2015 USL W-League season
W-League season
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 2015 W-League season was the 21st and last season of the league's existence, and 12th season of second division women's soccer in the United States. The regular season started on May 16 and ended on July 18.[2][3]
| Season | 2015 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Washington Spirit Reserves (1st Title) |
| Regular Season title | Seattle Sounders Women (1st Title) |
| Matches | 108 |
| Goals | 447 (4.14 per match) |
| Best Player | Tara Andrews Colorado Pride |
| Top goalscorer | Tara Andrews Colorado Pride (18 Goals) |
| Best goalkeeper | Britt Eckerstrom Colorado Pride |
| Biggest home win | WAS 7, BRSE 0 (June 6) COP 7, COS 0 (June 9) COR 7, COS 0 (June 13) SCB 7, ARI 0 (July 3) |
| Biggest away win | COR 12, ARI 0 (May 28) |
| Highest scoring | COR 12, ARI 0 (May 28) |
| Highest attendance | 787 COP vs. SEA (July 3) |
| Lowest attendance | 35 NJV vs. NYM (June 20) COR vs. SCB (July 9) |
| Average attendance | 196 (79 of 108 games reported) [1] |
← 2014 | |
Changes from 2014 season
Teams leaving
Seven teams folded or self-relegated following the 2014 season:
- Bay Area Breeze - San Francisco, California
- Gulf Coast Texans - Pensacola, Florida
- K-W United FC - Waterloo, Ontario
- London Gryphons - London, Ontario
- Los Angeles Blues - Los Angeles, California
- Ottawa Fury Women - Ottawa, Ontario
- Toronto Lady Lynx - Toronto, Ontario
Name changes
One team changed its name in the off-season:
| Team name | Metro area | Previous Name |
|---|---|---|
 Arizona Strikers FC |
Yuma, Arizona | Sedona FC Strikers |
Standings
Northeastern Conference
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Laval Comets | 12 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 32 | 11 | +21 | 28 | 2015 Championship Host |
| 2 | Quebec Dynamo ARSQ | 12 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 22 | 12 | +10 | 26 | 2015 Playoff Team |
| 3 | Long Island Rough Riders | 12 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 24 | 15 | +9 | 20 | |
| 4 | North Jersey Valkyries | 12 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 19 | 28 | −9 | 10 | |
| 5 | New Jersey Wildcats | 12 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 13 | 30 | −17 | 10 | |
| 6 | New York Magic | 12 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 16 | 30 | −14 | 5 |
Southeastern Conference
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington Spirit Reserves | 12 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 38 | 11 | +27 | 30 | 2015 W-League Champion |
| 2 | Charlotte Lady Eagles | 12 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 40 | 16 | +24 | 29 | |
| 3 | Dayton Dutch Lions WFC | 12 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 25 | 22 | +3 | 22 | |
| 4 | Atlanta Silverbacks Women | 12 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 23 | 33 | −10 | 12 | |
| 5 | Carolina Elite Cobras | 12 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 23 | −12 | 6 | |
| 6 | Braddock Road Stars Elite | 12 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 5 | 37 | −32 | 0 |
Western Conference
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seattle Sounders Women | 12 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 44 | 11 | +33 | 31 | 2015 Division Title |
| 2 | Colorado Pride | 12 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 58 | 7 | +51 | 28 | 2015 Playoff Team |
| 3 | Colorado Rush | 12 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 34 | 15 | +19 | 25 | |
