WVU's Stoia Excited About USA Soccer
July 12, 2011 09:46 PM | General
MORGANTOWN, W. Va. – By now, everyone who’s been following the 2011 Women’s World Cup, and even those who haven’t, know about the stunning victory the United States earned over Brazil on Sunday afternoon.
Hope Solo, Abby Wambach and Ali Krieger have now become household names, if they weren’t before, and everyone knows about the heroics the three performed to help the team advance to its sixth-straight semifinal in World Cup competition.
It’s hard to argue which of the three is receiving the most media attention, but Solo has certainly been commanding her share. With an outgoing personality, and crazy energy and intensity, it’s easy to see why the national team looks to her as a constant source of motivation.
Mountaineer women’s soccer assistant coach Lisa Stoia had the opportunity to play with Solo for a year in 2009, when they both played for the St. Louis Athletica of Women’s Professional Soccer.
“Playing with Hope was an incredible experience,” Stoia said. “The biggest thing I take away from playing with her is her intensity. She always had so much energy in training sessions and practice sessions and in games.”
People might not appreciate just how athletic Solo truly is. In one training session Stoia had with her, Solo jumped in to warm-up with the field players. And she tore them apart with her foot skills.
“I’ll never forget that practice session,” Stoia laughed. “I think at one point I actually just stopped after she did something crazy with the ball, like a Maradona. I was just so impressed that I think I just stopped and almost applauded her. But the thing is she just kept going and playing like it was nothing, and she does it all the time.”
Another time, Stoia recalled Solo injuring her right foot and wasn’t able to do much with it. So she just switched to using her left foot instead.
“She couldn’t use her right foot and she was punting and taking goal kicks past midfield using her left foot. The ball was going the same distance as if she had used her right foot and that’s incredibly hard to find. There are field players that can’t even do that.
“Her work ethic stands out far beyond a lot of people that I’ve ever played with, and I’ve had the opportunity to play with a lot of incredible people myself,” Stoia continued. “Playing with her was remarkable and something to look back upon and be excited about.”
One of the other incredible athletes that Stoia had the chance to play against was Marta, Brazilian National Team forward and five-time FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year.
Stoia laughed when recalling what it was like having to defend her.
“She’s got such incredible pace and there aren’t many females in the game that have that pace; it’s very rare to find,” she elaborated. “Marta is just incredible because she brings a whole other level to the game that is exciting for fans to watch. She’s just so fast and her feet move so fast that you don’t even know what to do sometimes.”
While many criticize Marta for her on-field tactics and inability to always keep her composure, Stoia understands why she shows the passion that she has for the game. Having spent a year being coached by Jorge Borcellos, the former Brazilian national team coach, Stoia learned aspects about the culture that led to a renewed respect for the Brazilian team.
“They often get drawn into all of this negativity because of how they act sometimes on the field, but it’s a different culture there. In Brazil, they live, eat and breathe soccer. They grow up playing soccer in bare feet,” said Stoia. “This is their dream and in this type of game situation it’s okay to be drawn out with your emotions.
“Not many people get to step out on that field and play the game in that atmosphere with that many people watching you.”
With the drama of the quarterfinal match behind them, the United States now has to prepare for its semifinal against France on Wednesday. Stoia believes that the key to this match is how the United States overcomes its emotional victory over Brazil and gains composure.
“There are some good key players out there,” she said. “But at this level, they all know how to play. It’s more about coming off of a very emotional game. It’s about gaining composure, gaining back the trust in one another and stepping on the field to take care of business.”
Regardless of the final outcome, there’s no denying that this 2011 Women’s National Team has already brought the attention and excitement back to women’s soccer in the United States, something that hasn’t been felt or seen much since the 1999 Women’s World Cup team took the field.
“The 1999 World Cup team definitely set a standard for women, and I think there’s been a little gap in between,” said Stoia. “I think people are now starting to understand that the level of the women’s game today has significantly grown because of that team.”
And just as that team was responsible for a tremendous growth in women’s soccer, the likes of which haven’t been seen since, Stoia believes this 2011 team is capable of the same thing.
“It just draws so much more interest to future generations and young girls playing the game. It draws so much positive reinforcement to the young generations that anything can happen and it gives them a reason and hope to one day keep their dreams alive too,” Stoia explained.
With four teams remaining in the tournament, it’s still anyone’s championship to take. But personally, Stoia would love to see a rematch between Sweden and the United States in the final.
“One of my former teammates at St. Louis plays for Sweden so I think it would be fun to see a rematch,” she grinned. “And I think the U.S. would probably want that rematch too.”
