July 2025 - June 2026  (Parent Meeting will be held in late June)

Program Overview

The Springfield South County Youth Club professional technical staff is led by Technical Director Este Maldonado along with the technical leadership listed below.

Travel Program Technical Leadership

Contact	Position	Email
Este Maldonado	Technical Director	estemaldonado@sycva.com
Pepe Maldonado	Boys Director of Coaching	pepemaldonado@sycva.com
Laura Orrell	Girls Director of Coaching	lauraglew@sycva.com
Stephen Tupy	MLS Next Director	stephentupy@sycva.com
Gerardo Ramirez	Girls Academy Director	gerardoramirez@sycva.com

 

The Springfield South County Youth Club (SYC) travel program consists of team training, league and tournament play as well as other on and off-field developmental events, including college information sessions, specialized fitness training, and special technical clinics.

Players try out each year to be considered for a team. Once selected, the player commits to one seasonal year (July-June) of participation with the team.

Springfield South County Youth Club offers a range of teams for players based on level of play and commitment. Players should carefully review information about a team prior to trying out.

Team Training & Player Expectations: Travel teams in SYC typically train 2-4 times/week throughout the fall and spring seasons. Many teams may train year-round.

League and Tournament Games: Springfield South County Youth Club travel teams participate in a number of leagues. Placement in these leagues is determined by the technical staff and reflects the team's level of play and level of commitment.

• MLS Next & MLS Next II: This is the highest level of competition available for SYC U13-U19 boys.
• Girls Academy & ASPIRE: This league offers the highest level of competition available for our U13-U19 girls.
• National Academy League (NAL): This is the league the second level U13-U19 boys teams participate in.
• EDP Soccer League:  Select teams will be placed in EDP based upon the Technical Director’s discretion.
• The National Capital Soccer League (NCSL):  U9-U12 and U13-U19 Blue/Orange/White SYC teams participate in this league. NCSL is a  primary travel league for the DC Metropolitan area. Most age groups have 4-6 different divisions catering towards the varying needs of travel level teams.

The recommended number of tournaments will be determined by age and ability level. The head coach will inform the team as to the approximate number of tournaments they will participate in throughout each season. The Technical Director (TD), and Girls and Boys Directors will determine which tournaments the club will participate in. The objective will be to have all of the SYC teams attend the same tournaments if practical. As a general guide U9-U12 teams participate in 4-6 tournaments per year. U13-U19 teams participate in 4-8 tournaments per year.

Attendance at all team games and tournaments is mandatory. Discuss any conflicts that arise with your coach that may prevent a player from participating.