Ephrata Youth Soccer Club

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Where is Ephrata?
Ephrata Area School District lies in the northeast corner of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania—a well known agricultural area in the heart of the “Pennsylvania Dutch” region. The population, economic, and cultural center of the district is the historical community of Ephrata. Ephrata provides a commercial area with a wide assortment of quality retail outlets, an abundance of cultural and recreational facilities, and numerous fine residential sections.

Mission Statement
The purpose of the Ephrata Youth Soccer Club is to support, promote and provide educational and fun soccer competition for youth of the surrounding Ephrata area, and to use the sport of soccer to teach young people physical skills, sportsmanship, and values that they can carry with them throughout their life. Come join the fun and catch the spirit!

About the Club
Ephrata Youth Soccer Club is a not for profit organization governed by an elected board of parents and friends of EYSC. Funding comes from seasonal fees and periodic fund raising activities. The club does not receive any financial support from any of the municipalities, nor is it affiliated or supported by the school district or the Ephrata Recreation Center. Typically the club offers programs in the fall and spring for girls and boys Ages 5-19. Games are played on 3 levels:
• Intramural
• Recreational
• Travel

Intramural Programs (U-6 through U-8)
The intramural program is the cornerstone of the club and at this level the club wants to instill players with a love of the game, while learning basic soccer skills. All games are played in-house. The intramural program is based on the recreational philosophy. This philosophy de-emphasizes winning at all cost, while emphasizing soccer skill development, physical fitness, teamwork, sportsmanship, and fun. Players are placed on teams without tryouts, invitation, special recruiting, or other process that would roster players on the basis of ability or talent. All participants play a minimum of 50% of a game except for reasons of personal commitment, injury, illness, or discipline. All games are small sided (3 or 4 players typically) and are played with goals and space scaled to the players.

Recreational Programs (U-9 and Above)
The recreational program is committed to provide playing opportunities for players throughout their school years. The program continues to focus on skill development and having fun. The core of the recreational program comes from young athletes that just enjoy playing the game but may not have the time, commitment and or skill to devote to the rigors of travel soccer.
The recreational program is also based on the recreational philosophy. Players play a minimum of 50% of a game except for reasons of personal commitment, injury, illness or discipline. There are no tryouts for players. U-9/10 games are played with reduced field size, goals and number of players. Age Groups U-11 and above players play 11 v 11 on a full-size soccer field.

Games for U10 and above are scheduled with other participating clubs in the greater Lancaster County Area. Normally the league tries to limit travel time, where possible. The Girls play in the Lancaster Area Girls League. The boys play in Lancaster County Boys League. All clubs pledge that they will make an effort to balance participating teams within their clubs. The girls play in a 3 game end of the year festival. In fall this is 2-day event, while in spring this is a one-day affair. The boys play in a fall festival and sometimes participate in a spring festival.

The Travel Programs
Travel soccer is played at a higher level than Intramural soccer and is intended for those with the interest, skill and dedication to play at a higher level. Some of the notable differences are the speed of play, skill level of players and more physical level of interactions between players.
Since one of the missions of the club is to promote and improve soccer in the Ephrata Area, the travel program is considered a very important part of the Ephrata Youth Soccer Club. Travel league games are frequently played against the same clubs we play against at the intramural level.
The program begins with team tryouts at the end of each spring season. The boys and girls are selected based upon their soccer skills. Normally the teams competed in the LANCO league, which is comprised of clubs from Lancaster County and surrounding counties. In addition to a league schedule, most teams play 2 to 3 tournament per season. Often these tournaments are nearby but older teams have traveled out of state.

Some players may not be sufficiently challenged at the travel level. When there is a core of Ephrata players, the club will sponsor Premier teams. When appropriate placements are not available locally, players are encouraged to move to teams that can challenge and foster ongoing growth.

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