Portilla, PDA Force are champs
By Justin Feil, Assistant Sports Editor
When the West Windsor-Plainsboro High South girls soccer team takes to the pitch this year, it will do so with a national champion right in the middle of play.
Gabriela Portilla was part of the Players Development Academy South Force U-17 team that won the U.S. Club Soccer’s National Premier League championship in Greensboro, N.C. last month.
”There’s definitely this feeling of wherever you go, wow, I did that, I can do something like that,” said the center midfielder. “It’s an amazing feeling every time you step on soccer field. That feeling never goes away. It’s a great feeling.”
The national title kicked off quite a summer for Portilla. She was relishing in reaching the highest of heights in the club world, and she recently verbally committed to play at Wellesley College. Now she’s opened practice for her final year with the Pirates.
”We started last Wednesday,” Portilla said. “We’ve been at it. It’s a lot of running now to make sure everyone is in shape, getting the team together, getting everyone to know each other and be able to play together. It’s been hard, but it’s been good.”
Portilla’s skill was evident from the time she began playing varsity for the Pirates as a freshman. She played significantly that year, then has started in each of the past two seasons for WW-P South in the center midfield. All the while, being a part of the PDA program has helped.
”I’ve been playing there since summer before my freshman year,” Portilla said. “It’s definitely helped me. Especially when I go back to my high school season, I see my improvement over the year.”
Improvement keyed the rise of the Force team to a national championship team. Portilla came to the team at the same time as former Montgomery High School girls head coach Jeremy Beardsley took over the PDA South side.
”When we started, they had zero potential,” Beardsley said. “They had a long way to go. That’s what makes it a good story. They worked hard. We added good players. They’re now one of the premier players in the age group and now nationally.”
PDA South won the regular season in their first year in the National Premier League, but had to win the Northeast regional tournament in Massachusetts to secure a spot for the national tournament. The Force went 4-0 in the nationals and then won the final, 1-0, over the New York Rush. They also won their regional, 1-0. In the national run, they did not allow a goal, a testament to how far they have come.
”Just making these finals is a big deal,” Beardsley said. “I had 15s in it and they lost in the semifinals. My 15s lost a tight game to a team from Oregon. We were the only two PDA teams to make it to the national championship, and there are teams in every age group from U13 to above.
”The biggest change we made is we’re way more organized,” he said. “We made way more progress in our technical dimension. We keep the ball more than we used to. The biggest thing is we learned how to win. When I first took over, they were constantly beating themselves. Over time, they learned how to win. The run to this national championship, they showed winning mentality and winning pedigree. They had to defend like crazy. The scoring wasn’t always there. We didn’t give up a goal, so the organization was incredible.”
The national title was a big jump. There were signs that the team was improving each year.
”Last year, at U16, we made it all the way to the State Cup,” Beardsley said. “We ended up losing in the final, but it was a great step forward. These little moments where they experienced tight games, they learned how to win these games. It’s great to see.”
Portilla can appreciate the growth. She was a part of the team over the past three years and had seen it emerge.
”I think he’s definitely right how when he first came to the team, I also came to the team around the same time, we’d do a lot of shooting ourselves in the foot,” Portilla said. “We would do things that were not necessarily smart. It would cause us to lose games in the end. We became a smarter team. We knew how to work with each other better. We knew what to do in certain situations to prevent an attack that would cost us a game. We ended up being very physical and fit and building ourselves as athletes too.”
PDA South finished the summer 17-1-1 overall with the national title. Portilla was a part of their success as a key reserve.
”She’s a tremendous piece of our midfield,” Beardsley said. “I like high energy and high pressure. I always find myself making use of my subs. Reserve players are always as important as starting players. Whether starting or coming off the bench, she plays an important role.
”We played a 4-3-3. She fits that system very, very well. She’s very smart. She’s one of those kids that would be a great coach down the road. She understands the game at a way higher level. She understands the connections between the lines. A 4-3-3 is a very possession oriented formation that she fits very well.”
Portilla is hoping that the experience of playing in the nationals will help raise her own level of play. She soaked in the environment at nationals.
”It was great, especially getting to play teams from California and Texas,” Portilla said. “Seeing different styles of play that we had to adjust to. It was great exposure to be able to compare ourselves to other teams. It was great environment. The fields were beautiful. You could see everyone warming up. Everyone was there to win it. We were just thinking, we’re a part of this, now we have to prove it this year. It’s a really encouraging feeling to be around people that are all going after national championships. It’s probably the biggest thing that I’ve been a part of.”
Portilla is hoping to be part of something big for the Pirates this year. They have a new coach in Allysa Bollaci, who takes over for long-time coach Chris Miller. Portilla is one of three captains along with Caroline Mezzanotte and Jennifer Case.
”I’m very excited,” Portilla said. “Even with the new coach change which can be a little hectic, I think the girls are responding well and being able to see changes in the play so quickly is encouraging. We have our first scrimmage (today) and we’ll see how our work has paid off.”
Portilla has seen her dedication rewarded. She is looking forward to the chance to play in college at Wellesley, a Division III program that is growing.
”Their coach, Tony Mohammed, I love his philosophy and how he trains,” Portilla said. “I got a chance to train with him at a camp and that helped solidify it. Over the past couple years, the program has been developing and getting better. It’s a program I’ll be able to go and contribute and hopefully make the program even better.”
Portilla still has another year with the Force as well. PDA South will be trying to chase a U-18 title this year, though Beardsley says that a bigger goal is making sure his team is ready for college.
”There’s no doubt in my mind that sticking with PDA is going to be the right choice for preparing all the players on the team for college,” Portilla said. “It’s a really competitive environment. We’re always staying fit. If you let up a bit, the girl next to you is going to jump in. Whatever age group you’re at, you can always get better. It’s a good place for us to be before we head off to a whole new world of soccer.”
What would make it special would be another national title before college. Portilla and the Force won’t have another chance at that until next summer, but it’s in the back of their minds as they enjoy this year’s historic run.
”I think the toughest part will probably be calming ourselves down and saying we can do it again and saying it’s a whole new season and making sure our mentality is the same as it was last season,” Portilla said. “We can’t let what we’ve done cloud what we want to do. We’re all going to come in prepared to win another one.”