Former Washington Freedom Star, Abby Wambach Previews Gold Medal Game against Japan

In two seasons with the Washington Freedom (2002-2003/WUSA & 2009-2010/WPS) Abby Wambach not only played along side the most famous U.S. Soccer player ever - Mia Hamm, she also won a league championship and was named MVP. Wambach scored 44 goals and added 30 assists while playing for the Freedom franchise and was by far a fan favorite at the Maryland SoccerPlex.

Now Wambach is looking to lead the U.S. Women's Soccer team to Olympic Gold in London against Japan, a team that beat the Americans only a year ago to win the 2011 Women's World Cup. On the other side of the pitch will be a former Washington Freedom teammate of Wambach's, Homare Sawa.
Another former Washington Freedom player on the U.S. roster for the 2012 Olympic squad going for gold include is Becky Sauerbrunn (2008-2010). 

Abby Wambach

On going up against her friend and former club teammate Homare Sawa against Japan:
"I think that Homare Sawa has proven herself to be one of the best players in the world. She led her team to a world championship. I have the greatest respect for her. She came to play in the United States a couple of times and took what she learned back to her country and they've done an extraordinary job over the last couple of years putting it together. I do think that we also have a great team. We're at a place that I think is solid. I think the fact that we lost the World Cup and the way that we did gives us even more passion and desire to go out and perform tomorrow. We saw each other in the Village. We told each other that we're both glad that the other had won because we believe that we're the top two teams in the world and our fans deserve to see a great final. This gold medal match is going to be nothing short of that."

Why the U.S. women’s soccer team is sport’s greatest team and America’s best export

Exclusive Op-Ed: America's Band of Sisters

By Joe Donnelly, TakePart.com 

By MattGerlachPhotography

I’m not sure how I’m going to talk about USA women’s soccer without sounding like some babbling teenage, fanboy kook. I’m not. I’m well into middle age and generally sober, often skeptical and sometimes cynical. But I can’t do that here now, not after what I saw take place at venerable Old Trafford stadium in Manchester, England, on Monday.

I hope you saw it for yourself because words get real small and inadequate when they try to describe the bigger things that sometimes overwhelm us and make us feel humble and elevated at the same time. These things often happen in nature, but sometimes on the pitch, and that’s what happened yesterday when Alex Morgan headed a beautiful loping cross from the right wing off the foot of Heather O’Reilly to defeat Canada in the Olympic semifinals, 4-3.

The goal came in the 123rd minute, with 30 seconds left in the second and final overtime before the game would have been decided by the lottery of a penalty kick shootout. Calling the game one of the greatest soccer matches ever doesn’t do it justice.

Full Op-Ed at: http://www.takepart.com/article/2012/08/07/why-us-womens-soccer-team-sports-greatest-team-and-americas-best-export