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Force opens season tonight at home
Last season, the Colorado Force finished fourth in the W-League’s Western Conference, with a record of 3-6-3. The team turned in strong performances against the top teams in the conference and was in contention for the playoffs until the final two games of the season.
Coach Craig Deacon said he hopes to draw confidence from that.
“We performed well, but we lack lacked the depth to keep the squad strong in the latter part of the season,” Deacon said. “Our goals for this season are to finish with a winning record in the regular season and to make the postseason.”
Deacon is in his fifth season with the Force, and 2009 marks the team’s second consecutive season under the lights at the Loveland Sports Park. Other familiar faces will be returning as well, including midfielder-forward Nikki Marshall, who led the U.S. women’s national team to a U-20 World Cup championship in November. The Force returns starters at 10 positions, and all 13 players who are coming back for 2009 started at some point last year.
Starting in place of 2008 leading goal scorer Katie Eriksson, who won’t play because of injury, will be Shay Powell, the University of Nebraska’s leading scorer last fall and a member of the W-League’s Ottawa Fury in 2008. Powell was also named to the W-League national team.
Under the W-League’s playoff format this season, the top two finishers in the Western Conference will advance. So who will the Force need to challenge to reach the postseason?
Last year’s Western Conference produced the league champion Pali Blues, from Pacific Palisades, Calif., and the Blues are once again expected to be contenders in the West. Pali was the only team to beat Real Colorado last week in the Cougars’ three-game swing through Southern California.
Vancouver and Seattle also are expected to put together strong squads. Seattle has reached the semifinals of the W-League playoffs in each of the past three seasons.
“But the inaugural season of (Women’s Professional Soccer) tapped some of the elite players from the W-League, so it’s hard to say with certainty,” Deacon said. “I also expect that we’ll be in that mix of top teams.”
Early in the formation of WPS, the W-League has acted as a feeder pool for the top-flight league. So it’s difficult to handicap the race at this point, and this early in the season it can be difficult to assess just who will be lining up for the opposition.
But despite those question marks, the Force has today’s date circled on its calendar: Seattle will be visiting Loveland in the Force’s season opener.
Seattle will bring a mixture of veterans and newcomers, Sounders coach Teddy Mitalas said. In its opener, Seattle tied Vancouver 1-1 tie on the road on May 16. The Sounders used five players who had never traveled with the team, Mitalas said.
That inexperience might be felt during Seattle’s two-match trip to Colorado (Seattle also plays Real Colorado on Friday night in Highlands Ranch). Mitalas said several players will stay home for college and high school graduation ceremonies. In their place, the Sounders have brought in a handful of new players who have been practicing with the team in the past week. Two key players who will miss the trip are defender Kathleen Deines and forward Veronica Perez.
Seattle goalkeeper Katie Hultin is a former star at Denver’s Thomas Jefferson High School. She will miss Wednesday’s match against the Force because of work obligations but is expected to play Friday against Real Colorado.
Other dates of note include the Pali Blues on June 14 and an exhibition against the Sky Blue of WPS on June 24 at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.
NATS NOTE: Two Force players, Marshall and defender Carly Peetz, have been invited to the pool of potential players for U.S. Women’s U-23 National Team.
CORNHUSKERS IN THE HOUSE: Tonight’s match will be a very Husker affair. Each side features three players from the University of Nebraska: Peetz, Powell and Molly Thomas for the Force and defender Blair Slapper and midfielders Jaclyn White and Alexis Cardona for Seattle.
MILITARY TRIBUTE: The Force will recognize all people in uniform with “Honor Our Service Men and Women Night,” featuring a halftime ceremony. All service men and women can attend the match for free.
GETTING THERE: The game starts at 7 p.m. The Loveland Sports Park is at 950 N. Boyd Lake Ave. From Denver, go north on Interstate 25, then head west on U.S. Highway 34 (take the Loveland exit). After about one mile, turn south on Boyd Lake Road. Continue south about one-eighth of a mile to the Loveland Sports Park. The sports park is on the left, and the championship field is on the east side of the park. Tickets, available at the game, cost $5 for kids and $7 for adults.
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