ST. LOUIS (July 22, 2009) – Saint Louis Athletica had the better chances throughout a high energy 90 minute affair at The Anheuser-Busch Soccer Park on Wednesday night but it was Eniola Aluko’s unexpected 48th minute goal and Jillian Loyden’s second shutout performance of the year that provided and kept the margin of difference as Athletica defeated Sky Blue FC 1-0 in front of 3,726 spectators.

Athletica got on the board early in the second half when Aluko stole a ball while pressing a Sky Blue defender then calmly dribbled in, rounded goalkeeper Jenni Branam, and finished off her chance. The goal was her fifth of the season and gave Saint Louis a perfect start to the second half.

“I could see the defender playing around with the ball a bit and I knew she was a bit uncomfortable so I pressed her,” said Aluko. “Jorge Barcellos talked about how they would give up a ball if we pressed them. That’s what I did and it paid off.”

“Aluko was a forward who believed that the defender is always going to give up,” said Head Coach Jorge Barcellos. “If they believe this they will succeed and Aluko had that belief.”

The win propels Saint Louis back into second place in the WPS table. Athletica is two points clear of Boston who are idle this midweek and four points clear of Sky Blue FC who remain in fourth for the moment. The win also gave Athletica a perfect 3-0-0 mark over Sky Blue FC for the season.

The game was one that was full of quality scoring chances for both teams. Sky Blue managed 14 shots, Saint Louis 11. Sky Blue turned eight shots on goal and Athletica had five. Jillian Loyden posted seven saves for Athletica including crucial stops late and in stoppage time, Jenni Branam kept Sky Blue in the game with four stellar saves.

Athletica created chances all throughout the first half. Eniola Aluko forced Branam into a diving save in the 18th minute. Niki Cross did the same in the 31st. One minute later Amanda Cinalli nearly connected on a Lori Chalupny cross. Cinalli’s sliding attempt just missed meeting the ball. Cinalli nearly scored again in the 39th minute but put her shot over the bar. Natasha Kai nearly turned the tables on Saint Louis though with a 44th minute effort that was just over the bar.

Once Aluko put Athletica ahead in the second half Saint Louis had their chances to kill off the game but just couldn’t convert. It was Sky Blue’s FC Yael Averbuch though who nearly equalized with a 60th minute bomb that crashed off the cross bar. Eight minutes later Natasha Kai got in alone on goal against Loyden but Athletica’s keeper made a heart-stopping dive to take the ball off Kai’s foot and prevent a shot from even occurring. Loyden would prove up to the task again in the 88th minute as she dealt with an Averbuch header off a corner and again in stoppage time as she dove low to stop a Casey White chance.

“I feel so honored to play behind these defenders,” said Loyden afterwards. “I’m just glad we got the win. We can’t wait to put on another show for our home crowd.”

Loyden was at a loss to describe how she stopped White’s stoppage time effort but she did recount how she stopped Kai earlier.

“I used my left hand to defend Kai’s shot and I just got to it and was able to slap it and then keep it,” said Loyden.

The playoff picture for Athletica became much clearer following tonight’s game. Athletica reduced their magic points number to four to qualify for the playoffs. The win over Sky Blue means that it is now Sky Blue who can still post the 5th highest points total with 31. But since Sky Blue FC and Washington meet each other on the last weekend of the season neither team can post their maximum number of points. Meaning the fifth place team at the end of the season can now only reach a maximum of 29 points. Athletica, on 26 points, now just need four to clinch an automatic playoff berth.

The next Athletica home game(s) will be at The Anheuser-Busch Soccer Park on July 26 to face FC Gold Pride, August 1 against the Boston Breakers, and August 5 against the Chicago Red Stars before finishing up the regular season at FC Gold Pride in Santa Clara, California on August 9.

Saint Louis Athletica (8-6-2) vs. Sky Blue FC (6-7-4)
July 22, 2009 – The Anheuser-Busch Soccer Park

SCORING SUMMARY:
48 STL Eniola Aluko (5) – unassisted goal.

LINEUPS:
STL: Loyden; Weber, Larsson, Ellertson, McNeill; Fletcher, Chalupny, Woznuk, Cinalli (Stoia 71); Cross (Walsh 56), Aluko (Logterman 94+)

NJ: Branam; Schnur, Hooker (Sesselman 92+), Dowling, Buczkowski; Averbuch, McCallum, Sitch (Hanks 69), Rosana (Keselica 75); White, Kai

MISCONDUCT SUMMARY:
42 NJ Kai Yellow Card Unsporting Behavior

STATS SUMMARY:

	STL	NJ
Total Shots:	11	14
Shots on Goal:	5	8
Saves:	7	4
Fouls:	11	8
Corners:	7	6
Offsides:	3	0

Referee: Kari Seitz
Referee's Assistants: Kate Dziedzic; Michael Dutt
4th official: Mark Boyko
time of game: 1:49
attendance: 3,726
weather: 72 degrees, calm and cool