Pleasanton RAGE U15 Orange capped off their summer tournament run with a calhampionship win at soccer city warmup. The girls allowed only one goal scored against them in 4 games of the tournament. Coach Luis Siu couldn’t have been any prouder of the girls play!

11-8-13  Election Results 2014 RAGE Board of Directors

RAGE Membership,

Congratulations to the seven (7) newly elected members of the RAGE Board of Directors!!
The results have been certified and posted below.
At the first meeting of the 2014 calendar year, the Board will elect, from its 15 members, a President, Competitive Vice President, Recreational Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary.

Thank you for your participation in the voting process.

Martha Brown – RAGE Parliamentarian

TWO-YEAR TERM
Jon Asmussen
Dan Copenhagen
Brian Damiani
Mark Hjerpe
Steve Moura
Jim Nicholas
David Wright

SOCCER CITY WARM-UP MOST INSPIRATIONAL PLAYERS

The following girls Attitude 100% of the time, always being committed to practice, constant effort, positive attitude, lively spirit, obvious passion and love for soccer, sheer persistence.

Back Row Left to Right: Coach Axel Thibodeau, Emily Wright, Kirsty Brown, Sydney Pandolfo, Lauren Russell, Lucy Holmes, Lilly Ryan, Delaney Bammer, Madison Baxter, Victoria Sanchez, Summer Langsam, Assistant Coach Ray Hoof
Front Row Left to Right: Audrey Goodman, Terra McHone, Natasa Copic, Katie Judson, Keara Greenan, Molly Murphy, Jennifer Waldo     Not Pictured (injury): Nicole Zhang

Left to right (visible): Coach Axel Thibodeau, Lilly Ryan, Kirsty Brown, Natasa Copic, Keara Greenan, Madison Baxter, Molly Murphy, Lucy Holmes, Jennifer Waldo, Emily Wright, Coach Ray Hooft, Katie Judson, Summer Langsam

The Pleasanton RAGE U14 Premier team won the West Coast FC Southern California Tournament!! The team defeated Beach FC North in the Championship Game in a stunning PK Shootout after battling to a draw at the end of regulation. They won five consecutive games over two grueling days in sun swept Orange County and secured their championship title late in the evening under the lights on Sunday. They defeated many worthy opponents along the way including a strong West Coast FC Team, two Beach FC teams, the Irvine Slammers, and the Santa Anita Rampage. They are coached by Axel Thibodeau. They were also guided down south by Assistant Coach Ray Hooft. Stephanie Wieger is the age group head coach/technical trainer.

I U.S. U-18 WNT Training Camp Carson, CA at Staples Center

My time in the Youth National Team Program has taught me many important lessons about soccer and life. Some of which include the importance of hard work and determination, the essentiality of teamwork, and the necessity of setting goals and reaching them. But I think the most important one I have learned is to never take a moment for granted.

I am so thankful for the opportunities I have gotten with U.S. Soccer: to train in top-notch facilities, work with amazing players and coaches, but most of all, to wear the crest. An overwhelming sense of pride was felt everyday when I walked into the locker room, saw my name on that locker, and got to wear the U.S. jersey. 

This camp was my second of the year. In many ways it was better and harder than last camp. With an almost completely new roster, the 9 returners, including myself, got to share our experiences with a new pool of players. From the physical and technical testing, to an inter-squad scrimmage, to cheering on our U-20 Women’s Team against Japan, and finally beating the L.A. Strikers 4-1 on our last day, the team became a tight-knit family. But with a new group of players and coaches, comes new talent and new techniques. This time a new goalkeeper trainer tested us in many ways, both physically and mentally. The goalkeeper sessions were the most intense parts of the day. Ranging from crosses to reaction saves; the daily topics were used to evaluate our skills while also teach us new things about the position. In a week full of 13 total trainings, I came away with a wealth of knowledge and a lot of new things to try and work on when I returned home.

Throughout the duration of this camp, I learned a lot about myself as a person and a player. I faced adversity and failure during my week at camp, while also facing moments of success and greatness. I know I will face these challenges and rewards as I continue to progress in the U.S. Youth National Team Program. My long-term goal is to make the roster to travel to the U-20 Women’s World Cup in 2016. I know with hard work and determination, I can work my best to get there. But for now, I am grateful for everything I have been able to do because of this sport. I know I would not be here without my family, my coaches, and most of all my teammates.

Remember, greatness is not achieved on talent alone. It is the hard work, sacrifices, sweat, blood, tears, and love you put towards becoming the best player you can be.

Go Rage!

