RSS
ATOM
advertisement
Sky Blue And Saint Louis Prepare For WPS Super Semifinal
One game - 90 minutes - is all that separates Sky Blue FC and Saint Louis Athletica from their goal -- the WPS Championship game.
Aug 19, 2009 3:59:56 AM
Sky Blue FC overcame a challenge last weekend, when the club beat the Washington Freedom for the first time all season. Wednesday they’ll have an even bigger obstacle when they face Saint Louis Athletica in the WPS Super Semifinal on Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. ET.
Sky Blue (7-8-5, 26 points) finished the season in fourth place. They beat the no. 3 ranked freedom and will now face no. 2 – Saint Louis. Athletica (10-6-4) finished the season on a five-game unbeaten streak, with a 3-0-2 record. They’re basically flawless, lately. Their last time out they ended knotted up with FC Gold Pride 1-1 on August 9th.
“Obviously we’re coming off a big win against D.C., but we’re not being too overconfident going to this next game,” Sky Blue FC player/coach Christie Rampone said. “I think the team is realistic. We haven’t beaten Saint Louis yet but we’re taking those three games we played against them as good preparation games, watching film and just trying to get a game plan down to go and attack Saint Louis.
“I think the girls respect Saint Louis. We’re working on our game and fine-tuning a few little things and adjusting some little tactics but at the end of the day we’re just going to go out there and play our hearts out like we did in the last game.”
Sky Blue could have an advantage because they have been playing non-stop. However, they could also be tired from playing on Saturday. The two clubs have met three times, with Saint Louis earning three wins and outscoring SBFC 4-1. But all games were decided by just one goal: 1-0, 2-1 and 1-0. Saint Louis knows it won’t be easy.
“We have beaten them three times but we know those matches could have gone either way,” says Head Coach Jorge Barcellos. “The key for us is to play a totally focused game. Good passing, keep possession, and minimize our mistakes.”
Saint Louis ranks second in just about every category – behind the Los Angeles Sol. They’ve allowed the second fewest goals (15), posted the second most shutouts (10) and well... the list continues. The only place they didn’t finish second was in goals scored. They finished third (19). The Washington Fredom actually finished first (32) and Los Angeles second (27).
Sky Blue has also tallied 19 goals on the season. They rank third in shutouts with eight. And quite honestly are going to make things tough for Saint Louis.
“We know we are just 90 minutes away from getting into the WPS Championship game,” said Athleica captain Lori Chalupny. “We are just ironing out some details and getting ready for the game.”
The winner heads West to face the Los Angeles Sol Saturday, August 22nd at 4:00 p.m. ET in the WPS Championship match.
Kathryn L. Knapp, Goal.com
For more on Women’s Professional Soccer, go to Goal.com’s women’s soccer page.
Sky Blue (7-8-5, 26 points) finished the season in fourth place. They beat the no. 3 ranked freedom and will now face no. 2 – Saint Louis. Athletica (10-6-4) finished the season on a five-game unbeaten streak, with a 3-0-2 record. They’re basically flawless, lately. Their last time out they ended knotted up with FC Gold Pride 1-1 on August 9th.
“Obviously we’re coming off a big win against D.C., but we’re not being too overconfident going to this next game,” Sky Blue FC player/coach Christie Rampone said. “I think the team is realistic. We haven’t beaten Saint Louis yet but we’re taking those three games we played against them as good preparation games, watching film and just trying to get a game plan down to go and attack Saint Louis.
“I think the girls respect Saint Louis. We’re working on our game and fine-tuning a few little things and adjusting some little tactics but at the end of the day we’re just going to go out there and play our hearts out like we did in the last game.”
Sky Blue could have an advantage because they have been playing non-stop. However, they could also be tired from playing on Saturday. The two clubs have met three times, with Saint Louis earning three wins and outscoring SBFC 4-1. But all games were decided by just one goal: 1-0, 2-1 and 1-0. Saint Louis knows it won’t be easy.
“We have beaten them three times but we know those matches could have gone either way,” says Head Coach Jorge Barcellos. “The key for us is to play a totally focused game. Good passing, keep possession, and minimize our mistakes.”
Saint Louis ranks second in just about every category – behind the Los Angeles Sol. They’ve allowed the second fewest goals (15), posted the second most shutouts (10) and well... the list continues. The only place they didn’t finish second was in goals scored. They finished third (19). The Washington Fredom actually finished first (32) and Los Angeles second (27).
Sky Blue has also tallied 19 goals on the season. They rank third in shutouts with eight. And quite honestly are going to make things tough for Saint Louis.
“We know we are just 90 minutes away from getting into the WPS Championship game,” said Athleica captain Lori Chalupny. “We are just ironing out some details and getting ready for the game.”
The winner heads West to face the Los Angeles Sol Saturday, August 22nd at 4:00 p.m. ET in the WPS Championship match.
Kathryn L. Knapp, Goal.com
For more on Women’s Professional Soccer, go to Goal.com’s women’s soccer page.
Advertisement
Inside Goal.Com
-
DEMPSEY'S DIARY: Playing in the World Cup was the ultimate dream
In his latest diary entry for Goal.com, the U.S. international and Fulham midfielder talks about playing in his first World Cup despite a back injury and what it meant to score.
-
ROGERS: Capello resigns as coach, but the villain is FA chairman Bernstein
Capello and John Terry are far from blameless in the England saga, but the real culprit is the FA chairman.
-
LABIDOU: Is MLS falling behind? The league's new younger direction
With high-profile players like Nicolas Anelka and Luca Toni rejecting MLS for other developing leagues, is the league falling behind its competition?
-
ROSANO: Mexican soccer needs to address referee treatment
Nick Rosano argues that Mexico's continued officiating problems may have less to do with referees themselves and more to do with how they are treated by the federation.
-
VERTELNEY: MLS owners take to Twitter to spread their team's word
"Any time you tweet, it's a mini press conference," says Portland Timbers owner Merritt Paulson.
Advertisement
Advertisement