U18 WNT dismantles UC Irvine women 4-1

U18 WNT dismantles UC Irvine women 4-1
April 13, 2010

The U18 Women’s National team was in action Monday night, playing the first of three scrimmages to kick off their week-long training camp at the Home Depot Center in Carson, CA.

They beat the women of UC Irvine 4-1 in a match that saw the quicker U.S. Women overcome the veteran poise and physicality of the Anteaters.

U.S. Head Coach Dave Chesler said his team’s ability to attack with pace along the wing made the difference in this game.

“I thought our wide players in parts of the first half were really dominant,” he said. “They moved the ball well, and had some very simple concise penetration down the wings that resulted in a couple of goals. I thought they played very well in that respect.”

Wing midfielders and defenders Mollie Pathman, Meagan Morris and Torri Allen were athletic two-way players in this game who knew exactly when to attack and retreat. Morris, in particular, was dynamic and extremely quick coming out the back, and caused Irvine constant matchup problems.

elite girls club soccer playersUC Irvine was no match for the U18 WNT on Monday.
Center backs Courtney Smith and Dominique Richardson were steady and stout in the back and distributed the ball well to initiate the attack. But if they had been more vocal, they might have prevented the communication breakdown that led to Irvine’s only goal.

Lindsay Elston was calm and fluid in the central midfield and displayed good vision in her distribution. Her center field mate Natasha Anasi was physical and hard-nosed, repeatedly making booming tackles to win possession. Together they were solid, but might have pushed the ball forward more aggressively.

Courtney Proctor displayed great size and the ability to match the physicality of the more mature Irvine defenders. She also displayed excellent technique and good attacking instincts.

Forward Chioma Ubogagu showed off blazing speed but also a tendency to lose the ball in traffic. She could also have been more physical; but she is a dynamic threat on offense and scored team U.S.A.’s fourth goal on a nice dart into the box.

Juliann Jeffrey was strong, tackled well, and looked like the U.S.’s best attacking option out of the central midfield. She was shifty and productive distributing the ball around the field.   

Arin Gilliland was effective crashing the box from the midfield and showed good pop on her shots on goal.

Midfielder Alexandria Crown was calm on the ball and composed under pressure, and showed good patience distributing the ball.

Goalkeeper Anna Sieloff had some trouble distributing the ball safely out of her box, but she also made several nice saves to cap a solid all-around effort.

Katie Stengel was the star of the day. She showed great hustle, technique, suddenness and the ability to turn defenders around and shoot with a quick release. She won back a number of balls in her team’s offensive third, and scored two very impressive goals.

The U18s will continue training camp Tuesday and are back in action Wednesday, when they face the U20 Women, who are training concurrently at the Home Depot Center.

It promises to be a competitive matchup that will bring out the best in both teams, and we expect a scoreline much tighter than today's.

See you on the field.  


Starting Lineup by Position:
 

GOALKEEPER: Anna Sieloff (Vardar; Troy, Mich.)
DEFENDERS (4): Torri Allen (McClean Dragons; Stafford, Va.), Dominique Richardson (Legends FC; Fullerton, Calif.), Courtney Smith (Dallas Texans; Plano, Texas), Mollie Pathman (Triangle FC; Durham, N.C.) 
MIDFIELDERS (3): Natasha Anasi (Dallas Texans; Arlington, Texas), Lindsay Elston (Crossfire Premier; Sammamish, Wash.), Amanda Laddish (Blue Valley Stars; Lee’s Summit, Mo.)
FORWARDS (3): Michelle Cruz (Real So Cal; Thousand Oaks, Calif.), Katie Stengel (Space Coast United; West Melbourne, Fla.), Chioma Ubogagu (D’Feeters; Coppell, Texas)

Substitutes by Position:

GOALKEEPERS (4): Britt Eckerstrom (FC Frederick; Boyds, Md.), Bryane Heaberlin (Clearwater Chargers; St. Petersburg, Fla.), Megan Kufeld (Mustang Soccer; Fremont, Calif.), Abigail Steele (Mustang Soccer; Santa Rosa, Calif.)
DEFENDERS (4): Arin Gilliland (Ohio Elite; Wilmore, KY), Vanessa Laxgang (Eclipse; Arlington Heights, Ill.), Riliegh McHugh (Hershey Attack SC; Hummelstown, PA), Samantha Scofield (Eclipse; Geneva, Ill.)
MIDFIELDERS (3): Alexandria Crown (Florida Rush; Orlando, Fla.) Juliann Jeffrey (Dallas Texans; Richardson, Texas), Meagan Morris (Montclair Aristocats; Montclair, N.J.)
FORWARDS (2): Kealia Ohai (Utah Avalanche; Draper, Utah), Courtney Proctor (Slammers; Santa Clarita, Calif.)  

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