If ever there were a season where things could fall perfectly into place for the De Anza Force girls Blue 92 team, this could be it.

You’d never know it by the group’s recent success - which includes a pair of state cup finals appearances, and strong showings in the Las Vegas Showcase, Far West Regional League and Surf Cup tournament – but this is a group that was still growing together.

Two years ago the team melded together the original De Anza Force group with the Los Gatos Metro team. It turned out to be a challenging task on a couple different levels.

“They were rival teams,” said coach Shawn Medved. “It’s never easy to mesh two different groups, you can’t expect them to come in and be best buddies right away. It took at least a year for the players to make the transition, and they’ve really bonded well. It was a valuable process to go through and they’ve really become a team and started getting some positive results.”  

One factor in easing the transition has been the club’s communal atmosphere, as various coaches participate in the training, giving the kids a new voice in their ear and making things relatively new and exciting.

“It keeps them fresh, and we don’t overwork them too much,” Medved said. "That’s something we’ve learned.”

In joining forces, De Anza improved its talent for the long haul and this squad boasts the kind of speed and ability that has it excited about its prospects for 2009.

For this Force team it all begins with the midfielders, including the speedy Alesha Blair, a sophomore, Lauren Heer, Taylor Comeau and Lorin Hom.

The team is especially excited about Hom, a super talented junior who suffered an ACL injury last July. This year she’ll return to the action and add creativity to a group that already appears imposing.

Two of the team’s leaders include Brianne Medved, the captain, and a skilled midfielder/defender, along with goalkeeper Emily Kruger, a savvy shot stopper who has played on the region IV team and is committed to California.

The core of the squad consists of a veteran group of talented juniors, including: Forward/midfielder Cristina Farrington, defender/midfielder Emily Kirk, midfielder Sarah Haizlip and forward Ashlee Wilhelmson.  

Sophomore midfielder Cynthia Garcia is a crafty member of the offense, while the defense features players like Jackie Pedrazza, Lauren Johnson, Kacey Gricius, Michelle Pao (also a midfielder) and defender/midfielder Carli Haasbroek.

“The transition for us is over,” Medved said. “We’ve beaten top ranked teams in the country and we’ve had a taste, and now we have the experience and we’re motivated to do more. We’ll continue to compete in the top tournaments this year and try to find the best competition. We have goals to go through on to regionals and nationals and we have the talent to do that. It’s a marathon, so anything can happen but we couldn’t be more excited for the upcoming season.”