The Freedoms had 9 wins and 5 losses and finished second in the Eastern Conference. They qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 2007, losing to the Washington Kastles in the Eastern Conference Championship Match. The Freedoms were led by WTT rookie Marcelo Melo who was named WTT Male Most Valuable Player.
Season recap
James Blake trade
James Blake was selected by the Freedoms in the 2012 marque player draft[1] and played for the team that season.[2] Blake did not register for the 2013 marquee player draft, but he signed with the New York Sportimes as a wildcard player.[3] Since WTT teams are permitted to have only one wildcard player of each gender,[4] Blake was effectively released by the Sportimes when John McEnroe was designated as the team's male wildcard player on July 18, 2013.[5] Consequently, the right to protect Blake, should he register as an eligible marquee player, remained with the Freedoms under WTT rules.[6] On February 11, 2014, WTT announced that the Boston Lobsters had traded Blake to the Springfield Lasers for undisclosed consideration.[7] Therefore, an apparent unreported trade which sent Blake to Boston took place between the Freedoms and the Lobsters between the end of the 2012 season and the 2014 marquee player draft.
Drafts
Since the Freedoms had the second-worst record in WTT in 2013, they had the second selection in each round of both drafts. The Freedoms chose Victoria Azarenka in the first round of the Marquee Player Draft and chose not to protect Sloane Stephens. They passed on making a second-round pick.[7] At the Roster Player Draft, the Freedoms protected Victoria Duval and Liezel Huber and picked WTT rookies Frank Dancevic and Marcelo Melo.[8]
Duval misses the season and is replaced by Townsend
On July 4, 2014, the Freedoms announced that Victoria Duval would miss the entire season, because she had recently been diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma. As a show of support for Duval, the Freedoms wore special patches with her initials on them on their uniforms during the 2014 season.[9] The following day, the Freedoms announced that they had signed Taylor Townsend to replace Duval.[10]
Six road matches to start the season
The Freedoms started the 2014 season with six road matches. In the season opener against the Springfield Lasers, the Freedoms fell behind, 10–6, after two sets and trailed 16–14 heading to the final set. Taylor Townsend earned a 5–4 set win in women's singles to send the match to overtime with the Freedoms still behind, 20–19. Townsend then won the first game of overtime to tie the score at 20 and force a super tiebreaker which she won, 7–3.[11]
After three straight losses, the Freedoms cruised to a dominant victory over the Austin Aces, 25–11, winning all five sets. Frank Dancevic took a set from Andy Roddick, 5–3, in men's singles and teamed with Marcelo Melo for a 5–3 set win over Roddick and Treat Huey in men's doubles. Townsend won the women's singles set, 5–2, over Vera Zvonareva and partnered with Liezel Huber for a 5–2 set win in women's doubles. Huber and Melo won the mixed doubles set, 5–1.[12]
The Freedoms lost the following match, 23–14, to the three-time defending champion Washington Kastles.[13] With the season less than half finished, it was already the second time the Freedoms had visited Washington; they lost both matches. This defeat dropped the Freedoms' record to 2 wins and 4 losses.
Winning streak and a playoff berth
The Freedoms faced the San Diego Aviators in their home opener at The Pavilion on the campus of Villanova University on July 15, 2014, as Victoria Azarenka made her debut with the team. It was the first of four straight home matches on four consecutive evenings. After falling behind 10–4 after two sets, the Freedoms got set wins from Frank Dancevic (5–2 in men's singles), Azarenka (5–3 in women's singles) and Azarenka and Marcelo Melo (5–3 in mixed doubles) to earn a 19–18 victory.[14]
The following evening, the Freedoms lost both singles sets but won all three doubles sets on their way to a 21–18 victory over the Springfield Lasers. Liezel Huber and Melo closed out the match with a 5–3 mixed doubles set win.[15]
On July 17, 2014, the Freedoms faced the Washington Kastles. After Huber and Melo won he opening set of mixed doubles, 5–3, over Venus Williams and Leander Paes, Taylor Townsend took the first three games of the women's singles set from Williams. The Kastles substituted Anastasia Rodionova for Williams, but Townsend continued her dominance, winning the set, 5–0. Dancevic extended the Freedoms' lead to 15–5 at halftime with a 5–2 set win in men's singles. The Kastles won the women's doubles and men's doubles sets to send the match to overtime with the Freedoms holding a 21–15 lead. dancevic and Melo won the first game of overtime to give the Freedoms a 22–15 victory.[16]
In the final match of the homestand, the Freedom won all five sets in a dominant 25–14 win over the Boston Lobsters. Dancevic, Huber, Melo and Townsend were each involved in two set wins.[17] With their fourth straight win, the Freedoms swept their homestand and improved their record to 6 wins and 4 losses.
