JULY 2023

CONTENTS Click a on topic to jump to that section.

• ECNL Playoffs & ECNL-RL Championships
• State Cup & GLA Results
• USL Academy, League 2 & W League Updates
• CFSC Player Spotlight: Gavin Crane & Stefan Velickovic
• CFSC Coach Spotlight: Lauren Wilson, Michael Surniak & Michael Mey
• The Force Effect Podcast: What It Means To Play For The Force
• CLE Sports PT & Performance: Matchday Nutrition
• 2023 Summer Soccer Camps
• 2023-24 Open Enrollment
• Follow Us On Social Media!
  

Girls ECNL:

Our ECNL season wrapped up in late June at the ECNL Playoffs in San Diego, CA.  The 2006 and 2007 girl’s ECNL teams traveled across the country to take on some of the top competition that the league has to offer.  Both teams went 3-0 in group play and advanced to the finals of the Showcase Cup A brackets respectively.  The 06 girls lost in penalties to SUSA ECNL after 110 minutes of open play resulted in a 1-1 draw.  The 07 girls had a back and forth affair with Scorpions ECNL which saw us finish just short in a 2-1 loss.  Both teams represented the club well at the highest level of play in the country.  There were over 1,000 college coaches in attendance over the course of the Showcase, we averaged 80-100 college coaches at each of our games.  This was a massive opportunity for our teams in terms of the college recruiting opportunities as well as continuing to make a name for ourselves as a club on the national level.  Many college coaches commented on our style of play and how comfortable we were on the ball.  All told it was an amazing experience for each of our teams and will  continue to go a long way in helping to advance our players to the next level of play.

In late May our 2008, 2007 and 2006 teams traveled to New Jersey for the PDA ECNL Showcase.  The girls played well and had a lot of “eyes” on them both from college coaches as well as US YNT staff on hand to evaluate some of the top talent in the country.  Our 2008 girls had a fantastic weekend finishing 2-1 in group play.  We were able to see glimpses of their continued progress as a couple of key injured players were able to make their way back to fitness for the event. 

Boys ECNL:

It has been a really exciting ECNL season. Three or our teams qualified and one other nearly qualified. The 06's qualified with an exceptionally hard fought draw with Lou City. Mansour Mbaye scored the Force goal on a free kick in the first half. They finished 3rd in the conference. The 07's qualified with a 4-1 rout of Ohio Premier to finish 2nd in the conference.  The 2010's, needing one point in their last game to qualify won 4 nil to secure their playoff berth. The u19s, coming back from a 2 nil halftime score, on the last day, to win 3-2 on the last day. Even with the win and being number two on total points they ended up being knocked by Nationals on points per game. .2% behind them and a playoff berth. The 19's finished 3rd in the the conference. 

ECNL Playoffs: 06s made it to the quarterfinals. They had a great week and had around 70 college coaches see them play.  07s had a really good tournament getting 6 points out of nine and only failed to beat the undefeated team in their group. 10s played some fantastic teams and came away with a win in their last game. This week was a step forward for our ECNL teams. Everyone came away feeling ready to put in the work to get back and doing even better. 

Boys ECNL-RL:

We are extremely proud of our 2007, 2006, and 2004/05 ECNL-RL teams for advancing to the ECNL-RL Regional Playoffs in St. Louis after a successful and hard-fought last set of league games vs. Pittsburgh Riverhounds. These teams joined our 2009 and 2010 ECNL-RL boys teams who clinched playoff spots earlier in the spring. Cleveland Force SC were represented in 5 out of the 6 age groups in the ECNL-RL Boys Playoffs. Congratulations to our players and families for this accomplishment!

Lauren Wilson

"I am super excited about my new role as the U9 and U10 girls director. I am pleased to announce Kelly Jenkins as the program manager. We are excited that Force has committed to bring female leadership to the club and we are looking forward to growing the community, camaraderie and cohesion in the club. We were excited to see the growth in the amount of players who came out to tryouts this year and the number of players we are going to impact this upcoming season.

I look forward to bringing my Division I college experience (Kent State University 2000-2003), my seventeen years of varsity coaching (Solon High School), and team building/ educational (Physical Education teacher Twinsburg City Schools) experience to guide and lead these young players and coaches." - Lauren Wilson

Michael Surniak

"I am truly looking forward to taking on the role as the u9 – u10 and Juniors Elite Director. I am proud to be a part of a group of committed and passionate coaches that work with our players from their first training session all the way to an Ohio State Cup Final. I can not wait to get on the field this fall with all the talented players both new and returning to continue building what we have started." - Michael Surniak

Michael Mey:

"I am very excited with my new role as Junior Academy Director with the CFSC, with soccer being a passion of mine from the first time watching the Force at the coliseum as a child. It only feels right to bring that enthusiasm to our Junior Academy! Many years of playing and coaching experience I look forward to meeting all families from East West and South that have interest in soccer from ages 3-8 and beyond."

- Coach Mey