August 8, 2010 (West Chester, PA)--The Philadelphia Independence hosted the Boston Breakers tonight for the second time this season, playing to a 2-2 draw in Farrell Stadium.  Holmfridur Magnudottir scored twice for the Independence, while Boston’s Kelly Smith notched an assist and a goal for the Breakers.

Boston had the better of the possession in the opening minutes of the game, with an early chance by Lauren Cheney flying over the bar in the fourth minute.  Shortly after Cheney’s shot, the Independence settled in and began generating offensive chances. In the 14th minute, Seger nearly nailed home a goal from twelve yards out after a great connection by Lohman and Dimartino, but her shot was deflected wide for a corner. 

Boston got on the board first in the 25th minute when Kelly Smith carried the ball up the left side and found Lauren Cheney at the top of the box.  Cheney turned on her defender and nailed a shot from just outside the eighteen yard box, bending it inside the far post past a diving Karina LeBlanc to put Boston ahead 1-0.

Magnusdottir, who looked dangerous coming out of the back the entire match, took things into her own hands shortly after Boston scored, and in the 29th minute nailed a free kick from 25 yards past Boston keeper Alyssa Naeher. The shot deflected off the wall and the redirection sailed in for the Independence to equalize at 1-1.  Just two minutes later, Magnusdottir struck again, this time taking a pass from Seger, beating her defender on the dribble and nailing a shot far post.  This time, Magnusdottir hit the far post with such force it ricocheted off Naeher and into the net, giving Philly a 2-1 lead going into the half. 

Boston equalized early in the second half, with Kelly Smith notching her 10th goal of the season in the 51st minute.  Smith carried the ball from the right flank, cutting inside and ripping a left footed shot low past LeBlanc to make it 2-2.  Smith has been a driving force in Boston’s recent success and caused problems for the Independence defense tonight.

The Independence nearly pulled ahead again in the 55th minute when Lori Lindsey’s corner kick found Allison Falk’s head, but her shot skimmed wide of the far post.  Boston’s Jordan Angeli missed a golden opportunity in the 60th minute from six yards out, sending a slotted ball sailing wide of the opposite post.

Goalkeeper Karina LeBlanc came up with several dynamic saves, and in the 57th minute a Boston corner nearly resulted in a goal but LeBlanc made two reactive saves on point-blank shots to protect her net.  LeBlanc came up huge for Philadelphia again in the 64th minute with a kick save on an breakaway from Fabiana, who came on for Angeli in the second half.  Her stop in the 74th minute off a low Kelly Smith shot prevented Boston from taking the lead.

"I think we had the better of the chances in the second half" said Boston Head Coach Tony DiCicco.  "It’s a shame we didn’t get the game-winner, but we fought back from going a goal down and I’m proud of the performance tonight." 

Late in the game, the Independence looked like they might put another one in with Amy Rodriguez and Lianne Sanderson putting high pressure on the Breakers back line.  Rodriguez was tightly marked all game by Boston’s athletic defense, but showed her blazing speed in the 70th minute when she cut past Dieke in the corner to free herself up, but couldn’t get a strong shot off.  In the 89th minute, Lianne Sanderson sent a ball in behind the defense that nearly sprung Rodriguez, but Naeher was off her line and collected the ball.  Just seconds later, Sanderson almost reached a long pass from Caroline Seger, but again Naeher was there to scoop up the through ball.

"Overall I was pleased with our performance" said Independence Head Coach Paul Riley. "Frida [Magnusdottir] was fantastic and was dangerous coming out of the back. We missed that on Wednesday when she wasn’t in the game, and it proved crucial tonight."

With a final score of 2-2, the Independence and Breakers each earned a point and maintained their 2nd and 3rd place standings in Women’s Professional Soccer.  The Philadelphia Independence have another quick turnaround, playing again this Wednesday night in Chicago.  The next home match for the Independence is Sunday, August 15 when the team hosts the Atlanta Beat at John A. Farrell Stadium.  Kickoff is scheduled for 6pm.