While enjoying a day off on July 19, 2014, the Freedoms clinched a playoff berth when the Kastles defeated the Lobsters, 23–9.[18]
The Freedoms won their fifth straight match on July 20, 2014, when they beat the Lobsters on the road, 23–21. Dancevic started off the match with a 5–4 set win over John Isner. Huber and Townsend followed with a 5–4 women's doubles set win. Heber and Melo took the mixed doubles set to give the Freedoms a 15–12 halftime lead. After the Lobsters cut the lead to 18–17, Dancevic and Melo took the mn's doubles set, 5–4, to close out the victory.[19]
End of the regular season
After their only home loss of the season (21–18 to the Austin Aces)[20] ended their winning streak, the Freedoms responded with their most lopsided win of the season, a 25–6 drubbing of the Boston Lobsters. It was the third time during the 2014 season that the Freedoms had won all five sets in a match and the second time they had done it to the Lobsters. Taylor Townsend had a 5–0 set win in women's singles and teamed with Liezel Huber for another 5–0 set win in women's doubles.[21]
With the Washington Kastles having clinched home-court advantage for the Eastern Conference Championship Match the previous evening, some of the drama was taken out of the Freedoms' regular-season finale. In a playoff preview, the Kastles won the first two sets to take a 10–5 lead and held an 18–13 advantage after four sets. In the final mixed doubles set Liezel Huber and Marcelo Melo topped Martina Hingis and Leander Paes, 5–2, to send the match to overtime with the Kastles clinging to a 20–18 lead. Huber and Melo won two games in overtime to send the match to a super tiebreaker which they won, 7–4, to give the Freedoms a 21–20 victory.[22] The win gave the Freedoms 9 wins and 5 losses on the season, just one match behind the Kastles in the Eastern Conference standings.
Playoffs
The Freedoms met the Washington Kastles in the Eastern Conference Championship Match on July 24, 2014, in Washington. Taylor Townsend's 5–2 set win in women's singles over Martina Hingis gave the Freedoms an 8–7 lead after two sets. The Kastles won the next two sets to take a 17–11 advantage to the final set.[23] In a bizarre scene during the fourth set of women's doubles, Liezel Huber was struck in the back of the head by a Townsend forehand shot. Huber was unable to continue. She was diagnosed with a concussion, taken to the hospital and later released. With no substitute available, Townsend was left to finish the set alone. Playing two against one, Townsend was not permitted to return serves on Huber's side and dropped the set, 5–1.[24]Frank Dancevic and Marcelo Melo won the men's doubles set, 5–3, to send the match to overtime with the Kastles leading, 20–16. The Kastles won the first game of overtime to earn a 21–16 victory and end the season for the Freedoms.[23]
Event chronology
February 11, 2014: The Freedoms selected Victoria Azarenka in the WTT Marquee Player Draft.[7]
July 19, 2014: With a record of 6 wins and 4 losses, the Freedoms clinched a playoff berth when the Washington Kastles defeated the Boston Lobsters, 23–9.[18]
July 24, 2014: The Freedoms lost the Eastern Conference Championship Match to the Washington Kastles, 21–16, in overtime.[23]
Draft picks
Since the Freedoms had the league's second-worst record in 2013, they had the second selection in each round of both WTT drafts.
Marquee player draft
The Freedoms did not protect Sloane Stephens effectively making her a free agent. The selections made[7] by the Freedoms are shown in the table below.
^Roster player who appeared in fewer than three matches due to injury and was eligible to be protected in the draft the following year because of WTT's injury exception.
Statistics
Players are listed in order of their game-winning percentage provided they played in at least 40% of the Freedoms' games in that event, which is the WTT minimum for qualification for league leaders in individual statistical categories.[23][30]
Melo led WTT in game-winning percentage in mixed doubles.[32]
Liezel Huber was second in WTT in game-winning percentage in mixed doubles.[32]
Taylor Townsend was third in WTT in game-winning percentage in women's singles and sixth in women's doubles.[32]
Charitable support
During each night of the 2014 season, the WTT team with the most aces received US$1,000 toward a local charity of the team's choice as part of a program called Mylan Aces. In the case of a tie, the award was split accordingly. The Freedoms earned $4,500 for Assistance in Healthcare which works in partnership with Cancer Treatment Centers of America through the program.[33]
