Super League Power Rankings, Week 11
Breaking down every USL Super League club after a packed matchweek
It may be playoff time on the men’s side, but the USL Super League is in the thick of the regular season and looking tighter than ever. The parity across the division right now is wild, with just nine points separating first and last place through about three months of action.
With Week 11 in the rearview mirror, whose stock is up and down? Let’s dig in.
1. Brooklyn FC (+2)
Squad rotation was Brooklyn’s strength this week, beginning with a Wednesday win against Tampa Bay. Emily Yaple and Dana Scheriff were the stars of the night, shining in their second and first respective starts. Yaple joined Mackenzie Pluck as part of a doubly inverted left side, while Scheriff held down the No. 9 spot and shone because of her off-ball motion.
Start with Yaple, who put up four tackles and three interceptions as a winger. That’s a massive defensive return for an ostensible attacking player before you throw in her eight recoveries, four of which came in the final third. Yaple set the tone early, setting up a Scheriff shot after an upfield takeaway in the 10th minute and nearly connecting with her on a through ball barely five minutes later.
Scheriff was only credited with three shot attempts (which, like, isn’t low but felt higher by the eye test?) but made the most of her opportunities. Brooklyn’s tying goal began with Scheriff, #8, dropping for a touch and routing the ball toward Yaple on the left. Meanwhile, right winger MacKenzie George slanted from the right wing toward the left to replace Scheriff’s drop and test the defense. When the Sun committed to George, it allowed Scheriff time and space to recover for a rebound finish.
That pattern was money for Brooklyn. You see another similar move playing out in the screenshot. This scenario comes at the start of a break situation, and you still see George cutting from the right toward the left. The defense bends, and - as shown in the second picture - Scheriff has space to break in for another shot attempt when Tampa Bay overcommits. Credit to Pluck as well; she waits for George’s run to develop before releasing a pass to the striker.
Another Pluck-to-Scheriff play would earn Brooklyn’s go-ahead spot kick, and that was that. Jessica Silva’s side ended the game with a 3.1 to 1.3 xG edge, benefiting from the stellar attacking patterns and brilliance from the Kesley Hill-Allison Pantuso duo at the back.
That same formula came good during a Sunday matinee against Fort Lauderdale. Scheriff scored again, this time with George and Jessica Garziano supporting her from the midfield line. Hill and Pantuso kept Addie McCain in their collective back pocket, picking up two tackles, two interceptions, and two clearances between them in a 3-1 win.
Sasha Pickard and Leah Scarpelli deserve nods at the full back spots as well. They combined for three tackles and four interceptions in somewhat deeper deployments that prevented a re-run of a prior away loss against Fort Lauderdale. That small but crucial change in positioning makes you feel very, very good about the direction for this Brooklyn squad.
2. Carolina Ascent (No change)
In a duel of unexpected back five users, Carolina maintained their unbeaten run by dropping into a steadier defensive shape. To get there, Philip Poole pushed left winger Jaydah Bedoya into an out-of-possession wing back spot, turning the usual 4-4-2 into more of a 5-3-2. You can argue with the efficacy of the change given that the Ascent conceded 3.6 xG, but you can’t dispute that still-perfect record at the end of the day.
Carolina continued to attack with the full assortment of weapons in a 4-2-4, but the phase-based adjustment was a wise one. Dallas had also adopted a three-at-the-back shape, and they feasted on the wings all night. Things might’ve been disastrous without the shift. Indeed, Bedoya did her best to limit danger on her side; she put in a tackle and a block in the defensive third and made five recoveries in that same area.
The beauty of the system was #5’s license to break out from deep block when the moment arose. Carolina’s second goal featured Jill Aguilera, the legit left back, finding Bedoya over the top and allowing her to go one-on-one against an outside defender. Carolina’s first goal was better-worked still, and it featured a Bedoya assist.
The sequence began with Carolina possessing against Dallas’ high 3-1-4-2 press after a turnover, and you see the Ascent working from one center mid (Chloe Hylton) to another (Taylor Porter) to switch the point. Porter’s reception would crucially draws Dallas’ ball-side winger narrow, as seen above.
From there, Porter can turn around that closing defender, keep her head up, and find Aguilera in ample space on the wing. Aguilera - denoted in purple - wisely holds up her run until the Trinity wing back commits. Thus, Porter can play into space and allow Carolina to break through the first wave of pressure.
