WPS Weekly Previews - April 24 & 25

Atlanta Beat at FC Gold Pride – April 24 (10 pm eastern, 7 pm pacific)
Castro Valley Athletic Stadium, Castro Valley, CA

Rosters:
Atlanta: GK-A. Whitworth, B. Maron; D-S. Bishop, L. Robinson, L. Sesselmann, S. Mundy; MF-T. Heath, M. Yamaguchi, M. Zerboni, A. Kerr, K. Larkin; F-R. Bachmann, J. Rasmussen, S. Thompson, M. Ocampo, A. Cinalli.
Not Active: K. McNeill (suspension), T. Hamm, R. Nolin, B. Mattern, M. Schumacher-Hodge, M. Lofton-Malachi.

FC Gold Pride: GK-N. Barnhart, B. Cameron; D-R. Buehler, A. Riley, K. Wilson, K. Fountain, K. Graczyk; MF-B. Edwards, C. Abily, S. Gulbrandsen (unlikely-hip flexor), K. Yokers, C. Dew, A. Bowyer, R. Tantillo; F-Marta (questionable-ankle), K. O’Hara, T. Milbrett, K. Bosio.
Not Active: C. Sinclair (national team), C. Chapman (national team), E. Guthrie.

Previous Meetings: None

What to Look For: The Beat lost their captain and best defender with McNeill’s suspension. It leaves the already thin Atlanta in a bind on defense, facing a team with many offensive weapons. Gold Pride is missing two starters in Sinclair and Chapman. Atlanta’s defense will have to keep Gold Pride’s offense off of Whitworth, who faced a lot of shots in last week’s loss to Washington. The Beat could have their 3 talented international forwards (Bachmann, Rasmussen, and Thompson) on the field at the same time which may present Gold Pride some problems of their own. Gold Pride has to come into the game with confidence following their 3-1 victory over the defending champs last weekend.
Storylines: Leigh Ann Robinson and Allison Whitworth return to the Bay Area to face their old teammates for the first time. The goalkeeper duel features Nicole Barnhart vs. Whitworth in at matchup of last year’s starter vs. last year’s backup. It will be interesting to see who will miss their absent players the most, Atlanta with McNeill or Gold Pride with Sinclair and Chapman.


Washington Freedom at Philadelphia Independence – April 25 (6 pm eastern)
John A. Farrell Stadium, West Chester, PA

Rosters:
Washington: GK-B. Scurry, M. McCray; D-C. Whitehill, N. Marshall, S. Bompastor, R. Moros, A. Singer; MF-H. Sawa, B. Sauerbrunn, A. Long, S. Huffman, J. Gilbeau; F-Abby Wambach, L. Mykjåland, L. DeVanna, C. Welsh.
Not Active: B. Bock (foot), E. McLeod (national team), K. Eveland, B. Goebel, C. Miskel, M. Abegg.

Philadelphia: GK-V. Henderson, R. Jones; D-S. Larsson, N. Krzysik, A. Falk, H. Mitts, E. Johnson, S. Senty; MF-C. Seger, L. Lindsey, J. Lohman, L. Patterson; F-A. Rodriguez, L. Sanderson, H. Magnusdottir, D. Adams, K. Maruyama, G. DiMartino.
Not Active: K. LeBlanc (national team), J. Buczkowski (suspension), K. Reynolds, C. Patterson.

Previous Meetings: None

What to Look For: Once again, Washington is leading the league both in goals scored and goals surrendered. LeBlanc’s and McLeod’s absence could make it that much easier for both teams to score. Philadelphia’s defense has been stubborn to this point, allowing only one goal in two starts, but Buczkowski’s suspension could hurt. Wambach is on a scoring spree dating back to last year…6 goals and 4 assists in her last 6 games. DeVanna and Mykjåland have yet to get untracked from a scoring point of view, but this may be the week. Philadelphia needs to find more offense from their front line…their only goal was scored by defender Allison Falk on a set piece.
Storylines: Will Washington start Scurry or McCray in goal? Val Henderson gets her 2nd career start in goal, her first for Philadelphia. She shutout FCGP in her only 2009 start. Lori Lindsey faces her old teammates for the first time. Can Abby Wambach extend her consecutive games with an assist to 4? Philadelphia tries to remain among the league’s unbeaten teams.


