2008 Washington Freedom W-League Thread [R]

Discussion in 'US Women's Lower Divisions' started by StarCityFan, Jan 17, 2008.

  1. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Parsons, Welsh bring down Sky Blue

    Christie Welsh and Jenn Parsons each racked up a goal and an assist in an unsuspenseful 3-0 victory over Jersey Sky Blue. Sky Blue is, alas, not the team it was before coach Charlie Naimo went to the Pali Blues and took most of their best players with him.

    The Freedom dominated possession early and scored only twelve minutes in. Jenn Parsons brought the ball in from the left side, then from about twenty yards out from the left post slid it over to the right to Christie Welsh about fifteen yards out. Christie made a couple of fakes to get her defender enough out of the way to take a shot and knocked the ball into the lower right corner.

    Washington continued to control the ball for most of the half, though there was a scary Jersey possession around the 38th minute, when they got the ball to within a few yards of the goal but couldn’t get a shot off.

    The dominance finally paid off in the 43rd minute. Sarah Huffman brought the ball down the right flank, then began running cross-field about 25 yards out before passing the ball to an open Christen Karniski on the left flank. Christen brought the ball in a little before making a beautiful centering pass to Lori Lindsey at the right post. Lori was literally a yard out from goal but off-balance and unable to get a foot on the ball. It looked to be yet another of the teeth-gnashing missed opportunities the Freedom have been experiencing of late, but Lori finally managed to knock the ball just a yard or so out where Jenn Parsons was ready and waiting to knock the ball into the net.

    The scoring concluded early in the second half as Sky Blue got sloppy on defense, paying too much attention to Christie Welsh with the ball at the top of the box and completely ignoring substitute forward Ali Andrzejewski, who came in wide open toward the left post, got the ball from Christie, and slid it in under the goalkeeper for the final score.

    At this point in the match I was prepared to write a paean to the Freedom’s calmness under pressure. The scouting report on them seems to be to pressure their defensive line as much as possible, and Sky Blue had been doing a very good job of this. But the Freedom were putting on an exhibition of keep-away featuring crisp, one-touch passing, quick surveys of the field, and near-telepathic teamwork. One moment a Sky Blue forward is bearing down on a Freedom defender on the left flank, then a few touches later, and Sarah Huffman coming down the right flank with the ball and bearing down on a defense in full retreat.

    Well, that lasted about 50 minutes. The latter part of the game featured an extraordinary number of turnovers and instances of poor play: first passes from the back line to the midfield going to the other team, players with twenty yards of green in front of them in the middle of the field passing off to a player on the side with a marker six feet away, and just unbelievable sloppiness all around.

    Fortunately, the Freedom defense held its ground, and though many balls came into the goal area, few were dangerous, and all were gobbled up by an indomitable Chante Sandiford, who had ten times as much work to do in the second half as in the first. Sky Blue’s best chance of the match came with seconds remaining in stoppage time as one of their forwards broke through the back line and took a shot from about eight yards out that Chante had to make a reaction save on. She cleared the ball, and the game ended moments later.

    The Freedom began the day in fourth place in the Northeast Division of the W-League but leapfrogged over Sky Blue and the Long Island Rough Riders - whom they play on Wednesday - to move into second place beyond only the Boston Renegades, whom they play on Saturday. With games in hand on all of their competition, they’re in a position to win the division without needing help from any other team.

    Washington Freedom vs. Jersey Sky Blue
    July 12, 2008 - Maryland Soccerplex, Germantown, MD


    Summary:
    WAS - Welsh (Parsons) 12
    WAS - Parsons (Lindsey) 43
    WAS - Andrzejewski (Welsh) 47

    Washington (4-4-2 formation) - Chante Sandiford, Sarah Senty, Alex Singer, Madison Keller, Emily Janss, Christen Karniski (Jillian Gilbeau 46), Rebecca Moros (Danielle Malagari 77), Lori Lindsey, Sarah Huffman (Heather Tomko 66), Jenn Parsons (Ali Andrzejewski 46), Christie Welsh (Meagan Lynch 73).

    Jersey - Jillian Loyden, Fanta Cooper, Stephanie Peel, Kim Brandao, Sarra Moller, Taylor Walsh (Kim Bonilla 72), Kelly Eagan (Domenique Esposito 46), Leah Robinson, Gina DeMaio, Michele O’Brien (Tricia Di Paolo 46), Daniela Molina (Marisa Brown 46).
     
  2. Crazyhorse

    Crazyhorse Member

    Dec 29, 2007
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I guess Tiffany McCarty is no longer on the team? She has been MIA for a couple of weeks.
     
  3. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I asked Gabarra about this, and he said she's taking summer classes at Florida State. We might get her on weekends if she can work it into her schedule.
     
  4. Crazyhorse

    Crazyhorse Member

    Dec 29, 2007
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Sweet, thanks a lot for the info, can't wait to watch her suit up for the Garnet and Gold. With the great roster we already have, plus the incoming recruiting class, not to mention a 2 million dollar upgrade to already outstanding facilities, things sure are looking up in Tallahassee.
     
