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WPS Weekly

June 30, 2009 - Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) News Release


Wednesday, June 24 Boston Breakers 1, Washington Freedom 0 Los Angeles Sol 2, Saint Louis Athletica 1

Saturday, June 27 Los Angeles Sol 4, Chicago Red Stars 0

Sunday, June 28 Saint Louis Athletica 2, Sky Blue FC 1

Los Angeles Clinches Playoff Berth The first-place Los Angeles Sol (10-1-4, 34 points) has become the first team in Women's Professional Soccer to clinch a playoff spot.

The Sol's 4-0 home victory over the Chicago Red Stars Saturday, combined with the Saint Louis Athletica's 2-1 road defeat of Sky Blue FC (NJ/NY) on Sunday, means that the Sol has wrapped up one of the league's four available postseason berths.

"Though we are certainly pleased to be the first team in WPS to reach the playoffs, our work here is far from done," said Los Angeles Sol General Manager Charlie Naimo. "From the outset, we have set the goal of bringing a championship to all the soccer fans that support us throughout the Southland."

The top four teams in the WPS Standings at the conclusion of the WPS regular season will advance to the WPS Playoffs, which consists of a unique format that heavily rewards the team that finishes atop the 2009 WPS Regular Season table. The top team during the regular season will become WPS Regular Season Champion and earn an automatic place as host of the WPS Championship, the league's championship game.

In the First Round of the playoffs, the No. 4 team in the regular season will face the No. 3 team at No. 3's stadium on August 15. The second place team in the regular season will receive a bye into the Super Semifinal and host the winner of the First Round on August 18/19. The winner of the Super Semifinal will then travel to the top-seeded team for WPS Championship on August 22.

Weekend Report WPS Week 14 ended with the Los Angeles Sol further extending their lead in the WPS Standings to 16 points, while highlighting their regular season dominance with a 4-0 romp over the Chicago Red Stars on Saturday and a narrow 2-1 victory over the surging Saint Louis Athletica in a midweek game. The Sol's two victories this week combined with Sky Blue FC's loss to the Athletica on Sunday, guaranteed the Los Angeles side a place in the WPS Playoffs.

The magic number for the league title for Los Angeles now sits at 9 points over the Boston Breakers, who won Wednesday against Washington, 1-0. Any combination of points earned by Los Angeles and Boston's not collecting maximum points in a game would lower that number. A victory by Los Angeles on Sunday against Washington, combined with a loss by Boston at New Jersey would mean that the Sol could wrap up the WPS regular season crown at home on Wednesday, July 8 against Saint Louis with over a month left in the regular season.

Mathematically, Washington, Saint Louis and Boston could still individually overtake Los Angeles but to do so, Washington would have to defeat Los Angeles in Sunday's match-up and Saint Louis would need to win at The Home Depot Center next week. Boston plays Los Angeles in the final game of the regular season.

The rest of the playoff picture and positions 2, 3 and 4 are still completely up for grabs.

Los Angeles Sol 4, Chicago Red Stars 0 The Los Angeles Sol defeated the Chicago Red Stars, 4-0, at The Home Depot Center on Saturday morning. It was a clinical performance with two goals in each half for the Sol to match the record held by the Red Stars for the most lopsided result in WPS this season. The Red Stars defeated the Boston Breakers 4-0 on April 25, the team's last victory over 9 games.

Los Angeles were led by goals from Shannon Boxx, Camile Abily and a pair by Marta, who tied her teammate Abily atop the league lead with eight goals on the season.

Saint Louis Athletica 2, Sky Blue FC 1 Saint Louis Athletica wasted no time getting on the scoreboard in New Jersey as Eniola Aluko notched an opening strike in just the second minute of action, but it was Elise Weber's game-winner in the 84th minute that gave Saint Louis a 2-1 win against Sky Blue FC at Yurcak Field on Sunday. Sandwiched in between was a 76th minute goal by Julianne Sitch that equalized for the Jersey-side, who impressively outshot the Athletica 21-5 in the game but come up on the short end.

