The 2016-17 American Family Insurance ALL-USA Girls Soccer Teams were selected based on performance, level of competition and strength of schedule. Players and coaches from states that play fall, winter or spring soccer were eligible for selection.
PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Kennedy Wesley, Valley Christian (Calif.)
MORE: First Team | Second Team | Third Team
COACH PROFILE:
Name: Joe Finocchiaro
School: Glastonbury (Conn.)
When Joe Finocchiaro took over the Glastonbury girls soccer program in 2008, there wasn’t much history of soccer success. A decade later, Finocchiaro oversees a national powerhouse.
The Tomahawks won their third consecutive Connecticut Class LL state championship last fall, dominating opponents from start to finish as they stretched their state-record win streak to 60 games.
Glastonbury outscored its opponents 108-6 on the season. Caroline Bogue led the offense with a school-record 34 goals while ALL-USA First Team selection Danielle Brinckman anchored a defense that notched 15 shutouts. The Tomahawks finished the fall ranked No. 2 in the country in the USA TODAY Sports/National Soccer Coaches Association of America Super 25 rankings.
“They’ve gone from a good team to a recognized team to a powerhouse,” NSCAA national chairman Dick Loschi told the Hartford Courant. “You don’t see [what they’ve done] too often.”
Glastonbury broke Trumbull’s state record of 49 straight wins on Oct. 13 with a 5-0 win against Avon. The Tomahawks then won their next 10 games to stretch the win streak to 60, culminating with a 4-1 win against Ridgefield in the state final. That completed a 20-0 season.
The Tomahawks have featured a dominant offense and defense during the three-year unbeaten stretch. Glastonbury has scored 264 goals and allowed just 20 with 43 shutouts in the 60-game run.
Finocchiaro, who recently was named the National Girls Soccer Coach of the Year by the National High School Coaches Association, also won a state title in 2011. But that was just a little taste of what was in store for the Glastonbury girls soccer program.
“The record is not our motivation—our motivation is playing for the town,” Brinckman told the Courant in the days leading up to the state-record win against Avon. “We want to put Glastonbury in a good spot.”
LOOKBACK: 2015-16 ALL-USA Girls Soccer Team