Blank's Late Goal Lifts Sky Blue

Carolyn Blank scored her second career goal in the 88th minute to break a 1-1 tie and give Sky Blue a win over the Boston Breakers.

The game, which was delayed at the start by storms, was a back-and-forth affair with both teams creating chances. Boston's Kelly Smith hit the crossbar twice in the opening minutes of the match, but neither team was able to score in the first half.

The Breakers did open the scoring early in the 2nd half. Sky Blue keeper Jen Branam was able to make a diving stop on Smith, but Kelley O'Hara knocked home the rebound to give Boston a temporary advantage in the 50th minute.

Sky Blue struck back just eight minutes later and it was two substitutions that did the work. Swedish international Therese Sjögran, who reported in at the intermission, set up Eniola Aluko, who was able to finish past Breakers goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher to tie the score at one each. Aluko had entered the game midway through the first half after Adriana had suffered an injury.

O'Hara nearly got her second of the evening, as she had Branam in a one-on-one situation, but the Sky Blue keeper made an excellent save to keep the match tied.

Sjögran notched her second assist of the match as she sent the ball to Blank, who was waiting at the top of the box and the former West Virginia star put it in the net to give Sky Blue their first lead in the 88th minute.

Sky Blue remains unbeaten at home and improves to 2-3-1. They are now tied with the Breakers for fourth place, with two matches in hand. Boston falls to 2-5-1.

Next weekend, Sky Blue travels to Rochester to face Western New York for the second time this season. The Flash won the first match by a 3-1 margin. Boston hosts magicJack next Sunday, a team they lost to in their only meeting in Boca Raton.

Gold Pride Signs Boxx

Former Saint Louis Athletica midfielder Shannon Boxx has signed with FC Gold Pride. Boxx had one goal and three assists in just 6 matches for Athletica. She will reunite with former Los Angeles teammates Marta and Camille Abily.

Another Athletica player, Carolyn Blank, the rookie holding midfielder out of West Virginia, has been rumored to be going to Atlanta, but there has still not been confirmation of that.

Clarification on WPS Roster Limits

WPS has sent out the following clarification regarding roster limits and international players:

"With Saint Louis Athletica players available as free agents starting on June 1, the league has been given approval from U.S. Soccer to increase the number of international roster spots per team from 5 to 6 players, provided that the additional sixth international is a Saint Louis Athletica free agent. This is an exception being made only for this season. The league’s roster sizes and total team compensation will remain as the status quo."

Athletica and Breakers Slosh to 1-1 Draw

It what might charitably be called challenging field conditions, Saint Louis and Boston battled to a 1-1 tie at a soggy Soccer Park in Fenton, Missouri. With all of the offensive talent on the field, the two goals came from unlikely sources in Kasey Moore for the Breakers and Carolyn Blank for Athletica.

The weather played a huge part in the game and led to some great early chances for the Breakers. In the 14th minute, Kendall Fletcher hit a fairly normal pass back to Hope Solo, but the ball stopped dead in a puddle half way between the two. Lauren Cheney, who appeared to be as shocked as everyone else, gained possession and attempted to chip the ball over Solo's head but the ball went harmlessly to the side.

Just a few minutes later, Solo attempted a drop kick but didn't get all of the ball which Kelly Smith picked up about 30 yards out. Smith attempted the quick shot, but a diving Solo was able to steer the ball wide. "I went to bounce it on the drop kick and it didn't bounce back up," said Solo. "After that, I tried to punt and I haven't punted since I was probably in high school."

Boston finally did get on the board in the 22nd minute. Kristine Lilly hit a low corner kick to the edge of the box which appeared to be headed for Kelly Smith. Smith dummied it and a charging Kasey Moore brilliantly struck a low shot with pace that beat Solo to the lower left side of the goal. It was Moore's first WPS goal.

Boston's lead didn't last long. In the 27th, Aya Miyama took a free kick from about 28 yards and sent it to the far side of the box, where Tina Ellertson headed back across the goal mouth. Carolyn Blank was waiting and chested the ball between Alex Scott and goalkeeper Ashley Phillips for tying goal. "Honestly, right place, right time," said Blank. "Tina just put a great ball back in." For the rookie from West Virginia, it was her first WPS goal and well-earned for the solid match she played.

The Breakers nearly regained the lead in the 39th minute. Lilly hit a blistering low shot that short-hopped Solo, bouncing off her for a rebound. Kelly Smith connected with the rebound from point blank range, but Solo used her body to block the shot and the defense was able to clear the ball out of trouble.

