AJAX AMERICA 2, SD UNITED 1

SAN DIEGO, CA (06/28/09) – SD United (7-1-2 WPSL Pacific-South) and Ajax America (8-1-1 WPSL Pacific-South) swapped places in the Pacific-South Division of the WPSL, as SD United's unlucky loss to the defending WPSL National Champions on June 28th dropped the home to second place after three weeks at the top. The match between the division's best was played in front of a very enthusiastic crowd at Torero Stadium.

In the 17th minute of the match, SDU's Melanie De Salvo crossed to Yvonne Vasquez who fired off a powerful shot only to hit the bottom of the crossbar. Unfortunately for Vasquez, her runs came to no avail and shot after shot hit every deflection possible making for a very unlucky day.

Ajax would score in the 29th minute to make the score 1-0 which continued on well into the second half. SDU's Taryn Francel and Natalie Vinti emerged as a solid defending duo, pressuring and constantly pushing forward with intensity.

However, the visitors would score again in the 87th minute for the eventual game-winner. SD United was awarded a penalty kick in the 88th minute and Maddie Tantillo sealed the final score of 2-1.

SD United will host the Claremont Stars on Saturday, July 18th at 6:30 p.m. at Torero Stadium on the beautiful campus of the University of San Diego. Half-time giveaways include L.A. Galaxy tickets and a pizza party that will go to the youth team showing the most spirit during the game. All children are free with a paying adult.

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BAY STATE SELECTS 4, NEW YORK ATHLETIC CLUB 2
BAY STATE SELECTS 0, BOSTON AZTECS 2

PELHAM, NY (06/28/09) - The Bay State Selects (4-4-0 WPSL East) avenged an early season loss to the New York Athletic Club (3-6-0 WPSL East) by winning 4-2 and getting their WPSL East Division back to .500. The Selects came out strong as they pressured NYAC continuously in their half and in the 21st minute, Jen Leaverton would score her first of three goals.

The multiple WPSL team of the Week selection received a nice feed from Kate McCarthy down the left flank and rocketed a 25-yard left footer to the upper 90, over the head of NYAC goalkeeper Tyler Griffin for the 1-0 lead. In the 38th minute, Erin Kaufman played a perfect pass over the top to Leaverton who finished with another shot from the top of the penalty area - once again, to the upper right corner over the outstretched arms of Griffin for the 2-0 half-time score.

"I may have scored the goals but give credit to my teammates who made it possible for me to get the opportunities, we played a good first half," said Leaverton.

"We finally played for a full half and we had opportunities that we finished," said Bay State Coach Dan Lima. "When we play possession, we are very difficult to defend and our forwards along with our midfielders can finish."

The second half was a carbon copy of the first, as the Selects dominated play and in the 72nd minute, Skyy Anderson dribbled down the left flank and found Julie Morrissey who placed her shot perfectly into the far post to up the score to 3-0. Then in the 82nd minute, Leaverton rocked the crossbar and then collected her rebound and fired the ball inside the far post.

New York however would continue to play hard and in the 83rd minute were awarded a penalty kick, which Stephanie Barrett calmly placed past Selects keeper Emily Nahas. In the 90th minute, NYAC's Amy Ludlum would put a shot past Nahas inside the far post to make the final score of 4-2. Emily Kaufman and Jen Leaverton were selected Defensive and Offensive MVP's of the game and the visitors out-shot their hosts by a 16-15 margin shots on goal while NYAC had more corner kicks (7-3).

The Boston Aztecs (7-0-0 WPSL East) earned their seventh victory of the 2009 season in a 2-0 win against Bay State on June 27th at the Amesbury Sports Park in Amesbury, MA, assuring them a spot in the WPSL East playoffs. The Selects brought a roster of local collegiate talent while the Aztecs had six Boston Breakers players on their roster with the Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) side having the weekend off.

"I think our players were in awe of some of their world class players and Fabiana and it took some time for us to get our feet and into the game," said Bay State Coach Dan Lima. "We had some opportunities in the first half but we failed to capitalize on them."  

Aztec players/coach Meotis Erikson broke a scoreless tie in the 13th minute as Cortney Sobrero fired off a low shot and Selects goalkeeper Stephanie Gordon made a diving kick save, which rebounded right to Erikson who tucked it into the left corner. The Selects had a scoring opportunity in the 57th minute with an indirect kick from 16-yards out but was defended by a wall of Aztec players and cleared out of the box.

Six minutes later in the 63rd minute, former North Carolina State standout Carol Tognetti rocketed a shot at the Selects net and nearly scored but second half and current Duke University goalkeeper Emily Nahas pushed the ball over the crossbar. Play remained even until the 82nd minute, when the Aztecs notched their second goal and final goal of the match.

