Before I mull the Washington Freedom’s inaugural WPS match, I need put my college hoops hat on — you may or may not know that I where it during the winter — and direct you briefly to Cheers & Jeers, where we have an intimate look at Villanova’s Scottie Reynolds, a guy our staff followed closely in his high school days. Nothing like Reynolds vs. North Carolina’s Ty Lawson, another Washington-area guy, this weekend in the Final Four. Just imagine if UNC’s Marcus Ginyard and UConn’s Jerome Dyson were healthy — plenty of Beltway appeal at Ford Field, though not any local teams. As my one colleague noted, the discussion always seems to come back to Gary Williams’ recruiting. But I’ll try to avoid stepping into that maelstrom.
As for the Freedom, I enjoyed this game story about the Freedom’s 2-0 defeat. Briana Scurry should definitely be bitter about the first goal. The same sentiments for Abby Wambach when it comes to her two first-half chances, even though Karina LeBlanc’s save on the first one was stellar. Lori Lindsey’s volley off the post in the second half would’ve changed things had it gone in, but Los Angeles always looked more dangerous on the ball while Washington couldn’t seem to vary things beyond trying to find Wambach over the top. Defensively, Washington improved as the game progressed and held Marta in check for the most part. Sonia Bompastor was active, but she needed a little more help centrally (Ali Krieger loan from Frankfurt, anyone?). A tough start for Northern Virginia native Claire Zimmeck — I covered her senior season at W.T. Woodson — who started alongside Wambach only to get pulled before halftime in favor of Lisa De Vanna.
