ECNL North Carolina: Texas Center Backs Who Will Lock it Down

<p>The 2025-2026 club soccer season is almost over, but teams competing in the ECNL Girls League still have one more national tournament in their schedules before the Finals.</p>   <p>This weekend, between Saturday and Monday, clubs from all over the country will head to Greensboro, North Carolina, as the city is set to welcome teams in the U15, U16 and U17 age groups for three days of action in the Bryan Park Soccer Complex.</p>   <p>As many as 200 teams will make the trip to North Carolina and 12 of them will be representing the state of Texas, with [program_tooltip program_id='283243' first='Albion' last='Hurricanes FC'], [program_tooltip program_id='283282' first='Challenge' last='SC'], [program_tooltip program_id='283296' first='Classics' last='Elite'], [program_tooltip program_id='283497' first='Sting' last='Austin'] and Sting Black all sending multiple teams to compete in the final event of the season.</p>   <p>Some really talented players are part of these teams, and we'll take the week leading up to the event to feature them. These center backs will anchor their teams' backlines:</p>    <p class="text-gray-700">Goodin is part of the Sting Black G10 team that will play against Nationals Soccer Club, Slammers FC and Match Fit Surf in the showcase. A physical and skilled center back, she's a big part of their defensive system, standing out for her ability to win duels and her excellent positioning. Goodin is particularly good at defending inside the penalty box, using her strong frame to overpower opponents and demonstrating impeccable timing to tackle opponents and block shots. She's also very reliable on the ball and has the confidence to pass it aggressively 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=EiC-zkRgxts </div></figure>    <p class="text-gray-700">Lehner plays for the [program_tooltip program_id='283243' first='Albion' last='Hurricanes FC'] G10 team that will meet Charlotte SA, WNY Flash and Scorpions SC in North Carolina. She can play anywhere across the backline and as a defensive midfielder, but she is at her best in central defense, where she shows great quality to defend the penalty box. Lehner is not the tallest, but she is always at the right spots, showing an impressive ability to read plays and adjust on the go. She's a competent passer and does a great job of getting long balls into the box in free kicks or in the run of play.</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=H0DpDGtMkvE </div></figure>    <p class="text-gray-700">Dewolf and the [program_tooltip program_id='283282' first='Challenge' last='SC'] G11 team are set to face Florida Krush, Alabama FC and Concorde Fire Platinum in their trip to Greensboro. Capable of playing in central defense and in the midfield, she has excellent defensive instincts and is really hard to beat. Dewolf makes the most of her outstanding positioning and is always in the right spots, managing to stop plays with quick and firm actions. The center back also reads plays extremely well and demonstrates excellent mobility to intercept passes and track down opponents.</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=ZJ2caqU2edY </div></figure>    <p class="text-gray-700">Alley represents the [program_tooltip program_id='283497' first='Sting' last='Austin'] G11 team that has matches scheduled against Philadelphia Ukrainian Nationals, WNY Flash and SUSA FC in the event. A center back who combines excellent physical tools and superior defensive instincts, she's among the most promising in the country in her age group. Despite her young age, Alley has an extremely mature and well-developed game, consistently stepping up to make stops and clean things up. She can dominate opponents physically, but is also quick and technical enough to win the ball without having contact with them. Alley is a confident and efficient passer and offers a strong presence in the penalty box in attacking set pieces.</p>    <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/AveryAlleyATX/status/2051115191383863608 </div></figure>

The 2025-2026 club soccer season is almost over, but teams competing in the ECNL Girls League still have one more national tournament in their schedules before the Finals.