By the end of Wednesday, we’ll know if Stoia gets her wish.
Hope Solo, Abby Wambach and Ali Krieger have now become household names, if they weren’t before, and everyone knows about the heroics the three performed to help the team advance to its sixth-straight semifinal in World Cup competition.
It’s hard to argue which of the three is receiving the most media attention, but Solo has certainly been commanding her share. With an outgoing personality, and crazy energy and intensity, it’s easy to see why the national team looks to her as a constant source of motivation.
Mountaineer women’s soccer assistant coach Lisa Stoia had the opportunity to play with Solo for a year in 2009, when they both played for the St. Louis Athletica of Women’s Professional Soccer.
“Playing with Hope was an incredible experience,” Stoia said. “The biggest thing I take away from playing with her is her intensity. She always had so much energy in training sessions and practice sessions and in games.”
People might not appreciate just how athletic Solo truly is. In one training session Stoia had with her, Solo jumped in to warm-up with the field players. And she tore them apart with her foot skills.
“I’ll never forget that practice session,” Stoia laughed. “I think at one point I actually just stopped after she did something crazy with the ball, like a Maradona. I was just so impressed that I think I just stopped and almost applauded her. But the thing is she just kept going and playing like it was nothing, and she does it all the time.”
Another time, Stoia recalled Solo injuring her right foot and wasn’t able to do much with it. So she just switched to using her left foot instead.
“She couldn’t use her right foot and she was punting and taking goal kicks past midfield using her left foot. The ball was going the same distance as if she had used her right foot and that’s incredibly hard to find. There are field players that can’t even do that.
“Her work ethic stands out far beyond a lot of people that I’ve ever played with, and I’ve had the opportunity to play with a lot of incredible people myself,” Stoia continued. “Playing with her was remarkable and something to look back upon and be excited about.”
One of the other incredible athletes that Stoia had the chance to play against was Marta, Brazilian National Team forward and five-time FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year.
Stoia laughed when recalling what it was like having to defend her.
“She’s got such incredible pace and there aren’t many females in the game that have that pace; it’s very rare to find,” she elaborated. “Marta is just incredible because she brings a whole other level to the game that is exciting for fans to watch. She’s just so fast and her feet move so fast that you don’t even know what to do sometimes.”
While many criticize Marta for her on-field tactics and inability to always keep her composure, Stoia understands why she shows the passion that she has for the game. Having spent a year being coached by Jorge Borcellos, the former Brazilian national team coach, Stoia learned aspects about the culture that led to a renewed respect for the Brazilian team.
“They often get drawn into all of this negativity because of how they act sometimes on the field, but it’s a different culture there. In Brazil, they live, eat and breathe soccer. They grow up playing soccer in bare feet,” said Stoia. “This is their dream and in this type of game situation it’s okay to be drawn out with your emotions.
“Not many people get to step out on that field and play the game in that atmosphere with that many people watching you.”
With the drama of the quarterfinal match behind them, the United States now has to prepare for its semifinal against France on Wednesday. Stoia believes that the key to this match is how the United States overcomes its emotional victory over Brazil and gains composure.
“There are some good key players out there,” she said. “But at this level, they all know how to play. It’s more about coming off of a very emotional game. It’s about gaining composure, gaining back the trust in one another and stepping on the field to take care of business.”
Regardless of the final outcome, there’s no denying that this 2011 Women’s National Team has already brought the attention and excitement back to women’s soccer in the United States, something that hasn’t been felt or seen much since the 1999 Women’s World Cup team took the field.
“The 1999 World Cup team definitely set a standard for women, and I think there’s been a little gap in between,” said Stoia. “I think people are now starting to understand that the level of the women’s game today has significantly grown because of that team.”
And just as that team was responsible for a tremendous growth in women’s soccer, the likes of which haven’t been seen since, Stoia believes this 2011 team is capable of the same thing.
“It just draws so much more interest to future generations and young girls playing the game. It draws so much positive reinforcement to the young generations that anything can happen and it gives them a reason and hope to one day keep their dreams alive too,” Stoia explained.
With four teams remaining in the tournament, it’s still anyone’s championship to take. But personally, Stoia would love to see a rematch between Sweden and the United States in the final.
“One of my former teammates at St. Louis plays for Sweden so I think it would be fun to see a rematch,” she grinned. “And I think the U.S. would probably want that rematch too.”
By the end of Wednesday, we’ll know if Stoia gets her wish.
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