With a 2-0 win over a feisty Sockers FC - Chicago team on July 2, the FC Wisconsin Eclipse U23 team qualified for the ECNL National Finals in Richmond, VA from July 11-14, 2013. 

With a 2-0 win over a feisty Sockers FC - Chicago team on July 2, the FC Wisconsin Eclipse U23 team qualified for the ECNL National Finals to be held in Richmond, VA from July 11-14, 2013.  

The team is one of six teams from across the country to qualify, including: Eclipse Select (IL), FC Dallas (TX), McLean SA (VA), Scorpions (MA), and Ohio Elite (OH).  The U23 Finals are being held in conjunction with the ECNL National Finals for the U14-U17 age groups, making Richmond the center of girls youth soccer in the US for 5 days.

At the U23 age group, the teams will play 3 round robin games with the top 2 teams advancing to play in the ECNL U23 National Championship on Sunday, July 14.

In Tuesday's deciding game, the team was tied 0-0 at half before a brace from Cara Walls saw FC Wisconsin Eclipse through.  The team features current collegiate players from Marquette University (Katie Hishmeh, Jacie Jermier, Mary Luba, Ashley Stemmeler, and Mady Vicker), the University of Wisconsin-Madison (Carly Vogel, Cara Walls, and McKenna Meuer), the University of Notre Dame (Brittany Von Reuden), Loyola University (Monica Gonyo, Valerie Gonyo, and Mariah Vichich), Baylor University (Justine Hovden), and rising freshman Allegra Godfrey (Valparaiso University).  Several of the players will be attempting to win their second national championship in 2 years, following up on the U18 USYS National Championship they won in 2011 to become the first Wisconsin team to ever win a youth national championship.  (The 2011 USYS championship was the last championship held before the ECNL teams across the country left USYS national competition completely to focus on the ECNL.)

Stay tuned for more stories and updates from the ECNL National Finals!