ECNL Blog Take Over: Part 2

Hanna Dion, a member of the U14 CASL ECNL team travelling and playing in Spain this week sent in this report. I've included a few more pictures we've gotten as well. The U16 CASL Elite Boys are in Germany this week, and we'll be providing some of their updates this week as well. 

From Hanna Dion:

On day 1 of training we worked on using space and when to move forward. Day 2 we trained in our Real Madrid training gear and worked on recovery and shape. The Real Madrid youth directors ran our training sessions.

At night we watched Barcelona vs Athletico at a popular sports entertainment facility called  Marca.  It became extremely loud when each of the goals were scored. Spaniards are passionate about their Futbol. 

We were almost like the locals from Madrid because we rode the Metro to and from the hotel. The subway was very clean and had an awesome blue wall that looked like rain as you exited the train station near our hotel. 

Today it is raining. We will tour historic Segovia and play our second match tonight.  

ECNL Blog Takeover from Spain

Today's blog is taken over by '97 and '99 CASL ECNL teams who are currently in Spain. Beth Skinner, one of the mom's traveling with the teams and coaches, is sending pictures and anecdotes of their trip (despite the spotty wifi). See her pictures and write-up below!

The 99 and 97 CASL ECNL girls are having a great time in Spain. We toured the city of Madrid and had a chance to practice speaking and reading Spanish! Tapas, paella and churro are new to our vocabulary.  On Saturday we we attended the La Liga match Real Madrid vs Rayo Vallecano.  It was awesome.  The chants are nonstop. Ronaldo scored the first goal and Real Madrid went on to win 5 to 0. Sending Rayo Vallecano down to the second division.

On Sunday we toured the city of Madrid. In Plaza Mayor we saw many street entertainers performing for coins- tensile bulls and lots of visual illusions such as headless people.   One little boy about the age of 3 was fascinated by us and as he was leaving the Plaza with his Dad he turned to wave to us.    

In the afternoon, we toured the Spanish FA Complex and saw the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2008 and 2012. We watched exciting highlights of some unbelievable goals that resulted in the championships.

Our first training session with Real Madrid was great. It was challenging and we will have 4 additional sessions. 

We played our first of 3 games on Monday against women's teams from Rayo Vallecano. The u14s played against u16s and scored three goals for their first win. 3 to 0.  Avery Gardner, Grace Wagner and Audrey Prevost scored our goals, and Marlayna Frutiger and Gabby Derosier notched the shutout. Our mid field and defense were solid throughout the game with everyone contributing.  

The u16s played an exciting match against the Spanish National team comprised of u18s and above. Morgan Goff had a hat trick and led the team to a 3 to 3 tie.   CASL led the half 2 to 1. Rayo Vallecano brought on a few new team members and fresh legs in the second  half to end in a 3 to 3 tie.   

We celebrated our successes with pizza!   

CASL 40th Birthday Party Recap

CASL 40th Birthday Party Recap

Written by Kieran Downey, CASL Intern

This past Saturday, March 15^th, CASL held its 40^th Anniversary Celebration at WRAL Soccer Center. The event was a chance to celebrate the club’s history, to thank all the members for their support over the years, and to look forward at what the future has in store for CASL.  Though the wind tried to blow out the candles a bit early on the celebration, the beautiful 70 degree and sunny weather prevailed to provide the perfect atmosphere.

The festivities kicked off at 10am and ran strong till 2pm.  A few of our wonderful sponsors, fellow community members came out in full force to help celebrate with CASL.  Dick’s Sporting Goods, Bruegger’s Bagels, Carolina RailHawks, Crown Trophy, Top Form Soccer, Miracle Feet, and the EF Foundation for Foreign Study all participated in the celebration.  They provided guests with fun activities, prizes, and also promoted their fantastic organizations and causes.  CASL’s mascot Cleats the Dog was also on hand to pose for pictures and to keep the party going.

The Pit Authentic Barbecue was on site to sell their delicious North Carolina style barbecue.  The smell from their whole hog, pit-cooked barbecue wafted throughout WRAL, and I’m sure it rumbled the stomachs of many out at the park.  If you didn’t get a chance to try some on Saturday, I highly recommend that you get out to The Pit soon to see that North Carolina barbecue is the real deal. 