  5. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I didn't make it to the game, but this evening the Freedom defeated the Fredericksburg Lady Gunners, 6-1. Christie Welsh scored two goals and three assists:

    Weather: Rain

    Summary:
    WAS: Golebiowski (Karniski) 29
    WAS: Gilbeau (Welsh) 36
    WAS: Welsh (Parsons) 38
    WAS: Huffman (Welsh) 39
    FRE: Bemner (Mohammad) 45
    WAS: Gilbeau (Welsh) 60
    WAS: Welsh (Malagari) 72

    They are now tied with the Boston Renegades for first place in the division but have a game in hand.
     
  6. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    She's a special player - you're fortunate to have her. I look to her having a place on the full WNT in a few years.
     
  7. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Just as well I didn't make it to Sunday night's match:

    - http://www.washingtonfreedom.com/home/262743.html
     
  8. The_Whale

    The_Whale Member

    Jun 26, 2007
    Gaithersburg, MD
    Looks the the weather tonight will be a little better....
     
  9. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Another suspenseful match for the Freedom

    The Freedom once again had a home game that was far more suspenseful than they would have liked. In the end, though, they eked out a 1-0 over the Long Island Rough Riders off a Christie Welsh goal in the 89th minute.

    The game didn’t start out that way: Washington dominated most of the first half, requiring at least half-a-dozen saves plus eleven shots that were off-target to various degrees. Meanwhile, Long Island had no threats of consequence and scarcely any possession in their end of the field. The most interesting sequence occurred around minute 15, when Washington got four straight corner kicks as their shots kept bouncing off of Rough Riders and over the end line.

    That all changed with the start of the second half, to the point where it seemed to be a different team playing. Long Island not only held their own but had far more attacking possession than the Freedom. This change seemed not to be rewarded when Sarah Huffman was tripped in the box in the 49th minute, and Washington was awarded a penalty kick. However, Lori Lindsey bounced the shot off the left post. It came back to her, and she buried the rebound, but for unclear reasons the goal was disallowed.

    The scariest moment for the Freedom came in the 55th minute, when goalkeeper Chante Sandiford dropped a centering pass and let the ball dribble in front of the goal. However, defender Madison Keller managed to clear it.

    Finally, with little time left, midfielder Sarah Huffman brought the ball down along the center line, then dished it off to Christie Welsh, who broke barely free behind her defender as she met the ball and rocketed it into the upper netting.

    With the win, the Freedom take over sole possession of first place in the Northeast Division for the first time this season. They go on the road to New England this weekend to take on the rival Boston Renegades on Saturday, then the Connecticut Passion on Sunday. A win in either match will clinch both a playoff spot and first place in the division.

    Washington Freedom vs. Long Island Rough Riders
    July 16, 2008 - Maryland Soccerplex, Germantown, MD

    Summary:
    WAS - Welsh (Huffman) 89

    Starting lineups:

    Washington - Chante Sandiford, Sarah Senty, Alex Singer, Madison Keller, Emily Janss, Kele Golebiowski, Lori Lindsey, Rebecca Moros, Sarah Huffman, Jenn Parsons, Christie Welsh

    Long Island - Meghan Frey, Sade Ayinde, Susan Weber, Elaine O’Connor/Stephanie Sohn, Elizabeth Speck/Courtney Curby, Kerrie McCabe, Kimberly Miller, Rebecca Kaplan, Casie Ludmann, Kristen Habenicht, Brooke DeRosa. (Where more than one name is listed, there are two names with that number in the program book - I arrived after the introductions.)
     
  10. The_Whale

    The_Whale Member

    Jun 26, 2007
    Gaithersburg, MD
    It was a relief when DC finally scored. I thought the LIRR would pull out a tie.

    I was told that the penalty kick goal was disallowed because it was scored on the rebound by the kicker of the penalty shot. I was told it was an "offsides", but that didn't make any sense to me.

    Doesn anybody know the answer????
     
  11. moog

    moog Member

    Mar 2, 2003
    eastern PA
    Club:
    Philadelphia Independence
    Sure. The same player cannot play the ball twice in succession on a penalty kick without it being touched by another player. If it had rebounded off the goalkeeper and she had shot again, it would have been a goal. Since it rebounded off the post and she struck it again, it was disallowed--another player did not touch it before she played it again.
     
  12. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I was thinking that I'd seen rebounds sent in for scores before, but those must have been off the goalkeeper.
     
  13. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Hard-fought draw gives Freedom division title

    The much-improved Boston Renegades held the defending W-League champion Washington Freedom to a 1-1 draw and thereby won the season’s home-and-home series. However, a draw was enough to give the Freedom the championship of the Northeast Division, far and away the most competitive division in the W-League this year.

    The first half was clearly more Boston than Washington, as Chante Sandiford had her busiest half of the season, making five saves, while Boston’s Meghann Burke only needed to make one. About ten minutes in, it began to rain, which made play rather sloppy. Meanwhile, the Freedom found cause to object to numerous referee decisions, which led the referee to admonish them “Stop whining!” about twenty minutes in.

