By Scott French, Senior Editor SHOWDOWN SWEEP: Goals four minutes apart by Kerry Connors and Marinette Pichon and an outstanding defensive performance by Erica Iverson carried Philadelphia in its first-place showdown with visiting Carolina on Saturday. The Charge's 2-0 victory gave it a one-point lead on the Courage — with one game in hand — and a sweep of the season series between the WUSA's reigning powers. All three Carolina losses in 2001 have come against Philadelphia, which tied a league record by extending its unbeaten streak to 10 games. Carolina struggled without its starting midfield — Tiffany Roberts and Norwegians Hege Riise and Unni Lehn were in Minnesota for the U.S.-Norway friendly — but Iverson's and Jennifer Tietjen's play in the back offset Philly's losses to international duty. Charge coach Mark Krikorian, without three defensive leaders (outside backs Heather Mitts and Jenny Benson and midfielder Lorrie Fair), switched from his customary 4-5-1 alignment to a 3-5-2, with Tietjen sweeping and Iverson marking Danielle Fotopoulos out of the game. Carolina's record five-game winning streak was halted, and so were Birgit Prinz's five-game goal spree and Prinz's and Fotopoulos' nine-game points streak — both records. It was the first time in Prinz's WUSA career that she had been held without a point. Carolina hadn't previously lost on the road; Philly hasn't lost in 11 games at Villanova Stadium. Barring collapse or some miracle, Philadelphia and Carolina will be home for the Aug. 17 semifinals. The Charge would clinch their playoff berth, and the home assignment, with victories Wednesday against New York and Saturday at Boston. Carolina also could clinch a berth this week, although San Jose would have to lose or tie at home against the lowly Power. THE REAL RACE: The real battle is for the other two playoff berths, and Atlanta and Washington took strides toward them over the weekend. Nikki Serlenga scored on a free kick and added an assist in the Beat's 3-1 win Saturday over visiting Boston. The Freedom used a penalty kick and an own goal Sunday in a 3-2 win at San Jose, the third contender. With five games remaining, Atlanta and Washington have 25 points. Defending WUSA champion San Jose, three points back, has lost the season series — the first standings tiebreaker — to the Beat and Freedom and faces a more difficult remaining schedule, with two games against Philadelphia and another at Carolina. The CyberRays are on the road for their final three games; they've won just once away from home so far. NEW DAWNING: Dawn Greathouse saw her first WUSA action with San Jose — in place of LaKeysia Beene, who was with the U.S. team in Minnesota — and, as fortune would have it, it came against the Freedom, her former club. The CyberRays acquired the goalkeeper off waivers when Washington, after Steffi Jones' arrival, tried to shuttle her to its ''reserve roster.'' It provided, Greathouse acknowledged, ''a little extra motivation,'' but not much luck. She pulled down Bai Jie for the penalty kick that tied the score late in the first half, was involved with a miscommunication with defender Kelly Lindsey that resulted in Washington's go-ahead goal, then failed to parry Monica Gerardo's roller as the Freedom opened a 3-1 lead in the waning minutes. BEST GOAL: Sissi's first goal of the season — a fifth-minute header to give San Jose an early lead in the loss to the Freedom — gets the nod, and not just for sentimental reasons. It was the first game for which her mother, Vanilda Lima do Amor, had ever been present, and the Brazilian midfielder wanted to do something special for the occasion. ''I want to score a goal for her,'' Sissi said before the game. ''This is special for her and for me. I want her to know how I'm happy here.'' Mission accomplished, thanks to a 6-yard header from a superb, seven-pass sequence featuring fine work from Michelle French and Pretinha. French's midfield takeaway started the build-up, and it was her cross from the left that Sissi — left alone when two defenders followed Katia to the near post — nodded into the net. Pretinha made two deft passes, the first near midfield to keep the sequence going, the second finding French alone on the left. IT'S OVER: Abysmal New York dropped its ninth in a row and 13th of the year — both WUSA records — and was eliminated from the playoff race with a 1-0 defeat to San Diego. The league's worst defense faltered at the finish, with Power goalkeeper Saskia Webber and defender Ronnie Fair colliding while hunting down a long pass from San Diego's Jen Mascaro in the 90th minute. That enabled Julie Fleeting to skin Webber and fire into an empty net. The Scottish forward has scored in two successive games and has a point in all three of her WUSA appearances. The Spirit has outscored its opposition, 5-2, with Fleeting on the field; it had been outscored, 31-18, before she debuted. MISSING IN ACTION: Every team was without key players because of the U.S.-Norway tilt, won by the Americans, 4-0, as Tiffeny Milbrett scored a goal and set up two by Cindy Parlow. Mia Hamm added a 90th-minute goal. Only Boston, citing a FIFA rule, denied call-ups, keeping American midfielder Kristine Lilly and Norwegian forward Dagny Mellgren for its game at Atlanta. Mellgren played in Norway's 2-2 tie Wednesday with Canada in Toronto, and the Breakers were without defenders Jena Kluegel and Kate Sobrero and midfielder Angela Hucles. WUSA SUMMARIES WEEK 15: 13th loss eliminates Power July 20 at Villanova, Pa.
PHILADELPHIA (10-1-4, 34 pts.) 2 CAROLINA (10-3-3, 33 pts.) 0.
Goals: Connors (Zhao) 21, Pichon (Tietjen) 25.
Att.: 6,946. July 20 at Atlanta
ATLANTA (8-7-1, 25 pts.) 3 BOSTON (4-8-5, 17 pts.) 1.
Goals: Sawa (J. Augustyniak, Serlenga) 27, Hooper (Burt, Bivens) 66, Serlenga 89; Lilly (Meinert) 40.
Att.: 6,114. July 20 at Uniondale, N.Y.
NEW YORK (2-13-1, 7 pts.) 0 SAN DIEGO (4-8-4, 16 pts.) 1.
Goal: Fleeting (Mascaro) 90.
Att.: 4,002. July 21 at San Jose
SAN JOSE (6-6-4, 22 pts.) 2 WASHINGTON (7-5-4, 25 pts.) 3.
Goals: Sissi (French, Pretinha) 5, Katia (Clark) 91+; Grubb pen. 39, own goal Lindsey 56, Gerardo (J. Little) 83.
Att.: 8,384.