WPS PREVIEW WEEK 17

Washington Freedom v Saint Louis Athletica Sat July 18 5pm ET Live CSN, KPLR, Webcast,
Live audio www.team1380.net

Saint Louis Athletica are back in action this weekend after their bye week hoping to continue their winning streak after defeating the LA Sol.Athletica rolls into RFK Stadium to take on the Washington Freedom, carrying a three game winning streak, with all three wins coming on the road.
Both teams will be missing their top starters due to international duty and will have to dig deep into their squads to pick players.

The Freedom will be without Captain Abby Wambach, Cat Whitehill and Erin Mcleod.
Athletica will also be without their Captain Lori Chalupny, Hope Solo, Melissa Tancredi and Eniola Aluko.

The matchup Saturday is the final of the regular season between these two clubs. The first meeting on May 3 resulted in a 3-3 draw with Washington scoring two goals in the final ten minutes to earn the tie. The next encounter on June 20 was a 1-0 win for the Freedom as Rebecca Moros struck for an 83rd minute game winner.

Since then the clubs have been headed in different paths. Athletica are on a roll with a perfect 4-0-0 in their last four away games and they possess the league’s best road record with a mark of 5-2-1.
Meanwhile, Washington is winless in their last four and had lost three straight before managing a 4-4 draw on Wednesday night against Sky Blue FC. Washington’s last victory was their win at Saint Louis on June 20.

Washington will send out defender Becky Sauerbrunn on Saturday and goalkeeper Kati Jo Spisak. Both players grew up in suburban St. Louis and were standout club players. Sonia Bompastor will also start and Athletica Head coach Jorge Barcellos sees her as a threat.

“Bompastor is an underrated player in this league. She has a lot of potential and has not gotten all the credit she deserves,” says Barcellos. “She does get some attention and she does get noticed but this is one of the few players that can influence a game.”

With Hope Solo gone Jillian Loyden will make her second start of the year in goal for Saint Louis. In her lone previous game Loyden turned in a six save performance at Chicago on May 23 and earned her first professional WPS win and shutout. Loyden was named WPS Player of the Week for week 9 for her standout effort.

Washington needs a win to stay in touch with the four playoff slotted teams ahead of them.
Saint Louis sits in a good spot to make the playoffs as of now. Athletica have 23 points on the season, two ahead of Boston and four ahead of fourth place Sky Blue FC.

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NJ Sky Blue FC v Chicago Red Stars Sun July 19 4.30pm ET Live FSC, Webcast

Sky Blue FC will play its third match this week – and the second in a row at home – when it hosts the Chicago Red Stars on Sunday afternoon during Faith Day at Yurcak Field. Sky Blue FC hopes to maintain its success against the Red Stars taking a 2-0-1 record into the final meeting of the regular season between the two sides.

They will have to try and do this without their Captains Christie Rampone and Heather O'Reilly. Also missing will be Anita Asante, Karen Bardsley and Kelly Parker.

The Red Stars will be looking to get back to winning ways after their disappointing defeat in Boston after a run of good results. They too will be missing their top players. Captain Lindsey Tarpley, Carli Lloyd, Megan Rapinoe and Karen Carney all miss out this weekend.

Sky Blue FC (5-6-4, 19 pts.) heads into the match against Chicago holding the fourth and final playoff spot. The third-place Boston Breakers (6-6-3, 21 pts.) are two points ahead of Sky Blue FC and two points behind second-place Saint Louis Athletica (7-5-2, 23 pts.).

With their midweek loss to the Breakers, Chicago (4-7-5, 17 pts.) has dropped to sixth in the standings, two points shy of Sky Blue FC and the final playoff berth. The Red Stars are still five points clear of FC Gold Pride (3-8-3, 12 pts.). A win is vital for both teams with only a few games remaining.

For Sky Blue the loss of their players may be significant, none more so than in defence. The departure of Rampone means that both of Sky Blue FC’s starting central defenders will be unavailable for Sunday’s game. Asante being with England this weekend.With Asante missing against the Freedom on Wednesday night, Head Coach Kelly Lindsey was forced to make significant changes to her back four. The normally stingy Sky Blue FC defense allowed four goals in its least effective outing of the season.
Chicago still have Cristiane in their ranks and after her hat-trick heroics and then drawing a blank at Boston she will be jumping at the bit to be back in the scoring sheets this time around.

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FC Gold Pride v Boston Breakers Sun July 19 8pm ET

After a disappointing 3-1 loss last weekend in Chicago, FC Gold Pride (3-8-3) will look to put an end to their seven-game winless streak when they face the Boston Breakers at home this Sunday, July 19.

This will be the Pride's third and final match against Boston. FC Gold Pride earned one of their three wins with a 2-1 victory against Boston at home in the team's inaugural match on April 5. The Pride also tied the Breakers 1-1 while playing away in Cambridge, MA on June 17. A win this weekend will solidify the Pride's winning record over Boston this season.

With only six games remaining the Pride is currently seated at the bottom of the pack with 12 points on the season. Though the Pride is struggling for points, there is still a chance the team will find its way into the postseason. The Pride is only seven points out of fourth place.

Both the Pride and the Breakers will be missing key players this weekend, as the U.S. National Team will face the Canadian National Team on July 16 and July 22. The Pride will lose starters Captain Leslie Osborne, Rachel Buehler, and Nicole Barnhart to the U.S. National Team and Christine Sinclair to the Canadian National Team.

Defenders Carrie Dew and Kristin Graczyk return to the field this weekend ready for competition. After getting a cleat in the face during the first half of last Sunday's game against the Red Stars, Graczyk was pulled from the match unable to return. Dew missed last weekend's game to nurse a minor knee injury and ensure a successful recovery. The Pride will look to Dew and Graczyk's solid defensive play to help unify the back line against the Breakers. Coach Albertin Montoyo is looking for a player to take leadership in the offensive end. Tiffany Milbrett and Eriko Arkawa who has been relatively quiet need to step up. Will Tiffany Weimer play?

Boston will be missing the most players this weekend due to international duty. Kelly Smith and Alex Scott are away with England. Candace Chapman joins her Canadian national buddies and Heather Mitts, Angela Hucles, Amy LePeilbet and Amy Rodriguez are with the US Womens national squad. All 7 are starters for the Breakers. Head Coach Tony DiCicco looks to Kristine Lilly and Christine Latham to provide the spark for him.