The celebration also featured a bounce house, courtesy of Inflate-A-Party, which kids went bonkers for.  Kids lined up several times to expend their seemingly endless energy jumping in and sliding down the bounce house, much to their parents’ delight.

 

The event culminated with CASL board member John Dalpe giving a brief speech on the club’s 40 years, a cake cutting ceremony featuring sheet cakes donated by CASL sponsor Harris Teeter, and a check presentation to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund.  Earlier this year CASL raised over $10,000 (in reality it was more than $14,000 if you add the proceeds from the silent auction we hosted on site plus the merchandise sales from Kay Yow Cancer Fund that would not have happened without this event) for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund through the Play 4Kay 4v4 Soccer Tournament, which the club proudly presented to Kay Yow representatives at the celebration in the form of a huge check.  The $10,000 raised adds to the $3.8 million raised by Play 4Kay since 2007 that helps fight women’s cancer by funding scientific research.

The event was a hit, and after all the hard work put in by the CASL staff and volunteers to get it organized, it was great to see everyone out there enjoying themselves.  Thanks to all those who came out to celebrate CASL’s 40^th, we hope you had a good time.  CASL has had an incredible 40 years of providing youth soccer to the area, and we can’t wait to see what the next 40 years has in store for CASL!

Happy Birthday to CASL!

Join us on Saturday, March 15 from 10:00-2:00pm at WRAL Soccer Center to celebrate CASL's Birthday!

Timeline: 

• 10:00am: party starts - bounce house, sponsors, and vendors will be on site; free giveaways from CASL and vendors will also start. We'll be giving away CASL pencils and also you can stop by our table for a chance to take home a mini NCAA soccer ball, NCAA t-shirts, CASL 40th Anniversary t-shirts sponsored by Pet Mania, or a drawstring bag
• 11:00am: Cake Cutting #1 - cleats will be cutting the first cake; come enjoy FREE cake
• 11:30am: The Pit BBQ will be ready to eat!
• 12:30pm: Remarks and Check Presentation to Kay Yow Cancer Fund
• 12:45pm: Cake Cutting #2 with Cleats and his friends
• 2:00pm: Party wraps up

The Pit BBQ will be selling fresh BBQ sandwiches and plates
beginning around 11:30am!

The Pit Authentic Barbecue will be cooking hogs Friday night at the complex ready to serve BBQ sandwiches and plates. A portion of your purchase will come back to support CASL. Also, CASL sponsor Harris Teeter generously donated 5 sheet cakes to the birthday party. We'll have chocolate, vanilla, and marble cake to give away during the event. We hope you can join us as we celebrate our history, embrace the present, and prepare for the future of CASL!

Here's some history with more to come throughout the year: 

Nearly 40 years ago, the "Raleigh Soccer League" was born out of the minds of six soccer passionate individuals in Wake County: William J. Plunket, Jr., N.P. Zarzar, Eugene J. Eisen, Pat B. Hamilton (a la Hamilton Sportsmanship Award), Jerry T. Salmon, and R. Fred Littrell. In 1979, our name officially changed to "Capital Area Soccer League." Whatever name we were operating under, Capital Area Soccer League has grown from its humble beginnings to a national powerhouse soccer club. The individuals who came before us as parents, coaches, city officials, players, and key decision makers in our area who brought the game to youth in Wake County all played a critical role in laying the foundation for a youth soccer club that had the potential to grow into what it is today. CASL now houses more than 8,000 youth participants across all divisions of play and remains one of the few full-service soccer clubs around.

I recently found an old "Minutes" book from Board meetings in 1978 (just before the name switched to Capital Area Soccer League). The Raleigh Soccer League was clearly created out of a need for youth soccer in the area. In January of 1978, the report indicated four divisions of play with 110 teams and 1753 players! We've come a long way in our operations, and it's exciting to think about the next 40 years as we reflect on the past 40 years. We will find ways to for you to share you stories with us, but in the mean time, you can always tweet (@CASLnc; #CASL40) your images and stories. Check out these pictures from excerpts of the old minutes book. 

scheduling system in 1978

Budget in 1978

CASL teams making a statement in 3v3 soccer world

We are always happy to share achievements of our teams as they compete in games and tournaments across the country. Sometimes, groups of players from teams form their own mini-teams to compete in extra tournaments outside of the traditional tournaments. 

