Top Level Maryland 2011s Looking to Make Noise at Jefferson Cup

With Jeff Cup upon us I thought I would make sure Maryland is getting it's representation in players to watch out for. There are plenty of lists out there for players to watch, and a bunch on the National Lists that you'll hear about, but Maryland has a lot more than that, and I want to make sure that gets out there. Here are some of the top 2011G to watch out for.    It's not uncommon to see players moving from club to club in this area, there are a few high level GA and ECNL teams fairly close together. Kara came from an ECNL club last year and made the move to [program_tooltip program_id='321279' first='Coppermine' last='GA'] this year. I haven't seen a ton of these tier girls in person, focusing more on the diamonds in the rough, but Kara is a baller. She's got good size, when I saw her a little bit she was playing mid, and almost looked like she was dancing out there with her footwork. Terrific at creating space, I wouldn't want a 1v1 with her. She made a couple great passes out of that space, which was what put her on my radar. She's also a veteran of the US ID Center, which is elite territory at her age group.     Mary is one of the best GK in the 2029 class, not just in Maryland, but overall. The girl is a beast. She's got good size, and she's still agile with that size, her hands are fantastic, and she's got really good reaction time. I've seen her from afar a little bit, but recently got to get eyes on her in person, and I was impressed. I'm planning some time soon to see some live game action of hers, to get to see the distribution and communication parts of things, but her physical attributes are off the charts, and it helps that she's just a really good kid. There's no harsher critic than other players in the same age groups, and I've had a couple that have had nothing but great things to say about her personally. Makes it really easy to root for a kid. Especially one with time in the US ID system already.     Aylani should be on everyone's radar by now. I don't think I'm early to this train, she's been in US ID camps plenty of times, been selected to the USA Training Camp, she's won an ODP National Title, and made it to the sweet 16 in the ECNL playoffs. Of course you need a team for that, and she's been a major part of that. Every once in a while you come across a player, whether the position or just individual ability, and it's not just the feeling of, oh, I found a good one here, it's a genuine excitement to watch, because you know you just got in on the ground floor of something major. This is one of those. She's a great CB, with good speed, and she makes good decisions with the ball. Many good defensive CB will step up and make a play, but that may just be to clear the ball or kick it down out of danger, but most all of her balls are cleared and done with purpose, finding a teammate, starting a rush the other way. She's got great footwork for a CB, and most coaches will tell you that's their favorite thing to ask for, a ball carrying CB that can get the transition run and out of the zone. I'm going to try to catch some more of her live, but this one is one you should REALLY pay attention to. Next year with the switch to grade year, that 2030 team is going to be absolutely terrifying to play against. They've got another young defender in 2012s that is a 2030 and the two of them together may be the makings of one of the best youth defense corps I've ever seen.     Mia is a standout midfielder with [program_tooltip program_id='283255' first='Baltimore' last='Celtic'] GA. Their 2011 team has had some turnover the past few seasons and a fantastic new coaching staff, and now they are ready to make some noise. Mia has good size and physicality which is a plus in the middle of the field, but her foot skills and vision are a big plus to her game. She makes smart passes and finds lanes that aren't covered, and is a huge part of the build out. She's got a great leg, and is not afraid to shoot the ball. This is a very talented team that is kind of under the radar right now, but I've gotten to see them up close quite a bit the last month or so, and they are really going to show people what they can do, I'll enjoy giving more players on this team some spotlight.     Julianna I've only gotten to see in a game once so far, but it carries a lot of weight that she made varsity as a freshman for a very talented Archbishop Spalding team. Knowing the girls on that team and the level of play they are at, for her to make that as a freshman especially puts her in a different weight class. She plays for [program_tooltip program_id='283614' first='Baltimore' last='Armour'] currently, and in the one club game I got to see her she showed a good touch passing the ball from midfield. It was a tight game and the mids didn't get a lot of touches on the ball overall in this one, it just happens sometimes, but in the limited looks I got you could see she wasn't overmatched, was reading the field well and getting to where she should be, and most importantly for a midfielder was playing both all the way up and back in coverage. Hoping to catch her again soon during club, but if not she will be on my list with a few of my favorites during HS season.    With such a deep tournament it's just impossible to touch on all the players to hunt for or watch, but these are some of the standouts in the upper brackets, a sampling from each of the Maryland teams to watch. I plan on getting something out for 2010 and 2009 as well, hoping to add some depth to our lists here and be able to launch some rankings soon.

With Jeff Cup upon us I thought I would make sure Maryland is getting it's representation in players to watch out for. There are plenty of lists out there for players to watch, and a bunch on the National Lists that you'll hear about, but Maryland has a lot more than that, and I want to make sure that gets out there. Here are some of the top 2011G to watch out for.