Congrats to W-League forwards Jenn Parsons and Brittany Tegeler for being named to the 2009 W-League Eastern Conference team.
Parsons led the Freedom in scoring this year with 12 goals and was second on the team with 6 assists for a team-leading 30 points while Tegeler tallied 8 goals and 5 assists for 21 points to help the Freedom to a 12-1-1 record and a spot in the W-League semifinal.
The Freedom will host the Ottawa Fury in that semifinal match on Saturday at the Maryland SoccerPlex. Tickets are $10.
Who expected that outcome?
Coming into Wednesday’s game with a 0-2-1 record against the Boston Breakers this season, the Freedom did exactly what they needed to in order to stay firmly entrenched in the WPS playoff race – pick up a win.
While Abby Wambach will be the first one mentioned since she scored the game’s lone goal, a huge assist goes to the Breakers Alex Scott. With her dangerous tackle on Sonia Bompastor drawing a red card only five minutes into the game, the Freedom played the entire game with a woman advantage.
Give credit to the Breakers though for holding the Freedom scoreless as long as they did, but you could tell watching the match last night that a Freedom goal was imminent.
Understandably, Boston coach Tony DiCicco is not a happy man (and his comments seem similar to a previous meeting between these two clubs) as the Breakers are not only still fighting for their playoff lives, they have to do it at second place Saint Louis this weekend without Scott, who has been the team’s top defender this season.
Even though the Freedom have been the only team to play with a player advantage this season (they have done it four times), this was the first time they actually scored in this situation. Of course, Kelly Smith would have forced a tie in stoppage time if not for a leaping save by Erin McLeod (also similar to that May meeting in Boston).
Now in third place with two games to play, let’s see if the Freedom can hold up as they make one final trip to the West Coast to take on cellar-dwelling FC Gold Pride.
I watched the live stream on the Chicago game online (or at least tried to when the feed was actually on and not showing highlights from Red Stars games past) and boy did the Freedom make things intense. This team has a knack for picking up points off of last minute goals, making themselves soccer’s version of the Kardiac Kids.
Obviously, most of the recognition for this win will go to Abby Wambach (2 goals) and Allie Long (game-winner in 89′) but credit the entire team for not giving up after falling behind 1-0 early or after allowing the tying goal in the second half.
This win not only keeps the Freedom in the playoff race but will add more fuel to the Chicago-Washington rivalry as the Red Stars were eliminated from playoff contention. It also gave the Freedom a win over a team other than Sky Blue FC, FC Gold Pride or Saint Louis. For more on the WPS Playoff picture, check out KC Albertina’s rundown.
Not to be outdone
The W-League Freedom did their best impression of the WPS squad over the weekend too, as they captured the Eastern Conference crown on a goal by Brittany Tegeler in the 85th minute for a 2-1 win over the Charlotte Lady Eagles in Atlanta. The W-League Freedom too fell behind early before tying the game up in the 76th on a goal by Meghan Lenczyk. The win means the Freedom advance to the W-League’s semifinal round and will host the Ottawa Fury on Sat., Aug. 1 at 6 p.m. ET at the Maryland SoccerPlex.
Partying at Tommy Joe’s
Finally, a video and some photos from a recent event the Freedom participated in. Enjoy.
Boston’s up tomorrow – let’s hope this playoff bandwagon keeps rolling along.
I will catch up with everyone after the 4 p.m. contest, but I wanted to make sure everyone was aware that this game is available online.
Also, congrats to the W-League Freedom, who moved on to the W-League finals after capturing the Eastern Conference crown with a 2-1 win over the Charlotte Lady Eagles. More on that later as well.
Just wanted to pass along a couple of videos I found starring Cat Whitehill. One is from local station NBC 4 and the second is about Cat’s return to the U.S. Women’s National Team.
Whitehill Makes Impact on Field, in Community (nbcwashington.com)
WNT back from injury (ussoccer.com via You Tube)
As always, feel free to leave comments, links, etc. in the comments section below.
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