Sky Blue FC at Chicago Red Stars – April 25 (6 pm eastern, 5 pm central)
Toyota Park, Bridgeview, IL

Rosters:
Sky Blue FC: GK-K. Bardsley, A. Thompson; D-D. Koster, B. Taylor, K. Dowling, M. Schnur, K. Dallstream; MF-Y. Averbuch, C. Lloyd, H. O’Reilly, Rosana, K. White; F-N. Kai, L. Kalmari, J. Landström, K. Schoepfer.
Not Active: C. Rampone (maternity), A. Asante (knee), J. Branam (knee), A. Salem, M. Snell, D. Johnson.

Chicago: GK-J. Loyden, K. Davis; D-K. Markgraf, W. Engen, M. Dalmy, I. Dieke, N. Spilger; MF-B. Klein, K. Chapman, K. Carney, Formiga, J. Sitch, J. Santacaterina; F-Cristiane, E. Masar, K. Asllani, C. Nogueira, M. Weissenhofer.
Not Active: J. McDonald (other), M. Rapinoe (illness), L. Vandenbergh.

Previous Meetings:
This Season-Chicago 0 @ Sky Blue 1.
All Time-Sky Blue leads series with 4-0-1.

What to Look For: The Red Stars have outshot their opponents in both games this year, but they need to get more of those shots on frame. Nogueira was a difference maker off of the bench against Saint Louis. The home crowd definitely gave Chicago a lift last week. Sky Blue gets Schnur back, which will help a defense that surrendered 3 goals to Gold Pride last weekend. With the talent they have in the midfield, Sky Blue needs to control the tempo of the game more. Chicago had a heavy edge in play over the last 60 minutes of last weekend’s match against Athletica.
Storylines: In five previous meetings, Chicago has yet to score a goal on Sky Blue. Carli Lloyd returns to Chicago for the first time this year. Can the Red Stars start turning scoring opportunities into goals instead of near misses? Can Casey Nogueira repeat her success from last week? Can Sky Blue rebound after last week’s loss to Gold Pride?


Boston Breakers at Saint Louis Athletica – April 25 (6 pm eastern, 5 pm central)-FSC Game of the Week
Anheuser-Busch Soccer Park, Fenton, MO

Rosters:
Boston: GK-Ashley Phillips, Alyssa Naeher; D-Amy LePeilbet, K. Moore, A. Scott, S. Cox, J. Angeli; MF-L. Osborne, K. Lilly, K. Smith, C. Igwe; F-L. Cheney, L. Del Rio, Fabiana, T. Weimer, L. Bogus.
Not Active: S. Walsh (knee), M. Enyeart (knee), A. Marquez, T. Hemmings, M. Tomecka, C. Zimmeck.

Saint Louis: GK-H. Solo, A. Harris; D-T. Ellertson, K. Fletcher, E. Weber, S. Wagenfuhr (probable-hamstring), N. Cross, Elaine (unlikely-groin); MF-L. Chalupny, S. Boxx, C. Blank, A. Miyama, T. DiMartino, L. Tarpley; F-E. Aluko, M. Edlund, I. Trotter, V. Perez.
Not Active: E. Walter (ribs), Daniela (knee), K. Larsen (foot), K. Spisak, S. Teegarden.

Previous Meetings (2009):
Saint Louis 0 @ Boston 2
Saint Louis 1 @ Boston 0
Boston 0 @ Saint Louis 1

What to Look For: Boston has a solid defense, but they need to shut down Aluko who scored both Athletica goals against the Breakers in 2009. Saint Louis is traditionally a 1st half team and need to break out on top early. Kelly Smith and Lori Cheney should give Athletica’s defense a handful. Saint Louis’ defense is thin with injuries to Elaine and Wagenfuhr. It should be quite a battle between two talented midfields. Saint Louis should have an edge in goalkeeping, but only if Solo’s defense marks better than they did last week against Chicago.
Storylines: Kelly Smith has scored a goal in her last 3 games and looks to tie a record on Sunday. All 3 previous meetings ended in shutouts. It’s an early season clash between the top two teams in the WPS table.

Answer to Trivia Question: Ramona Bachmann became the youngest player ever to score a goal in a WPS game at 19 years, 114 days when she scored in last Sunday’s match in Washington. Before Bachmann, who held the record? For the regular season, Adriane of FC Gold Pride was 21 years and 12 days old when she scored on August 1, 2009, also against the Washington Freedom. Francielle was just 19 years, 301 days old when she scored for Sky Blue FC against Washington on August 15, 2009, which remains the playoff record for the youngest player scoring a goal.