‘I Will Never Forget That Moment’: Quickstrike FC and the Elastic Art of Victory

By Toby Rosewater

It took over 80 minutes of regulation play, 20 minutes of overtime, and five and a half rounds of penalties to get to this point.

It is July 15, a hot and humid day in Richmond, Virginia, and Quickstrike FC’s U14 team, made up of girls from Westchester, Rockland, Dutchess, Fairfield, and Orange County, is one kick away from winning the ECNL Regional League National Championship. 

The honor — or the burden, depending on who you ask — fell to Haylee Presto.

“The nerves were flowing,” Presto told The Examiner, “but I knew I had it in me to make it.”

Without fear, Presto stepped up, the weight of a season — and the dreams of her teammates — resting on her shoulders. 

She took a steadying breath and, before long, sent the ball soaring into the back of the net.

Victorious, Presto couldn’t help but cry. 

“I will never forget [that moment],” she said. “After years of hard work, sacrifice, and relentless pressure, the final victory feels amazing for every ounce of effort poured in.”

The Top of Their Game

The ECNL Regional League, along with MLS NEXT and the ECNL National League, represents the pinnacle of the American youth soccer pyramid.

“Roughly 350 teams nationwide compete in the Regional League,” Mike Winn, the coach of the championship side, told The Examiner. “Such a high level gives our players an expanded breadth of competition and greater opportunities to develop.”

Simply put, the ECNL is where college coaches look for tomorrow’s stars, and where the very best youth players compete for both national titles and the chance to play at the collegiate level.

Stretching Toward Glory

At all levels, winning isn’t easy, and the journey to a national championship is rarely a straight line.

In sports, the pursuit of glory is a lot like fastening a spring. There’s a specific length you’re aiming for, a point of maximum potential where all the tension is stored. Yet, even as you strenuously pull, more often than not, early attempts to reach it fail.

In this climate, even the strongest puller watches the coil slip from their grasp, and for a moment, all that effort seems wasted. 

In the same way, a great team rarely triumphs on its first attempt. 

Even the strongest groups falter, their dreams relegated by a single missed chance, a stray shot, or a spontaneous moment of doubt.

Both sports (and springs) possess this kind of unforgiving elastic quality. 

It has spawned college classes, full-on majors, and many pages of published prose. It has saved players, ruined them, and created an industry of well-educated, fiercely American sports professionals.

This elastic quality, heavy and all-encompassing, fits this story as well as any.

Last year, Quickstrike, a first-year ECNL team, found itself the East Regional Champions and, soon after, one of only eight teams to qualify for Nationals.

“There were a lot of nerves — it was our first time experiencing everything,” Winn said. “It kind of got the best of us.”

Despite winning their quarterfinal matchup, Quickstrike eventually fell in the next round — a tough defeat for a squad still learning the ropes at the next level.

At Full Extension

Oftentimes, with each failed attempt, the spring seems to stretch just a little farther, every setback builds resilience, and every few inches adds to the store of potential.

“After falling short last year in the semi-finals,” Presto said, “we were determined to get back this year and leave as national champions.”

This season, Quickstrike won 19 of their 20 regular-season games, storming through their opponents with a blend of tactical flexibility, creative offense, and disciplined defense.

“Watching the team,” Bianca Bakker, a sixth-year player, told The Examiner, “I could tell we were able to connect our passes and really dominate each game.”

To be sure, Quickstrike, still underestimated, pulled off a rapturous upset against Real Colorado in May.

“[They] were ranked #14 in the nation at the time,” said Willa King, the team’s star goalkeeper. “Coming from behind against a team no one expected us to beat…that’s when I realized we could win it all.”

With this momentum, Quickstrike once again won Regionals and quickly qualified for Nationals.

There, they dismantled South Florida Football Academy in the semifinals — and with Presto’s final, fearless kick — captured the National Championship against Beach FC.

At last, the spring held.

“I think the girls went in with a new level of confidence this year,” Winn concluded. “Having lived through it last year, they knew what to expect and believed in themselves and each other.”

From Practice Fields to Playgrounds

While it’s easy to forget, these girls are not professional athletes. Instead, they are students, friends, and sisters. They like pizza and slushies, Kahoot and science class, movie night and sleepovers. 

In this light, their achievements are all the more impressive.

The discipline to balance academics, friendships, and elite soccer — in the sweltering heat of a July championship or the dark evenings of a midwinter rondo — requires a resilience and maturity seemingly beyond their years.

“In the fall, I’d stay after school to finish my work, then head straight to practice, and a lot of times I’d go right from there to club training,” said Carrie Bakker, Bianca’s twin sister and Quickstrike teammate. “It was a lot to juggle.”

With this in mind, perhaps the greatest hurdle for these young athletes isn’t striving for maturity, but simply remembering that they’re still just kids — and that soccer is meant to be fun.

Bianca Bakker, who was sidelined by a back injury last fall, underscored how vital it is for young athletes to find that balance:

“It was really hard coming back. I lost my stamina and confidence, and I felt a lot of pressure on my shoulders,” she said. “But having a great coach and supportive teammates helped me enjoy soccer again and find my place on the team.”

Such harmony — between being a kid and an athlete, between hard work and play — is, without a doubt, at the heart of Quickstrike’s success.

“I am grateful to have been part of this team…constantly surrounded by hardworking, supportive, and dedicated teammates,” seventh-year player Alex Bowins said. “[Our] close bond…I believe…is what led to our success at Nationals.”