ECNL Girls Playoffs: Five Texas Forwards to Watch

<p>After nine months of Conference Play, the ECNL Girls League is set to enter crunch time, with the playoffs taking place this week, from June 22-28, in Seattle, Washington, for the U13-19 age groups.</p>   <p>As many as 350 teams from the entire country will play at the 60 Acres Soccer Park, in Redmond, with the goal of securing a spot in the ECNL Girls Finals, which will be held in Richmond, Virginia, in July.</p>   <p>Among these teams, there are several sides from Texas, who will try and take the Lone Star State to the Finals. Here are some of the Texas forwards who can make a difference for their teams this week:</p>    <p class="text-gray-700">Morrison is one of the main offensive weapons for her Solar SC 09 team that qualified for the Champions League with a first-place finish in the Texas Conference, obtained with a campaign of 13 wins, one loss and one tie. A lefty, she's extremely smooth on the ball and doesn't need a lot of time on the ball or space to beat opponents off the dribble - she's particularly difficult to stop when driving the ball on the left flank. Morrison also has a good presence inside the penalty box and can finish off of headers with her feet. She hits the ball with power and precision from distance and can score off of set pieces as well.</p>    <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/Kimora14Athlete/status/1759033521346052197 </div></figure>    <p class="text-gray-700">Ward and her team Sting Black 08 were second in the Texas Conference with 11 wins, one loss and three ties and will appear in the Champions League. She likes to play more centrally and that complements very well the team's attacking system, which also features some talented wingers. Ward uses her physicality very well to operate with her back to the goal, getting on the end of throw-ins and long passes and doing some solid holdup play. The striker also knows her way inside the penalty box and is excellent at creating space with quick moves and finishing. </p>    <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/KyleighWard24/status/1787624170706391163 </div></figure>    <p class="text-gray-700">Mills contributed offensively to her Sting Austin 08 team as they got a third-place finish in the Texas Conference, with nine wins, one loss and five ties - they will play in the Champions League playoffs. A high-energy forward, she's a nightmare to opponents who have to deal with her never-ending movement off the ball and her ability to put pressure on them when playing defense. Despite not being very tall, Mills uses her body well to shield the ball and is excellent at making quick turns on defenders. She also times her runs off the ball very well and attacks the space in behind the backline with great intelligence, generating several opportunities.</p>      <p class="text-gray-700">Stone is a member of the FC Dallas 08 team that ranked sixth in the Texas Conference with seven wins, three losses and four ties and will be in contention in the Champions League. She's a very dynamic and complete attacker, who can play multiple roles up top. Her pace, dribbling skills and ability to deliver accurate crosses make of her an excellent option to play on the wing, but she can also be used more centrally, where her finishing skills are far more lethal. Stone is also very intelligent and can be very dangerous when engaging in combination plays.</p>     <p class="text-gray-700">Larson and her DKSC 07 team will be in action in the North American Cup after they finished seventh in the Texas Conference with seven wins, five losses and three ties. She's an incredibly versatile player, who can play as a center back or a forward and delivers on both positions. Larson has solid all-around skills and understands very well how to use them to perform depending on the role she's playing and what the match requires. She had a good size to battle opposing defenders inside the penalty box, but also moves well off the ball and has good pace and vision to create plays coming from wider positions.</p>    <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIiaW5HcgmQ </div></figure>

After nine months of Conference Play, the ECNL Girls League is set to enter crunch time, with the playoffs taking place this week, from June 22-28, in Seattle, Washington, for the U13-19 age groups.