PSC Prime, A Grassroots Effort

“You really have a special group of boys,” is usually what the opposing team’s coach says to Jennifer Crocetti, Pasadena Soccer Club’s (PSC) U9 travel boys coach, after a game. PSC Prime has been playing in and around Anne Arundel County since 2017, and over the past two years, they have been steadily building their positive reputation and winning record.

Since the team’s inception, coaches Crocetti, Stephen Abey and Craig Drenning have instilled a strong work ethic and a “one team, one family” mindset in the kids, all while teaching them sportsmanship and core soccer skills. Over time, a group of players with raw talent and a love for the game transformed into a team of grassroots, elite players with a bright future.

The coaches formed the team in the fall of 2017, and the majority of the kids have practiced and played together since. Team Prime started out dominating division I of the Anne Arundel Youth Soccer Association (AAYSA), followed by winning the B division of Central Maryland Soccer Association (CMSA). The team also won multiple tournaments and winter indoor league championships along the way. This spring, Prime is playing in the A bracket of the CMSA against top U9 teams from around central Maryland, and the team will round out its season with a weekend of fun in Ocean City at the Sand Duels beach soccer tournament.

The team has certainly done well over the past two years, boasting an overall 43-6-5 record. More importantly, however, the boys have learned to play as a team. Every time they take the field, their style of play focuses on ball movement, passing, attacking and defending as a team. They anticipate one another’s movements and execute skills beyond the typical U9 level, such as give-and-go’s, switching fields, leading players and set pieces. Because the coaches encourage creativity, teamwork and discipline, those characteristics manifest throughout Prime’s game and fuels the team’s success.

Team Prime has grown exponentially over the past two years, and they continue to grow the team and players. In the 2019 spring season, the team has expanded to two successful travel teams, one playing in CMSA and the other playing in the Central Maryland Short Sided League (CMSSL). To further expand as well as prepare for the fall season, Prime will hold tryouts this May and will conduct player evaluations over the summer on a case-by-case basis.

Coaches Crocetti, Abey, and Drenning and their players have created something special at PSC. The coaches took a group of kids with a passion for soccer and developed them into a team of elite players hanging with the best of the pay-to-play clubs in Maryland. Both the coaches and the club look forward to what the spring season will bring for this team.