Breakers’ Sanderson Earns POTW Honors

Lianne Sanderson’s three-assist performance against the Washington Spirit was good enough for the Breakers midfielder to earn NWSL Player of the Week honors for week 7.

Sanderson assisted on goals from Heather O’Reilley (38′), Katie Schoepfer (53′) and Kyah Simon (66′) in the Breaker’s 3-0 win over the Spirit last Saturday at Dilboy Stadium.

“It’s a great honor to be named player of the week,” Sanderson said in a team release. “I just want to thank all the staff at the Breakers and Lisa Cole for having the confidence in me and what I can bring to the team. As long as we keep winning, that is the main thing.”

The Lewisham, England native leads the NWSL with six assists through six games, and registered the first three-assist performance in the league’s brief history.

“She’s very savvy on the ball, but her runs forward are just really threatening,” O’Reilly said following Saturday’s win. “She hasn’t scored yet this season, but I think everybody has seen how dangerous she is, and she’s setting everyone up with incredible goals. She’s smart. She knows the game.”

Sanderson is the third Breakers player to earn Player of the Week honors this season. O’Reilly (Week 3) and Simon (Week 4) have also heard their names called for the award.