Play in the 2nd half was much crisper, with Athletica having the better of the play in the last 45 minutes. Their best opportunity came in the 63rd minute when Blank sent a ball through to Aluko, who one-timed it from 15 yards, but Phillips was able to make the diving save. Later in the half, Aluko and Lilly traded chances, but were unable to get the ball on frame.

Athletica had one last good chance to win it in the 83rd, when Aluko appeared to have a clear cut header from about 9 yards, but mishit it wide of the goal. Late substitutions Lindsay Tarpley and India Trotter for Athletica, and Laura Del Rio and Tiffany Weimer for Boston had their moments, but were unable to change the score.

Athletica captain Lori Chalupny saw improvement in the 2nd half over the 1st. "We really had some good looks in the 2nd half. I thought the 2nd half was very exciting, back and forth. It was just a good battle between two good teams."

The game marked the first time that Athletica had come from behind to tie a game over two seasons. "Coming from behind was huge for us", added defender Tina Ellertson.

The two teams remained tied, both at 1 win and 2 ties for 5 points. They sit one point behind FC Gold Pride and Sky Blue FC, who each have 6 points. Boston returns home where they will play the Chicago Red Stars next Saturday. Saint Louis travels to Washington where they will play the Freedom at RFK Stadium.

In other action on Sunday evening:

Sky Blue FC 1, Chicago Red Stars 0

Sky Blue blanked Chicago for the 6th consecutive time in a match played at Toyota Park in Chicago. Tasha Kai scored in the 53rd minute on an assist from Kacey White. Karen Bardsley added the shutout for Sky Blue, who sit atop the table with 2 wins, 1 loss and 6 points. Chicago has only a lone point to show for 3 matches.

Philadelphia Independence 3, Washington Freedom 1

The expansion Independence won their first game on their home field by scoring three 2nd half goals. After Lisa De Vanna had put the Freedom ahead in the 51st minute with her first goal of the year, Amy Rodriguez answered in the 54th minute with a goal of her own to tie the score at one. Minutes later, the Lori Lindsey to Allison Falk connection worked for the second week in a row, with Falk finishing again with a header to give Philly the lead. English international Lianne Sanderson added an insurance goal in the 67th minute, again assisted by Lindsey, who was facing off against her old team. For Sanderson, it was her first WPS goal. Philadelphia was able to close it out for the 3-1 victory.

Lindsey has now assisted on 3 of the Independence's 4 goals for the season. Abby Wambach assisted on De Vanna's goal, giving her an assist in each of her last 4 regular season contests dating back to last season. Philadelphia is tied with Saint Louis and Boston with 5 points, just a single point behind the league leaders. Washington fell to 1-2 with 3 points.

WPS Midweek Notes - April 14

Head over Heals

It takes a lot of different skills to play soccer. Speed, agility, endurance, concentration, and sometimes, a little gymnastical skill. Kiki Bosio of FC Gold Pride demonstrated her cartwheeling ability using the flip throw several times in Sunday’s match against Saint Louis Athletica. While it is somewhat of a novelty to fans who don’t see it very often, it can also be an effective offensive weapon. Bosio was able to throw the ball deep into Athletica’s penalty area every time and although Gold Pride was unable to convert any of the throws into goals, it did present some dangerous opportunities.

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Player of the Week

Eniola Aluko of Saint Louis Athletica was named WPS Player of the Week for the weekend of April 10-11. Aluko scored two goals to lead Athletica to a 2-0 win over FC Gold Pride. Aluko had won Player of the Week honors once previously in 2009. Aluko scored a goal in each half of Sunday’s match. It was the first two goal game in her WPS career.

Rookies

Out of the 65 players taken in the January draft, 22 are now full-roster players in the WPS and another 16 made WPS teams as developmental players. Out of those, 17 players made their debut in the opening weekend of WPS. Ten of those players started and there was at least one of the rookies in the starting lineup for each team. FC Gold Pride had three starters from their draft selections back in January.

The 10 starters were Lauren Cheney (Boston), Nikki Marshall (Washington), Carolyn Blank (Saint Louis), Tobin Heath (Atlanta), Whitney Engen (Chicago), Estelle Johnson (Philadelphia), Brittany Taylor (Sky Blue FC), and Kelley O’Hara, Kaley Fountain, and Ali Riley (all FC Gold Pride). Not only did Gold Pride start three of their rookies, 5 of their draft selections saw action in Sunday’s match.

