Sky Blue FC vs. Boston Breakers: Preview

Sky Blue dominates the league with 19 points, but on Saturday their offense may suffer considering that their leading scorer Sophie Schmidt is unavailable due to her national team duties.

In a typical starting XI, Lisa De Vanna would be joined up top by Danesha Adams and Kelley O’Hara and supported from the midfield by Schmidt. However, without O’Hara instigating creative attacking plays down the flank, De Vanna may find it difficult to connect with only Adams, or with a replacement for O’Hara. In matches where O’Hara has played defense, De Vanna has struggled.

However, Katy Freels continues to impress from the midfield and has showed off an ability to create shots for herself. She will strengthen the offensive attacks down the center, where she will support De Vanna and probably find a few shooting opportunities of her own.

On the other end of the field, Boston is left without their playmaker Heather O’Reilly, but their midfield is deep enough that she may not be missed too much. They also have Katie Schoepfer and Kyah Simon, technical strikers that have great control of the ball and have contributed goals in recent weeks.

This week may be Boston’s opportunity to break Sky Blue’s four consecutive clean sheets. A contributing factor to Sky Blue’s winning streak is their impenetrable back line, which is led by captain Christie Rampone. As she is unavailable this week, with Rampone playing for the USWNT, Coco Goodson and Brittany Cameron will have to step up. Keep an eye on how well they communicate without their captain.

Sky Blue FC Injuries

In Doubt: Brittany Bock

National Team Duty: Sophie Schmidt, Kelley O’Hara, Christie Rampone, Jill Loyden

Boston Breakers Injuries

OUT: Bianca D’Agostino, Casey Short

In Doubt: Jo Dragotta

National Team Duty: Heather O’Reilly, Sydney Leroux, Rhian Wilkinson

Match Date/Time: Saturday June 1 2013 at 7:00 PM EST

Venue: Yurcak Field Stadium, Piscataway, NJ

Online: NWSLSoccer YouTube Channel