ECNL-RL Girls St. Louis: Five Texas Goalkeepers to Watch
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The ECNL Girls – Regional League will host its second national event of the season this week, in St. Louis, Missouri, just a month after their first showcase, which took place in Richmond, Virginia, in November. With matches scheduled for…
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Continue ReadingThe ECNL Girls – Regional League will host its second national event of the season this week, in St. Louis, Missouri, just a month after their first showcase, which took place in Richmond, Virginia, in November.
With matches scheduled for the U15, U16, U17 and U18/19 divisions, as many as 180 teams from the entire country will make the trip to St. Louis to play and showcase their skills from Friday to Sunday at the Creve Coeur Park Soccer Complex and the World Wide Technology Soccer Park.
The state of Texas will be well-represented, with as many as 27 teams entered to take part in the event. As the week progresses, we’ll be presenting some of the most interesting players from the Lone Star State who will be in action this weekend, starting with the goalkeepers:
Kyla Jones
Kyla Jones
Jones and her team FC Westlake G09 will play AFA Fillies, KC Fusion and Michigan Hawks at the event. With her between the posts, her team had two clean sheets in nine matches in the Texas Conference. Jone is quick and explosive and that combination allows her to react and get to difficult shots from close range. She has great command of the penalty box and is typically very reliable when dealing with crosses or long-distance shots. Jones also uses her legs extremely well to make saves, especially when she has to leave her spot and make 1v1 stops. She’s very mature too and got to play up with the U19 team earlier this season.
Shook will represent her team Solar SC G08 in the event against FC Wichita, Chicago Inter Soccer and Indiana. Solar have one of the best defenses in the Texas Conference with just five goals conceded in 11 matches and will want to continue this way this week in St. Louis. Shook has been playing as a field player for them this season, so it’s not guaranteed that she’ll be in goal, but she’s still one of the best in the position in the division. She is always well-positioned, uses her length extremely well and is very calm and confident when asked to make saves. Needless to say, she’s very skilled on the ball too and is very capable of helping her team in possession.
Katelyn Clark Katelyn Clark M TX
Katelyn Clark Katelyn Clark M TX
With Clark between the posts, Dallas Texans G08 will play against SLSG MO, Indiana Fire and FC Wichita. She was one of the team’s standouts last season, earning an All-Regional League Team selection and continues to be one of their pillars in this year’s campaign. Clark is very long and uses that well to make stops. She also has excellent reflexes and is typically very reliable and efficient, rarely allowing rebounds or making ball-handling errors. The goalkeeper also does a good job in commanding the penalty box and catching crosses and long passes that go her way.
Trinity Jefferson Trinity Jefferson GK Klein Oak | 2025 TX
Trinity Jefferson Trinity Jefferson GK Klein Oak | 2025 TX
Jefferson will work hard between the posts to have her team Challenge SC G06/05 go unscathed in their matches against Ohio Galaxies FC, Ohio Premier and Racing Louisville Academy. She’s very athletic in goal and also displays outstanding ball control when making moves to get to the ball. That’s one of the reasons why Jefferson is very strong when dealing with close rang, low finishes. She’s also very effective in 1v1 situations, waiting for the right moment to come out of goal and doing a very good job of closing out the attackers’ angle. The goalkeeper is also very sound when handling crosses, picking up a good starting point and finding her way to the ball without any hiccups.
Ella Myers
Ella Myers
Myers and her team Renegades SC NTX G06/05 will have a busy calendar in St. Louis, battling Gretna Academy, Pacesetter SC and Match Fit Academy. Her strong play between the posts has been a factor in the team’s strong campaign in the North Texas division, which features just one loss and nine clean sheets in 13 matches. She’s very complete in goal and thrives for not overcomplicating things and always offering a solid and reliable presence to her team. Myers is always at the right spot and is excellent at catching the ball and not allowing second-chance opportunities to opponents. She also stands out with her ability to help her team initiate plays, be it with accurate throws or long passes and goal kicks.