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East Lake Soccer Trio Has Division I Future Ahead

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By Eric Horchy | The Suncoast News

Published: January 17, 2009

EAST LAKE - Playing highly at the next level.

That's the dream most every competitive youth athlete aspires to realize after committing so much time and sweat and devotion to the sport at which they excel.

For three seniors on the East Lake High School girls soccer teammates that long-held goal has come to fruition - and for each at the NCAA Division I level.

Leah Fisher, Alicia Nalley and Tara Petzoldt have already verbally committed to their school of choice and now are playing out their final prep season without being under the intense microscope of the recruitment processes.

Fisher has chosen Notre Dame, while Nalley will head to the University of Florida and Petzoldt to the University of South Florida.

Even in the soccer hot bed that is Pinellas County, three such highly regarded talents all in the same class and on the same team is enough to turn heads. Here are some even more interesting points to consider:

•Notre Dame has been one of the nation's premier soccer programs for well over a decade.

••Florida has begun to assert itself as a force in NCAA soccer.

•Soccer at USF is, like much of its athletics department, a nascent program on the verge of gaining prominence.

East Lake, Palm Harbor and Seminole always seem to have a large percentage of high level players, John Orr, in his first year as East Lake soccer coach, said. "But yes, this is a bit of an eye opener."

How long they have been on the field together is playing a large role in the trio's success, the young women say. Along with high school, they have also played on the same club soccer team for about seven years.

"We always push each other and have a competitive edge against each other in a best-friend kind of way," Petzoldt said. "If we didn't have that going on for all these years, we might not all be where we are right now."

Factoring in the prevalence of prep-level transferring and the uber-competitive nature of club ball, the three sticking it out together can be viewed as a rarity.

"It's kind of remarkable that we're all committed to D-I schools and have been on the same club team and stayed at the same high school," Fisher acknowledged.

As for what the collegiate programs can expect once their respective East Lake signees step onto campus, each offer distinctively different attributes.

Fisher is an all-around athlete who uses her speed, quickness and jumping ability to open up opportunities that most others simply cannot.

"One on one, there's really not anyone out there that can go with her," Orr said of Fisher.

As a defender, Petzoldt's fierce competitiveness is always visible and she will be the first player on the spot to put in a hard tackle, Orr said.

Nalley is the Eagles' top finisher with an unprecedented knack for finding the back of the net or setting up a teammate to score. She is battling with Palm Harbor's Catherine Brinkman to be the county's scoring leader.

"I doubt there's anybody out there at any other school who's got a better first touch than Alicia," Orr said. "She's got a great shot and she can pass the ball in lovely."

While the level of excitement about the future is high and the feeling of accomplishment great, Petzoldt said, finishing off her senior season with a bang is tops on her to-do list.

"This year is incredibly important," she said. "Last year still kind of stings with the fact that we made it so close and it didn't work out for us."

The "so close" Petzoldt mentioned was in reference to last season's run to the state final four that ended with an overtime loss to Lakeland George Jenkins.

The Eagles stand at 12-3-2 overall - all three losses came against rival Palm Harbor - and are playing some of their best soccer of the year after knocking off previously unbeaten Seminole last Friday.

Fisher, Nalley and Petzoldt are among six highly regarded East Lake seniors who will graduate this coming spring, Petzoldt noted. So the girls are aware that East Lake may not get another shot at the state playoffs anytime soon if the team doesn't make it this season.

"For East Lake, this is the best chance for some of these girls to make it big."

Eric Horchy can be reached at 727-815-1071 or ehorchy@suncoastnews.com.

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