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On Sunday, Sky Blue FC (6-6-4, 22 points) travels to Kansas City, Mo. to take on FC Kansas City (4-8-4, 16 points) to round out their season series.
The last time these teams met ended in a 1-1 draw, so it will be interesting to see how the series finishes out.
If the result on Sunday turns out to be another draw or a win for Sky Blue FC, the two-time defending NWSL champions FCKC will be knocked out of contention for postseason play for the first time in league history.
Sky Blue FC is looking to come back from its 3-1 loss last weekend against the Chicago Red Stars in hopes of still progressing to postseason play. Because of that, and how close they are points wise, the team is really looking to pull out a win this week.
"Heading into this weekend, it is very important that we carry the mindset of not allowing last week’s performance be a definition of what our season has been so far," said Christy Holly, Sky Blue FC head coach. "We know that our reaction and our character is going to be tested, and we are very confident in our ability to rebound. We know that if we play to our potential and successfully execute our game plan, we will come away with three points on Sunday."
Sky Blue FC will be without Kelley O’Hara this week as she recovers from a right ankle sprain, which she suffered in stoppage time of last week’s match against the Chicago Red Stars.
While FCKC captain Becky Sauerbrunn was not listed on FCKC's injury report, it has been reported that she will be playing with a broken nose. Although unlikely to hinder her performance unless it affects her breathing, the injury could cause a problem if she gets into a collision or gets hit by the ball as it is said she will not be playing in a protective face mask.
Sky Blue FC takes on defending NWSL champions FC Kansas City on Sunday, September 4 at 6 p.m. EST. The game will be streamed live on the NWSL Soccer channel on YouTube and is available here.
Sky Blue FC Roster by Position:
Goalkeepers (2): Caroline Casey, Caroline Stanley
Defenders (5): CoCo Goodson, Kristin Grubka, Christie Rampone (C), Erin Simon, Erica Skroski
Midfielders (7): Kelly Conheeney, Theresa Diederich, Shawna Gordon, Sarah Killion, Taylor Lytle, Raquel Rodriguez, Nikki Stanton
Forwards (5): Leah Galton, Maya Hayes, Tasha Kai, Sam Kerr, Danielle Schulmann