CHICAGO (May 31, 2019) – Chicago Red Stars attacker and May’s Player of the Month Sam Kerr leads the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) Team of the Month, presented by Cutter® Insect Repellent, voted by the NWSL Media Association for the month of May of the 2019 NWSL season.
The Australian international was voted NWSL Player of the Month and is joined by two Players of the Week for the 2019 season: Chicago Red Stars attacker Yuki Nagasato (Week 3) and Washington Spirit goalkeeper Aubrey Bledsoe (Weeks 4 and 6).
The Washington Spirit led the way with four players voted to the Team of the Month, followed by the Chicago Red Stars and Utah Royals FC with three each and the North Carolina Courage with one.
Team of the Month – May
GK – Aubrey Bledsoe, Washington Spirit: The Cincinnati native leads the league in saves with 26 and has three shutouts to her credit, two of them coming in May with a 0-0 draw versus Reign FC on May 4, and a 2-0 win over the Chicago Red Stars on May 26. Boasting an 86.7% saves success rate, she has helped keep the Spirit at the top of the standings.
D – Casey Short, Chicago Red Stars: The Illinois native had six shots, two on goal in 360 minutes of action in May. She also notched two interceptions for the month to go along with ten tackles won and nine clearances.
D – Rachel Corsie, Utah Royals FC: The Scott saw action in three matches for Utah in May, with an 83.3% tackles success rate overall, and notching 20 total clearances for the season and five interceptions.
D – Sam Staab, Washington Spirit: In four appearances during the month of May, Staab was a key contributor playing every minute and improving to five tackles won, 30 clearances, 8 interceptions and 322 successful passes.
D – Merritt Mathias, North Carolina Courage: The Alabama native enjoyed a strong overall performance in May, improving her numbers to 13 clearances, six tackles won, three blocks and eight interceptions, while starting all four games and registering 360 minutes played, one assist and four shots taken in the month.
M – Yuki Nagasato, Chicago Red Stars: Week Three’s Player of the Week played 345 minutes in four matches in May and leads the league in assists with three. May saw her improve her season-long tackles to six won.
M – Jordan DiBiasi, Washington Spirit: DiBiasi logged 360 minutes in four matches in May and scored her first two goals of the season in the Spirit’s victories over Sky Blue FC and the Portland Thorns.
M – Vero Boquete, Utah Royals FC: The Spaniard registered two assists in May and made contributions beyond the scoreboard as she saw her numbers improve to 242 total passes and two shots.
F – Sam Kerr, Chicago Red Stars: May’s Player of the Month leads the league in goals (6) and shots on goal (14), and holds the number two spot in the league for shots (21). In 270 minutes of action in May, the Australian international had four of those goals, and 11 shots on goal, and moved her season-long tackle success rate 4 out of 4 (100%).
F – Amy Rodriguez, Utah Royals FC: Rodriguez contributed to the Royals first place standing with 360 minutes played in four matches in May and one goal in each of those matches, placing her third in the league in goals scored (four). Her shot tally for the month was 13 (fourth in the league with 16) with five shots on goal.
F – Ashley Hatch, Washington Spirit: Hatch tallied one goal in each of the Spirit’s victories over Portland Thorns FC and Chicago Red Stars. She also improved her shots, adding 11 in the month with four shots on goal.
The NWSL will return to action tonight as the Washington Spirit host Utah Royals FC at 7:00 p.m. ET on Saturday, June 1, 2019. Half an hour later, the Orlando Pride and North Carolina Courage kick off in Orlando. The weekend action continues on Sunday with Reign FC hosting the Houston Dash at 4:00 pm ET and Portland Thorns FC hosting the Chicago Red Stars at 6:00 pm ET.