The game had crucial playoff implications as Saint Louis moved into third place, five points clear of fifth-place Sky Blue FC. The Washington Freedom currently sits in the fourth and final playoff position, one point back of Saint Louis.

Playoff-Clinching Scenarios for Week 15 Los Angeles Sol - Has clinched playoff berth. Will clinch WPS Regular Season title with a victory on Sunday vs. Washington, plus a loss by Boston on Saturday, and victory on Wednesday, July 8 vs. Saint Louis.

A victory by Los Angeles over Washington on Sunday officially knocks the Freedom out of the hunt for the WPS Regular Season title - regardless of how the Freedom do on Wednesday against Chicago - and guarantees the Sol a home playoff game. Sky Blue FC and FC Gold Pride are also officially eliminated from contention for the regular season title if Los Angeles wins, or if they fail to win their respective home games. Chicago is officially out of the race for the WPS Regular Season crown.

Line Up Notables Chicago Red Stars: The Red Stars returned to a regular line-up after keeping Megan Rapinoe and Carli Lloyd out of the starting eleven the week before. Marian Dalmy, a key defender for the Red Stars this season, was out Saturday as she suffered an ankle injury the weekend prior.

Boston Breakers: Allison Lipsher posted her second consecutive shutout last Wednesday in her newfound role as the starting goalkeeper for the Breakers. Defender Heather Mitts tallied her first assist this season on a free kick redirected in by Christine Latham. Recently signed as developmental players for Boston, Sophia Mundy and Mary-Frances Monroe grabbed their first minutes played this season. Mundy played the full ninety, while Monroe got into the match for 18 minutes.

Los Angeles Sol: On Saturday the Sol became the second team in WPS to win a game by a four-goal margin. Camille Abily and Marta scored goals that pushed their season total to eight, a number tying the teammates for the league-high total. Allison Falk subbed out of a match for the first time with the Sol with an eye injury and Brittany Bock stepped in for her - it was the first time Bock did not start for the Sol. Manya Makoski a regular on the Sol backline played 10 minutes on Saturday.

Saint Louis Athletica: Eniola Aluko joined the ranks of her English teammate Kelly Smith by scoring a goal in the 2nd minute of play - tying Smith for the fastest goal scored thus far in WPS. Elise Weber played just 11 minutes Sunday, but was on the pitch long enough to score the game-winner against Sky Blue on a lofty cross that surprisingly fell into the far corner of the goal.

Sky Blue FC: Julianne Sitch netted her first goal this season during her 21 minutes on the pitch Sunday to give Sky Blue FC late hope for a tie or win game against the Athletica, however her goal was answered eight minutes later by a game-winner from Saint Louis. A nagging shoulder injury kept Natasha Kai's impact to a minimum in the latter half of the game.

Washington Freedom: Sonia Bompastor played in the backline, a position head coach Jim Gabarra originally intended her to play for the Freedom, to help address the Freedom's league-high 19 goals allowed this season. Homare Sawa moved forward to fulfill an attacking midfield position and provide the Freedom with more opportunities on goal. Abby Wambach, still recovering from a hamstring injury, subbed into the second-half of the match against Boston.

Quotables From Notables A few words from players and coaches...

"It's very encouraging that we were able to come back as we did - I really believe in this team and I think we will still have many successes this season," said Sky Blue FC Head Coach Kelly Lindsey. "We're going to do great things this season; all we need is a little more consistency in our game to reach our goals."

"We didn't play the best but we won the game," said Saint Louis Forward Eniola Aluko. "We played very well against Los Angeles and lost and we played so-so here tonight, but we got the result and that is what counts. We kept going and Elise Weber stepped up."

"It was a big challenge today as it was our third game in seven days, but I thought we played very well," said Los Angeles Sol Head Coach Abner Rogers. "Obviously, the result speaks for itself. The number of opportunities that we created was very satisfying."

