Breakers and Flash Battle to 2-2 Tie

In one of the most exciting matches thus far in the WPS season, the Boston Breakers and Western New York Flash played to a 2-2 draw in Cambridge. Both teams scored in the last 10 minutes and it was a match that national team players contributed heavily, as did players off the bench.

Kelley O'Hara scored a brace and it looked to be enough when she gave Boston a 2-1 lead with just over six minutes remaining, but Alex Morgan tied it just three minutes later with a brilliant goal.

Western New York held the edge in possession and territory early on, but it was Boston who created the better chances. In the 10th minute, Katie Schoepfer played the ball ahead on the right side for Alex Scott. She crossed the ball into the penalty area, but it led Liz Bogus just a little too much and she was unable to redirect it toward the net.

Boston did get the first goal just 10 minutes later. It was again Schoepfer starting the play as she sent a diagonal ball to Kelley O'Hara. The ball just barely got by a diving Whitney Engen and O'Hara had inside position on Ali Riley. O'Hara steered a rolling shot back across to the right. Flash goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris appeared to be wrong-footed on the play and the ball got by her, into the right corner of the net to make it 1-0.

Western New York continued to pressure and nearly broke through in the 36th minute. Riley sent a beautiful cross to McCall Zerboni at the six, but the Flash midfielder put her header wide of the goal.

The Flash tied the match in the 38th minute with Becky Edwards sending the ball ahead to Marta who was heading to the left side of the penalty area. Marta was able to settle the ball, and gain some space from defender Scott in the process. She set up her left-footed shot and drilled it low past Alyssa Naeher and into the right side netting to tie the match.

USWNT forward Alex Morgan subbed in to start the second half for Western New York and she made her presence known. In the 59th minute, she drove a 25-yard shot right at Naeher. Somehow, the ball got through the Breakers' keeper and rolled toward the goal line, but Naeher was able to dive back just in time before the ball crossed. Later, Yael Averbuch put her shot from inside the 18 just wide of the right post.

Boston took the lead in the 84th minute in a beautiful display of passing. Alex Scott crossed the ball from 35 yards out to Nikki Marshall who was cutting diagonally across the penalty area from left to right. With a defender on her, Marshall was unable to control the ball immediately, but ran it down on the right side of the penalty area.

With the ball rolling toward the endline, she was able to turn her body and direct her cross back to O'Hara. O'Hara passed it to 2nd half substitute Claire Zimmeck who touched it right back to O'Hara on a give-and-go. O'Hara's finish was perfectly inside the left post to give Boston a late 2-1 lead.

But just when it looked like the Breakers might secure three points, it was Alex Morgan who drew the Flash even. Marta sent a 40-yard free kick into the box. Christine Sinclair tried to head it across the box, but the Breakers temporarily cleared it, but not far enough. Another 2nd half substitute, Beverly Goebel, headed the ball back into the box toward Alex Morgan who was waiting near the penalty spot. Morgan hit a beautiful half volley with the outside of her left foot that hit the bottom of crossbar and went into the net. The score was now tied at two.

Western New York threatened again in the last few minutes. Morgan appeared to be behind the defense on a breakaway, but it was called back on a very close offsides. In the 90th minute, Boston defender Elli Reed saved the Breakers by blocking not one, but two Flash shots. First, she blocked Goebel's shot from right in front of Naeher and then the rebound went to Sinclair, who had an open net in front of her, but Reed slid over to block her shot as well.

Both teams gained very valuable point in the standings. Western New York is now 8-2-3 and tied with Philadelphia for first place with 27 points. The Flash have a game in hand on the Independence as well. Boston's record goes to 4-5-4 and they are now in a three-way tie for third place with Sky Blue and magicJack.

Boston hosts Philadelphia in a very important match for both teams on Wednesday night. Western New York's next match is at Sky Blue next Saturday, also crucial to both teams.

