I am a current freshman in high school looking to play D3 women’s soccer preferably a NESCAC (academics and location). My team plays in the E64 league. Do I have a shot at playing for these schools despite not playing for an ECNL or GA team? Are players in these leagues significantly better (quality of play, technical skills, off-ball IQ, etc.) than a player on an E64 team? I am going to attend ID camps so I will see what the teams and schools are like. (Note: There are no ECNL teams close to where I live, most are an hour or more away which will not work with my family’s schedule. There is one GA team but the roster is very big. I was offered to be a practice player but I was told I would be one for the next few years so it isn’t worth it to me if I can’t go to games/tournaments/showcases. I do not plan on switching because I am very happy with my teammates, coach, and where games/practices are.)
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College coaches don't recruit teams or leagues they recruit players. Most players are not "recruited" or "discovered" - that's pretty much left to the kids at the very top, and the very top D1 soccer schools. For all the other schools, the keys are:
1. Academic - be a kid that easily gets into the school so the coach knows you can handle the academic load
2. Be a player at/above the teams current level of play - look at their roster, watch them play, can you see where you add?
3. Stalk the coach - write & call to convince them that their school is where you want to be and find a way to get in front of them so they can see you perform. D3 coaches generally recruit regionally, so finding out what events they are attending should be pretty easy - guest play on a team if you have to and perform when they show up. Camps are fine, but they don't duplicate the match.
Ultimately, pick a school you want to attend and see if you can play there - D3 is awesome, the last remaining refuge of Student-Athlete. Everyone else seems to be Athlete-Student.
Good luck -
As a parent of a player in a similar age category, who is very involved in the soccer scene, some thoughts:Originally posted by soccerplayer_08 View Post
There are quite a few solid players NOT playing ECNL or GA, but it's generally more of a "are you the best one on your team by a wide margin" kind of situation or "Is your team competing for a state cup" title. You basically can tell on the field if you are dominating the competition more often than not and are "the one" in terms of a dominant player. If not, get more serious about standing out. In your high school games, you will/should know who those ECNL/GA players are and if you are competing with them on the field, then you are not out of the running.
Check out the college specific ID camps. Check out the rosters of the schools you are thinking and then check the bios of those players in terms of high school resume and news clippings. Think about what that would mean for you to get to that level in terms of high school accolades (some of which are bogus by the way).
For NESCAC specifically, if (a) you have the grades and (b) you have the goods in terms of soccer and (b) your parents are prepared to write the check for the full tuition, then you have a shot.
E64 is a new league and I honestly don't think it's that great. Download the app "Rankings" on your iPhone for 10 bucks and see where your team really stacks up vs other teams in your state/geography. It has all the teams in there. Try to get your team into some of the events (tournaments) where some of the other better teams are playing to see how you are doing.
You are already way ahead getting your thoughts together and identifying the schools you want to attend so kudos for that. But you are going to have to work in terms of college ID camps and coach contacts to get noticed from a lower level league. Your explanation as to why not doing those leagues is perfectly reasonable, it's just not as easy to get noticed.Comment
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