You see the rest of the play develop in turn. Aguilera would dribble ahead and hit Jaydah Bedoya - operating as an winger - at the sideline in a one-on-one against a Dallas center back. Because that Trinity defender is lunging upfield, Bedoya has the momentum to move past her and enter the final third. Dallas has to keep rotating, allowing Bedoya to loop a cross toward Mia Corbin to score.
Though the Ascent ended up with just 0.6 xG, they found their moments to score and got a stellar game from Meagan McClelland in net. Call it pragmatic, but good teams find ways to get results.
3. Dallas Trinity (+1)
Dallas is able to reach attacking heights that no one else in the Super League can match, and they showed as much against Carolina. Adopting a sort of 3-1-4-2 shape in the press and in possession, Trinity ran rampant and was unlucky not to turn 19 shots into more than just two goals.
Why did the change work? For one, Sam Meza felt freer to push up from the midfield, and the four- or five-wide breadth of the new shape gave her more room to work. You saw the star No. 8 run in behind for a shot in the 45th minute, and a similar burst against a stretched Ascent back line set up Allie Thornton’s second-half equalizer on the rebound.
Chioma Ubogagu was another obvious beneficiary of the change. There’ve been times in 2024 where Ubogagu has felt a bit uninvolved on the flanks. She entered the week playing just 24 passes per game, less than Jenny Danielsson or Lucy Shepherd in similar deployments. By contrast, she was dominant against Carolina.
In a wider-ranging deployment as Dallas’ left wing back, Ubogagu was a menace. You can see her heatmap above, one riddled with opportunities on the dribble. The former Arsenal and Tottenham star (what a world!) could pick up the ball from deep or simply serve as a menace because of her wide threat in the final third. She ended up trying an eye-watering 10 crosses and attempted five shots in her new role.
As implied up in the Carolina section, Trinity still conceded too many plays where Waniya Hudson (the right-sider in their back three) got isolated out wide. That’s not to blame Hudson, who’s been very good since joining Dallas on loan from the Washington Spirit; she put in three defensive actions in her own box and made four crucial recoveries in the opposing half. Still, it’s something to focus on if the 3-5-2 is here to stay.
4. Fort Lauderdale United (-3)
Putting up 0.2 xG is, uh, not great. Fort Lauderdale got absolutely hammered by Brooklyn on Sunday, and their problems began from the back.
When these two teams met in Southern Florida a few weeks ago, Tyrone Mears’ 4-2-4 stretched Brooklyn out with runs over the top and feasted on long balls toward the wings. This time around, the New Yorkers didn’t let that happen. Pressure on the United back line was sharper and more concentrated, limiting the time to pick out such passes. Brooklyn also deepened out their full backs, creating more of a four-on-four against the long game that didn’t favor the guests.
The passing map of Fort Lauderdale’s four starting defenders, seen above1 in the graphic, illustrates the problem. Mears’ back four had two flavors of passes. They could (1) go sideways and fail to progress play or (2) get rushed into an errant punt toward the channel.
You see the impact of point two in the numbers. Going from left back to right back, the passing accuracy on attempts ending in the opposing half from each player in the back four was dismal for United:
Cameron Brooks (LB): 34%
Laveni Vaka (CB): 66%
Celia Gaynor (CB): 35%
Sabrina McNeill (RB): 14%
Not great!
Moreover, turnovers in build often left Fort Lauderdale unstructured in recovery. Brooklyn had a field day hitting runners in the space behind the pivot and in front of the back four to do damage. That penetration was clearest on United’s second concession, one where Brooks and winger Sheyenne Allen were disconnected and opened a runway for a channel run. Goalkeeper Makenna Gottschalk would fumble the ensuing shot to allow a rebound, but the damage was done further ahead.
I’m still high on Fort Lauderdale United, but Sunday wasn’t their night. They ultimately host their final five games of the fall at home, so they’ll have plenty of runway to figure things out in their friendly confines.
5. DC Power (+2)
Are the goals finally coming for DC Power? That remains to be seen, but a 2-1 win against Lexington feels like a possible game-changer. That’s in large part due to teenaged winger Allie Flanagan’s staggeringly strong debut on Friday.
DC didn’t tinker with their usual shape, and they outplayed their guests even before Flanagan entered at halftime. Frederic Brillant amped up his press to a noticeable degree, fighting fire with fire in the middle against a spirited Lexington team. Jennifer Cudjoe and Katie Duong had license to push up from the pivot of the 4-4-2, and they combined for seven tackles and recoveries in the attacking half during the first 45 minutes alone.