WPS Standings
(1) Western New York 8-2-3, 27 pts; (1) Philadelphia 8-3-3, 27 pts; (3) magicJack 5-5-2, 16 pts; (3) Boston 4-5-4, 16 pts; (3) Sky Blue FC 4-5-4, 16 pts; (6) Atlanta 1-10-4, 7 pts.

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.

Boston Defeats Atlanta in Opener 4-1

The Boston Breakers used a strong first half to capture the opening match of the 2011 season by a 4-1 margin over the Atlanta Beat. Four different players scored for the Breakers, two in each half.

Jordan Angeli opened the scoring 18 minutes into the match, followed by a goal from rookie Keelin Winters just five minutes later. Angeli later suffered a knee injury and had to leave the game. The Breakers will have an MRI done on Angeli's knee on Monday to determine the severity of the injury.

Down 2-0 at the half, the Beat inserted USWNT midfielder Carli Lloyd into the lineup for the second half and for awhile, Atlanta looked as though they might get back into the contest. Atlanta pressured Breakers' keeper Alyssa Naeher throughout the second half, but she was able to make some key saves to keep the margin safe.

Former Gold Pride forward Kelley O'Hara scored in the 72nd minute to stretch the lead to three goals.

Atlanta finally got on the board in the 78th minute as they were awarded a penalty, which Lloyd converted to cut the lead to 3-1, but the Beat were never able to get any closer.

Kasey Moore concluded the scoring in stoppage, after Allison Whitworth was red-carded after colliding with O'Hara outside the box. Moore scored on the ensuing kick, after defender Cat Whitehill had taken over in goal.

Atlanta outshot Boston by a 14-8 margin for the match, but Naeher was able to keep all but the penalty out of the net.

The Breakers return to Boston where they will host the Western New York Flash next Sunday, in what will be Boston's home opener and the Flash's inaugural match. Atlanta hosts Sky Blue FC next Saturday.

Gold Pride Mauls Independence 4-1

Gold Pride finished off their regular season on a 13-game unbeaten streak, easily defeating Philadelphia 4-1 on Saturday evening. Leading the way for Gold Pride was Kelley O'Hara with two goals plus an assist and Marta with a goal and three assists.

The game was scoreless for nearly 40 minutes, but Gold Pride put together back-to-back goals by O'Hara and Marta before the end of the half to put FCGP up by two at the intermission. O'Hara received a pass from Marta to the far left side and chipped it over Val Henderson just inside the post from an extremely bad angle.

O'Hara returned the favor just a minute later, sending a perfect through ball to Marta who touched the ball around Henderson and finished from the right side of the box. It was Marta's 19th goal of the season.

In the 50th minute, Gold Pride made it 3-0 as Marta took a free kick from just outside the box on the right side. Her placement was perfect and O'Hara headed it home.

Philadelphia showed some life, however, as Lianne Sanderson scored on an excellent ball over the top from Lori Lindsey. That cut the lead to 3-1.

Gold Pride put the game out of reach in the 64th minute. Marta beat two defenders and ran onto the ball on the left wing and sent a ball back across the box. Christine Sinclair cut across and finished inside the left post to make it 4-1. It was Sinclair's 10th goal of the season, making her only the fifth WPS player to reach that plateau.

While Gold Pride was playing without Camille Abily, the Independence were missing several starters including Frida Magnusdottir, Caroline Seger, Karina LeBlanc, and Sara Larsson.

Philadelphia finishes in 3rd place and will host Washington in the first round of the playoffs on Sunday, September 19, tentatively scheduled at 2:30 eastern time. Gold Pride pushed their record to 16-3-5 and will host the final on Sunday, September 26.

WPS Weekend Wrap - August 1

Atlanta Plays Gold Pride to 0-0 Tie at Home

In what may have been one of the more entertaining scoreless ties you'll ever see, the Atlanta Beat stopped FC Gold Pride's five game winning streak. Both teams are probably thinking that the game should have been theirs. Atlanta wasted several great opportunities while at the other end, Hope Solo made some sparkling saves and may have been saved by the crossbar on one occasion.

