Lauren Holiday is the 2013 National Women's Soccer League MVP. (Photo copyright Meg Linehan for The Equalizer)
FC Kansas City midfielder Lauren Holiday is the 2013 National Women’s Soccer League MVP, the league announced on Tuesday.
Holiday led the league in both goals (12) and assists (9). She also ranked fourth in shots (63) and shots on goal (31) while helping FC Kansas City to 38 points and second place in the NWSL standings. She registered a goal or an assist in a record 10 straight games in which she appeared, which included some missed games for time with the U.S. national team and for her own wedding.
Western New York Flash forward Abby Wambach finished second in the voting and Chicago Red Stars midfielder Lori Chalupny finished third.
FC Kansas City finished second in the NWSL but blew yet another lead in Saturday’s 3-2 extra time semifinal loss to Portland Thorns FC, costing the team a shot at the final. Late slip-ups have been the Blues’ Achilles heel all season, and it cost them again in the playoffs after leading that semifinal 2-0 early.
Remarkably, FC Kansas City swept the NWSL’s individual awards:
MVP: Lauren Holiday
Coach of the Year: Vlatko Andonovski
Defender of the Year: Becky Sauerbrunn
Goalkeeper of the Year: Nicole Barnhart
Rookie of the Year: Erika Tymrak
The voting breakdown for awards was 25 percent media, 25 percent coaches/owners and 50 percent players.
Here’s a look at Holiday’s 10-game point streak:
| Date | Opponent | Result | Home/Away | Goals | Assists |
| June 6 | Portland Thorns FC | W 4-3 | Away | 2 | 0 |
| June 9 | Seattle Reign FC | W 1-0 | Away | 0 | 1 |
| June 13 | Chicago Red Stars | W 2-0 | Away | DNP – International duty | |
| June 16 | Chicago Red Stars | L 1-3 | Home | DNP – International duty | |
| June 23 | Washington Spirit | W 2-0 | Home | 2 | 0 |
| June 26 | Sky Blue FC | D 2-2 | Away | 1 | 0 |
| June 30 | Portland Thorns FC | W 2-0 | Home | 1 | 0 |
| July 3 | Washington Spirit | D 1-1 | Away | DNP – Wedding | |
| July 7 | Western New York Flash | D 0-0 | Home | DNP – Wedding | |
| July 14 | Chicago Red Stars | D 3-3 | Away | 1 | 1 |
| July 20 | Seattle Reign FC | W 2-0 | Home | 1 | 0 |
| July 24 | Boston Breakers | W 3-0 | Home | 0 | 2 |
| July 28 | Sky Blue FC | W 1-0 | Away | 0 | 1 |
| Aug. 4 | Portland Thorns FC | W 3-2 | Away | 2 | 0 |
