The Orange County Waves was a professional women's soccer team, based in Orange County, California. The team began play in 2011, won the Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL) National Championship and then folded at the end of its first season.

Orange County Waves
Full nameOrange County Waves
Nickname(s)The OC, Waves
Founded2011
Dissolved2011
StadiumOrange Coast College,
Costa Mesa, California
2011Women's Premier Soccer League, 1st

History edit

Orange County Waves was one of two professional teams founded for the 2011 Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL) by the same team of investors; alongside the Bay Area Breeze, based in Northern California.

Originally conceived as Orange County Sol, the team aimed to be a continuation of the defunct Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) franchise Los Angeles Sol. Anschutz Entertainment Group, rightholders of the Sol name, blocked its use for the new teams.[1]

Former Sol coach Abner Rogers was recruited as well as several ex-Sol players. It was intended that the Waves would progress to WPS, then the top level of professional women's football in the United States.[2] Experienced Ajax America Women coach Brian Boswell joined as assistant to Rogers, who flew to the 2011 Algarve Cup to scout for players.[1] A strong squad was assembled, comprising professionals except for five amateur players who needed to preserve their college soccer eligibility.[3]

The team won the national WPSL Championship in its only season of existence, beating Chicago Red Stars 2–1 after extra time in the final. Rogers was named Coach of the Year.[4] In December 2011 the team's owners withdrew funding from Orange County Waves, in order to focus their attentions on Bay Area Breeze.[5]

2011 squad edit

[6][7] Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
0 GK   USA Katie Loomis
1 GK   MEX Sophia Perez
2 DF   ENG Kelly Lawrence
3 MF   USA Brittany Klein
4 DF   USA Jenny Hammond
5 DF   USA Sabrina DeMonte
6 DF   USA Colette Swensen
7 FW   USA Tanya Taylor
8 MF   USA Dani Bosio
9 FW   USA Kiki Bosio
No. Pos. Nation Player
10 DF   USA Kika Toulouse
11 MF   ISL Katrín Ómarsdóttir
12 DF   USA Ashlee Elliott
13 FW   USA Laurel Pastor
14 DF   USA Kristina Larsen
15 DF   CZE Vendula Strnadova
18 FW   USA Shannon Cross
19 FW   USA Meagan Snell
20 FW   USA Kimberly Allard
21 DF   USA Tracy Hamm

Year-by-year edit

Year Division League Reg. Season Playoffs National Cup
2011 2 WPSL 1st, Pacific South Champions

References edit

  1. ^ a b "NAME CHANGE - WPSL team will be OC Wave". LA Soccer News. 24 February 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2013.
  2. ^ French, Scott (21 May 2011). "LOCALS: 2 OC teams, 2 visions in WPSL". ESPN. Retrieved 25 September 2013.
  3. ^ French, Scott (22 July 2011). "LOCALS: Waves make waves in women's game". ESPN. Retrieved 25 September 2013.
  4. ^ "OC Waves Champs". Soccer Nation. 12 August 2012. Retrieved 25 September 2013.
  5. ^ French, Scott (18 May 2012). "LOCALS: No champs as WPSL starts". ESPN. Retrieved 25 September 2013.
  6. ^ "OC Waves 2011 Roster". Orange County Waves. Archived from the original on 9 June 2012. Retrieved 25 September 2013.
  7. ^ "WPSL 2011 National Championship" (PDF). Mutiny Soccer. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 March 2012. Retrieved 26 September 2013.

External links edit