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Evaluating the Chesapeake Charge is a very different business from looking at the Maryland Capitols or the DC United Women. For either of the latter two teams, anything other than going a couple of games into the playoffs would be a significant disappointment. For the Charge, even finishing fourth in the WPSL Elite and thereby making the playoffs would be a huge accomplishment, arguably more significant than the other teams even winning their respective leagues since it would mean getting past at least one of four near-WPS caliber teams. But kudos to them for taking on the challenge considering that the team would likely have been running roughshod over their division if they’d stayed in the regular WPSL.

And maybe they can do it. As Paul Riley said after his team played them here in Maryland, “I tell you what, they get somebody on the wrong day, they’ll beat them. I’m saying, Chicago, Boston, Western New York, one of us has a bad day, they’ll beat us. They’re good.”

So far that hasn’t happened yet, though, and the Charge are in sixth place in the league, vying with the New England Mutiny, Philadelphia Fever, and FC Indiana for the title of the best amateur team in the league. Philly and Indiana are both winless so far and don’t seem to be in contention for the title. New England, though, is 3-3-1 with 10 standings points, ahead of Chesapeake’s 1-5-1 and 4 points. That may be an accident of scheduling, though, as two of the Mutiny’s wins came from playing amateur teams at home, and the Charge have yet to play any such games. Anyhow, the realistic standings goal for the Charge is to finish fifth, and they can possibly dream of better.

Goalkeepers Lyndse Hokanson (George Mason) and Erin Quinn (Towson) have kept the team in matches more than once. The marquee player on the team, though, is probably the statuesque (5’11”) Jess Hnatiuk, who captains the team from the central defense, takes most of the free kicks, and often stifles even the best offensive squads. Amanda Lebo (Wake Forest), Cheyenne Skidmore (Towson), and Riley Barger (Bryn Mawr) have combined well in the midfield. Midfielder Christine Nairn (Penn State) is probably their best player overall, but she’s had only limited availability.

Alexis Prior-Brown, a supermodel-thin forward who just graduated from high school, is as fast as greased lightning and their best scoring threat. Though seemingly delicate, on Sunday it took a triple-team from the New York Fury that resulted in her having to be carried off the field to stop her on one attack.

I think the real goal for the Charge, though, has been to improve since their first match against the Boston Breakers. After giving up three goals in the first fifteen minutes of that match, I think it’s pretty clear that they’ve succeeded on that account. If they continue to improve at that rate, then perhaps some of the WPS-heritage teams do need to keep looking over their shoulders.

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• Soccer
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• 2012 WPSL and W-League

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