. FC Gold Pride (7pm ET)

Yurcak Field, Piscataway, NJ

- Sky Blue FC looks to keep pace with fourth-place Washington Freedom as they are three points behind but have a game in hand as the Freedom are the only idle team in midweek.

- The Freedom hold the tiebreaker against Sky Blue FC so a tie in the final standings would give the Freedom the edge in the chase for the fourth and final playoff position.

- After Sky Blue FC lost its first two games against FC Gold Pride early in the season, the New Jersey side put together one of its most complete games of the season just before the All-Star break with a 2-0 victory at Pioneer Stadium, FC Gold Pride's only home loss this season

- In 14 games since June 1`, Sky Blue FC have had multi-goal games only three times with all three of those games being victories.

- After going through a three-game scoreless streak, FC Gold Pride has unleashed its offense for 9 goals in two games - the most over a two-game span ever in WPS. Their 6-1 victory over Atlanta in Week 20 set records for goals by a team in a game (6) and a half (5).

- FC Gold Pride keeper Nicole Barnhart is among the top give in the league in saves.

- FC Gold Pride has six finalists (one in each category) for the 2010 WPS Year-End Awards, tied for the most in the league with Boston.

Atlanta Beat vs. Boston Breakers (7:30pm ET)

KSU Soccer Stadium, Kennesaw, GA

- A loss or tie by Atlanta on Wednesday eliminates the Beat from playoff contention as the expansion team needs to win out and have some other results fall its way to make the playoffs.

- Meanwhile, a win by Boston will clinch a playoff berth and guarantee the Breakers of a home playoff game regardless of other results around the league on Wednesday.

- The Breakers continued their hot streak on Sunday, winning for the 8th time in 11 games since the All-Star Break coming from behind to defeat second-place Philadelphia, 2-1. During that time, scoring has been key for the Breakers as they have had multi-goal games in 10 of those 11 games.

- After three straight wins to end July, Atlanta went 1-4-1 in August to take itself all but mathematically out of playoff contention.

- Atlanta's defense has struggled giving up 15 goals over the past five games for a three goals per game against average.

- Boston has six finalists for the 2010 WPS Year-End Awards, including two nominees for Rookie of the Year, tied for the most in the league with FC Gold Pride.

Chicago Red Stars vs. Philadelphia Independence (8pm ET)

Toyota Park, Bridgeview, IL

- Chicago hosts the second of three straight home games to end the season after drawing a season-high 6,089 fans in their game against FC Gold Pride in Week 19.

- The Red Stars were the first team to be eliminated from playoff contention and will likely be the only WPS team to miss the playoffs in each of the first two seasons of the league with last year's teams who missed the playoffs, Boston and FC Gold Pride, either already qualified or a near-lock for the playoffs

- Philadelphia has missed two chances to clinch a playoff berth by losing two straight for only the second time this year and will be looking for that elusive point in the standings that will guarantee a home playoff game.

- Philadelphia has dominated the Red Stars this year going 3-0 and outscoring Chicago 6-1 during that time.

- Independence has four finalists for the WPS Year-End Awards including Paul Riley (Coach), Allison Falk (Defender & Sportswoman) and Amy Rodriguez (Michelle Akers Award).

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Women's Professional Soccer Stories from August 31, 2010


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.


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