ODP Region IV Pool Camp – Nicole Lee (Nikki) U14

I had the opportunity to attend Olympic Development Regional Pool Camp in Camarillo, CA from July 29 – Aug. 2, 2013.   The top sixty soccer players from the thirteen western states (Region IV) were invited to train and compete against each other.  We were selected based on our performance at various Olympic development events.  Selected Regional Pool players may have an opportunity to play in national and international events.
While at camp, we practiced for two hours in the morning.  We worked on stretching the field (going wider when you have possession of the ball), keeping the possession of the ball, and goal scoring. After the practice, we had lunch and then scrimmaged in the afternoon.  It was different from other training events because the level of play was always super-fast and competitive.  Everyone had a good first touch, good vision on the field, and was able to drive the ball down the field.  Players passed quickly and accurately without interceptions.  It was physically and mentally challenging.  At the end of the day, we went to the classrooms for lectures and instructions.  We learned the importance of a positive attitude while on the field, secrets to goal scoring, and achieving goals.
The coaching was really helpful.  They explained drills and gave us tips on how to better receive the ball.  There were many coaches from various colleges as well as the youth national team coach. One of the coaches was Brandi Chastain.  They inspired us to work harder and learn more. They showed us video clips on how to become a national team player.  Every night they taught us what they expected us to practice the next day.
In addition to soccer training, I got to experience dorm life as a thirteen year old at the California State University Channel Islands.  We ate at the college cafeteria which was surprisingly okay. There was a lot of variety to choose from. I also met new friends. There were 4 to 6 girls in each room.  In my room I had girls from Oregon, SoCal, and Hawaii. We played crazy games in the dorms and listened to Hawaiian stories. We became friends and I look forward to staying in touch with them.
Regional Pool Camp was so much fun.  It was a wonderful experience to play with some of the best players and receive great training.  I got to meet new friends from many different places.  I learned so much at camp and it inspired me to work even harder at soccer. I have a better sense on what it’s going to take to be a top notch player.  It was an amazing opportunity and I am thankful for all the guidance and coaching that has brought me to this point.

