Ten Locals on WPS Combine List

Seven Renegades Among 10 Players with New England Ties

August 28, 2008

TAMPA, FL – Seven Boston Renegades and three others from local New England colleges are among the 128 players participating in September’s inaugural Women’s Professional Soccer combine, the USL announced on Wednesday.

The United Soccer Leagues W-League Combine, held September 4-7 in Tampa, will showcase players for the new WPS, set to begin play in the spring of 2009.

The combine player list features participants who played for 31 different W-League teams in 2008, attended 97 different universities and represent 13 different nationalities.

Of the 128, seven played for the Renegades in 2008, including Therese Lockner, Meghann Burke, Allison Martino, Ashlee Pistorius, Jamie Craft, Lauren Maclver and Mary Therese Mcdonnell.

Also on list were Natalie Urbas of Sacred Heart and the Connecticut Passion, Erin Porter of Fairfield and Harvard’s Caitlin Fisher.

“Since the league was founded in 1995, the W-League has been the cornerstone for women’s elite club soccer for 14 years, providing a home for the world’s best players and developing the stars of the future,” said W-League Director of Operations Melanie Fitzgerald. “The players gathering for the combine are among the best in the league over the past few years and include many that may become household names with WPS clubs or beyond in the near future. History has shown USL’s dedication to development of the female player and the women’s game to be of the highest caliber and we are confident the WPS coaches, general managers and scouts on hand will be in agreement in September.”

It’s expected the majority of the WPS players will hail from the W-League. Historically, the same occurred with the launch of the Women’s United Soccer Association in 2001. A total of 92 current and former W-League players were allocated or drafted by the WUSA leading up to the first of its three seasons.

For the full list, please see here.

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