The youth soccer circuit has changed immensely since I donned an FC Bucks Vipers jersey, but the excitement and thrill surrounding summer championship season hasn't wavered.

Throughout every summer, youth players all over the country seek various national titles with their club teams battling it out in the ECNL, Development Academy, U.S. Youth Soccer and U.S. Club Soccer.

I am proud to say that my club soccer career had a storybook ending in the summer of 2009 when my team of seven years, the FC Bucks Vipers were crowned US Youth Soccer National Champions. We were the first ever Pennsylvania girls' team to win a US Youth Soccer national title and, leading up to the final, we held a 30-0-0 record on the year. Our last loss had come to the eventual national champions the year before.

Our success was no accident - we were incredibly deliberate on our journey. After letting a National Championship slip away from us, we had a renewed focus heading into our 2009 campaign. The path was clear: Win state cup, win regionals, and win nationals. Every moment on the field together was an opportunity to prepare ourselves for the eventual national championship game.

Our cohesive play was a result of the hours upon hours we spent simply playing together. Whether it was in a high-school gym or at one of our practice fields late on a school night, you could find us begging our coach, Ed Leigh for, "one more game!" We were working hard, but we were having the time of our lives. We treated every single small-sided game like it was a World Cup match and walking away from a training session on the winning team was a true accomplishment. Every minute was a battle and a chance to improve as a team and individuals.

Since moving onto my college and professional careers, former club rivals became teammates and vice versa. My current Orlando Pride teammate, former Albertson Fury and University of Maryland star, Jasmyne Spencer, and I often found ourselves on opposing sides in important games. Jas was one of those players who was renowned in our age group – everyone knew her name.  Now, Jas and I often reminisce about our club days and fondly recall the epic battles our teams had against one another.  We vividly remember specific moments from specific games and we marvel at how these moments shaped and molded us into the players we are today.

A short four years later after winning Nationals with the Vipers, I got to experience the thrill of a national championship game all over again with Penn State Women's Soccer. This time, however, when the final whistle blew, I watched in defeat as the other team made confetti snow-angels, cried tears of joy, and dumped buckets of Gatorade over their coaches. I was heartbroken to say the least, but I felt proud and fulfilled that my teammates and I extended our time together on the field as long as we possibly could.

In both of my National Championship experiences, despite very different endings, the entire journey toward the National Championship game was the real highlight. We always chased the coveted National Championship trophy, but we were also keenly aware of a stronger, more compelling motivation at play: winning promised us at least one more opportunity to take the field together, and nothing was more special than that.