ODP Region IV Pool Camp –  Sydney Schultz

Well, here’s the short version of my wonderful experience!  When I first heard about the news of the Region IV Pool Camp, I was so excited I did a sideways bicycle kick.  My parents were not happy about me doing this in the living room because they thought I hurt myself – ha ha, I didn’t!  I sought to train hard in the time leading up to the camp to prepare myself.  Luckily I have great Rage teammates and coaches that helped me prepare the best I could.  
On July 29th, a Monday afternoon, I arrived at the place I would be staying for camp – Cal State University Channel Islands in Camarillo, CA.  The campus itself was very clean and very alabaster like too.  Its style reminded me of the apartments I used to live in when I lived in Arizona, very pueblo looking.  My dad parked our car next to our dorms, the Santa Cruz Village.  I had grabbed my forms and went to the check-in lines.  Who do I see right behind me?  My friend and Rage teammate Nikki !!! – we chatted for a little as we waited to check in.  We then took some pics and I went and got my key card for my dorm room.  I grabbed most of my luggage from my car and headed to my room.  My stuff was really heavy and luckily they had elevators.  There in my room I was bunked with Brooke Oleson and Sophia Runte.  Both are Nor-Cal ODP teammates of mine and I felt lucky to have them as roommates.  In the other room of our dorm were So-Cal girls named Nicole, Janae and Destiny – they were all very nice.  I went back down to say goodbye to my dad and gave him a huge goodbye hug.  We then had to go to an orientation where a former Chivas USA MLS player talked to us about keeping balance both literally and figuratively.  I sat in the front row with Nikki, Emily, and Lexi and took some notes during the orientation.  After the orientation we headed back to our dorms to get prepared for our first training.  We got downstairs with all our gear and met at the meeting spot – you were required to be here on time before each training.  There we met our coaches:  Rich Manning (our age group head coach), Danny, Collete, and Rochelle.  All were nice and helpful during the entire camp and easy to talk with.  To get to our training fields, we rode big white vans that could haul twelve each.  The fields were huge.  They were full 120-yard fields and there were more than 8 of them.  In the first training session, we did some juggling and passing challenges as a warm-up.  Then we did 5 v 2 or 6 v 2.  I felt like my group did well at luring defenders in and then choosing the correct pass to escape, causing the defenders to chase.  We found splits easily too.  After training we ate dinner at Islands Café and I sought to eat as healthy as possible.  I had brought a few healthy snacks with me and ended up using some of them as well.  We then headed back to our dorms to unwind and sleep.  I had a hard time sleeping though because I was too excited. 
The next day I got up at 7:30 and headed to breakfast.  After breakfast we had a little time before heading off to training.  In this morning training we worked on possession and very tight small-sided drills with little goals.  I felt good in these drills and sought to use good tactics and skills to keep possession and stay controlled.   I may have been a little loud when communicating – it was funny as my teammates on the other side of the field said they could hear me very clearly and distinctly.  We then had lunch after the training.  I tried to get a good balance of carbs, fats and protein at this meal.  We headed back to our dorms to recuperate and headed out for training again around 1:30.  This time we primarily scrimmaged.  I felt good as we combined with each other well and used good off-the-ball movement.  I think our team won that game.  We then headed back for the dorms to eat dinner where I had a chicken fajita with corn chips and milk.  After dinner we had a class about goal-setting.  Collete showed us how to do a “web” to set our goals and to show how, what, when, where and why, you need to get there.  We did our academic and soccer goals, and for homework, our life goals.  Mine were to get a 4.0 GPA all year, get mentally tougher for soccer and for life, and learn a new language within a year (geez I may have chomped too big on that last one!).  We then went back to our dorms to relax.  Me, Monse, Brooke and Sophia had a Corn Nut fight.  It was awesome!  We then turned off the lights and hit the hay. 
Wednesday was similar to Tuesdays schedule.  All that was different was that I scored in the scrimmage!  A girl had flip-thrown it in the box, a defender tried to kick it out and missed and I finished cleanly.  The classroom session was about scoring.  They were showing some videos of goals scored – I was going nuts about the videos because they were awesome!  After dinner, Maya and I were super-hyper.  When we saw JoJo she had gone to get a Hot Cheetoh’s bag but she pressed the wrong button on the vending machine so she got a bag of peanuts instead.  She said that obviously a higher power wanted her to have those peanuts, “so I’m going to have them”!  We laughed like crazy.  Another day ends with another good sleep. 
Thursday was, once again, similar to Wednesday in its structure.  The things that changed were the morning practice, the classroom and what I did after dark.  In the morning practice, we worked on finishing in front of goal.  They told us that people tried to hit it right next to the post, when in actuality they just need to hit the net without being so close to the keeper and most of the time it will go in.  I was super-glad about not missing the net in this drill and having some good shots.  The last scrimmage was exciting!  I loved how it was even more competitive than usual, likely because everyone knew this was their last chance.  I felt like I had a lot of good cutting, and was able to control the ball and play simple when needed.  Afterwards, I felt I had worked hard because after the whole week my legs were super sore!!  The coaches then gave us our evaluations.  Collette and Rochelle gave me mine.  They asked me what I thought I had done well at camp and what I could have done better.  They also asked me how I felt about soccer at the moment.  I really enjoyed our conversation.  The classroom session this time was about “The Complete Meal” of a youth national team player – it showed things soccer players need in order to become a Youth National Team player (technically, tactically, etc.)  It really inspired me.  It showed me what I have been doing that is good and what else I need to do to reach my goal.  Once it got dark, I started to pack, though I didn’t want to.  I didn’t want to leave.  I mean, I missed my family, but just loved it there – it felt like I was at home in a way.  Overall, I loved the trainings, the competition, and seeing my old friends and making new ones.  Some may have thought of it as work, but I thought of it as a vacation.  I didn’t want to leave.  I loved the whole experience. 
Sadly, Friday came around.  I stuffed myself with like, 7 pieces of French toast, a bowl of cereal and bacon for breakfast.  We then went to another lecture afterwards.   Our speaker was April Kater – she’s one of the heads of women’s soccer of the whole country.  It was such an honor to shake her hand and have her talk to us about becoming a national team player some day.  Brandi Chastain was also there – I had the privilege of meeting her a few weeks prior and was super excited to see her again at this camp.  What was interesting in the lecture was that on one slide of the PowerPoint, they showed the first 20 years of women’s soccer of how the system worked. 

Physical   to    Psychological    to   Tactical    to     Technical

But now-a-days they’ve switched it to:
Technical    to     Tactical     to     Psychological    to     Physical

I found that quite interesting.  After the meeting, we prepared for our departure.  There were many good players from all over the western USA I got to know and play with, and it was a little sad to see us all prepare to go our separate ways.  It sucked having to heave my luggage downstairs, not because it was heavy, but because even it wanted to stay J.  Well, when I was waiting for my ride, I felt sad about leaving, but good about the week of soccer. 
I want to sincerely thank all those that have supported me.

Futbol Forever, Sydney Schultz

Mary Clifford at Regional Camp

ODP Regional camp was held from July 5-8 in Pomona, CA and was such an amazing experience for me. It was an honor to be there and to help represent our club.

