Friday, May 8, 2008
PLAINVIEW, LI -- The 2007 W-League Champion Washington Freedom will head to Long Island, where the inaugural 1995 W-League champions hailed from to take on the second-year Long Island Rough Riders Saturday night at 5:00 pm ET.
The offshoot of the original professional WUSA Washington Freedom, the defending champions will looking to defend their title while also preparing for a return to professional soccer with the club launching a team in the new league Women’s Professional Soccer next year. The Freedom have quickly become a dominant force in USL with its USL Super-20 League side claiming the league’s inaugural title in 2006 and the W-League team capturing the championship last season.
The eight starters returning to the field after winning the championship 3-1 over the Atlanta Silverbacks in Rochester are Kele Golebiowski, Lori Lindsay, Sarah Huffman, Rebecca Moros, Emily Janss, Alexandra Singer, Christie Welsh, Katie Spisak. The club also added Richmond Kickers Destiny standout Becky Sauerbrunn to the squad.
The Rough Riders will be looking to shut down the Freedom, who tied for the league lead in goals last season, with All-American Sue Weber out of Hofstra.
“To have someone of Sue’s caliber is a great advantage,” said Rough Riders Women’s Head Coach John Fitzgerald. “She will play a key role in improving upon what we accomplished last year, and growing together as a team. It’s great to have someone with her vision and knowledge of the game on our side.”
Weber will lead a Rough Riders defensive line that yielded 24 goals in their first season. She will fill the void left by USL Defender of the Year nominee Francesca DeCristoforo, who retired after the 2007 season. “It’s tough losing someone as strong and reliable as Fran, but Sue has a great mind for the game, and I think she’ll fit right in.”
The match marks the second consecutive year the Freedom will open their season on Long Island. Last year they posted a 3-1 victory over the Rough Riders, who were playing their second of the campaign. Tied 1-1 in the second half, Welsh scored twice to give the visitors the win. The return trip turned out less kind for the Rough Riders as they fell 6-0 at the Maryland Soccerplex.
