MVSSCA News & Announcements

2012 Senior All Star Games

The 2012 MVSSCA Senior All Star games will be hosted at Bellbrook High School on Sunday November 11th.

3737 Upper Bellbrook Road
Bellbrook, OH 45305

Schedule:

  • 11:00 AM - DIII girls
  • 12:30 PM - DII  girls
  • 2:00 PM - DI girls
  • 3:30 PM - DI boys
  • 5:00 PM - DII boys
  • 6:30 PM - DIII boys

Elite prep soccer players face tough choice because of U.S. Soccer policy

http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/springfield-oh-sports/high-school-sports/greeneview/elite-prep-soccer-players-face-tough-choice-because-of-u-s-soccer-policy-1356769.html?showComments=true&page=2&more_comments=false

 

SPRINGFIELD — Greeneview High School junior Rylee Woods might be the best soccer player in the Miami Valley. The University of Michigan recruit knows what to do with the ball when he gets it, and last fall he put it in the back of the net 32 times.

But Woods doesn’t know what do with a decision he faces off the field, one forced upon him by the U.S. Soccer Federation’s quest to better compete at the international level and avoid setbacks like the Under-23 national team failing to qualify for this year’s Olympics.

Woods’ choice comes down to this: he can play for Greeneview this fall, or he can play for the Columbus Crew Academy team. It’s one of the 78 teams in the U.S. Soccer Developmental Academy, and Woods trains with it outside the high school soccer season. Catholic Central sophomore Thor Beckdahl, who also plays for a Crew Academy team, faces the same choice.

In years past, players like Woods and Beckdahl could do both, leaving the Crew in the fall to play high school soccer. A new policy, which was announced in February and becomes effective this fall, extends the academy season from September to June or July — this affects only boys soccer as there are no U.S. Academy teams for girls.

Elite soccer players across the world play that type of schedule, and as U.S. Soccer explained in a press release, “We are competing in a global marketplace. We are not just trying to prepare elite players for college and the pro ranks in the United States; we are trying to prepare players to compete against the best clubs and international teams from around the world.”

To remain with an academy team, a player must commit to that schedule.

It’s a tough choice, pitting the unique nature of high school soccer and the joys of playing for a community and with friends against the opportunity of testing your skills against elite talent every week and preparing for the next level.

As to what decision Woods will make, he could only say, “I have no idea.” Beckdahl also said he was undecided.

Rylee’s high school coach, Bob Eakins, who led the team to a state championship in 2005, will support whatever decision his star player makes.

“Rylee can’t worry about Greeneview soccer,” Eakins said. “Rylee has bigger things to do.”

Academy soccer

Woods started playing for the Crew Academy team last June. He travels to Columbus four to five times per week for practice and travels around the country with the team to play. In March alone, the team had games in Indiana, Texas, Michigan and Illinois.

Woods plays for the U-17/18 team, and there is also a U-15/16 team, for which Beckdahl plays. There are many other teams and players at the lower age groups in the Crew Juniors program.

Both of the top boys teams are fully funded — travel, equipment, meals, etc. — and the Crew spends approximately $7,500 to $9,000 per player ever year, said Andrew Arthurs, the Senior Vice President of Soccer Business Development for the Crew and the Executive Director of the Crew Juniors. Arthurs anticipates the budget increasing to the $9,000-$11,000 range as the season expands.

That type of investment helps explain what kind of opportunity the Crew Academy team offers.

“It’s a full ride into a high-performance environment,” Arthurs said. “I think the vast majority of our academy players are pleased with their experience and are interested in continuing that for a full year. For some, it’s going to be a difficult choice.”
In its five years of existence, the Crew Academy has sent 75 alums into college soccer, and the vast majority of those have played at the Division I level. The current U-17/18 team features players heading to Ohio State, Michigan, Notre Dame, West Virginia, Akron, Bowling Green, the College of Charleston, Wright State and Creighton.

Playing in front of college scouts on a regular basis is one of the pluses of playing with an academy team. For the elite of the elite, it’s also a chance to impress pro scouts and members of the U.S. men’s national team scouting network. The academy system funnels players to the national teams, and there are U.S. teams all the way down to the 14-year-old age group.

Most players with the Crew Academy team come from the Columbus area, though some put in extra commuting time to play with the Crew. Woods has to leave right after school for the 50-mile commute to practice in Columbus.

“We’ve got five from the Cleveland area,” Arthurs said. “They’re the kids you would expect. They’re valedictorians. They’re high school All-Americans. They’re really disciplined. They drive here three times a week. They’re big-time kids who want more.”

For now, the Crew is the only academy team in Ohio, and for that reason, the new U.S. soccer policy won’t have a dramatic impact on high school soccer here or around the nation. It will affect more than 3,000 of the top players in the country, but that’s less than 1 percent of the more than 4,000,000 high school boys soccer players in the country.

“It’s going to affect some schools more than others,” Catholic Central coach Shane Latham said. “Most schools aren’t going to have more than one player every few years that might be at the level of the academy. A school like Gahanna Lincoln might have three or four kids. They could really be affected by that. There’s always going to be one or two in the Miami Valley that might be at that level, but not any more than that.”

Latham has seen this change coming for a number of years. His son Calum, who finished his career last fall as the top scorer in Ohio high school history and is headed for Xavier University, played club soccer, but not academy soccer.

