The American South boasts six top players

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Southern part of the United States is teeming with soccer talent, some discovered and others waiting to be discovered. The five players featured here have two things in common... they are from different parts of the South (Texas, North Carolina, Oklahoma and Tennessee) and they are supremely confident in their ability, and their play shows it. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><a href="http://ellingtonandrews.com">Ellington Andrews</a>, Central Defender, North Carolina, Class of 2024</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Swag. The word that would be used to describe Andrews is swag. His coach with the Wake FC MLS Next 06 team, Eddie Rodriguez, calls him the Deion Sanders of soccer. But the truth of the matter is that he eats and breathes the game, and though he may have swag and talent, he's dedicated to this sport. He is a fearless and dominating presence. He's fast, athletic and intelligent on the pitch. Andrews, a North Carolina product, has excellent foot skills, can pick out a pass and play a long ball, or help build up with link up play. He plays centrally in the defense or as a midfielder and uses his excellent foot skills no matter where he is. He makes well-timed challenges and tackles well. He is a great balance of skill and athleticism. The University of North Carolina-Wilmington saw this in him, and made him a priority and Andrews recently committed. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='15906' first='Bryan' last='Beck'], Midfielder/Defender, Texas, Class of 2024</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Beck is from Texas, attending Byron Nelson High in Trophy Club, TX. He plays midfield for his high school team and plays left back for Solar SC, and is the captain of the ECNL 2004/2005 team. Beck is a very versatile player and couple that with how competitive he is and that makes him a force. He works harder than everyone on the pitch, and he is a leader because his teammates respect him for that. He is a very determined player. Beck is a consistent player who is focused on his goals.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hallie McBride, Central Defender, Houston, Class of 2026</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>McBride plays at Houston High School in Germantown, TN and plays for the 2007 Lady Lobos Rush E64 team for club. She is a center back. She's a hard-working defender, who leads her team by being relentless, by being gritty and by being physical. She is also a very good communicator, who is not afraid to be loud. McBride will not be out-worked, she is committed to the sport, is incredibly coachable and is also a very versatile player. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Noah Kasin, Keeper, Tennessee, Class of 2024</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Kasin plays MLS Next for Nashville SC, and is a keeper for the U17 team. He is an incredibly bright young man with a 4.3 GPA, and colleges are talking to him about committing, but he also has the goal to go pro and will take whatever pathway is the best opportunity. Kasin is an athletic keeper who can make all the saves and cover his posts. He is very technical, and does everything soundly making him hard to beat. He's a very dominant keeper, and does not get scored on easily. He's aggressive in his decision making, he is very technical and passionate about the sport. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='136942' first='Aeden' last='Mitchell'], Outside Defender Texas, Class of 2024</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mitchell is a very athletic wide player. He plays as an outside defender, but really operates as a wingback as he will get up the line in a hurry and join in the attack. However, he's also a very, very sound defender and can lock up attacking players coming down his side. Mitchell is a very hard-working player who plays with persistence and resilience. He has talent that is off the charts as he is technical, and very versatile and dynamic. He's completely committed to the sport, he challenges himself to work hard and beyond that Mitchell is coachable and a very charismatic player to have on the squad. He attends Sonia Sotomayor High in San Antonio, TX and is playing club with SA City.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":137015,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2023/05/Scott-Thomas-crop-3608x2369-1682983734.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-137015" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo: Jason Turner</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='62862' first='Scott' last='Thomas'], Keeper, Oklahoma, Class of 2025</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Thomas is out of Oklahoma, playing at Harrah High. He also plays his club with Oklahoma Energy, playing on the ECRL 2007 team. Scott is a fearless keeper, who will gladly sacrifice his body to claim a ball or make a stop. He's very tough. Thomas is what you would classify as a fighter as he does not give an inch. He's dedicated to his craft, he is tenacious and incredibly hard-working. He does something well that all keepers strive for and that is to be a top notch communicator, and he also puts the team first ahead of personal glory.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->