It was really exciting to play with a group of girls from a bunch of different states and the scrimmages were challenging and fun. I enjoyed all of the coaches and their drills and their feedback was helpful. I think that I grew as a player during this camp because I got to see all of the different levels of play out there in my age group and got to go against a lot of good players who all made me better.

It was also really cool to get to meet Brandi Chastain and take a picture with her! She signed my bag and that was a really nice closing to my experience there. She was very kind to everyone and had some great stories for the camp. The coaches were all great. They talked a lot about soccer, but also life lessons too. I learned so much and am thankful for all they shared.

The schedule made us hurry between meetings, playing, and the cafeteria. We were always moving quickly as a group. The cafeteria took 15 minutes to walk to, but the food was worth it. The dorms at the college were really nice and four of us shared a four-bedroom suite. All of the dorms were air conditioned which was nice to walk into after a hot and sweaty practice on the field. During free time I would go to friends’ dorms and hang out. I made many new friends at the camp and got to know some of the older Rage players better too.

Attending this camp was a privilege and helped me grow not only as a player, but as a person too.

Mary Clifford

MOST INSPIRATIONAL PLAYERS

RAGE is excited to announce our MOST INSPIRATIONAL players from our recent RAGE College Showcase Tournament July 19-21.  We want to congratulate the following players for being chosen by the RAGE coaching staff:

Sarah Broacha (U15) at Regional Camp

Friday July 5th, 2013

Today is the day I left for Regional Camp at Cal Poly Pomona. I was really nervous and exited at the same time! I flew out instead of driving to have more time to settle in to the dorms, but once we got there, everyone was really rushed. I didn’t even get to meet my roommate until later that night. When I got to the dorms a schedule was posted, and I was already late for an introduction meeting! I shoved my bags into my dorm room and ran to meet everybody. Luckily I made it to the door of the meeting area before it closed! At the introduction meeting all the coaches introduced themselves and told us where they coach/coached. I was so exited to work with all these talented coaches. Brandi Chastain being one of them!
After the meeting we were told we have a 15-minute walk to dinner, and then get 20 minutes to eat quickly before nighttime soccer training! I was really nervous that I wouldn’t play well. I normally don’t eat right before soccer, but I went along with it. Soccer training turned out to be easy. We where scrambled into teams, and the training was mostly to meet your new teammates and learn how to play together successfully.
Later on, I got to meet my roommates. Usually there are four girls per dorm, but our dorm only had three. Victoria shared a room with me, and she was from Nevada. My other roommate was Brynnae, and she was from Utah. They where both really nice, and fun to talk to!

Saturday July 6th, 2013

            Today we all had to get up at 6ish to be outside the dorms at 6:45. We had a 15-minute walk to breakfast. Right after breakfast, we had training from 8:30-10:15. In this training we learned some passing drills, and played 11 v. 11. Once training was over, we went to lunch, then got a couple hours of free time before our next lecture. I learned a lot from it. I learned that the most important quality to have is to be coachable–understand and fix your mistakes. I want to be a triple impact competitor. That means I need to play to make my self, teammates, and the game better.
            Once again we had training right after dinner, which was a little hard because I usually get hungry after trainings. I made sure to buy some healthy snacks at the store. I think the first full day of camp went well!

Sunday July 7th, 2013

            Today is the second, and last full day of camp! It felt like camp has gone so quickly. We all woke up at 7ish to be outside of the dorms at 7:30. We walked to breakfast and once we got back, had some free time. Then, training was at 10:15-12:00. We played big games again, and our team won! Go team Laura! We never really made up a team name. Lunch was at 12:30-1, and then we had a lecture. Brandi Chastain and another one of her teammates taught us a really valuable lesson. They taught us to keep trying if something doesn’t happen the first time. Both of them didn’t get on the national team the first time they tried, but they worked even harder to prove the coaches wrong and eventually made it onto the national team! I have a lot of respect for them and what they accomplished. After the lecture, everyone went to dinner, then training. In the training they scrambled the teams again! It was really hard to remember everyone’s names. I am sad that I have to leave tomorrow!

Monday July 8th, 2013

            Today is the last day of camp. We woke up at 6:30 today to get to breakfast early. Training was early because a lot of girls had fights home in the morning. Luckily my flight was at 6, so I had a lot of time. We got a bagged lunch, then took a bus to the airport at 2:30. My bus group was the last bus cause we all had late flights. I was waiting in the airport for around 3 hours until we boarded. Overall this weekend was really fun. I enjoyed meeting new people from our Region and it definitely improved my soccer skills. I hope I get to go to another one soon!

-Sarah Broacha (U15)