BRADENTON, Fla. (June 12, 2008)--Due to inclement weather, tonight’s match between the West Virginia Illusion and Bradenton Athletics was halted in the 37th minute with the Illusion leading 2-1 on goals by Ashley Rees and Marisa Kanela. The match will be continued at 10 a.m. Saturday morning from the point it was stopped.
The Illusion kept possession in the Athletics’ end for the first two minutes, highlighted by a long-distance effort from Marisa Kanela in the first 15 seconds of the match.
But Bradenton took the early lead when Martha Hall took advantage of a turnover to beat Illusion goalkeeper Ashley Magruda in the 3rd minute.
“After the first goal was scored, we gained confidence and realized that we were dominating the game,” said head coach Joe Dorini. “We’re finally playing possession soccer.”
The Illusion pulled level when Megan Mischler’s shot was blocked by Athletics goalkeeper Shannon Aitken, but Aitken could do nothing with a sprawling shot from Ashley Rees off of the rebound.
Five minutes later, the Illusion snared their first-ever lead when Marisa Kanela drew a foul in the 18-yard box and buried the subsequent penalty kick.
Nine minutes later, the match was halted due to lightning storms in the Bradenton area and, after a one-hour delay, was officially postponed.
The Illusion will face the Tampa Bay Hellenic at 8 p.m. Friday. Tampa Bay won the first meeting on May 18, 3-0.
