The Charlotte Lady Eagles have evolved.

They have remained active, despite the W-League folding in 2015. Their eight-game season includes four home games at Charlotte Christian, including a doubleheader with the men’s team on June 6 against the Carolina Dynamo.

“We’re the women’s side of the PDL team,” coach and general manager Mitch Sanford said. “Back in 2015, the W-League, which was the women’s side of the PDL, folded. For the last three years, we’ve still been bringing in high-level collegiate women’s players looking for a place to train and develop their game over the summer when they’re not in school, so they can be prepared to go back to their college seasons. We’ve been doing it through an academy league format since the W-League folded.”

The Lady Eagles have chosen to play without committing to a league, such as the Women’s Premier Soccer League, which sits second in the women’s side of the American soccer pyramid behind the National Women’s Soccer League.  

“Rather than joining the WPSL, we’ve just been experimenting with bringing players in, doing exhibitions, creating a training environment for them,” Sanford said. “Not being in the league has created opportunities for us to do things like take the group on an international trip.”

Their 2018 season includes a trip to Colombia this month.

“They’ll have a chance to play against three different professional teams down there, and then come back and play some different WPSL and academy-type teams here through the course of the summer,” Sanford said.

The Lady Eagles’ work centers on more than what happens during training and games.

“Like everything with the Eagles, it’s a place where we want to train high level players, but we’re also looking to develop the girls as leaders, see them go back and be positive influences on their college locker rooms,” Sanford said. “The desire is that it’s a unique place. It may not be for everybody, but for the right kind of girl, it’s sweet spot for them to grow in every area of the game for the summer.”

While their men’s counterpart PDL side celebrated their 25th season with a league title last season, the Lady Eagles have proven successful in their own right since their inaugural season in 2000. Former coach Lee Horton earned recognition as a North Carolina Soccer Hall of Fame inductee in 2007, and 2017 National Girls’ High School Coach of the Year for private/parochial schools for his work at Charlotte Latin.

On the Net:
www.charlotteeagles.com/ladyeaglesschedule

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