By Scott French, Senior Editor FRANCOPHILLY: Marinette Pichon, in our eyes the WUSA newcomer making the greatest impact through the first third of the season, was the difference in Philadelphia's 3-1 victory at second-place Carolina on Saturday. The French forward scored two goals — a rebound in the 29th minute and an 18-yard blast in the 82nd — and set up another as the Charge (5-1-0, 15 points) extended its lead to four points, with a game in hand over everybody but Carolina. Englishwoman Kelly Smith's 71st-minute penalty kick, which broke a 1-1 tie, was won when rookie defender Danielle Slaton — the Courage's goalscorer — tripped up Pichon. That's twice this seaso the Charge gamewinner has come from the spot after Pichon has been fouled. BACK TO .500: Atlanta striker Cindy Parlow, sporting a broken nose (sustained in San Jose a week earlier) but refusing to wear a mask, scored one goal and stopped another to spark the slow-starting Beat past Boston, 1-0, and to .500. Parlow, who scored Atlanta's first first-half goal of 2002 last week, got another against the Breakers, a 10th-minute header from a Nikki Serlenga free kick. Parlow made it stand up with a goal-saving header early in the second half. Atlanta, unbeaten in three matches, improved to 3-3-1 after spending the first five weeks of the season in the cellar. NOT A ROUT: San Jose outfired Washington, 23-5, but claimed only a 2-0 victory — on a pair of Katia headers, her third and fourth goals of the year — after hitting a crossbar, firing inches wide three times, and failing when presented open nets. The CyberRays have the WUSA's top marks in shots (118) and shots on goal (62) but have scored only nine goals in seven games, a rate better than only Atlanta's and Washington's. BEST GOAL: We like Linda Ormen's 18th-minute lob for New York, the second goal in a 2-1 victory over San Diego — the Power's first home win this season. Sara Whalen picked off a Shannon Boxx pass on the left flank and fed Tiffeny Milbrett on the other side of the midfield stripe. Milbrett retreated a few steps from Fan Yunjie, then lofted the ball over the Spirit back line for Ormen, alone after racing past Amy Sauer on the right. The Norwegian midfielder took the ball on one bounce, lobbing it over onrushing goalkeeper Jaime Pagliarulo and into the far-side netting. LONG-WINDED: Atlanta midfielder Marci Miller, sent on in the 72nd minute to help protect a narrow lead over Boston, lasted just 10 minutes before seeing red. She was sent off after taking down Bettina Wiegmann from behind. COURAGE BULKING: Carolina captain Carla Overbeck, back from knee surgery, made her 2002 debut ahead of schedule, playing 25 minutes in the Courage's loss to Philly. And the Courage added forward Birgit Prinz — fresh from FFC Frankfurt's European triumph — who arrived in Cary five minutes into the match. Her WUSA launch comes next week against New York.