August 4, 2010 (Boyds, MD)--The Philadelphia Independence traveled to Washington tonight to face the Freedom, encountering tremendous thunderstorms and falling 2-0 on the road. Washington forward Abby Wambach scored both goals to help lift the Freedom to victory.
The Independence and Freedom managed to compete for 31 minutes before lightning struck and caused the referees to delay the game until it was safe to return to the field. At the weather break, the score remained 0-0 thanks to the goalkeeping efforts of Independence netminder Val Henderson.
In the 14th minute, Sonja Bompastor’s corner kick fell to the feet of Homare Sawa who nailed a shot from close range, but a quick reaction save by Henderson thwarted Sawa’s effort. Just three minutes later, the Independence called on Henderson again when Lene Mykjaland was fouled in the box and forward Abby Wambach stepped up to take a penalty kick. Henderson guessed correctly on Wambach’s low shot, diving and saving the PK to keep the score at 0-0.
The weather forced a 45 minute delay in play, but when the teams returned to the field, the Freedom resumed their momentum from before the break. Henderson made another athletic save in the 38th minute, tipping the ball wide for a corner kick. In the 39th minute, Abby Wambach reclaimed her missed chance from earlier in the match, scoring a header off Bompastor’s corner kick to make it 1-0 for the Freedom.
Two minutes later, Wambach struck again, scoring yet another headed goal to increase the Freedom lead to two. Cat Whitehill struck a free kick from just inside the half-way line and Wambach managed to flick the ball on, hitting the inside of the far post and rolling into the net.
The second half began with the Freedom ahead 2-0, and although the Independence came out with additional fire in the second half, they were still unable to find the rhythm that has lifted them to victory in their past two matches.
Second half substitutes Tina Dimartino, Danesha Adams, and Lyndsey Patterson added offensive spark to the Independence front line. Dimartino entered the game in the 53rd minute and made an immediate impact, beating her defender on the left side and slotting the ball across for Lohman, who sent her shot over the bar. Adams had a similar impact, entering the game in the 67th minute and stripping her defender in the corner immediately to create an offensive opportunity for Philadelphia.
The best chance of the second half for either team came in the 78th minute when the Independence strung several passes together in the center of the park and found an unmarked Amy Rodriguez on the left side of the 18 yard box, but her shot sailed over the crossbar. Rodriguez, who has scored 11 goals this season for Philadelphia, was vigilantly marked by the Freedom defense and had minimal chances on goal tonight.
Patterson nearly put the Independence on the board in the 90th minute, heading a cross over goal just before the final whistle. The Freedom protected a 2-0 lead until the end of the match and broke a 10-game winless streak with tonight’s victory.
The Independence play again this Sunday against the Boston Breakers, the third place team just two points behind Philadelphia in the WPS standings. Kickoff is scheduled for 8pm at West Chester University’s John A. Farrell Stadium.