The Chicago Force will have two regular-season games against the defending IWFL Champion Kansas City Tribe in 2010, and none against its long-time rival, the Detroit Demolition.
The eight-game regular-season opens April 3 with a home game against the Wisconsin Warriors at the Holmgren Athletic Complex, 3225 W. Foster. Game time is 3 p.m.
The Force will play at the Wisconsin Warriors April 17. The Warriors are the Tier 2 defending champions.
"We have an exciting and challenging schedule," said Force general manager/owner Linda Bache. "The two games against Kansas City will define our season. We both run a high-powered spread offense. Our entire offensive line is returning, which is huge for us. All five members of our offensive line were voted to the all-star team and jointly received the offensive MVP award last year. In addition, we return quarterback Sami Grisafe, and wide receivers Trish Harper, Albi Zhubi and Martha Dantuma."
The Force will play four home games, including the grudge match May 1 against the Tribethe team that knocked Chicago out of the 2009 playoffs. And May 22, the Force hosts the Pittsburgh Passion, a former champion and perennial contender.
The 2010 IWFL National Championship will be held July 24 in Austin, Texas.
"The Detroit Demolition are not on our schedule this year as [ Detroit ] changed ownership and will not be fielding a team in 2010," Bache said. "At this point, it's unclear whether they will be returning in 2011. After spanking them twice in 2008, our main rivalry shifted last year to Kansas City."
The Force held tryouts in late 2009 and more than 90 women participated, including 57 newcomers.
"We definitely could see 5 to 10 new players that we expect to contribute right away," Bache said, "and a number of other players showed great potential as well.
"There is a tremendous amount of opportunity at a variety of positions for incoming players. The coaches are looking to improve at certain positions and considering replacements at others. We have a lot of talented veterans returning, but they're going to have major competition for their positions.
"There was a lot of talent in general [ at the tryouts ] , with a higher level of athleticism than we've seen in previous years which has the coaches and management very excited."
Conditioning and injury prevention for all players starts Jan. 11 and rookie camps begin on Jan. 16. Formal team practice begins Jan. 30.
"We've been contacted by a number of interested athletes who found out about us after tryouts," Bache said. "Our policy is to take athletes whenever they become available. We'll have players joining in our workouts throughout the pre-season.
"If you missed tryouts and are interested in playing, contact us now. We'll assess your abilities, coach you up, and work you into the program."