Increasing number of top girls soccer players opting out of high school competition

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Tuesday, September 5, 2023 | 7:02 PM

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When a few Westmoreland County girls soccer players came to a Y in the road — to play or not to play this season — they all chose the same direction.

Now, they’re off the map.

Three talented players decided to take a year off from high school soccer to pursue other avenues. Two of them are juniors who have committed to Division I programs.

The Y is now more like … why?

For kicks

You might say Yough’s Kendalyn Umbel karate-chopped her junior season after committing to Youngstown State.

The All-WPIAL midfielder will continue to train for soccer while she chases a third-degree black belt in her other discipline: karate.

“This decision was made long before my commitment to Youngstown State,” Umbel said. “This was a tough decision because I loved my last two years of high school soccer and wanted to play with my friends again, but I have also loved the past 12-plus years of karate that I have done. I realized that I needed to focus more on karate and have began to prepare for my third-degree black belt test. I would have loved to have done both, but, unfortunately, the schedules did not mesh.”

Time to study

Norwin junior Julia Bursick, meantime, opted out of the high school season to focus on schoolwork.

“I want to put my full focus on my academics and starting to prepare to play at the next level,” said Bursick, who recently committed to Duquesne. “I’ll miss playing with my teammates, but I wish them all the best this season.”

Umbel and Bursick, Tribune-Review all-stars last season, have not ruled out a return to high school soccer next fall.

‘No longer serving me’

Southmoreland will miss the services of Gabby Fabery, a defender and midfielder who is not playing her senior season.

Fabery’s situation is different and more personally complex.

“My decision to not play this year was something I have felt strongly about but kept private for quite some time,” Fabery said. “While the game of soccer always will hold a special place in my heart and the support of coach (Josh) Pajak both on and off the field was transformative, the game was no longer serving me.”

A chronic condition also played a part in her choice to redirect her life. She was diagnosed with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.

“The past few seasons I have struggled with balancing the various aspects of my life as well as a late diagnosis of ADHD, which was affecting my academics in a way that did not properly represent me,” Fabery said. “The choice to not play this year was difficult but, ultimately, was the best choice for me and my mental health.”

Fabery said she quit playing club soccer in the spring of her sophomore year for similar, linear reasoning.

“I decided it was time to move on and discover myself outside of a life of soccer,” she said. “As an athlete, it’s hard to accept when you can no longer work through struggles on your own, let alone accept you’re simply spread too thin. I think it’s truly important to provide athletes with strength in all avenues of success instead of only corresponding wellness with one’s ability to perform on the pitch.”

Fabery will attend Slippery Rock but will not play college soccer. Her sister, Kendall, is a freshman soccer player at Cleveland State.

“I still find ways to show my love for the game and go out and support the girls soccer team,” Gabby Fabery said. “My cousin, Ella McClain, is a current freshman. My hopes for a memorable and stress-free final year of high school will be made possible by the friends I have made through the game and the choice to prioritize myself.”

Club influence

Perhaps the trendsetter for foregoing a season of high school soccer was Tessa Dellarose, who did not play her senior year at Brownsville after committing to North Carolina.

Umbel mentioned Dellarose’s situation.

A few years ago, Norwin had another player, Sydney Gray, choose to train solely with the Riverhounds Academy after committing to Virginia Military Institute.

Another talented player, Kendra Pampus, who also attended Norwin, opted out of high school soccer after she committed to Youngstown State.

Club soccer is a cornerstone for college-bound players. While most players split time between the two entities, more girls are going club only.

The Great Lakes Alliance showcase league also attracts a number of high-level players.

“I needed to be able to dedicate much more of my time with training with my strength and conditioning coach, Mike Whiteman, and my soccer coaches, Jason Kutney and Scott Gibson, at the Pittsburgh Riverhounds,” Dellarose said. “It was really important for me to have the ability and time to do this because UNC, and college in general, is a different game and a significant jump of level of play than high school, and I needed to be as prepared as I could be if I wanted to make an impact as a freshman.”

