Saturday, June 16

New York Surf vs. Worcester Smiles

1:30 PM EDT – SUNY Maritime (Bronx, NY)

The New York Surf were only able to pick up one point out of a possible six last weekend and now are faced with a must-win situation if they want to think about seeing their season extend into the playoffs. Things got off to a good start last Saturday as in their road match against New England, they were able to climb out of a two-goal deficit in the second half to take away a point from the Mutiny, with getting goals from Melissa Menta and Furtuna Velaj. However they lost 2-0 to Rochester on their home field the next afternoon, which is why this match becomes vital for Christie Welsh’s team. After this weeks' match, they only have two contests left in the season with one of those coming against second place Connecticut on the road. So if the Surf want to think about being in the postseason, they must take all nine remaining points to net them 14 on the season and hope for a lot of help elsewhere.

Worcester currently sit last in the East Conference standings with three points (1-4-0) at their midway point of the season. And it doesn’t get any easier for the Smiles after this week as each of their remaining opponents are right the mix for a playoff spot. Anthony Cosky’s team hasn’t scored in over five halves of game action and have conceded six goals in the last two games. That lack of spark from the offense showed last week as the Smiles were pinned in defensively for nearly 90 minutes against NJFC, creating only a few chances going forward. Brittany Henderson did her part in net to keep the game within reach with 12 saves but it will take more than her keeping the ball out of the net in order for the Smiles to get a result this week.

Western New York Flash vs. New Jersey Copa FC

6:00 PM EDT – D’Youville College (Buffalo, NY)

Western New York haven’t had that much time to gel on the field so far in 2018 as of their matches so far in five weeks of league play, they have played a pair of matches against Long Island and earned a forfeit win back in Week II over New York due to a venue conflict issue. Now in the final five weeks of the season, Matt Waddington will have to guide his team through seven matches and a pair of double-match weekends. He will be happy with the start that Carissima Cutrona has had to the season as she’s scored three goals over the two matches played and saw his team get off to a fast start against Long Island in Week IV, scoring inside of two minutes and creating a few dangerous chances shortly after. They will certainly want to emulate that start against a dangerous New Jersey Copa FC team while lowering their goal concession total from five in that loss to Long Island a couple weeks ago.

For the second straight season NJCFC will make the trip up to visit the Western New York Flash and will hope to use their successful experience that they had in 2017 to help them out this year. New Jersey posted a 3-1 victory last year in that match, which was played over in Lewiston, NY at Niagara University, and Jeanine Nunez scored two goals inside the final 15 minutes to seal the three points for the visitors. NJCFC are coming off of a dominant performance against Worcester as they won 2-0 and never allowed their opponents to get into the match. Week VI is an important six-point weekend for the Garden State outfit as after their match against the Flash, they will trek to Rochester to take on the East Conference leading Rochester Lady Lancers in what could be a make-or-break match for both teams.

Inferno Rush vs. New England Mutiny

7:00 PM EDT – Millersville University (Millersville, PA)

Inferno Rush responded beautifully after falling to the Connecticut Fusion in Week IV by returning the favor with a 1-0 victory last week in their home opener. Kelly O’Brien posted a ten-save shutout over the Fusion, which earned her the Week V UWS Defensive Player of the Week award. On the attacking side, the traditionally goal-hungry Tesa McKibben showed she can also play the facilitator as well and set up the 5th minute winner for Haley Crawford. Now, before they begin a home-and-home series against their local rival New Jersey Copa FC, Francisco Cleaves’ team must get past New England, a team that his side have had mixed results against in previous seasons as they lost to the Mutiny in their opener last season on the road but split the head-to-head matchup in 2016, with the visiting side winning each match.

This match doubles as serious gut-check time for New England, as it has not been an easy season for the traditionally strong Mutiny. Despite sitting in third place, a pair of draws and a loss to last place Worcester stand between them and what could have been the top-spot in the East Conference standings. What has troubled this team in 2018 is holding onto leads in the second half, as in both of the Mutiny’s draws (2-2 to Rochester on May 19 and 2-2 last Saturday to New York), New England were ahead inside the final 25 minutes before giving up late equalizers. However, perhaps we could see a different looking Mutiny team with their backs against the wall knowing that anything less than three points per match could see them miss out on the East Conference Championship Game, which pits the top-two sides against each other right before the UWS Championship weekend. 

Connecticut Fusion vs. Long Island Rough Riders

7:00 PM EDT – Farmington Sports Arena (Farmington, CT)

Connecticut’s three-match winning streak came to a skidding halt last Saturday against Inferno Rush, along with being shut out for the first time in franchise history. This begins a two-match homestand for the Fusion before playing their final three games away from the Farmington Sports Arena and the hosts will have to hold serve at home if they want to stay in the top-two spots in the East. Fortunately for them, this is a team that loves scoring at home as they’ve netted eight goals in three contests so far this year. Tori Sousa and Hayley Nolan continue to lead the way as the dynamic duo have combined for seven of the 12 goals scored by the Fusion and despite neither hitting the back of the net last week, they both had their chances. And there’s little doubt in this weeks’ match that they will be looking to right the wrong against the Rough Riders.

A stretch of four-matches in eight days came to an end last Saturday for Karim Diallo’s team and by going 2-1-1, the defending East Conference Champions have put themselves back in position to return to the postseason this year. However, a 2-1 loss at home to Rochester last week will have slightly dampened their spirits as if they were able to muster a point, there would be a four-team log jam at the top of the table, all separated by just a point. But you can’t play the “what if” game at this point of the season and only focus on what is next on the table. The Rough Riders are getting goals from a lot of different sources this year, with 10 goals coming from seven different strikers during that four-game stretch. If they can continue to create threatening looks for that many players, there’s no reason why they can’t overpower a stingy Connecticut defense and leave the Nutmeg State with three points.

Sunday, June 17

Rochester Lady Lancers vs. New Jersey Copa FC

2:00 PM PDT – Marina Auto Stadium (Rochester, NY)

New Jersey will travel overnight from Buffalo to Rochester to take on the Lady Lancers on Sunday afternoon. With New Jersey looking to complete their road trip by taking six points back to the Garden State, they run into a very hot Rochester team who took six points in their Long Island/New York City swing in Week V. The Lady Lancers are unbeaten in their last three matches and are in a great position right now within the East Conference with 11 points (3-1-2) through six matches. The one oddity of Sal Galvano’s side this year is that they have become a Road Warrior type squad, as they've taken ten of their 11 points away from home. But so far at the expansive Marina Auto Stadium, they’ve lost 4-0 to Connecticut and drew 1-1 with Long Island. So with the team starting a three-match homestand this week, they will need to make their home venue a bit more friendlier to them. But, when you boost two of the leagues’ leading scorers with six-goal outputs coming from each Brooke Barbuto and Elin Eklund, it’s only a matter of time before the ball is going to fly into the back of the net at home.

About United Women's Soccer:

UWS is a national women’s soccer league sanctioned by U.S. Soccer. UWS is a professionally operated league created for teams that meet high minimum standards. The season runs from May until the end of July, culminating in a National Championship match. The UWS player pool is comprised of college players, aspiring & former professionals and international stars. You can follow UWS on social media on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Media can contact the UWS Communications office by e-mail at UWSPress@gmail.com. You can visit the league’s official website at UWSSoccer.com. Interested team applicants can contact League Commissioner Joe Ferrara, Jr. by e-mail at Joe@UWSSoccer.com.