Newly signed Boston Breakers developmental player Sophia Mundy sent in a corner kick and fellow Breaker's teammate Kasey Moore got a head on the ball. Former Franklin Pierce College standout Jenna Giardina deflected Moore's header into the corner of the net.

With the win, the Aztecs remain undefeated and at the top of the WPSL Eastern conference while earning their 5th consecutive shutout. The Aztecs also saw Breakers players Abby Crumpton, Ashley Philips and Brazilian national team player Fabiana, a 2008 Beijing Olympic Silver Medalist, play for them in this match.

"All in all, I think that we played well, we got to play against some of the best players in the U.S. and even though we lost, we held our own and can walk away from this match with a lot of positives," said Bay State Coach Jim Leaverton.

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DALLAS PREMIER 3, FORT WORTH 0
FORT WORTH 1, DALLAS PREMIER 1

FORT WORTH, TX (06/28/09) - As far as Dallas Premier Head Coach Joe Soliz was concerned, after reflecting on the frustrating 1-1 draw vs. Fort Worth (1-4-1 WPSL Big Sky-South) the previous night, there were two things that would end his opponent's frustrating game plan: first, be sure not to allow them to score; and second, score first and they would have to come out of their bunker defense.

The Premier (6-0-1 WPSL Big Sky-South) did just what their coach wanted and the Dallas back-line of Jessica Jarrell, Lauren Olson, and Alicia Marshall along with Rachel Garcia kept the FWFC attack smothered all night in the 3-0 shut-out win at the TCU Soccer Complex. No matter what Fort Worth tried - whether it was long balls over the top that Jarrell & Olson foiled or balls sent in to forwards that were checking to the ball - Ft Worth wasn't going to score on this night.

And it was Garcia who took care of the other requirement in the 45th minute, when she stepped up from the back-line to a ball knocked out on a corner kick by the bunkered FWFC side and drilled a liner in from 40 yards out to give the Premier the 1-0 advantage with less than a minute prior to half-time. Garcia - who is headed to the University of Tulsa this fall - would nail the door shut.

With the defense well in hand, and FWFC not able to bunker in the second half, the high-flying Premier side was able to turned to its high octane offense. After the Fort Worth kickoff, Dallas' Princess Haley stole the next pass and literally dribbled through the entire defense and crammed the ball along with the FWFC keeper into the net for the 2-0 lead.

Doing this in less than a minute into the second half ended all doubt of another night of frustration. Jarrell ended the night's scoring, putting in a corner kick from Kendall Juett. Juett's assist was almost a goal on its own and may well have been but the oportunistic Jarrell fired the ball home to be sure for the final 3-0 score.

The night before, FWFC was relentless all night in winning every ball they could in the 1-1 draw at Cedar Hills H.S. Dallas would out-shoot the visitors by a 23-4 margin to no avail. It was FWFC's Janae Powell who snuck in behind the Premier defense on a cross from Michele Nguyen to find the net in the 66th minute to assure the point on the road.

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A.C. DIABLOS 0, LONG ISLAND FURY 1

GARDEN CITY, NY (06/27/09) - The Long Island Fury topped the Atlantic City Diablos (3-3-2 WPSL East) by a 1-0 score on June 27th at Adelphi University's Competition Field. The Fury improved to a perfect 7-0-0 in the WPSL East and after their 2-2 draw vs. Lancaster on Tuesday, June 30th have assured themselves a spot in the WPSL East post-season, where the top 8 teams in the final regular season standings qualify.

Vicki DiMartino (9 goals this season) scored the lone goal from five yards OUT during a 32nd minute goal-mouth scramble, off an assist from Jasmyne Spencer. Give the devils their due, as along with the New England Mutiny, Atlantic City is the other team that traditionally have given the Fury the most problems - as Long Island now has a 3-3-0 all-time record against the Diablos.

However, the Fury dominated this game with a 21-1 shot advantage and a 9-0 corner kick advantage. Atlantic City keeper Bridget Mahon made 10 saves but the Diablos did have opportunities in the Fury's penalty area. Long Island's somewhat makeshift back line of defenders Tara Mendoza, Cody Newman, Alaina Beyar, Deanna Murino and Heather Tomko repelled those attacks.

The Fury has been led in scoring this year by DiMartino (9g, 3a, 21pts), Spencer (3g, 2a, 8pts), Westbury's Karin Simonian (3 goals, 1 assist, 7 points) and Baldwin's Kelly Henderson (1 goal, 3 assists, 5 points). The defense has conceded just six goals this season and is led by Alyssa Pember, Hannah Cerrone and Tomko with goalkeepers Jillian Mastroianni, Danielle Ippolito and Brittany Anghel in net.

