Aggieland Friendship Cup: Five Forwards to Watch

<p>Preseason tournaments are popping up all around Texas as club teams from the Lone Star State finalize their preparations for the opening matches of their respective leagues and this weekend College Station is set to host one of the biggest of them, the Aggieland Friendship Cup.</p>   <p>Hosted by Challenge SC, the two-day event has attracted as many as 171 girls' teams from the U10 to the U19 age group, including some of the best sides from the Houston, Dallas, Austin and San Antonio areas.</p>   <p>There will be some elite-level talent in action this week at Veteran's Park and we'll feature some players worth your attention, finalizing our lists with the forwards:</p>    <p class="text-gray-700">Trimble and her Classics Elite ECNL 09 team are scheduled to play Challenge SC RL 08 and DKSC RL 09 at Veteran's Park. She's a dangerous winger, who hurts opponents with her pace out wide, but can do a lot more than that. Very aggressive when on the ball, Trimble can also play inside, where she combines with the striker and creates plays through the middle. Because of her excellent movement off the ball and her calm in front of the goal, she typically scores at a great rate for her team.</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/jordin_trimble/status/1770977492200788348 </div></figure>    <p class="text-gray-700">Lario will be in action with DKSC ECNL 09 in their matches against FC Westlake RL 08 and Challenge SC RL 08 over the weekend. She's a very strong offensive player, who can at times make things happen on her own and be a handful to opposing defenders. She's mostly used on the right and plays very direct and aggressive soccer, getting on the ball and making runs at defenders. Lario also has the quality and intelligence to operate more centrally, where she has an even larger role in the team's playmaking while also appearing inside the penalty box to finish chances.</p>    <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2024/02/IMG_2167.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-163568" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">DKSC vs. PacNW SC</figcaption></figure>    <p class="text-gray-700">One of the top forwards in the country, Hill will lead the lines for Solar SC ECNL 08 against Challenge SC ECNL 07 and Albion Hurricanes FC ECNL 07. She's incredibly athletic and skilled and even the strongest backlines have trouble dealing with her. Hill plays primarily on the left and is at her best when she has space to beat defenders off the dribble and take the ball to the end line or to make runs behind the backline. She also comes inside very often to help her team create chances and uses her body well to shield the ball and make turns. Hill has a strong presence inside the penalty box, consistently getting on the end of crosses to score.</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/Jordan_hill19/status/1761529867827401076 </div></figure>    <p class="text-gray-700">Medina plays a big offensive role for her Rise SC GA 08 team which will be tested against Lonestar SC FDL 08 and Dallas Texans ECNL 09 in College Station. She likes to play centrally and be used anywhere from attacking midfielder to striker and is probably at her best closer to the goal. Medina is very technical and smooth with the ball and often makes dangerous runs through the middle. She's very calm in front of the goal and finishes well, converting most of the chances that she gets to score. When at the striker role, Medina uses her body well to get on the end of long passes and work with her back to the goal.</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/SoccerBella08/status/1729617263383179459 </div></figure>    <p class="text-gray-700">Talkington will be one of the offensive options of Challenge SC ECNL 07 in their matches against Solar SC ECNL 08 and Sting Black ECNL 07/06. She's mostly used as a winger, but can also play more centrally, using her pace to make runs behind the backline and connecting in quick combination plays with her teammates. Talkington is very resourceful with the ball and is very strong in 1v1 plays out wide, beating defenders with consistency. She also does a good job without the ball, putting pressure on opposing defenders.</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=L7bEJhka2aQ </div></figure>

Preseason tournaments are popping up all around Texas as club teams from the Lone Star State finalize their preparations for the opening matches of their respective leagues and this weekend College Station is set to host one of the biggest of them, the Aggieland Friendship Cup.