Dominant Red Stars offense posts 9-0 win over Minnesota Kings in WPSL play at Benedictine
LISLE, Ill. (July 10, 2011) -- The Chicago Red Stars posted their most dominant offensive performance of the season, defeating Minnesota Kings FC, 9-0, on Sunday to clinch the Midwest-North Division title in Women's Premier Soccer League play at the Village of Lisle-Benedictine University Sports Complex.
Amanda Cinalli (Cleveland, Ohio) and Shayla Mutz (Homer Glen, Ill.) each netted two goals to lead the way for the Red Stars, who earned the division's top seed ahead of FC Milwaukee Nationals.
The top two seeds of the Midwest-North and Midwest-South advance to the postseason. With the Red Stars (8-1-0, 24 points) winning the Midwest-North, top-seeded Chicago currently is set to face FC Indiana if the standings hold. FC Milwaukee Nationals has clinched the No. 2 seed in the Midwest-North and would face Ohio Premier Women's SC if the current standings hold. Postseason details are forthcoming.
The Red Stars avenged a season-opening 1-0 loss to Minnesota on June 1. That match has been Chicago's lone blemish to date as the Red Stars have posted eight straight victories since.
The Red Stars wrap up their regular-season schedule when they host Eclipse Select on Tuesday for a Red Stars Supporters Club-only match.
On Sunday, the Red Stars immediately struck in the 1st minute with a Carly Samp (Barrington, Ill.) header to give Chicago an early 1-0 lead. The goal came shortly after a Michele Weissenhofer (Naperville, Ill.) flip throw-in. The ball bounced around in the middle of the box and Samp was there to clean up and head the ball past Kings goalkeeper Kirsten Knutson.
Chicago then rattled off three more goals in about a 6-minute span. Julie Ewing (Batavia, Ill.) scored in the 19th minute off of a Weissenhofer assist. In the 22nd minute, Vanessa DiBernardo (Naperville, Ill.) netted a goal off of a Kara Kabellis (Lockport, Ill.) assist. Then in the 25th, Cinalli got into the scoring act with an unassisted goal to push the Red Stars' lead to 4-0.
Cinalli notched her second goal in the 36th minute with a backwards header off of a Kecia Morway (Lake Villa, Ill.) assist to push Chicago's lead to 5-0 going into halftime.
The second half was much of the same for the Red Stars as Kabellis and Mutz tallied goals in the 55th and 56th minutes, respectively, to push Chicago's lead to 7-0. Weissenhofer took the corner kick in setting up Kabellis' goal. Mutz took advantage of a defensive mishap for the unassisted score.
Mutz netted her second goal in the 73rd minute as Knutson was pushed far up from her line in the net, earning an 8-0 advantage. Then in the 75th, the Red Stars' recent newcomers generated a goal as Vanessa Laxgang (Arlington Heights, Ill.) headed the ball into the net, capitalizing on a Katie Uyenishi (Hawthorn Woods, Ill.) assist to take a 9-0 lead.
Minnesota had an incredibly difficult task on Sunday, having to compete with 11 players and no available substitutions. Knutson made 13 saves for Minnesota, while Red Stars goalkeeper Jamie Forbes (St. Charles, Ill.) had to make only one save for the clean sheet.
The Kings wrap up their season with a 3-6-1 record and 10 points.
Minnesota Kings FC (3-6-1, 10 points) at Chicago Red Stars (8-1-0, 24 points)
Village of Lisle-Benedictine University Sports Complex, Lisle, Ill.
CHICAGO RED STARS 9, MINNESOTA KINGS 0
Minnesota 0 0 - 0
Chicago 5 4 - 9
SCORING SUMMARY
1. CHI, Carly Samp (Michele Weissenhofer), 1st min; 2. CHI, Julie Ewing (Michele Weissenhofer), 19th min.; 3. CHI, Vanessa DiBernardo (Kara Kabellis), 22nd min.; 4. CHI, Amanda Cinalli (unassisted), 25th min.; 5. CHI, Amanda Cinalli (Kecia Morway), 36th min.; 6. CHI, Kara Kabellis (Michele Weissenhofer), 55th min.; 7. CHI, Shayla Mutz (unassisted), 56th min.; 8. CHI, Shayla Mutz (unassisted), 73rd min.; 9. CHI, Vanessa Laxgang (Katie Uyenishi), 75th min.
Minnesota starters: Kirsten Knutson (GK), Alex Pafko (capt.), Courtney Gamrath, Kindra Fairburn, Alex Bachman-Williams, Kate Fox, Josie Solie, Hannah Schafer, Becca Kramer, Emmy Johnson, Katie Roberts Carlson.
Chicago starters: Jamie Forbes (GK), Elise Weber (capt.), Carly Samp, Kara Kabellis, Amanda Cinalli, Julie Ewing, Sammy Scofield, Michele Weissenhofer, Kecia Morway, Jackie Santacaterina, Vanessa DiBernardo.
STATISTICS:
Shots: Chicago 38, Minnesota 1
Shots on goal: Chicago 19, Minnesota 1
Saves: Chicago (Jamie Forbes) 1; Minnesota (Kirsten Knutson) 13
Corner kicks: Chicago 12, Minnesota 1
* * *
About the Chicago Red Stars:
The Chicago Red Stars are playing in their first season in the Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL) after spending the 2009 and 2010 seasons in Women's Professional Soccer (WPS). The Red Stars play their public home games at the Village of Lisle-Benedictine University Sports Complex in west suburban Lisle, Ill. The Red Stars have qualified for the WPSL Playoffs, and dates, times and locations will be announced in the coming days. For more information about the Red Stars, visit www.ChicagoRedStars.com .