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FLORIDA SURGE 3, PALM BEACH UNITED 0

WEST PALM BEACH, FL (06/27/09) - After another rain-delay which has effected matches all over the East Coast this season, the short-handed Florida Surge (4-1-1 WPSL Sunshine) was still able to move the ball well and their mission to win the Sunshine Conference title was aided in a 3-0 road win vs. Palm Beach United (3-2-1 WPSL Sunshine).

Florida's first goal was the result of the hard work, hustle and versatility of Meagan Zusi. In the 24th minute, a cross looked like it was going to sail wide, but Zusi didn't stop her run. On the end-line, she turned her body at full pace and headed it back in the mix where Elise Larrett ran through it into the goal for the 1-0 lead.

Both teams still battled hard and in the 28th minute, a goal-mouth scramble in the PBU penalty area ensued. The ball snuck out of the group of players to the Surge's Kate Begley, who turned and chipped her shot into the back corner of the net for the 2-0 half-time score.

The second half saw lethargic play from both sides and a midfield battle would commence. In the 90th minute, the PBU goalkeeper was caught off her line by Florida's enigmatic midfielder Lindsey DeLorenze, who sailed a left-footed shot over her head from 35 yards out for the 3-0 final score.

The Surge are now firmly in second place in the conference, with three of their four remaining matches being played at home, including tilts against Sunshine contenders in first-place Miami (5-0-0 WPSL Sunshine) and Palm Beach.

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SOCCERPLUS CT 2, NEW ENGLAND MUTINY 3
By Mike Bogen of The Republican

AGAWAM, MA (06/27/09) - If by some stroke of good fortune, some cosmic reward for hard work and faith, the New England Mutiny (2-5-0 WPSL East) make the Women's Premier Soccer League playoffs, they'll be able to point to one tick of a clock Saturday night at Agawam High School as the moment that made it possible.

In that tick, the final tick before the official blew his whistle to end regulation - and almost certainly New England's playoff hopes - Megan Cunningham put in the rebound of a shot by Karen Gurnon to give the Mutiny a 3-2 victory over the SoccerPlus Connecticut Reds (2-5-1 WPSL East). It was a victory that ended an almost season-long four-game losing streak and kept the Mutiny's slim chance of making the playoffs alive.

Still, as stirring as this comeback victory was with New England trailing 2-1 with three minutes left, it did not change the tremendous task that lies ahead for the Mutiny, who must win their last four games to make the postseason.

"Our team understood what we wanted to do and we had our chances," New England coach Tony Horta said. "We made some subs, pushed Gurnon up from defense to midfield and you could see on their faces the pressure was on the Connecticut players."

Although the Mutiny thoroughly outplayed their foes, for the first 86 minutes all they got for their efforts was a 2-1 deficit. But, in the 87th minute, East Longmeadow's Jenny Maurer kicked a high, curving shot from 25 yards out that SoccerPlus keeper Caity Casey tipped as it hooked into the top left corner of the goal to tie it.

The Mutiny continued to apply pressure in the next three minutes, as lightning - which might have prevented this one from going into overtime - first threatened to appear and then lit the sky in the final minute. Gurnon started the game-winning sequence with a shot from 20 yards out that Casey tipped up to the crossbar. The ball fell at Cunningham's feet and Gurnon's University of Connecticut teammate kicked it in.

Becky Gundling snapped the Mutiny's 406-minute stretch without goal with a rocket from 25 yards out that touched under the crossbar and into goal. The Mutiny's effort was even more impressive in the face of very aggressive play by the Reds, particularly Leah Blayney and Jen Montgomery. The former decked several New England players from behind, while the latter basically littered the field with Mutiny bodies.

"I thought they were physical - that's how Connecticut always plays - but it's the refs job to control it and they did a bad job," Horta said.

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SALT LAKE CITY SPARTA 2, ARIZONA RUSH 1

WOODS CROSS, UT (06/26/09) - On the heels of two difficult losses to the Arizona Rush (5-3-0 WPSL Big Sky-North) on June 12th and 13th, Salt Lake City Sparta (4-2-1 WPSL Big Sky-North) welcomed the visitors for a third match on June 26th that ended in a 2-1 triumph for the home side. On the line for each team was first place in the Big Sky-North Division and the match proved to be an intense, physical game with each team determined to be the winner in order to continue to be in the running for the top standing.  

Sparta Women had to fight for their win as they played a man down for 84 minutes of the game and endured an extended delay during the first half due to a severe rain storm. The home side pulled together to earn the impressive victory against a worthy opponent.

Sparta came out blazing and scored each of their two goals within the first six minutes of the game. Molli Neilson cracked a shot towards goal off of a volley to bring Sparta to a 1-0 lead in the first minute of the game. A few minutes later, Kira Sharp out-maneuvered four Rush defenders to score Sparta's second goal.  

