2021 NorCal College Showcase Recap
For the first time since the U11-U13 State Cup Finals on February 24, 2020, NorCal Premier Soccer hosted an event that gathered together much of the region for a celebration of soccer. For the first time in 480 days some sense of normalcy was regained in the soccer community that we all love so much.
Over the course of two days at the Davis Legacy Soccer Complex, roughly 200 games were contested between about 400 teams with around 100 college coaches in attendance to take in the action.
“It’s been an incredible weekend,” said NorCal Premier Soccer President Benjamin Ziemer. “Everyone’s smiling, the energy is tremendous, and I couldn’t be more pleased.”
Unlike past showcases that closed seasons and decided champions, this event paired with the opening of California in the hopes of bringing new openings after a long break in action necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
There were no trophies on the line, no titles to be won, no accolades to earn. Instead, there was just a celebration of the beautiful game.
Each of the participating teams played one game on both Saturday and Sunday in front of eager parents and inquisitive college coaches with smiles as the dominating expression.
The club coaches all exuded excitement during the event. “It’s great to get the girls back on the field and be out here on the field in a showcase environment with college coaches watching, parents watching,” said Blackhawks SC President Richard Moorhouse. “It’s finally great to have a good football atmosphere.”
The college coaches loved returning to NorCal’s showcases. “It still feels surreal, it’s been over a year since we’ve been out recruiting,” said UC Davis assistant coach and recent Nigerian national team call-up Yewande Balogun. “It’s really nice, so I’m just taking it all in and excited to be back out watching real football again.”
And of course, the players appeared overjoyed with everything that went on. “It’s great to be with my team again after the long break,” said Sarah Granno of San Juan SC. “It’s my second home.”
College Coaches Attending
A total of 137 college coaches attended the NorCal College Showcase.
Girls Schools Attending
Academy of Art, American River College, Briar Cliff, Cal, Cal Poly Pomona, Cal State Bakersfield, Cal State Chico, Cal State East Bay, Cal State Maritime, Cal State Monterey, Cal State Stanislaus, Cosumnes River College, Dominican, Dominican Illinois, Folsom Lake College, Fresno State, George Fox, Grand Canyon, Linfield, Long Beach State, Menlo College, Nevada Reno, New Mexico State, Occidental, Oregon, Oregon Institute of Technology, Pacific, Rogue College, Sacramento State, San Diego State, San Francisco, San Jose State, Santa Clara, SF State, Sierra College, Sonoma State, Southern Oregon, Stanford, UC Davis, UCLA, UC Merced, UC Santa Barbara, UC Santa Cruz, Washington, Westmont and William Jessup
Boys Schools Attending
American River College, Cabrillo College, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Cal State Bakersfield, Cal State East Bay, Cal State Maritime, Cal State Monterey Bay, Cal State Stanislaus, Chico State, Dominican, Foothill College, George Fox, Humboldt State, Juniata College, Linfield, Millikin, Pacific, University of Redlands, Sacramento State, San Francisco, Saint Mary’s, San Jose State, Sarah Lawrence, Sierra Nevada, Solano College, Sonoma State, UC Davis, UCLA, UC Merced, UC Santa Cruz, Whittier College and William Jessup
Photos
Game Video
Veo attended the College Showcase on Saturday and filmed many of the games. All Veo game videos are free for the teams that participated at the Showcase.
