Slidell Soccer Club coach Ryan Lazaroe is no stranger to success, but even he was short on words about his team's recent accomplishments.
The SSC 08 Girls Storm Elite squad joined some special company on June 18 when the team won the United States Youth Soccer Association 16U Southern Presidents Cup crown.
"It's a huge accomplishment for the girls and everyone involved," Lazaroe said. "It's a huge thing for the team and for soccer in Slidell. I couldn't be more proud of the girls. Now we're focused on, hopefully, becoming the first team to win a national championship."
The back-to-back state champions took it a step further this year by becoming the fifth team from Louisiana to win a regional title.
"It's crazy," said Olivia Roy, a Northshore junior. "We've been putting in a lot of hard work. I don't think many people expected us to get here, but we exceeded everyone's expectations. We've just worked really hard at practice and made it happen."
That hard work will continue this week as the team competes in the National Presidents Cup in Wichita, Kansas, on July 12-16.
The team — which included players from Hannan, Northshore, Covington, Mandeville, Mount Carmel and even Boyet Junior High — has spent the last few weeks practicing on the turf field at Slidell High's L.V. McGinty Stadium to get used to the surface for the national tournament.
That's just another bit of adversity for a team that faced its fair share, including being merged with players from younger divisions. That means this 16 and under team has junior high players competing against rising high school juniors.
"The team has been through a lot of ups and downs, but the girls have consistently gotten better," Lazaroe said. "That's been the key. Every season, we set our goals and objectives, and they did it. The reward is winning a regional championship. If anyone deserves it, it's these girls. It's been a great ride."
Defender Sophia Ontimara, who preps at Pope John Paul II, said her squad has shown its heart all season.
"Even if people doubt us, we just use our heart and really push forward to beat a team," Ontimara said. "We just got a lot closer during the season, especially during regionals because we had to stay in the same hotel, and we had meetings before the game."
Farrah Lightell, a Hannan freshman, agreed: "It's been a long road. At the beginning of the season, we were a little rocky, but we got out of that early slump. We just started winning games, and we kept it going."
Lazaroe said his squad puts in the work to be successful.
"We have the right players to play for each other," Lazaroe said. "We have girls who don't need the spotlight, and the awesome thing about this group is that they are willing to sacrifice for the betterment of the team. That means playing positions that they're not used to and playing with some new players. There's been a lot of sacrifice, and it's paid off."
An example of that sacrifice paying off came as the Storm employed a defensive formation to knock off Blitz Academy of Oklahoma in penalty kicks to win the regional title.
That commitment to the game plan sets his team apart, Lazaroe said.
Roy said the players know the competition at nationals will be even more challenging, but she feels like the players are up to the task.
"Coach made it clear that we need to put in work outside of practice too," Roy said. "I think everyone is really pushing themselves, like going on jogs in the dead heat of the day so we can get ready for Kansas. We're excited to have a chance to win a national title."