Lauren Cheney was the only 2010 draft choice to score a goal last weekend, but she will have the distinction of being the first player to score a 2010 regular season goal.

Long Waits

Ashley Phillips spent the entire 2009 season on the Boston Breakers roster as a developmental player. She did not play a minute for the entire season. Such is the life of a developmental keeper in WPS. After a year of waiting, Phillips finally got her chance on Saturday and earned the victory in goal for the Breakers in their 2-1 win over the Washington Freedom. Phillips was credited with 7 saves for the match.

Sarah Wagenfuhr started last year as a developmental player for Chicago, but was released after their second game, having not played. On Sunday, she started at outside back for Athletica and played 23 minutes before coming off with an injury.

Lauren Sesselman got into one game for one minute in 2009 for Sky Blue FC. She started and played the full 90 in Atlanta’s opener on Sunday. On the other side of the field Philadelphia’s Lyndsey Patterson had appeared in only one game for 12 minutes for the Los Angeles Sol in 2009. She started and played 57 minutes for the Independence.

Midweek Notes:

Atlanta - Ramona Bachmann did not make the trip to Philadelphia because of illness after scoring a goal and an assist in Atlanta’s final exhibition game in Tulsa…..Allison Whitworth picked up her 2nd career shutout in WPS. Her previous shutout against the Los Angeles Sol in 2009 also ended in a scoreless tie…..The number one overall pick in the 2010 draft, Tobin Heath, played 89 minutes in Sunday’s game.

Boston – Last season, Kelly Smith scored a goal in each of the first 4 games in which she appeared for the Breakers and she started 2010 out in the same fashion with a goal against the Freedom…..The Breakers became only the 2nd team in WPS history to start a developmental keeper in goal with Ashley Phillips on Saturday. Washington had started Kati Jo Spisak three times in 2009…..Lauren Cheney scored her first career WPS goal just 6 minutes into Saturday’s contest.

Chicago – Cristiane was credited with taking 9 shots in the Red Stars loss to Sky Blue, a total which easily leads the league…..In the continuation of a disturbing trend, Chicago has now been shut out 12 times in 21 matches over two seasons…..Kate Markgraf played the full 90 minutes after missing the 2009 season on maternity leave.

FC Gold Pride – Five of Gold Pride’s draft selections saw action on Sunday. Kelley O’Hara, Kaley Fountain, and Ali Riley started, while Becky Edwards and Kiki Bosio subbed in…..Kandace Wilson came off the bench, seeing her first regular season action since she was injured in a May 24th match against Los Angeles in 2009…..Four of Gold Pride’s 5 international players were not with the team in 2009. Camille Abily and Marta were with Los Angeles, Candace Chapman was with Boston, and Solveig Gulbrandsen did not play in WPS last season.

Philadelphia – Karina LeBlanc earned her 13th career shutout on Sunday against Atlanta…..Philadelphia had the largest attendance of the WPS opening weekend with 6,028…..Amy Rodriguez was credited with 6 shots for the Independence against Atlanta, more than in any of her appearances for the Breakers last season.

Saint Louis – Eniola Aluko became the 3rd Athletica player to score two goals in one game. The other two were Daniela and Christie Welsh…..Shannon Boxx became the first Athletica player to record two assists in one game…..Carolyn Blank was the lowest draft choice to start for a WPS team last weekend. Blank was Athletica’s 5th round selection, the 46th overall pick in the draft.

Sky Blue FC – Heather O’Reilly, who tied for SBFC’s lead in assists last season with 3, picked up her first assist on Sunday…..Karen Bardsley picked up the 2nd shutout of her career. Her first came against FC Gold Pride on August 5, 2009, when she was a last second replacement for an injured Jen Branam…..Sky Blue has now shutout the Chicago Red Stars all 5 times they have played them. They have a 4-0-1 record against the Red Stars with a 5-0 goal differential.

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Washington Freedom – Allie Long was the only non-national team player to score a goal this past weekend…..While Abby Wambach is primarily known for her goal scoring ability, she now has 6 career WPS assists, which ties her for 1st place in that category…..The Freedom have now given up multiple goals in 11 of their 22 matches in 2009-10 including the playoff game.

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Opening Week Trivia: Of the 6 returning WPS teams, only two started the same goalkeeper as they did in last year's opener. Name the goalkeepers and the teams. (Answer in the weekend preview later this week).