ECNL Playoffs Day 6 Standouts

A much different day weather wise at ECNL Playoffs in Redmond, Washington. The heavens opened up and drenched 60 Acres Soccer Complex as temperatures hovered in the mid 60's for most of the morning. The 8am KO's were able to finish but the 10am kick offs had to be postponed a couple of hours due to lightning. The 2012 and 2013 age groups were the main event as the champions league semi-finals took place and spectators were treated to some very exciting footy. Here are the standout performances from today's matches.    What a prospect this young lady is. Super athletic, extremely technical, and plays with a lot of energy. She scored a good goal to put her Slammers HBK side up 1-0. She was up and down the pitch making plays all over the field offensively, defensively and in transition. She has the potential to be a Rolls Royce of a midfielder if she keeps developing her game kind of reminds me of Rose Lavelle.     Brown was excellent for Florida Krush today against Slammers HBK. She was the heartbeat of her team in midfield. Chasing down every loose ball and making life difficult for the Slammers midfield. Very strong presence in possession and never shied away from the ball. Fluid athlete and competed her tail off. Bright future.     Tohill got on the scoresheet and added an assist in her sides 4-2 semi-final win against Florida Krush. Really quick player that understands when to time her runs. Good dribbler and a very willing passer. She lead the line for Slammers HBK today masterfully.     Rios scored an excellent goal from a cross that was bouncing awkwardly across goal. She showed real confidence smashing the ball 1-time into the net without any hesitation. Her press was excellent giving the Krush backline real problems and creating a handful of turnovers.     Cowherd is an absolute stud in midfield for Sting Black. Amazing athletic profile with a high ceiling. She was making plays all over the pitch today against Legends including a good goal. Defensively she won a ton of headers and ground duels. Offensively she combined a lot of passes and made a handful of final third entries. One of the top midfielders in her age group in the country.     This Sting Black team is built on defense and McCarthy is at the center of it. She was impossible for Legends to get around today. Everything that came her way she dealt with and made it look somewhat routine. She reads the game exceptionally well and if there was a physical battle to be had she won it every single time.     Any great defense is built around it's goalkeeper. Rodarte is just that and came up big on a number of occasions for this Sting Black team. She made excellent decisions coming off her line and with her distribution. Had a couple of huge saves from close range and came out to claim a handful of high balls that could have been dangerous if she hadn't.     The little attacking midfielder was class for her Legends side against Sting Black. She seemed to quarterback every positive possession for Legends. She can manipulate the ball to create time and space for herself as well as her teammates. Her vision is outstanding and she even got on the scoresheet late in the game to make it 2-1 and the last 5 minutes very interesting. Ultimately her side lost but she should be proud of what she did out there today.     Mctheny lead the line for her Slammers team today extremely well. She held the ball up to combine with her midfield, chased down lost causes and pressed the So Cal Blues back line like a warrior running into battle. Her technical and tactical prowess are well beyond her years. She can create on the dribble and uses both feet. Her vision and execution of through balls when dropping deep is Harry Kane like. Excellent athlete as well moving through space efficiently.     Sonthalia has an incredible physical and athletic profile with amazing ball skills. She created a ton of chances for Slammers today and got out of some really tight binds in tight spaces. Her crossing ability was on full display whipping in ball after ball for her teammates to attack. The ceiling for her is incredibly high has all the tools to be in the USYNT setup for years to come.     Little maestro in midfield. So smart and technical, makes really good decisions with the ball. Excellent set piece taker as well and certainly not scared of a tackle will get stuck in if she needs to. She's a half turn queen picking the ball up off her backline to facilitate play and always seems to want it played to her.     I could honestly write about this whole San Diego Surf team they are that good. The fulcrum in midfield however is Fallis. She is the centerpiece that makes this team tick. She scored an excellent goal just outside of the 18 that rebounded and she was quick to react to slot home. I don't remember her putting a foot wrong or turning the ball over. She won a load of aerial duels and progressed the ball forward whenever possible. Exceptional player.     Made one of if not the best save I saw all week. Solar were through on goal and the attacking player put the ball low to Boyd's right and she somehow got down fast enough to stop the ball in its tracks to prevent a certain goal. It was a big moment in the game as well because Surf just went up 1-0. She made every save she could make and was class in her distribution throughout the game.     Wagner was excellent in midfield today for Surf. She combined a ton of passes and created a ton of chances. Her assist was a lovely pass to Kensington Mcgrath. Her half turn ability is top notch and she rarely takes a bad touch. Can dribble her way out of trouble and is an excellent ball winner.     Absolute rock in the center of defense for San Diego Surf today. Her partnership with fellow center back [player_tooltip player_id='335181' first='Kensie' last='Cabral'] is a scary combination for opposition attackers. She is tall, strong and reads the game exceptionally well. Has a very bright future indeed.     The center back had her hands full today with a high powered San Diego Surf offense. She scored a great header to get her side back on level terms at 1-1. Peters played her heart out and put her body on the line for her team making tackles, blocks and winning a ton of headers. She has fantastic defensive footwork and superb positioning. It was a tough loss for her Solar side today but they battled every minute and it could have gone either way.

A much different day weather wise at ECNL Playoffs in Redmond, Washington. The heavens opened up and drenched 60 Acres Soccer Complex as temperatures hovered in the mid 60's for most of the morning. The 8am KO's were able to finish but the 10am kick offs had to be postponed a couple of hours due to lightning. The 2012 and 2013 age groups were the main event as the champions league semi-finals took place and spectators were treated to some very exciting footy. Here are the standout performances from today's matches.