EASTERN PENN SOCCER ALUMNA SHARES HER
TRAINING SECRETS By Terry Jacoby
T
oni Washington turned a successful club career into a successful college career. While her career at Delaware State University is over, she isn’t quite done with the game of soccer. She’s currently playing with Huntingdon Valley’s U23 women’s team under Brad Sorkin. She also has plans to coach at her alma mater, Abington High, under Rick Tompkins. Washington, 23, has been playing with HVAA since she was 10 for Brad Sorkin, the 2015 Eastern Penn Travel Coach of the Year. In 2015, HV Pride won the Presidents Cup Championship. She credits her club experience with HVAA for helping her succeed at the college level. “I played with some of the best players on each level,” she says. “There also were the tournaments and the bonding that comes from traveling with your team. The bonds and friendships that I made and still have. The platform that Eastern Penn provided for college coaches to see me play against top-flight teams and the coaching.” Washington says she picked Eastern Penn because of the high level of competition on every level. “I hate to lose more than I like to win, and I know that the girls on the team shared a similar passion and desire to be better and work hard,” she says. “I also had the ability to face some of the best talent in my age group from all over not just in Montgomery County. Some of those players I have had the pleasure of playing on the collegiate level. “EPYSA offers the ability to receive top-rate coaching along with playing with and against some of the best players in your age group that you are able to connect with and sometimes even form lifelong bonds with.” Washington also had a chance to play with the Olympic Development Program (ODP). “My ODP experience was so much fun,” she says. “Rick Tompkins (ODP Boys U16 Coach) was my high school soccer coach and suggested that I try out and it was a great experience. Being a part of that team I had the opportunity to train with Hannah Alexander and Emily Keitel (Temple), Krista Kissell (Lafayette) and Shea Tomlinson (Drexel), who I ended up playing against in college, along with Shea Moyer (Penn State). When you are training with players who are that skilled and that talented you get better each practice.”
TONI’S TIPS FOR PLAYING CLUB SOCCER 1 BE COACHABLE 5 HYDRATE 2
PRACTICE AT GAME SPEED EVERY PRACTICE
6
STAY AWAY FROM JUNK FOOD & SUGAR
3
EARN SOMETHING NEW EVERY YEAR
7
4
CHALLENGE YOURSELF TO BE BETTER
ENJOY EVERY MOMENT OF PRACTICE, GAMES & ROAD TRIPS
12
Eastern Pennsylvania Youth Soccer
epysa.org
