WPS playoff race tightens up

While the Los Angeles Sol continue their first-place march to the best regular-season record in Women's Professional Soccer, the No. 2 spot has rotated seemingly every week. Just this past weekend, Saint Louis Athletica lost its two-week hold on second place after a loss to the Washington Freedom, allowing the Boston Breakers to jump back into the second spot.

Andy Mead/Icon SMI

Angie Woznuk and the Athletica are in a three-way battle for the No. 2 seed.

With three week lefts in the season, 13 points separate the Sol from second-place Boston, but just seven points separate the Breakers from sixth-place Chicago.

"It's so tight in there," Sol coach Abner Rogers said via telephone. "From week to week, I don't think anybody can predict what's going to happen. ... It's how you finish that really counts."

Saint Louis, Boston, Washington and Sky Blue FC are battling it out for the final three playoff spots, while Chicago and FC Gold Pride are holding on to slim playoff hopes. With three weeks left in the season, no team has been mathematically eliminated.

The standings look nothing like they did just a few months ago. The Athletica started the season slowly and were the last team to score a goal. On May 3, they were 0-2-2 and in last place. Since then, they are 7-4 and looking like a strong playoff team. The Chicago Red Stars, on the other hand, were the last unbeaten team in the league on May 3 and are now close to being eliminated from the playoffs.

"Absolutely nuts, but that's the beauty of it," Red Stars coach Emma Hayes said of the topsy-turvy standings. "I think that's what keeps the players hungry and I think the playoff system is one that in its first year is exciting. It's what's gonna keep the fans coming. It's gonna keep the players improving because they know they have to get better each week as opposed to thinking 'Well, we're out of this now.'"

It's a unique playoff system. The No. 1 overall team automatically advances to and hosts the championship game on Aug. 22. The second-place team hosts a home playoff game against the winner of the No. 3 vs. No. 4 game. If a team finishes in third or fourth place, it has to win three games in seven days to take home the title.

All-Stars

The voting for the WPS All-Star game has officially begun and fans are making their picks for the starting 11. The WPS All-Stars will face off against Marta's former team, Umea IK, on Aug. 30 in St. Louis.

Even though top European players won't be available for either squad because of the European Championships, it should be an entertaining match. WPS will still have an impressive starting 11 and Umea will provide a glimpse of what a European club looks like on the field. Umea is led by former Swedish international Hanna Ljungberg and features the young and talented Ramona Bachmann of Switzerland.

St. Louis native and Athletica captain Lori Chalupny is excited to have the All-Star game in her home stadium.

"It's awesome. I think St. Louis is getting the recognition they deserve as far as being a real big soccer town," she said via telephone.

French connection

The high level of play from the internationals has been a theme of the season -- especially the play of France's Camille Abily (Los Angeles Sol) and Sonia Bompastor (Washington Freedom). Because France didn't make the World Cup in 2007 or the Olympics in 2008, Abily and Bompastor have surprised a lot of people -- even their own teammates -- with their solid play all season. One person who wasn't surprised was Red Stars head coach Emma Hayes, who competed against them in Europe when they played with Olympique Lyon in France and Hayes coached for Arsenal in England.

"When Washington picked Bompastor [in the second round of the international draft] ... the minute they called her name I said, 'This is one of the best players I've ever seen.' It was not a surprise," Hayes said. "I think she is an exceptional player. For me, she's been the real -- yes, I think Marta's been absolute quality and I think Kelly [Smith] when she's been healthy has been quality -- but I think Bompastor for me has been up there amongst them."

Bompastor has been Washington's best player and is a strong candidate for MVP of the league with four goals and five assists on the season. She said recently she was enjoying the challenges of WPS.

"It's a new experience for me. It's good because I can learn a lot about soccer. It's not the same level as in France. It's better. I think it's good for me because I have to progress and learn a lot of things."

Abily, meanwhile, has tallied eight goals -- good for second in the league -- on just 13 shots on goal.

"The most opportunistic [player]," said Hayes, whose Red Stars had a win snatched away from them earlier this season when Abily knocked a rebound into the net in the closing moments of a 1-1 draw in Los Angeles. "She gets her moment in front of goal, takes it every time. That to me is a sign of a top player."

The Sol will likely clinch the No. 1 seed in a matter of days, and it could be the last we see of Abily for the rest of the season. Since she will have to miss the playoffs to play in the European Championships in August (seven other players, including her national team captain, Sonia Bompastor, will also miss the playoffs), the Sol may take Abily out of the lineup and finish out the season by playing with the starting 11 who will likely play in the championship match.

Power rankings

1. Los Angeles Sol (11-2-4, 37 points): Los Angeles is just one point away from clinching the No. 1 seed in the playoffs and can wrap up the regular-season title this week with a win over FC Gold Pride, or a Saint Louis loss or draw.

2. Saint Louis Athletica (7-6-2, 23 points): Saint Louis' three-game road winning streak was snapped this past weekend with a 1-0 loss in Washington.

3. Sky Blue FC (6-6-4, 22 points): All of Sky Blue FC's wins this season have come against either Chicago or Boston, and that has them right in the thick of the playoff hunt.

4. Boston Breakers (7-6-3, 24 points): The Breakers learned they can win without Kelly Smith. Boston needs a win this weekend against Sky Blue FC, who has beaten the Breakers three times this year.

5. Washington Freedom (5-6-5, 20 points): On the outside looking in for the playoffs right now, but Washington is coming off a big 1-0 win over Saint Louis this weekend.

6. Chicago Red Stars (4-8-5, 17 points): Back-to-back 1-0 losses to Boston and Sky Blue FC have likely ended Chicago's playoff hopes.

7. FC Gold Pride (3-9-3, 12 points): FC Gold Pride is coming off a tough 1-0 loss to a Boston team that was without seven starters because of national team duty.

Jacqueline Purdy covers women's soccer for ESPN.com. She also is an editor for ESPNRadio.com. She can be reached by e-mail at jacquelinepurdy@gmail.com and friended on ESPN's fan profiles.