Calum also plays basketball, and that’s another thing academy players will miss out on: playing other sports.

“Calum got to play high school soccer and basketball for four years. It worked out really well for him,” Shane said. “For some people, it’s a real quandary because you can be on the academy roster and not get to play a lot. You’re sacrificing your high school career — not only in soccer — and it’s tough.”

High school soccer

University of Dayton soccer coach Dennis Currier grew up in the soccer hotbed of St. Louis. He wouldn’t have traded his high school soccer experience — and the memories of an incredible senior season in which his team finished 18-2 — for anything.

That said, he understands the direction U.S. soccer is headed.

“There are good arguments on both sides,” he said. “The academies have been very good additions to U.S. soccer, and time will tell how much impact they will have. But on the other side are the student athletes having the ability to play for their high schools and go after a state championship and lifelong memories.”

While club soccer prepares players better for the next level, it can’t match the experience of playing high school soccer.

“High school soccer is not the best system as far as developing players,” Lakota East boys soccer coach Danny Landrum said. “You get kids from all age groups and abilities, and you get a few weeks before the season to figure things out. There’s not a whole lot of development, but it’s something kids can enjoy. Their friends come to games. Their names are in the newspaper. I’ve been to many state cup matches, and there are parents there and that’s it — there are maybe 30 people watching the state final. In high school soccer, you get hundreds coming to a game.”

It’s the rare kid who should skip high school soccer, Landrum said.

“If there’s a player who’s seen by the right people to be a future professional-caliber player, sure I think maybe you skip high school soccer and do what you have to do to make that jump,” he said. “You’re talking about less than 1 percent of the players who play. Of course, you need a whole team for that one player. The other kids are going to be sold a bill of goods: ‘This is what you need to do. Skip high school soccer.’ At the end of the day, they’ll have missed out on something that’s pretty special.”

Mike Haney, the president of the Ohio Scholastic Soccer Coaches Association and head girls coach at Mariemont, doesn’t think the new policy is necessary. The upside, he said, is it won’t affect many players.

“It’s a shame kids are put in this pickle,” he said. “If it’s a matter of identifying kids, what I would love to see is for U.S. Soccer and high school soccer to work together instead of competing against each other. That’s kind of what you have now. Everyone has their own way of doing it.”

Eakins hopes the system improves. He cited U.S. Soccer’s failure to identify Chris Rolfe, a Fairmont High School graduate who currently plays in Denmark, as one reason things need to change.

“The system is broke,” Eakins said. “They’re not identifying the right kids. The selection process is horrible.”

Landrum’s fear is that other club teams outside the academy system will try to move to a September-June season. Latham has heard rumors of the Cincinnati United Soccer Club, which is now an affiliate of the Crew, becoming an academy team at some point.

“If Cincinnati United became an academy, that would really affect Division III high schools,” Latham said. “A lot of those players play for Summit (Country Day), Madeira, Cincinnati Country Day.”

If that happens, even more kids will face the decision Woods has in front of him. In the end, there might not be a right or wrong decision here. Even Rylee’s dad, Brad Woods, sees both sides of the argument.

“My opinion is he should do whatever it takes to get to the next level,” Brad said. “If he thinks the Crew is the best option, he’ll forgo his senior year. At the same time, we want him to be a kid. We’d really like him to enjoy his last year in high school.”

Greeneview soccer star Rylee Woods picks Michigan

http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/springfield-oh-sports/high-school-sports/greeneview/greeneview-soccer-star-rylee-woods-picks-michigan-1343387.html

 

JAMESTOWN — All his life Rylee Woods has worked to be the best.

The Greeneview High School junior spends hours each week commuting to Columbus, where he plays with the Crew Academy team. He’s constantly working out in the gym, Greeneview coach Bob Eakins said. Rylee’s dad Brad, a former soccer player himself, has had a lot to do with that.

“Never letting me be average is what helped me,” Rylee said. “He expects me to be the best and work hard no matter what. My work has got me where I’m at.”

Woods’ dedication has paid off in the opportunity to play college soccer at the highest level. He has verbally committed to the University of Michigan.

“It’s been my dream since I was little to play Division I soccer,” Rylee said. “It’s an amazing school. It’s ranked 14th in the world as a university. That’s pretty awesome. The coaches were great. Knowing I would get a good education and play great soccer, that’s what attracted me.”

Woods will receive a 70 percent scholarship his first two years and a 90 percent scholarship his last two years. He also had offers from Cincinnati, Ohio State and the College of Charleston.

“It’s impressive,” Eakins said. “It’s not a full scholarship, but it’s as close as you can get.”

“There were some other offers equal to Michigan,” Brad Woods said, “but the opportunity he has to get on the field is really good up there.”

Woods scored 32 goals and had nine assists last fall, leading the Rams to an 11-5-3 season. Eakins said Woods’ natural position is defensive back, but he plays up front at Greeneview because it needs his scoring.

Woods has another big decision to make before September. A new U.S. Soccer Federation policy extends the season for teams like the Crew Academy from September to June, meaning players must choose between playing for the academy team versus playing high school soccer.

Woods isn’t sure what he’ll decide. It’s a tough choice either way.

“We’d really like him to enjoy his last year in high school,” Brad Woods said. “At the same time, the opportunity the Crew organization is giving him is hard to pass up. The Crew has a lot invested in these kids. When you make the big team, it’s all funded.”

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