Youth Girls Soccer Roundup: May Edition
With the school year wrapping up, it’s time for summer soccer to come into full swing. Here are a few things coming up in May in the youth girls’ soccer world.
Soccerista United Summer Session
GSN’s very own Soccerista United mentorship program is back, bigger and better than ever, for the summer session! The session, running from June to July, is open for registration now.
If you don’t already know, this program allows girl soccer players to grow their game by being mentored by elite college athletes from across the country. The program is specifically tailored for girls ages 9 to 15 and will be a combination of small group meetings and one-on-one time with your Squad Captain (the college players). Additionally, this year, we’re super excited to have SOCCER.COM as an official sponsor of SU!
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High school rankings
United Soccer Coaches just released their rankings for the top 25 high school soccer programs, and there have been quite a few change-ups. Broomfield Colorado’s program jumped three spots to take the top spot this year, and Kellem in Virginia Beach, Virginia, made a huge splash by ranking third in their first-ever appearance in the top ten.
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There are also nine teams that are brand new to the Top 25: St. Charles East (St. Charles, Ill.), Vestavia Hills (Vestavia Hills, Ala.), Heritage (Littleton, Colo.), Waukee Northwest (Waukee, Iowa), Walton (Marietta, Ga.), Chapel Hill (Chapel Hill, N.C.), Oregon (Oregon, Wis.), Oak Mountain (Birmingham, Ala.), Nerinx Hall (St. Louis, Mo.).
Most all of these teams went undefeated the season, with only a handful suffering multiple defeats.
Girls Academy League: 2023 Northeast Talent ID Showcase
Girls Academy Northeast Talent ID Showcase happened on the 10th. Players from across the Northeast faced off in a tournament that matched up some of the best players in the conference against one another. The players in this showcase were from the 2006-2009 age groups from teams like Long Island SC, STA, Seacoast United, Oakwood SC, South Shore Select, Syracuse DA, and New York SC.
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The showcase was hosted by New England Futbol Club, which also had a few players participating. These showcases are designed to highlight some of the nation’s best talent and help players qualify for the National ID Showcase!
Girls Academy League: Coming Up
2023 Mid-Atlantic and Southwest Talent ID Showcases
On May 19, the Mid-Atlantic conference, hosted by Sporting Delaware, will kick off its showcase tournament. There are twelve teams participating. Then on May 29, City SC will host the Southwest Talent ID Showcase.
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ECNL
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In the ECNL, May saw a couple of derby games between big-time rivals in California and New Jersey. Plus, the New Jersey College Showcase will occur from May 27 to 29.
Program development
With some larger-scale news, U.S. Soccer had just approved $3 million more in funding for 19 programs under the federations umbrella.
Funding was achieved through Innovate to Grow grants and will see to the development of programs for girls’ soccer as well as those with disabilities and underserved communities. Programs being awarded funding include after-school programs like Let’s Play!, 901 Girls with Goals, and Women in Coaching. These programs will be rolling out over the next few years, but the news itself is a great win for women’s and girls’ soccer.
The money from these grants will directly impact young girls learning to be leaders, gain self-confidence, and form connections that will last their entire lives. We need more programs like this!
With the summer just kicking off, there’s sure to be lots more Soccerista news on the horizon. We’ve got several months of no school and only soccer on the way!
Featured image via @girlsacademyleague on Instagram
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