The Beat came out with a lot of energy and took it to Gold Pride early on. Eniola Aluko had two golden opportunities in the first half, with Nicole Barnhart saving one and the other being shot wide. The best chance was a two player break with Aluko in control of the ball on the right side. With Lori Chalupny open in the middle, Aluko elected to try to beat Barnhart near post, but the Bay Area goalkeeper was up to the task.

Atlanta had two more great chances in the 2nd half, one that Monica Ocampo sent over the net and another that Ramona Bachmann was unable to get on target from the six yard box, with the ball rolling just inches wide.

Gold Pride had opportunities as well. Kelley O'Hara cut back on Aya Miyama and was able to get a blistering right-footed shot off from 18 yards, but Solo made a diving save to her left to keep the match level.

In the 89th minute, Christine Sinclair nearly got the winner as she redirected a cross about eight yards directly in front of the goal. The ball was past a leaping Hope Solo, but hit the top of the crossbar.

It was only Gold Pride's second tie of the season, leaving them at 12-3-2, good for 38 points. The tie leaves them needing just a single point to clinch a playoff spot. Atlanta, unbeaten in their last four, moved into a tie for 6th place with Washington. They now find themselves just three points out of 4th place.

Chicago Moves into 4th Place with 2-1 Victory

Goals by Ella Masar and Karen Carney lifted the Red Stars to a 2-1 victory over Sky Blue in New Jersey. It was Masar's 5th goal this season, but the first of the year for Carney. Chicago moves into 4th place by virtue of the victory, two points ahead of Sky Blue and three points ahead of Atlanta and Washington.

Sky Blue's goal was scored by Brittany Taylor. She has scored in the last two games and is the only Sky Blue player to have scored since June.

Chicago moves to 5-8-5, with 20 points. Their hold on fourth is precarious as every other team has at least one or two games in hand with respect to the Red Stars. They will travel to the opposite coast to face league leading Gold Pride next weekend. Sky Blue dropped their fourth straight match and are at 5-8-3. They will travel to Atlanta for their next match.

Standings:
1) FC Gold Pride (12-3-2, 37 pts); 2) Philadelphia (8-5-3, 27 pts); 3) Boston (6-6-4, 22 pts); 4) Chicago (5-8-5, 20 pts); 5) Sky Blue FC (5-8-3, 18 pts); 6) Atlanta (4-7-5, 17 pts); 6) Washington (4-8-5, 17 pts).

FC Gold Pride 2010 - Offseason Changes Make FCGP a Contender

Coach: Albertin Montoya
2009 Record: 4-10-6 (7th place)
Postseason: Out of the playoffs.

Returnees (8): Nicole Barnhart, Rachel Buehler, Carrie Dew, Kristin Graczyk, Tiffeny Milbrett, Christine Sinclair, Kandace Wilson, Kim Yokers.
Draft Choices (6): Kelley O’Hara, Ali Riley, Becky Edwards, Kaley Fountain, Erin Guthrie, Ashley Bowyer.
LA Dispersal Draft (2): Marta, Kiki Bosio.
International Signings ( 1): Solveig Gulbrandsen.
Free Agents (3): Brittany Cameron, Candace Chapman, Rosie Tantillo.
Trades (1): Camille Abily.

After finishing last in 2009, Gold Pride was very aggressive in the offseason. Even before Marta joined the team, they had signed Solveig Gulbrandsen and Candace Chapman and traded for Camille Abily. They appear to have had the best draft of any team in the league, selecting quality players in areas of need. But no matter what else happened, the addition of Marta makes Gold Pride a contender.

Exactly two thirds of LA’s 2009 offense now make their home in the Bay Area. Marta scored 10 goals and Abily scored 8 in '09. Add to that Christine Sinclair’s 6 goals in WPS, Solveig Gulbrandsen 6 goals with Stabæk in the Toppserien, and Kelley O’Hara’s 26 goals on the college level for Stanford and we should see a scoring juggernaut this season from FCGP. But like many teams, there are question marks. Gold Pride gave up a lot of goals last season and it is yet to be seen whether newcomers Chapman, Ali Riley, and Becky Edwards can improve the defense enough to push Gold Pride to the top.

