Morris Elite joins USL Girls Academy for Spring 2023
MADISON, NJ. – Morris Elite Soccer Club is excited to announce that we will be participating in the USL Girls Academy platform starting May 2023. USL Girls Academy (USL-GA) is unique to any other pre-professional set-up in the United States, USL Girls Academy League teams field a single elite youth team, geared towards local players within the U15 to U19 age range The league will be forming 5 pilot divisions for the inaugural season across the Metro/NYC (5-6 teams), South Atlantic (5 teams), South-Central (4-5 teams), Southeast (Florida) (5 teams), and the Valley (4-5 teams). This spring will be an informal start to the league of organized competitive friendlies.
We are ecstatic to be able to offer this premier level platform for our girls’ program. I believe it was extremely important for Morris Elite to be a founding member of the USL GA. We continue to add opportunities and platforms for our female players to be showcased in front of many universities, professional and semiprofessional teams. The USL-GA provides our female athletes the opportunity to be a feeder system into our USL W League senior team.” said President and Owner Vincenzo Bernardo
Morris Elite SC will have one team competing in the Metro/NYC Divisional. Teams that will be participating in the pilot division this spring are AC Connecticut, FC Copa Academy, LI Rough Riders, Manhattan SC, and Paisley Athletic. The league will run from May to the end of June and will include 6 games playing each opponent twice.
The addition of girls’ divisions to USL Academy League demonstrates USL’s commitment to providing more and clearer youth-to-professional pathways for talented individuals across our ecosystem. Our standards, in collaboration with our member clubs, drive our decision making and ensure that all individuals are best positioned to fulfil their full potential.
“This has been at the forefront since we joined USL and we are excited to offer this opportunity to our Zone 3 girls’ teams. Our Zone 1 and Zone 2 girls’ teams now have a direct pathway to the highest level of soccer in the area.” said DOC/Soccer Operations & USL Academy Girls Head Coach Scott Maloney.
The model is designed to allow identification and integration of elite youth players into a pre-professional environment at a younger age, giving them exposure to a higher level of play than they would normally experience, access to the resources and teaching of USL First Teams, all the while serving as a complement to the work being done by other youth clubs in USL communities.
Developing talent means providing opportunities for our young players to thrive in environments that challenge them holistically. I am looking forward to seeing how our players respond to the opportunity and how their next few years evolve. Our club has aspirations to develop talent within our youth – and the USL W League squad will be ready for them when they are ready for us.” Said USL W League Head Coach and Girls Technical Director Steph Savino.
The USL Girls Academy platform will be fully integrated in the spring of 2024.
Morris Elite Soccer Club will be holding USL Girls Academy tryouts on Tuesday April 18th, 6:00pm-7:30pm at Central Park Field 2 in Morris Plains, NJ. If you are interested in being a part of the only USL Academy Girls program in Morris & Essex County, you can register below