Delaney Whittet
Staff Writer
The girls U18 club soccer team, Beach Futbol Club Academy, recently scored an opportunity to win a national championship.
Beach received a spot in the US Youth Soccer National Championships by winning their division in National League, which is a selection of teams from across the United States who compete for 4 of the 8 spots in the National Championships.The Championships will take place in Tulsa, Oklahoma from July 20-26.
“Our ultimate goal is to win the National Championship, but this goal is shared with seven other teams who will be at the competition,” Beach FC Academy coach Anton Arrache said. “This summer will be exciting and we are all looking forward to it.”
There are sixteen teams in each National League age group which are then split into two divisions of eight. Half the teams in each division are from the west coast and the other half from the east coast. The top two teams from each division advance to the National Championships. Beach placed first in their division securing their spot in the championships.
“U18 soccer is different in that a lot of teams lose players to college, but we didn’t lose many,” senior Nonie Frishette said. “We added a couple of key players and that showed in how strong and unified we were throughout National League.”
Beach Academy’s team includes seniors Megan Carver, Frishette, and Mckenna Doyle. The team played a total of seven games in National League and ended with a record of 5-1-1.
“By the time Oklahoma comes, I hope our training and dedication will pay off and we will be able to win the championship,” Doyle said.
Beach played four of the teams in their division in Wilson, North Carolina from Nov 20-23. They won their games against FC United Select, Kings Harbor Academy, Maitland 96/97 Florida Krush Black, and tied 97 Louisiana Fire Navy putting Beach in first place.
“Our work ethic was evident in all our games because we had to prove to everyone how much we wanted it,” Carver said. “We came out with a lot of heart which lead to getting the results that we needed.”
They played the other 3 National League teams in Las Vegas, Nevada on March 20-22. Beach beat Legacy 97 Red and YMS Premier Wildcats, but were defeated in their last game by the DMCV Sharks Elite. Despite their one loss, they still came out in first place.
“Playing in National League has taught me that working together as a team is the key to success,” Doyle said. “One quote that we say before games is ‘play for yourself, work for each other, and strive for the future’”.
In preparation for the National Championships, Beach will have a training camp along with fitness and tactical practices. They will also be scrimmaging local boys teams and the local Women’s Premier Soccer League team to increase their speed of play.
“The hope is that the team will be peaking by late July,” Arrache said. “I would love nothing more than for the girls to lift a National Championship trophy just before they leave for college.”
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