The Atlanta Beat was a professional soccer team that played in the Women's United Soccer Association. The team played at Bobby Dodd Stadium on the campus of the Georgia Institute of Technology in its first year of operation before moving to Herndon Stadium, on the campus of Morris Brown College in Atlanta, Georgia.

Atlanta Beat
Full nameAtlanta Beat
Nickname(s)Beat
Founded2001
Dissolved2003
StadiumBobby Dodd Stadium (2001)
Herndon Stadium (2002–2003)
Capacity15,000
OwnerCox Enterprises
General ManagerLynn Morgan
Head CoachTom Stone
LeagueWomen's United Soccer Association

History

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The team began play in 2001, and reached the playoffs in each of the WUSA's three seasons — the only team in the league to do so. They advanced to the Founders Cup in both 2001 and 2003, losing on both occasions.

The Beat's "founding players" were Briana Scurry, Cindy Parlow, and Nikki Serlenga of the USA women's national team. The Beat had the #1 pick in the inaugural WUSA draft, and selected China's Sun Wen, star of the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup. Their first goal was scored by Japan star midfielder Homare Sawa.

The coach of the Atlanta Beat was Tom Stone.

League Suspension

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The WUSA announced on September 15, 2003, that it was suspending operations. Several former Beat players went on to play for the Atlanta Silverbacks Women in the W-League, and five – Briana Scurry, Sharolta Nonen, Homare Sawa, Nancy Augustyniak, and Ifeoma Dieke—played in Women's Professional Soccer.

It was announced on October 7, 2009, that a newly formed version of the Atlanta Beat would be joining WPS.[1] On June 17, 2009, the new Atlanta Beat announced that Shawn McGee would be the General Manager of the recently reformed team.[2]

Players (All-Time Roster)

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# Name Position Day of Birth Height Hometown College
3 Emily Burt F April 25, 1975 5' 8" Menlo Park, California Stanford University
33 Callie Withers M May 29, 1981 5' 8" Palo Alto, California Stanford University
22 Ifeoma Dieke D February 25, 1981 5' 7" Glasgow, Scotland Florida International University
15 Julie Augustyniak D February 1, 1979 5' 5" Peachtree City, GA Clemson University
29 Leslie Gaston D August 9, 1980 5' 5" Montgomery, AL University of North Carolina
25 Nancy Augustyniak D February 1, 1979 5' 5" Peachtree City, GA Clemson University
6 Sharolta Nonen D December 30, 1977 5' 6" Vancouver, BC, Canada University of Nebraska
11 Abby Crumpton F April 6, 1981 5' 6" Rochester Hills, MI University of Michigan
10 Charmaine Hooper F January 15, 1968 5' 7" Ottawa, ON, Canada North Carolina State University
12 Cindy Parlow F May 8, 1978 5' 11" Memphis, TN University of North Carolina
13 Maribel Dominguez F November 18, 1978 5' 4" Mexico City, Mexico  
9 Sun Wen F April 6, 1973 5' 5" Shanghai, China Fudan University
1 Briana Scurry GK September 7, 1971 5' 8" Dayton, MN University of Massachusetts Amherst
24 Melanie Wilson GK October 5, 1978 5' 9" Memphis, TN Texas A&M University
18 Aleisha Rose M July 28, 1982 5' 10"   Brigham Young University
8 Homare Sawa M September 6, 1978 5' 4" Tokyo, Japan
19 Kristin Warren M December 17, 1980 5' 7" Littleton, CO University of Denver
4 Kylie Bivens M October 24, 1978 5' 5" Upland, CA Santa Clara University
16 Marci Miller M December 4, 1975 5' 7" St. Charles, IL Southern Methodist University
Nicky Thrasher F 5' 6" El Paso, TX Texas A&M University
2 Wendy Dillinger D December 9, 1974 5' 7" St. Charles, MO Indiana University
5 Nikki Serlenga M June 20, 1978 5' 5" Santa Clara University
21 Lisa Krzykowski M September 10, 1976 5' 7" Cedarburg, WI University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Atlanta to Join Women's Professional Soccer in 2010 "WPS Atlanta". Archived from the original on January 29, 2009. Retrieved June 22, 2009.
  2. ^ Atlanta Women’s Professional Soccer Team Names Shawn McGee General Manager "Archived copy". Archived from the original on September 4, 2011. Retrieved June 22, 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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