"Right now Ali [Lipsher] is the starter, and Kristin [Luckenbill] understands that.," said Boston Breakers Head Coach Tony DiCicco. "It wasn't anything Kristin did wrong, I had to replace a few positions just to shake it up a little bit. And Ali seized the moment and has played three pretty good games. I thought her game on Sunday was fantastic."

"We had to address our defensive structure in giving up so many goals," said Washington Freedom Head Coach Jim Gabarra. "When we first brought Sonia here it was as a left back, and I think our wide defenders were not possessing the ball well enough for us. This allowed us to have two more experienced defenders in the flank defensive position, players who can get forward and are good on the ball."

WPS Player of the Week: Week 14 Los Angeles forward Marta has been selected WPS's Player of the Week for Week 14 after scoring three goals to lead the WPS-leading Sol to victories over Saint Louis Athletica and Chicago Red Stars. The Brazilian star scored the second goal in L.A.'s 2-1 midweek win at Saint Louis, then netted the last two in a 4-0 romp Saturday morning over visiting Chicago Red Stars. She has eight goals this season, tied with teammate Camille Abily atop the WPS scoring list.

Marta is the first two-time winner of WPS's Player of the Week honor, and she was one of five Sol players receiving votes from a panel of writers with the North American Soccer Reporters.

The Sol has been honored six times in 14 weeks, with Aya Miyama (Week 1), Marta (Week 2), Aly Wagner (Week 4), Shannon Boxx (Week 10) and Abily (Week 11) rewarded previously.

The WPS Player of the Week is selected by a panel of writers from the North American Soccer Reporters.

WPS Players of the Week Week 1: Aya Miyama (Los Angeles Sol) Week 2: Marta (Los Angeles Sol) Week 3: Kelly Smith (Boston Breakers) Week 4: Aly Wagner (Los Angeles Sol) Week 5: Abby Wambach (Washington Freedom) Week 6: Sonia Bompastor (Washington Freedom) Week 7: Lori Chalupny (Saint Louis Athletica) Week 8: Christine Sinclair (FC Gold Pride) Week 9: Jillian Loyden (Saint Louis Athletica) Week 10: Shannon Boxx (Los Angeles Sol) Week 11: Camille Abily (Los Angeles Sol) Week 12: Eniola Aluko (Saint Louis Athletica) Week 13: Erin McLeod (Washington Freedom) Week 14: Marta (Los Angeles Sol)

Note: Weeks 1-2 selected by The Soccer Magazine; weeks 3-9 selected by North American Soccer Reporters panel.

WPS June Player of the Month Voting Begins The WPS Player of the Month will be announced on July 3. Voting begins online Tuesday at the WPS Fancorner: fancorner.womensprosoccer.com. Voting is 33% fans, 33% media and 33% teams. Nominees come from the WPS Players of the Week including Camille Abily, Eniola Aluko, Erin McLeod and Marta. Write-in votes are also accepted.

Umeå IK of Sweden to play in WPS All-Star Game Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) announced Tuesday that Swedish Champions Umeå IK will play in the WPS All-Star Game on August 30 to conclude the 2009 WPS Season. The 2009 All-Star Game is being played at The Anheuser-Busch Soccer Park in Fenton, MO, on August 30th with kick-off scheduled for 5:30pm ET/4:30pm CT. The game will be televised live nationally on Fox Soccer Channel and regionally on select Fox Sports Net affiliates (check local listings), starting at 5:00 p.m. ET with a half-hour pre-game show prior to kick-off.

WPS Continues with Remembering 1999 Tribute Day Three WPS teams will celebrate the 10th Anniversary and the legacy of the 1999 Women's World Cup by recognizing members from that legendary team, as WPS continues the Remembering '99 tribute series with special appearances from players and a trophy tour of the 1999 World Cup trophy organized in conjunction with the National Soccer Hall of Fame. On Saturday, July 4, Sky Blue FC will honor Christie Rampone, Saskia Webber and Sara Whalen, as well as Tony DiCicco and Kristine Lilly, who are in town with the Boston Breakers to play Sky Blue FC. On Sunday, July 5th, the FC Gold Pride will have a special ceremony to honor Brandi Chastain, Tiffeny Milbrett, Tisha Venturini and Lorrie Fair at Buck Shaw Stadium, while the Washington Freedom will host Tiffany Roberts and the 1999 World Cup trophy. Steffi Jones, the 2011 World Cup Organizing Committee President who played in the 1999 World Cup, will also be on hand at the Maryland SoccerPlex. The 1999 World Cup was held ten years ago on June 19-July 10, 1999.

