THE LATEST FROM WYOMING SOCCER |
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WYOMING SOCCER SAYS GOODBYE TO KRISTA SWECKARD |
Wyoming Soccer Association accepted the resignation of Krista Sweckard as ODP Administrator the end of August and her last official day was September 15th.
Krista has served our state association through the Wyoming ODP Program for more than six years and has been involved since 2011 when her triplets (yes, you read that correctly) joined the program. They were part of the Wyoming 307 Select Program, as well.
She was also very involved with the Johnson County Soccer Association between 2008-2019 serving in many capacities, including coach, director of coaching and registrar...and of course, let's not forget highly active parent. She did all of this while working full time and being a mom and wife! We were blessed to have her as long as we did and we sincerely appreciate her hard work, dedicaiton and overall value she brought to Wyoming Soccer.
Krista, you will be missed!
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WYOMING SOCCER ACADEMIC SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS! |
Drum Roll Please...
Wyoming Soccer had several players apply for an academic collegiate scholarship last Spring and we are proud to reveal who the three very deserving recipients are:
Alyssa Bedard - Rock Springs
Nathan Hawley - Casper
Ethan Mathis - Cheyenne
We are very proud of each of these players and wish them the best as they pursue their college dreams and start their new adventure playing college soccer! To view the full press release on these players and to learn more about the Wyoming Soccer Academic Scholarship, please click HERE.
Congratulations to each of them!
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WYOMING SOCCER INTRODUCES A NEW PARTNER |
A New Way to Connect
Sports Thread, based in Denver, Colorado offers a social media-based, self-promotion, and communications platform for high school aged athletes in the United States. Sports Thread helps all student-athletes who wish to play college sports achieve their dreams, regardless of their individual skill level, socioeconomic status or geographic location.
Sports Thread is lead by a team of professionals, including professional athletes, coaches, and other industry experts to help students create a profile and get seen. Wyoming Soccer is proud to partner with them and the app will be available at no cost. Not only will this serve our athletes, but it can also serve our coaches helping them to create a coaches book.
You may be asking yourself...how many companies like this are there and do they really work? After a presentation from their CEO, Sean Leary, to our entire staff, we couldn't really come up with one reason why we wouldn't partner with Sports Thread. It is a robust company that has worked for two years to build their platform, learning what works and what doesn't.
It is our hope that you will be able to see the results first hand and we will have more information coming as we prepare to roll this out to all of you in the coming weeks.
In addition, Mr. Leary will be presenting at our Annual General Meeting (AGM) scheduled in Casper on February 27-28, 2021. Stay tuned for the full line up - you will not want to miss it!
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Wyoming 307 Select Program teams have been formed and we have been trying to keep up with them!
Several of our teams have been playing in events and they are fairing quite well! We are very proud of all of them and you can follow our teams on social media by using #wyoming307select
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Wyoming ODP Teams are forming right now and we have a record number of teams this year with a total of eight!
We are excited to see what they are going to do and final rosters will be announced in the next week!
These teams will proudly represent Wyoming at the US Youth Soccer ODP Championships in Phoenix, AZ in January 2021! You will be able to follow them by using #wyomingodp on social media.
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Introducing PowerPrep10
For several years now, Wyoming Soccer has been partnering with eKnowledge to assisst our highschool aged soccer players across the state in gaining some amazing ACT and SAT test prep for a deal almost too good to be true.
Well, it just got even better...the PowerPrep 10 Beta Program has just been released. This is a course that is intuitive, student-driven, comprehensive, multi-media, content rich and focused precisely on your student's needs with instant access to a LIVE teacher!
The value of this is $350, but as a member of Wyoming Soccer Association you can get in for as low as $19.99 and can receive EVERYTHING for only $49.99 - a $1500 value!
If you register by September 30th, you can get an additional year for FREE!
The deadline to register for October ACT Test Dates is September 25, 2020. The deadline to register for the next SAT Test (November 7, 2020) is October 7, 2020.
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THE LATEST FROM US YOUTH SOCCER |
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THE LATEST FROM US SOCCER FEDERATION |
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National Youth Soccer Month is celebrating its 18th year. Learn all about the joys, rewards and benefits of playing youth soccer with a variety of resources to help you get involved.
As part of the celebration, US Youth Soccer is reaching out to soccer enthusiasts throughout the United States with messages about youth soccer and the many advantages of the sport.
Get engaged and choose your unique way to celebrate soccer this month. Spread the message about your positive experiences and have fun celebrating the game you love.