Crucially, DC barely missed a beat when recovering their shape after bouts of central pressure. Lexington barely found a single moment where the Power weren’t ably denying progression in banks of four.
You love the recovery and rotation seen above. DC quickly settles into their mid-block 4-4-2, and they instantly allow Duong to step up and chase the ball. Her step could open a lane, but forward Mariah Lee drops in rotation as winger Maleeya Martin closes to the receiver. Lexington’s only answer is to pass back, and they’re eventually frustrated into a turnover.
Still, this game came down to one thing: Flanagan. Martin, the starting left winger, was fine, playing 15 passes and trying one shot before subbing off. Flanagan played much further upfield and only tried four passes during her stint, but her offensive impact was tremendous even on minimal touches. She posted five shot attempts, all of which were on target.
By pushing Flanagan quite high, DC could cherry-pick long balls toward her in one-on-one situations to relieve pressure and enter the attacking zone. Doing so allowed the winger to cut inside on her stronger right foot and find opportunities from range, just as she did to tie the game in the 51st minute. Flanagan’s late header off a corner to win the match was icing on the cake, a real storybook moment and something that may galvanize DC ahead of the winter break.
6. Spokane Zephyr (No change)
No Emina Ekic, no McKenzie Weinert, no problem. Spokane got a cathartic and well-earned win against Tampa Bay to cap off the matchweek, doing so by deftly adapting their midfield mid-game and riding second-half momentum to a goal.
Jenny Vetter started on the left wing with Natalie Viggiano on the right out of the gates. Spokane looked more 4-2-3-1ish than usual, with Katie Murray as an active No. 10 charged with tracking Tampa Bay’s lowest-dropping center mid. Early, Viggiano was aggressive pushing ahead against drops in from the wing, while Vetter wasn’t afraid to go deep in support against Sydny Nasello.
Zephyr didn’t love that mix, swapping Viggiano and Vetter as the first 45 minutes moved along. Doing so put Vetter, a Minnesota State alum with experience in Portugal, into a spot where she could more actively cut onto her left foot and seek out opportunities. That ability opened up a shot from range in the 38th minute, and it allowed Vetter to tee up Viggiano for a similar look just a minute later.
Spokane, who held just 37% of possession, didn’t always look stable. They rode their luck toward the end of the first half, trusting debutante right back Julianne Vallerand to do a job against a flurry of Sun half-chances. Vallerand started to find her level out of the break, connecting with Vetter and giving her team more of a complete connection up the sideline.
Vetter didn’t make a recovery, attempt a dribble, create a chance, or shoot while on the left to begin the game. While inverted after the 20th minute or so, she created two chances, took two shots, and made four recoveries in the attacking half. She could carry play up the sideline, hit a roving Marley Canales with a centering pass, or simply draw the Sun out with her motion.
It took a Canales rocket from range to take a lead, but Zephyr still found a way to control the match without necessarily controlling the ball. They held Tampa Bay to just 0.5 xG, generated 1.1 of their own, and were deserved winners in the end.
7. Tampa Bay Sun (-2)
Like an inversion of Al Pacino in The Godfather Part III, just when I thought I was in on Tampa Bay, they pull me back out. There were things to like against Brookyln on Wednesday night, for instance, but it wasn’t a complete performance.
Defensively, Tampa Bay was based out of a 4-4-2 with Andrea Hauksdottir and Jordyn Listro in the pivot, though that shape tended to bend and mold across phases. The Sun were often outnumbered down the middle, with the hosts able to generate about 30 touches in zone 14. Brooklyn held an innate three-on-two edge against Tampa Bay’s central pair, and they weren’t afraid to drop a forward low or a winger inside to press that advantage.
Still, the Sun gave Syndy Nasello a start on the right and were rewarded swiftly at the attacking end, scoring a goal in the opening five minutes. This was a lineup with neither Erika Tymrak nor Wasila Diwura-Soale involved, yet Tampa Bay’s shape-shifting allowed them to click in the opening moments.
Flashes of a 4-2-2-2 shape powered that start. With a “two high, two low” midfield that almost took on a boxy look, Tampa Bay had flexibility. Keeping wingers Carlee Giammona and Nasello narrow out challenged Brooklyn’s typically impenetrable core. That initial edge the guests had in the central areas? Tucking the wingers inside negated it.
