Top Texas Center Backs at ECNL North Carolina

<p>The ECNL Girls League is set to host its last National Event of the 2024-2025 season this weekend, when teams from all over the country will head to Greensboro, North Carolina.</p>   <p>Set to take place at the Bryan Park Soccer Complex between Friday and Sunday, the ECNL North Carolina will be the 12th national event organized by the league in the season and will reunite 198 teams in the U15, U16 and U17 age groups.</p>   <p>The state of Texas will be represented in the event, with 13 club teams from the Lone Star State making the trip, and we're taking the week leading up to the tournament to highlight some of the top prospects who will be on the field over the weekend. This time, we'll shortlist some of the best center backs from the Lone Star State:</p>    <p class="text-gray-700">Cox plays for the [program_tooltip program_id='283296' first='Classics' last='Elite'] G09 team that will face the Portland Thorns, FSA FC and East Meadow SC in the event. The center back is one of the pillars of their defensive system, using her excellent positioning to get stops and make an impact. Cox uses her physical tools extremely well to dominate opponents, be it by winning duels inside the penalty box or by chasing opposing forwards around in the final third. Extremely consistent and reliable, she also helps keep the team defensively organized with her strong vocal leadership in the backline.</p>     <p class="text-gray-700">Crider and her [program_tooltip program_id='283497' first='Sting' last='Austin'] G09 teammates will play against Slammers FC, Florida Elite and Bay Area Surf in Greensboro. A center back with excellent instincts, she does a great job of defending in space, which allows her offensive-minded teammates to push forward while she provides coverage. Crider is very active defensively and is very confident with her actions, never hesitating before going at opponents to win the ball. She's also very calm in possession and does a good job of initiating the team's buildup with efficient passes out of the back.</p>      <p class="text-gray-700">Theut will help [program_tooltip program_id='283282' first='Challenge' last='SC'] G09 in their matches against NC Courage, NVA and Charlotte Independence in North Carolina. An extremely dynamic defender, she excels when used in the center of a back three as her impressive mobility and athleticism allow her to get to wide areas in no time and cover her teammates. Theut is also very strong in 1v1 duels and that's in part because of how confident and firm she is in her defensive actions every time she makes a move for the ball. The center back gets to contribute in possession too, displaying a nice ability to connect short and long passes out of the back.</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=WHIL2azsBvQ </div></figure>    <p class="text-gray-700">Black is part of the Sting Black G08 team that is set to meet NC Courage, FC Alliance and FC Stars Blue in the showcase. She can play anywhere across the backline, but has been used more often recently as a center back, rotating with [player_tooltip player_id='112740' first='Tyller' last='Grimes'] and [player_tooltip player_id='27192' first='Reese' last='Liner']. Black fits extremely well with both of them because of her quickness and her understanding of the game. She's very active and efficient on the ball too, connecting good passes out of the back and fitting well in the team's possession-heavy playing style.</p>     <p class="text-gray-700">Morawietz is a center back in the [program_tooltip program_id='283282' first='Challenge' last='SC'] G08 team that will have Match Fit Academy, Maryland United FC and VDA in Greensboro. Standing at 5'11", she's very strong in the air, dominating the defensive penalty box and appearing well offensively in set pieces too, often scoring goals with her headers. Despite her size, Morawietz is incredibly mobile and does a great job of covering ground in the defensive half, keeping opponents under pressure. The center back is very comfortable on the ball too, displaying excellent passing range and having the confidence to support the offense with strong runs through the middle of the field.</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=ilmGGgjbdjU </div></figure>

The ECNL Girls League is set to host its last National Event of the 2024-2025 season this weekend, when teams from all over the country will head to Greensboro, North Carolina.