See below for ideas and materials to use for your celebration and increase public awareness of the many benefits of playing youth soccer. Click on the different themes below to celebrate National Youth Soccer Month!
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A NEW GOALKEEPER COACH FOR THE USWNT |
U.S. Soccer has announced that Philip Poole has been named the full-time Goalkeeper Coach for the U.S. Women’s National Team.
Poole joined head coach Vlatko Andonovski’s staff in January of 2020 and was the goalkeeper coach for the Concacaf Olympic Qualifying tournament and the SheBelieves Cup, both won by the USA. He will now be in the role full time after leaving his job as the Associate Head Coach for the Wake Forest women’s soccer program.
Poole, 38, has extensive experience coaching with the U.S. National Team programs. He has been involved with U.S. Soccer since 2012, working numerous camps and events as a coach and scout from the U-14 level up to the senior National Team. He was the goalkeeper coach for the U.S. Under-20 Women’s World Cup Team in 2014, and from 2017-2019 was the goalkeeper coach for the U.S. U-23 WNT.
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Libby Goodspeed from the Laramie Soccer Club is in the spotlight for the month of September. Libby was specifically nominated because she made a decision that clearly demonstrated her unselfish and sacrificial spirit.
Recently, Libby was invited to join the 2004/2005 Girls Wyoming ODP team - the highest level of play in the state. Libby is a talented soccer player who knows what she wants. With that said, she already knows that her college career will not include soccer. She understands the nature of the ODP Program and that at her age, a key benefit of participation is to gain exposure with college coaches. While Libby clearly understood the honor of being invited to play on the team, she made the decision to decline her invitation because she "would feel horrible accepting a position and taking the opportunity from another player who had aspirations of playing in college." The head coach of the team, Don Maples, felt this was a very mature train of thought and exceptional display of character and we wanted to publicly recognize Libby for this.
Libby absolutely loves the game of soccer as has been playing since the age of four. She began playng with her local club recreationally and at the age of seven, she began playing more competiviely and was on a travel team. In 2018, Libby started playing in the Wyoming 307 Select Program and conttinues to do so now. She primarily plays Center Defense. In addition to playing for Laramie Soccer Club and Wyoming 307 Select, Libby has guest played for Coach Kristen Paskett's team in Riverton.
She was looking forward to playing with the Laramie High School team (Lady Plainsmen), as a freshman, last spring, but was unable to due to the cancellation of high school spring sports. She is optimistic and looking forward to the upcoming spring season!
Besides playing soccer, Libby enjoys hanging out with friends and family. She enjoys spending time at the family cabin, traveling, baking, playing games and cheering on her younger brother in all of his sporting activities. Libby is fiercely competitive in all that she does, whether it is on the field or in the classroom. We are proud to honor Libby and put her in the spotlight for the month of September!
We want to hear more about players like Libby. Remember, the player spotlight can highlight achievement in any area, whether it's soccer, academics, community, or attitude. Please share your kids with us!
To nominate a player from your club for the Player Spotlight, please click here. Scroll down to the general section. Click "Player Spotlight Submission Form" and it will save to your computer. The form is very simple and should be emailed to wssa@wyomingsoccer.com.
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THE NEW COACH MONTHLY NEWSLETTER
This month, David Hayes, our state Technical Director, started a newsletter called, Coach Education Monthly.
Each month, David will be sending out useful information to assist our coaches statewide in leading their teams on the field to the best of their ability.
September's newsletter focused on the coaching environment and how you as a coach can have control this. Key points included:
- Have a Plan
- Encourage
- Make it Fun
- Team Building
- Track Progress
You can read David's complete newsletter HERE for more details on each area.
In addition, the monthly coach webinars are starting back up, with a lunch and learn format. The next one is happening this Wednesday, September 23rd at noon.
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THE LATEST UPCOMING EVENTS |
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September 25-27, 2020
September 26-27, 2020
October 3-4, 2020
October 10-11, 2020
Don't forget, Wyoming State League (WSL) matches can be played during any of the above events. Find out more about the WSL HERE and see teams in your division by clicking HERE.
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SEPTEMBER CODE OF CONDUCT HIGHLIGHT |
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All registrants must agree to the Wyoming Soccer Association's (WSA's) Code of Conduct.
Please remember that no unsportsmanlike conduct (on or off the field) and no foul or abusive language directed towards other players, referees, coaches or fans will be tolerated. Please do not criticize teammates, instead compliment and support one another.
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GET TO KNOW OUR GROWING LIST OF PARTNERS |
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WYOMING SOCCER ASSOCIATION| www.wyomingsoccer.com
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