Goalkeeping-Bay Area returns starter and USWNT team goalkeeper, Nicole Barnhart. Barnhart posted a 1.44 GAA and 2 shutouts in 2009. With a better team in front of her, expect that to improve in 2010. Brittany Cameron spent 2009 as LA’s developmental keeper behind Karina LeBlanc and Val Henderson. She should get a better chance for action in 2010. Rutger’s Erin Guthrie, one of the top college prospects at goalkeeper, joins Gold Pride as their developmental keeper.

Defenders-Last year’s Gold Pride gave up 28 goals, the 2nd worst total in WPS. That has to improve. Leigh Ann Robinson is gone, but Bay Area will get a boost with the return of Kandace Wilson, a big part of FCGP’s early success before injury ended her season. Gold Pride also added two more players, Candace Chapman through free agency and Ali Riley through the draft. Chapman is a member of the Canadian National team and played for Boston last season. Riley had a stellar career at Stanford and is perhaps the best two-way outside back coming out of college. If Wilson and Riley start on the outside, opposing teams are going to have to contend with a lot of speed coming out of the back.

In the middle, USWNT defender Rachel Buehler leads the way. Buehler is solid defensively and known for her hard tackling. Kristen Graczyk also returns on defense. She is the only Gold Pride player to play in all 20 matches last season. Except for a couple of tough breaks, Carrie Dew had pretty good season at back last season and should continue to improve. Kaley Fountain, out of Wake Forest, will add depth on defense and can play forward as well. This defense should be improved from a year ago, but the question is how much.

Midfielders-No team revamped their midfield for 2010 more than FC Gold Pride. The two major additions are Camille Abily, obtained in a trade from Los Angeles, and Solveig Gulbrandsen, a longtime veteran of the Norwegian National Team. Abily’s eight goals were second only to LA teammate Marta’s league-leading total of 10 last season. Abily had an uncanny ability to find open space between defenders enabling her unleash her dangerous shot. Gulbrandsen comes over to the states with a distinguished career for Norway, where she ranks among the leaders in caps and goals scored. She has played in 15 World Cup and 9 Olympic matches over her career.

Past those two players, it gets a little more uncertain. Kim Yokers is one returnee in the midfield. She scored one goal in limited playing time in ’09. Gold Pride drafted top defensive midfielder Becky Edwards out of Florida State and later added Ashley Bowyer of Ohio State, who made the team as a developmental player. Ageless Tiffeny Milbrett can play attacking mid or forward. Milbrett proved she could still put it in the back of the net with 4 goals last season. Linking with Gold Pride’s talented forwards could be the key to the season. Expect Gulbrandsen to shoulder a lot of that load.

Forwards-At last year’s All-Star game in St. Louis, we saw the Marta-Sinclair connection for the first time and the two worked well together with Marta assisting on Sinclair’s first goal in that match. Sinclair’s talent was showcased in that game, giving a clinic in perfectly timed runs and scoring two goals. Marta is the best player in women’s soccer. A 4-time FIFA Player of the Year, she is not only talented, but her speed and determination make her very hard to stop. She also has the most lethal left foot in women’s soccer.

Even before Gold Pride secured Marta, they already had the makings of a great front line combo after drafting Kelley O’Hara out of Stanford. O’Hara, with teammate Riley, helped lead Stanford to the NCAA final before falling to perennial power UNC. Santa Clara’s Kiki Bosio and free agent Rosie Tantillo help add depth to this talented group of forwards. Bosio had 3 goals and 7 assists for the Broncos last season.

Summary-Last season, Bay Area had only two players (Sinclair and Milbrett) to score more than one goal over the course of the season. In fact, between May 3 and August 1 (a total of 12 matches), the only player that scored on anything other than a penalty kick was Sinclair. We won’t be seeing that kind of drought this year. My guess is Gold Pride will have 6 or 7 players with two or more goals this season.