First Set of WPS Camps underway Next Week WPS Camps will hold its first two camps next week in Denver, CO and Kingsport, TN from July 6-10. Designed to introduce the country's future superstars to the world's premier women's league, WPS Camps will not only create a challenging and dynamic training environment, but will also allow players to personally experience what it takes to play in the pros...from the pros! WPS player appearances will include Marian Dalmy (Chicago Red Stars) in Denver and Lindsay Tarpley (Chicago Red Stars) in Kingsport, TN. For interview requests please contact the league office, or the team PR directors. More information available at www.WPSCamps.com.

Goals by the Numbers Top Scorers - Los Angeles Sol's Camille Abily (8), Los Angeles Sol's Marta (8), Boston Breakers' Kelly Smith (5), FC Gold Pride's Christine Sinclai (5)

Goals by Team - Los Angeles Sol (23), Washington Freedom (17), Boston Breakers (14), FC Gold Pride (11), Saint Louis Athletica (11), Sky Blue FC (8), Chicago Red Stars (8)

Total Goals - 92 goals scored since WPS Inaugural Match on March 29, 2009 with an average of 2.09 goals per game.

Quickest Goal in League Play: 2nd minute of play, Eniola Aluko - Saint Louis Athletica vs. Sky Blue FC (6/28/09), Kelly Smith - Boston Breakers vs. Los Angeles Sol (5/2/09)

Quickest back-to-back goals by one team: 2 goals in 3 minutes - 42 minute, 45 minute - from Marta in Los Angeles Sol vs. Sky Blue FC match (4/5/09)

Most Goals in One Game by one team: 4, Los Angeles Sol 4-0 Chicago Red Stars (6/27/09), Washington Freedom 4-3 FC Gold Pride (4/26/09), and Chicago Red Stars 4-0 Boston Breakers (4/25/09)

Most Goals in One Game by both teams: 7, Washington Freedom 4-3 FC Gold Pride (4/26/09)

Most Goals in a Game by a player: 2, Marta (Los Angeles Sol - 6/27/09, 4/5/09), Abby Wambach (Washington Freedom - 4/26/09), Daniela (Saint Louis Athletica - 5/3/09), Sonia Bompastor (Washington Freedom - 5/3/09), Camille Abily (Los Angeles Sol - 6/7/09)

The Weekly Forecast

Wednesday, July 1

Chicago Red Stars vs. Washington Freedom (8:30 pm ET - WEB) Toyota Park, Bridgeview, IL The season is now for the Chicago Red Stars. Mired in a nine-game winless streak and 403-minute goalless streak, the Red Stars host the fourth-placed Washington Freedom, which currently holds the final WPS playoff position with just over a month of the regular season still to play. A win by Chicago puts them at 14 points, just two points back of Washington and right in the thick of the playoff hunt, while a loss could be devastating to their playoff chances, as Washington would move eight points clear of Chicago. The Red Stars were steamrolled by the Los Angeles Sol 4-0 on Saturday. And while they did hold an edge on shot margin 17-12 to the Sol, they only managed four of those 17 shots on goal as Sol keeper Karina LeBlanc was not forced to make a single save in the second half. In the two previous match-ups between Chicago and Washington, the teams drew 1-1 and 0-0 in Washington. In both games, Chicago had a player sent-off in the second half: Frida Ostberg in the opening game for two yellow cards and Karen Carney in the second game for a rough tackle on Abby Wambach. Those results with 10 players on the field could bode well for the Red Stars as they fought to earn a point in both but their performance at home might not: they have collected just four of their 11 points on the season at home and the team's only win at home, 4-0 over Boston, was back on April 25. The Washington Freedom have tightened things up on defense lately but have also had problems finding the back of the net. They went 1-2-1 in the month of June and scored just two goals in four games after losing a pivotal game to Boston last Wednesday on the road giving Boston sole possession of second place in the WPS Standings.

