Girls U16 Rage Team Featured in Sun Newspaper
The following article was recently featured in an issue of the Sun Sailor Newspaper; Wayzata Rage concludes fantastic year at USA Cup
Their efforts nearly complete, the Wayzata Rage U16 girls brought an extra ambition with them to Blaine last week.
Appearing in the 25th anniversary of the USA Cup on the National Sports Center grounds, and with both a State Cup championship and an appearance in the Midwest Regional behind them, the girls intent was two-fold.
First and foremost, Wayzata wanted to win. But they wanted to make sure they enjoyed their surroundings just as much.
"Obviously, we are here to play soccer and win the championship, but as important, is the camaraderie that they will experience," said head coach Nour Aboussir, who himself took the week off from his fulltime job as a computer engineer to soak in all that the tournament offers.
"This is a very enjoyable experience for us, and there is such a unique feel to the USA Cup. It's international, and the girls are excited about meeting people from different states and different countries. We wanted to have our season end here."
It's taken some time to get to this point. The team, which plays at the highest level (Premier) of Minnesota club soccer, has been at it since late November.
The majority of the first part of their year was spent under a dome in Plymouth, but they escaped into San Diego in March, and after a number of other stops, the girls landed in Blaine a week ago.
There, at least early on, Wayzata kept on winning. Through three games of U16 play, the Rage was a perfect 3-0, outscoring their opponents a combined 19-2.
"We wanted to come here and play well," said striker Taylor Wodnick, before her team took the field for its second USA Cup contest. "This is another chance to prove that we work as a team and that we can finish strong together. It is what we have been working for the whole season."
Their entire finish wasn't complete until after this edition of the paper went to press - results from the weekend are available online at www.usacup.org - but early, it was obvious the team was in no mood to relent after spending most of the spring and summer racking up victories.
In reality, that's just a continuation of what the team has been doing for much of the past decade. A handful of the players that started with Wayzata at the U6 level are still on the team, and most were apart of the U11 team that ended up winning a state championship at that level.
What's interesting is that when the high school season starts, they split up to represent eight different high schools - Rogers, Osseo, Maple Grove, Wayzata, Hopkins, Heritage Christian Academy, Benilde-St. Margaret's and Waconia - only to return each and every summer.
"It's like we are all sisters now," said Hannah Keil, who along with Wodnick and four others will play at Wayzata High School in the fall. "That is the dedication that we have. We want to come back, we want to still be the same team and work together."
Keil added that it's Aboussir's presence that aids the return, noting how his knowledge has as much to do with the team's successes than anything.
"[He's] the most important person on our team," she said. "He has helped us the entire way up to becoming state champions. He gives 1,000 percent everyday and works hard to train us and give us the feedback we need as a team, and individually."
As expected, Aboussir directed the praise the other way, saying "you can do all the coaching you want, but you have nothing without having players that are dedicated and work hard. The credit goes to the girls. The sacrifices they and their parents make to play at this level are phenomenal."
Either way, it's working.
"We have a good thing going here," said assistant coach and Wayzata Soccer Club President Steve Hollander, who has a daughter (Catherine) on the team. "These kids really enjoy playing together, and they do it well. It's a blast to be around."
