Players to Know: ECNL NSG -AZ

The ECNL Girls announced the rosters for the National Selection Games at the ECNL National Event in Phoenix. The National Event in Arizona is the first event with the U15 age group taking part in the National Selection Game. The National Selection Game is an all-star game bringing together the best players from each club on the first day of the event. The players are identified by the ECNL Player Identification staff throughout the club season. Both games will be played on April 2 at 6:15 pm at the Reach 11 Soccer Complex. <h4 class="p1">Players To Know</h4> U15 [player_tooltip player_id="19686" first="Kayalily" last="Penn"], Eagles SC Penn is fresh off a record-breaking season for her high school. Penn scored 55 goals while leading Bishop Diego to the CIF Division 7 championship. She was named the CIF Division 7 Player of the Year as a freshman. The accolades at the school level raised some eyebrows. Now she gets the chance to prove that she can do it against the best players in the country in the National Selection Game. Her play for her school revealed that she is a forward who loves to score and can do it in a variety of ways. College coaches will be looking to see how she does when the speed of the game is faster and her chances are limited. Can she play with a physical defender on her back? How does she do without the ability to turn and face goal? Penn will have plenty of eyes on her during the U15 game as the 2025 recruit is a hot name in the prospect list for that class. KK Ream, Utah Royals FC -AZ Ream is the only player born in 2009 to make the roster for the National Selection Game. She is a long way away from the college recruiting world, but she is very much in the middle of the youth national team identification process. Ream is a fun player to watch. She is a winger who plays with a reckless abandon. She flies up and down the wing, through challenges and any other obstacle. She is a good finisher, but probably better as a provider if she can find anyone to match her speed. [player_tooltip player_id="19172" first="Avery" last="Oder"], LAFC So Cal Oder is another player who is riding high after an incredible freshman season at Oaks Christian. Oder had 14 goals and 13 assists for her high school team. She is part of the U.S. Youth National Team picture with an appearance at the U15 level earlier this season. The forward is a technically gifted playmaker with great vision. She could be a player who really shines when surrounded with other top talent. [player_tooltip player_id="25296" first="Tessa" last="Knapp"], Internationals Knapp looks like one of the next wave of talented players passing through the Internationals club now. She played up an age group last season in the ECNL playoffs and made quite the impact. She scored a hat trick against Solar in the playoffs. Knapp could be the one pulling the strings for the East Team on Saturday. U16/17 [player_tooltip player_id="25917" first="Madison" last="Shumate"], Penn Fusion Shumate is a wide attacking player who has had a terrific season in the ECNL for her Penn Fusion side. She is averaging nearly one key pass per game this club season. Her best asset has been her crossing as she delivers the ball with pace and accuracy. [player_tooltip player_id="22037" first="Samantha" last="Smith"], Boise Thorns The biggest question here is where does Smith play in this game. The dual-sport athlete could feature, realistically, in six of the spots on the field. She is listed as an attacking midfielder on the roster. She is a smart player and fiercely competitive. Playing at defense would be a fun wildcard as she could show her explosive athleticism and 1v1 abilities. [player_tooltip player_id="25591" first="Kennedy" last="Fletcher"], Portland Thorns Fletcher is a right center back. She is a strong passer who is comfortable on the ball. She is very good at picking out the outlet player on the wings. She can hit a good pass on the ground or stretch the defense with a lofted ball over the top. Given the