Folsom Lake Surf ‘04 Girls Premier NPL

By Michael Plachy

The early to mid-teen years seem to be a time during which many young soccer players decide to hang up their cleats. Those who continue to play truly love the sport. These are the athletes who are willing to play soccer 4-5 days/week, at a highly competitive level in order to achieve greatness. The ‘04 Girls Folsom Lake Surf NPL team is made up of young women who share this goal.

This team has always been very physically talented. Only recently however has the collective mindset of this team significantly evolved. They have learned to expect to win. The team’s confidence is evident when they play against a bigger, seemingly more talented team who comes out fast and aggressively, only to be shut down to no goals in the first half by an insanely good defense. This team’s intense desire to win is evident then during the 2nd half, when we both mentally and physically out play the opponent and find a way to get the ball into the back of the net to win the game 1-0. There was a time when our team would not have won a game such as this, having the physical skill to do so, but lacking the confidence and possibly the desire to finish the win. Winning “who wants it more” games like this, from an ‘underdog’ position is quite fun. Cue the “Rocky” theme!

This team has grown together and become tight. Ten of the fifteen players on this team have played together since 2015. It is impressive to now stand on the side line and take in the speed of the game as well as the sheer power, athleticism and competitive drive of the athletes on this team. How did we get here? Last I remember my daughter was six years old and just starting to play soccer on a team called the “Butterflies”. Now we are playing on a top 10 nationally ranked team, working toward possibly playing this great sport in college as well as traveling the world playing soccer.

Coached by an un-matched soccer mind in Danny Cruz, this team has progressed tremendously over the past year. This is a team that prides itself on smart, relentless play. Constant inter-player communication during the game, maintaining possession of the ball whenever possible and consistent intense effort are expectations of this team. We play “out of the back”. This means that the defenders frequently pass the ball back to the goalkeeper during an opposing offensive threat. The goalkeeper then holds the ball for a period of time, drawing an opposing forward to challenge her thereby leaving one of our players open on the field. The goalkeeper becomes somewhat of a quarterback in this situation and is able to accurately distribute the ball via throw or rolling pass, creating an offensive opportunity.

We have tough, fast, athletic and fearless defenders. They will go 1:1 with the best forwards without hesitation and consistently win the ball. In the rare case in which one of our defenders does get “beat”, they put on a display of sheer speed and competitive drive in order to chase the forward down and take the ball back. It is impressive to watch.

Our Midfielders pride themselves on winning 50/50 balls and are outstanding at then making a quick move, taking a touch and finding a forward on the outside making a run. Another impressive quality of this midfield is their ability to nail dramatic outside goals, whether following a pass or during a set piece. While the traditional, more conservative plan for a 40 yard set piece is to put the ball up 15 yards in front of the goal for a possible header, we have a player who is known for burying a 40 yard free kick on a regular basis!

We have certain forwards who play like NFL linebackers. We have more finesse oriented offenders who can drop a corner kick right in front of the goal and/or place a left footed, bending shot into the far right corner of the net more often than not. We have a couple of players who seem to have decided to literally ‘step up’ and finish these accurate corner kicks, in the form of solid, aggressive headers into the net.

We have a team poised for greatness. I’m not sure if there is a goal they can’t reach!

Here is the team’s accomplishments to date:

**Last season this team went 25-2-4 with 18 shutouts.

**2019-2020NorCal 2004G NPL 1 Champions with a 10-0 record.

**GotSoccer Rankings:

• #1 California North
• #2 California
• #4 Regional (US and Canada)
• #10 National (US and Canada)

**2019 NorCal Spring Champions League – 2nd place

**2019 Surf Cup – Semi Finalists

**2019 Davis Legacy College Showcase – Quarter Finalist

**2019 Davis Legacy Premier Cup – Champion

**2019 MVLA Fall Cup – Champion

**2018 Fall NorCal Premier League – 1st place

**2018 Placer Cup – Semi Finalist

**2017 CRL Fall League – 1st Place

**2017 Cal North State Cup Champions

**2017 Region IV Far West Regional Championship participant

**2016 Davis Legacy Super Clasico – Champion

**2016 AJAX Invitational Premier – Champion

Looking ahead to better days, filled with sun soaked, competitive soccer play. Go Folsom Lake Surf!