ECNL Champions League – 09 Standouts from Round of 16

<!-- wp:paragraph {"align":"center"} --> <p class="has-text-align-center"><strong>USE PROMO CODE JR30 for a discount on your first subscription </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The ECNL Playoffs in Washington wrapped up on Friday with the Round of 16 games from the 2009 age group. Check out the players who stood out from the games Prep Soccer caught on Friday. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='146362' first='Felicity' last='Nguyen'], San Diego Surf - Nguyen has been in fine form througout the event in Washington and it was fitting to see her best performance come in the last game. She scored both goals, I believe, in the first half for Surf. The first was on a free kick that she expertly placed into the upper corner of the near post. The second was an acrobatic finish on a scramble in the box. Nguyen is a joy to watch and should be the focus of the scouting report for any team that gets matched up against Surf in Richmond. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='111865' first='Allison' last='Espiritu-Hernandez'], Concorde Fire Platinum - Espiritu-Hernandez made some outrageous saves in the first half against Surf. She had a tip on a shot from [player_tooltip player_id='147280' first='A'Rianna' last='Ellis'] that not many goalkeepers at the college level would've got a finger on. The Concorde goalkeeper was busy against the talented squad from Southern California and put together a highlight-reel worthy performance. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Citlali Reyes, San Diego Surf - Reyes scored a brilliant free kick in the second half to seal the victory for Surf. The midfielder was influential throughout the game with her passing, but the goal was the moment worthy of the spotlight. Reyes added another goal late as she pounced on a rebound and finished into the open net. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='150786' first='Kennedy' last='Williams'], Concorde Fire Platinum - Williams scored the goal for her side in the game against Surf. She did well in creating a bit of space in the box and firing off the shot with a quick release in traffic. I believe [player_tooltip player_id='111876' first='Maci' last='Tucker'] had the brilliant assist on the goal. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='112224' first='Lolly' last='Mirhashemi'], San Diego Surf - Mirhashemi and center back partner [player_tooltip player_id='146353' first='Piper' last='Sistek'] were standouts in the win over Concorde Fire Platinum. Surf puts a lot on the center backs from a possession and decision-making standpoint and they both did exceptionally well against the quick press. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='147435' first='Addison' last='Dean'], San Diego Surf - Dean's pass to set up Nguyen on the fourth goal from Surf was superb. The right back had a terrific game overall, but that pass definitely stood out as the skill to pull that off with a perfectly weighted chip pass is not something you see every day (or ever) at the youth level. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='146233' first='Briannah' last='Johnson'], Slammers FC HB Koge - Johnson's effort and skill helped setup the first goal for Slammers Koge on Friday. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='157449' first='Leah' last='Fernald'], VDA - Fernald had a terrific strike on the equalizer for VDA. She hits the ball exceptionally well with her right and showed that on some other free kicks during this game. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Capriana Cuneo, Slammers FC HB Koge - Cueno made two great saves in the penalty kick shootout. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='112217' first='Alexis' last='Katter'], Slammers FC HB Koge - I thought Friday was Katter's best game of the event. She did so well protecting the defense from her defensive midfield spot. She put in tackles, intercepted passes, and got to the right spots. Kaitlyn Cook and [player_tooltip player_id='112212' first='Laney' last='Brucker'] were also outstanding for Slammers. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='181754' first='Jadyn' last='Bechtel'], Legends - Bechtel skated past the defense and scored the opening goal in the game against World Class on Friday. The speedy forward broke into open space and no one had a shot at catching her. She made no mistake with her move around the keeper to finish into the open net. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='112131' first='Ryan' last='Reynolds'], Legends - The other piece of the dynamic attack, Reynolds scored the second goal for Legends. She started the move with a burst past the outside back and then whipped in the cross. Reynolds, always aware, drifted back inside after the cross and ended up getting to clean up the chance for a goal. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='112560' first='Chloe' last='Griswell'], Solar - I thought Griswell was excellent in the close win over SLSG on Friday. Solar controlled more of the game in the first half. Griswell was a major reason why they had that advantage. She was dominant defensively. [player_tooltip player_id='112567' first='Addison' last='Bizjack'] was a standout in the midfield.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='112553' first='Giselle' last='Aguilar'], Solar - Aguilar did not get credit for the goal on Friday in the 1-0 win over SLSG, but she did a lot of the work to set up the chance. The skillful winger drew the attention and beat her first mark, which forced recovery and opened up a cross. The play ended with [player_tooltip player_id='112559' first='Landry' last='Gannon'] assisting on [player_tooltip player_id='112575' first='Raelyn' last='Young']'s tally. Aguilars game-breaking abilities were on full display in this contest. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='110960' first='Kylie' last='Berk'], Penn Fusion - Berk scored the opening goal in the game against Tennessee SC. She did well in cutting inside from the right wing and finishing with her left foot. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='25843' first='Julia' last='Rick'], Penn Fusion - Rick's work and effort set up the goal for Berk. She made a great read on the pass and provided the platform for Berk to shine. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='157995' first='Mary' last='Orobono'], Penn Fusion - Orobono was a standout defensively in the game against Tennessee SC. Her tactical positioning was exquisite and provided a couple of key players for her side. [player_tooltip player_id='169230' first='Gabriella' last='Bongiorno'] was also very good early in the first half for Penn Fusion. [player_tooltip player_id='157168' first='Isabelle' last='Haag'] and [player_tooltip player_id='110967' first='Danielle-Liz' last='Esaka'] were also standouts defensively for Penn Fusion in the win. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='159465' first='Deus' last='Stanislaus'], PDA - In a tight battle (on the scoreline), Stanislaus provided the moment of brilliance for the game-winner for PDA in the 1-0 result over Utah Royals-AZ on Friday. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->