ECNL Phoenix Day 1 Standouts

Very exciting first day of action here in Phoenix. Teams get to match up with opposition that the ECNL committee feels is a similar level from different parts of the country. Here are some exceptional performances that caught my eye.   In the 2008 age group Mustang took on Boise Thorns and dominated in a 5-0 win. [player_tooltip player_id='111260' first='Abby' last='Forsgren'] is an immense talent with huge upside. The outside back is an elite athlete and has exceptional ball skills to boot. Her touch out of the air is incredibly consistent and her timing with her tackles is fantastic. What she lacks in size she makes up for in tenacity and competitive spirit. Forsgren is still uncommitted as of now but I don't think that will last for long! [player_tooltip player_id='211239' first='Elle' last='Sloan'] had a phenomenal outing for Mustang as well. The forward impressed with her hold up play, physicality, speed on the dribble, and her fantastic crossing ability. She chipped in two great assists for her team.   I made my way over to field 1 in the stadium to watch Sporting Blue Valley take on Bay Area Surf. Bay Area Surf got off to the races with an early goal from [player_tooltip player_id='111310' first='Terren' last='Davis']. Davis is a great two-way player. She makes plays on both ends and is extremely calm in possession. Kate Nunes had a solid game for Surf she is incredibly fit, gets up and down the field in a flash. She possesses two great feet while also showing extreme calmness under pressure. The Cal Poly commit has a very bright future. Sporting Blue Valley had a ton of good performances on their end showing real grit and determination as a team. They out battled Bay Area Surf on their way to a 4-1 win. If I could shout out the whole team I would but Sophia Baker and Zenaida Arnau in particular were very good for Blue Valley.   On the other side of the facility three players who just recently won a Bronze at the U17 Women's World Cup squared off against each other. Jocelyn Traver, [player_tooltip player_id='54185' first='Daya' last='King'], and Scottie Antonucci were squaring off in a Bay Area Surf VS Legends showdown. Surf got an early red card and eventually succumbed to a 2-0 loss. All three USYNT players showed their pedigree and played extremely well. I'd also say [player_tooltip player_id='189258' first='Kaia' last='Tom'] was phenomenal keeping Legends at bay playing with 10 players. Every time I watch her she plays so much bigger then she is. She anticipates where strikers are going to shoot expertly, so she plays much taller than she is. Don't sleep on her!   Another top matchup in the 2008 age group MVLA took on Michigan Hawks. MVLA went 1-0 up from a goal from [player_tooltip player_id='284037' first='Eva' last='Awoyinka'], Michigan Hawks equalized from a very well worked goal by [player_tooltip player_id='94656' first='Addie' last='Fife'] and then a late game winner from [player_tooltip player_id='111254' first='Ava' last='Martinez'] secured the win for MVLA. [player_tooltip player_id='111251' first='Maggie' last='Currie'] is an absolute superstar she played 4 different positions and didn't look out of place in any of them. She is a swiss army knife of a player and instantly becomes a matchup nightmare for the opposition wherever she gets plugged into. [player_tooltip player_id='94677' first='Amber' last='Weaver'] is a hard-nose defender for the Michigan Hawks. She is calm in possession and will eat opposition players for lunch in the tackle. The Northwestern commit leaves everything out there on the field and has a high competitive drive.   In the late 4pm KO I watched a top-tier 2009 age group matchup with MVLA taking on Slammers HB Koge. [player_tooltip player_id='112217' first='Alexis' last='Katter'] really caught my eye for Koge. The defender is lightning in her recovery runs and anticipates the opposition expertly. She doesn't hesitate driving into space and makes things happen on both ends of the ball. Very high ceiling for this young player. [player_tooltip player_id='186196' first='Dorothea' last='Perry'] is an absolute problem to deal with in midfield. She destroys opposition attacks and starts new ones. She has excellent touch, vision and anticipation. For me [player_tooltip player_id='111097' first='Chloe' last='Miller'] is the most complete 2009 player in the entire ECNL. The Left Center Back reminds me of Virgil Van Dijk she leads her team, reads the game and recovers balls at an exceptionally high level. Can't say enough good things about this young player

Very exciting first day of action here in Phoenix. Teams get to match up with opposition that the ECNL committee feels is a similar level from different parts of the country. Here are some exceptional performances that caught my eye.