Drawing recruiters is matchup’s main goal

Thousands of soccer coaches from club to college to pros are coming to Los Angeles this week for the NSCAA convention and MSL Super Draft.

To take advantage of the visits, two of the top high school programs in California, Anaheim Servite and Los Angeles Cathedral, have set up a nonleague soccer game in the middle of league play for Friday at 7 p.m. at Cathedral.

The hope by Servite Coach Jon Spencer and Cathedral Coach Arturo Lopez is for as many as 20 college recruiters to stop by to see the matchup in downtown Los Angeles, not far from where activities are taking place at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

Perhaps a player or two might be impressive enough to earn a scholarship offer and add further proof that playing high school soccer is not a deterrent to moving on to the next level.

Take the case of senior Tim Burke of Servite. For his sophomore and junior seasons, he elected to play in the U.S. soccer-sponsored Academy League. It cost his family thousands of dollars in travel and other costs for the chance to play against top players and be exposed to college recruiters at showcases and tournaments.

After two years, he had no scholarship offers.

“I went in one day and talked to Jon and let him know I wanted to play my senior year with my brothers and get the whole high school experience,” he said. “It was a tough decision, but it’s paying off and I’m having a ton of fun.”

Burke had three goals in helping Servite win the SoCal High School championship in Oceanside last week. He has 10 assists for the 10-1-2 Friars, considered the No. 1 team in Southern Section Division 1.

Now he has Loyola Marymount and University of San Francisco pursuing him for college.

“I kind of stayed positive and stayed humble,” he said. “Definitely you can get exposure from any level you play as long as you have the coaching staff supporting you. Servite gave me that backbone. They’ve reached out and made it a priority to get me to college and reach the next level.”

Cathedral’s Lucas Holopainen is in the same situation as Burke. He played three years in the Academy League before returning to high school this season. He also is searching for a college, and Lopez is confident his play for the 9-2-4 Phantoms will produce an offer.

Burke said the Academy League is designed to prepare kids for the national team.

“You could have 60 college coaches there, but if you don’t stand out, it’s just another club game,” he said. “The high school experience has been great. Playing on the field with kids I go to school with is something I’m blessed to have. You really get that chemistry. The blood, sweat and tears is something you can’t explain.” Burke said his Academy experience was positive, but shouldn’t be the only option for high school athletes.

“They’re the best players out there,” he said. “The thing is in high school, you may not have the best, but you have kids giving 110% every day, and that’s the key to success. Every single day, everyone puts in all their effort and results come out.”

Come Friday night, soccer coaches in town will get to see what a top high school match looks like in Southern California.