That leads us to the midfield and defense. No organization did a better job at trying to fill their needs than FCGP. But will the midfield be deep enough and will the defense be good enough for Gold Pride to earn a title? No matter how many changes a team makes, it still isn’t easy to go from last to first in just one season. I’ve always said that any team that Marta is on will be a contender, but only time will tell whether Gold Pride’s other improvements will be enough to win it all.

Kicking in a Winter Wonderland - USWNT 1, Mexico 0

Playing in a snowstorm in Rio Tinto Stadium, the USWNT defeated Mexico 1-0 in an international friendly played this evening. Abby Wambach scored the 2nd half goal in the 60th minute on a low cross from Shannon Boxx. The play started with Kristine Lilly making a nice touch to free Boxx on the left side of the penalty area. She drew the goalkeeper to the near post and sent the ball across to a charging Wambach who easily finished. It was Wambach's 105th international goal. Perhaps even more amusing was the goal celebration, which saw Wambach, Boxx, and teammates doing snow angels before a courageous Sandy, Utah crowd.

Snow accumulated over most of the field, although the penalties areas were somewhat cleared before each half. The US outshot Mexico 20-4 for the match in very difficult playing conditions. The game saw Brittany Taylor and Alex Morgan pick up their first caps, and Kelley O'Hara her second after debuting on Sunday in the US 3-0 victory over Mexico. Nicole Barnhart got the shutout for the US.

USWNT Squad Announced for Friendlies vs. Mexico

Pia Sundhage has announced her 24 player squad for a pair of friendlies to be played later this month against Mexico. And once again, there are a lot of new faces, as well as the return of one very familiar face.

New additions to the team include defenders Whitney Engen (UNC, Chicago Red Stars), Brittany Taylor (Connecticut, Sky Blue FC), and forwards Kelley O'Hara (Stanford, FC Gold Pride) and Alex Morgan (California). Morgan is the only non-WPS player on the team. Additionally, Jill Loyden who was on the Algarve squad, but hasn't gotten her first cap yet, was named as one of three keepers for the matches against Mexico.

Fans will also welcome the return of veteran Kristine Lilly to the USWNT. Lilly is the most capped player in history with 342 and returns to the team for the first time since late 2008.

The US will play Mexico on March 28 at Torero Stadium at the University of San Diego and on March 31 at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah. The last time the US played in San Diego was the match immediately preceding the 2008 Olympics when Abby Wambach broke her leg in a friendly against Brazil.

No Huge Surprises Early On in WPS Draft

The first 4 selections have been announced:

1. Atlanta-Tobin Heath, MF, North Carolina
2. Boston-Lauren Cheney, F, UCLA
3. Gold Pride-Kelley O'Hara, F, Stanford
4. Chicago-Whitney Engen, D, North Carolina

My guess is that once Chicago signed Cristiane, they had 3 solid forwards with her, Masar, and Asllani and then they decided to go with a defender at number four.

5. Los Angeles-Nikki Washington, MF, North Carolina

With Engen gone, Los Angeles takes Nikki Washington. A great player who will be a heck of a threat from the right side. Look for LA to go defensive now at selections 8 and/or 9.

A Final Preview of the WPS Draft

A year ago, I sat in an overcrowded room at America's Center in Saint Louis and watched as WPS Commissioner Tonya Antonucci announced Amy Rodriguez as the 1st selection in the 2009 WPS Draft. It was an exciting day to be sure and a landmark day in the history of the league. Tomorrow, the drama will be in Philadelphia for the 2010 WPS draft.

