Last Sunday spectators and parents gathered around the track field at California State University, East Bay, as the women’s soccer program held their 3-hour college I.D. summer camp designed for females, ages 14-25.

Current East Bay coaching staff Amy Gerace, head coach, and Zlatan Sahmanovic, assistant coach, conducted the camp. In conjunction with learning key fundamentals of the game, the camp was created with the intention to use it as a recruiting tool.

The coaches mentioned that their focus was to attract young high school players. Every player was provided the chance to work with the coaches one-on-one.

Women’s soccer was realistically looking for athletes who are old enough to be recruited, and to give players the opportunity to showcase their talent to the coaching staff. The soccer program is continuously looking for new players to enhance the level of talent provided on the team.

Although the camp had women of all ages, players were combined with different age levels to challenge their skill set.

Sahmanovic stated the camp is, “giving the players an opportunity to come on campus and get a better feel for our program and school, while also getting instruction from high level coaches.”

Players broke into a sweat, as each couple minutes of the camp focused on a technical skill, with keen emphasis on finishing topics, passing, and dribbling. The camp helped athletes improve their thought decisions on game play and tactical focus in game time situations.

Gerace worked with players as they were scrimmaging on utilizing space, reading the defense, and how to make the correct move based off what the defense is feeding you.
Many of the players came from various high schools, with a few transfers who also participated in the camp.

“The majority age group was players that are 2015 and 2016 graduates, meaning they are 16 and 17 years old,” said Sahmanovic.

The camp also saw the debut of their new goalie coach, Yiana Dimmit, who worked with the goalkeepers personally. The East Bay coaching staff is very thrilled to have her as a new addition; goalkeepers will receive more attention and training to help improve their skills.

It is vital to have a goalkeeper coach at the collegiate level, as goalies will get more feedback on a daily basis. The goalkeepers worked on drills: shuffling to the ball, drop kicks, throws, saving and keeper distribution. A game of soccer knockout was played by goalies to test their agility.

Goalkeeper and camp participator Taylor Boren enjoyed the workout she received with Dimmit. “The new goalkeeper coach they picked up is intense,” said Boren, as the coach was very lively encouraging the keepers to make adjustments to their game.

“They worked us hard, I worked on staying focused with my hands—that is real important for a goal keeper,” said Boren.

When asked if the program was seeking a particular athlete from the camp, Sahmanovic said he could not provide specific names, but they are always interested in good players.

However, there was one player in particular who stood out; Jessica Viera-Ramirez. Viera-Ramirez trained with the Mexican national team in 2013, and was invited by one of the coaches to join the camp.

Viera-Ramirez missed out on many camps this year, so she attended the East Bay camp to gain more exposure, according to her mother Deneen Viera.

“I like when they have goalkeepers separated. It is a good way for them to showcase what they have,” said Viera.

The women’s program usually holds two to three soccer camps throughout the year, generally in the fall, spring, and summer. The camp cost $35, and players are encouraged to enroll. A registration and waiver must be filled out prior to camps.

“We want them to leave camp with a different view on the game and provoke more thought about how they see the game or apply practice to develop their soccer IQ,” said Sahmanovic.