July 26, 2005 W-League playoff preview Toronto Lady Lynx vs Vermont Lady Lynx (from vermontvoltage.com)
VER: Voltage off to Toronto Wednesday
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Vermont Voltage News Release - www.vermontvoltage.com
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
ST ALBANS, VT -- The Vermont Lady Voltage wrapped up a successful regular season Sunday with a 1-0 win over the Rochester Ravens. The Lady Voltage was excited to end their home season with a win, but are now focusing on the playoffs and beating one of the best teams in the highly competitive W-League. The Lady Voltage will travel to the Toronto Lady Lynx this Wednesday, July 27th for the Northern Division playoff game. The match begins at 7:00 p.m. at Centennial Park Stadium.
Wednesday’s playoff game will be the fourth meeting between the Lady Voltage and Lady Lynx this season. They have already played twice in Toronto and once in Vermont with the Lady Lynx besting the Voltage on all three occasions. Despite the losses, the Lady Voltage has given the Lady Lynx a great run in all three games. The first game between the teams was only the second game of the season for the Lady Voltage, and they forced that game into double overtime before the Lady Lynx won 3-1. When the Lady Voltage and Lady Lynx met in Vermont, the 3-0 win for the Lynx did not reflect how the Lady Voltage had played. The Lady Voltage had 18 shots on the Lynx goal, but just could not find the back of the net. They controlled the majority of the possession throughout the game and put a great deal of pressure on the Lynx. Since the beginning of the season, the Lady Voltage has greatly improved their level of play and their ability to dominate possession throughout the game. The Lady Voltage has not lost a match since their July 2nd game against the Lady Lynx.
Coach Jamie Hutchins knows his team can play great defensively, but in order to beat the Lady Lynx they will have to capitalize on all their scoring chances.
Kristin Luckenbill, top Lady Voltage goalkeeper, will return for Wednesday’s match after missing the last two Lady Voltage contests. She has been in California for the past week with the US National Team.
No matter the outcome of Wednesday’s game the Lady Voltage can count their first season as a great success. The Lady Voltage ended the regular season with a 7-7-0 league record and 21 points in the Northern Division of the W-League. They finished third of five teams in the division. The Toronto Lady Lynx finished in second place in the Northern Division with 33 points and a record of 11-3-0. The Ottawa Fury is the top team in the Northern Division with 39 points and a 13-1-0 record. The Ottawa Fury, who will host the Eastern Conference Championships this weekend, is the number one seed in the conference. Eastern Conference games will be held Saturday, July 30th and Sunday, July 31st. The winner of the Northern Division playoff game, and the two top teams out of the Northeast Division playoffs will advance to this weekend’s games in Ottawa.
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