Looking back at my mock draft from last year, I wasn't very accurate. My 2009 mock draft was as follows:

1. Boston-Amy Rodriguez (everyone got this one right).
2. Chicago-Carrie Dew (Chicago chose Megan Rapinoe instead. Dew was drafted in the 2nd round by FC Gold Pride).
3. FC Gold Pride-Megan Rapinoe (With Rapinoe gone, FCGP selected Tina DiMartino. I had DiMartino pegged for Washington at the 8th pick).
4. Sky Blue FC-Yael Averbuch (my 2nd correct pick in the 1st round).
5. Los Angeles-Kerri Hanks (LA took Hanks' teammate Brittany Bock instead).
6. Saint Louis-Brittany Bock (I had the 5th and 6th picks switched).
7. Washington-Nikki Krzysik (Washington chose Allie Long who I thought would be picked in the 2nd round. Krzysik was picked at no. 13 by Chicago).

I am hoping I will do better this year, but I'm not counting on it. There are a lot of question marks, primarily what Boston will do at number two. Then there is always the possibility of a trade or two. So here is my final pre-draft analysis of the 1st round:

1. Atlanta Beat-Tobin Heath, MF, North Carolina
Atlanta desperately needs defenders and this is their only selection in the first two rounds. Still, it's hard to see them passing on Heath, pretty much the consensus as the most talented player in this year's draft. I think she is the type of player who will have immediate impact and will make the players around her better. There are other possibilities, although they are probably long shots. Atlanta could take Kelley O'Hara who is from the Atlanta area or they could trade down to pick up some additional picks in the opening rounds. Still, I think it's Heath.

2. Boston Breakers-Lauren Cheney, F, UCLA
Here is where things get complicated, because Boston could go a lot of different directions. They also need defenders to go with LePeilbet and Scott. The best available center back is Whitney Engen of North Carolina. But like the 1st pick, Cheney may be too good to pass up. She's a strong forward who can get a shot off in tight space. Cheney strikes me as being very composed and she has a lot of national team experience. She is equally adept at passing or scoring. Boston could take Engen or even possibly Kelley O'Hara, but I think they take Cheney.

3. FC Gold Pride-Kelley O'Hara, F, Stanford
Gold Pride was the lowest scoring team in the league last year and O'Hara could give them a boost on offense. I think she would pair very well with Sinclair. She's fast and tenacious. O'Hara has big time scoring ability (26 in her senior year at Stanford). I don't think this pick can go any other way, unless either Atlanta or Boston pulls a surprise.

4. Chicago Red Stars-Casey Nogueira, F, North Carolina
The Red Stars also had trouble scoring last year and could stand to add a forward, but the signing of Cristiane and Asllani may change their thinking. Also, if Boston would opt for Engen, then Cheney or O'Hara could fall to this position. Nogueira is one of the greatest clutch players in women's soccer. But she has been inconsistent and at times, a bit of an enigma. The potential is there for her to be a star, but she might be a risky selection. However, she could be the kind of player that Emma Hayes could bring off the bench late in the game to make a difference.

5. Los Angeles Sol-Whitney Engen, D, North Carolina
With Franko and Falk gone, the Sol need to solidify their central defense and Engen could be the answer. By many accounts, she is far and away the best defender in this year's draft. She is a very solid defender, who is one of the toughest tacklers in college soccer. I still think there is a chance that Los Angeles packages some of their picks to move up. They have 6 of the first 25 selections.

6. Sky Blue FC-Brittany Taylor, D, Connecticut
Rampone's pregnancy and Asante's injury make center back more of a priority than it ordinarily would have been for Sky Blue. In 2009, Taylor played for Sky Blue's affiliate, Hudson Valley Quickstrike Lady Blues and that connection could well be a factor here. That aside, Taylor is a talented center back who was recently called up for the US National Team camp. This seems like the perfect fit.

7. Washington-Ali Riley, D, Stanford
This selection is a tough one to gauge. Washington needs to shore up it's defense which gave up a league high 32 goals last season. Riley would give them an outside left back who plays solid defensively, but can also be dangerous making forward runs up the flank. She has international experience with New Zealand. The other direction Washington might go is for a defensive mid and Becky Edwards. I could see either being a possibility, but Riley's two-way ability gives her the edge.