    Christie Welsh again seemed to be chiefly responsible for the Freedom’s lack of scoring, as she had a hard time getting her shots on target, most notably in the 48th minute when she whiffed on her first attempt and quickly had to try again, the ball going wide left. Her best chance was in the 52nd minute, when she tried to get a low shot past the keeper just a few yards in front of her, but Meghann managed to sprawl quickly to block the shot.

    Boston continued to get the better chances, getting an open cross in the 56th minute that was just in front of a player charging in toward the right post. The best chance of all for Boston - or at least the scariest one - was a 2-on-1 break in the 59th minute with the lone defender covering the player on the flank with a wide-open forward coming right down the middle, but the centering pass was off-target enough to allow the Freedom defense to recover.

    Thus, it was no great surprise when in the 72nd minute a well-placed long service from Therese Luckner came to Ashlee Pistorius, who nodded it into goal. However, the Freedom came roaring back off the ensuing kickoff, with Sarah Huffman sending the ball forward to Ali Andrzejewski, who weaved her way from the left flank through defenders not quite settled from celebrating their team’s score and send a shot into the side netting to tie the score moments after the deadlock had been broken.

    At that point the Freedom defense settled in, and a tie seemed just about assured, despite one unnerving moment around minute 85 when a Freedom defender tried to get a little fancy with a Boston centering pass and seemed at risk of giving up an own goal. Particularly with time running out, the Freedom used their quality passing and possession to deny Boston any opportunity even to gain control of the ball.

    Surprisingly, there was enough of a Freedom fan contingent in the stands to out-shout some of the Renegade chants.

    With a 1-0 win the following evening against the Connecticut Passion, the Freedom came away from their grueling 5 games (more than a third of their season) in 9 days stretch with 13 out of a possible 15 points and the division championship. Their next game will be on Friday, July 25, against the Atlantic division runner-up Charlotte Lady Eagles, at Atlanta Silverbacks Park.

    USL Summary:

    Weather: Hot, Rain Attendance: 205

    Summary:
    BR: Pistonus (Luckner) 72
    WF: Andrzijewski (Huffman) 73

    Cautions
    WF: Golebiowski 18

    Referees: Ken Ethridge, Sin Hang Lai, Kyle Nives


    Washington Freedom at Boston Renegades
    July 19, 2008 - Bowditch Stadium, Framingham, MA


    Boston - (4-4-2 formation) Meghann Burke, Stephanie Gilkinson, Danielle Kot, Therese Luckner, Ella Stephan, Allison Martino, Katie Bethke (Marcy Gans 80), Kelsey Hood, Lauren MacIver (C) (Laura Grace Robinson 80), Tori Huster, Ashlee Pistorius (Jamie Craft 72).

    Washington - (4-4-2 formation) Chante Sandiford, Sarah Senty, Alex Singer, Madison Keller, Emily Janss, Kele Golebiowski (Rebecca Moros 55), Lori Lindsey (C), Sarah Huffman (Danielle Malagari 80), Jillian Gilbeau (Christen Karnisky 67), Jenn Parsons (Ali Andrzejewski 64), Christie Welsh.
     
  14. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I should have mentioned before that I talked to Kati Jo Spisak at halftime of the Long Island game, and she said that she felt fine and thought the doctors would clear her to be playing again very soon.
     
  15. bythesea

    bythesea Member

    May 27, 2005
    Will Ella Masar be back for the playoffs?
     
  16. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I hope so!

    Meanwhile:

    Washington Freedom 6, Charlotte Eagles 5. I don't know where that came from - that's more goals than the Freedom scored in their four matches against playoff-bound opponents combined - but I'll take it. The Freedom will go on to re-enact last year's W-League Championship match, though this time they'll be playing the Atlanta Silverbacks for the Eastern Conference championship rather than the whole enchilada.
     
  17. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    She started the Charlotte match but had to leave due to an injury. Writeup here.
     
  18. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Freedom are Eastern Conference champions! They defeated the Atlanta Silverbacks, 2-1, with Ali Andrzejewski scoring the winning goal in the 118th minute. Stats here.
     
  19. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    The Freedom lost to the Pali Blues in the semifinal match, 2-0, but then beat the Seattle Sounders by the same score in the consolation match.
     
  20. sitruc

    sitruc Member+

    Jul 25, 2006
    Virginia
    I didn't realize there was a consolation match.:(
     
  21. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Virginia Commonwealth will host an exhibition match against the Freedom:

    Saturday, August 23, at 7 pm.
     
  22. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    RAMS DROP EXHIBITION CONTEST TO WASHINGTON FREEDOM, 3-2

    Good to hear that Spisak is playing again after her concussion early in the season.
     
  23. jeffconn

    jeffconn Member

    Jul 25, 2004
    Norfolk, VA, USA
    Club:
    Hampton Roads Piranhas
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
  24. StarCityFan

    StarCityFan BigSoccer Supporter

    Aug 2, 2001
    Greenbelt, MD
    Club:
    Washington Freedom
    Nat'l Team:
    United States

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