There was also an ability to push the weak-side winger high and get tricky on attack. Say you let Nasello push higher and wider up into the forward line: you suddenly had three runner: to carve into the lanes of the opposing back four.
You see that exact scenario play out during the Sun’s goal. Kristen Edmonds possesses from left back, enjoying space to work as Brooklyn compressed against that 4-2-2-2ish shape. Edmonds keeps her head up, spots the developing runs upfield, and picks her moment.
A drifting Riley Parker receives from there, and Giammona (ostensibly the right winger) cuts underneath her into an open gap. All the motion allows Giammona to find a hole that would usually be covered by a defensive mid, and her ensuing cross sets up the opening tally. There’d be a similar half-chance minutes later with Giammona hovering underneath a proxy front three yet again to cross rightward.
Those plays were the exception for a Tampa Bay team that mostly went conservative. Whether by dropping Listro deep or by keeping Edmonds low on the left, the Sun preferred a back three that played into Brooklyn’s hands.
Say Listro went low, as mapped out above. You’ve now got Hauksdottir isolated as the only “bounce pass” outlet to keep play moving in front of the press. The advantages of the central foursome seen on the goal are nowhere to be found, and you don’t have enough players upfield to really scare Brooklyn. l
It’s simply harder to form passing triangles from deep in the 3-1-4-2ish formation if you’re standing still and failing to move without the ball. Going long is one way to cure that ill, but Tampa Bay rarely did so and fell on their own sword.
With another go at the weekend against Spokane, Tampa Bay generated just 0.5 xG in a 1-0 loss, but I thought their sense of shape was still much better. You saw a lot more of a back four look, and the moments where Jordyn Listro operated as a single pivot ahead of a back four really sung.
There was a stretch during the last 15ish minutes of the first half where the Sun rolled with solo Listro and absolutely should’ve scored a go-ahead goal. The Canadian international had space to roam, and she wasn’t afraid to pop upfield when the moment arose. Tampa Bay stretched Spokane out and opened up switches to Natalia Staude on the right. The Sun have the talent to push numbers upfield and go for it! I just wish we’d see more of it.
8. Lexington SC (No change)
Lexington is good at a lot of things. They press well, they’re very sharp on set pieces, and Sarah Cox has emerged as a top-end goalkeeper for the most part. Lexington, however, is not a graceful passing team. Even when they’re generating looks, this club is a bludgeon more than a scalpel.
You saw the consequences of that tendency against DC on Friday in a match where Michael Dickey’s side generated only three total shot attempts. The preferred pattern of “hit Claire Winter or Shea Moyer on the turn, then profit” was mostly nullified by tight marking down the middle, and Lexington didn’t really have a backup plan. The result? A modest return of 10ish2 touches in zone 14.
There were hints that the guests would switch to a more direct long game, but Lexington rarely backed it up with a structure to claim second balls. Too many punts were aimed at isolated wingers and easily recovered by the hosts. Even when keeping the ball on the ground, Lexington felt flat. I mean that in a literal and metaphorical sense: almost no one wanted to drop low, interchange, or generally do the things that make a shape work.
You see that issue here. As center back Sydney Shepherd passes to left back Julie Mackin, there’s literally nowhere for her to go. Mackin is already being closed down by an opposing winger, and a dribble is an option, but where is the passing outlet to provide variation? Moyer and Nayeong Shin (who started as a center mid this time out) stand still and force Mackin to play a wasteful hoof up the sideline as a result.
When Lexington scored, it came from a bit of chaos; that’s this team’s bread and butter. After a set piece gone awry, an advanced Shepherd was able to receive in the half space, draw the defense narrow, and pass toward a wide-drifting Madison Parsons. The ensuing cross from Parsons would hit MaryKate McGuire to score.
The takeaways?(1) Lexington counterpressed to keep possession in a dangerous area and (2) quickly carved out a touch in a useful spot for the hockey assist. Excellence in the liminal moments is great, and it’s clearly this club’s backbone. Still, that strength needs to be backed up with consistency in possession as well.
Photo Credit: Brooklyn FC / Twitter
Increasingly incoherent charts are my passion as a blogger.
When I cite this number, I’m literally counting the dots on the touchmap from the USL’s match center. It’s a low-tech operation, folks.