Saturday, July 4

Sky Blue FC vs. Boston Breakers (4 pm ET) Yurcak Field, Piscataway, NJ This is the first of a two-game, home and home series that will prove pivotal to Sky Blue FC's playoff chances. Two consecutive wins from the Jersey-side will put them level with the Boston Breakers at 18 points, while a sweep by Boston will put them in the driver seat for a home playoff game come August as one of the top 3 teams in the WPS Regular Season. With no margin for error in the title chase, Boston needs a win to keep pace with Los Angeles and have any chance of catching the league leaders in what already may be a foregone conclusion for the regular season title. Sky Blue FC and Boston played on May 31 when the squads were heading in seemingly opposite directions. Boston was unbeaten in three games including a victory over LA, while Sky Blue FC had undergone a coaching change and had lost two straight. But Sky Blue FC played one of their best games of the year in a 2-1 national television victory that saw exciting goals from Natasha Kai and Kacey White. In that game, Boston was missing the services of suspended Christine Latham, the tough Canadian midfielder who could prove the difference, as she did last Wednesday night against Washington in a pivotal 1-0 victory for Boston. After collecting 7 points in a four-game stretch over 10 days, Boston has now had 10 days rest for this game. Tony DiCicco's side seems to have found some rhythm for a stretch run, but the same was said one month ago heading into Boston's first game against Sky Blue FC.

Sunday, July 5

Washington Freedom vs. Los Angeles Sol (6 pm ET - FSC) Maryland SoccerPlex, Germantown, MD Could third time be a charm for the Washington Freedom? Two national television games and two two-goal losses by Washington to the Los Angeles Sol does not bode well heading into Sunday's marquee television match-up. Both games were held at the Home Depot Center and the Sol dominated possession and the opportunities to score in both games, but this game will be at the friendly confines of the Maryland SoccerPlex. Look for Washington to come out strong after a disappointing 1-0 loss to Boston last week and - depending on their result against Chicago on Wednesday - a chance to pull away from the bottom half of the WPS table. A loss by Washington officially eliminates their slim chances of catching Los Angeles atop the table - while a victory for Jim Gabarra's Washington side will be a big boost to the Freedom's playoff run and a shot of confidence against a team that has looked unbeatable of late. The Sol are indeed on a 10-game unbeaten streak and 3-game winning streak. They boast the two leading scorers in the league in Camille Abily and Marta and were thoroughly dominant in a 4-0 pasting of Chicago last weekend.

FC Gold Pride vs. Saint Louis Athletica (8 pm ET) Buck Shaw Stadium, Santa Clara, CA In the first game at Buck Shaw Stadium in a month, FC Gold Pride returns to their home field in desperate search of a victory against Saint Louis following a bye last week. Since a victory over Chicago on May 16, FC Gold have gone 0-3-2 and collected just two points in the standings. The Pride, which was explosive offensively early in the season, has not had a multi-goal game since April 26th, though two 1-0 victories during this time have kept them in the playoff hunt. The team's only consistent, regular goal scorer in the past month has been Canadian international Christine Sinclair and she'll look to match up with Saint Louis' tough defenders in Tina Ellertson and Kia McNeill. Look for FC Gold defender Rachel Buehler to give tight cover on Eniola Aluko, while recent Athletica addition Sarah Walsh by way of trade could give Aluko some additional options upfront for Saint Louis. In the team's previous match-up, a fortuitous corner kick goal by Lori Chalupny was the difference as Saint Louis captured their first victory in WPS history back on May 9.

On TV The WPS Sunday on FSC match between the Washington Freedom and the Los Angeles Sol will air on the Fox Soccer Channel on Sunday, July 5 at 6 pm ET.



Women's Professional Soccer Stories from June 30, 2009


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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