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Female Kicker Slams Lauren Silberman's 'Terrible' NFL Tryout

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A female kicker with on-field credentials has ripped Lauren Silberman's historic tryout at the NFL regional combine as "terrible" and "disappointing."

Katie Hnida, who made history in 2003 as the first woman to score in an NCAA Division I-A game, told USA Today that Silberman simply wasn't ready to take her kicks at the Jets' facility in Florham Park, N.J.

"Her performance does not have to do with her gender, it has to do with her experience and her preparation," Hnida told USA Today. "Unfortunately, what's going to happen now is she's going to be looked at (as inferior) because she was female.

"But she was terrible."

Silberman, a former club soccer player at Wisconsin, lasted just two kicks Sunday as the first woman to try out at a regional combine. They were both short -- less than 20 yards -- which she attributed to a right quadriceps injury suffered earlier in the week.

Hnida said she watched the video of Silberman's kicks -- her response accompanied by a sigh, according to USA Today. Hnida also found it "curious" that the 28-year-old New York City resident "didn't warm up."

"It is disappointing," said Hnida. "I hoped she would go out and do justice for an NFL tryout, because there are lots of people who have dreamed of going to the NFL. It should be something serious."

On NFL.com, Aditi Kinkhabwala slammed Silberman's tryout as a "delusional, haughty, heartbreaking sideshow."

The column sparked a testy exchange on Twitter between Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com and NFL spokesman Greg Aiello.

"NFL.com slams L Silberman tryout, w/o slamming NFL for allowing it to happen," Florio tweeted, which was met with a response of "BS" from Aiello.

"Apparently you would deny a woman the right to participate in an open tryout," Aiello tweeted.

Florio would eventually accuse Aiello of responding "like a true P.R. spin doctor."

"Ok, we can end w/a personal insult from PFT. Forget the facts," wrote Aiello.

But Florio got the last word: "You accuse me of being sexist in order to obscure the argument and I'm the one making insults? #cmonman."

Your thoughts on Silberman's tryout? Be heard in the comments...

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