attacking talent in the National Selection Game, she will have her hands full defensively. [player_tooltip player_id="25284" first="Sophia" last="Penegor"], Ohio Premier One of the points of emphasis for the National Selection Game identification process is to find center backs to build the rest of the team around. Penegor is a right-footed left center back. She is good at finding passing angles to pick out midfielders in the build-up. She is likely to partner with [player_tooltip player_id="25641" first="Sophia" last="Stiles"] at center back on the West Team. <details><summary>U15 Rosters</summary>East Amelia Bray (Seattle United) Maya Bright (FC Delco) Taliah Brooks (Jacksonville FC) Grade Dalessandro (Match Fit Academy) [player_tooltip player_id="18991" first="Addison" last="Davis"] (Del Mar Sharks) [player_tooltip player_id="26551" first="Breckyn" last="Ferrell"] (Sting Austin) [player_tooltip player_id="26716" first="Gabriela" last="Garza"] (Sting Dallas Black) Elhom Khursand (San Juan SC) Allison Kleiner (Heat FC) [player_tooltip player_id="25296" first="Tessa" last="Knapp"] (Internationals SC) Ella Ledwith (SUSA FC) Mia Lopez (La Roca) [player_tooltip player_id="19686" first="Kayalily" last="Penn"] (Eagles SC) [player_tooltip player_id="25563" first="Frances" last="Reuland"] (FC Portland) Loretta Talbott (Bethesda SC) West [player_tooltip player_id="27282" first="Tatum" last="Barnard"] (Sting Dallas Black) Emma Fassora (Real Colorado) Annie Gnidula (Connecticut FC) Zuri Johnson (Arlington Soccer) Katie Johnston (Oklahoma Energy FC) [player_tooltip player_id="20018" first="Nicole" last="Kim"] (MVLA) [player_tooltip player_id="18867" first="Trinity" last="Lujan"] (AZ Arsenal) Amira Lyons (Washington Premier) [player_tooltip player_id="20193" first="Siena" last="Meyer"] (LAFC So Cal) Grace Morton (De Anza Force) [player_tooltip player_id="19172" first="Avery" last="Oder"] (LAFC So Cal) Emelia Pacheco-Hager (Connecticut FC) KK Ream (Utah Royals FC) Emmy Stoft (Utah Royals FC) Maci Tew (Ohio Premier)   </details><details><summary>U16/17 Rosters</summary>East [player_tooltip player_id="25208" first="Julia" last="Belli"] (Ohio Premier) [player_tooltip player_id="25591" first="Kennedy" last="Fletcher"] (Portland Thorns) [player_tooltip player_id="19406" first="Faith" last="George"] (So Cal Blues) Kaya Hanson (Seattle United) [player_tooltip player_id="19541" first="Jadyn" last="Holdenried"] (Santa Rosa United) [player_tooltip player_id="19535" first="Jacqueline" last="Hoover"] (LA Breakers) Courtney Jones (Florida Kraze Krush) Paige Kalal (Minnesota Thunder Academy) Brooklyn Lee (Pacific Northwest) Logan Marks (Richmond United) Ava Morton (Washington Premier) Hope Munson (Utah Avalanche) Peyton Nakagawara (Seattle United) Afton Perry (La Roca) Melina Rebimbas (PDA Blue) [player_tooltip player_id="25917" first="Madison" last="Shumate"] (Penn Fusion) [player_tooltip player_id="19227" first="Cameron" last="Silva"] (Mustang SC) West [player_tooltip player_id="19507" first="Isabella" last="Ayers"] (San Juan SC) [player_tooltip player_id="18822" first="Natalia" last="Coury"] (Phoenix Rising) Riley DeMartino (Bethesda SC) Addison Halpern (PDA Blue) [player_tooltip player_id="19756" first="Lauren" last="Hunter"] (Davis Legacy) Morea Juneau (Del Mar Sharks) [player_tooltip player_id="19892" first="Mary" last="Jane Osborne"] (MVLA) Katie Pedersen (Eastside FC) [player_tooltip player_id="25284" first="Sophia" last="Penegor"] (Ohio Premier) [player_tooltip player_id="25660" first="Katie" last="Scott"] (Internationals SC) [player_tooltip player_id="22037" first="Samantha" last="Smith"] (Boise Thorns) [player_tooltip player_id="25641" first="Sophia" last="Stiles"] (Portland Thorns) [player_tooltip player_id="20154" first="Sarah" last="Tate"] (MVLA) [player_tooltip player_id="20036" first="Olivia" last="Walinski"] (Pleasanton Rage) [player_tooltip player_id="19531" first="Ivy" last="Williams"] (LAFC So Cal) [player_tooltip player_id="19661" first="Kate" last="Zimmerman"] (San Juan SC)   </details>