| 4 | Santa Clarita Blue Heat | 12 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 28 | 17 | +11 | 16 | |
| 5 | Colorado Storm | 12 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 6 | 60 | −54 | 3 | |
| 6 | Arizona Strikers FC | 12 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 9 | 69 | −60 | 0 |
Playoffs
The Laval Comets were selected as host for the W-League Championship and gained an automatic berth in the National Semi-Finals. The top regular-season finisher in the Northeastern Conference (other than Laval) and the Southeastern Conference also qualified. The top two finishers in the Western Conference will meet on July 18 for a berth in the Championship.[5]
Western Conference Playoff
 Seattle Sounders Women | 1–2 |  Colorado Pride |
|---|---|---|
Diaz  77'Clark  84' |
Report | Andrews 4', 17' |
W-League Championship
Semi-finals
 Washington Spirit Reserves | 1–0 |  Quebec Dynamo ARSQ |
|---|---|---|
| Aedo 39' Stobbs 68' |
Report | Vandal 39'  76'Gauthier 45+' |
| Laval Comets | 0–4 | Colorado Pride |
|---|---|---|
| Charron-Delage 63' |
Report | Jerman 31' Watt 42'Andrews 45+'O'breham 57' (o.g.) |
Third Place Playoff
| Laval Comets | 2–0 | Quebec Dynamo ARSQ |
|---|---|---|
| Maranda 4' Laverdiere 76'Busque 90+' |
Report | Levasseur 13' |
Championship
| Washington Spirit Reserves | 2–1 | Colorado Pride |
|---|---|---|
| Aedo 26', 89' |
Report Report |
Andrews 15' Watt 70' |
| Semi-Finals | Championship | ||||||||
| 1 | Washington Spirit Reserves | 1 | |||||||
| 4 | Quebec Dynamo ARSQ | 0 | |||||||
| 1 | Washington Spirit Reserves | 2 | |||||||
| 2 | Colorado Pride | 1 | |||||||
| 2 | Colorado Pride | 4 | |||||||
| 3 | Laval Comets | 0 | |||||||
Statistical leaders
Top scorers
| Rank | Player | Nation | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tara Andrews |  AUS |
Colorado Pride | 18 |
| 2 | Leah Fortune |  USA |
Charlotte Lady Eagles | 12 |
| 3 | Shan Jones |  ENG |
Long Island Rough Riders | 11 |
| Sara Sanau Ruiz |  SPA |
New York Magic | ||
| 5 | Danica Evans | USA |
Colorado Rush | 10 |
| Kasandra Massey | USA |
Santa Clarita Blue Heat | ||
| 7 | Melissa Fernandez | USA |
Santa Clarita Blue Heat | 9 |
| Danielle Schulmann | USA |
North Jersey Valkyries | ||
| 9 | Kayla Adamek |  CAN |
Laval Comets | 8 |
| Celeste Boureille | USA |
Colorado Rush | ||
| Imani Dorsey | USA |
Washington Spirit Reserves | ||
| Megan Dougherty-Howard | USA |
Washington Spirit Reserves | ||
Source:[6]
Awards
- Most Valuable Player: Tara Andrews (PRI)
- Rookie of the Year: Imani Dorsey (WAS)
- Defender of the Year: Amanda Naeher (CHE)
- Coach of the Year: Marc Mounicot (QUE)
- Goalkeeper of the Year: Britt Eckerstrom (PRI)
- Playoff MVP: Yanara Aedo (WAS)
All-League and All-Conference Teams
Northeastern Conference
F: Shan Jones (LIR)*, Sara Sanau-Ruiz (NYM), Danielle Schulmann (NJV)
M: Kayla Adamek (LAV)*, Serina Kashimoto (NYM), Casie Ludemann (LIR)
D: Sue Alber-Weber (LIR)*, Catherine Chukuka (NJV), Marie-Sandra Ujeneza (QUE), Kelsey Wilson (LAV)*
G: Rachelle Beanlands (LAV)
Southeastern Conference
F: Leah Fortune (CHE)*, Imani Dorsey (WAS), Ode Fulutudilu (DDL)
M: Alex Brandt (CHE), Megan Dougherty-Howard (WAS)*, Annie Speese (CHE)
D: Savannah McCaskill (CAR) *, Amanda Naeher (CHE)*, Carson Pickett (WAS), Kaleigh Riehl (BRSE)
G: Robyn Horner-Jones (CHE)
Western Conference
F: Tara Andrews (PRI)*, Celeste Boureille (COR), Kasandra Massey (SCB)
M: Kelly Fitzgerald (COR), Rose Lavelle (SEA)*, Abby Rolph (COS)
D: Sophie Howard (PRI), Morgan Kennedy (COR), Chloe McDaniel (SCB), Kinley McNicoll (SEA)
G: Britt Eckerstrom (PRI)*
* denotes All-League player