Tom Schmitt

All dynasties must come to an end, and that time has arrived for the FC814 U-19 girls Team Energy premier soccer team after a decade of dominance.

Team Energy has been a dominant team on the state and national level and just won its fourth United States Youth Soccer State Cup championship. No other team from this area has come close to this record.

The Energy has played teams from across the country in 14 different states during tournament league play. It has also played teams from Canada and international academy teams as well.

The team advanced through travel and classic play to the USYS National League/Great Lakes Conference/Premier1 play where it amassed a record of 23-5-6. Throughout its time in league play, its record was 60-22-15 and was ranked among the top 50 teams in the country.

In addition to the four state titles, the team was the Great Lakes Premier Conference champion, President’s Cup National runner-up, Jefferson Cup champion, Penn Fusion Showcase undefeated champion, Columbia Fall Classic champion, Blue Chip Showcase undefeated bracket champion, NEFC Showcase undefeated champion and USYS National Conference undefeated champion.

In all, Team Energy has won more than 20 championships in national tournament play and showcases starting in 2020. In 10 years starting from U-8 travel play, the Energy players, families and coaches have been on the road nearly every weekend for a decade.

The team won its final home game in the Great Lakes Conference at Tiger Stadium, defeating Spire Academy, 5-2. In the Pa. State Cup championship, it defeated the Pittsburgh Independence in a 3-0 shutout.

The team’s next stop is the National Championship Qualifier in Nashville, Tenn., in July.

Nine of the girls on the squad have committed to play for schools at the collegiate ranks. The team consists of Catie Cammarata, Ava Frye, Sophia O’Dea, Morgan Ross (all of whom have been on the squad for 10 years), Meghan Andersen, Hailey DeGol, Ajaycia Alexander, Emma Marasco, Madison Delauter, Brooklyn Galinis, Samantha Papcunik, Ella DeLong, Bethanie Kensinger, Hayden Settle, Olivia Newlin, Alexa Pretash, Alyssa Leydig and Jasmine Robinson.

The players were honored for their numerous accomplishments at a May banquet at Jaffa Shrine. The team has been coached since its inception by head coach Marc Frye and Todd Cammarata. Its motto has been, “We came as individuals but leave as something far greater … a family.”

College life

Coach Pam Snyder’s Penn State Altoona women’s soccer team had an extremely successful trip to Costa Rica.

The women won their game against Dimas, 4-1, and beat San Carlos, 5-2. Tyrone Area High School graduate Chloe LaRosa was selected by the opposing teams as the team MVP for each game. LaRosa scored two goals in each match and added one assist. Central graduate Kira Trexler scored one goal in each game and added four assists.

Penn State women’s soccer associate head coach Tim Wassell announced that the team was looking to hire an assistant coach. The Lady Lions need someone experienced with video analysis, player development and fundraising. Wassell asked the coaching community to reach out to him if they knew of a solid candidate for consideration.

World Cup

The opening game for the USA men’s soccer squad in the 2026 World Cup is set for 9 p.m. Friday, June 12 against Paraguay. The team won’t see action again until 3 p.m. Friday, June 19 against Australia.

The USA will be playing host to its opponents at Lumen Field in Seattle and So-Fi Stadium in Los Angeles. It will have a tough scrap to make it out of its Group D play and advance in the Cup. Games will be held throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

USA coach Mauricio Pochettino will be looking to improve on his 13-7-2 record as head coach. Soccer fans will see the final appearances of all-time soccer greats Lionel Messi for Argentina and Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal. These two will want to go out in style, so look for great games from both legends of the game.

Look for forward Christian Pulsic to be the key player in U.S. success. He has played for some of the best teams in Germany, England and Italy. He has been part of the Champions League with Chelsea. He is now playing with AC Milan and is in top form.

Look for Ousmane Dembele to be the backbone of France’s team along with Kylian Mbappe. Erling Haaland and his amazing speed will lead Norway. The young Lamine Yamal will be the playmaker to watch for Spain.

England will be counting on Jude Bellingham, midfielder, with Naymar, Brazil’s all-time record goal scorer, looking to lead his team to a Cup title in his fourth World Cup appearance. Egypt will be leaning on Mohamed Salah, its experienced striker at 33 who has scored 257 goals in 442 games and has two Premier League titles.

Local champions

The FC 814 Rebels took home the championship cup at this past weekend’s Hershey Memorial Day Challenge. The girls won their first two matches with a combined score of 14-1. Their final regular game ended in a 1-1 tie and put them in the finals.

The title game was a battle that came down to penalty kicks. The girls won the championship on the final PK. The girls secured the Hershey’s chocolate and championship trophy for area club FC814.

Tom Schmitt writes a monthly soccer column for the Mirror.