Westwood, Mass. (September 15, 2009) – The Boston Breakers announced this afternoon that former Breakers players Kelly Schmedes and Sue Weber have departed the team via the 2009 Women’s Professional Soccer Expansion Draft.  Both were selected by the Philadelphia Independence, who join the Atlanta Beat as the two expansion teams for the 2010 WPS season.  

Philadelphia selected Weber with the 7th overall pick in the first round of the expansion draft.  The 23-year-old defender was originally selected by the Breakers in the third round (18th overall) of the WPS General Draft on January 15, 2009.  The speedy center back helped anchor the Breakers’ defense, prior to ending her season early with knee surgery.  The Islip, New York native started in eight of the nine games she played for the Breakers.  Prior to joining the Breakers, the former Hofstra University star earned 2008 W-League Defender-of-the-Year and All-Star honors as a member of the Long Island Rough Riders. 

Schmedes was selected in the second round (13th overall) of the expansion draft by the Independence.  The Odessa, Texas native was selected as the 21st overall pick by the Breakers in the 2009 WPS General Draft on January 15, 2009.  The 26-year-old forward started in 10 of the 17 matches she played in.  Schmedes finished the season with 1 goal and 1 assist, notching the game winner at FC Gold Pride on July 19th, 2009.
 
In addition to Schmedes and Weber, the Philadelphia Independence also selected Lori Lindsey (2nd overall) and Sarah Senty (9th overall) from the Washington Freedom, Jen Buczkowski (3rd overall) from Sky Blue FC, and Nikki Krzysik (5th overall) and Danesha Adams (11th overall) from the Chicago Red Stars.

The Atlanta Beat selected Leigh-Ann Robinson from FC Gold Pride (1st overall), Amanda Cinalli (4th overall) and Sara Larsson (10th overall) from Saint Louis Athletica, Katie Larkin (6th overall) and Sharolta Nonen (8th overall) from the Los Angeles Sol, and Noelle Keselica (12th overall) from Sky Blue FC.

About the Boston Breakers:
The Boston Breakers are one of seven original franchises in Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS), which expands to nine teams for 2010. The Breakers opened play in April, 2009, and season tickets for 2010 are now on sale by calling 781-251-2100. For more information, visit www.bostonbreakers.com.

About Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS)
Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) is the premier women’s soccer league in the world and the global standard by which women’s professional sports are measured.  The Inaugural Season kicked off on March 29, 2009 with WPS teams based in the Bay Area, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New Jersey/New York, St. Louis, and Washington, D.C.  The league’s eighth and nine franchises, Philadelphia and Atlanta, will begin play in 2010. For more information, visit www.womensprosoccer.com.