8. Los Angeles-Nikki Washington, MF/F, North Carolina
If it hadn't been for her injury last fall, Washington very well could have been in the top 5. She can be extremely dangerous from the right side. I feel she is one of the most exciting midfielders in college soccer. Injuries always leave a big question mark, but Los Angeles has plenty of selections and Washington is well worth the gamble.

9. Los Angeles-Kaley Fountain, F/D, Wake Forest
This is probably my biggest long shot. I just love her versatility and I think she could be another Brittany Bock, who played several different positions for LA last year. She scored 11 goals and 10 assists last year at Wake, but has also played a lot of defender over her career.

10. FC Gold Pride-Becky Edwards, D/MF, Florida State
Defensive midfielder is one of Gold Pride's biggest needs and Edwards is the top player at that position. She is a top notch college defender, who has good vision and distributes well. She spent most of her college career on the back line, but moved up to defensive mid as a senior.

11. Boston-Nikki Marshall, F/D, Colorado
Marshall is very good offensive player from Colorado, but she may well fit into Boston's back line picture. She started all 6 games at the 2008 U-20 World Cup as a center back. The coach of that team was none other than Tony DiCicco. I can see them being reunited tomorrow.

My 2nd round:
12. FC Gold Pride-Kelsey Davis, GK, Portland.....A tough call between Davis or Naeher. Very athletic keeper in the mold of Hope Solo. Extensive junior national team experience. Career goals against under 0.45 at Portland.
13. Philadelphia Independence-Katie Schoepfer, F, Penn State.....Philly needs a scorer and Schoepfer will provide that. Scored 9 goals in just 6 games for U-23 team in 2009. A good target forward.
14. Los Angeles Sol-Gina DiMartino, MF/F, Boston College.....The Sol get their 2nd DiMartino in a week. Like her sister Tina, great with the ball at her feet and an excellent passer.
15. Chicago Red Stars-Alyssa Naeher, GK, Penn State.....The Red Stars need a backup for Jonsson. Starting keeper for the 2008 U-20 World Cup champions. Decent size and excellent agility. Just called up to USWNT camp.
16. Boston Breakers-Ashlyn Harris, GK, North Carolina.....Boston also needs a keeper and they get Harris. Aggressive keeper who shut out 5 opponents in 6 NCAA tournament games in 2009.
17. Saint Louis Athletica-Kristi Eveland, D, North Carolina.....Barcellos addresses playoff weakness against Sky Blue by getting a solid right back. Great speed and size and can be a weapon on corners with her heading ability.
18. Washington Freedom-Carolyn Blank, MF, West Virginia.....A tough, aggressive defensive mid that will enable the Freedom to move Homare Sawa into the attack where she can be most effective.
19. Saint Louis Athletica-Kiersten Dallstream, F, Washington State.....Athletica adds an offensive threat to team with Aluko and Edlund. Scored 13 goals and 7 assists in 2009. Versatile...played outside defender with 2008 U-20 team.
20. FC Gold Pride-Kat Reynolds, D/F, Santa Clara.....Gold Pride also gets a versatile player who can play several positions. Adds depth defensively for FCGP.

Good luck to all players, coaches, general managers, and fans at tomorrow's draft.

O'Hara wins MAC Hermann Award

Stanford senior forward Kelley O'Hara has won the 2009 Hermann Award, presented to the top male and female soccer players in NCAA Division I soccer. The award is annually presented by the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis, Missouri. The winner of the men's award was Teal Bunbury of the University of Akron.

O'Hara led Stanford to a 25-1 season, losing only to North Carolina in the finals. She scored a phenomenol 26 goals and added 13 assists for the Cardinal. She scored 57 goals over her four year college career.

O'Hara had been a semifinalist for the 2007 Hermann Award. She is expected to be one of the top selections in next week's WPS draft which will be held Friday, January 15 in Philadelphia.

The other two finalists for the women's award were Tobin Heath of North Carolina, who was 1st runner up, and Lauren Cheney of UCLA, who had previously been a finalist back in 2007.

Congratulations to Kelley!