W-League News Release
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
TAMPA, Fla. – The W-League announced today that the Bay Area Breeze will join the league for the 2013 season. The club is owned by a group of Bay Area business owners, led by President Paul Haley, and will operate as a professional club in the W-League.
“Adding an established club such as the Bay Area Breeze to the W-League for the 2013 season only strengthens our highly competitive Western Conference,” W-League Senior Director Amanda Duffy said. “Paul Haley, Maria Lashinger and the entire Breeze staff are doing a fantastic job of integrating the club into the Bay Area soccer community, and we expect the Breeze to continue to set the bar high both on and off the field.”
Haley recently announced the return of Lashinger as the club’s general manager and the hiring of Santa Cruz, California native Analisa Robles as operations manager. Bay Area sports executive Andy Dolich of Dolich Consulting rounds out the management team, bringing extensive experience in all facets of sports, both locally and nationally.
“We are excited to share the W-League platform to help advance the Breeze’s mission of providing an opportunity for female soccer players to play at the highest levels while giving back to the community, and advancing women’s sports on a local, national, and global level,” Lashinger said.
The Breeze will play a 12-game schedule between the months of May-July and are looking forward to hosting some of the biggest names in women’s soccer including the Seattle Sounders Women and Pali Blues.
The club is looking to continue its success after having traveled to England and Scotland in August 2012, where the Breeze completed an undefeated, four-game tour, winning against such teams as England’s Liverpool Ladies FC and Scotland’s Hibernian Ladies FC. Many of the players that played on the Breeze’s European touring squad will return for the 2013 season.
Tryouts for the Bay Area Breeze have been scheduled for March 23-24, 2013. Additional details will be provided in the coming weeks, including an announcement of the club’s home stadium and coaching staff. All information will also be available online at the club’s new website www.bayareabreeze.com, slated for launch in early February.