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By John Hartsock
jhartsock@altoonamirror.com
Lainey Farabaugh and Ella Garner are outstanding high school soccer players who are veteran competitors for the varsity girls soccer programs at Bishop Guilfoyle Catholic and Central, respectively.
But both young women, who will be seniors this fall, have been making a year-round commitment to their sport that extends far beyond the scholastic season.
Farabaugh, who plays the position of an attacking midfielder on the soccer field, and Garner, who is a center-defender, are both members of an Atlanta, Ga.-based girls ages 19-U traveling club soccer team known as the Mid-City Lady Lions that will be competing in the girls United States Club Soccer's National Cup XXI Finals July 14-18 at Dicks Sporting Goods Park in Denver, Colo.
The Lady Lions qualified for the National Cup finals by winning the championship in a Southeast Regional Tournament that was held June 18-21 in Greensboro, N.C.
Being part of the national tournament, which will feature 10 teams from across the country, is a thrilling opportunity for both Farabaugh and Garner. Another player on the Lady Lions team, forward Emilee Roman, will also be an incoming senior this fall at Conemaugh Township High School near Johnstown.
"I'm just thankful every day to have the opportunity to play on this team, and I'm really proud of what our team has accomplished so far,'' Farabaugh said. "I think we will have a pretty good chance (to win) the national tournament. I'm really excited.''
So is Garner.
"It's the first time that I've been able to go and compete in something this big, and I'm hoping to go there and hoping that we do really well,'' Garner said. "I'm very excited and very proud that this team was able to win regionals and make it to the nationals.''
The team plays in various soccer showcases all over the country throughout the year that give the players the opportunity to display their skills for college coaches who are recruiting talent.
This calendar year alone, the team has played in showcases in Las Vegas, Nev., Florida, and Cincinnati, Ohio, as well as in the Greensboro regional tournament. Farabaugh, who has been the team's leading goal scorer this year, joined the squad as a guest player for a tournament last November in Raleigh, N.C.
The team's head coach, Derrick McNeill, was so impressed with Farabaugh's skills in the Raleigh event that he invited her to continue to stay on as a member of the team in 2022.
Farabaugh has known Garner since the two played in an indoor soccer league at Altoona's Summit Athletic Club several years ago. Farabaugh told Garner about the Mid-City Lady Lions team, and Garner joined the Lady Lions as a guest player this past February. Garner's skills also earned her a permanent spot on the team.
Farabaugh assisted on the only goal of the game in the Lady Lions' 1-0 victory over a team from Charlotte, N.C. in the championship final of the Southeast Regional Tournament. The Lady Lions carded a record of 3-0-1 in the four-game tournament.
"The other team was probably the favorite to win the regional,'' Farabaugh said of the Charlotte, N.C. entry, which is a member of the Elite Regional Club League (ECRL). "They were a really good team. We scored the only goal of the game with 12 minutes left, and then held on. We played our hearts out. It was so much fun.''
The Mid-City Lady Lions' roster is comprised of 14 players from all across the United States, as well as two players from Puerto Rico.
The players stay in their hometowns to train and prepare on their own, then travel to the sites of the showcases or tournaments a few days before the events are held in order to practice together before competing in the games.
"It's amazing,'' Farabaugh said. "There are girls from all over the country at these tournaments and showcases, and participating on this team gives me the opportunity to compete against so many different levels of competition and meet so many different people.
"It's the best experience ever,'' Farabaugh added.
McNeill lives in Atlanta, and, as a former college soccer coach, he is heavily personally vested in helping the players to get opportunities to play at the collegiate level.
He had high words of praise for Farabaugh, Garner, and Roman.
"Athetically, Lainey and Ella are different in physical stature,'' McNeill said. "Both are exceptional players. Lainey is our leading scorer this year. She's about 5-feet-2 inches or 5-feet-3 inches tall. She has scored several three-goal hat tricks for us this year and led us to victory in games.
"Ella is taller, about 5-feet-10 inches or 5-feet-11 inches tall, and she has a great presence on the field,'' McNeill added. "She's kind of been our defensive lock. It's been incredible to have the combination of those two great athletes on the field. Emilee is a really good forward, who did not play in the regional because she had the great opportunity to participate in a soccer/mission trip to Costa Rica. She will be back for nationals for us so we're excited about that. We have great talent from (the central Pennsylvania) area on our roster.''
McNeill saluted all of the players on his roster for being highly-disciplined, highly-committed and very coachable athletes who have all excelled in the classroom.
"These girls all understand what it takes to sacrifice,'' McNeill said. "It makes us proud to have girls like that in our program.''