UWS steps into the summer league scene

by Travis Clark

May 13, 2016

Last November, the USL W-League announced that it was shutting its doors after 21 seasons of semi-professional soccer in North America.

It didn’t take long for another league to rise in its place.

United Women’s Soccer, which opens play this weekend, quickly rose up in an effort to fill that void. The league was announced in mid-December, and looks to hit the ground running this summer.

“There were still some teams that still wanted to operate and a couple other groups that wanted to operate at a higher standard than the leagues they were in so we started off with a group of teams that met in the east, in the New Jersey area,” UWS commissioner Joe Ferrara told TopDrawerSoccer. “And then the west came together very shortly thereafter.”

A total of 11 teams are slated to comprise the UWS in 2016. Of those, all but one existed in one form or another prior to this season – New Jersey Copa FC is the lone brand new team, that’s an offshoot of an already-existing youth club in the state. New England Mutiny, which Ferrara owns, joins Long Island Rough Riders, New Jersey, New York Magic and Lancaster Inferno in the East. The West is comprised of the Houston Aces, Santa Clarita Heat, Colorado Pride, Real Salt Lake Women and Colorado Storm.

It’s a small start, though sights are set high within the new organization.

“Our goals are to be the second tier league for U.S. soccer,” Ferrara said. “We’ve discussed our game plan for having a longer season. Although we are a start up league, some of the teams have been around almost 20 years, so there are some well established franchises in the league.”

Ferrara said that there is a dual purpose to the league, with an emphasis balanced between the student-athletes home looking to stay sharp over the summer and players looking to keep the dream alive.

“It’s for the amateur college player looking to hone their skills for the summer, and it’s one of our goals to help that player go back to their program better and more prepared,” he said. “It’s also a training ground for players who aspire to be professionals or former professionals, and there are former internationals as well.”

Current and former college players from Division I levels and below dot rosters around the league. Kaitlyn Johnson (Washington State), Michaela Abam (West Virginia), Kahlia Hogg (Colorado), Gabbi Miranda (UCLA), Angela Weiner (Fresno State), Gabrielle Matulich (UCLA), Jennifer Cafferky (Central Connecticut) and Emily Armstrong (Connecticut) are among some of the current Division I players on rosters for the first year.

The format for the inaugural season is simple. Teams play a set number of intra-conference games, with the schedule running from May 14 through July 23. The first place teams from each conference meet in a championship game with no playoff process.

That format is expected to be for the inaugural season only; organizations outside the league have expressed interest in fielding expansion teams in future UWS seasons. Ferrara indicated that regional emphasis takes precedence, with the possibility of growing to more than 30 teams down the road. The competition would be broken down via conferences or regions, though the focus of growth will always be on the caliber of the teams applying.

“We have no ambition to be the biggest league,” Ferrara said. “For us it’s about the quality of organizations. Having said that, there are operational costs to having a league. We want to have a league of good size to be able to operationally do the things you want to be able to do.

“There are other organizations in the country that have shown interest, but we can’t take them in until we have that cluster in the same area that makes travel make sense.”

Starting this weekend, some familiar teams return to the field, albeit in a different competition. And as the league takes the field for the first time, the behind the scenes work continues for Ferrara as he looks to grow the league.

“It’s something I’m working on right now, and throughout the season, and definitely in the offseason,” he said of the expansion process. “There’s been a great level of interest, some great organizations whether from other leagues or what have not. The challenge is being able to partner them with other organizations within a reasonable travel distance.”

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