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Breakers Take Over Third With Convincing Win Over Red Stars
Boston netted three goals in the first 15 minutes en route to downing Chicago on the road Sunday afternoon.
Jul 25, 2010 8:50:00 PM
By Carissa Ulmet
In a match-up featuring two teams vying for playoff position, the Boston Breakers (5-6-4, 19 points) were able to go on the road and surge past the Chicago Red Stars (4-7-5, 17 points) with a 3-1 win in front of the 3,673 at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Ill., on Sunday.
Boston came out strong. After 15 minutes, the Breakers were up 3-0, thanks to three goals in a five-minute span. As for the Red Stars, the sense of defeat crowded around their home stadium.
“From the side, it looked like we didn’t even know each other. We didn’t press together, and we couldn’t even play together,” said Red Stars forward Kosovare Asllani.
Breakers forward Kelly Smith found her way to the goal twice, putting home an unassisted goal in the ninth minute, and another with an assist from teammate Lindsay Tarpley in the 12th. And Ifeoma Dieke, a former Red Stars defender, capped the scoring in the 14th minute of play, assisted by Smith.
The three goals in five minutes was the second time Boston achieved that feat. In a July 11 home meeting with the Atlanta Beat, the Breakers rebounded from a 1-0 halftime deficit by scoring three second-half goals in five minutes.
Smith brought in fierce strength to her team’s offense tonight, only to become a threat to the Red Stars.
“(Kelly Smith) is the one that killed us in the first half. She dropped from the front line into the midfield, got the ball and started running at us. She started making runs in and behind our defenders and she really hurt us.” said Chicago coach Omid Namazi.
The Red Stars reacted to the Breakers lead with a line-up change, bringing in Kosovare Asllani for defender Natalie Spilger, and changing from a 4-4-2 formation to a 3-5-2.
Because of Asllani’s addition to the offense, the Red Stars found themselves finding more chances at the net. For example, Karen Carney created chances with crosses from the outside and Cristiane attempted a header right in front of the net but hit the post.
Chicago didn’t find a goal until second half when a free kick was awarded from a foul. Forward Casey Nogueira, who came in at the 61st minute, tipped it off to Asllani who made a shot past the Breaker’s wall of defense and starting goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher.
The Women’s Professional Soccer rankings have changed majorly after this game, with the Chicago Red Stars falling back into 6th place, and the Boston Breakers climbing their way up to 3rd place.
Next up for the Red Stars will be a visit to West Chester, Penn., to face the Philadelphia Independence on July 28. The Independence took over their home match versus Sky Blue FC this weekend, winning 4-1. The Red Stars will be looking for a win to regain its spot in the top four of WPS and a shot at post season play.
“My strategy from now on going into every game is high pressure. I feel like our team, when we sit back, our energy drops, so let’s force the action,” said Namazi “We need to be playing with urgency, playing with a chip on our shoulder, and playing with edge. “
The Boston Breakers will travel home to take on the Washington Freedom July 31. The Washington Freedom will be coming off a 4-1 loss against WPS first place FC Gold Pride.
For more on Women's Professional Soccer, visit Goal.com's WPS page and join Goal.com USA's Facebook fan page!
Boston came out strong. After 15 minutes, the Breakers were up 3-0, thanks to three goals in a five-minute span. As for the Red Stars, the sense of defeat crowded around their home stadium.
“From the side, it looked like we didn’t even know each other. We didn’t press together, and we couldn’t even play together,” said Red Stars forward Kosovare Asllani.
Breakers forward Kelly Smith found her way to the goal twice, putting home an unassisted goal in the ninth minute, and another with an assist from teammate Lindsay Tarpley in the 12th. And Ifeoma Dieke, a former Red Stars defender, capped the scoring in the 14th minute of play, assisted by Smith.
The three goals in five minutes was the second time Boston achieved that feat. In a July 11 home meeting with the Atlanta Beat, the Breakers rebounded from a 1-0 halftime deficit by scoring three second-half goals in five minutes.
Smith brought in fierce strength to her team’s offense tonight, only to become a threat to the Red Stars.
“(Kelly Smith) is the one that killed us in the first half. She dropped from the front line into the midfield, got the ball and started running at us. She started making runs in and behind our defenders and she really hurt us.” said Chicago coach Omid Namazi.
The Red Stars reacted to the Breakers lead with a line-up change, bringing in Kosovare Asllani for defender Natalie Spilger, and changing from a 4-4-2 formation to a 3-5-2.
Because of Asllani’s addition to the offense, the Red Stars found themselves finding more chances at the net. For example, Karen Carney created chances with crosses from the outside and Cristiane attempted a header right in front of the net but hit the post.
Chicago didn’t find a goal until second half when a free kick was awarded from a foul. Forward Casey Nogueira, who came in at the 61st minute, tipped it off to Asllani who made a shot past the Breaker’s wall of defense and starting goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher.
The Women’s Professional Soccer rankings have changed majorly after this game, with the Chicago Red Stars falling back into 6th place, and the Boston Breakers climbing their way up to 3rd place.
Next up for the Red Stars will be a visit to West Chester, Penn., to face the Philadelphia Independence on July 28. The Independence took over their home match versus Sky Blue FC this weekend, winning 4-1. The Red Stars will be looking for a win to regain its spot in the top four of WPS and a shot at post season play.
“My strategy from now on going into every game is high pressure. I feel like our team, when we sit back, our energy drops, so let’s force the action,” said Namazi “We need to be playing with urgency, playing with a chip on our shoulder, and playing with edge. “
The Boston Breakers will travel home to take on the Washington Freedom July 31. The Washington Freedom will be coming off a 4-1 loss against WPS first place FC Gold Pride.
For more on Women's Professional Soccer, visit Goal.com's WPS page and join Goal.com USA's Facebook fan page!
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