Penn Fusion 2008 girls win ECNL Girls national title in Richmond

Kate Kemmerley capitalized off an early mistake by the Crossfire goalkeeper and Ava Pascarella and substitute Dylan Steinberg each scored in the second half to lead the Penn Fusion 2008 girls to an ECNL Girls national championship on Saturday in Richmond, Virginia.

The ECNL national title is a first for the West Chester-based club and capped off an unforgettable season for a group of players coached by Craig Scangarella that went 13-0-0 in conference play and made it all the way to the final day of the season, using their depth to knock off the Redmond, Washington-based power Crossfire Premier.

Kemmerley’s early goal got Penn Fusion going but Crossfire showed their quality in the fight back to fire in an equalizer and had the momentum going into the second half. But strong defending led by a standout performance from outside back Regan Taylor helped shift the tide and substitutes off the bench gave the attack a huge boost.

Penn Fusion regained the lead in the 55th minute on a beautiful counter attack goal finished by Ava Pascarella off a through ball from Daniela Vogel. Elayna Kocher, who was a handful all day, jumped a passing lane to start the counter and Pascarella put the exclamation point on things with a clinical finish in the box. Fifteen minutes later Dylan Steinberg tracked a ball down to win back possession, beat a couple defenders off the ball and hit a shot from distance to put Penn Fusion up 3-1 with 10 minutes to play.

Down a pair of goals, Crossfire showed they weren’t out of it though pulling back a goal just before full time to make the final 5 minutes of stoppage time interesting but Penn Fusion was able to limit their chances and celebrated on the field after the full time whistle blew on a long goal kick from Sarah McFarland.

Kemmerley, who was named MVP, was interviewed post-game on the broadcast by play-by-play announcer Dean Linke and she said she knew going into the season this group had a chance to win a national title.

“I’m so proud of my team and all the support, the coaches; this is a surreal experience,” she told Linke, minutes before getting a water bottle shower from teammates. “A lot of people were rooting for us…I appreciate everyone that’s ever supported us on our way. We’re bringing this back to the people who supported us from day one.”

The national title gave the Philadelphia area its second youth soccer national title of the season with Penn Fusion joining FC Delco’s 2008 boys in bringing home a national trophy. FC Delco won the 2008 MLS Next Cup in Nashville last month.

The 2008 girls were one of three Penn Fusion teams that made it to the ECNL Finals. The 2007 and 2009 teams also represented the club in the finals.

🏆 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS@PennFusion_SA 2008 girls are @ECNLgirls national champions with a 3-2 win over Crossfire in Richmond. pic.twitter.com/BavNS3z4N3

— Philadelphia Soccer Now (@phlsoccernow) July 13, 2024