SAINT LOUIS SCOTT GALLAGHER
As we enter the winter months and begin the wind down on our High School Girls ECNL season, we wish to reflect on the Fall Season – all the great moments, memories, and progress made, as well looking forward to the months to come.
The fall season starts with a bang for our high school aged teams as they begin with preseason camp at Principia College. The annual kick off camp consists of 3 days of team activities, team building, and training sessions, and signals the beginning of a 6-week preseason before heading into ECNL Midwest Conference games in September. As a member of the ECNL Midwest Conference, we are exposed to the top competition around the country in teams like the Michigan Hawks (Detroit, MI), Eclipse Select (Oak Brook, IL), SLSG MO (Fenton, MO), KC Athletics (Kansas City, MO), Minnesota Thunder Academy (Richfield, MN), Vardar (Detroit, MI), FC Wisconsin (Germantown, WI), and Elite Girls Academy (Omaha, NE). In addition to playing 15 conference games, each team participates in ECNL Showcases. Thus, far, we have attended the ECNL Phoenix Showcase in November with our U19s, U17s, U16s, and U15s. Next up will be ECNL Florida Showcase in January with the U17s and U16s. We wrap up the season with the ECNL Houston Event with the U17s, U16s, and U15s, before the girl’s head into their high school seasons.
Following the Christmas Holiday, the U16s and U17s began training again to prepare for the ECNL Florida Showcase. The Florida Event is an important event for the players for a multitude of reasons. 1- it can be the push needed to solidify spots in ECNL playoffs, and 2- it has been the event with the highest college coach attendance, with games having upwards of 60 coaches last year. As in the past, Florida did not disappoint this year. Hundreds of coaches came out to watch the U16s and U17s play, with day one seeing 60 and 70+ coaches at each team’s game. From a performance standpoint, it was a great weekend for the girls. The U16s went 2-1 on the weekend, and the U17s went 3-0 on the weekend. Both groups getting some well-earned points heading into the Houston Showcase in February. The next month will consist of training and PTC for our U17s, U16s, and U15s as they prepare for their final event before High School Soccer kicks off in March. Good luck to all players!
Finally, big congratulations to our seniors who completed their final games of their ECNL careers in December. We are so proud of you all for the commitment and work you have put in to your time with the club, and are excited to see where your futures take you. Thank you, players and parents, for the endless number of hours spent driving to and from training and games, weekends on the road, missed school dances and activities, and the endless support.
UNITY ⚜ HUMILITY ⚜ PASSION ⚜ RESPECT ⚜ TRADITION