On March 25, I attended the Ohio State University Women’s Soccer Identification camp in Columbus, Ohio. My dad and I got up early for the six hour drive to Ohio. I had the chance to go to the camp with my teammate, center back, and great friend, Audrey Alberts. The camp started with a tour of the facility. Let me just say this facility is like no other I have seen. There were recovery technologies I didn’t know existed along with what seemed like an infinite amount of training equipment. During the tour, we got the chance to look at the locker room which is always cool.
While we were taking a look around, Coach Brian Jankowski was talking about the program. First of all, he mentioned that size isn’t the most important thing when recruiting. This was a relief! While I’m not exactly short, I am definitely not the tallest girl on the field. He also mentioned just how much training gear the players at OSU get as a result of the giant Nike contract with the school – everything from cleats to street wear to futsal shoes. And what could be better than that? It’s Nike! We also spent some time reviewing film from recent games with Coach Jankowski and learning how Ohio State plays and what the coaches are looking for in their recruits.
Next, coach Gavin MacLeod showed us around the building. I worked with Coach MacLeod when I attended the Dallas Sting College ID Camp in January, 2023 when he was one of my session coaches. We saw some of the medical areas, including the school’s state-of-the-art sensory deprivation baths. We also learned about the nutrition program and saw the food and snack areas. Everything was top-notch. After the tour with Coach MacLeod, we headed back to the field where I met Coach Walker-Hock. When she played soccer, she was the goalkeeper at the University of North Carolina for the mom, Rosalind Berhalter, of my teammate Lily Berhalter. We got right into training. There were current OSU players helping out at the camp.
We started training with passing patterns. One thing about OSU that I particularly took note of was the intensity of the drills. I have not seen that level of intensity at other camps. Whether it was the 11v11 scrimmage near the end or the dynamic warmup. Everything had a purpose and the Ohio State players fed into the atmosphere.
Coach Walker-Hock talked about stretching yourself as a player, being competitive and consistent. I really liked all of the coaches. The one thing that stood out to me was her mention of personality. Personality when playing can really define a player. If one loves the game and loves to compete, no matter their technical ability, it’s going to be hard to beat that player. I have a passion for the game of soccer and displaying it when I play is one of the things I love to do most.
After the camp, my dad and I went out to eat at a local pizza parlor. It was really good and a great way to end off a really high intensity and exciting camp. I can’t wait until the next one in the summer – I will definitely be back.
Here is my video from the camp.