POMONA, CALIF - There was tons of talent displayed at day one of the U.S.U14 Girls National ID Camp, but the quality of defensive play from many of the talented young girls is what shined brightest at Cal Poly Pomona University here on a warm Monday afternoon. 

Because of the great defensive performances of players, the final scores of the event's first day were kept pretty close.  It was nice to see young players disciplined and focused on their defense – an aspect of the game which is often underappreciated.  Even though several of the coaches mentioned that many of the players were put in positions that they were unfamiliar playing in, several players were able to exhibit their abilities well.

With the trend of the day being high-quality defending, quite a few of the defenders stood out in the day's matches.  Defenders Cari Roccaro and Tera Trujillo both played center back alongside each other for one of the sides, and did a brilliant job shutting down all oncoming attackers.  They worked off of each other extremely well, each giving the other cover when necessary and using their size to their advantages when defending their net.  Even as a defender, Roccaro showed a great deal of skill possessing the ball out of the back and calmly maneuvering out of tight situations.

On the other side of the pitch playing against Roccaro and Tujillo was defender Katherine Bettinger.  Bettinger both physically and vocally led her team by showing no hesitation in getting into strong tackles, and managing to hold down the back line of her team's defense very well.

Haley Washburn performed well at the forward position, acting as a strong target player for her team with the ability to hold off defenders and lay off accurate passes.  Washburn scored a brilliant goal in the first half of her match with a long right-footed blast from outside of the box.  Another forward that displayed her repertoire of skills was Laura Rose.  Combining her speed with sound technicality, Rose showed an apt for one-on-one attacking and a nose for the goal.

Jessica Lee executed her distribution extremely well from the center midfield position.  Lee showed the capacity to run at defenders with the ball and breaking down the back line with through-balls and her broad vision Lee combined very well with forward Anna McClung, whose one-two connections with Lee were not only pretty to watch, but gave the opposing defenders a lot to handle.

The third game of the day proved to be the warmest, but the energy of the players did not subside as they heat increased.  Jordan Hatler showed her strength as a strong defensive center-mid.  Hatler balanced and gave structure to her team with her disciplined coverage and work-ethic on the field.  Behind Hatler, defender Maya Theuer was always present to sweep up the mess and provide a solid final line of defense. 

The girls ID camp will continue at Cal Poly Pomona the rest of the week.

 

Rosters

 

Game 1

Blue Team

 

Morgan Andrews

Lauren D'amico

Kristen O'Neil

Grace Holmes

Hailey Brohaugh

Raina Johnson

Megan Crosson

Brecken Holbrook

Lindsay Horan

Katelyn Rowland

Sheaffer Skadson

 

Red Team

 

Jessica Lee

Erica Sousa

Elizabeth Bartels

Summer Green

Crystal Thomas

Anna McClung

Shelby Soldat

Alex Anthony

Laura Liedle

Mariah Powers-Young

Casandra Sternbach

 

Game 2

Blue Team

 

Stephanie Campo

Carly Rotatori

Melisa Bomberger

Nicole Breece

Sasha Haverchak

Laura Rose

Paulina Speckmaier

Katherine Bettinger

Reilly Parker

Samantha Witteman

Regina Manneh

 

Red Team

 

Rachel Blauner

Cari Roccaro

Ashley Meier

Elaina Musleh

Emily Ball

Miranda Freeman

Jana Jeffrey

Victoria Camaj

Mariana Galvan

Tera Trujillo

Haley Washburn

 

Game 3

Blue Team

 

Taryn Tomczyk

Antoinette Bennett

Mackenzie Harrison

Stephanie Amack

Elizabeth Robishaw

Loren Reilley

Makenzy Doniak

Morgan Stearns

Jasmine Paterson

Courtney Kobashigawa

Courtney Raetzman

 

Red Team

 

Ashley Spivey

Jordan Hatler

Olivia Jester

Marisabel Cirilo

Lina Granados

Morgan Ruhl

Maya Theuer

Victoria Bruce

Jessica Hale

Allison Wetherington

Isabel Farrell