Saturday started out with a presentation from Dave Eldred, our interim Technical Director, who laid out his vision for the future of Wyoming 307 Select and Wyoming ODP. He talked about cohesion between the two programs, the importance of coach buy-in and their involvement in decisions, branding, and consistency.

Some of our plans changed due to road closures in the southern part of the state and Dave presented again on TOPsoccer, pitch hitting for our TOPSoccer Chair, Brian Longbottom, who was unable to make it. Dave talked about the importance and inclusion of the progam and about the creativity, fun and the magic of letting loose and being silly. For any clubs interested in starting a TOPSoccer program, please contact Brian.

We also heard from our State Referee Committee members, Roger Brown (state referee administrator), Scott Hawley (state director of instruction) and Larissa Bonnet (state assignor). They talked aout the challenges facing our state, our clubs and the referees themselves. Not only is there a shortage, but the demands placed on referees makes the job even more difficult. As a state, we all need to work together to recruit new referees, retain the ones we have and provide education to those around us regarding the importance of their role and the respect and appreciation they deserve for the job they do. One of the biggest things we can do is host referee clinics. If your club wants to host a clinic, please click here.

Maggy Mahalick, Director of Strategic Partnerships for Trace, our newest parter, gave us a demo. Trace is going to add some value to our oldest age groups within the Wyoming 307 Select Program and assist them in creating some amazing video, while at the same time gaining insightful player metrics during the game. We cannot wait to see what this new technology can bring to the table for Wyoming Soccer.

Last, but certainly not least, we heard from Kristen Oshiro with Positive Coaching Alliance. Kristen did a great job of getting everyone engaged and active - which was perfect right after lunch and our heavy round table discussions about Wyoming League and state programs, both of which were productive and you can expect some positive changes going into next year for both.

Kristen talked a lot about the importance of posivity and the 5:1 ratio - for every piece of crticism, there should be five positive statements. She also talked about the criticism sandwich - start and end with something positive. One of the best points was around ROOTS - Rules, Opponents, Officials, Teammates and Self. It was approaced from different perspectives, those being the area we, as individuals, struggle the most to respect and secondly, the area we feel players struggle the most to respect, and how this impacts the way the game is honored. More about this concept can be found here.

Following the workshops, we held our annual general meeting (AGM). During the AGM, Wyoming Soccer elected a new president, Jeff Carruth from Riverton, and a new secretary, Chris Dresang from Casper. We also approved the District 4 (Lander, Riverton, Casper & Douglas) election of Skye Coleman-Weisz as their new representative on the WSA Board of Directors. With these additions, we had to say goodbye to President, Dan King, Secretary, Annie Graham, and District 4 Representative, Fabian Lobera. We appreciate the dedication and service they have given Wyoming Soccer Association over the past several years!

The highlight of the event each year is our annual awards celebration where we recognize our amazing members, including administrators, volunteers, referees, coaches, TOPSoccer Buddies, and last, but certainly not least, our players! This year, we also inducted our very first member into the Wyoming Soccer Association Hall of Fame, honoring them with a Lifetime Achievement Award. We were privileged to hear from Kristen Oshiro once again as she told her personal story of perseverence and how she pushed through despite the challenges and obstacles before her. It was very inspiring and she delivered a much needed message to our members.

To view a slide show of each of our award recipients, please click here. To view photos from the event, please click here.

The 2022 award winners are:

Giovanni Monterastelli

Gabi Gines

Amanda Diefenderfer

Aaron Larsen

Katie Gitthens

Emma Prior

Sheridan County Soccer Association

Ron Overcast

Worland Soccer Association

We also honored each of our players who were spotlighted during 2021 in our monthly newsletter, The Latest Score. Over the past year, we spotlighted the following players from oround the state (there was no player spotlight in February):

Natalie Wenke

Yellowstone Fire

Gunnar Erickson

Heart Mountain United Soccer Association

Olivia Penfield

Douglas Soccer Association

Sophia Bonilla

Jackson Hole Youth Soccer

Dawson McDonald

Worland Soccer Association

Kanon Lamb

Evanston Youth Soccer Club

Caden Allaire

Casper Soccer Club

Emma Prior

Sheridan County Soccer Association

Dakota Pietersma

Cheyenne Soccer Club

Brookelyn Phillips

Green River Spurs

James Rasmussen

Casper Soccer Club