A team without an identity is a team that won’t go anywhere. It is the cornerstone of a successful team: to have awareness of what style to play, which players to count on, and battling for a common goal.

Illinois-based Eclipse Select U16 Girls is in the process of finding an identity that may lead them to a championship season in the ECNL or MRL.

“We have started to find the chemistry that takes time for players to develop,” Eclipse Select Head Coach Mike Nesci said. “Our team is a combination of about 70 percent of the previous team, with added exciting players that bring a different dynamic that the team didn’t have before. We are going to be at maximum capacity until the spring.”

Nesci believes by the time spring rolls around, players will have defined roles and the team will find those players what will be key in matches to take the game over. For Eclipse, finding those players has become a priority in this early stage of the season.

A major acquisition for Eclipse Select is Lauren Sajewich, who transferred from a smaller club and is playing a couple of age groups up.

“We lacked a player that could play high up in the midfield and run the game at that point,” Nesci said. “She can break people off the dribble and play those bigger penetrating passes. We just weren’t able to do that last year.”

Michelle Mottonen is also a new player for Eclipse that has had an immediate impact, scoring a goal in every game. Adding to the team’s plus-13 goal differential.

“Even though the defense has been the backbone over the last several years, this year’s strong point is our ability to score goals,” Nesci said. “It’s a problem that we have had in the past and we’ve addressed that area this year. We hope to be able to continue to score goals.”

And as Nesci said, the defense still continues to be strong, the reason why opponents have been limited to seven goals in six games. Nesci however still fears that overconfidence might come back to bite Eclipse, as it already has earlier in the year.

“There are people that think that losing is a good thing, or is okay. I think for these girls there might be a complacency factor because the games have been easy to this point,” Nesci said. “Earlier, because we were complacent in the back, we shut off, and lost a game 2-1. It was a huge blow in our goal to win the Midwest Regional League and it was a sting to our players.”

With minor inconsistencies in the team’s performance, it will be the core pieces of the group that will have to steer the ship to an MRL championship. Eclipse Select benefits from having players who’ve been with the group for several years, with established understanding of the club’s philosophy.

“Jenna Miller, who plays in the midfield, is the inspirational player on the team, leading vocally on the field,” Nesci said. “Erin Holland and Kara Morway are also part of that core group. They consistently work hard at training and in every game, always knowing what we are going to get out of them.”

Nesci has to be able to adapt all the facets of his team into a cohesive playing unit in order for the team to reach its goals. The key will be constructing a formula that brings comfort and unity.

“Our goal is to be the best team in the country, win the U.S. Youth Soccer national championship, and the ECNL,” said Nesci. “It’s been our goal since day one when we brought this group together. It’s a great group, and we have all the pieces to the puzzle to start building the chemistry needed to win.”