page_title: 2009 Sky Blue FC season
section_title: Playoffs
hierarchical_section_title: 2009 Sky Blue FC season / Playoffs
caption_attribution_description: English: Blue sky in St.Louis
context_page_description: The 2009 Sky Blue FC season was the first season for Sky Blue FC in Women's Professional Soccer. In the league's inaugural season, the club finished fourth in the regular season with 26 points, qualifying for the playoffs. After victories over the Washington Freedom and Saint Louis Athletica, Sky Blue FC defeated the Los Angeles Sol, the top team in the regular season, in the championship match to become the first WPS champions.
context_section_description: The WPS playoffs were structured so that the top seed, the Sol, were given an automatic berth in the league final. The third- and fourth-place teams, the Freedom and Sky Blue FC respectively, faced each other in the opening round. The winner would move on to face the number two team in the standings, Saint Louis Athletica, in the Super Semifinal. Underdogs entering the first-round match, Sky Blue FC were without the services of Bardsley and Anita Asante, who were with the England national team at the UEFA Women's Euro 2009. Their opponents, who were missing French midfielder Sonia Bompastor because of international duty, featured Abby Wambach, who scored a team-high eight goals during the regular season. In the match, which took place on August 15 at Maryland SoccerPlex, Sky Blue FC outshot Washington 14–5 in the first half, but neither team scored. Kai, a second-half substitute, broke the deadlock in the 55th minute, beating Freedom goalkeeper Erin McLeod. De Vanna leveled the match in the 78th minute, but six minutes later Francielle restored Sky Blue FC's lead with a 20-yard strike that proved to be the decisive goal.
  With the victory, Sky Blue FC advanced to face Saint Louis Athletica in the next round, a club they had lost to in each of their three regular season meetings. The match was held on August 19 in Fenton, Missouri. Sky Blue FC had numerous early scoring opportunities, but were denied by saves from Solo. Dowling, however, received a pass from Averbuch and beat Solo with a shot from her left foot in the 30th minute. The goal, which was the first of Dowling's professional career, was the only one of the match, as Sky Blue FC earned a place in the first WPS title match against Los Angeles.
  Three days after the semifinal contest, Sky Blue FC played Los Angeles in the WPS championship match. It was the club's third match in an eight-day span; each took place in a different time zone. The Sol entered the match as heavy favorites, as analysts questioned whether their opponents would suffer from fatigue. In front of 7,218 fans at the Home Depot Center, Sky Blue FC effectively held possession against the Sol, and had control of the match for much of the opening half. They took the lead in the 16th minute, as a cross by Dowling found Kai, who passed to O'Reilly. Her shot found the net for the first goal of the match. In the 27th minute, Kai gained possession of the ball in the Sky Blue FC half of the field and ran until she was near the opposition's box, where Los Angeles defender Allison Falk brought her down from behind. The foul resulted in a red card that forced her team to field only 10 players for around two-thirds of the match. The Sol's performance improved as the match progressed, but Braham repelled multiple second-half shots. Marta had an opportunity to level the match with a free kick in second-half stoppage time, but her shot from 28 yards went over the Sky Blue FC goal. Sky Blue FC held on for a 1–0 victory, becoming the inaugural WPS champions.
caption: Sky Blue FC defeated Saint Louis Athletica to reach the WPS final.
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