California Storm win second WPSL national championship in three years

For the second time in three years, the California Storm are champions of the Women's Premier Soccer League. The path to another title wasn't easy, as the Storm had to prove they were the best out of more than 140 teams in the league. The Storm were a founding member of the WPSL, which was created by then-team president Jerry Zanelli. Zanelli had a vision to create a women's professional league that gave national team players the opportunity to play year-round. Several legends of the game have played for the Storm throughout the years, including Brandi Chastain, Alex Morgan and Julie Foudy. Today, the Storm are based in Davis, and their roots are in Placer County as many players hail from Rocklin, Roseville, Lincoln, Loomis and Auburn. Club president and head coach Jamie Levoy is from Colfax. "We have a bunch of local girls here from the Placer County area and a lot of them are college players or have played in college. We even have a few girls that are committed to college, but they haven't left for school yet," Levoy said. "Our team is very local and it helps prepare players for the next level of play." Levoy said she expected this team to be one of the better teams in the WPSL, but it wasn't until training began that she realized this group had the potential to accomplish something special. "The chemistry that these girls had, I've never seen anything like it. Everybody was so supportive of each other, and it really translated to their play on the field," Levoy said. "They're just so goofy together, but when they'd get on the field, it was all business. They had a really good mix of having fun with each other but also pushing one another." The Storm won the PacNorth Conference with 27 points and a record of 8-0-3. They opened the Western Regional playoffs with an 8-0 victory over FC Premier. The next day, the Storm punched their ticket to the national semifinals with a victory over the Spokane Shadow in penalty kicks. The run to the championship nearly ended in that Western Regional final, but goalkeeper Abbie Faingold made an incredible save on a penalty kick to keep the score tied 2-2 in extra time. The Storm went on to win the match 6-5 in penalty kicks. California made a statement in the national semifinals, defeating the second-ranked team in the country, Clarkstown Soccer Club, 5-0. In the championship match against the Charlotte Eagles, Camryn Lancaster's eighth-minute goal proved to be the difference, as the Storm hung on for a 1-0 victory. The 2024 title is the fourth WPSL championship for the Storm. Levoy said there were several similarities between this year's championship team and the 2022 squad, but what stands out this year is the youth on the roster. "This group of girls is a lot younger, so we should have them for a few more years before they go and play professionally," Levoy said. "They're definitely here to win and keep the culture that we have on this team because it's second to none. A lot of them have already said that they are coming back next season."