Umbel and Bursick are Century club players.

The Riverhounds Academy is the third in the region’s top three clubs. Dellarose was a Riverhounds player.

Riverhounds ECNL director Rob Vincent noted that each girl’s situation is different but did confirm he has seen several girls choose not to play high school soccer, whether it was a year or multiple ones.

“As an ECNL club, our conference schedule doesn’t begin until late November, and so all of our players are welcome to play for their high school team, without it conflicting with ECNL season,” Vincent said. “In the past few years, we have had a handful of players forego their high school seasons, for a variety of reasons, and we do offer training to all of our high school-aged players throughout the fall so they can continue training if they are not playing high school. Generally, though, most of our girls do play high school and then return to RDA training in November.”

24-7 soccer

Like basketball, baseball and softball — and, to an extent, football, with 7-on-7 passing teams — soccer is a year-round venture.

“The girls play so much during cup season, some of them feel they need a break,” Latrobe coach Jamie Morrison said. “It’s tough on a lot of them. It is nonstop.”

Morrison, though, who was a standout at Jeannette and went on to play at Penn State, doesn’t remember a player leaving their high school team before their prep career was up when she played.

“None,” she said. “None of my friends who played, nobody. Club soccer has changed a lot since then, but I know back then, everyone just played for their high school team.”

Which perhaps begs a deeper question: Do travel players need high school soccer to get into college?

“Anyone who is serious about playing college soccer probably does need to be in a club environment,” Vincent said. “As that’s typically the way players are recruited nowadays.”

School spirit

While moves like these satisfy an individual’s need, they also can come with collateral damage, high school coaches say. A key player deciding to sit out a season and disconnect from her high school team can be disruptive.

“When you play for your community team, you rent that shirt,” said Mt. Pleasant coach Rich Garland, who appears to have full commitment from his current players. “You don’t own that shirt. Wearing it means something to the people who played before you and after you. I feel like that (school spirit) is going away.”

Vincent said high school soccer and representation still carries meaning to players.

“Add to that the social aspect of being part of a team, competing for WPIAL and state championships with your classmates,” he said. “There’s definitely a huge appeal on that side.”

“Looking at it from a college recruiting perspective, which is obviously something that many of our girls are focused on, high school sports aren’t what they maybe once were in terms of getting college exposure. So, in the past few years, we’ve had several players get injured during their high school season, and then miss a large chunk of the ECNL season — and the exposure that goes with it. We have had a couple of players who have been injured in the past, or maybe uncommitted going into their senior year, who opt not to play high school soccer so that they can focus on training with the RDA through the fall and being fit and healthy by the time ECNL season comes around.”

Garland said high school soccer has become “transactional.”

“It’s about, ‘What can I get out of it?’ ” the coach said. “It is more about what is best for me and not what is best for the team. If you aren’t here for the team, we don’t need you. You could be the best player in the world. If it’s more about you, then move on.”

Umbel and Bursick plan to continue to train heavily to stay sharp.

Umbel’s focus on karate will keep her competitive mojo intact — for now.

She said her preparation for her black-belt test is going well.

“I am strengthening my technique with every class I take,” she said, “along with my grit, determination, and confidence.”

A personal decision

Dellarose acknowledged that skipping a year or two of high school soccer is not for everyone. Each player must weigh the pros and cons of her own personal situation.

“My advice for other girls who might be teetering on the edge of this decision is to do what they believe is best for them,” Dellarose said. “There is, ultimately, no wrong decision here. If they think high school is the route, then absolutely go for it, but go for it intentionally, be all in and have the goal to improve yourself as best as you can.

“If they think forgoing it is the route, then do it, but fill the extra time with things that will prepare and help you succeed at the next level. Either way must be accompanied with hard work and intention, and that is what is most important for me.”

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Norwin, Southmoreland, Yough