Standouts from Surf Cup 09/U15 Girls Championship
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Surf Cup, one of the premier preseason youth soccer tournaments, wrapped up last weekend with the older age groups. The 09 age group, U15s this season, featured two of the top clubs in California in the final. San Diego Surf…
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Continue ReadingSurf Cup, one of the premier preseason youth soccer tournaments, wrapped up last weekend with the older age groups. The 09 age group, U15s this season, featured two of the top clubs in California in the final. San Diego Surf topped Legends 3-0 behind goals from Lilah Hershey Lilah Hershey F State CA , Ruby Royal Ruby Royal M Cathedral Catholic | 2027 State #39 Nation CA , and Sophia Zhang. Surf ended the event with 18 goals scored and only two conceded. Citalli Reyes and Hershey were tied for top scorer honors on Surf for the weekend with each contributing three goals.
From video scouting of the championship game, below are some of the individual standouts for the match.
Second championship game in a row that Hershey has impressed. The San Diego Surf center forward was a bright spot during the ECNL championship tilt in July. She followed that up in a strong showing at Surf Cup. Her club still plays through her the majority of time with her back to the goal and the talented wingers and attacking midfielders making runs off of her. Her quality shined early on in the final as she drew a penalty kick within the first few minutes of the game. She ended up scoring the opening goal from the run of play when she pounced on a rebound. Hershey has the potential to be one of the top No. 9s in the 2027 class.
Kiil was active from the opening whistle. The winger had her mark on her heels from the start and never slowed down. The delivery she provided in the opening half resulted in a goal, but it could have been a few more if not for some last-second blocks and good saves from the Legends team. The “drop the shoulder” and get to the end line approach is going to be very effective for Kiil during the ECNL season. She has the potential to lead her conference in assist this season.
The Surf midfield dominated the championship game. I’m not sure how many times Legends broke free of the pressure but it seemed like fewer than a handful of attempts into the attacking half, which is eye-opening considering the talent on that team. Cumberland had an outstanding game. She didn’t pop up on the scoresheet but she was all over the field. Active in the press, quick in her decision-making, and always moving to provide an option for her teammates, the center midfielder was a key piece for her side.
Ruby Royal Ruby Royal M Cathedral Catholic | 2027 State #39 Nation CA and Elle McMurrey Elle McMurrey 5’7″ | D Westview | 2027 State #129 Nation CA were also bright spots in the midfield for Surf. Royal scored the second goal of the game on a long shot from outside of the box. McMurrey had the initial shot on Hershey’s opening goal.
Highlights
The whole Surf defense deserves the spotlight for the performance in the championship game. They were sharp, unforgiving, and confident. Huynh impressed with her ability in the attack. She was excellent on the ball and made some charging runs forward. She can play as the overlapping outside back, but she is also great at cutting inside and playing in the playmaker role as an inverted winger.
Jorden Swain Jorden Swain M Eastlake | 2027 State #18 Nation CA , Piper Sistek, and Lolly Mirhashemi Lolly Mirhashemi 5’6″ | D La Jolla Country Day | 2027 State #15 Nation CA were also standouts for the Surf defense. Brooke S Volpp Brooke S Volpp 5’9″ | GK St John Catholic Middle School | 2028 CA was solid in goal. She didn’t need to do anything extraordinary in terms of saves, but she was consistent in her distribution and did well when called upon.
Highlights
The Legeneds goalkeeper made a great save on the penalty kick early in the game. She did well on a couple of crosses too. She is physical in creating space for herself. She punched the ball away at the high point. The potential for Selvaggio is definitely there for her to be a top option at goalkeeper in this class.
Highlights
The potential for Reynolds is obvious and it’s easy to see why US Soccer identified her as one of the top talents in her age group earlier this year. The Legends winger is a great two-way player. She defends with full effort. She has the pace to get into space and create opportunities. It was a hard day for the Legends attack as Surf controlled where the game was played, but she still had a strong showing for her side.