CASL has had many successful teams emerge in the 3v3 world. For example the WolfPack Girls, who I have to mention was the first team to sign up for CASL's Play 4Kay 4v4 in January, have a successful track record within the 3v3 competition. They swept their bracket in the Play 4Kay 4v4 and used it as preparation for the Disney 3v3 Soccer Championships the following week. They've had success in CASL's RailHawk 3s as well, which will be back around this summer so start thinking about your team.

Another team with success at the CASL RailHawk 3's is the CASL RailHawks 3v3 team comprised of members from the U11 Elite Black North team. The self-named CASL RailHawks qualified for the Disney 3v3 Nationals through CASL's RailHawk 3's last summer. They ended up playing the top U11 division (Invitational Gold) at the National 3v3 Championships. I learned that you qualify for the gold division by being a top 4 team at the qualifying tournament. The CASL RailHawks ended up finishing 2nd in the tournament, losing in the national championship game. 

CASL RailHawks (pictured from left): Coach Hassan Pinto, Malik Pinto, Chris Martin, Trace Alphin, Jake Smith, Lucas Pleasants, and of course, Mickey Mouse as an honorary member

CASL RailHawks: Disney 3v3 National Finalists

We look forward to more successes on and off the field for our CASL players this spring!

CASL: Celebrating 40 years of soccer!

On March, 15th CASL will officially celebrate 40 years of soccer in the greater Wake County Area. As a club, we technically go over the hill on Tuesday, March 11. But, in order to create a deserving atmosphere for our 40th Anniversary, we will be celebrating on Saturday, March 15 at WRAL Soccer Park. More details will be released in the coming days, but you can expect Cleats and his friends to show up, a celebratory cake, food, and a festival-like atmosphere. 

Part of the celebration will be used to reflect on our commitment to be a dedicated community partner in Wake County. This year, CASL is launching a community relations arm of our operations that will continue beyond this one year celebration. Part of our mission is to be a community partner in improving the quality of life in Wake County. We achieve this on and off the field, and we want to highlight those occasions this year and for many years to come. Some recent highlights include the successful Play 4Kay 4v4 which generated $14,000 for cancer research, 271 lbs of gently used gear that was sent to Haiti to support Helping Haiti and Soccer, U16G Shockers who spent an afternoon volunteering at the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina and CASL Staff members who volunteered at Inter-Faith Food Shuttle last week. CASL continues to provide community outreach soccer programming to youth in our community who may not otherwise have the opportunity. We will continue to document and highlight the ways that members of our clubs positively impact our community. If you ever have a need for volunteers or would like to lead a volunteer effort, please let us know. 

Youth in Haiti wearing gently used donated CASL gear

CASL Staff packed 205 bags for Inter-Faith Food Shuttle's Back Buddies Program

CASL HEART participants were recognized as Cam's Champs
at the Carolina Hurricanes hockey game. The HEART season begins this weekend and provides youth with intellectual disabilities the opportunity to play soccer at
no cost to their families.

WRAL Soccer Park Beautification Underway

Don't be alarmed when you drive into WRAL Soccer Park for training or games any time soon and see trees down. This is on purpose, actually. CASL is beginning the first phase of a beautification project to the soccer park. You will slowly start to see changes made to the park (some have already happened you just may not have seen them!). 

The CASL Park Rangers, who continue to ensure the park remains a safe place for our players, families, and visitors, have been raising the floor in the woods that surround the park, cleaning out debris, and cutting back growth. Each day, the the dumpsters out there are continually filled with debris. Fencing has also been removed around various fields, and you'll continue to see changes made over time.

The trees that will be coming down will be replaced by even more beautiful trees that will help make the park more aesthetically pleasing to all those who come to WRAL Soccer Park. The next paper your write in school or the next note you write to your neighbor, just think,you could be writing on paper that comes from these tress that were taken down at WRAL Soccer Park! 

Here are a few pictures of the tree removal. We'll keep you updated on progress of the beautification project.