Alissa Gorzak took a week off school last month and went to California.
It’s turning into a habit.
The Naperville Central senior, who plays for the Eclipse Select soccer club, was one of 31 players called up to the U.S. U-20 women’s national team training camp Aug. 23-30 at the National Training Center in Carson, Calif.
Gorzak now has been called up three times this year. She also attended U-19 training camps in April and May.
“It’s been tough to miss (school),” Gorzak said. “It’s hard because you’ve got to study and do your homework. I don’t pick the timing of (the camps) but I’m excited to be here.”
The repeated call-ups are proof that Gorzak, a forward who is committed to Virginia, is a rising star in the women’s game.
This camp was Gorzak’s first exposure to the U-20 team, which is preparing for next year’s U-20 World Cup in Papua New Guinea. With the college season having started, the camp was stocked with high school players hoping to get a crack at being chosen for the World Cup CONCACAF qualifying tournament which will be held in December in Guatemala.
“I went to the U-19s a lot and that was good way of getting exposure to the national team coaches and (the U-20) is a big deal because it’s a World Cup year,” Gorzak said. “This camp is a really good opportunity for a lot of the younger girls to get a look now (and see) that they’re creating a pool of players to prepare for the U-20 World Cup.”
Gorzak, who will turn 18 in December, hopes one day to suit up for the national team, but currently is focused mainly on improving her skills.
“Right now, I’m taking it camp by camp but I think it’s realistic to strive for it,” Gorzak said. “I’d love to be on the qualifying roster or on the U-20 World Cup. It would be an awesome opportunity to compete outside the country.”
Gorzak won two club national titles with Eclipse Select, which had three players at the latest camp. They received in-depth instruction during two-a-day practices, followed by a pair of scrimmages.
“Each camp has a topic,” Gorzak said. “This topic is interchange, movement between players. The coaches will teach us about that and then have us apply that in games.
“It’s also an evaluation camp. It’s really a learning experience and also a fun week to be around the coaches.”
Coaches have told Gorzak, who plays mostly on the wing, that she excels in attacking defenders.
“I’m a (one-on-one) specialist,” Gorzak said. “They tell me my biggest thing to work on is having a defensive presence while also being more aggressive attacking the goal.”
Gorzak’s mother, Anita, has noticed Alissa’s growing maturity since her first national team camp her sophomore year.
“This has been really exciting,” Anita Gorzak said. “The two U-19 camps were fairly close together, and I think that was really beneficial for her because you’re playing with the best players in the country and you’re actually being coached by some of the best coaches in the country.”
That will continue. Virginia’s coach is Steve Swanson, who is one of the U-23 national team coaches and an assistant coach on the senior national team that just won the Women’s World Cup.
As for missing school, there is no worry. Gorzak is an honors student.
“We’re lucky that Naperville Central has been really good about working with us, making sure the teachers know where she is and getting her homework,” Anita Gorzak said. “My husband (John) and I are so proud of her.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance writer for the Naperville Sun.
