ex-Badger Soccer Star Earns NWSL Honor
Former Wisconsin soccer player Rose Lavelle was named the “Player of the Month” for the National Women’s Soccer League
ex-Badger soccer star Rose Lavelle earned the “Player of the Month” honor for April in the NWSL. She tallied an assist in a 1-0 victory over the Sky Blue and a goal in a 3-0 win over Seattle.
The NWSL is a professional women’s soccer league in its fifth season of play. The league has 10 teams and like Major League Soccer the season runs from spring-to-fall, opposite the FIFA calendar. Some players compete in leagues outside the US when the NWSL is idle, much like baseball players in winter league ball in South and Central America. Some games are streamed online and this year the league has some games broadcast on the Lifetime network.
Lavelle was the #1 pick in the NWSL draft by the Boston Breakers after notching 29 goals and 22 assists in her 84 games at Wisconsin. Previous #1 selections Crystal Dunn (2014) and Morgan Brian (2015) have become mainstays in the XI for the USWNT. Brian’s addition in to the starting lineup as a defensive mid role enabled Carli Lloyd to roam free as the #10. It was a key tactical change fueling the World Cup victory in 2015.
Lavelle had a decorated career at Wisconsin.
"In 2016, named NSCAA Second Team All-American … NSCAA All-Great Lakes Region First Team … Big Ten Midfielder of the Year, first player in the history of the award to earn the honor in two consecutive years … first-team All-Big Ten honoree … Senior CLASS Award Second Team"
Lavelle recently scored her first goal for the USWNT in a friendly against Russia. She got behind the Russian backline and cooly slotted home after a smooth first touch got her feet under her.
https://twitter.com/ussoccer_wnt/status/851150550536077312?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.uwbadgers.com%2Fnews%2F2017%2F4%2F9%2Fwomens-soccer-lavelle-notches-first-goal-with-us-national-team.aspx
She turns 22 in just over week and has a bright future ahead of her as the USWNT needs to retool and reload to defend the throne in the 2019 World Cup. All world star Lloyd will turn 35 this summer and will leave an enormous pair of cleats to fill when she retires. Midfielder Allie Long will turn 30 in August, set piece specialist and playmaker Megan Rapinoe will turn 32 in July after missing time with an ACL injury. Midfielder Tobin Heath will turn 30 at the end of May. Heath’s game of audacious technical skill and dribbling ability is probably the player Lavelle will most be compared to as she advances.
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Even in her few appearances with the USWNT, Lavelle has already shown an ability to create from nothing using her pace and skill on the ball. Just look at the solo run she makes at the :36 mark in the video below, knifing through the defense at pace with the ball at her feet. That’s not something every player has in her toolkit.
During the 2015 World Cup run manager Jill Ellis never unlocked the right combinations at forwards but it didn’t end up mattering mainly thanks to Carli Lloyd. Alex Morgan was battling chronic knee and ankle injuries and Abby Wambach was not a 90′ player at that stage. In 2016, strikers Amy Rodriguez and Sydney Leroux Dwyer had babies. But now, Rodriguez, Morgan, and Dwyer are all back along with rising young forwards like Dunn and Mallory Pugh. There is a surfeit of forwards at Ellis’ disposal. But forwards need service and in the past few years the USWNT is dependent on the brilliance of Heath, Rapinoe (when healthy), and Lloyd for creative flair. That trident won’t continue in perpetuity which gives opportunities for players like Lavelle to take on that role. Her skills are distinct enough to separate her from the numerous lethal options at forward such that Lavelle could realistically find a place in the regular XI in a #10 type role.
The USWNT is next in action in June on visits to Sweden and Norway for friendlies.