The Rush retaliated with a drive towards Sparta's goal in the 6th minute that ended in a red card for goalkeeper Emalee Rogers and a penalty kick for Arizona. Rush took position for the penalty kick and scored bringing the game to 2-1. Hailey Brown would take over at keeper position and Sparta re-grouped tactically to deal with a 10-woman playing field.    

As emotions started to run high - with Sparta resolute in keeping the ball and Rush continuing to step up their attack - lightning and rain rolled into the Salt Lake Valley and the match was paused in the 17th minute. Fortunately, the storm passed and after a 40-minute delay, play resumed until half-time with the score at 2-1.

In the second half, Rush came onto the field determined to change the tide of the game and committed more players forward to increase their pressure on Sparta. Nevertheless, the home side maintained their focus and was able to deflect and withstand Rush's efforts as well as continuing to drive forward.  

Rush received four yellow cards as the match played on. The lone Sparta striker Lauren Hair was constantly taken down with fouls, but took the hits, kept the Sparta attack dangerous and was able to keep the Rush defenders occupied. Wing defenders Rebecca Riddle and Linsey McFarland did an outstanding job of shutting down offensive attacks, winning the ball and making runs forward.

Brown, Lauren Bluth and Ashley Milliron - both center backs - were all exceptional in their defensive positions. In the 80th minute, when Rush was able to make three successive hits on goal, Bluth made two key saves in conjunction with Hailey that kept Sparta ahead in the game.

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ALL THE RESULTS...

WEDS., JUNE 24, 2009 - Away Team, Home Team (Conference-Division)
Millburn Magic 1, Long Island Fury 5 (East)

FRI., JUNE 26, 2009
Denver Diamonds 1, Boise Blitz FC 1 (Big Sky-North)
Arizona Rush 1, Salt Lake City Sparta 2 (Big Sky-North)
Tulsa Spirit 1, Oklahoma Alliance FC 1 (Big Sky-South)
Maine Tide 0, AC Diablos 1 (East)
FC Sacramento Pride 1, Seattle Synergy 2 (Pacific-North)

SAT., JUNE 27, 2009
Denver Diamonds 1, Boise Blitz FC 2 (Big Sky-North)
Arizona Rush 3, Utah Starzz 1 (Big Sky-North)
Fort Worth 1, Dallas Premier 1 (Big Sky-South)
Alamo SC San Antonio 2, Houston South Select 2 (Big Sky-South)
Central Delaware SA Future 0, Adirondack Lynx 3 (East)
Bay State Select 0, Boston Aztec 2 (East)
TSC Maryland Pride 1, Lancaster Inferno 1 (East)
AC Diablos 0, Long Island Fury 1 (East)
SoccerPlus Connecticut 2, New England Mutiny 3 (East)
Maine Tide 0, New York Athletic Club 4 (East)
FC Sacramento Pride 0, Portland Rain FC 4 (Pacific-North)
San Francisco Nighthawks 0, California Storm 1 (Pacific-North)
Claremont Stars 0, PSSCV - The Rooks 1 (Pacific-South)
Miami Kickers F.C. 6, Puerto Rico Capitals FC 2 (Sunshine)
Florida Surge 3, Palm Beach United 0 (Sunshine)
Clearwater Galactics Amazons 5, FC Thomasville Dragons 0 (Sunshine)

SUN., JUNE 28, 2009
Dallas Premier 3, Fort Worth 0 (Big Sky-South)
Philadelphia Liberty 0, Lancaster Inferno 1 (East)
Bay State Select 4, New York Athletic Club 2 (East)
Walnut Creek Power 0, Portland Rain FC 3 (Pacific-North)
Monterey Blues 0, California Storm 3 (Pacific-North)
San Diego WFC SeaLions 4, PSSCV - The Rooks 0 (Pacific-South)
Ajax America Women 2, SD United 1 (Pacific-South)
West Coast FC 1, Claremont Stars 1 (Pacific-South)
So Cal Rush 3, Los Angeles Rampage 6 (Pacific-South)
Palm Beach United 0, Clearwater Galactics Amazons 3 (Sunshine)

About the Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL): The WPSL is a 50-plus team national women's soccer league with five conferences and is considered one of the top amateur women's soccer leagues in the world. You can now keep up with our league on our social networking sites on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com) and LinkedIn (http://www.linkedin.com)!

The Long Island Fury have been selected to host the 2009 WPSL Final Four which will be held at Adelphi University (Garden City, NY) - alongside the Youth Premier Soccer League (YPSL) National Championship that same weekend. The tentative dates are scheduled for Saturday-Sunday, August 1-2 and check back to this website in the coming days & weeks for further information!

The WPSL's mission is to provide the highest level of women's soccer while simultaneously providing affordable, quality family entertainment and positive role models for our youth. For more information, visit our official website at http://www.wpsl.info, phone us at 1-800-854-0913 or contact us via email at media@wpslsoccer.com.