The Midwest Regional League U15 Girls Premier Division features a tight title race. About halfway through the season, there are five teams that are separated by one point. But the team that’s been dominating on both sides of the ball is Chicago-area side Sockers FC.

In the first four games of the MRL season, Sockers have gained a 6 goal-differential advantage, posting a 3-1 record.

“Overall, the division is a good division and being 3-1 at this point, after coming away with a couple of wins on the same day, is good,” Sockers FC Head Coach David Richardson said. “We have several games left in the season. By no means do we feel like we have an advantage over anyone else.”

The squad’s philosophy and approach on how to train its players is not unique in the grand scheme of the soccer world, but it is rare to find at the club level.

Where rankings, trophies and recognition sometimes become the center focus, Richardson states the club’s attitude is what it can do to lift the player, not try to use the player to lift the club.

“This is a close-knit group of girls that practice hard. As they get older they start to become more independent on the ball and their tactical maturity also progresses,” Richardson said. “I wouldn’t exactly say it’s one thing, but the fact is that the girls have done a good job training and improving in areas of the game that we need to be better at.”

Just as the team doesn’t focus its play on one aspect of the game, it also doesn’t lean on one particular player to perform. Richardson and the club understand that club soccer can be a revolving door for players, as injuries and personal commitments can influence line-ups on a weekly basis.

“We’ve gone through stretches where three or four girls have been missing at one given time,” he said. “We can miss some girls due to injuries and still play along. The fact is that all the girls play a huge part of the squad. One person doesn’t score all the goals for us.

 “We can play with seven or eight different line ups. We’ve been able to adjust, and focus on how to play on that day. It’s a good problem to have, when the girls can come off the bench and just start.”

With the fantastic start that Sockers have had so far, Richardson said they are not setting goals that are too far down the road, to not overlook the necessities of the day by day.

“We do not define ourselves by one event or one tournament,” Richardson said. “The fact is that every time we get together, we got opportunities to get better and try to beat opponents. We are motivated when we enter a competition to finish on top, but we are not going to define our success by one moment.”

U15 Sockers FC  Roster

Taylor Almeraz
Erin Bailey
Rosalia Baldo
Maddie Boutros
Tiffany Brinkman
Kristen Dodson
Allison Feldman
Taylor Fuderer
Gina Giancola
Lauren Gierman
Katie Hoots
Tori Iatarola
Allison Ingham
Catherine Kent
Katie McCurley
Sarah Morrissey
Tatum Norton
Jennifer Novak
Emily Novak
Natalia Pena
Maria Petrillo
Mary Rose Pettenuzzo
Sarah Putwen
Mallory Richardson
Jessica Schmidt
Emily Zahrebelski